The Black art market has changed dramatically over the past 30 years. Today there are hundreds of galleries marketing Black art. But when Savacou Fine Art Gallery opened in 1985, exhibition space for the Black artist was rare- even in New York, a global mecca for arts and culture. The exhibition venues were limited to a few non-profit institutions and home-based, appointment- only galleries. We believed it was time for New York to have a visible, full-service, full-time, professional gallery devoted to the promotion of Black art. Someone had to take on the challenge Savacou did- with integrity, professionalism and passion.
PHILOSOPHY AND MISSION
In the mythology of the Carib Indians, for whom the turquoise sea is named, the Savacou was known as the warrior bird. We took the Savacou as our icon for it says exactly who we are – pioneers and warriors in the service of Black art. Our mission is the promotion of established and emerging artists from the Black Diaspora, with strong commitment to quality and value, high ethical standards, collector education and a strong community involvement.
SELECTED ARTISTS
Among the artists we market are-, Charles Bibs, Leroy Campbell, Melvin Clark, Sadikisha Collier, Cecil Cooper, Ernie Crichlow, Carl Davis, James Denmark, Francks Deceus, James Denmark, Escoffery, Frank Frazier, Verna Hart, Joseph Holston, Marion Howard, Laura James, Eli Quince, Grace Kisa, Karl Mc Intosh, Frank Morrison, Ademola Olugebefola, Charley Palmer, Robert Reid, Isha Shabaka, Vitus Shell, Ernani Silva, TAFA, William Tolliver, Willie Torbert and Ken Wright.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
From its inception, Savacou Fine Art Gallery has been at the forefront of, and a leading force in the movement to popularize the art of Black artists. And over the past 30 years we have built thousands of Black art collections around the world. In fact many Americans, who began collecting Black art after 1985, purchased their first work of art from Savacou Fine Art Gallery.
Since Savacou Fine Art Gallery was for many years one of few exhibition venues for Black artists, (who for the most part were denied access to mainstream galleries and museums), we have marketed many of today’s leading Black contemporary artists and played a significant role in the development of many careers.
The gallery was responsible for the concept of an African American pavilion at the New York ArtExpo and was largely responsible for organizing and promoting the first such pavilion in 1991. Its co-founder has conducted seminars on marketing African American art at ArtExpo New York, and on collecting African American art at the National Black Fine Art show, The Museum of African Art and at ArtExpo New York. She has also lectured on these subjects to high school and college students, business, professional and community groups. Savacou Fine Art Gallery also spearheaded one of the earliest attempts to organize and set standards for Black art galleries through the organization of the Association of Black Owned Galleries in 1991. Continuing in the tradition of being a visionary, in 2004 the gallery co-founder launched Art Off The Main, an international art fair showcasing contemporary African, Caribbean & Latin American Art. This was the first art fair to spotlight Caribbean & African Art in the United States and the first to spotlight Latin American Art in New York. She also conceptualized and cofounded the Caribbean Fine art Fair (CaFA) and is the founder of The Arts, Culture and Enterprise(ACE) Project, a New York based non-profit, committed to helping African diasporic communities realize the economic potential of their creative industries.
In addition to pursuing commercial activities, Savacou Fine Art Gallery has always been active in community programs. The gallery space is opened free of charge to community groups, and among the events we have hosted are book signings, poetry readings, film screenings, and political roundtables, educational seminars and charity auctions. African Action on Aids, Africa America Institute, Association of Black Women Attorneys, Aspira, Caribbean Cultural Center of New York Inc., Conference of Minority Transportation Officials, Delta Alpha Sorority, Heartbeats of Jamaica, Jack and Jill Foundation, The National Urban League, The National Urban League, The New York Urban League, The Association of Black Bankers, The New York Urban League and The Association of Black Bankers.
MEDIA CREDITS
Savacou Fine Art Gallery has been featured in, Art Business News, Artspeak, The New York Daily News, New York Newsday, The New York Times, The New York Amsterdam News, New York Carib News, The Jamaican Daily Gleaner, Caribbean life, City Sun, Los Angeles Times, Westchester Business Journal; Gannet Suburban newspapers; Décor, Black Enterprise, Essence, Art Preview, Country Living magazines, Network Journal; Black Enterprise Business Journal, WBET and Fox 5-New York television and WBAI and WLIB radio.