Rebecca Hossack is the international art gallery championing Indigenous artists

Phoebe Blogg Published September 27, 2023 at 1.00pm (AWST)

arts

Gallery founder Rebecca Hossack pictured in her London home. (Image: Heathcliff O'Malley)

All Australian artists whose work is profiled, stocked or featured overseas, know that the opportunities that stem from this international exposure are far from small.

Aware of this, London-based Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery is striving to shine a light on Australian Aboriginal artists who may not otherwise have the chance to feature overseas.

Located in London, England in the suburb of Fitzrobia, the Gallery is a commercial art gallery that strives to challenge current trends via a deep interest in Australian Aboriginal paintings.

*A collection of Walrpiri paintings hanging of Rebecca Hossack's gallery walls. (Instagram @rebeccahossackartgallery)*

Founded by Melbourne-born, degree-qualified gallery director Rebecca Hossack, the contemporary London art gallery was actually the first art gallery in Europe to exhibit Australian Aboriginal paintings.

Despite promoting such work through the gallery's regular Songlines seasons, the majority of Aboriginal artworks featured within the gallery would not have been seen – nor available – in the UK, if it was not for Hossack and her gallery wanting to profile them.

Having served as the Australian cultural attaché in London, taking the title as the first Conservative Councillor in Bloomsbury (for over 20 years) regularly writing for the national press and lecturing internationally on Aboriginal art as part of NADFAS, (the National Association of Decorative and Fine Art Societies) gallery director Rebecca Hossack brings much more to this role than just her name.

Through the work of painters such as Carla Kranendonk, David Whitaker, Mersuka Dopazo, Emma Haworth, Barbara Macfarlane, sculptor Ross Bonfanti, ceramicist Avital Sheffer, printmakers Phil Shaw and Rose Blake, the gallery celebrates and promotes inclusiveness, individuality, spirit, innovation, technical accomplishment and beauty.

Exhibiting across a broad spectrum of Western Contemporary Art, whilst progressively moving against some of the more dominant currents of the modern art scene, has seen the gallery emerge as one of the most unique in the city.

*Behind the scenes with some of the Rebecca Hossack team responsible for coordinating the three galleries. (Image: Instagram @rebeccahossackartgallery)*

Whilst the London gallery is commonly coined as the business's flagship, Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery has two other locations in New York and Miami.

In addition to monthly exhibitions, the successful art gallery also exhibits at roughly 28 international art fairs per year.

Regularly collaborating with – and selling to – public galleries and institutions has seen the gallery work on exhibitions and had works acquired by the British Museum, Barbican Centre, National Gallery of Australia, Queensland Art Gallery and the Gallery of Modern Art.

Director Hossack's continual commitment to artist individuality and artistic vision within the gallery has attracted a devoted following of clients and collectors, including Sir Paul Smith, Bruce Chatwin, P.J. Harvey, John Hegley and more.

*A look inside Rebecca Hossack's London gallery. (Image: www.rebeccahossack.com)*

Over the course of three decades, director Rebecca Hossack has built a creative space with an international reputation for innovation, individuality, energy and excellence.

One individual who can attest to this is Warlukurlangu Artists Aboriginal Corporation manager, Cecilia Alfonso. With the Rebecca Hossack gallery having spotlighted and showcased a series of Warlukurlangu artists' work, Alfonso has worked with Hossack and her seen her commitment to the gallery and it's Aboriginal artists for quite some time.

"I've worked with Rebecca for roughly 25 years… She has had the number one Australian Indigenous Art Gallery in London for a very long time," said Ms Alfonso.

"In terms of marketing Indigenous artwork overseas and to the world, she is a great ambassador for that.

"She is a passionate advocate of Australian Indigenous art and has worked consistently for 20 or 30 years to bring this art to the world."

Known as one of the only – if not the only – art galleries to so heavily profile Australian Aboriginal artists and their work, it's not unusual to predict that 2023 will see the reputation and presence of Rebecca Hossack's Art Gallery increase and expand – in more ways than one.

Due to travel commitments, Rebecca Hossack was unavailable for an interview. Warlukurlangu Artists Aboriginal Corporation manager, Cecilia Alfonso spoke on behalf of the several Aboriginal artists who have featured in the gallery since its launch.

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