A collective of working artists founded Espacio Gallery on Bethnal Green Road in 2012, converting a street-level shopfront into a white-walled exhibition space run for and by its members rather than a commercial dealer. Graciela Harger now directs the gallery, overseeing an open-call programme that typically turns exhibitions over every three or four days, a pace that has let it host well over three hundred shows since opening. Artists hire the space directly, covering costs through gallery membership rather than sales commission, which keeps the programme open to painters, photographers and sculptors who might not otherwise secure a London show. The gallery sits close to Brick Lane, within an area dense with studios and project spaces. Espacio remains funded by its exhibiting artists, with no parent organisation or additional venues beyond the Bethnal Green Road building.
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