We had two days to curate and install our exhibition. We tried a number of different arrangements with the artworks to achieve the best results within the space. We had to work with some quite intrusive objects that were not allowed to be moved from the gallery; for example some wooden crates which we ended up moving to one side of the room. Half we covered with rugs for the 'chilling, seated area' and the other half were stacked and used for the bar area which worked very well. We also had a plank of brown heavy wood that was on the floor of the other side of the loft. At first, we felt quite disheartened by this because it was far too heavy to do anything with but knowing there was nothing we could do about this, we used it as a small platform to stand on to view Bertie's smaller intricate works. This worked well because it invited the viewer to come up close to the pieces which Bertie wanted. 

​

From this experience, I learnt that it is important to ask more questions about the space when you initially go around to view it. Not only with the intrusive objects but in this case there was also one side of the room that was almost impossible to hang anything off because it was made from thick concrete, with a thin layer of plaster. I attempted to use a hammer and nails and two different types of industrial drills and nothing would go through the layer of concrete. I even considered using velcro tape but my paintings are large and heavy and so I was not happy to trust that. In the end, I managed by hammering in loads of nails in a straight line into that first layer of plaster so that even though they were only half into the wall, they could share the weight of the painting. From now on, I will no longer just presume that gallery walls can be drilled into, I will always ask to make sure.

I was really pleased with the end result of the exhibition. The artworks were curated very well and the space looked professional. We also had a great turnout to our private view.