Jen Bekman

NEW YORK—Says Jen Bekman, who owns a gallery of the same name in SoHo: One of the great pleasures I take in collecting, and in my collection, is that I have personal relationships with all the artists whose work I own. I often buy something and then subsequently end up showing their work. I've also received a lot of amazing gifts from artists I've worked with."

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My First Acquisition:

The first piece I bought was Tema Stauffer's Gas Station. It was $700.

I first saw Tema's work at a group exhibition. My experience at that show, which was a very informal private event, was one of the key events that led me to actually open my gallery. I'd gone to the opening with a friend of mine, and he'd taken an interest in Tema's work.

It was hard to find out a lot of information about her work from the materials provided, so I tracked her down and brought her over to my friend to discuss the piece and her work overall.

Creating that connection and participating in the conversation that ensued was a light bulb moment for me. I didn't know it then, but a few months later, Tema would be exhibiting her work in my gallery's inaugural exhibition alongside Mara Bodis-Wollner and Dana Miller.

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The Favorite Work in My Collection:

My favorite piece is an acrylic on paper painting by Agnes Barley. It was a gift from the artist; similar paintings are around $5,000. It's incredibly soothing and deceptively simple. It's hung in my living room for years, and I never tire of looking at it.

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My Most Recent Acquisitions:

My most recent purchase was very (very!) modest. I bought several of Kate Bingaman's absolutely genius "Daily Purchase drawings, from her Web site, Obsessive Consumption. They are lovely and special and a true bargain at only $25 each.

I gave a couple away as gifts. My friends Caterina [Fake] and Stewart [Butterfield], the founders of Flickr [the popular Web site for sharing digital photos], got a [very appropriately titled] drawing of Kate's. My publicist, Lauren Cerand, received a drawing of a pair of Gold Shoes, which I'd deemed very Lauren.

I kept two to myself: one of a moleskine notebook and another of an ice cream sandwich, two items I love immeasurably.
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The Work I Own That Has Appreciated Most in Value:

The answer to this is yet to be seen. My passion is for all that's emerging: art, artists, collectors and, since I suppose I'm an emerging gallerist, galleries! I think we're all in the process of appreciating, and I'm enjoying the ride.

The artist most ascendant from my exhibition inventory is probably Swoon. I curated a group show called "Made in NY" in Summer of 2003; it was Swoon's NYC gallery debut. She showed alongside other street artists such as Darius and Downey and Vinnie Ray, as well as some amazing photographers, including Mitch Epstein.

Swoon installed several of her now well-known newsprint woodblock prints and also created several amazing handmade books. I imagine that the books have appreciated in value considerably, but they're not for sale!