A Third Gallery to Close at Minnesota Street Project

""What's happened now is that the galleries have a cost problem, but it's not really related to their space," Rappaport says. "People aren't buying art from galleries.""

""Then we came into January with this new administration and right off the bat the market dropped," he explains. "It reached the point where I was only selling to museums for a while, and you can't make a living just selling to museums.""

""Holding Paula and Ed's gallery together, really doing excellent shows, getting reviews, placing works in museums - all of that has been a success," Trimble says. "But it wasn't enough to support the overall program in the bigger picture if I didn't have income.""

Several downtown galleries initially moved to Minnesota Street Project during 2010s rent hikes. Current cost pressures stem from falling sales rather than space costs, as collectors are buying less from galleries. Post-pandemic sales briefly improved but began declining in 2023, with an administration change coinciding with a sharper market drop. Some dealers found themselves selling primarily to museums, which proved insufficient for sustaining operations. Longstanding galleries represent notable Bay Area artists and estates but face financial strain. International art fairs generate most sales for some dealers but present high costs and risks for small to mid-size galleries.

Read at Kqed