Interview with gallery owner,
Elektra

B: Hi Elektra, I am so glad to be sitting down with you today to get to know you and your gallery a bit more.  It is a beautiful space.  I love how it feels like an art studio and gallery all at once, its so immersive. 

  

E: Thank you.  I always say, I have the best job in the world to be surrounded by great art every day.  

  

B: So you opened your gallery in 1998, 25 years ago.  What inspired you do open your own art gallery? 

  

E:  I worked at a prestigious gallery in San Francisco for many years, which sparked the idea.  I was very lucky to discover this beautiful theater space with a great big window that really enhances the beauty of the art.  The space started as a silent movie theater in 1914 then it evolved into a play theater for Shakespearean plays.  I feel that gives it a mystical quality! 

  

B: Why the name Galerie Elektra? 

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E: Elektra is actually from an ancient Greek play; she was a Greek princess from the Iliad and I thought the connection was quite extraordinary because this theater was once called the Princess Theatre.  It seems to have been in the stars for me to be here.  

  

B: Why Sausalito? 

  

E: Because it is a wonderful international destination.  It has such beauty being on the Bay!  I moved to Marin in the 70s because I felt that it was like a home away from home.  Sausalito reminds me of one of the little towns by the sea I would visit growing up in Italy. 

  

B: What artists do you represent?  How do you choose which artists and artwork to include in your gallery?  What makes these artists special? 

  

E: I always first look for a uniqueness in their vision.  It is important to me that they are original.  

 

Any artist can paint a tree with some texture, but certainly not the way Rozer does!  People recognize that and that’s why she is one our most successful artists. The way she presents the tree in a delightful unique way, it has an unforgettable quality.  

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Pellischi is a favorite of mine.  He is depicting magnificent impressionist landscapes without the constriction of the pointillism or brushstrokes; it is far more natural to me.   His technique depicts the stratification of the soil and the Earth, and this is his unique vision.  He has the power to connect you with soul and soil.  

  

 

B:  On your website you have a quote that says that art is not what the artist sees, but much more about what the art evokes in us personally.  How would you describe your taste in art?  What does it evoke for you? 

  

E: My taste in art is very simple.  It is only what I feel and how I connect.  It’s not what the artist paints but it’s how we relate to the image.  And we all relate in a different way because we all have different personal memories.  

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B:  I wonder, do you have any special memories of guests in the gallery and what they shared about what the art evoked for them? 

  

E:  What is truly fulfilling for me is the wonderful notes I receive from my clients sharing with me how much they are enjoying their painting and how much they like to share it with their friends.

 

This is beautiful, art is meant to be shared.  It is gift that comes from the hand of the artist as original works.  

  

B: That’s so wonderful!  You’ve expressed in other conversations how many return clients you have, why do people keep coming back to Galerie Elektra?  

  

E: They remember us.  We share about our lives through the artwork, and the gallery operates with the value of trust which has seemed to leave a mark on their memory.

  

B: Galerie Elektra is such a unique gallery offering original art for insightful collectors for the past 25 years.  Thank you so much for your time!