In August 2024, Examiner reporter, Declan Durrant, wrote an introductory press article about our then new gallery. Nobody could have understood our intentions better ... or described them more eloquently, so here is part of what he wrote :

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“In a former storeroom above the Centreway Arcade ( in Launceston, Tas ), the walls have been painted white and the artists are wandering in regularly. They hang their paintings and, after, they sit down and speak over tea. 

 

"Everything about Raincoat Contemporary Art Space is in that small drama. The pieces are on the walls and the chat is table-side. As one of its three owners told me: ‘It is just a small place’…. “Raincoat is aesthetically unlike any other gallery in the city. It is a former throw away kind of place: two rooms separated by a small kitchenette, which, in a few months ( was ) transformed in an ad hoc manner. It now has the sensibility of the New York artist’s loft where punters and painters and sculptors and poets float dreamily in and out.

 

“That, along with its function, make it singular for the city. Raincoat has a unique vision to offer an exhibition venue that “separates itself” from the traditions of commercial galleries - it doesn’t seek high financial return For its owners, ‘It’s about the artists, not us,” they want to keep the costs low and give to the talented and often struggling ‘of whatever age or persuasion’ a chance to get their work out there alongside a series of impressive artists who pop in for their shows… And so they have.”

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Now in our third year, the three of us, behind the scenes, are amazed by how this place has taken on a life of its own and grown in stature in the community. There is always a steady stream of wonderful, creative people - coming in, offering up astonishing work that nobody has yet seen or appreciated... and beside them are so many supportive and generous legends of the Art Scene .. eager to be part of what is happening and happy to put up their own stunning work here in solidarity. Support has also come from other, far longer-established, galleries in town - and from all of the people, from Tasmania and further afield, dropping in - to perhaps just look, to sit and talk, or to be soothed or stimulated by what they see and experience. Some like what they see so much, they even take it home ! And if they can't afford to buy, they come back to simply reconnect. How good is that !

We three ( Chris, Patrick and Helen ), feel privileged and grateful to be a part of all of this.