Having derided galleries in general, I must say that the Morrison Hotel, Soho, New York is a brilliant gallery and not in the least bit intimidating. It’s a photographic gallery comprising only about 400 square feet on Prince Street. From the outside, a single print is prominently displayed against a faded off-white net curtain – here, there is little sense of retail journey – just immense respect for the artwork on display. Tiny in proportions, Morrison specializes in rock, pop and celebrity photographs, mostly from the 60’s and 70’s by well known photographers. Terry O’Neill, Gered Mankowitz and the late Iain MacMillan typify the work here. Outtakes from the Abbey Road shoot, the Stones for Beggars Banquet and Faye Dunaway ‘After the Oscars’ shoot typify the offer.
Morrison is the antithesis of most galleries and it exudes integrity and passion for the work on offer. Aaron, the guy running the gallery when I visited, is incredibly informative, engaging and warm. He is genuinely interesting and interested. There was no sense of closeted archives, precious objet and aloof attitude. In the 30 minutes I spent there, several passers-by wandered in to peruse the work – all were welcomed with a smile. You got the sense that this was a public space (which it is) and there was no obligation to buy (which there isn’t).
This is how a gallery should be. It’s in a down-to-earth street (albeit one of the most fashionable streets in all of NYC) and its door is always metaphorically open to the public. It may be tiny, it may not be a designed environment but for the vast majority of the shopping public, it is an experience to enjoy and educate. For those who want to buy, and there are many, the prints are authentic, beautifully printed and highly investable.
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