TOAF Artist Rosi Di Meglio shares with us her journey from being a student to an emerging artist with gallery representation! Read Rosi's story below from her own words.
From left: TOAF Artists Peter Owusu-Ansah, Rosi Di Meglio, and Kate Maura with TOAF staff Ania Harmata and Lavender Cheng at TOAF x Stackt Market in July 2021
Why did you apply to TOAF?
In 2015, I applied as a student and was kindly rejected that year. The person wrote me and told me that when my work was more consistent to re-apply. So here I was in my final year of University and my professor Leopold Plotek had mentioned that I could start to approach galleries, that my work was of a professional grade, and that I should take the risk. I decided to re-apply to TOAF for my final year as a student. It was affordable for me as a Montreal student, even to apply and carry the costs of the trip, etc. I applied and got accepted. I decided to try to do all the things necessary to get my artwork out into the world. I had never participated in a fair, and I wanted to see if it was for me or not. I was still trying to see what kind of artist I was comfortable being. Participating in the Fair gave me exposure, but also gave the opportunity to talk to people about my work, and get feedback from them. TOAF was my market study/research!
How has your participation in the Online Fair, and stackt market benefitted you as an emerging artist?
TOAF has given me more confidence in myself as an artist and my work. Believe it or not, I learned what kind of artist I want to be at TOAF. As an emerging artist, it is hard to figure out what lane to go in. There are so many lanes, it can be difficult to recognise yours. Trying everything once is worth the learning. Being at TOAF x Stackt Market taught me about the art market and introduced me to collectors and fellow artists… TOAF did a great job at marketing the event. We did a live Instagram tour on the hottest day… A collector saw the video, and she looked me up, came down, and bought one of my paintings from my Instagram. I did not even have the painting with me, but once I returned to Montreal, I wrapped it up and shipped it to her. I recently was in Toronto again for Art Toronto, and the collector and I had a lovely lunch together. My participation at TOAF allowed me to make contacts, build relationships, and keep those contacts even today.
Lions Fountain by Rosi Maria Di Meglio, 2020, Oil, charcoal on Canvas. Still available at TOAF.ca
Please tell us the story about how Corkin Gallery has reached out to you during TOAF at Stackt Market.
Before coming to Toronto, I did my due diligence as an artist, and I sent the gallery a letter inviting them to come and visit me. And if not, at least I had introduced myself to them. On my third day at TOAF x Stackt Market, an art consultant came to visit me, and we had a lovely talk. She mentioned that a gallery would be contacting me, she was certain of it. I found that so sweet and supportive of her. I did not know that she came to scout me out. The next day, Jane Corkin called me on my cell phone, and invited me to the gallery with 5 of my paintings so that she could see them in person, and from that, the rest is history.
Would you recommend TOAF to fellow artists?
Yes, I have recommended TOAF to many fellow artists. Some of my artist friends also did TOAF right out of school. It is a lot of work, but any career is a lot of work, if you are putting in 100%. I will continue to recommend to artists to try TOAF. I think it would be really cool, if you had several market spaces, so that visitors and residents could discover the artists. I saw TOAF x Stackt Market as a new business model for TOAF. The pandemic created new opportunities for many spaces. I found the people who frequented Stackt Market were of the younger generation, and exposing them to real physical art is an opportunity to revive visual arts. Toronto is a great city!
Jerusalem Landscapes, Rosi Maria Di Meglio, 2021, Oil, charcoal on wood. Still available at TOAF.ca
You can still view Rosi's works on her TOAF profile. Follow her on Instagram @rosimariadimeglio. Visit her website at rosimariadimeglio.com
