We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kristin DeAngelis a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Kristin, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Was there an experience or lesson you learned at a previous job that’s benefited your career afterwards?
“No one cares as much as you.”
My husband and I owned a Gallery, but I ran it from finding artists, to curating, to hanging to marketing to managing the finances. While we built it out together, I was the one who shed blood, sweat and tears over everything. I went to school for art and marketing…. but I had never worked in a gallery. I spent much of my time with headphones on listening to podcasts about running businesses and being a woman in business. I listened to theSkimm all the time. And as I recall, it was Christie Hefner who said in her interview back in 2018 “No one cares as much as you.” And it has stayed with me all this time.
As an entrepreneur, you think about and obsess over every single thing. It can be exhausting both mentally and physically. From the 50,000 ft view to the minute details. And no matter how much someone loves you, truly wants to help and/or is coming from the right place, they just won’t be able to think of all the things you will or in the way you will. You will want to be in control of everything. It is your brand. It just won’t be enough.
At some point, you will want to change. You will give someone a task or responsibility. And they will not meet your expectations. For example, I allowed someone to run my Gallery so I could attend a funeral. They failed to complete a sale. The credit card did not actually go through, but because it was not their business, they did not take the extra step to make sure the transaction was complete. Luckily it was not for a large amount. I learned that I needed to write down all the steps and include writing “Make sure the transaction goes through by waiting for the sale complete page”. And unless the person has some skin in the game, they are just not going to care that 110%.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
Kristin J. DeAngelis is a seasoned professional with over 12 years of experience as a Curator, Art Dealer, and Art Educator. In 2016, she established her own gallery, 107 Bowers Gallery & ArtSpace, where she curated 25 exhibitions featuring a diverse array of both local and international artists. Alongside her gallery work, Kristin launched the Young Masters Art Class, an arts education program initially based at her gallery and later expanding to various educational centers and colleges in Jersey City.
As a freelance Curator, Kristin collaborated with prestigious spaces in Jersey City, including the lobbies of SILVERMAN Buildings. During her tenure as Deputy Director with Art Fair 14C for two iterations, she significantly enhanced opportunities for artists, broadened public access to fine art, bolstered careers in the visual arts, and activated under-recognized arts areas.
Since March 2022, Kristin has served as the Director of Community Outreach at Mana Contemporary, where she warmly welcomes the local and NYC metro community and beyond to engage with art exhibitions and artists within the building. Leveraging her background in art, over 30 years of marketing expertise, and a proven track record in art sales, Kristin sees herself as the roadie supporting artists as they navigate their careers, understanding that while artists are the rock stars, she plays a vital role in helping them reach their next gig.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
The most rewarding aspect is when you are able to give back. I launched and manage the Future Art Leaders at Mana Contemporary.
The Mana Contemporary Future Art Leaders Program, launched in Fall 2022, offers an enriching platform for JC Arts high school students from Jersey City Public Schools to delve into various career avenues within a renowned arts institution. This distinctive program seamlessly blends museum and gallery atmospheres with artist studios, providing participants with an immersive experience. Through curated learning sessions, students receive invaluable guidance and evaluations from seasoned professionals representing diverse sectors of the arts, fostering the development of leadership skills and a comprehensive understanding of the art industry’s dynamics.
Broken up in a choice of Fall or Spring semester in the school year, the Future Art Leaders Program is a paid work-study opportunity extended to a juried cohort of high school students. Over the course of 10 weeks, students convene for weekly 90-minute sessions, engaging in educational modules, collaborative discussions, and receiving continuous mentorship from industry experts. This structured approach is designed to lay a robust groundwork for students to refine and fortify their leadership acumen.
The program culminates in a project where participants craft interpretive materials and conceptualize program offerings for public engagement. This includes the creation and execution of tours of Mana’s semi-permanent legacy galleries informed by meticulous research on collections and exhibitions.
In 2024, Mana Contemporary received a Proclamation from the City of Jersey City in honor of the Future Art Leaders Program.
The Mana Contemporary Future Art Leaders Program is supported by the public funds from the Jersey City Arts & Culture Trust Fund.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
I knew I was on the path to changing my career long before I left my corporate job… I was so determined to change my career, it exhausts me to think about everything I did. I just did not say no to anything… I think I was resilient just from my sheer will to succeed.
I spent years in various sales and marketing roles – most recently in consumer package goods – fragrance and cosmetics. I flew around the country calling on Walmart, Target and then a bunch of smaller retailers out in Nebraska and Wisconson. Then one day, my husband and I inviested in a commercial real estate property. And he was like “.. and now you can open an art gallery..” He forgot that I don’t do anything halfway. So with my full time, flying around the country 60+ hours a week job, I kick started my foray into a being a Gallery Director/Art Dealer and founded 107 Bowers Gallery & ArtSpace.
I said yes to everything related to what I was doing. I thought, if I can get the experience, then I can be confident. So I said yes to every opportunity that came my way. There was always something to learn from marketing to working with artists to hanging work to speaking to a journalist to creating labels to negotiating a sale… to talking about sale tax. Which I did more than talk about art.
I had the opportunity to leave my corporate job with a severance package… and that only lead to more yes… so with that free time, I opened up my door to be an art educator at my gallery and launching my Young Masters Art Class. I opened exhibitions at my gallery, hung shows at local offices, taught children in community centers, curated shows in lobby spaces, took a role as Deputy Director at Art Fair 14C… I was exhausted…. but I was confident that I could do what I was doing where I was doing it because I spoke with experience. And I knew people. So if I was ever unsure about something… I was always one step away from learning how to do it.
And all this led to the moment that the Director of Mana Contemporary, Kele McComsey, came up to me and said “Why do I see you everywhere I go in Jersey City?” I laughed and said “…because I have three businesses that I am running. Why do I see you?” Then he was asking if I could come in and to talk about some help on a project at Mana. I recall thinking I was so tired the words he was using was like Cheerios being thrown at my forehead – just bouncing off without sinking in. I kept smiling and nodding.. confident I would figure it out later. I must have impressed him somewhere as he ended up offering me a full time job as Director of Community Outreach at Mana Contemporary where I have been for 2 1/2 years.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://deangelisart.com
- Instagram: @kjdeangelis @107bowersgallery
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kjdeangelis
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristin-j-deangelis/
Image Credits
Image of me in front of the Gallery door with a black dress: Alexis Rotter
Image of the ribbon cutting William Spencer