Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Kristine Go. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Kristine, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

MK Apothecary came about because my partner, Michael Aguirre and I wanted to create a space to curate, showcase and highlight contemporary artists who push the boundaries in their style. We didn’t want to have a gallery that shows one style of work, because as artists ourselves, our styles are very different. Michael is a classically trained fine artist and I have a background in textiles. We both earned our Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Art and graduated from the Academy of Art in San Francisco, California. We both worked as creatives peddling our work and making our way as art and design professionals and we had a dream to one day have a space where we can live, work and sell work by like-minded artists and designers. Fast forward to 2019, we turned an old pharmacy into a contemporary art gallery in the suburbs outside of Philadelphia and called in MK Apothecary.

Our goal is to support and encourage the evolution of the artist. The most inspiring thing for us is to be around artists who are pursuing a new level of mastery and are exploring their individuality within the complexities of being human. MK Apothecary focuses on building and nurturing a the long-term relationship with artists so they can truly explore their artistic expression and their medium of expertise to become “The New Masters” of this century.

The group of artists we work with come from different backgrounds, some are emerging or mid-career; or they are established artists with an emerging style. We purposefully work with artists who create in different styles and their work compliments each other when curated together. Most people today collect artwork that reflects the multi-facets of their lives; we want to provide the artwork for that collector.

Kristine, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am Kristine Go, Co-founder and Director of MK Apothecary. My professional background has always been in art and design – as a kid, I always wanted to be a fashion designer and an artist. I studied and graduated from the Academy of Art in San Francisco and have since worked in the apparel, interiors and social experiences industries. For the past couple of decades, I have worked with corporate retailers designing, directing and curating concepts, color and textile designs. Currently, I am pursuing my Masters in Business Administration at Rutgers University so that I can leverage my creative experience and be well-versed in the nuances and logistics in business to propel the professional growth for the gallery and the gallery artists.

MK Apothecary is a contemporary art gallery where we sell artwork directly to the collector from our physical gallery space and online sales. We participate in art fairs, including Art Fair 14C in Jersey City, NJ and Aqua Miami during Art Basel week in Miami, Florida. We also work with businesses and companies to activate spaces through art. This can include curating pop-up art shows to enrich the community and/or proposing installations with MK Apothecary artists and/or local artists within the business location.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

As most people did, we had to pivot how we ran our business during the lock-down period of the pandemic. We had just opened our gallery to the public in May 2019 and hadn’t been open for a full year and the lock-down happened. Any plans or future goals of the gallery basically had to change if we wanted to stay in business. Although other businesses were going virtual, we decided not to do any virtual openings. Part of it had to do with us not knowing how to make a virtual art exhibit engaging and we had an actual physical gallery space that we wanted to figure out what to do with. Since our gallery is located in the suburbs, near parks. We started to set up art shows where people could look at art on their walks through our gallery windows with no physical contact. We set up no-contact delivery and pick-up for original art. When the lock-down restrictions started to lift, we had to make adaptive art openings to sell and showcase work. We had to learn to be flexible and creative in how to run an art gallery and connect with the community; in doing so, we also learned which artists align to how we work and how to cultivate long-term relationships with collectors and businesses wanting to activate their spaces through art.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

What helps build our reputation within the market is authenticity, consistency and knowing our personal purpose….and treating everyone and everything with value. With MK Apothecary, it’s a reflection of us – collectively as business owners, our relationship with the artists and how we feel about recognizing the value in artistic expression and building commerce in a fine art sector. The messaging we put out on social media our conversations and all interactions are authentic to who Michael and I are. We also do our best to authentically represent the artist as they are. Consistency is key, even when things are hard or on those days where we’re tired. We tend to look at the big picture and overall impact if we are not consistent and it doesn’t align to why we started the gallery in the first place. Which leads to knowing our personal purpose is key and how it integrates into the business. Inspiration is my personal motivator and purpose in life – in all the things and for Michael, sharing a space and having common ground with others shows up in how we run the gallery. Of course, knowledge and experience is there too, but I think it falls flat when we rely only on that. Treating others and their work with value upholds everything. Might even go beyond kindness, because we truly value and enjoy advocating for the value of our artists, collectors and supporting spectators or else MK Apothecary wouldn’t exist as it does today.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.mkapothecarygallery.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mkapothecary/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MKApothecary/

Image Credits
The photo of us in front of a train painting credit: Reena Rose Sibayan | The Jersey Journal The painting of a NYC storefront: “Overthrow”, oil on canvas, by David Tyndall, 2023 The painting of a beer can: “Tall Boy” oil on canvas, by Aurora Abzug, 2023 The painting of a blow pop wrapper: “Reprieve” oil on panel by Jodi Gerbi, 2023