Two prominent London-based gallerists are launching a revolutionary art advisory service aimed at transforming how people collect art, moving away from what they describe as an increasingly transactional marketplace toward a more meaningful, values-driven approach.
Alice Black, founder of her namesake gallery, and Tatiana Cheneviere, who established Pipeline gallery, have joined forces to create Black & Cheneviere (BC), a new art advisory that promises to offer collectors a bold alternative to conventional art consulting practices.
The duo's mission centers on encouraging collectors to align their purchasing decisions with their personal values by promoting a slower, more thoughtful approach to building art collections. For some buyers, this could mean developing what they call a "patronage mindset" – one rooted in sustained, reciprocal relationships with artists rather than fleeting, arm's-length transactions.
The launch of BC comes at a critical time for the art market, which continues to work through a two-year correction period. Many dealers have reported to industry publications that collectors are becoming increasingly selective in what's being described as a buyer's market. This shift has created an environment where collectors are taking more time to make measured decisions while negotiating harder on prices that have remained high over the past decade.
The BC philosophy aligns perfectly with this current market trend. According to the founders, their approach represents part of a broader generational movement toward more active, values-led engagement in the art world.
"The art world is undergoing a quiet transformation," Black and Cheneviere explained in a joint statement. "The old boundary lines are being redrawn – between artist and collector, institution and audience. In this shifting landscape, BC represents part of a new generational movement towards a more active, values-led form of engagement."
The gallerists argue that art collecting has become increasingly transactional over recent years, with conversations focusing more on the art market rather than the art world in its fuller, more holistic sense. They believe collectors, while playing a central role in sustaining and shaping culture, have often been positioned at a "sanitized distance" – removed from the creative process itself.
"Like any ecosystem, the health of the art world depends on active, interconnected participants at every level who feel purpose and agency in their role," they continued. "With the departure of short-term speculators, we're witnessing a pendulum swing – a market correction that opens space for a new kind of art participant."
BC's mission is to restore the direct connection between artist, artwork, and collector, bringing them closer to the creative process and fostering deeper engagement that is slower, more thoughtful, and human-centered. The advisory views art as a lived experience rather than just a leveraged asset.
The founders' backgrounds as gallerists provide them with unique insights into the conversations that happen between artists and collectors. Having opened their respective galleries during a period that prioritized cultural capital over commercial capital, they feel uniquely positioned to guide collectors back to the heart of art collecting.
"We are used to engaging with the art world at its source – the artists – and we feel passionately that collecting finds its way back to the heart of things," they explained. "Collectors today have been distanced from the artists and the source of their collecting, and as advisers who are also gallerists, we feel uniquely positioned to correct this."
The gallerists are critical of what they see as prevalent "box-ticking collecting" that has emerged as contemporary art became commodified. They argue that many advisors simply offer collection building, while BC provides that service and more by considering how collectors can support artists, galleries, and institutions in meaningful ways.
"Many advisers just offer collection building. We are offering that and more by considering how else collectors can support artists, galleries, and institutions," they stated. "BC encourages independent thinking, individualism, and curiosity. It seeks to move away from homogenized collecting and instead focuses on intentional, values-driven approaches that reflect personal convictions and interests."
The timing of BC's launch reflects broader changes in collector behavior. As market participants slow down and become more conscious, they're looking for ways to participate meaningfully in a slower market environment. There's been a sense of people taking stock and reflecting on their intentions behind collecting, asking important questions about what drives their engagement with art.
"People are fed up with the incessant streams of PDFs and art fairs, and need to find meaning within it," Black and Cheneviere observed. "BC offers a strong footing in the ecosystem for the collector and a more intentional role that goes beyond just buying and selling."
To complement their advisory services, the pair is launching ArtAperitivo, a new project that reflects BC's slower philosophy. This initiative will pair curated gallery tours or studio visits with salon-style aperitivo gatherings, offering a relaxed yet insightful way to experience art while building a dynamic, engaged community of like-minded individuals.
"ArtAperitivo is an opportunity for us to understand the values of the community we are engaged with through meaningful conversation and accessibility," they explained. "The art world became something of a closed circuit, with many would-be participants finding it difficult to access. We intend to crack open these hidden corners and closed doors."
Despite the challenging market conditions, the founders see opportunities in their approach. Their model specifically targets collectors who aren't solely focused on chasing market trends. Instead, BC invites collectors to consider not just what they want to gain from their engagement with art, but also what they're willing to contribute to the broader art ecosystem.
The advisory's approach to encouraging patronage involves helping collectors identify what they care about – their values, the issues that move them, and how art can serve as a lens through which to explore these interests. For some collectors, this might mean engaging with artists in ways that support their practice, whether through contributing to production or studio costs, sponsoring new projects, or offering direct support outside traditional gallery systems.
"Black & Cheneviere invites collectors to consider what they care about – their values, the issues that move them, and how art can be a lens through which to explore them," the founders explained. "For some, this will be an opportunity to engage with artists in ways that support their practice."
This might include developing what they call a patronage mindset – one rooted in sustained, reciprocal relationships rather than fleeting, arm's-length purchases. The goal is to foster a culture that encourages this more patron-oriented approach to collecting.
"We want to foster a culture that encourages a more patronage mindset, and sometimes those doors have to be opened for you to even see what is possible," they noted. "This is our opportunity, collectively, to define our 21st century artistic époque. We believe that is a compelling proposition."
The launch of BC represents a significant shift in how art advisory services approach collector relationships, emphasizing long-term cultural impact over short-term market gains. As the art market continues to evolve through its current correction period, initiatives like BC may point toward a more sustainable and meaningful future for art collecting.
By prioritizing artist engagement, curatorial depth, and values-driven collecting, Black and Cheneviere are positioning themselves at the forefront of what they see as a necessary transformation in the art world – one that brings collectors, artists, and institutions closer together in service of cultural advancement rather than purely financial gain.
