Amy Oliver
Following a successful run of seven shows during its first year in the north Cotswolds, The House of Smalls is delighted to be relocating permanently to Edinburgh in the summer of 2024.
Setting itself apart from more commercial galleries, The House of Smalls is proud to create exhibition opportunities and provide a safe and welcoming space for local, UK-wide and international, predominantly women, artists to exhibit personal, intuitive and thought-provoking work. Recent shows have explored issues such as grief and memory, menopause, ageing, and physical and mental scars.
"What I love most about THOS shows, and what separates them from others, is that the artists put a part of themselves into their work - it's not mainstream and it's not mass-produced; it's original, it's honest, it's powerful and it's real."
~ Amy Oliver
The original idea behind The House of Smalls was formed 3 years earlier during the 2020 worldwide lockdowns. Frustrated by the limiting and formulaic constructs of the virtual galleries which had sprung up in the absence of open venues, and the high costs to submit and exhibit work, Amy Oliver (The House of Smalls founder and curator), decided to start her own project. Wanting to somehow create a place for connection through art in isolating times for artists like herself, but with a distinct lack of wall space to show work at home, she instead bought a second-hand dollhouse and after renovating it into a miniature art gallery, establishing a social media presence and building a website, she lastly put out a call for art for the inaugural show, Facing It, on Instagram.
Across eleven group shows between November 2020 and August 2022, the original House of Smalls exhibited 280+ tiny artworks by 181 women (200 artists in total) on and within its diminutive walls, and original physical artwork was received through the post from around 30 countries.
In its big world format, The House of Smalls mirrors the original project and remains resolute to its ethos of fairness, inclusivity, affordability and accessibility. Calls for art are regularly posted on social media, art platforms and The House of Smalls website, and Amy selects as many interpretations of each show theme as possible to create exhibitions that are diverse, interesting, challenging, and include at least one piece that will resonate with the viewer. The shows typically run for between 3-5 weeks and, as with the original project, artists and their work are featured daily across social media during exhibitions and added to The House of Smalls catalogue of artworks which details every piece exhibited since the beginning.
Amy will be present in the Gallery during opening hours and if you would like to discuss anything please pop in or email info@thehouseofsmalls.art.
Amy runs the whole project by herself and works hard to keep costs for artists as low as she can. There are no submission fees and no commission is applied to sales under £150, with a 10% commission applied on individual sales of £150 and above. As with show fees (a nominal amount payable by selected artists), any money raised through commission goes towards gallery rent, overheads and upkeep.
Much of the artwork exhibited is for sale and if you're interested in discussing or purchasing any of the available pieces in the gallery or shown online/on the website, please contact The House of Smalls.
The House of Smalls is proud to be a certified White Ribbon supporter organisation. White Ribbon is the UK’s leading charity engaging men and boys to end violence against women and girls. If you are a victim of domestic abuse/violence, or have any concerns regarding your own or a partner's behaviour and would like a discreet and confidential chat and/or assistance with accessing relevant resources, please pop into the gallery. For more information about White Ribbon, please visit www.whiteribbon.org.uk.
Amy is a White Ribbon champion and has trained with Rape Crisis England & Wales and Refuge in understanding and working with domestic abuse and sexual violence.
