Meet The Man Behind Electric Gallery

“To quote the much cooler team members here, Electric Gallery ‘is a vibe,'" Jai Francois explains. A vibe that we very much like, hence why we’re continuing our partnership with them - after working alongside the gallery earlier this year to launch the public profile of Times New Roadman at Browns East.

This time, we’re bringing East (where Electric currently resides) to West with Jai. Transforming the Immersive Room on Browns Brook Street’s second floor into an exhibition space showcasing a diverse collection of artworks from a mix of blue-chip artists, rising stars, and exciting new talents who are already creating a buzz on the international art scene.

As wannabe art collectors ourselves, we love any opportunity to fully immerse ourselves within the inspirational world of art - and avid collector, curator and gallery director, Jai is the perfect person to help us do just that. Read on to discover more on Electric and the man behind the art you’ll find hidden within our flagship…

The Connor Brothers

If someone had never heard of Electric Gallery, how would you describe it?
We’re a fun, young gallery at heart. Electric is a welcoming, un-intimidating gallery that helps you find new art you love. Personally, I hate the stigma attached to galleries being elitist and art generally being reserved for higher classes to enjoy, so I wanted to make sure we break that mould.

Please tell us about Electric Gallery’s exhibition in Browns Brook Street?
From East to West: Electric Gallery Mayfair is a mix of the works we sell. We wanted to curate a selection of bright, fun, tasteful, yet collectable works so that it appeals to a wide audience. We’ve also intentionally made sure there are works priced at various points so there’s a range of affordability. There’s also rarer, more investable works hanging from artists such as The Connor Brothers, who’ve seen the value of their work increase massively in the past few years.

Can you tell us a bit about some of the artists that feature in the exhibition? What narratives are their works trying to tell?
Sometimes I think a photograph really tells the best narrative of all so I’ll start with Slim Aarons. He was originally a war photographer in the US Army but post WWII he worked for Life Magazine amongst others. Befriending the rich and famous, shooting “attractive people doing attractive things in attractive places.” And that’s exactly what every image of his tells you. They have that real retro luxury feel. The feel that Instagram filters now try to re-create, but you just can’t beat the original. His archive of images are incredible and show such a great insight into how that other half lived through a couple of the coolest most stylish decades.

There’s also a wicked neon sign from Andy Cook which I love! He’s a long-term collaborator for Tracey Emin and has been bending her neon for over 20 years. He’s a real under-the-radar godfather of neon, whom I believe deserves way more notoriety for what he’s achieved in his career. Loads of the neon signs in Soho are his handy work, and recently he refurbished the whole of Walthamstow Dogs Stadium. Kiss Me is from a series of love heart inspired signs he’s been working on, some a bit more tongue-in-cheek than others. All referencing different two-word emotions that we experience in a relationship.

Is there a theme that runs through this exhibition, something that connects the artists?
It’s a really diverse selection of modern contemporary works that are all very accessible and have some relation to the lives we live today.

What do you want people to experience when looking at this selection of artworks in Browns Brook Street?
I’d love them to all have a real “wow” moment when stepping into the room. Opening the door to it and being hit with all that art definitely comes as a contrast to the clean lines, pristine hanging (to the millimetre) that the shop floor clothing rails have. So to hear that “wow” would be very pleasing.

Damien Hirst - Forever

Why did you set up Electric Gallery in 2020 and how did you make it happen?
I’d been dealing art privately for the previous two years and always had ambitions about opening an affordable gallery but had talked myself out of it a few times for various reasons. But in May 2020 my fiancée, Stacey, and I found out we were having a baby, and if you ever need something to spur you on, an incoming baby will do it! So, I knew I had eight months to get the business going.

Launching a new business is always tough and the pandemic made it even more challenging but I’ve always been a “throw me in the deep end and I’ll learn faster” kind of guy. We focused our attention heavily on digital / online, knowing that given any type of lockdown our online presence had to be robust enough to survive it. Luckily with everyone stuck indoors, art went to the top of a lot of people’s shopping lists. So all things considered our first year actually worked out much better than expected. But if you’re asking me from an advice point of view as to “how do you make it happen?” It’s the old cliché cocktail of hard work, support, belief and not giving in.

What do you love most about art?
For me, it’s the way it silently provokes thought. I love the way any kind of artform can make you stop in your tracks and just take it all in. You lose yourself in the art for a moment. That internal monologue you go through when seeing a piece of art that stimulates something in your brain.

Before you became an art collector, you worked in the music business (and were named in Music Week’s “30 Under 30” list at the age of just 25!) - why did you change direction and when did you know you wanted to enter the world of art?
I’d always had an interest in the arts in general but not in a professional sense. It was around this time, aged 25, when I started to collect art more seriously. Originally, I was just kitting out bare walls in a flat I’d bought. But then some pieces I had bought started to rise in value and the artists were becoming more and more sought after.

Working in A&R at the time I knew I had the ability to spot the next big artist in music and I started to apply that same ethos to the world of art. My confidence grew and I started to buy more work, then sell and reinvest the profits into bigger, rarer works of art.

It took a few years of doing this ‘for fun’ until I decided that actually I was enjoying the wheeling and dealing of the art world more than I was managing music artists.

For you, how do the art and luxury fashion worlds collide?
As each year goes by, the gap between art and luxury fashion merges even closer. Also as technology in both art and fashion evolves, I feel we’re getting close to the point where it’s a question of “Is it fashion or is it art?” And the answer in a lot of cases is, it’s both! Seeing many artists collaborating with fashion designers is super positive for both industries. Damien Hirst and Alexander McQueen, Christian Dior and KAWS, Yayoi Kusama and Louis Vuitton… they’re just a few campaigns that spring to mind which have all been met with great applause.

Even more recently in Paris last week with the Coperni show. That spray-on dress moment was arguably a work of conceptual art. I wouldn’t be surprised if that dress gets encased in a Perspex box, shipped to a museum where people go to see “that dress”.

I guess how art hanging on your walls tells people something about you, the fashion you wear does exactly the same. When you think about it, maybe you are just a walking, talking blank canvas…

Do you think there’s a link between the way people collect art and the way they collect luxury fashion?
One hundred percent. The growth in investable fashion has shot up massively the last few years and now rivals art in some instances. People are really aware of the future value of high-end luxury fashion like they do with art, so the link between the two is closer than ever. (I still always advise people to buy what they love though, rather than something they just think will increase in value.)

I have collectors who I buy art for privately that go from asking me about a Warhol one minute then asking if I know how to get hold of the latest luxury desirable handbag. And, yes, I do… at Browns Brook Street!

Slim Aarons - Hotel Du Cap Eden Roc

You became the owner of a piece of Banksy when you were 16 years old - which piece is it and where is it hanging right now?
I can’t really take the credit for it. Being a moody teenager, I was dragged (by my Dad) up to Carnaby Street to go and see this art exhibition. Turns out it was a fairly unknown artist at the time called Banksy, selling canvases, ephemera and prints from £5 - £500. Sadly, I parted ways with a couple of the pieces I bought there many years ago, but I still have my Polite Line – Do Not Get Cross roll of tape sitting on my shelf at home.

What was the latest piece of art you bought for yourself?
It’s by an artist called Otis Quaicoe. He’s a Ghanian artist who paints really interesting portraits with rich, vivid brush strokes. I bought a print called Rancher which depicts his take on the history of the black diaspora on the American frontier. It’s a real showstopper of a print and always gets people’s attention when they see it in our house. I’m a real fan of his work and what he’s about.

Which piece of art are you currently coveting?
If you gave me a million pounds I’d spend it all on an original George Condo painting. There’s several I’d be happy with! I love the way he paints portraits, and how awkward and jarring people find them when looking at them - especially the nude figures.

Which emerging artist should we be watching right now?
Rafa Silvares is an emerging artist I’m a big admirer of. I bought some of his work last year and it’s awesome. The way he paints water or flames is really interesting and the way the work looks metallic is very impressive.

Looking towards the future, what are you looking forward to right now?
Dare I say it this early… but I’m actually really looking forward to Christmas. Our son, Spike, is almost two so Christmas now has a whole new lease of life for us. It’s been a really busy year for Electric so far, so to finally be able to unwind, take some time off and spend it with friends and family will be a great way to close out the year.

In London? Immerse yourself within the From East To West: Electric Gallery Mayfair exhibition inside the Immersive Room at Browns Brook Street until 17th November 2022. Expect to see work from Damien Hirst, Kelvin Okafor, Poppy Faun and many more. Some of the rare pieces on display are currently the only ones of their kind available worldwide, so don’t miss your chance to see them up close.

Buy More Crap (Dollar Note Edition) Heath Kane

Interview by Sophy Davis Russell