THEY have been at the forefront of promoting Scottish artists such as Elizabeth Blackadder and James Morrison while helping to shape the futures of emerging talent as well.
However, the the husband and wife team behind a pioneering Perth-based contemporary art gallery are taking a step back after 40 years to make way for someone else to take over the reins.
Frames Gallery, a framing workshop and contemporary art gallery run by Hugh and Julie Goring, has given a platform to some major Scottish artists since the couple first set up in 1979.
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In 1996, Frames became the first gallery in Scotland to have a website, allowing art lovers to view and buy paintings online. This was in the very early days of e-commerce and it would be another two years before Amazon launched in the UK.
In 1979 Mrs Goring’s father, Andrew, offered the couple the option of having a formal wedding, or the equivalent sum in cash.
They chose the latter option as it meant they could pursue their ambition of setting up a business of their own.
Mr Goring said: "We lived in Edinburgh at the time. I was working as a picture framer and despite having a degree from St Andrews, Julie worked in a grocers. Then as now, it was very expensive to live and work in Edinburgh – and it already had plenty of framing businesses.
"Julie knew Perth well, having lived there when she was younger, so we went for a weekend to explore and discovered only one picture framer.
"When we asked them how long it would take to frame a picture, the framer replied, 'two months'. We asked why it took so long and he replied they were so busy they couldn’t do it any quicker."
The die was cast. The couple decided to have a small wedding at home in July that year and by September, had set up their new framing business in a small unit on Canal Street, Perth, cycling into the city every day from the caravan they rented in nearby Scone.
Through the framing side of the business, the couple met a wide variety of artists when framing their work and felt that they wanted to expand the gallery side further, so they decided to set up a small private gallery as there was at that point no outlet in Perth selling original art.
"We weren’t the first gallery in Perth showing contemporary Scottish art as acclaimed Scottish artist, Marj Bond, had been running a lovely gallery there for a number of years," added Mr Goring. "Marj had wound up the business three years earlier to concentrate on her own painting, so we felt we were filling a gap."
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By then, the couple had a growing family. They moved the business into a former plumber’s showroom and workshop in nearby Victoria Street, transforming it into a large gallery space with an adjoining framing workshop.
This hunch proved fruitful and led to the Gorings adding a purpose-built extension to the rear of the property in 1998 to allow more exhibiting space particularly suited to showing contemporary art.
Looking back, Hugh and Julie, now an accomplished artist in her own right, having graduated from Dundee's Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design in 1999, say they were able to select emerging artists who weren’t household names.
To this roster, they added established artists such as Victoria Crowe, Elizabeth Blackadder and James Morrison.
“When we set up a gallery selling contemporary art in Perth, we were swimming against the tide," Mr Goring said. "It was very much a county town with more antique and picture dealers than I’d seen before in a town of that size.
"However, we were passionate about Scottish contemporary art and felt we had something different to contribute and bring to the area.
"Over the years, we have exhibited at art fairs in London, Bristol, Edinburgh and Glasgow, promoting our artists and the gallery.
"We also organise the annual arTay event for Perth Festival of the Arts, which sees around 3,000 people visit a large marquee filled with more than 300 paintings for sale.
"It will be a big wrench but now I have reached the age when many of my peers have retired, I'd like to pass the business on to someone who will invest it with as much love and creativity as Julie and I have over the last 43 years."
Mrs Goring added: “Although we’re a commercial gallery, we had always enjoyed visiting degree shows each year and it was exciting to take small risks with younger emerging artists.
"It’s been fascinating to watch many grow and develop. Discovering new artists and showing their work is very satisfying and some like Lucy Campbell and Jane Cruickshank now have very successful careers as full-time artists.
"Unlike other businesses, Frames did well during the pandemic, and the picture-framing staff were busy with a steady stream of work.
"We now have four grown-up children, two of whom have been involved in the business over the years. Our fifth grandchild has just been born, so we now feel it’s time to sell up and pass the business on to an equally passionate buyer.
"It will be exciting to see the changes the new owner makes. There is certainly potential, for example, for a shop and cafe area, perhaps expanding into the garden area at the back of the gallery"
The Gorings are looking for more than £220,000 for the property, business, the gallery fixtures and fittings.
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