On Friday night I attended the opening of the Cavaliero Finn open house, which is part of the Dulwich Festival, where 200 artists in over 150 locations across Dulwich and surrounding areas are opening their homes and studios,  giving a unique opportunity to see an incredible array of art works in intimate and inspiring settings.

Juliana Cavaliero and Debra Finn started their home gallery in Juliana’s home in 2003 as a way of fitting in a working life with having a family.  Juliana had worked for various galleries and Debra had worked in PR and now together they represent a growing number of artists and designer-makers and have twice yearly shows to promote and showcase the work in a home environment.

Debra explained to me that they didn’t want to emulate a white walled gallery which can be quite intimidating and where you feel compelled to talk in whispers.  They both feel that showing art in a real home encourages comment and conversation as well as showing the art in a realistic setting.

They have certainly succeeded.  As the visitors started to arrive it felt more like enjoying a Friday night glass of wine with old friends than a visit to an art gallery.

The next show is in November but they have a website where you can find all of their artists and some much better photographs than the dodgy ones I took on my phone.  All of the art can be bought directly and they are in the process of starting an online shop.

Cavaliero Finn