Linda Durnell Art Consultants
Press
Gallery Spotlight in January 05 Issue of Gentry Magazine
The Linda Durnell Gallery, formerly Tercera Gallery, is highlighted in the Current Talk section of the January 2005 issue of Gentry Magazine.
LG Weekly Times Article highlighting new Ownership
August 25, 2004
Main Street
By Mary Ann Cook
NEW OWNERS: Linda Durnell is the new owner of Tercera Gallery and Michele Scott is a partner in the 15-year-old establishment in Los Gatos. Durnell's marketing and philanthropy background will combine with Scott's art-industry experience. Scott is an artist herself.
The two plan to integrate art with business by holding special events and corporate parties with a portion of the fee donated to a charity. This is Durnell's MO: She is vice chairwoman of Silicon Valley Children's Hospital Foundation and a founder of the Saratoga¬Monte Sereno Community Foundation and of the Chariot Foundation.
She has worked in marketing, sales and business development for 18 years, most recently at Apple, and started an interior-design firm. Durnell lives in Saratoga with her husband and three teenage sons. Her B.A. is from the U. of Washington, Seattle.
Linda Durnell Gallery Opening press release
The Linda Durnell Gallery Opens in Los Gatos Linda Durnell, Previous Owner of Tercera Gallery, has a Bold New Vision for the Linda Durnell Gallery LOS GATOS, California (May 13, 2005) – Linda Durnell, the previous owner of Tercera Gallery of Los Gatos announces the opening of the Linda Durnell Gallery. Durnell having lived and worked in the Los Gatos and Saratoga area for the past 12 years recognized few venues that showcased contemporary national and international artists outside of San Francisco. Durnell seized the opportunity with the Linda Durnell Gallery to represent artists from the East Coast and Europe. “I see new possibilities for collectors by bringing in established mid-career artists such as Connie Fox, whose work has been reviewed by art critics, Arthur Danto, Barry Schwabsky and who has an exhibition history spanning 40 years,” comments Durnell. To assist in creating the bold vision for the new gallery, Durnell recently hired New York art consultant Brenda Taylor. The combination of Durnell’s strong marketing and art collecting background and Brenda Taylor’s long-standing gallery ownership on the East Coast and experience in the art industry complement each other perfectly. The collaboration between Durnell and Taylor promises to make the former Tercera Gallery and now the Linda Durnell Gallery a destination for collectors. Durnell plans on establishing collectors night at the gallery, whereby individuals are able to learn about the art world, how to collect and what to look for before they buy art. The gallery is offering to facilitate special commissions to assist in expanding contemporary art collections and expects fine art consulting with corporate and private buyers to remain a focus. Taylor confers “the Linda Durnell Gallery is a platform for exhibiting art not previously available in this community and encouraging every aspect of the art world to be available for collectors throughout California.” Executive and Gallery Background Linda Durnell was the prior owner of Tercera Gallery and currently the principal of the Linda Durnell Gallery in Los Gatos. She is Vice Chairman of the Board and VP of Executive Council for Silicon Valley Children’s Hospital Foundation, Founder/CEO of The Chariot Foundation and Founding Member of the Saratoga-Monte Sereno Community Foundation. Previously, Linda spent a combined eighteen years in marketing, sales and business development, including seven years at Apple Computer. Her talent and expertise has been acknowledged in the media on the topics of nonprofit business; local politics; art collecting and interior design. She received a B.A. from the University of Washington, Seattle. Linda lives in Saratoga with her husband and three teenage sons. Brenda Taylor began her gallery in the art district on Newberry Street, Boston in 1991 and relocated the Brenda Taylor Gallery to Chelsea, New York City in 1994. Brenda currently conducts open forums on approaching the art world and has been a guest speaker at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Brown University and most recently, San Jose State University. She is currently consulting on both coasts for artists and private collectors.
Nomination for Tercera Gallery
The Tercera Gallery has been nominated for the Sustained Business Support Award at the 2004 Silicon Valley Arts & Business Awards. The gallery was nominated by Art Docents of Los Gatos, Inc.
Avocation becomes a vocation for Durnell
By Grant Shellen
Saratoga resident Linda Durnell has been a customer of Tercera Gallery for the last decade. Her personal art collection includes quite a few pieces from the 24 N. Santa Cruz Ave. business. She surprised even herself, though, with her latest major purchase- the gallery itself. "It was not in my life to own a gallery," Durnell said. "But I loved the gallery and the people who worked there. I love being surrounded by art. I love being in Los Gatos. I thought, 'What better fit?'" Durnell bought the15- year- old gallery last month, and she's already planning to combine her interest in art with her passion for community service. As vice chairwoman of the Silicon Valley Children's Hospital Foundation, a founding member of the Saratoga- Monte Sereno Community Foundation and participant in various similar organizations, Durnell wanted to give back to some of the nonprofits with which she's worked. She came up with the idea to rent out the gallery for parties, fundraisers and other events for $1,500. She would then give $500 to a non- profit group. The former Apple marketing employee said she has been involved with social and global change efforts for a long time, but it took a horrible experience to bring her focus to local needs. When Durnell's now 11- year- old son was five months old, he underwent surgery at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital in Palo Alto for a condition that causes skull deformities. Not long after the surgery, he fell, rupturing his scar. She called 911, but also called an emergency phone number of the pediatric neurosurgeon at the children's hospital. She did not reach him immediately. Her son was taken to a local hospital- Durnell lived in Los Gatos at the time- where doctors said they just needed to stitch him up again. Shortly before they had planned to do that, the neurosurgeon called and ordered the boy to be brought back to Lucile Packard. As it turned out, his skull was damaged in such a way that re- stitching would have caused further damage, probably killing him. "This is something you only know when you think someone close to you is going to die, but you make a deal with God," Durnell said. She made a deal that if her son survived, she would do whatever she could to help other people. Four years later, she heard about the effort to bring a children's hospital to the Santa Clara Valley. She met with Kathleen King, the leader of that effort, and has been involved ever since. She said the local presence of pediatric specialists could mean the difference between life and death for some patients. "I'm hoping someday that a children's hospital would save a child's life," Durnell said. She now has plans to apply the same drive and enthusiasm to Tercera as she does to nonprofit organizations. Gallery director Michele Scott said her new colleague is well suited to the job. "She will be able to make people more aware of [the gallery] with her involvement in the community as a connector," Scott said. "The more exposure people have to art, the better." Part of that exposure will be aimed at children. Durnell said she plans to open up the gallery to school tours so children can experience art up close, not "off limits" as it usually is in museums. She said she did not buy the gallery simply as a money- making venture, but saw it as an opportunity to participate further in the community. "I've always believed if you just do what is right, and you do your best, everything will fall into place," she said. Scott, too, said her goal is not only to sell artwork, but also to educate clients and help them appreciate art. Durnell, though, didn't need a lot of education, she said. "Linda was one of my favorite clients," Scott said. "Her love for art is part of what makes this a good marriage." Her love for giving back to the community could help make that marriage a lasting one.
Philanthropist bringing mission to Tercera Gallery (San Jose Mercury News)
By Caille Millner
The Tercera Gallery of Los Gatos has a new owner- and a new direction. The owner, Linda Durnell, is known in Los Gatos for her work on behalf of local non- profit organizations. She's an organizer for the Silicon Valley Children's Hospital and a founding member of the Los Gatos- Monte Sereno Foundation. Surnell's own non- profit Chariot Foundation provides philanthropists with money management and project accountability. Now she's bringing her social conscience to the Tercera Gallery's collection of fine contemporary art. "I think the biggest change we're going to have at the gallery is the amount of non- profit work we do," she said. "After all the non- profit work I've done in Los Gatos, being based in a business here is a great opportunity to bring all of those interests together." Durnell doesn't believe the gallery's for- profit business model and her interest in involving it in service work will be a bad match. The key, she said is creative thinking. "For example, the gallery is a beautiful space," she said. "But no one ever thought of offering it as a space to the public. So I'm opening it up for events in the evenings- parties, corporate events, things like that. We'll charge $1,500 for events and donate $500 of it for charity." Durnell also is familiar with corporate business structures, having worked as a marketing manager for Apple Computer. That's what she was doing when she first walked into Tercera Gallery 10 years ago. "At the time, I had no art appreciation whatsoever," she said. But she made good relationships with the gallery staff, and she kept going back to buy paintings. She retired from Apple and became involved in non- profit work. At fundraisers, especially art auctions, she ran into Tercera Gallery over and over again. "Over time, the relationship just blossomed," Durnell said, explaining that when former gallery owner Seb Hamamjian decided to sell, "I took it as an opportunity." Michele Scott, who has been the gallery's director for seven years, said Durnell's leadership offers Tercera a great opportunity to get the attention of a community of people who are new to the art world. "She's one of these people from all different walks of life," Scott said. "Already people have been coming through the door who we didn't know because she's told them about us."