About Us

Kindred Spirits

Bec and Niki met in Amsterdam in 2018 on an agricultural technology tour. Whilst taking in the wonders of floating dairy farms and the largest flower markets in the world, they realised their shared love for art and interiors and an instant friendship was formed.

Returning to Australia, Bec and Niki continued to share new artists they discovered as well as chatting about how to incorporate art into their interiors. Despite being on thoroughly different career paths, they both recognised a rare kindred spirit in the other, particularly in their love of artists from all genres.

At a chance catchup Bec and Niki realised they wanted to share their love of art with their local community and beyond, and the spark of an idea took shape.

To Begin...

Baby Steps

With a budget of $10 000 between them Bec and Niki began to formulate a plan. A local creative industries program, where by short term commercial leases in vacant tenancies could be attained, saw the girls move into a pop up space of approximately 60 square metres in Ruthven Street. After some extensive floor sanding, a little painting and the addition of a hanging system, the gallery was ready for hanging. The initial fifty plus works on the walls were sourced through a mixture of existing connections and cold calls. With a rudimentary website and a growing social media following, the gallery opened to the public on August 1, 2021.

The Next Chapter

As the gallery grew, tough decisions needed to be made, with the first being whether to stay in the original spot or look for somewhere larger. The latter option was determined to be a better fit and so, after an extensive search, TTG moved lock, stock and barrel to a tenancy in the newly renovated Rowes complex at the end of 2021. This was the perfect space with lots of natural light, although the lack of walls did require some additional cash investment to acquire some.

This beautiful space served as a gorgeous backdrop for a growing stable of artists. The gallery opened with a beautiful solo show by Joanna Davies, kicking of the first of many such events in the year to follow.

A Growing Gallery

The perfect space

As the gallery passed its first birthday and a new year approached, it began to outgrow its current location once again. However, with a full year of trade and two successful Affordable Art Fairs under their belts, Bec and Niki decided that this time the space needed to be one of their very own, and so the search for a building began.

This proved to be a lot harder than initially thought with the majority of available spaces either too big or too small until, just when all seemed lost and a long commercial lease was about to be signed, the perfect contender appeared.

3 Railway street had all the space the business required...plus a little more besides and, within a week a two, a deal was brokered and a contract signed.

And now the real work begins...

"To achieve great things...

...two things are needed: a plan, and not quite enough time." (Leonard Bernstein)

It appears that Bec and Niki work better when deadlines are tight and, with only three months until the end of the current lease they set about making this new space fit(ish) for its new purpose. It only needed a hanging system, a bit of sheeting, some new lights, a couple of walls, new stairs, a door...plus one or two other bits and bobs.

It was touch and go, but with the help and expertise of some handy trades in Luscombe Builders, BSB Plumbing and EnPower, they were able to move in at the end of March, right on schedule, ready for the next gallery chapter to begin.

The Toowoomba Gallery has a home

Our gallery

It is a funny thing when you move into a space, particularly one that has had many chapters in its long life (almost 100 years) and you get the sense that all is as it should be. 3 Railway Street may have been a truck depot, a printing press and an antique store among other things, but you get the feeling that it is the perfect space for the gallery to live out its days as soon as you walk in the door. There is nothing sweeter than seeing amazing artworks both on crisp white and century old brick. The quirks in this building lean into the works that grace its walls, with the towering ceiling and exposed beams adding both honesty and grandeur to the collection.

Make sure you come and visit soon.

Where to next?

The Toowoomba Gallery has always been more than just a bricks and mortar space. Art Fairs are a huge part of this business with the gallery popping up in cities such as Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Austin, Houston, Boston and more to come. They also curate for smaller shows for schools and organisations both locally and interstate.

Finally, the online store is a huge component of this little business, with over 50% of gallery sales via the website and socials. TTG are adept at shipping all over the world which is why you will see gallery works on almost every continent.