“Art absolutely must be accessible for everybody” – Sim takhar
For much of the last decade, The Old Bank Vault, a contemporary art gallery on Hackney Road in Hoxton, has been one of the borough’s go-to galleries. But its owner has revealed to the Hackney Post that the operation has moved online since January 2024, having concluded it no longer can withstand significant economic headwinds.
“It just didn’t make sense to continue paying rents and rates when it naturally went through the roof, because Hackney Road became such a popular place,” says Sim Takhar, Director and founder of The Old Bank Vault. She also cited declining interest in prints, in favour of originals, as well as the rising costs of sustaining a business in Hackney.
Despite this decision, Takhar also emphasises her “affinity” for Hackney Road. Her grandfather began a shoe manufacturing business in the 1970s at the same location, which then became a shoe wholesaler in the 1990s when her parents began their own business.
“I’ve basically grown up there,” says Takhar.
In 2017, The Old Bank Vault was born and provided a space for the community to enjoy a range of contemporary art. Takhar described the gallery’s essence as “inclusive”.
It was opened to provide a platform to artists just starting out and less well-known. Moreover, the gallery wished to create a location where the community could come in and enjoy art.
The idea of inclusivity also extends to their approach to curation.
“We don’t actually have a specific aesthetic, and we don’t go out looking for a specific style at all,” Takhar says. “Our artists work across all mediums, all different subject matters.”
Takhar believes that art should be freely available for everybody. “It is so, so important,” she says. “Hackney is such a polarised community in terms of people that would happily spend a lot of money on an artwork and there’s other people who might not be able to afford going to an exhibition, but why should they be ostracised from that experience?”
She adds “[Art] absolutely must be accessible for everybody.”
Takhar explains that, as artists can now sell directly to buyers on the internet, the gallery needed to find new ways of sustaining itself.
“There has been a massive change in the landscape of the art world. What we found post-covid was our specific clients are willing to spend a lot more money on a piece of work that is unique. We really had to pivot to serve those clients who are more interested in the originals.”
Takhar notes that the younger generation are a lot more willing to invest in things “they have not seen physically”.
While The Old Bank Vault is invested in its community, Takhar believes that the sustainability of the gallery’s finances would “make more sense” when the majority of its business comes through from people who have not come into the physical place.
“We need to move along with the way the industry is changing,” Takhar says.
Remigius Kim - Reporter for Hackney Central - Former News Reporter for Torstar Corporation, The Palatinate and The Borgen Project.