Eye for Inclusion

You might say Mike Fleming’s initial connection to Third Eye Gallery was heavily influenced by a little bit of ink. And you’d be right—his first dalliance with the gallery space that calls Vishnu Bunny Tattoo & Piercing home just happened to involve a barter of organizing three shows in exchange for a free tattoo.

“One was all women artists—‘Herding Cats.’ One was called ‘New New’—all younger kids, and one was called ‘Cigarette Money,’ which was a more established artist. And I’ve been doing it for five years since.

Mike Fleming

“And I did eventually get that tattoo.”

The gallery has been a part of Vishnu for 10 years as of this coming June, and Fleming has seen it flourish since first finagling his way into working with the team there. And his stumbling upon the space began with a night out seeing an artist friend’s work in a more traditional gallery space.

“I went to see her work, and the location felt stiff,” he said. “We decided to just go stroll around downtown, and we stumbled upon Vishnu. It was one of their openings, and I was like, ‘Yeah, this is where I belong.’”

That self-proclaimed “punk-rock” vibe he brought to the shows he produced in the early days earned Fleming a place as the space’s curator in 2016. “The owner was like, ‘Okay, this is what we want.’” And the unique challenges of hanging in a place of business have just sort of become part of the territory.

“I mean, it’s taking away from a bunch of tattoo artists, a prime day every month,” Fleming said. “But actually, they’re some of the best customers we have, because they’re staring at the work for a month.” One particularly collaborative event took place in 2017, where Third Eye featured art by the Vishnu tattoo artists, as well as some from other local parlors, “Behind the Ink,” a show Fleming would like to recreate one day.

This connection between alternative art and the everyday operations of a tattoo parlor are sort of par for the course when it comes to what a patron can expect attending an opening at Third Eye.

“It’s basically half concert, as usually we have a DJ,” Fleming said. “And it’s not wine or anything like that—it’s PBRs and hot dogs. It’s high-brow and low-brow mixed together, a little industrial. It’s one interesting space.”

The origins of this atmospheric touch came from the parlor’s owners in the early days.

“When I first started, we had a megaphone, and we’d go out on the street basically begging people to come in,” Fleming said. “And we still have a policy that anybody who comes in, your first beer is free.”

A Fourth of July sidewalk grill-out, and an aptly purchased appliance later, and another hallmark of the Third Eye experience was born.

“Two years ago, we were having issues, because people don’t think the Fourth of July works for art shows, because the weekend is usually kind of dead,” he said, “so I was going to get a grill and sit out front and cook hot dogs out on the street and (owner) Jeff (Mann) said, ‘No, we need to do better than that.’

“So, lo and behold, there was a present he bought me—a big hot dog roller. And the tradition just stuck.”

This upending of what you typically think of when you hear the phrase “gallery show” is just part of the magic of Third Eye Gallery.

“I’ve never been a landscape guy,” Fleming said. “I’ve always been kind of abstract. This year we’re trying to book shows with artists that have never shown with us before. And it’s exciting.

“We do everything, soup to nuts. From people who have never shown before, to people like J. White and Klaire Lockheart, some people who are more established.”

And between a high return rate for visitors, the support of downtown artists and business owners and ringing endorsements of past opening musical guests like Tommy Stinson from The Replacements and Lou Barlow from Dinosaur Jr., Third Eye has set itself apart from other unconventional gallery spaces in the region.

“It’s fresh—it’s a fun environment. People like the DJs, the live music. You know a lot of the people that work there, and it’s just a fun hangout.

“It’s down to earth. Not pretentious. Off the beaten path.”

As one of Vishnu’s managers refers to Third Eye, it’s the “entry-level art drug”—a home for people who don’t normally go to art galleries or haven’t started collecting art, to start buying and get the bug.

“Vishnu is probably one of the most inclusive places I’ve ever worked with,” Fleming said. “Every artist who wanted to show, I’ve probably never said ‘no’ to anyone. And we’ve had, you know, some kind of crazy stuff, but that’s kind of how we roll.”