Artwork Untitled

A gallery without a brick-and-mortar location perhaps seems like an ungraspable concept—but one local visual arts organization is calling home everything from upscale apartment buildings to advertising agencies to clinics, and, despite its unassuming moniker, is making quite the name for itself.

What started as a digital effort to tell artists’ stories, Untitled.10 has grown to become an organization that seeks to curate art shows around Sioux Falls featuring under-sung creators in search of opportunities to display their work.

“We call ourselves a platform, and we’ve been kind of figuring out the best way for us to go about making a difference in the community,” said Levi Sternburg, a local artist and co-curator of Untitled.10. “But that’s really what it’s all about—bringing art to the forefront of public programming and giving young and emerging local artists a chance to exhibit their work in a gallery setting. And it’s never in a literal gallery so far, but we find all kinds of spaces—businesses, rental spaces and event spaces—that are willing to do pop-up shows.”

Sternburg’s background is in drawing, painting and sculpture, graduating the program at University of South Dakota (USD), where he gained experience in hanging shows and connecting with artists working for the university’s art gallery.

“The main thing is showcasing young and upcoming artists—that was the original goal,” said Tyson Schultz, local designer and artist and co-curator of Untitled.10. “There are a lot of talented people here, and we find that more and more every time we do a show. Artists aren’t always great at selling themselves or displaying their work. So we try to meet people in the middle, find them in random nooks and crannies and bring out their work.”

Schultz had originally studied interior design, dabbling in digital illustration and eventually graphic design, before returning to school at USD, where fine arts is built into the design curriculum.

“I got well-versed in photography, painting, sculpture, ceramics—and it was like a love/hate relationship in school, because I wanted to focus on design. But overtime I grew to enjoy it,” he said. “We started Untiled.10 as a way to highlight artists in the area. It started off with us doing interviews, but then the opportunity came up to do a show at Railyard Flats last September.”

This unconventional space for Untitled.10’s first outing proved to have a certain degree of kismet—the new development’s latest resident, the Highball, a cocktail bar, had just opened a month or so prior.

“It was a great opportunity for people to benefit on both sides,” Schulz said. “So whether people are going for the art show or getting a drink at this new bar, they were able to experience the other thing while they were there. We get traffic from people who maybe wouldn’t have heard about it otherwise.”

Since that initial event, Untitled.10 has had the opportunity to host shows at the 8th and Railroad Center, Remedy Brewing Co. and downtown advertising agency Epicosity.

“For certain shows, there is sometimes a fundraising component, too. In the case of our ‘Fresh Faces’ self-portrait show, we raised money for The Banquet,” Sternburg said of the event hosted in Epicosity’s office space. “And our first show was for the Oscar Howe Summer Art Institute in Vermillion. When that kind of stuff comes up, we find out artists are so willing to pay a fee to be in a show when it goes to a cause like that. So it can do good in a lot of different ways.”

So how does the duo seek out the artists who feature in their local shows? Sometimes the curation process is an open call, and sometimes the focus is narrowed to a particular subject matter.

“We just put out a public call on social media for bird art,” Sternburg said of the event hosted at 8th & Railroad’s Studio E2. “We sort of hung that salon-style in a rental space and paired it with two headlining artists, who were making very beautiful—and a lot—of bird-specific art.

“The people who run that space were totally blown away. They’d had dozens of art shows in the space before, and they were impressed by this one. It included an installation from Amy Fill and 70-something pieces. It was a big, grand show, and people definitely appreciated it—saw the ‘wow’ factor.”

When it comes down to it, the curatorial process is… that there is no process, really.

“Some shows, just based on who we’re working with or the space we’re using, influence the curation approach—whether it’ll be a small group show or a call for art or meshing both those worlds,” Schultz said. “We’re trying new ways to engage with the community and bring something different and keep it fresh every time.

“I also think it’s really cool we can bring people into spaces they maybe never have heard of before. It’s exciting, getting people engaged with the spaces around them they’ve never accessed. Our other goal is to also inspire people to do their own thing. It’s just the two of us doing this, but the reality is that it’s not that hard or at least it doesn’t have to be. Getting a collective of three or four other artists with the same values—inspiring them to do it for themselves as well, offering up knowledge and resources whenever we can.”

So what’s next for the fledgling visual arts team? They’re prepping a couple shows in the coming months, most immediately “Voices,” an Oct. 22 reception in partnership with South Dakota Voices for Peace that will take place at Urban Indian Health, with the intent of uplifting BIPOC voices in both visual and spoken forms.