The story of our Napier gallery
Osner Gallery in Napier
For several years our work had a home in Napier, in the Overberg. We have since stepped back from the Napier gallery, and you can now see the collection in Hout Bay and in Montagu.
How it began
A gallery that started with an invitation
A few years ago Andre de Koker invited us to open a gallery in Napier. Andre owns the building, and his idea was a simple and generous one, to bring a high quality gallery to a town he loves. We took him up on it, and for several years our work had a home in the Overberg.
Andre is a friend first. He is also one of Martin’s students and a creative advisor on the Art Photography Academy, so the gallery was always as much a shared project as a business arrangement.
What changed was practical. Running a gallery properly takes someone in it every day, and Andre’s own commitments made that impossible. Over time the space grew in a different direction from the one we had set out on, and our work began to sit less easily alongside it. Rather than let the collection get lost, Andre and Martin agreed together that we would step back.
A friendship first
Business does not stand in the way of friendship
Andre de Koker, owner of the Napier building, student of Martin’s and creative advisor on the Art Photography AcademyThere is no falling out in this story. The friendship was never in question and nothing about it has changed. As Andre and Martin have both said, business does not get to stand in the way of a friendship.
And Napier is not closed to us forever. The door stays open, and if the right moment comes round again we will be glad to walk back through it.
Andre is still very much involved in the gallery in Napier, so if you find yourself in the Overberg, do stop in and say hello to him.
Visit us
Where to see our work now
Osner Gallery, Hout Bay
14 Luisa Way, Hout Bay, twenty minutes from Cape Town.
Monday to Friday 10am to 5pm, Saturday 10am to 4pm, Sunday by appointment, booked the day before.
Plan your visit to Hout Bay
Bloupunt Winery, Montagu
Original work by Martin Osner and Samantha Lee Osner hangs at Bloupunt Winery, 12 Long Street, Montagu.
The Art of Painting workshop that ran in Napier now takes place in Montagu.
Discover Bloupunt wines and Montagu