Sydney Wyvern’s were delighted to be hosted by one of the art world’s brightest lights, gallerist Michael Reid OAM (Wyvern 1982) on April 3.

Seven-year-old milk monitor of Narrandera Primary, Michael Reid OAM, missed watching the live broadcast of man’s walk on the moon. He took the option to play outside instead. But this go-getter of the Australian and international art world has not missed much since.

After boarding at Wesley College, Michael came to Queen’s, studying history of art.

“Queen’s made me comfortable, and that is important because when I went on to do other things I always felt good in my own skin. When I think of Queen’s I think of a place of beauty and tranquillity, comfort and kindness.”

Now, with four decades in the art industry, Michael is a contemporary art dealer with galleries in Sydney, the northern beaches, Berrima, Berlin, and Murrurundi in the Upper Hunter, where he calls home. In 2022, Michael was ranked by News Corp Australia through their publication The List as one of the 100 most influential people in the Australian arts.

After ten years with Christie’s in London and Australia, where he met his wife Nelly, the business mind behind his enterprises, Michael’s next step as a print, radio and television journalist became the catalyst for his move into galleries.

“I did a lot of writing for a long time, I was involved in the industry but I wasn’t leading or participating in it. I got bored with commenting on other people and wanted people to comment on me. There are three things that make up my personality, one is my overwhelming belief in my superiority, I’ve always had it, I do believe that I’m better than most. Then there’s the overwhelming insecurity, which needs to prove that, and they go hand in hand. I’m only proving it to myself. I’m not proving it to anyone else because I don’t care. The third thing is I will modify my behaviour to achieve my end, so I drive a 22-year-old car and live in an un-renovated house. I will curtail all personal gratification to achieve my goals. I don’t think it’s what most people would ever discuss about themselves publicly. What drives me is internal. I am different from others, I’m dyslexic, I’m manic, I’m biologically wired differently, fundamentally so.”

Michael is known as a great communicator and educator, his advice on collecting art is simple.

“I just look out for things that make me go, ‘Wow!’ Nothing else interests me.  All the galleries are quite different, I’m creating an ecosystem where you can walk in as a collector whose never even looked at art and I can take you on a pathway so you arrive where you want to go. If you end up where you started out then I’ve truly mucked it up. You shouldn’t be embarrassed about where you’ve been or how you got there. A good collector should keep examples of their collecting life with them; so long as it’s good quality it doesn’t matter.”

Over the decades, Michael’s business has ridden several highs and lows.

“When I bought Berlin, 10 years ago, the recession was biting and I thought if we don’t run forward, we are going to walk backwards over a cliff. You can do one of two things when it gets really tough. You can hunker down and hope the Armageddon goes over you or you can fight, so I fought. I did an exhibition within six months in Berlin, it went really well, it gave me the money in Germany to rent a place and employ my first colleague. Although we are in Berlin, my market is Australians living in Europe and there’s hundreds of thousands.”

COVID-19 brought a substantial boost, and a change of perspective.

“COVID was fantastic, it had so many positives. People stayed at home and spent money so my business grew 40% year on year on year. Now, the more I’m in the country, not running my own business, the better my business is. You can’t think creatively if you are worried about accounts payable. I have to have times where I’m in the garden or walking the dog, because I’m in a really creative world. I don’t want to stop work, I want to work in a different way. I think the pull back to the country now comes from my beginnings in Narrandera.  I’m very comfortable in a small country town. Isolation doesn’t mean you’re alone.”

Michael may be into contemporary art but his taste in music has stayed firmly in the past.

“I like mowing. When I mow, I like to put on some ‘80s disco music. The only place I’m stuck is in the music department. The music of my past I find very comforting. They loved a good narrative in the ‘80s, somebody done somebody wrong. As you get older you can become really disgraceful.”