All the nails I needed: Curating my first exhibition

Opportunities like this don’t come every day—Let me take you behind the scenes

Showcasing my work for the first time

Last summer, I completed my Mix Tapes collection — a series of 16 vibrant paintings tied to music and memories.

Then, in September, something unexpected happened.

Eva, the owner of a newly opened concept store in Prague Vinohrady, reached out and invited me to show my work.

To give you some context:

• We had connected on Instagram a few years earlier

• We met in person at a makers market

• We stayed in touch quietly, through social media

So when the invitation came, it felt both surprising and strangely natural.

Having “find a place to show my work” on my 2024 list made this invitation even more meaningful.

I had imagined it might happen:

• in a café

• as part of a group show

• or somewhere I’d have to pay to exhibit

What actually happened was so much better than what I had planned.

Of course, I couldn’t help feeling both honored and nervous.

Each meeting with Eva brought a mix of excitement and anxiety. Would the conditions be manageable? Would the event actually happen?

Until everything was finalised, I carried a quiet fear that it might all fall through.

As a set decorator, I’ve curated and hung artwork in all kinds of spaces, from 18th-century salons to contemporary penthouses.

This time, though, the walls were all mine.

I had permission to use as many nails as I needed.
And for the first time, I was hanging my own work.

Preparing for the show

A month might sound like plenty of time to prepare, but between painting, planning, and all the logistics of hanging a show, every moment was packed.

Once the paintings were finished, framed, and varnished, I carefully stored them away from my studio workspace to keep them pristine. From there, the real preparation work began.

Here’s what that month actually looked like:

• Designed a poster for the shop window, plus mini versions to use as flyers
  → It also became the digital invitation for the opening night

• Created labels for each painting (title, medium, price)

• Wrote a short bio with a photo to display in the space

• Set up a newsletter sign-up form for visitors

• Designed and printed business cards (finally!)

• Curated a playlist for the opening night, a must for a collection called Mix Tapes

MY TIP:
Don’t underestimate how much time labels, texts, and invitations take.
Even the smallest details always take longer than you expect.

Spacing Labels: My tip for perfectly placed artwork descriptions (Click on the left image for the video)

Hanging the collection

The hanging process was a mix of excitement and nerves. I had two afternoons to install the paintings, and for the first time, every decision was mine to make.
No pre-existing nails. No rules. No outside input.
Just me, a drill, and the blank walls of Eva’s stunning concept store.

The space used to be a lighting showroom, so each wall came with its own professional light system. At night, the paintings literally glowed — a dream scenario.

I had prepared a hanging plan on Canva to make sure I had enough work for the space. But once I started, I quickly went freestyle. I paired paintings by colour and theme, letting the flow guide me.

The architecture helped a lot. Rectangular columns and natural pathways encouraged visitors to wander through the space rather than stand in one spot.

A few key decisions happened along the way:

• I saved the street-facing wall for the most visible pieces
  (and hung it last — it felt very exposed)

• I added five older botanical paintings at the back of the store to fill an extra wall

• I adjusted spacing and groupings as I went, trusting my eye more than the plan

Hanging my own show felt very different from my film industry days, where I’d guide a professional team to execute my vision. This time, it was all on me — concept, decisions, execution.

There were moments of doubt.
What if I’m wrong? What if this painting doesn’t fit? What if nobody comes?

But once everything was up, those questions disappeared.
Seeing the work in the space, I knew it felt right.

MY TIP:
Take as many photos as possible once the paintings are hung, before guests arrive.
You won’t have time during the opening. If you can, ask a friend to capture a few moments, and don’t forget: photos of you with your artworks are essential.

Gallery tour: A walk through the space with all the paintings hung and ready to welcome visitors on opening night.

Opening night

A few hours before the opening, the nerves hit hard. A couple of friends cancelled, and I suddenly worried nobody would show up.

Sending the invitation felt like a kind of coming out. After a year of painting alone every day in my studio, I was finally sharing my work — and myself — with others.

Then people started arriving, and the anxiety quickly disappeared.

The store filled just enough to allow real conversations, which felt perfect. And to my surprise, the most popular items weren’t the paintings — they were my sketchbooks.

Eva had suggested I bring them, and she was right.

People loved flipping through:

• daily painted pages

• research books

• colour swatches and experiments

It was a good reminder that sharing the process, even the messy parts, really matters.

The biggest surprise of the evening?
I sold my first painting.
Then another. And another.

By the end of the night, four pieces were sold.

All the buyers were men, which completely challenged my assumption that my work might be “too girly.” You really never know until you know.

We ended the evening at the bar next door, with close friends, a bit too much wine, and a very full heart.

MY TIP:
Bring sketchbooks to your exhibition. They’re great conversation starters and help people connect with your work beyond the finished pieces.

A closer look: Guests exploring my sketchbooks during the opening night

The aftermath

After the opening night, the rhythm of the show slowed down. A few inquiries came in, and I sold one more piece during the exhibition.

Two weeks after the show ended, a woman who had spotted a painting came to my studio. We talked for a while as she chose a piece as a Christmas gift for her daughter.

It felt like a gentle, meaningful way to close the exhibition — and the year.

Taking a quiet moment to soak it all in before the opening night buzz

Lessons learned

Looking back, this experience felt a bit like creating a movie set: everything goes up, the event happens, and then it all comes down again.

But this time, it was much more personal. Every decision was mine — from painting to curating to hanging — and that freedom, while a little scary, made me feel more confident and ready for what’s next.

The Mix Tapes collection now lives on as a strong memory, and this first show gave me the courage to say yes to my next challenge: Open Art Fest in Prague in September 2025.

For now, I’m holding onto the magic of that opening night and letting it quietly feed what comes next.

Final adjustments before the opening

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