Working Alone | Breaking the Isolation that can Surround The Pursuit of Art
Recently I had a conversation with an artist from Montana about overcoming the isolation that can come with working as an artist in a small community. As we corresponded I realized…
Collective Wisdom | Creating Titles for Your Artwork
Coming up with great titles for artwork can be a real drag. Many artists feel like it’s more work to come up with a title than it is to create…
Debate | Should you Watermark Art you Are Posting Online?
I am frequently asked by artists whether they should watermark their artwork before sharing it online. There seems to be a pretty widespread concern that posting artwork images online could…
Debate: Should Artists Show Work in Doctor’s Offices, Banks and Other Business Locations?
Last week, I received an email raising the question of whether it would be worthwhile for an artist to show her work in a doctor’s office. The doctor would display…
From a Reader – Creating Art Sales by Promoting your Work to Your Network of Acquaintances
I’ve often written that selling artwork is all about building relationships with potential buyers. There’s another side to this however, in that people with whom you already have a relationship…
Quick Poll: Did your Family and Friends Discourage You From Becoming an Artist?
I recently read an article about Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Records, Virgin Airlines and serial entrepreneur, where he talked about the reluctance many people feel when trying to decide…
Collective Wisdom: Finding your Bread and Butter
In speaking with a number of artists who have built financially successful careers, I have observed that many of them have stabilized and strengthened their art business by creating a…
Branding: Artists, Build your Brand Around Your Name
In today’s post, I would like to address a branding question that comes up quite frequently in relationship to branding for artists:
Should an artist use his or her own name when building a brand, or is it a good idea to create a business name and brand around that name instead?
The most common form of the question I hear is whether it’s okay to use the artist’s studio name instead of just using the artist’s name.
What Kind of Artwork Sells Best?
I’m often asked what kind of artwork sells best – traditional or contemporary, paintings or sculpture, large or small works? On its face, this is a pretty easy question to answer – all I have to do is look over my sales records to see which media and subjects have been selling the best. We’re constantly looking at this kind of information in the gallery to get a sense of where our sales are coming from. I’m hesitant to share this information, however, because I’m not certain how helpful it is for artists who read the blog.
The problem with this kind of data is that we are in such a small industry that it’s very, very difficult to draw truly useful information from these kinds of statistics. Sales can fluctuate dramatically from month to month, and what’s selling today, may not be selling tomorrow. I wouldn’t want an artist to change direction or think that what he or she is creating can’t sell because it’s not what’s “hot” at the moment.
Choice Overload | Cramming in too Much Art Hurts your Sales
I have long maintained that it’s a bad idea to try and show too much art at once. Whether the art is being shown in a gallery, or at a weekend art festival, I believe it’s better to show a limited number of pieces instead of trying to cram everything you can into your space.
I believe that having too much art in one space hurts you in several ways. First, it makes your display look crowded and unprofessional. Most art needs some space to breathe. Your display will look better if each piece has its own visual space.