How To Support Your Gallery (If You Have One)

A message from Art Publisher B. Eric Rhoads

News Flash: It's not the gallery's job to do 100% of the work. Successful artists understand that a gallery relationship is a partnership. If you help your gallery sell more, you will benefit. (Note: If you don't have a gallery and need one, scroll to the bottom.)

Congratulations. You just got accepted into your first art gallery! Now you can sit back and collect the dough from all the artwork they sell. Right? Well, maybe. But there are things you can do to help your gallery sell more work. Here are some ideas:

1. Ask What You Can Do.
   Most galleries will tell you what they need from you. But, just in case, it;s a good practice to ask, "What can I do to be an ideal artist in your gallery? What can I do to help you sell more artwork?" Every gallery is different. Some may tell you to do nothing while others may have specific requests. Listen carefully.
   
2. Start With the Frame.
   Though some galleries will select the frame, many expect you to put the frame on your work. Fact: Good frames sell paintings faster and at higher prices. Most artists I know use inexpensive frames. The pros use high-quality frames that have better finishes. Most gallery owners will tell you that they have taken paintings off the wall after several months, re-framed them in quality, and sold them immediately.
   
3. Prepare a Detailed Biography.
   Look for every possible angle you can add to your biography. That gives the gallery something to talk about. Where did you study, whom did you study with, where do you paint, what is your background? Put it all in there. Chances are the gallery will edit most of it out -- but they may also keep things you may have left out.
   
4. Provide Top-Notch Photography.
   Give the gallery a quality reproduction of every painting you provide. Make sure you photograph with color bars and gray scale so color correction can be exact. Provide HIGH-resolution images so they can be blown up bigger in ads. Make sure you study good photography (tripods, proper angles to avoid reflections, proper lighting, etc.), or hire a professional (you'll want images for your book someday anyway).
   
5. Provide a Story for Each Artwork.
   Stories sell. If there is a special story associated with a painting, write it up and attach it to the back. "I backpacked 300 miles with two other painters and a mule. We camped by a waterfall, and I awoke to find a moose drinking from the water. I quickly sketched him."
   
6. Provide Co-Op Dollars.
   When galleries advertise, they often (not always) ask the artist to pay a portion of the ad cost (usually half if the ad is only for that artist.) Provide co-op money whenever possible, especially if you have a big, expensive painting you want them to sell.
   
7. Be Visible.
   Win awards, be in shows, generate publicity, do anything you can to increase your visibility and create something for the gallery to talk about.
   
8. Offer Your List.
   If you have a list of people who have already bought your artwork, it can't hurt to give it to the gallery. Again, think of them as your sales agent and don't assume you will be selling direct. They can use extra names.
   
9. Promote to Your List.
   E-mail newsletters, new painting releases, painting stories to your list can be helpful. (Make sure the gallery gets them too.) Make sure you list the gallery as the place to buy, and provide a link.
   
10. Ask What Art They Want
    While many artists reject the idea of allowing a gallery to dictate what they paint, a practical approach is to listen to their requests, and if you're comfortable, provide the gallery more of what sells. It's fine to paint what you want, but if it doesn't sell, it won't help your income. Maybe you can paint what you want and still provide something within the range of what the gallery needs.
    
11. Tag Your Website and E-Mail Signature.
    Make sure your e-mail readers and web visitors know where to buy your work. Make sure the gallery is listed and linked.
    
12. Take a Shift.
    Ask if you can pick a couple of days to "babysit" the gallery. There is no better way for you as an artist to understand what a gallery has to go through with customers. If you can experience the role of a gallery salesperson for a couple of days, you'll have a finer appreciation of what they go through. Understanding the gallery world will make you understand their needs more. It won't change your artwork, but it will make you a better artist in terms of your gallery relationships.
    
13. Don't Be a Pest.
    Gallery managers have to spend a lot of time babysitting all their insecure artists. Don't call or e-mail too often to ask if anything has sold (a good gallery will let you know). Don't complain too much. Ask how often they want to hear from you.
    
14. Show Appreciation.
    The unwritten story is that no one wants to help a jerk. If you are a whiner, a prima donna, a jerk, a pest, it will hurt your sales. Though most won't consciously "get even," some will subconsciously. One artist I know buys the salesperson who sells his art a special something with every sale. Chances are that they will push a little harder to sell his work. Incentives are wonderful (but make sure the gallery is OK with it).
    
15. Be a Fast Responder.
    A gallery can lose a hot sale prospect in a matter of minutes. They may need a quick question answered, or need to know if you're willing to make an adjustment or do a commission work. Give them your cell phone and answer immediately. Minutes can make a difference between a sale or no sale.

Good luck!!

If you don't have a gallery and need one.... read below.

Eric Rhoads, Publisher, Streamline Publishing, Inc.
Twitter, Facebook, Linked In

PS: If you need a gallery, we are having EXCELLENT success helping artists get galleries. Our magazine Artist Advocate runs images of your artwork (paintings, sculpture, photography, fine crafts, mixed media) and sends the magazine to over 6,500 galleries that sell original artworks, PLUS art licensing and art publishers. BONUS: One artist in our last issue ended up getting discovered by one of the major national artist's magazines, which resulted in a feature article!
"I picked up a gallery with my first ad in Artist Advocate. The second ad yielded another new gallery, a featured show, and a $20,000 commission. I can't wait to see what happens with the third ad! --Bill Wright

Read other testimonials at the Artist Advocate website.

If you're interested in applying for an Artist Advocate Artist Listing, Contact:

Peggy Taylor (peggy@artistadvocatemagazine.com) 828-628-9021

Kathleen Lawrence-Davis (kathleen@artistadvocatemagazine.com) 530-934-3687

Jaye Alison Moscariello (jaye@artistadvocatemagazine.com) 310-581-1578

Lisa Freedman (lisa@artistadvocatemagazine.com) 914-301-5184

Artist Advocate Magazine: Connecting Artists With Art Galleries on Facebook

The Artist's Life

Their Jaws Dropped When I Told Them I Was Invited To Show My Work In An Important Art Gallery

How it happened to me and how it can happen to you.

If you're like me and you have lots of artist friends, you know that every one of them secretly wants to be in a major gallery, and they all want to be in a museum. Who wouldn't? Being in a top-tier gallery can be your ticket to success. It can increase your collector base and can bring your prices up -- which drives your income up -- and it might get you noticed by a museum. So you should have seen the faces of my friends when I told them I'd gotten a call from a major gallery that wanted to feature my artwork. Their jaws were hanging down and they were speechless. Though everyone was very happy for me, I could tell they were a little envious.

"How did that happen?" they asked. I told them what I'm about to tell you.

Here's my story.

The Struggle

When I started painting, I thought it would be easy, but nothing could be further from the truth. The more I painted, the harder it got, as I realized how much I was missing in my work. How did they do that, with the light, the color harmony, the edges, the composition, the brush strokes? I painted like a madman to try to master my craft. My dream was to get good enough to sell my work so I could quit my job and be a full-time artist.

And my dream came true!

My Insecurity

Though I received compliments from friends and family, I thought, "What do they know about art? The only way I'll really know if my work is good is if people buy it, I get believable complements from other artists I respect, or if I win awards." But, frankly, the best validation I could receive was to be invited into an art gallery that I know sells quality artwork. To start out, I did some art shows. The first show, I put up the tent, painted a huge body of work, and sold my first painting! I was on top of the world. I'll never forget that moment. But then my insecurity kicked in ... maybe they had no taste. So I did another show and sold six more. What a boost to my ego. "I'm ready," I thought. But finding a gallery wouldn't be easy.

Don't Call Us, We'll Call You

When I started the search for a gallery, I looked online for galleries that sold paintings and where my work would fit. I sent e-mails off to several and never heard from any of them. So I put together some nice portfolios with pictures of my work and sent them out. Again, no response.

I spent hours chasing galleries on my own and got nowhere. Finally, I started calling around, and, frankly, it was a little embarrassing. "Send us something and if we're interested we'll get back to you," said one fellow. "We're not looking for any artists at the moment," said another.

It seemed like doors shut every time I turned around. It got very discouraging.

How I Was Discovered

They say you have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find your prince. I think it's the same with galleries. Not only do they have to be looking for an artist at the time you reach them, you have to fit their style and what they're looking for. The odds of finding the right fit are pretty slim unless you contact a lot of galleries a lot of times. I learned that the problem is that galleries receive so many unsolicited presentations, e-mails, and photos from artists that they don't even look at most of it.

I had to find a way to get them to look. And I had to find a way to get my work in front of hundreds of galleries. That's when I discovered Artist Advocate.

The Perfect Partnership For An Artist

I learned that this magazine, Artist Advocate, is sent to 6,500 art galleries around the U.S. and some other countries. The entire magazine is designed to showcase the work of artists who are looking for a gallery (either a first gallery or an additional gallery). Because the art galleries can easily look at a lot of artists in one place, it makes their job easier. And because they look at every issue, I can keep my name and artwork in front of them frequently. I want to be there when they are in the market for a new artist. So I bought a listing in Artist Advocate and put images of a couple of my best paintings in the ad. Signing up was easy (I did it online with a single click), and all I had to do was e-mail them the images and the information about me. Because I could put it on my credit card, I didn't have to come up with all the cash at once. And they did all the artwork for the ad.

The Unexpected Happened To Me

No matter how much self-promotion I did, I never could have reached this gallery. "Hello, we're opening a new gallery in Chicago," said the lady on the phone. "We saw your work in Artist Advocate, went to your website and looked at more of your work, and we like it. We're interested in carrying your artwork." Just like that. There is no way I could have known of a new gallery opening up, but it was the former director of a gallery that had received the magazine. The chances of my stumbling into this were next to nonexistent, no matter how many e-mails and portfolios I'd sent.

So Why Not Just Do It Yourself?

Sure, you can do what I did and do your own promotional e-mail and mailings. If I bought a mailing list, I might end up with a bunch of frame shops that call themselves galleries. And my mail or e-mail might end up in a pile to be viewed someday, if it doesn't go to the trash or the spam filter first. Plus, the cost of a list, the mailings, and the time would far exceed the cost of a listing ad in Artist Advocate. These people at Artist Advocate have a great list of galleries that sell original artworks, and, because Artist Advocate shows a lot of artists in one place, it makes the selection process for galleries easier. There is a better chance they will read it and see my work than if I become one of the hundreds who are soliciting the galleries every year. Plus, I'll be one of a few artists highlighted in this magazine, which means I'll stand out. And the galleries will probably keep it, so they can refer back to it when they're in the mood to find new artists. Artist Advocate solves the galleries' problem AND it solves mine.

The Beauty Of My Freedom

The best part about finding this gallery is that now I don't have to set up tents and sit in the rain and hope someone buys a painting. I was able to quit my job and now my gallery sells my artwork for me -- and they put it in front of people who buy art, not people looking to fill time on their weekend. They are getting higher prices for my work than I could on my own, and they promote me so I don't have to promote myself. Best of all, I can paint again, and let others focus on marketing my work.

What About You?

Are you looking for another gallery or a first gallery?

Do you want to focus more on painting?

Are you uncomfortable calling galleries and asking them to look at your work?

Can you easily reach 6,500 galleries on your own?

Sign up for the next issue of Artist Advocate.

Full-page listing ad ($999)

Half-page listing ad, vertical or horizontal ($599)

View a video about Artist Advocate at http://www.artistadvocate.blip.tv/