There are a few tips I thought others out there could use. Just a few things I, myself, wish I had known before I ventured into the big wide world of being an artist.
Photos:
I wish I’d realised how important it was to have a decent camera that took high quality images and easily reduced glare. I got my hands on photoshop this year and love it. Now I have to work through some old images of paintings long sold to bring them up to scratch. I’ll put up a post soon with some tips for photos.
Document:
Take note of everything. Size, colours used to create a painting, brushes used, medium, date created, location of painting when out of your studio, your price, commission rate, actual sale price, where it went (if possible). It makes life much easier when it comes time to answer questions from galleries and clients or when you’re working on a series of paintings.
Hanging Prep:
This is a pretty big one. I’m rather embarrassed when I look back at some of the work I sent out. I learned how to tidy up the back of my work for my first exhibition. I asked a lot of questions and Googled my life away trying to ‘get it right’. There is no one right way but there are some steps that shouldn’t be overlooked. I’ll put up an instructional post for that in the next week.
Business Cards:
Always include a business card (or two, or ten) in your packages. Whether you’re sending your work to a client or off to an exhibition, make sure you send along a business card. I’ve started doing this new thing, it came about because I wasn’t able to get my business cards shipped on time for a show. I handwrite each of my business cards and in the past 2 months I have been through over 200 business cards. They say nothing but “Find me! ChavahKinloch.com” and have a little mark on them made from either crayon or coloured pencil. I know this could be looked at as a major no-no but people seem to love the personal touch and I have to admit, so do I. My site gets direct hits from them and I’ve never been Googled so much. Clients also appreciate having somewhere to go to see more work and learn about me, the artist. It’s a fun way to interact without actually being there to talk to every single person.
Image courtesy of Nileflow.com
Mailing List:
This is by far my biggest stuff up. I really wish I could go back and get the details of every wonderful client I traded with or artist and gallery I exchanged emails with (from computers that are long dead). Contacts are your best friend in the life of an artist, you never know where your next opportunity or acquaintance will come from. Plus artists are amazing people to know, I have made some really good friends through my work. So take note of the people you interact with.
Enjoy this post? I’m offering an easy way for you to get tips on Creating Your OWN Amazing Reality. You can also sign up to receive posts like this via RSS and Email.
Don't forget to share this place with your friends by retweeting this.
I love reading what you have to say so please feel free to leave a comment. They make my day.
Related posts:
- SOLD Two of my favourite paintings have been sold today. They...
- You Know You’re An Artist When You appreciate that your art doesn’t have to match your...
- How to Prepare a Painting for Hanging – The Do’s and Don’ts Lately I’ve encountered first hand and also been told of...
{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
brilliant post! look forward to the followups!
Hi Chava,
I am opening a store front in a month and looking into consigning art work from local artists. Any tips for first time sellers…besides paying the artist:)
Glad you like it Marimba!
Hey Tashmica, yes definitely. Contracts! I cannot stress these enough. Artists tend to go by word -a lot are tender souls and believe everyone is out for the greater good- not saying that your’e not, hope it doesn’t come across that way. I just like to see that everyone has all the details sorted so they know where they stand. Create a contract that outlines commission, the agents role (you), the artists role and when they will get payment after a sale (usually after the 20th of the month or within 2 weeks). Outline what will happen with the work when in your possession and what type of notice you and they can expect for collection of any unsold work. Good luck!
Thanks for the quick response Chavah! Totally helps me determine my role. I understand the tender soul. I have one:) I am cutting and pasting this comment for later perusal. lol
What about underpricing work, still do it. Very bad ha.
Good point Molly! I think almost every artist underprices their work. I know I do it too. There’s a massive on-going debate about how artists should price their work and I’ve heard some really, really good ideas. From pricing per square cm, to using a timer, to materials+time+creativityx2 and the list goes on. Each argument has good merit but all the fuss leaves me none the wiser. So I just go with what I’m comfortable for now. Not the most professional thing to say. I mostly use the price per sq cm system but even then, I step away from it on certain occasions. One thing I do firmly believe in though is each year you’re working as an artist, your price should go up.
Wonderful blog! I actually love how it is easy on my eyes and the details are well written. I am wondering how I could be notified whenever a new post has been made. I have subscribed to your rss feed which need to do the trick! Have a nice day!
I love, love LOVE your posts Chavah
thanks for your insights xx
Thank you Michelle
I hope I’ve helped.
{ 1 trackback }