Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Monday, December 7, 2009
Man in Buggy
This project was done in class with Lester Lee.
Artist: Kathy McFadden
Size: 12" x 18"
Media: Watercolor on kilamonjaro 140 paper
Finish: None Read more...
My Brothers Keeper
Artist: Kathy McFadden
Size: 12" x 18"
Media: Watercolor on kilamonjaro 140 paper
Finish: None Read more...
Birds Landing
Artist: Kathy McFadden
Size: 12" x 18"
Media: Watercolor on kilamonjaro 140 paper
Finish: None Read more...
The Vineguard
Artist: Kathy McFadden
Size: 12" x 18"
Media: Watercolor on kilamonjaro 140 paper
Finish: None Read more...
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Tip: Getting into a Gallery
Jason Horejs, who owns the Xanadu Gallery in Scottsdale, Arizona, published a book called "Starving to Successful - The Fine Artist's Guide to Getting into Galleries and Selling More Art." In the book he shares information on how to approach galleries in an organized, systematic, and professional manner.
Here are a few common mistakes he suggests avoiding:
Mistake #1: Presenting an inconsistent body of work
Artists generally love their freedom. They want to experiment. They love a challenge. They crave variety. All good things, except when you are presenting your work to a gallery.
The work you present to a gallery needs to be unified. It doesn’t need to be repetitive or formulaic, but it must present you as a consistent artist with a clear vision.
Often I feel I am looking at the work of multiple artists as I review a single portfolio. To avoid this problem you need to find focus in your work.
If you work in several media and a variety of styles, focus on just one for the next 6-12 months. Create a body of work that feels like a “series”. Once you have 20-25 gallery-ready pieces in this series, you will be ready to approach a gallery.
You can further create consistency by presenting the work in a cohesive way. Use similar frames for all of your paintings or photographs, similar bases for your sculptures, or similar settings for your artistic jewelry. Make it very clear all of the work is by the same artist.
If you simply can’t rein your style in, consider creating multiple portfolios, one for each style.
Don’t confuse the galleries you approach with multiple styles in your portfolio.
Mistake #2: Producing insufficient work to sustain gallery sales
Many artists create marketable work, but in quantities too low to make a gallery relationship viable. Successful artists are consistently in the studio creating artwork. You may be surprised to learn the results of a recent survey I conducted.
I asked artists how many new works they created in the last twelve months. Painters responded that on average they were creating 53 pieces every twelve months; sculptors 31; glass artists 500!
Gallery owners need to feel confident you will replace sold art quickly and maintain high quality. They want to know that if you are successful you can replenish their inventory.
Don’t despair if you are far from reaching this goal. Rather, look at your creative production for the last year and set a goal to increase the production by 25% in the next 12 months.
Several suggestions to increase your productivity:
Mistake #3: Delivering a portfolio in a format inconvenient for gallery review
Often your portfolio is your only chance to show your work to a gallery owner. Poorly formatted portfolios are rarely viewed. Your portfolio should be concise, simple, informative and accessible.
25 years ago, formatting a portfolio was simple. A portfolio was either a literal portfolio with sheet protectors and photos, or a slide sheet.
The choices have since multiplied. CD? Digital hardbound photo-book? .Pdf file? Email? Which format is the most effective? None of these, actually. Each has drawbacks limiting effectiveness. They are either too much work for the gallery owner to access, too easy to delete, or too hard for you to maintain.
Mistake #4: Lacking confidence and consistency in pricing
One of the greatest challenges facing you as an artist is knowing how to correctly value your work. Many artists price their work emotionally, and inconsistently. Galleries can’t sell wrongly priced art.
Worse, nothing will betray an unprepared artist like not knowing how to price his/her work.
Many artists mistakenly under-price their work. They do this because they feel they are not established. They do it because their local art market won’t sustain higher prices. They do it because they lack confidence in their work.
Mistake #5: Approaching the wrong galleries
My gallery is located in an art market dominated by Southwest and Western subject matter. My gallery stands apart from most of the galleries in Arizona because I have chosen art outside the norms. Yet I am constantly contacted by Western and Southwestern artists. They seem surprised and hurt when I turn them away. They could have saved us both some discomfort by researching my gallery before approaching.
Which markets should you approach first? How should you research the galleries? Is it safe to work with galleries in out-of-state markets?
Mistake #6: Submitting art through the wrong channels
Conventional wisdom, and even some highly respected art marketing books will advise you to send your portfolio with a cover letter to the gallery. You may also hear it's best to call a gallery and try to make an appointment to meet the owner. You might visit a gallery's website to learn of their submission guidelines.
In my experience, these methods all guarantee failure. I will share with you a more direct, simpler approach; this approach will tremendously improve your chances of success. The approach is no secret, and yet most artists don’t employ it.
Tip: How to Photograph Art
As a former professional photographer I would like to share these tips about photographing art. Besides keeping a photograph for your inventory or portfolio, you may also need slides or prints to send to a gallery or competition. Photos of your artwork and photos of you with your artwork are good for advertising as well.
Lighting is critical to making a good photograph. Lighting can be provided naturally (using skylight) or provided using light fixtures. The perfect natural lighting is found on an overcast day, just lay your art on the porch and take a picture. Setting-up light fixtures is a bit more work. The illustration below shows how lamps should be oriented to get the best results.
In addition, here are some things to do and and not do when photographing artwork.
Don’t
Do
Susan Jordan



