Viewpoint (May 2000 )
SELLING YOURSELF?
(This article appears in the July 2000 issue of Art
Calendar: the Business Magazine for Artists)
At some point in their
careers artists recognize that their art has reached a certain level of
maturity. They know what they're doing, and they know why they're doing it. What
is more, their technical skills are sufficiently advanced that they can
transform their visions into reality. In short, they have 'emerged'. They are
ready to seek out gallery representation.
Those of us who participate actively in the art world, know
how hot the competition is. Only a small percentage of artists will
achieve their goal of becoming one of a prestigious gallery's stable of contracted
artists. Not only that, but it can take several years from the first approach to
a dealer until an artist is finally accepted. It requires tremendous
determination to push on in the face of rejection.
Above all, an artist needs to believe firmly in herself and
her art. It is not unusual for an artist to mail out portfolios containing 10-20
slides, a resumé, a biography, an artist's statement, and a brochure to 50
different galleries before receiving even one encouraging reply. Given that the
artist has talent and skill, why is this?
As someone who has regularly sent out packets of unsolicited
materials to galleries, I know how frustrating it can be open a reply which states rather baldly: Thank you for your interest in our gallery. We
are unable to accommodate you at this time. Your materials are enclosed. I note that often the slides appear undisturbed, as if they have never been
removed from the sleeve. I have learned to be
grateful that, at the very least, the slides have been returned. Yet I am left with that nagging question: What was wrong with
my application? Was
it my slides, my resumé, my statement, the quality of my brochure, or -
forbid the thought - the art itself?
Always anxious to do my homework thoroughly before sending
off a gallery application, I visit the gallery regularly to gain a sense of
the type of work on display, talk to assistants to find out how well the art
sells, how often an artist is given a solo show, how many artists they take on
each year, etc. If I haven't already met the gallery owner, I make a
phone call to ask practical questions like: Are you currently seeking new
artists? When is your next review? How many slides should I send? What other
materials would you like to see? I make sure that my slides were neatly
labeled and numbered according to an enclosed slide list (with retail prices),
and that the slides represent a cohesive body of work, not a mish-mash of
subjects and approaches. All truly creative people love to experiment with
different mediums and styles, but it is important to decide which one is to be your focus - at least at this stage in your career. My resumé
is always
up-to-date and neatly typed, containing details of both solo shows and selected
juried group shows. 'Selected' meant leaving out all but the most
prestigious local shows and emphasizing national and museum exhibitions.
(A few years ago I was turned down by a local gallery, because they felt that my
work had already received too much local exposure.) I keep my artist's statement
unpretentious and to-the-point. My biography is a one-page account of my
career in art, with no whisper of any personal adventures I've enjoyed, and
little mention of my
other career as an English Literature teacher. My brochure, though designed on my own
computer, is professionally printed on heavy white paper with crisp, black text in
an un-fancy font, with five high-resolution color images of my paintings. I make
sure that all my stationery, including business card, paper, and envelope is coordinated in an understated, not-too-commercial design. My cover letter
is short, stating clearly that the purpose of my mailing is to seek gallery
representation. Yes, I've attended the Art Calendar seminars and I know
exactly what to do, thanks to Barb and Kate!
Replies have ranged from an impersonal form letter sent out to all
rejected applicants, to a warmly encouraging letter saying how much the dealer
admired my work, but explaining that "at this time it is not what our clientele
is looking for." I especially appreciate those letters which identify
particular pieces as having merit. That dealer not only sells art, but appreciates
it, too. Occasionally I am invited to apply again in the future. One dealer I
wrote to even suggested another gallery which might be interested in my work.
Sometimes artist must wait weeks, or even months, for a reply
to a gallery application. I once made polite follow-up calls for 18 months
before I was able to discover whether or not my slides had been reviewed.
"Oh yes," I was told, "they have. Could you bring in a
medium-sized painting for us to see?" My excitement knew no bounds. After a
week of agonizing over which painting would best represent my entire body of
work, I dropped off a 30"x 40" canvas at the gallery. Spotting an
artist entering the premises with a painting under her arm caused immediate
alarm amongst the gallery staff, who assumed I'd come in off the street touting
my wares! It was a further 3 months and many polite phone-calls later that I was
finally asked to pick up my painting as "it would not work in our
gallery."
Selling yourself to a gallery takes an enormous amount of
time and effort, not to mention money to pay for all those materials, postage,
and packaging. It takes its emotional toll too. While it's good for us to judge
our work objectively, and to compare it with that of other successful artists,
repeated rejection can eat away at our self-confidence. A couple of years ago I
was invited to take 7 or 8 paintings along to a gallery in a nearby city,
following an unsolicited phone-call from a dealer who had spotted my work in
Open Studios. When I returned to the gallery after two weeks to find out the
verdict, I was totally unprepared for the comment: "We're really not
looking for abstracts right now; we'd prefer landscapes." The gallery is
very contemporary, full of abstracts, not a landscape in sight. Besides, they'd
seen my work and I didn't do landscapes. I decided to assert myself and ask
questions. The real reason for their rejection was revealed gradually: They felt
that I'd already achieved a fair level of success
at both selling and showing my art, thus disqualifying me as an emerging artist.
Well, what do you know? I'd emerged without even realizing it!
I decided then and there to take a fresh look at my art
career. Up to that point I hadn't really seen it as that at all, as I already
had a well-established career as an English teacher. The instructor in a
life-drawing class once told us that you had no right to call yourself an artist
until you'd been doing art seriously for at least 10 years. I haven't reached
that milestone yet, but I know now that she was wrong. Anyway, I sat down and
made a list of my goals in art:
(1) To get into juried shows and win awards. (I'd already done a fair amount of
that.)
(2) To obtain solo shows. (I'd had several in colleges and in a commercial
gallery, not counting the ones in banks, cafés, and hair salons.)
(3) To sell my paintings. (I was doing that on a regular basis at Open Studios,
art fairs, shows, etc. I was making enough money to feed my art habit and
equip my studio.)
(4) To get into a gallery.
Ah...yes. But why?
I think I believe that by getting into a gallery I'll be
regarded with more respect by other artists, sell more work, and meet more important people.
Also, I fantasize that I'll save some of the huge amount of time I spend on promoting myself.
Do I really need a gallery to sell my work? Possibly not - I
can barely paint enough to fill my studio or my booth at art festivals now.
Do I need a gallery to stroke my ego? Not really - I've got my
huge art network to buoy me up.
Will I meet important people through a dealer? What does
that mean anyway?
Is being with a gallery going to relieve me of the need to
publicize my own work? Definitely not - unless I get into one of those
world-renowned New York or London establishments ... whoops, there I go
fantasizing again!
Two years have passed since I last applied to a gallery. In
that time, with the upturn in the economy, I've doubled my sales. All the effort
I formerly put into my gallery applications I have channeled more directly into
publicizing and showing my work. Several months ago I built my own website
(www.annbaldwin.com)
which has gained me invitations to teach workshops, a contract with a fine art
publishing company to produce limited edition prints of 6 of my paintings (just
released by Visualize), direct sales over the internet, and constant e-mails from
people who tell me how much they like my art.
Art Calendar (www.artcalendar.com) can take some of the
credit for my business savvy. I attended a series of their seminars, given by
Barb Doughty and Kate Becker-Burridge, which helped me to 'get real'.. In a year's
time I'm quitting my job as an English teacher to become a full-time artist. I
need more time to paint.
Still, this summer I think I'll apply to some more
galleries....
©Ann Baldwin May 2000
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