Baren Digest Tuesday, 11 December 2001 Volume 17 : Number 1649 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "bemason" Date: Mon, 10 Dec 2001 16:25:25 -0800 Subject: [Baren 16437] selling art Hi all, Warning, long windy post to follow: If you really want to sell artwork, you have to think of it as a product and divorce yourself from the emotional attachment we all have to our work. You need to take every opportunity to get it shown and every opportunity to encourage people to buy it, not just look at it. This is hard for most of us, we can sell our friend's stuff but have trouble selling our own. If you can truly think of it as a product and market is as such, you will be able to sell a lot more of it than if you think of it as "your work." Selling work is a job, just like any other job. There is no easy way, cold calls are still cold calls and who you know is still the name of the game. If you don't know anyone, start by volunteering at the museum, join stuff and meet people. You need to have someone to invite when you eventually have an opening or studio sale. Write down everyone's name, where you met them and who they are, keep a card file for this purpose and when you meet people over and over you will eventually be able to place them and where they fit in the art circle in your city. Call on every designer and decorator in the book, they have organizations for designers, find one and go to the meetings, join as an associate member. Be visable in every way you can think of. The more people like you the more they will like your art work, it goes hand in hand most of the time. Next you must make lots of work, you can't sell from an empty wagon. This sounds like a no brainer, but in truth some of my galleries say it is the hardest thing to keep artists working. They make enitial work then sort of stop and do not keep their galleries supplied. Hard to believe but seems to be true. Making multiples sure helps in this area. I did montypes for years and worked awfully hard, now I am doing editions and it is easier to have work on hand for an opportunity that may present itself. Framed is even better, I have hung work in offices, restaurants (usually bad light) banks, hotels, galleries and even in a bookshop. I am not too proud to hang it in any reasonable space. I have never had a piece stolen, but I know it could happen and I would be out of luck. I have sold work from all of the above. To find galleries you need to do leg work, go there and look at the gallery, will your work fit in? Find out what the gallery needs, when do they look at work, how do they want to see it, what do they want? If you can't go to the trouble to do this, they won't think very highly of you as a business person and that is what you must be to sell your work. Galleries have enormous overheads and must sell $10,000 minimum orth of work a month to make a go of it if they are paying rent, employees and all the other expenses associated with a gallery. This is not big money to a gallery, but is big money to most of us, we would all be quite happy with half of $10,000 in sales....the gallery owner is not making half to take home by a long shot and times are tough....so you have to sell yourself and your art to them and help them sell it to the customer. Think about your work, be able to talk intelligently about it and why you make it and what it means to you. If you are making florals and 25 other people in the same gallery are making similar florals, it is a tough sell. Your work need to be distictive but still you. Hardest thing is to make work to sell, make it because you love it and then sell it. You just need to ferret out the right galleries. This takes time and energy. There are a lot of books out there on this, I recommend the ones from Art Calendar, http://www.artcalendar.com . Hitting the shows as Maria does certainly works and you get direct feedback from your customers. As far as selling on the web, it is possible but probably won't keep you in staples. I have a lot of stuff out there on a lot of sites and have had a little interest but no sales. Of course maybe everyone hates my work, not something I would like to think and I do sell it in galleries so that can't be the only reason there are no sales. It is hard to convince people to buy stuff they haven't seen in person and held in their hand, even with money back gurarntees. OK, I am done now. Whew...lots of hot air. Best to all, Barbara ------------------------------ From: Julio.Rodriguez@walgreens.com Date: Mon, 10 Dec 2001 18:39:17 -0600 Subject: [Baren 16438] Re: horse list & more 12/10/2001 06:39:21 PM I tried contacting Pete White (Pedobot@aol.com) regarding updates to the New Year Card exchange (Horses) but he has not replied back or is not reading his emails. I know Pete is rather busy these days so rather than risk leaving people out or dropping the ball somewhere, I will copy the current list (30 participants) and setup a sister page to update any missing info. Will post url tomorrow. If you are NOT on Pete's list....(http://www.complicatedpleasures.com/horse ) send me a PRIVATE email with your name & address to have your name added to the participants list. Since I don't know how many have sent to Pete and are now in limbo, please send or resend me an email if you don't see your name on the original site. Remember to check back on the deadline date of 12/21/2001 to see final list including last minute add ons. Please, this is important! On a related note, Mike Lyon mentioned adding a section on the baren page with a list of participating exhibits where Baren exchanges have been displayed. I had put together such a list for the last Barensuji newsletter and will be working to add the exhibit page to the Baren web site soon. thanks...Julio ------------------------------ From: Bobbi Chukran Date: Mon, 10 Dec 2001 18:47:44 -0500 Subject: [Baren 16439] Re: selling art Hi Barbara, THanks so much! This is the best "lecture" I've heard in a long time on how to sell art. I must admit that I do marketing for an art doll supply company, and have done marketing for book authors, and have always done my own marketing when I was writing and publishing books. So I know how to market....I just haven't had anything *to* market in a while.... Call on every designer and decorator in the >book, they have organizations for designers, find one and go to the >meetings, join as an associate member. Be visable in every way you can think >of. The more people like you the more they will like your art work, it goes >hand in hand most of the time. I'm glad you said this, because I've always thought that I'd market my stuff to designers. I've always liked decorating, and have helped numerous friends do their own houses. I never thought of joining their association, though--great idea! Have ya'll noticed that much of the art in "high-falutin'" decorating magazines these days are prints? I have.... > Making multiples sure helps in this area. I did montypes for years >and worked awfully hard, now I am doing editions and it is easier to have >work on hand for an opportunity that may present itself. Framed is even >better, I have hung work in offices, restaurants (usually bad light) banks, >hotels, galleries and even in a bookshop. I am not too proud to hang it in >any reasonable space. I have never had a piece stolen, but I know it could >happen and I would be out of luck. I have sold work from all of the above. Good point! I do like doing the collages, but figure that having some artwork in editions doesn't hurt, either. >To find galleries you need to do leg work, go there and look at the gallery, >will your work fit in? ...You just need to ferret out the right galleries. >This >takes time and energy.>> So, are there galleries that specialize in prints? >There are a lot of books out there on this, I recommend the ones from Art >Calendar, http://www.artcalendar.com . .... It is hard to convince people >to buy stuff >they haven't seen in person and held in their hand, even with money back >gurarntees.>> Thanks for the link...I'll check out their site. I have bought their magazine before, and it's really been helpful. Bobbi C. ------------------------------ From: barebonesart Date: Mon, 10 Dec 2001 17:22:43 -0800 Subject: [Baren 16440] Re: Baren Digest V17 #1648 Bobbi, One of the best ways to meet your public and other printmakers & artists in general is to have an Open Studio sale. Advertise everyplace you can think of, send personal invitations to anyone you can think of - send to all the gallery owners in your area. Do something special at the sale. Have a friend take care of all sales and greeting people, etc. while you demonstrate and talk about your work. This is the education Maria is talking about. Educate the public about what it takes to make a print and suddenly it increases in value - regardless of the image (assuming, of course, that it is a blockbuster image to begin with). It will be an exhausting experience, months in the planning, but it is worthwhile. About the education in the art of business - there are some things you must do for yourself, rather than blaming the art programs. There are many books on the market about how to sell your work, how to market, etc. If you can't afford to buy them, check them out at the library. Observe what other people are doing - what works and what doesn't. Come on folks! We have to accept the responsiblity for our own successes. I've forgotten who mentioned selling art to a friend and they said never sell the orginal, etc. You were given a bucket of poop. Nothing you mentioned that your friend said is valid. Don't believe it, listen to Maria - - she knows. For anyone who is hell-bent-for-'lection on selling their work - probably you should have been a potter. Functional work sells. So, thinking along those lines, I have one friend who is a printmaker who has supported herself & a husband and father-in-law and put two daughters thru college, for many years on her work alone. She does all the best shows around the country and sells fabric goods that have been block printed. She started out with placemats, napkins, totebags, and aprons. Then she added dresses, loose fitting small, medium large type things, then blouses and wrap skirts. Next she did denim jackets, vests and all along her work kept getting better and more expensive! She took her talents and skills and did what she had to do. Her garments are in such demand now that she finally has time and the luxury to even do some fine art now and then. Okay - message long enuf - get back to printing :>), Sharri ------------------------------ From: "Diane Tigue" Date: Mon, 10 Dec 2001 22:03:00 -0600 Subject: [Baren 16441] Re: The market for prints? Hi Bobbi - Maybe Mr. Kincade strikes a more universal chord with the public - nostalgia, and marketing savvy. Maybe the true printmaking artist demands a more educated buyer and maybe there is a very limited market for images that take the viewer on a journey into unknown territory. I think poets must wage this war all the time. Somebody once told me that only 17% of Americans look at art and only 1% buys it. I love fiber arts and I love printmakers and printmaking - they are (all of the ones I know) forever wrestling with the medium and rising to the challenge. Hope I haven't turned off any persnickety lurkers. Funny you get the same old complaints practically verbatum on any web group. I'm on two dog lists and I'd swear I've read the "garbage" bit ten times before. Diane - ----- Original Message ----- From: "Bobbi Chukran" To: Sent: Monday, December 10, 2001 4:49 PM Subject: [Baren 16432] Re: The market for prints? > > They would rather run out to buy the latest Thomas Kincaid offset > >complete with glitzy frame job for $700 and brag that they have number > >750 out of 3500 made. >> > > Hi Diane, > > This is true, but I'm wondering--why? If it's not the money, then is it > because of the supposed "collector" value? Why wouldn't someone buy an > original print for that reason, too? You would think that hand-pulled > prints would be worth more in the buyer's eyes, because it is *hand* > pulled. Several of us on another list were talking about this, and the > concensus was that the public was being mislead about the investment value > of the Kinkade "prints". > > << I am at a local univeristy and their is great prejudice against > printmakers in the other disciplines of painting and sculpture because > those folks see printmaking as a craft. Sorry for venting - but people > need to make prints for the love of it not because it is the road to > wealth - the road to enlightenment maybe.>> > > Printmaking is seen as craft, too? Oh great. I've been fighting that for > years, since til recently I've worked about 80% with fabric art--talk about > a stereotype! > > I don't think anyone's making prints because it's a road to wealth...but > for me, part of the fun of making art is seeing a buyer enjoy it enough to > buy it....I have enough artwork laying around here from year's past that > never sold...I don't want lots more. > > Bobbi C. ------------------------------ From: b.patera@att.net Date: Tue, 11 Dec 2001 04:28:35 +0000 Subject: [Baren 16442] Re: Inks.... Hi Dean' Saw your reply to Robert.. and your offer to send a Graphics Chemical Cat. if he sent his street address. Could you send me one too. Am interested in trying your inks. Thanks, Barbara Patera 25529 S.E. 159th St. Issaquah, Wa. 98027 ------------------------------ From: Ray Hudson Date: Tue, 11 Dec 2001 06:03:09 -0500 Subject: [Baren 16443] technical question - snow I am planning to do a snow scene with a gabillion snowflakes nearly obliterating the landscape. I will be using cherry rather than the shina plywood. Has anyone experimented with hammering away with a stiff wire brush or some similar instrument? Do those punched holes swell up too much when printed with waterbased inks? Thanks for any suggestions. Ray Hudson ------------------------------ From: David Bull Date: Tue, 11 Dec 2001 21:22:33 +0900 Subject: [Baren 16444] Re: technical question - snow Ray wrote: > Has anyone experimented with hammering away with a stiff > wire brush or some similar instrument? Do those punched holes swell up > too much when printed with waterbased inks? Thanks for any suggestions. I've tried this sort of thing both ways Ray, carving out the holes, and punching them. If you punch them, and they are pretty shallow, they will indeed swell up and become disfigured. For cleanest results, carving is the way to go. But if your print run isn't too long, and if you get the holes good and deep, you can probably get away with it I think ... > ... wire brush or some similar instrument? A sheet of heavy-grade sandpaper placed face down on the wood and then bashed with a hammer (or perhaps rolled through a press?) might give a pretty good snowstorm! Dave ------------------------------ End of Baren Digest V17 #1649 *****************************