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12/29/2004: "Art for the Artist's sake - not the Galleries" by John Nolan
The Home/ Studio Show - Sunday the 12th of December - We opened the doors at 10.00am ( first callers arrived at 10.12am ) and closed the doors at 4.00pm ( last callers departed at 6.45pm ) We spent three weeks organising everything. Publicity, taking down interior doors etc, to facilitate a freeflow experience, and last but not least hanging the paintings. We eventually achieved the right combination after a week of trial and error. I say " we " but I actually stayed away from the hanging - I'm only the artist ! I prefer to leave that job to my wife Miriam and other volunteers, as the artist is too close to the work and looks at it with a different eye.Michael my brother was in charge of accounts. Miriam , my wife , and Johanna, a good friend, were in charge of sales and greeting the clients. Richard, a good friend and who is my framer was doorman and was also put in charge of bubble wrapping. Cian my son, was the official photographer, Eoin my younger son, served wine and nibbles. I was delegated the most demanding job of all - drinking as much wine as possible ! I mingled and answered questions and tried to look relaxed, an extremely difficult task for the artist, after the months of being hermetically sealed inside one's studio ! We artists are so isolated in the studio that it is an ordeal when we come face to face with our buyers, but necessary if we want to contact the buying public. In fact one must be prepared to consider the studio as a gallery, a place to welcome on a daily basis our prospective clients . In my situation the studio is adjacent to the family home , therefore we use both the home and studio as galleries to display my work. In addition, my address is very accessible and quite close to the city centre.
As you can see from the above it is all about delegation, everyone has a job to do and each job is of equal importance. This is different to a gallery set up. The artist and guests during a show, are normally made to feel inferior to the Gallerist ( for some reason ) The Home /Studio show needs to discourage this silly arrogance and practice equality. Why does offering a few nails , a wall and a few lights in return for 50% of the value of your artwork, breed this arrogance ?
Remember- your studio and home are very special places, you are inviting the public into these areas. A privileged opportunity which is respected by the right people. It is not a sterile gallery where each prospective buyer is pounced upon.................... Treat your callers as visitors rather than lambs to the slaughter ! This is primarily a marketing exercise, introducing new contacts to your work and allowing extablished clients to admire your artistic progress. Sales will follow, without the need for strong arm tactics.We sold 29 paintings ( 35 were hanging ), received one commission and established lots of new contacts. We kept 100% of the sales. This is highly unusual for the artist as we are accustomed to being happy with half or less, and in most cases waiting weeks before we receive our payment. Most galleries will hold onto the money until the bitter end, even though the painting is hanging on the buyers wall, while the artist - the creator, waits patiently for his or her share. Why do we let them away with it ? I dont know of any other profession which is subjected to such degrading treatment. In the market place we must pay up front for what we want - why is it different for the artist's work ? Why do galleries believe they can pay the artist at some stage in the future, even though the sale has been finalised ? My questions are too numerous to list so lets get back to the home/studio show. I have heard there are some galleries out there who are actually on the side of the artist, hopefully some day I might deal with one of them.
There are a few points to remember when organising your home / studio show. Hang the paintings several days prior to the show, because you will re-hang a number of times, until the right combination is achieved. The paintings should be chosen by someone who is familiar with your work , in this instance my wife. Its also possible to elect a selection committee of friends, who will lend a helping hand before, and on the day in question. It is vital that you have enough food and wine, especially the wine as this sometimes can break or make a sale !As we all know advertising is expensive, so promote the show by way of posters, fliers and homemade invitations. Hang the posters in your local library, doctor's practice , dentists... think about it, the list is endless. Over the years one builds up a client list, which will grow after each show. Remember to place an address/comment book in an obvious place on the day. This will allow interested members of the public to leave contact details and suggestions. A more convenient method is to label a vase or something similar with " Business Cards " and have a raffle for one of your prints or smaller pieces. This way you collect the information and the client has the possibility of winning a prize - keeping everyone happy !
Ensure that each individual painting is titled and numbered, these should agree with the catalogue. If you dont have a printer , one of your friends will oblige. Remember that if you run out of wall space, use your easels for displaying the work, they are not solely for supporting work in progress. At my show , two doors were incorporated into the hanging space. The pathway from the house to my studio borders a storage cabin, the side of which was also used to display paintings - we experienced a rain free day, very unusual for December in Ireland. In more clement climates, outdoor spaces can be utilized to a greater extent. Try to introduce some background music, this as we know can soothe the most savage of beasts ! At least it establishes a relaxing ambience. Invite local dignatories and representatives, regardless of interest or lack of interest in art. This will inevitably lead to others hearing about your show. Think of the process as a grapevine, continually growing and spreading the news.I find either Saturday or Sunday are the best days for holding the show. The time - frame is normally arranged to facilitate as many situations as possible. Starting about 10.00am in the morning and finishing around 4or 5pm normally covers most eventualities.
Send out press releases to local newspapers, publications etc, and attach a photo of yourself and the work. Also place an invitation with the press releases as it might encourage a journalist to attend and write an article about your show. Write your own article and send it to the papers, its all about marketing. Approach local businesses and ask permission to display posters on notice boards. Display posters in local colleges, schools florists,hair salons, etc. Involve family members and place them in shopping areas/malls handing out fliers/leaflets. Organise a door to door mail drop in your locality..........If you think long and hard about it, there are lots of inexpensive ways to publicise your show. If you start the ball rolling, so to speak, with the above suggestions, news of your show will travel and the message will eventually reach the audience you are seeking. It will only be a matter of time before you start receiving inquiries about your next show !
Use the home/studio show as a learning experience. Ask all the participants to become observers and report back after the show. We can only learn from our mistakes and as we know , a person who never made a mistake never made anything ! We can perfect the the whole process by even asking the clients/buyers to fill out a questionaire on departing. Asking questions such as - How do you feel we can improve on our show ? or Where do you think our weaknesses lie ? Visit other home/studio shows, set up a network of shows, continuously learning, sharing and expanding. A notion which galleries worldwide fail to grasp ? Become a part of a community which invites the public directly into the artist's studio, the coal face. With very little effort this is being achieved as we speak on Absolutearts.com and other individual artist's sites. Artist's exchange links thus inviting the public to view more work. The art market is slowly but surely becoming a market place for artists. Become confident about being an artist, realise what you have created, you are the creator and the expert on your creations, why let someone else take 50% of your earnings ? Does a real estate agent take 50% of the sale value of a house ? the answer - no. Does a Ford car salesman receive 50% of the sale price from Ford, the answer - no. Why does a gallery insist on keeping 50% of the value of a painting - the answer - no one knows ! Over the years I have met many gallerists and art agents , none of them could justify their exorbitant commissions, and none of them as far as I was aware did enough to earn such an amount, in other words they want as much if not more than the artist ! A baffling enigma worthy of the riddle of the sphinx ! Tell me why have they been allowed to get away with this daylight robbery ? Because of us - we reticent artists, the source of all art without whom not a single gallery would be in existence. Now it is our chance to rectify this and what a better way to do this, than by way of - The Home /Studio shows. My approach to this type of show is only one way of organising the home/studio show. I am sure there are lots of methods depending on different factors, such as, location, size of studio, if home is also available,etc. Perhaps think of asking permission to use a local restaurant or library, etc, in return for a painting or two ( bartering ). You the artist still remains in charge, regardless of the venue. Maybe spreading the show over two or three days can also help, if you cannot accommodate everyone on the same day. I can only relate my own personal experiences and undertakings according to my circumstances. Hopefully through networking with other artists, we can perfect a situation for a home/studio show which is relevant to each individual artists circumstances and needs.
A lot of the art buying public is interested in meeting the painter, the sculptor, the potter, the photographer, the printer, whatever the discipline - and buying direct. People appreciate dealing with the artist rather than the gallery owner who is endlessly tyring to up prices in order to encrease their own personal wealth. Remember this is why most paintings are over priced . Absolutely nothing to do with the quality of the art work, its all about the greed of the manipulators. The artist wants an income from his or her work, we are not interested in fooling our clients , for us its a matter of integrity and survival.
It seems to me that the business of selling artwork should be a major subject at Art College. The student should realise from the outset that selling their creations is just as important as the act of creation. Most colleges tend to overlook this and lead the young artist into the clutches of the agent or the gallery without any understanding of marketing, surely this is wrong ? What are we educating them for, a career as a teacher and also a career as a practitioner of the arts ? Both careers are obviously of equal importance, but why ignore the business side of this profession ? What is the point in spending time at college exploring all the techniques and as soon as one graduates, being unable to sell the creations ! Its almost as if selling one's work is considered below the artists station and should be the responsibility of someone else............strange, but I fear perhaps true. Speaking from my own experiences in Ireland, this is why many more Irish graduates go into teaching art and other art related professions rather than producing it, because of their lack of knowledge in the market place. I am sure we are all use to the hackneyed comment - " Oh you are an artist, it must be great sitting around all day doing NOTHING except painting ". Unfortunately this is the universal image of the artist. Little do they know nothing could be further from the truth ! This flippant attitude is misinformed. In order to avoid such comments I normally say I am self employed! The status of the artist should be recognised in the pantheon of professions, trades, jobs, etc, like any other means of earning a livelihood, but where do we start ? Perhaps at primary school level, kindergarten ? Children as we all know have a wonderful and pure appreciation of arts which should be nurtured, but unfortunately in the early stages it is not considered as a viable profession for the child in adulthood, and not given the same attention as numerical and literacy skills. Hopefully some day this will change.
As a member of Absolutearts.com the market place for artists worldwide, I believe that the art market is changing - for the benefit of the artist. The artist is more available, no longer in the shadows, no longer depending on the gallery, no longer surviving on 50 % of his or her earnings. The studio, virtual or real, will become the artists gallery, a place where work can be viewed, discussed, explained and sold by the artist, a place where the buyer can trust the intentions of the artist and not feel they are being ripped off by some ruthless middle person. Art for the artist's and public's sake................. not the Gallery's sake - " Ars gratia artis " !
Good luck with your Home/ Studio Shows in 2005, and remember that every journey of one thousand miles begins with one single step, just as every painting begins with one solitary brushstroke !
