Welcome to the Wilderness

It is not just visual artists. In many ways, these days we are all wanderers in the wilderness. That is, if the wilderness can be described as being in a place unfamiliar to us. I am not talking about healthcare, global warming, housing or the economy here. There are plenty of sources for information on those topics. I am specifically discussing how getting your art to market is different and more unfamiliar these days.

Can there be artist reading this post who has not changed up what they are doing in an effort to stimulate sales? This is not completely new. Smart marketing artists have always looked for new ways to create selling opportunities. What is different now is the old ways of doing things have become less reliable than in the past.

Tradeshows such as ArtExpo New York and Decor Expo Atlanta are a shell of their former glorious selves. The sister magazines that serve the same audience of art dealers and galleries, notably Art Business News, Art World News and Decor are slimmed down versions of their peak years.



In the case of Art World News, it reportedly has not published an issue since February 2009. In addition, Decor Expo Atlanta 2009 was cancelled to give the new owners time to regroup before attempting a show there in 2010. It is hard to believe that only a few years ago Decor Expo Atlanta was one of the 100 largest among the many thousands of annual tradeshows in the U.S.

If you follow my www.ArtPrintIssues.com blog, you may have read about the recent announcement that ArtExpo, Decor Expo, Art Business News and Decor magazine have new owners. After 10 long years of investment management ownership, these once venerable products were sold to employees. ArtExpo was sold to a group headed by Eric Smith, former VP of the Art Group for Summit Business Media LLC. The remaining properties were sold to a group led by Kim Feager. She is has been the publisher of both magazines for several years.

While change and new ownership during the past decade have been problematic on many levels, this change is a positive one. For the first time in a decade, there are owners with a real stake in the industry as much as they have in their new investments. I hope there is enough life left in these properties so the new owners can restore them to some semblance of their former glorious selves. I wish Kim and Eric well and send best wishes for the sake of all parties with a stake in the future of these companies that they prosper. It will be a serious blow to this segment of the art industry should they fail.

It is more than changes to industry trade magazines and shows that have stymied artists seeking to utilize these vehicles to create a recognized name and dealer/collector following. The galleries they rely on them to help them make informed decisions about operating their businesses are dwindling in numbers as well.

The Internet has forever changed consumer habits. Consumer art shows have slowed or disappeared. Moreover, the growth of Chinese oil paintings has taken market share and flattened prices in some markets. The style of building in new homes and offices is for more glass and architectural features that offer fewer opportunities to place 2-dimensional art.

Given the situation as described above, what artist would not feel at least somewhat bewildered about how to get their work to market. I previously have blogged about, with apologies to Charles Dickens, this being the best of times and the worst of times for visual artists. It is the best of times because the tools to create and market art have never been better. In addition, the ability for individual artists to carve out a career on their own terms is unequalled. It simply is a great time to be an artist.

It is the worst of times because we find ourselves with a fragile global economy suffering from the nastiest financial conditions most have experienced in a lifetime. With deflated investment portfolios and real estate equity, all but the wealthiest have taken a decided downturn on disposable income expenditures. The result is while artists have more freedom and tools to seize opportunity; leveraging those tools is trickier and harder than ever.

The question artists rightfully are asking is what do I do? What are the best ways to get to market? How much importance should I place on the Internet versus gallery representation versus consumer shows and alternative space marketing? Has email completely eclipsed postcard or brochure marketing? Is the clamor over social media, especially Facebook and Twitter a trend I can afford to ignore? Alternatively, do I need to be onboard now to avoid unrecoverable opportunities?

Should I have a blog and a Web site? Should I sell direct from my Web site and how do I avoid conflict with my galleries if I do? Should I be investigating the licensing markets and specialty markets such as healthcare fine art? Is this the right time to start leasing my art? What other ways can I use to get my work to market? How do I keep my exposure high and liability for losses low when investing in any of these ventures?

The thing is for visual artists, attaining great success has never been easy. Ask anyone who built a national following by using trade advertising, tradeshows, direct mail and reps on the road. While having the confidence that using those means would bring success was comforting, there was never a guarantee going through the motions would ensure success. It took visionary thoughts at the easel; marketing smarts on the business portion, and attention to detail on both sides and adequate seed money to make certain the artist and the public were connecting in a way that created steady sales.

Please read the last sentence in the paragraph above again. That is because there is nothing about it that has changed in today’s uncertain market. No matter what the conditions are, one has to grasp the fundamentals, create and skillfully execute a plan to get results.

What is happening now is that amid the plethora of opportunities, there equally are as many money pits, time-sucks and other potholes to avoid. The fixtures of the past that were as good a sure bet as one can place are not so sure now. It is enough to make all but the most determined think about getting a decent job with good benefits and letting the boss worry about all these things. The reality is that is not a bad choice right now. If you can find a job that allows you the freedom to work on your art and build your clientele on a less demanding pace, it is a viable option.

With the ability to market one’s work with the tools available on the Internet, I think it is possible, even laudable, to work at a steady job while building towards making art a full-time endeavor. Certainly, history shows innumerable cases where successful artists worked for decades as teachers, illustrators and other occupations while honing their skills and biding their time. Following suit in this economy makes for a strong argument today.

For those who cannot or will not wait, you can take some of the money you might have put into a tradeshow budget and create an alternative space marketing program. You can seek you hook up with fellow artists, not necessarily visual artists, to collaborate on mutually beneficial marketing projects. You can join a local co-op and push to elevate its standards to that of the best galleries in your area.

The gallery system is far from defunct. It is true there are fewer of them than before. Those who are hanging in there are to be applauded for their determined verve and undaunted optimism that the best of times will eventually turn true in their tills. Consider taking some of that tradeshow or advertising money and approaching your favorite gallery to ask how you can work with them to create a unique collector experience.

You can breakdown the steps to success. It is quantifiable. I have said many times that one-by-one is how a successful art career is built. That is, one collector at a time, one dealer or gallery at a time. If you consider how many originals you make in a year and consider how many years you might actively participate in marketing your work, you have a good idea of the size of your body of work.

Visual artists more than nearly any other type of artist need fewer loyal patrons than any other art form to enjoy a successful career. If you can make 100 pieces in a year and have a span of three decades to do it, you will create about 3,000 originals. Obviously, you will adjust to your own speed of creation here, but this is a reasonable number for many full-time professional artists.

Once you have a number, you can break it down further. What means are you using to get these pieces to market? If it is a gallery network, you arguably need between 10 to 20 galleries to move that much inventory for you. If you have successfully setup an e-commerce solution for yourself, you can adjust the number of galleries you need. Should you participate in consumer shows, you already have an idea how many pieces on average you can move through them. The point is, you have the ability to define and control your distribution by whatever means best suits you. I have kept the examples here on originals, but the same logic applies to artists in the print market.

Getting as much control of as much distribution regarding how your art gets to market is paramount today. If you control it, you can invest to pump it up if necessary, or ratchet it down if other venues are carrying the load. Since we are in what appears to be a deep trough with only guesses when we will see real appreciation in real estate, jobs and other key factors that trickle down to the art market, it is imperative for artists to take control now. Once you do, do not let go or let up on anything you find working for you.

How you gain control is up to you. If you can muster retail sales through your own location, or in concert with a formal co-op or loosely collaborated occasional means do it. If you can create a steady sales stream by having a Web site that draws in visitors and gives you the ability to make the transaction do it. If you can create show with other local artists that you control, then you are not at the mercy of the show producer’s decisions.

I am not advocating abandoning traditional marketing. If you have galleries that generate steady income for you, treat them like they are your family. If you can see how ArtExpo or Decor Expo can further your cause, get involved. If you can see how a consistent consumer or trade advertising schedule will pay off for you, stick with it. These things will work for you. The media and show owners are eager to help you. They fully understand their future is tied to your success. Look for ways to take advantage of their eagerness in a mutually beneficial way.

However, do not let anything get in the way of you creating sales direct to your customers if you have the means to make that happen. Begin now to start amassing the email and snail mail addresses of every potential customer and collector. Learn how to make the distinction between collectors and customers pay off for you. Customers buy on price because the piece fits an immediate need. The aesthetics and the back-story are far less important to them. Collectors have an affinity for your work and likely for you. They generally are less price sensitive and much more conducive to being given all the details about the artist and the work. They want to knowledgably be able to share that information with others.

Segregate your list so you make the right kind of offer to each market segment. An interior designer is like a customer. They have an immediate need to fill now that is as much design/decor driven as anything but price in the consideration. They are great when they need you, but not great to try and make a career serving. Most are not busy enough to feed you steady orders. Customers are great because they are like found money. You cannot anticipate what their needs are anymore than you can that of a designer. It is just good to have enough that some are in the pipeline all the time.

Collectors and stocking galleries are for most artists the bread and butter of their business. They are the ones that can be counted on to repeat buy and pick up new pieces as they are created. A Main Street Scottsdale gallery where I once worked had a list for each artist it represented. There gallery had several artists whose new work rarely went on public display. Five pieces might come in and three, four, or all were pre-sold. Many were sold on spec to repeat buying collectors who gave deposits based on works in progress photos they saw.

Granted, that kind of thing happened in much different economic times than we have now. Nevertheless, don’t you know the gallery did back flips for the artist and the artist always gave the gallery first shot at new pieces. Who wouldn’t want that deal?

All I’m saying is if you have a winner in terms of getting your art to market, take the best of care of it, respect it and don’t abuse it. At the same time, don’t be complacent, keep working the angles looking for new ways to create collectors. If you do, you may find yourself anything but bewildered and wandering in the wilderness. I wish you the best of times today.