But, how can you ensure that you are making a strong impression? And what’s more, make sure you foster these important relationships? Here are just a few tips from gallerists, curators and artists on how to put your best foot forward and increase your opportunities in the art world.

Mitigate your risk by doing your research & seeking referrals

No matter how good your work may be, if it’s outside the realm of what the gallery’s interest, you have a slim chance of gaining representation. Make sure the gallery you are submitting to exhibits artists at your career point, similar aesthetics, and price points like that of your own. They are more likely to want to work with you and have the potential to sell your work.

Before you approach a gallery, ask yourself, “Is this right for me and my artwork?” If not, it’s a waste of time and efforts that could be spent on a more promising opportunity. Understanding that your work isn’t going to be a perfect fit for every gallery will only make you a stronger candidate for the right one.

After you have determined that you are a good fit for a gallery, see if you can get a referral for that gallery. If someone they know and trust—especially another artist they’ve enjoyed working with—sings your praises, you immediately have a leg up on the competition. Gallery owners may be hesitant to open their doors to an artist they know nothing about, but a call or comment from an artist they trust works as an endorsement of your work and your personal brand.

Otherwise, it’s often the case that when you drop your portfolio off at a gallery, you’re just another name in a long list of anonymous artists who have done the same. The owner and director aren’t familiar with your professionalism yet. Do your best to minimize risk right off the bat and present yourself as a sure bet.

Create your own luck by investing in your creative community

A gallery owner is more likely to pay attention to your portfolio if you’re even the least bit familiar.
So, how else can you make yourself known?

To build the relationships needed to get referrals, get involved in your local arts community. Join local artist organizations or set up shop in a shared studio space. Take a genuine interest in what others are doing and take an active role in your community by going to openings at your neighborhood gallery and networking at other cultural events.

If there’s a juried show that will be hosted by one of your target galleries, consider entering it. Go to shows at the gallery and make a point to find a good time to introduce yourself to the owner. The goal is to put yourself in a position where you will meet a gallery owner while also being respectful of the gallery’s time. Some galleries have set times or dates when they’ll review portfolios, seek these out and mark them in your calendar.

Illume Gallery of Fine Art Gallery owner Jane Bell Meyer advises, “You can make an intro call and send images, but don’t drop in. Respect the time of the gallerist. We get about 40-50 requests a week on social and email.”

Artwork Archive’s reporting tools help you quickly produce professional reports and present your work with a polished edge.

Research the right way to submit your work & present your work professionally

If a gallery is taking submissions, follow any instructions on their website and don’t go outside of the box for this one. Co-owner of Haven Gallery in New York, Erica Berkowitz suggests the following checklist:

• Do not submit very large files via email. If providing high resolution images, consider using a cloud-based service like Artwork Archive.
• Submit your current work or work reflective of the style in which you would be contributing to the gallery.
• Include an up-to-date C.V., price guide, and related artwork captions.
• Do not send blanket emails. These typically get deleted.

One easy way to be prepared is by inventorying your artwork. Platforms like Artwork Archive that provide easy-to-use tools for artists to easily create a full list of images and details in just a few minutes help you present yourself professionally—with ease. In the click of a button, you can generate consignment & inventory reports as well as tear sheets, gallery labels and shipping labels—an essential part of working with a gallery. This ensures the gallery has the exact information on hand about your artwork. They’ll know the price, dimensions, any notes you want to include, its consignment ID, and the date it was consigned.
Stay consistent with communication, work & pricing

First and foremost, stay consistent with the style of work you are presenting. If a gallery invites you to a show based off of your submission, take heed to create work with respect to that style or subject. The gallery enjoyed what they saw and recognized the potential of such work with their collector base.

Don’t be afraid to check in periodically with your gallery about how things are going with your work. If sales are doing well, can they be better? If sales are slow, is it something on their end or yours? You can’t find a solution unless you are addressing the right problem, and an honest answer from your expert gallerist will point you in the right direction.

Artist Jordan Scott has gained representation with many galleries and maintains good relationships with them by reaching out on a regular basis. He suggests contacting them with a simple “‘Hi, how are you? Wondering if there was any interest.’ Not asking for anything. If you go about it professionally, they will be more than happy to work with you. Remember, you are partners. When you succeed, they succeed.

Keep your pricing consistent as well. If you’re selling a painting collector directly out of your studio for $1,000, keep this pricing for pieces with the same size and style. Once you set a price point, you’re responsible for maintaining it.

Over-deliver on quality and information

Let’s face it, no gallery director, curator or office manager likes to chase down artists for information. Whenever you deliver your work, always provide all the details in a way that each work can be identified properly. “The main thing you can do to maintain gallery relationships is to be professional and prepared when they ask you for prices or images. You want to make sure you not only get it to them within a day or so but that it’s presented in a professional manner,” Jordan Scott echoed.

You don’t want to be digging for images, details, or documents last minute. Have thumbnails of your artwork with and supporting details clearly listed out for them. With your art inventory at your fingertips, you’ll be able to choose the right collection of pieces for your presentation. Everyone wants to work with artists that are on top of their game and ready with all the information ahead of time.

Spread the Word & Be A Team Player

The gallery has an audience and so do you. “Increasingly, more galleries are gravitating toward artists who are out there pushing their work on social media and helping spread the word. It is a welcomed asset beyond the work itself,” said Chicago based visual artist and curator, Sergio Gomez.
“As a curator, I am always looking at how and what you include on your profile and many curators and galleries do the same.”

Again, a show is a partnership between the artist and the gallery. It helps in the partnership to be a good team player.

Learn from rejection

In the business of art, you can’t lose. You either win, or you learn. Odds are that you will be told no. Or, you may get no response at all. All of that is okay. The competition for gallery spots is incredibly competitive, so chances are you will not get into every gallery you admire. Learn from the rejection and be reflective of the process.

It could be that it isn’t the right fit, your work might need more development or it simply just might not be the right time. Whatever the case, learn from rejection and use that new knowledge to evolve your approach and go forward in the future.

The first step to making a strong impression with your galleries?

Prioritize cataloging your artwork and getting organized. Artwork Archive is an art inventory platform that artists use to work with galleries, present their work, and run their careers.
Professional artists around the world use Artwork Archive to stay organized, on track and productive. The simple, yet powerful art inventory software helps artists run the business side of their career by tracking inventory, sales and contacts and more.

Start using the tools that impress clients and galleries, free for 30 days. You can start saving time and getting back to the studio by creating invoices, inventory lists and labels with a click of a button when you get started with Artwork Archive.

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The post How Artists Can Make Strong Impressions and Forge Relationships with Galleries appeared first on Art Business News.

In a recent interview with art superstar William Wegman, I asked him how he was able to get into an art gallery when he started out? He said, “Other artists recommended me to their galleries. I didn’t really go around with my portfolio; that was kind of a sad sack situation and pretty much a dead-end, I think. And if you want to be discouraged, just start doing that.”

Exactly! Showing up at a gallery, unannounced and uninvited is a fast track to nowhere. Even worse is sending out emails with links or attachments when no one asked to see them. Do you know what happens to unsolicited emails to galleries? Delete! Delete! Delete!

So, how can artists get into an art gallery? Here’s my list of the do’s and don’ts.

Do your research to see if the gallery is a good match for your work and level of experience.

When I had a gallery, artists approached me daily about showing their work. The problem was, my focus was on works on paper and photography. I also leaned toward work that made some sort of political or social statement. But sculptors, landscape painters, video artists, pet portraitists, religious iconographers, all submitted work anyway and seemed surprised when I turned them away.

Gallerists are creative agents themselves, they have strong interests and aesthetics. Believing that your work is so good and so important that it will change the course of the gallerist’s entire enterprise is egotistical and even a little bit rude.

A gallery is not just a gallery. It represents someone’s creative vision. Take the time to find out what a gallery is dedicated to showing before you even think of submitting your work.

Do develop a relationship with the gallery.

The primary way that galleries choose artists is through relationships. That means that either someone introduced them to the artist’s work or they met the artist first and then were introduced to the work.

If you’ve identified an art gallery that would make a good fit for you, develop a relationship with them. Go to their events. Sign up for their mailing list. Spend time on their website. Like their Facebook page. Get known within their community as a supporter. This is the best way to get on a gallery’s radar.

If you know someone who’s already part of that gallery’s community, all the better! Ask to join them when you go to events. Have them introduce you to the staff. Let the gallerist know how much you enjoy what they do, show them that you know who they are and what they’re about. Then submit your work.

Don’t approach a gallery before finding out their submission policies.

Finding out a gallery’s submission policy is easy. Check their website and see if it’s posted there. If not, call them – that’s right pick up the telephone and ask. Or ask the gallerist while you’re visiting — because you should try to visit the gallery in person.

If they say that they don’t accept submissions, then you have your answer. They don’t accept submissions. Do not submit your work anyway. The best way to crack this nut is through an introduction. And this all goes back to becoming part of the gallery’s community.

If they do accept submissions, try to follow their guidelines. If they ask for 12 images, don’t send them 50. I know you’re an artist and we’re prone to breaking the rules, but submission policies are best followed to the letter.

Don’t ask what the gallery can do for you, but what you can do for the gallery.

No, seriously. Artists are always wishing they had a gallery to “handle all of this business
stuff for me.” But what are you offering the gallery?

Instead of looking at galleries in terms of what they can give to you, turn that question around. How would your work add to their stable? What would it bring to them? How can you help them with marketing? Are there introductions you can make? Do you know how to build websites? Maybe they need some help with theirs.

Giving an artist an exhibition is a very expensive gamble. And as any gallerist can tell you, demanding and egotistical artists are seldom worth the trouble. There’s a long line of very talented people who would love to have an opportunity to get into an art gallery, people who are givers not takers. So be a giver.

Don’t ever think of the gallery’s commission as something they’re taking from you, but of each sale as something they’re giving to you.

Do you think it’s expensive to be an artist? Try having a gallery! The overhead is tremendous. And don’t even get me started on the price of art fairs.

Artists often complain to me about galleries who take 40, 50, even 60%. True, if you’re paying that much you have a right to expect a lot in return. But don’t deny the gallery their commission. They aren’t taking anything from you. They are giving you a sale that you otherwise wouldn’t have had.

Do be prepared to talk about your work.

I’ve asked many artists to tell me about their work over the years. The ones who mumble, “My work speaks for itself” are wrong. If it did, I wouldn’t have asked. Trust me, being reticent about your work is no way to get into an art gallery. But being interested enough in your own work to engage others is the best sales tool there is.

Do develop an audience before approaching a gallery.

For example, having an engaged following on Facebook carries weight. It shows the gallery that you understand how to promote and market yourself. Too many artists put this off saying that it’s a gallery’s job. It is not. It’s your job to build and maintain your audience.

There’s no hard and fast number of fans you need. But being able to tell a gallery that you’ve got a loyal following will give them a sense of security. They’ll know that you understand marketing and that you can fill a gallery with people come opening night.

If you absolutely hate social media, don’t worry about it. You don’t have to engage online. But it’s a very powerful tool for artists if they’re willing to embrace it. If you are going to engage online, I’d suggest you choose one platform and rock that. You can have a presence on the others and even push notifications out to them, but you don’t have to be everything to everybody all the time.

And if you decide to opt out of the social media scene, then think about how you will engage your audience? Do you have a mailing list of people who have visited your studio and bought from you in the past? Start now!

Even if you have a gallery who handles client relations for you, you’d be best served to have some control over your audience. What happens when the gallery closes? Don’t shrug, I’ve seen it happen many times before. And artists who had been selling consistently have found themselves starting over from the beginning.

These tips will help to open doors for you. I’ve seen it happen again and again. But it’s your work that will seal the deal. Make sure that the work is ready, that you’ve honed your craft and are showing the best that you can do.

It looks easy, but I know that it’s difficult. Hang in there and DON’T QUIT. Because this is how you DO get into an art gallery!

The post How To Get Into a Gallery appeared first on Art Business News.