Sketching – How to Plan Your Sketching Tour For Out of the World Success?
Sketching literally boosts up your creativity in rapid drawing exercises.
What if you learned what you need to do to setup your own trip that will help you to flood your creative juices while you are on a move to get your sketching done? It is important that you keep a note of certain tasks that you have to keep in mind so that you come out with the best sketch possible that will skyrocket your painting right through the roof.
1. There are some artists who only love pencil sketch…
- While there are many who enjoy mixing up some light weight water colors to get it done.
Make sure you carry along…
* Brushes and water color. * Pencil. * Sharpener. * Some other equipments…
- This will help you out on your field while you are going around.
2. It is also important that you carry a camera with you. This is because you can take pics of nature while on the scene, and you can remind them back while you are back home.
3. It is extremely important that you feel inspired and comfortable on the site.
Sketching can literally be done anywhere. You can get your creativity flooded while sitting right below the tree or just roaming around the shopping mall. It completely depends upon your theme and idea behind enhancing your creativity of your subject.
4. Make sure you manage everything and don’t stress out too hard.
It is important that you change your painting work into manageable chunks and get your creative juices flowing.
5. Take a comfortable blanket or a chair to sit so that you are comfortable enough while you are at work. Carry along with you food and drink so that you can stay fresh and healthy during your trip. It is important that you are also sitting in a clean environment, this is important to keep you fresh and healthy while your creative juices flow.
To take a look at more articles just like this one, click here: Sketching – step by step tutorials. You will be taken to the registration page where you give your name and email address and you receive every 4 articles on canvas, oil, watercolor painting and pencil, cartoon drawing.
‘Murtaza Habib’ has helped hundreds of newbies to start their painting courses, now you can do it too. Keep visiting Paint on my canvas for unique articles on drawing and painting.
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Tips To Becoming A Successful Artist & Craftperson
by: Johnny JW Morlan
The world and the Internet are filled with artists. Artists are everywhere! Because of the competition, only a few get noticed and make money at it.
Take these for instance, on the Internet, www.wwar.com, www.yessy.com and www.fine-art.com. Sure they receive an immense amount of visitors per month, www.wwar.com, has almost 16,000 artists and over 100,000 pieces of art, www.yessy.com has at least 10,000 artists and over 90,000 pieces of art and www.fine-art.com has 8,000 artists and 62,000 pieces of art!
It takes numerous traits to be an artist and businessperson! Some can be taught and some can not.
The Tips Are Not In Any Particular Order, Each One Is Important
You Will Find Out, The More Tips You Initiate,
The More Successful You Will Become!
* Choose a medium that you have a passion for.
* Do your homework. Study that medium; study the style of all the artists in the world in that medium that you can.
* Do what 99% of people won’t do.
* Give yourself a business name, example: {First Name Last Name Acrylic Painting Artist} and open a completely separate bank account for the business.
* Create your own style! Be different and stand out from the crowd. TV show producers and magazine editors look for this and it also eliminates most of the competition.
* Offer your art in a wide price range. Have something for all wallet sizes.
* Always give the customer more than they expected to get.
* People love to deal with professionals. Present a class act. Always present yourself, art and business in a professional matter. That includes having a logo, letterhead, business card and the merchandising that accompanies your art.
* Sell your artwork merchandised with a certificate, folder and a brief biography/profile, especially if it is a one of a kind piece. People appreciate this and it also documents the piece for future reference. Tell a little about the piece in a description such as the title of the piece, what type of medias were used in creating it, the style of art it is, its size, the year it was created and always sign it.
* No matter where you are selling, if you give the majority of people too many choices, they get confused, overwhelmed and can’t make a decision on what to buy. Depending on the size of artworks you create, Exhibiting 25-50 should give enough of a selection without being overwhelming.
Keep an album portfolio handy and if people wish to see more, you can let them browse through it. Better yet, you can leave it close to you and people will look through it. Just keep a close eye on it. Make sure that all the photos are marked with the artwork name, medium and price. They have albums with room above the photo so you can place 1″ x 3″ white or transparent labels. You can even write sold on the ones, you have sold.
You can also direct and help people decide which will create more sales by for example if you sell limited edition prints, marking the prints that sell best. Actually with the above, people will go one of two ways, they will either decide to go with something that is marked that they like or decide not to follow the crowd and purchase something that isn’t marked. All artists have favorites of their artworks, just mark your favorite ones. If you have a lot, alternate them with each show or exhibition.
* Get a Merchant account so you can accept credit cards. A lot of people like using them to make purchases. 75% of my sales are paid with a credit card and 9 out of 10 of my credit card sales, people use either Visa or MasterCard. It is rare that anyone gets denied a Merchant account, the reason being you are not applying for any type of credit. The credit card companies will get 1%-3% commission on every one of your sales.
* From years of experience, the best way to sell your artworks is retail, you selling them directly to customers. Selling wholesale, to retail stores and galleries, you are only going to get approximately 50% of the retail selling price. Artist agents {managers} usually receive 10%-25% in commission fees of each sale they make. If they get a gallery to sell your artworks, their commission comes out of your net profit. With the extra money you are receiving, you can do a lot of self advertising and promotional stunts. Besides, unless you have a lot places and they are vastly spread out or they are in tourist traps that are selling your artworks, you are only promoting your artworks and name to a minute percentage of people in a very small area.
The three best ways to sell retail are at art festivals, arts and crafts fairs or via through the Internet {WWW}.
Art festivals and arts and crafts fairs have their disadvantages. Each one you attend takes you out of the studio {shop} 3- 6 days depending on how far away it is. You have to setup and tear down your booth, you can do well at a particular one, one year and the next year have hardly any sales at all, because this year, the economy is bad, the promoter did not promote the event very well or just that they had it on the wrong weekend, and another event drew more people’s interest. Sometimes you have to carry large sums of money around, the lighting and security at some events leaves a lot to be desired. Again, in all reality, you are only promoting your artworks and name to a minute percentage of people in a very small area.
Even if you do get accepted to exhibit and sell at one of the countries fine art festivals or arts and crafts fairs, it will cost you $1000-$1500 for the booth fee for 3 to 4 days and there will be 300-500 booths. Yes, 50,000-100,000 people may walk through in that short time, but the majority of artists either do not sell enough to even cover the booth fee or just enough to cover the booth fee along with their travel, lodging and dining. Only a small percentage will actually make money {profit}.
The Internet is the best way to sell retail. You are promoting to many people in a vast area. Below is a text link, going to a page that displays a world and United States map indicating the approximate location of my websites last 1000 trackable visitors. It may take 30 to 40 seconds to fully load, the maps are large.
http://www.morlanwoodgifts.com/storefront.asp?pageno=112
There are numerous online websites that are inexpensive to sell your artworks on that get a fair amount of traffic {visitors}. They charge $0-$100 annual fee and 10%-15% commission on each sale. Excluding my personal business website, I have my artworks on 50 or so websites around the world. I do get a few sales, referrals that led to a sale or inquiries. The one that I have received the most sales {excluding my website} from or referrals that led to a sale, is http://www.architecturals.net. They do not charge an annual fee and they only charge a 10%- 13% commission fee. 100% of my sales come from the Internet and approximately 95% from my own website.
You really do not know who could be looking at your site or your artworks featured on another site. I have received numerous e-mails asking me If I would be interested in exhibiting my artworks on other websites, interested in exhibiting in a brick and mortar gallery, brick and mortar retail stores telling me they were interested in selling my pieces, gallery owners and managers, magazine and book editors, TV show producers and even art managers wanting to know if they could represent me.
Yahoo Business has their Merchant Solutions Starter website service for $39.95 a month. You can create your website with no HTML knowledge. You can have sales up to $12,000 per month. You get 10GB’s of space and 200 GB’s of data transfer {bandwidth} a month. For $22.95 per month you can get the Paymentech account that is a merchant account that allows you to accept credit cards. Both total $754.80 per year. As 99% of artists have their studios in a basement, bedroom, unused room of their house, a one or two car garage, or a shed or building on their property, you can see that is not much overhead, for a website!
* On the Internet, it is wise to have and display a toll free number people can call. It will increase your sales almost immediately! My sales and inquiries increased by 25%, in just the first 6 months after getting one. It gives people more confidence about purchasing from and dealing with you because a lot of times most people associate toll free numbers with buying something or getting information from a business entity. From experience, a very high percentage of people will not call your business long distance if it is their dime. Most of my calls are to place an order. A lot of people are very apprehensive about using a websites shopping cart, even though it is secured, but will not hesitate to give their personal and credit card information over the phone.
Some people just like speaking to a real live person. Stop and think about it, if you talk to a person, say for 10 minutes, at 7 cents a minute, that is 70 cents. If you only get a $25 order, it was worth every penny of it! You will have to shop around, but you should be able to find a plan for a monthly fee of $5 per month or less and 5-7 cents per minute.
* Always include a minimum of 6 business cards with each piece sold. The majority of people have an inner circle of 6-9 friends. You can bet those friends are going to see your piece probably in the next few months. Believe me, people give those cards to their inner circle of friends. In fact, several times over the years, I have had people contact me and ask if I could send them some more cards, because they had more friends that had seen the piece they had and were interested in my work.
* Don’t be afraid to be different. Do not follow a trail, make the trail for others to follow you.
* Always price your art so you have room to barter. Leave yourself say 10% for this. A certain percentage of people love doing business this way. It makes them fell good. Caution do not take this too far!
* Give a small percentage {3% is good} discount for customers paying in cold cash versus say credit cards.
* If you accept credit cards and the customer is paying for the artwork with a credit card, offer them a two or three-payment plan if the purchase is say over $100.00. This will generate more sales and give some of your customers a chance and way to buy and own your art. This is especially good during the Christmas season.
* Have a quantity buying discount schedule. This works well for companies and corporations that like to buy gifts for their employees and during the Christmas season.
* Always respond and return phone calls and e-mails as promptly as possible. It makes one extreme difference! Preferably within 24 hours. When I phone or e-mail people a lot of times the first response over the phone or line they write in their e-mail is thank you for contacting me back so quickly.
* Hard work! Long hours! These are the two most important factors that will help you create your own luck.
* Remember all criticism is are people stating their opinions. Should go in one ear and out the other. After all, you are the one expressing yourself! Only a small percentage of people are going to like your art. All artists have their followers.
* Remember that there are three ways to do anything in life the wrong way, the right way and your way.
* Believe in yourself and know when your art is among the best. You will know this from the body language, facial expressions, and the eyes {eye contact} of the people viewing your art.
* Convey a positive attitude at all times and only associate yourself with people that have positive attitudes about you and your work. Get rid of the nonbelievers and pessimists!
* Never give up no matter how hard it gets. Have persistence and determination.
* Don’t listen to relatives, friends, neighbors, and coworkers or any one else that gives you that line of bull that artists starve!
* Be a jack-of-all-trades master of none. Learn as much as you can about business, self-promoting, advertising, merchandising, photography or any other subjects they will help and save you money in your business. After all an artist is an entrepreneur. The only one that can truly sell your art is you!
* Treat all clients as if they were made of gold because they are precious.
* Never do commissioned work without a written and signed contract!
* Even with a written and signed contract never start work on a commissioned job without first receiving 30%-50% deposit upfront of the total price!
* Never sign or sell a creation you are not proud of!
* Pricing their artwork is very difficult for most artists! There are so many variables involved. If you do #2 & #4 above you should be able to command the price you want. If you are doing the same style as other artists, price your work competitively to theirs. With limited editions, the fewer that you will be creating, the more money you can charge. With one of a kind, custom made and commissioned pieces, you should be able to argue and command the price you want, as there will be no other like it.
You should always price your work, regardless of where it is being sold. You should include shipping and handling in the USA in the retail price. Most people will not take the time to contact you for a price and they hate to ask. Also people will think you are playing the price game. Here’s how it goes. The first person or couple of people that contact you, you quote a price. If they accept without hesitation you will probably assume you are not asking for enough and raise it. The next contact you raise the price. Vice versa if you do this say a couple or three times and they do not buy you will probably assume you are asking to much and lower the price. The problem is that customers know this.
Pricing your work shows professionalism, shows you have confidence in yourself, you have put a price on yourself and that you are not playing the price game. Remember price is a matter of opinion; you are not going to please everybody!
* Have an unconditional 100% money back guarantee, the longer the time period from the time of purchase the better. Include that shipping and handling will be paid by you to return the piece back to you within that time period. Your customers will believe that you must have a lot of confidence in the piece to sport such a powerful guarantee, which in turn gives them a lot of confidence about buying from you.
* Never sell your pieces on auction places like ebay or Ubid. You are not going to get anything for them. The majority of people that place bids at such auction places are only looking for bargains. Handcrafted and art pieces have no place at these types of auctions. Once you start selling at the low price levels, you will have one heck of a time ever getting more for your work.
I once had an art critic and appraiser tell me when he looks at a piece, he arrives at a certain price in his mind, if the price the artist is selling the piece for is under priced he turns around and walks off, never giving the piece or artist another thought. The reasons being are, the artist could not possibly know their self, have very much confidence in their self, know how much talent they actually have and apparently are not too worldly as to know what the finer material things in life sell for.
* Never stop learning!
About The Author
Johnny JW Morlan
As a young boy helping his father with carpentry jobs, Johnny Morlan could never guess that one day his gorgeous wood pieces would adorn not only the finest American and European homes, but would even be presented to the President and First Lady of the United States.
When Johnny was just seven years old, living in Moberly, Missouri with his family, he began assisting his father, working on various carpentry projects. By the time he was a teen, the artistry that would later make him such a success was already apparent. “My dad would get annoyed with me because I would always want to make the finish moldings and cabinets more intricate,” Johnny chuckles. He loved making small wood objects, but was often told by his father and others that there just wasn’t a market for such items. “Well, in 1989, I stopped listening to the nay-sayers, “Johnny says, “and I’ve never looked back.”
Having already worked for a furniture contractor and in the lumber and hardware businesses, he had a solid base of knowledge as he founded J.W. Morlana’s Unique Wood Gifts. But he also had a passion to keep learning and growing in his craft, reading over 220 books on the subject and constantly striving for perfection. Now working in Lubbock, Texas and a recognized master in his trade, Johnny Morlan has worked with over 500 species of wood and keeps more than 125 species in stock. He cares deeply about the environment, works with woods endorsed by the Rainforest Alliance Smart Wood Program, and in the last few years was nominated for several distinguished leadership awards.
Johnny has worked with unique woods since 1983. People from over 130 countries have viewed and admired his creations. He is a member of the International Who’s Who Historical Society {his short biography is featured in the 2001-2002 edition of the International Who’s Who of Entrepreneurs}. He is a member of the following organizations and associations: Rainforest Alliance Smart Wood Program, National Arbor Day Foundation, International Wood Collectors Society, Woodworker’s Website Association, Woodworkers Book Club and a lifetime member of Handyman Club of America.
Some of Johnny’s creations have been bought by or given as presents to professional people, foreign dignitaries of state, celebrities and even the President and the First Lady of the United States.
Five Proven Art Festival Showing Strategies for Artists Selling Their Work
By: Neil Lemons
So you’ve always wondered what it would be like to be an artist and show and sell your work around the country at weekend art shows. Here are some tips that can increase your chances of succeeding.
1. Visit the Art Shows First -
You may not always have the luxury of visiting each and every art show before you apply for acceptance. After all, if you visit before applying, you’ll have to wait another year to participate (if you are accepted) and most of us are not that patient.
However, when you can visit the show first and talk to participating artists, you will get a feel for whether or not this is a show in which you wish to participate.
Be up front with the artists that you talk with and ask a few questions. Most will be happy to answer your questions if they sense your honesty and sincerity and you don’t distract them from those who visit their booth. After all, they are there to show and sell their work, not to act as your show researcher.
With their permission, ask how long they have been doing these types of shows? Is this considered a good show? Was it hard to get in? Is the fee reasonable? How is the attendance? Are the show hours long enough, too long, or just right? Was the set-up and take down schedule suitable? What do you like about this particular show? What do you not like about it? Do you plan to return next year?
There are a number of other questions that could be asked, but please respect the artist’s time.
Some events that bill themselves as art shows or even arts and craft shows end up with a lot of questionable “art” booths that are not really art at all. If the “art” show has more than it’s share of artists who make foam rubber alligators on a coat hanger or rubber band gun crafters, it’s probably not that high quality of art show. That is not to say that there is not a place for these products.
There are many large festivals that attract huge crowds that have all kinds of vendors from artists and crafters to cosmetic salespeople to sausage-on-a-stick vendors. Don’t knock these venues, just be aware that you will encounter a lot of folks at these events who may have little or no interest in your art. The good thing is that you will encounter a lot of folks and sometimes that’s what it takes to find a few gems who will make your efforts worthwhile. I have experienced successes at both types of venues and I have come up short on occasion, as well.
On the other hand, a juried event will elevate the level of quality work that is shown, which should attract an audience that has a greater appreciation for art. It may reduce the number of attendees, but those who do attend may be a more “qualified” audience. By qualified, I mean that they not only have a greater appreciation for art, but hopefully the means to purchase it if they like it.
Once you have determined that you want to participate in a particular show or festival, here is what I think is vital to your success both as an artist and as a businessperson.
2. Have a Consistent Body of Work -
Even though you may be good at every artwork you ever produce, your audience of potential purchasers/collectors will likely identify you with a particular subject, a color, a style, a medium, a method of presentation, etc. Show a lot of whatever you enjoy doing the most and a lot of what seems to be connecting with folks the most.
A bunch of random paintings of various subject matter with no distinctive style or color pallet in cheap mis-matched frames will not likely hold a potential buyer’s attention for long, even if the paintings are good. A hodge-podge of sculptures that look like they were made by ten different sculptors will not likely enhance your reputation. This randomness does not help to identify what you are all about.
I’m not advocating that you never try anything new or experimental, but you must make your art memorable to gain any kind of following. Consistency is the key. Look at the work of some of the more successful artists that you admire. What ties their work together and identifies it as their own? Subject matter or theme, style (the way they paint or sculpt), choice of colors used, size, framing? Any and all of these characteristics may apply. Don’t copy their work, but learn from it.
If you are doing work that connects with an audience, folks will seek you out to buy your art, even after the show is over. It’s happened to me many times.
3. Have Varying Price Points -
Whether you choose to show only originals, or limited editions, or a combination is often dictated by the show guidelines. Sometimes, it is entirely up to you. If you have a body of work that connects with viewers, it obviously would be desirable to sell some of it.
If you limit your offerings to large, expensive (whatever that means to you) original works, your potential market will be smaller and you will eliminate a number of folks who, otherwise, might like to purchase. That may be OK if your work is selling for the prices you want on a regular basis.
However, my experience is that having artworks at several price levels makes it possible for purchasers/collectors to enjoy ownership of some of my art in the “now” until they are ready to move up to more collectable, thus more expensive and profitable, pieces.
This might be achieved through offering a number of sizes of original works, offering print or sculpture editions in two or more sizes, having some limited editions and some less expensive open editions, or even offering gift type products such as note cards or calendars with your art reproduced on it (if the show allows it).
While it’s true that some will never purchase anything of significance, others may use this as a stepping stone to begin their collection of your work to whatever extent they can afford.
Your job after that purchase is to keep these lower end purchasers (as well as all of your purchasers) informed about you and your art through mail outs, newsletter, website, newspaper or magazine articles, or however you can to let them know you appreciate their business and look forward to seeing them someday own some of your better art pieces.
They are more apt to desire to own more of your art when you show your appreciation for their purchase and they know more about you and your progress as an artist.
4. Have a Clean and Attractive Display Booth -
There are a few generally accepted artist booth set-ups that are used at most quality shows. The standard size booth is often a 10×10, so many canopies, or tents, are made to this size. EZ Up, Flourish, ShowOff, and a few others seem to be the most popular.
As your inventory and sales increase, you can always add on for a double booth space, when available. Though some brands of tents come in a myriad of colors, a white top is recommended.
Some shows won’t accept anything else. Choose the one that suits your budget and make sure it has adequate sidewalls and leg weights in the event of inclimate weather. If you show long enough, you will experience inclimate weather.
The actual racks that you hang your work on or use as a background might be metal grid type panels such as those made by Graphic Display Systems, or carpeted type panels such as those made by Pro Panels, or mesh netting made by Flourish.
Get what you can afford and upgrade as sales allow.
An indoor/outdoor carpet or other ground covering is a nice added touch if it enhances your booth and does not distract from your art.
Have a focal point in your booth, a “whopper,” a signature piece, or something that stops the show attendees in their tracks so that they will want to come in and see what your art is all about.
I hang a matted and framed 24×36 limited edition of my signature piece above a custom made credenza (that is on wheels, but the wheels are camouflaged) right in the middle of the back wall of my booth.
This popular image is what I am most identified with as it has become my best selling print. Since I have started doing this, I have seldom failed to sell one of these framed prints. The credenza also tastefully displays very small pieces such as note cards, hand painted tiles, and a guestbook for addresses and e- mail addresses (my favorite way to contact folks).
Inside the drawers of the credenza are my change (keep adequate change), sales tickets, credit card forms (in my opinion you must accept credit cards for higher end items), tape, string, insect repellant, business cards and brochures, and extra hang tags for my framed pieces. Underneath are unframed prints ready to replenish my print rack when one is sold.
All of my work that is hanging is framed (with the exception of an occasional gallery wrap canvas) in similar style frames with brass nameplates to enhance the value and identify the title of that piece. All unframed prints are sleeved in clear bags that have an adhesive flap to seal them and placed in a browse rack.
Have a tool box to contain such items as pliers, hammer, nylon connectors, wire, duct tape, clamps, small broom and other miscellaneous items that you may need over the course of the show.
Once you have shown a few times, you will get an idea of what items are useful. Keep this and anything else that might distract from your art out of sight as much as possible.
5. Give Your Potential Customers Room -
I have noticed that more people will actually come inside my booth exhibit and look longer if I stay outside my booth until I sense an interest in my work. I try to be very attentive, but I will only approach a visitor when I sense some kind of interest, however slight.
Do not block your entrance by positioning yourself and your staff or friends and family where no one can walk in and look around. Even if there are two of you and each is sitting at the side near the front of your booth, there seems to be an invisible barrier through which visitors will not pass.
I have seen other ideas of where the artist(s) position themselves to encourage better “booth visitation,” and in a larger booth than 10×10 I could see where sitting over to the side at the back of the booth might work well.
However, in my own personal booth I don’t want my face to compete with my art. At this point, I am only incidental to the art.
I created the art and I answer any questions and take the money. Otherwise, I don’t want to get in the way. Yes, I want the customer to remember me, but I first want them to see my art. When you make a sale of any significance, follow up with a handwritten thank you note.
Showing and selling your work at outdoor art festivals is hard work often accompanied by some expensive lessons. However, when you finally make that connection with folks who like your work and are willing to part with their money to own some of it, the rewards can be great, both financially and artistically.
About the Author
Neil Lemons represents Texas Artists Industries, an eight year-old professional fine art painting company. For more information, visit http://www.atexasstateofmind.com.
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What Makes Art Valuable?
By: Tim Seaward
I read an amazing article by Grayson Perry entitled “How art appreciates – it’s a class act”. In a nutshell he reckoned that art finds its true monetary value from what the experts say. But I can see something more from what he says.
If a piece of art is to be labeled as having any “value” at all it is what is said about it that establishes it as a work worthy of an individuals attention.
In other words … if you see a picture and it relates to you in some way (this can be either positively or negatively) – then you should say so … and write it down.
So once one remark has been made then others will follow … plus other people will look at the work and make their own minds up about it, and they will also read about what you have said … and they will include your critique in their weighing up of the image.
I am not necessarily talking only about financial worth, no, here is a far greater opportunity which is all inclusive, wonderfully mutual, and offers the chance for anyone – and everyone … to add to the worthiness of any piece of art – and eventually to the whole of society. What YOU have to say about a particular artwork is very important … even vital not only to the work, or the artist, or that particular type of work, or to your locality, or to your region, or to your country … but to the World! (I am referring here to the butterfly wing beat theory … if you don’t know about it then you must look it up … it really puts value onto the individual within a world context … fantastic – but I believe it’s true).
Let’s look at this in a bit more detail, first from the artist’s point of view …
If, when you exhibit your art, you value what people have to say about your work (and I don’t mean if you want everyone to love everything you do otherwise you will sulk and withdraw into yourself), and are happy for observers to voice their opinion about it – make sure you have a visitors book easily available for any remarks to be made (remember … even someone who only wants to deface the book is actually saying something about themselves – and their society … and your work might be evoking a challenge to them so much that their only response can be a defensive one such as vandalism – therefore even this has a value in itself – and strangely actually places a value upon your work). These can have a use later on in publicity, and in some cases can be seen as endorsements for your style of work.
If you have a website then a well placed, easy to understand and use, guest-book or visitors book, or comments page are very useful reference points for you and your work. If visitors refer to a particular image then their critique might be worthy of adding to the page that the picture is on. That way other observers can get to read observations coming from different points of view. Of course, if a visitor does not want to be influenced – then they can just simply ignore anything that is written. However, others may well find such additional information from the “man-in-the-street” helpful to them as they try to assimilate what they see. What is written will be of far greater value to them – and to you the artist in may other areas too. And if you are trying to sell your work then a timely encouraging comment from a third party might persuade an otherwise hesitant buyer into making that sort after commitment.
Now from the visitors point of view …
It is a truly wonderful thing to be “touched” by a piece of art in a gallery. When ever I have found myself slowly being drawn into a painting I immediately want to verbalize what I am receiving – I might want to shout or laugh loudly … but more likely I would want to put down in writing a description of what I am seeing, what I am feeling, and what kind of inspiration I might begin to cultivate … and what intention I might want to start getting in motion (which is why I always carry a notepad around with me).
So I would encourage, even exhort, the viewer not to just take a back step and move on to another picture. But rather I want them to commit their thoughts, frustrations, emotions, decisions, resolutions … anything which has come directly from looking at a piece of art, commit these to paper – find the visitors book and, if necessary, fill it with your reactions to the work. By doing this the visitor is rightly placing themselves into the “experts” chair. So any thoughts and points of view are worthy of note. If you have a view on a piece of work then it should be heard.
It is the same – or should be – when visiting a website. In fact it can be easier to make an anonymous comment on the internet. A lot of sites give you the opportunity to make a comment without having to give your name, email address – or any information other than the words you want to type. So if you are that sort of person then don’t be afraid but try to get into the habit of writing down your views. You might actually WANT to reveal who you are or put down your area of expertise … be it the university professor or the “public highway hygiene technician” … because what you say matters … whoever you are.
What will happen here is that as comments are made and attached to a work others will read them and, having viewed the piece themselves, they will make their own point of view whether for or against other comments … and the work will gain its own merit from what is said.
So while the top artists are busy vying for that hallowed multi-millionaire-and-totally-famous-artists kind of place – the rest of us can get on and work, and receive a much more valuable encouragement … that of the humble, if not down-to-earth, endorsements from our fellow human beings.
Don’t be afraid … be truthful … tell it like it is … and watch what happens.
About the Author
Tim Seaward is the author of “What makes art valuable?”. He is also a practicing fine artist living and working in the UK. Visit his site to find out exactly what he paints. http://www.ablot.com or mailto:tim[at]ablot.com (replace [at] with @)
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Art Marketing Tips – Launch a successful business selling your art or crafts
By: Ralph Serpe
Define your goals and get organized – What are your goals as an artist? Do you hope and dream to one day have your artwork displayed in a museum or do you just want to sell enough of your art to make a good living? Defining your goals is an important first step toward your success as an artist. Realize your long-term goal and then set reasonable and attainable short-term goals.
Build your confidence – You need to believe in yourself and your artwork. If not, your marketing efforts will be less effective as the fear of rejection will hold you back. You have to learn to take risks. No one is going to come knocking at your studio door. Get out there and meet new people, network with other artists, open a booth at an art show, etc.
Get in a business mentality – If you want to be successful with your art business, then you will have to learn how to juggle more than one task. This means learning how to become successful as a businessperson. The artists that are most successful have learned how to enjoy both creating and marketing their art.
Art fairs – Art fairs open up great doors of opportunity for artists. They enable artists to market directly to the public without the need of an agent. The public loves art fairs. They usually come to these art fairs with the intention to purchase something, which creates more opportunity for an artist to make a sale and get recognized. You can find a wealth of information about art fairs online. One such place is http://www.sunshineartist.com/. Sunshine Artist is a great magazine that provides detailed information about art fairs and festivals. Check it out!
Follow up – You must get into the habit of following up with anyone who has shown interest or has appreciated your art. That person who saw your painting in the doctors office, or the person who took your business card at your last art show are leads who can possibly turn into paying customers. They may also be able to help you in other ways you never thought possible. It’s important therefore to keep in touch with everyone. Create a mailing list and ask your contacts if they would like to be added. You can send out mailers whenever you create a new piece, or to notify your contacts of upcoming exhibits or art fairs you will be attending.
Customer service – You must go above and beyond your customer’s expectations if you want to set yourself apart from the competition. Make sure you treat your customers and leads with the utmost professionalism. Answer all inquiries promptly. Send out thank you notes and instructions for preserving and caring for the art with all of your orders. Customer service is important to all businesses, and your art business should be no exception.
Artist agents – You are your own best agent. No one knows your art better then you, and no one can express yourself and your art better than you can. An agent generally deals with more than one artist at a time so their focus is not on you and your art alone. Agents usually charge a lot of money as well. By the time it’s all said and done, the artist doesn’t make very much on the sale. It’s better to learn the ropes yourself and learn how to reach your buyers directly.
Get your own unique website – The Internet has become a huge platform for selling goods and services. More and more people are going online then ever before and artists are taking advantage of this amazing opportunity. If you want to expand your business and reach more people on a worldwide scale, you should definitely consider getting your own website. You can market and sell your artwork directly online with your own website. Your website is also a great way to organize and showcase your art to interested galleries and the people you meet in public.
About the Author
Would you like more free articles on art marketing? Visit http://www.sellingartnews.com right now and sign up for a free 25 part Ecourse on Art Marketing!
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How Artists Can Use Online Resources
By Jay Ward
Web 2.0 Networking Sites:
They allow artists to hookup with existing members to gain visibility for their artwork. Social networks are targeted at artists and art-lovers.
The artists using social networks effectively share artwork, ideas, etc. with other likeminded creative people. An explosion of social networks for artists on the internet lately has helped those artists using them tremendously.
They are considered a virtual artistic world for artists as well as those who appreciate artwork. This networking aspect opens up a whole new world to discuss how they were inspired by other artists or why they have a passion for creating works of art.
A well designed site allows artists to post profiles, resumes and portfolios, and some allow the community to vote on the works of art that interest them. Some sites also provide resources for finding real world museums and enables research to be done to help them further educate themselves in their creative process. You can also search, read articles, leave comments, and post your own work.
Getting feedback on your work can be as important as your artwork. The value here is finding out what people find the most interesting about your artwork. The subtle points of interest, use of color, your primary focal point and many other areas you can use to help yourself to explain how and why you made the choices you did.
You can virtually get your points of view across to interested people whom may be in contact and/or who have a network of art friends/collectors which you can more easily persuade to buy your work, come to a showing or visit auctions where you might have a piece for sale.
Online Auctions:
Here you can see what other artist are selling, what their asking price is and finally what it sold for by using the completed items check box on the left navigation bar after you’re logged in (I’m referring to ebay on the completed items check box) once you’ve found the category/medium you work in.
There are also auction sites geared specially for selling art as well as the real world auction houses you’ve probably already heard about and are familiar with, however these are often used for higher priced works of art from artist who became famous after death, you are of course among the living and looking for those collectors who have that special insight into what may become a “diamond in the rough” just a bit down the road while you are still alive.
Online auctions also allow you to ask the artist or seller questions, see how they write their ads and find the ones that look best, possibly to emulate (not outright copy) to give you an edge over the competition and explain why this piece has greater value to collectors and potential buyers.
You can also get a feel for how hot a particular category, artwork style or why different mediums might be fetching the highest prices right now.
Press Releases:
Writing about artwork is an art too! In the off-line world, gallery people are as sick of writing PR for showings and media as people are of reading them, this can be shear torture to readers and writers alike when the Artist’s Statement speaks too much about wild dreams and/or their struggles! It’s often best to have a third party PR specialist that sticks to the facts. However, when pursuing a firm, helping them understand your passion, and personal style that you specialize in. This can create a huge buzz that reaches the right people.
It is advised while social networks and online auctions are still evolving to get in on the action now. These can help artists to not only communicate but have access and build bridges to a very large captive audience that share similar visions and kindle relationships which can quickly become bonfires.
David J Ward is a writer for ArtPhile.com contributing articles frequently on artworks, collecting art and helping artists. For more of his work visit his Articles on Art.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jay_Ward
In Design Efficiency Booster – 5 Tips on How to Increase In Design Speed
By Sebas B
Slow down at the start – Slowing down might sound strange because this article is about speed increasing. Still, taking some time at the beginning of a design task is absolutely crucial for an effective fast paced design session. Set your priorities straight and get all the design tools you are planning to use near you. Make sure you focus on one thing at a time. Multitasking is absolutely counter-effective. If you are really close to a deadline I highly recommend closing your telephone, e-mail applications and other distracting elements! One small distraction can cause a complete loss of focus.
Set up a good grid system – A well designed grid keeps the chances of text problems and design flaws at a minimum. I also recommend some font testing. What will the size of the average text be and how tall will the line-spaces be? These questions are the perfect basics for setting up a good grid system. Don’t forget to link all your type onto the grid system for the grid guidance system to work properly!
Master all pages – Mastering your pages will prevent offsets in the design content. All master pages serve as a guidance layouts for the rest of the document. Use master pages to position elements such as paragraphs, headers and page numbering positions at a preferred position in the layout. Newly created pages will have the master design layout automatically applied. Any changes to the master page will now affect the whole document.
Create character styles with short keys – I recommend using paragraph styles for paragraphs and character styles for individual typographic elements (elements such as headers and sub headers). By doing so, all elements in your document get assigned to a certain style. This makes the whole document related. Now it’s possible to change the looks of the entire document with just a few clicks.
Effectively divide your time – Make sure to work in blocks no longer then 1.5 hour. Take a break for at least 15 minutes after each block. I recommend doing something not related to your design activities. It’s amazing how effective it can be to take a little break. A short break of 15 minutes often leads to a fresh look on what you have done so far! It’s much easier to spot flaws you did not notice before.
Sebastiaan is an all around graphic designer who loves to share his design work experience. To read more design information please visit http://www.redrealm.nl Feel free to share and use this information for your own.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sebas_B
