There was disturbing news this week in the art print market. *Boundless Gallery, an online art venue had been around for a several years, and also had become an important online art business retailer and a steady source of income for some artists. It abruptly announced it was closing its doors saying the business model was no longer profitable
This week, I added my comments to a lengthy and ongoing commentary to Maria Brophy's blog post, Should you be a Sucker or an A-Hole – You Decide. Maria manages the business for her artist husband, Drew Brophy. He has been rocking the surf art world for 20 years. Her post details how an arrangement went sour with a company had hired Drew to custom paint 50 of its camper van rentals.
The gist of the post is after tough negotiations that led to an original discounted price, the buyer announced he was getting offers to do the job at a price more than 30% lower than his current contract with Drew. He gave them an ultimatum to lower prices or he would pull the deal. Read Maria’s post and the comments for more details.
These events punctuated a moment of clarity I received after contemplating for some time about what is best for visual artists in the art business today. The clarity came in the form of three words:
Defensive – now, more than ever, artists need to realize they are mostly on their own. That is, they cannot count on publishers, galleries, or dealers to be there for them as in the past. The news about Boundless Gallery and the blog post by Maria proves the point.
I am not saying you should not trust galleries, online art marketers or art dealers. I am saying you cannot afford to rely 100% on their ability to look out for your best interest, especially if it conflicts with their own best interest. To some extent, this has been the norm, but the situation is worse now.
Opportunistic – it follows if you cannot put as much trust in others to carry your water as before, then you have to be opportunistic to create your own direct sales opportunities. Fortunately, in these times, visual artists can benefit from the confluence of growing Internet and e-commerce usage, changing consumer habits and Social Media trends to forge their own distribution models.
Having a Website used to be a personal decision. I believe it is now a “must have” item in your marketing arsenal. Further, I believe virtually every artist should have a blog. The SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and Google Page Rank benefits alone should make blogging paramount to artists.
Additionally, I believe the divide between those artists who do and don’t blog will grow larger with the former category taking market share from artists without a blog. Those who add a Facebook page, build a real Twitter following and utilize other social marketing tools will pull further away.
Optimism – unarguably, you need optimism to fuel your attitude, desire and ability to generate your best results. While you may temper enthusiasm with an honest realistic view and even pessimistic view of how times are tough, to be positioned for success you must prepare for and visualize the best possible outcome for your career.
You may not always be able to control your circumstances, but you can always control your reaction to them. If talent, hard work and luck are equal; optimism will win out every time. When you confidently convey you expect good things to happen, you take your collectors and other constituents with you.
I have a sister who has dealt with much adversity in her life, much of it coming from things over which she had little or no control. She reminded me of the great opera singer, Beverly Sills, who, despite a fabulous professional career, had painful personal hardships in her life.
Sills succinctly summed up what I mean about being optimistic in tough times when she said, “I'm not happy, I'm cheerful. There's a difference. A happy woman has no cares at all. A cheerful woman has cares but has learned how to deal with them.”
If you watch your back, look out for yourself, and stay as cheerful, optimistic and as open to opportunity as possible, you give yourself the best chance to enjoy success in your fine art career
* A shout out of thanks is due to both Fine Art Studio Online and Empty Easel for their generous offers to help artists who were on Boundless Gallery. If you are one, check them out.
This week, I added my comments to a lengthy and ongoing commentary to Maria Brophy's blog post, Should you be a Sucker or an A-Hole – You Decide. Maria manages the business for her artist husband, Drew Brophy. He has been rocking the surf art world for 20 years. Her post details how an arrangement went sour with a company had hired Drew to custom paint 50 of its camper van rentals.
The gist of the post is after tough negotiations that led to an original discounted price, the buyer announced he was getting offers to do the job at a price more than 30% lower than his current contract with Drew. He gave them an ultimatum to lower prices or he would pull the deal. Read Maria’s post and the comments for more details.
These events punctuated a moment of clarity I received after contemplating for some time about what is best for visual artists in the art business today. The clarity came in the form of three words:
- Defensive
- Opportunistic
- Optimism
Defensive – now, more than ever, artists need to realize they are mostly on their own. That is, they cannot count on publishers, galleries, or dealers to be there for them as in the past. The news about Boundless Gallery and the blog post by Maria proves the point.
I am not saying you should not trust galleries, online art marketers or art dealers. I am saying you cannot afford to rely 100% on their ability to look out for your best interest, especially if it conflicts with their own best interest. To some extent, this has been the norm, but the situation is worse now.
Opportunistic – it follows if you cannot put as much trust in others to carry your water as before, then you have to be opportunistic to create your own direct sales opportunities. Fortunately, in these times, visual artists can benefit from the confluence of growing Internet and e-commerce usage, changing consumer habits and Social Media trends to forge their own distribution models.
Having a Website used to be a personal decision. I believe it is now a “must have” item in your marketing arsenal. Further, I believe virtually every artist should have a blog. The SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and Google Page Rank benefits alone should make blogging paramount to artists.
Additionally, I believe the divide between those artists who do and don’t blog will grow larger with the former category taking market share from artists without a blog. Those who add a Facebook page, build a real Twitter following and utilize other social marketing tools will pull further away.
Optimism – unarguably, you need optimism to fuel your attitude, desire and ability to generate your best results. While you may temper enthusiasm with an honest realistic view and even pessimistic view of how times are tough, to be positioned for success you must prepare for and visualize the best possible outcome for your career.
You may not always be able to control your circumstances, but you can always control your reaction to them. If talent, hard work and luck are equal; optimism will win out every time. When you confidently convey you expect good things to happen, you take your collectors and other constituents with you.
I have a sister who has dealt with much adversity in her life, much of it coming from things over which she had little or no control. She reminded me of the great opera singer, Beverly Sills, who, despite a fabulous professional career, had painful personal hardships in her life.
Sills succinctly summed up what I mean about being optimistic in tough times when she said, “I'm not happy, I'm cheerful. There's a difference. A happy woman has no cares at all. A cheerful woman has cares but has learned how to deal with them.”
If you watch your back, look out for yourself, and stay as cheerful, optimistic and as open to opportunity as possible, you give yourself the best chance to enjoy success in your fine art career
* A shout out of thanks is due to both Fine Art Studio Online and Empty Easel for their generous offers to help artists who were on Boundless Gallery. If you are one, check them out.
