Art Print Issues by Barney Davey

Art Licensing Links

With the recent conclusion of the Surtex show in New York and The Licensing International Expo taking a bow for the first time in Las Vegas on June 2, the licensing season is in full swing. If you follow my Tweets, which are also posted on Facebook, you might have clicked on the link to this post from art licensing veteran, Carol Eldridge: Insightful report on the Surtex show. Another indication how things are not the same or likely to be the same again http://twurl.nl/0lezal.

The digital version of The Licensing Magazine came out today. And, as is customary at this time of year, it's supplement, The Art of Licensing, arrived as a separate link. It has lots of interesting articles and links to art licensing companies. You will find a wide variety of artists advertising in it as well. Things continue to change in the business and for the magazines and tradeshows that serve them, but there obviously is still life left in these traditional means of gaining awareness that can lead to business for all involved.

Tara Reed is one busy person in the art licensing field. In addition to being an artist and licensing consultant, she also pens the Art Licensing blog, publishes numerous e-books, and leads seminars at shows such as Surtex. She also founded The Art Licensing Forum. And, she just announced another Ask Paul Brent teleseminar. Go to the forum for more details. If you want to pick the brain of one of the most successful art licensing artists, don't miss the call. If you can't make it, you can purchase an audio download.

Licensing your art is a way to create yet another income stream from your original work. It takes time to build a following and gain enough licenses for it to make a major impact on your cash flow, but for those who master the process, it can be quite lucrative.

Visual Artist Entrepreneur Seizing Opportunity

Do you blog? Do you post frequently? If so, where do you get your ideas for topics? I don't have a method for finding topics,most of them find me.

I always try to stay open to opportunity. To do that, I read lots of things completely unrelated to the art business. My previous post about using the Ferrari model of selling limited editions of its $600,000 Enzo model is an example. It provided a spark of an idea that could just as easily be applied to the art print market despite the obvious price differences.

Besides finding inspiration in odd places, I usually have a few ideas for posts cogitating and rumbling around my brain and my other brain all of the time. Sometimes they are just waiting for the right stimulus to provoke the post. Such is the case today. My friend Mike Geraghty was one of the first to purchase my book. It was through the book and my newsletter that our friendship evolved into mutual admiration. Enough to survive agreeing to disagree about politics.

I have had the idea to write about Mike's intrepid adventure into another facet of the print market for some time. Alyson Stanfield's recent post, which mentioned a NYTimes.com story, Lucrative Art Careers, on her Art Biz Blog lit the fire for today's post. Alyson is having a BIG SALE on her I'd Rather Be In the Studio book with a whole bunch of freebies good only until December 21. Check out the image on the right sidebar for more details.

Mike is an extraordinarily gifted painter. He is an avid sportsman as well. Hailing from the Baltimore area, site of the Triple Crown's famous Preakness, he gravitated to painting thoroughbreds. You can see his work at his www.ipaintchampions.com Web site. Some say faces or hands are the hardest to draw and paint. But, there is plenty of argument for the degree of difficulty in painting horses as being the hardest. Put them in motion if you want to up the ante. However you come down on that debate, there is no denying Mike's obvious talent.

To say Mike is a smart guy is a given. He did after all jump on my book early on. In the book, I talk about unsung artists who have managed to carve out a successful career selling a steady stream of art prints, but outside of the spotlight that shines on such artists as Thomas Kinkade, Wyland, Robert Bateman, et cetera. Mike is that quintessential artist. Turning out the work, finding his own markets and managing nearly every aspect of his business singlehandedly. My hat is off to him for his success and perseverance.

Mike is an artist entrepreneur who keeps an open mind and looks to seize opportunity when he sees it. A few years ago, he encountered Andy Moursund, who owned a bookstore in a nearby Washington DC suburb. As a hobby, Andy had built up a collection of vintage college football posters. He had a developed a sideline business of inexpensively reproducing them for his customers. When the two met, Mike knew what he was looking at...OPPORTUNITY.

These posters are works of art just as vintage posters are. They may not be of the same quality as a Norman Rockwell Satruday Evening Post cover, but they nevertheless carry great nostalgia and significance, which makes them ripe for the collectible market.

These posters came from a day when illustrators were abundant and worked cheap. It was not huge cost to have original art created for each game poster. Mike and Andy have worked diligently to turn this sideline into a thriving print business. They have secured a professional distribution company and gone about getting proper licensing for each image. This in itself was a huge undertaking. You can see the result of their efforts on their site: www.historicfootballposters.com.

The business continues to grow and I predict it will be a cash cow for them for years to come. When you think about it, it is a near mortal lock type of business. There is a constantly replenished built-in audience of sports fans who love their college football teams -- show this work to some of them and they are going to have to own it. What is great is there is no competition. The images are vintage, the licenses from the universities involved is very hard to achieve, so there will be no knockoffs of this art. I wish them good luck, but am convinced they have already earned it.

As another example of seizing this type of opportunity, I have another friend who has secured the artwork for hundreds of garden and flower seed packets, all vintage. I predict he won't do as well as Mike and Andy, but he's got a potential for doing his own licensing and creating a print catalog that still will be timeless.

Keep your own mind open to opportunity. You might just find a great blog topic. Or if you are really lucky and truly paying attention, you might just find a fun lucrative side business of your own that will help take the pressure off having your art sales carrying your entire overhead.

Change Your Life Links for Visual Artists #1

Success in art marketing requires being informed. Not just about the art business and how to sell art. It requires general business knowledge and personal insight. You'll find some help on all those fronts in this post. My Google Reader has more than 1000 blog posts begging to be read.

Of course, who has the time to read them all? Not me. But I do have the time to scan the headlines for irresistible topics, (This points out the importance of writing blog titles that arrest attention.) Admittedly, the title of this piece was written to illustrate the point. I've set aside some of the more interesting and helpful topics to put into this post for yo.

I scan those articles because I have an insatiable curiosity that compels me to learn about new things. As my reader, you gain the benefit of my inquisitiveness. You will find below an eclectic collection of posts gleaned from my Google reader with subject matter, (Titles notwithstanding), sure to garner your interest and help you in your life and business. Enjoy!

Lifehacker - Getting Things Done with Google NotebookThis blog is a continuing cool compendium of the best ways to manage your life better, especially, but not exclusively, online.

Pick the Brain - Ten Ways to Instantly Build Self-Confidence Pick the Brain is a site with a wonderful collection of articles and help on motivation, productivity, self-improvement and much more.

Health Care Fine Art - Interview with Diane Spellman If you have not yet considered how health care and art intersect and what that could mean to you as visual artist, this article is must reading.

Fine Art Views - Generating Creative Business Ideas It's really good to see Clint Watson back at full strength blogging. The addition of regular contributing writers as with Lori Woodward Simons, who penned this insightful piece. By the way, Clint had a succint poignant comment on the previous post about the death of Blog Rush.

Ancient Artist: Developing an art career after 50 - The Value in Mini Marketing Sue Smith has emerged as a terrific artist and savvy marketer. I'm north of her in age and as such greatly respect her chutzpah, wisdom and all she brings to the art marketing conversation.

In a brazen bit of bragging digression, I recently completed an arduous three-week training program with a high tech marketing firm here in Arizona. (Had to get an RJ (Real Job) to bring my health care costs under control.) Despite having nearly 20 years on all but one of my 14 classmates, I was the sales leader at the end of the training which in the last week was nearly all sales calls. I smoked 'em all by an embarrassing amount.

I'd mention the name of this company, but then I'd have to put in all kinds of disclaimers which I'm not inclined to do. Suffice it to say it felt mighty good to put all the young hot shots in my rear view. You just can't replace life experience in many situations. It's been fun to be part of a dynamic fast growing company that is recognized as one of the best places to work in Arizona. Enjoying success straightaway makes it all the more fun

Copy Blogger - Free Link Bait Report Brian Clark's blog is one of the most popular marketing blogs on the Internet. If you are blogging, you should be thinking about how to incorporate Link Baiting as part of your efforts and his free report will help you understand how to do that. If you don't know what link baiting is, you really need to read his report.

Art Licensing Info - Directory of Illustration - Advertising Opportunity Tara Reed generously provides insights into art licensing from the artist's perspective. Her link to this directory could be invaluable to many readers of her blog and this one.

Mashable - Reasons to Start CoworkingThis blog is an ambitious collection of all that's new on the Web. It updates multiple times each day, so it's really difficult to keep current with all it offers. The life, career and work of a visual artist can be a solitary and lonely way to make a living. Coworking offers a unique way to break out of that mode for artists and others who work solo. It is described as a global movement of localized mobile/remote worker communities coming together to share their otherwise independent work experiences.

HDExpo Puts Art in the Hospitality Picture

Changes in the tradeshow scene regarding the art business have been frequently reported here. The traditional industry shows such as ArtExpo and Decor Expo are well off their peak years in size, as are the publications that support them. And, the total number of shows serving the industry are at lows not seen in decades. No matter what factors you use to account for the downward trend, they are sadly there and showing no signs of resurgence.

Tradeshow Woes Are a Problem Across Many Industries

It's not just art and picture framing shows that are on their heels. You needn't look hard to find evidence of contraction in all kinds of industries. Given such a multi-industry trend is surely a cause to wonder if there are alternative shows worth either attending or exhibiting for artists and publishers.

There Are Bright Spots To Be Found

One growing show growing increasingly important to many art publishers and self-representing artists is the HDExpo. It is the sister tradeshow to Hospitality Design magazine, which also is growing in size. These entities primarily serve complete design needs for hotels, restaurants and corporate centers.

Gaining traction in this market is a way to create a steady cash flow from a distribution source outside the gallery and online channels that are top of mind for most artists. Not to say the field isn't competitive. It is, but I have always maintained there is ample room in the most crowded fields for artists who bring a fresh perspective to the scene.

Hospitality Design Magazine Publishes Largest Issue Ever

As a former trade magazine rep, I drooled with lust when I saw the most recent at-show copy of Hospitality Design. At 448-pages plus cover, it resembles a mid-size city phone book. I hadn't seen a trade pub that size since the heyday of Decor magazine's show issues for New York or Atlanta many moons ago. The combination of growing importance of the HDExpo show and the size of the magazine puts an exclamation point on their momentum and the market they represent.

Las Vegas Is a Boom Town for Home Furnishings & Hospitality Design Shows

Las Vegas is also home to the World Market Center. It is the host site of the Las Vegas Market, which also is bucking the downward trend as a huge fast growing international home furnishing marketplace. The common wisdom for decades was no venue could successfully compete against the IHFC show and the concurrent shows in High Point, NC for the home furnishings market.  In just a few short years, the Las Vegas Market has proven there can be a viable alternative to the IHFC.

To Be An Effective Marketer in an Industry, You Must Be a Student of It

Effective marketing is a multi-year strategy. The first stage is to become educated about potentially lucrative markets important and new to your business. If you have your own designs on seeing your originals and reproductions used in the hospitality industry, learn all you can about the shows mentioned here and the markets they represent. You likely don't have the budget to tackle them all. But spending time studying them is a great first step towards getting your foot in the door at one of them at the appropriate time.

On the HDExpo Web site, go to Expo/Exhibitor List/Product Category Search. Start with the Artwork: Prints/Reproductions/Photography category and work your way through all the other appropriate categories for ideas on companies to approach, or to see what those exhibiting are doing on their on Web sites. It will be time well spent to study this terrific resource. And, of course, if you can actually go there, all the better. This year's May 14-17 conference and May 15 -17 exhibition dates are upon us. If it's too quick for this year, tickle it as a must for 2009.

Surtex Offers Artists Yet Another Alternative to Galleries and Selling Online

The Surtex show runs May 18 - 20 at the Jacob Javits Center in Manhattan. Surtex bills itself as a licensing show for original art and design and offers a different kind of distribution and income from the hospitality business. Surtex is a terrific venue for artists who want to license their work. It's a show to walk the first year and then to decide if paying for exhibit space makes sense. Many artists are able to make connections there by respectfully and tactfully approaching publishers and licensors when they are not otherwise busy in their booths. The better you prepare for these shows, the better your experience will be.

Learn About Licensing Art

A valuable goodie hit my Inbox today...one you are going to like too!

It is from Global License! magazine announcing its annual special Art of Licensing issue. The issue comes as a nifty free download in digital magazine format. As with years past, you will find it chock full of great insider information and inspiration about art licensing .

If the tidbit from the Senior Associate Editor Regina Molaro's column doesn't pique your interest, then think twice about licensing for your own art. She tells us the total market for wall decor in 2005 was an astounding $49.6 billion. WOW! Imagine just carving a tiny slice of that for your art publishing business.

You will find a fascinating in-depth article about the licensing of Bob Timberlake's work. He is also prominently mentioned in my book, How to Profit from the Art Print Market, as a leading example of how certain visual artists are able to make an enormous impact well beyond 2D art, and do it with style and integrity.

There are other features including, Ask the Experts, the upcoming Surtex show and on trends. The experts weigh in on using art reps and art consultants with valuable insight. Overall, the information provided will be useful for any artist interested in learning about the licensing market. I commend reading the issue and guarantee you will come away better informed about the licensing market for visual artists.

Is the Next Big Thing About to Happen?

I've been a huge fan of futurist Watts Wacker since I first heard him speak to a group of tourism executives circa 1999. His presentation was fascinating and full of compelling information.

He was as riveting a speaker as any I've heard. That he managed to mesmerize his audience of business executives while wearing long hair, shorts, sockless loafers and a rumpled button down shirt made him more interesting. It was a rare encounter where I found myself thinking, "How fun it must be to be that smart, that cool, that self-confident and worthy of having organizations fly a person in and pay them thousands to hear their ideas for a mere 90 minutes?"

At the time, his international bestselling book, co-authored with Jim Taylor, The 500 Year Delta: What Happens After What Happens Next was riding high on the charts. And, his subsequent books, Visionary's Hand, and The Deviant's Advantage plus his latest, What's Your Story?: Storytelling to Move Markets, Audiences, People, and Brands provide more profound and practical insight from this informative oracle.

Finding a Way to Fill the Yearning for Authenticity Can Drive Your Art Career

A key fact I landed on from The 500 Year Delta was in the monumental changes we are living through, there is a societal yearning for authenticity. Today's digital world, including giclees, doesn't allow much for it. If you can figure out how to create true authenticity in your art career and properly promote it, you will reap great rewards.

Wacker's always thought provoking monthly newsletter is penned by him and published by his company, First Matter LLC. The essay most apropos to this blog is from the February 2008 issue. It does not disappoint. With permission, here it is:

Keep Your Eyes Open I’m Convinced it’s About to Happen by Watts Wacker

I can’t help but keep thinking about this being the 40th anniversary of the ’68 Chicago convention and the tragedies of both Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King. Especially now that so many have suggested that we are at the same, or at least, similar crossroads today, I just keep thinking about it.

I actually disagree with the assessment of similarity to the two periods of time. In 1968 the social mood was much more “down with authority” ... today? ... it’s much more like “are you prepared? ... and is there such a thing as being an authority?” We want our institutions to be prepared for the future and we’ve not so sure they are so.

There was an artist who captured the ‘60’s, Peter Max. Peter’s an amazing man. Philanthropist, humanitarian, environmentalist and philosopher ... he is the most successful living artist in the world. He truly was the catalyst for connecting art and business. Max was the first person ever to have his work placed upon everything from bed sheets to sneakers. His product was out-licensed to the tune of $1 billion (yes, billion) before 1970.

While he would likely refer to himself as a neo-expressionist today, he has traveled from realist to pop artist (maybe archetype on this one) to his latest definition. His prescience in seeing how “the poster” was on the cusp of unprecedented ranges and intensities of color (all at inexpensive and high quality) allowed him to connect romantic, playful and psychedelic. He created the yellow submarine for the Beatles. Toulouse-Lautrec would have been proud. Peter readily says that his love of the cosmos and childhood expectation of becoming an astronomer was a major source of inspiration for the art of the 60’s. He captured a period of time.

Today, we should be looking for “that look”. What I mean is, what is the look for today? We’re far enough “in” to the 21st century. And, like Peter, I believe it will be somebody born in Europe ... developing years in Asia ... than blossom in the USA. However, in the 2010’s it will be some other order and more than likely an artist who blossoms in Asia. Keep your eyes open ... I’m convinced it’s about to happen.

I'm in agreement with Watt's observations and predictions. If you want to read my TalkBack comments on his site and peruse some very interesting links related to Watts' commentary, go here.

This post comes on the close of the 30th Annual ArtExpo New York show where in its heyday none other than Peter Max used the venue to further his career. Wouldn't it be great if the artist whose talent will rise to grab our collective consciousness as Watts' envisions was exhibiting there this year? That fantasy aside, given the changing dynamics of the art market, I wouldn't bet on such a notion. It's far more likely the art print market and its primary venue will undergo untold major changes before the next big thing comes calling. Just as The Beatles and Peter Max helped revolutionize music and art by being different and not of the status quo, I believe the next big thing will break out of some yet unknown venue or channel.

Broken Links - a metaphor for marketing. Plus the art of the 15-second pitch.

Broken lines, broken strings,
Broken threads, broken springs,
Broken idols, broken heads,
People sleeping in broken beds.
Ain't no use jiving
Ain't no use joking
Everything is broken. ~ Bob Dylan

My apologies. If you tried to use the broken link to the article in on art in the July issue of License! Global Digital Edition magazine in my previous post. It's been fixed with many thanks to Sue O'Kieffe who notified me. It's linked again above to the proper page in the digital version of the July issue. To apply for your own digital subscription, use this link: https://www.advanstar.com/subscriptions/subscribe.asp?subid=180&ac=a&cid=&esc=L0707W

If you think about it, links to your customers and prospects are the lifeline to your business. When they are broken, so is your business. Conversely, the more links you have and the stronger they are, the more prospersous your art business will be. Good links are at the heart of very important Google page ranks. The smart folks there long ago figured out relevancy in search results are directly tied to both quantity and quality of links to any given Web page. Of course, it's more than that, but if you have a Web page and don't put in some time working on creating links to it, you are never going to achieve the results you want in page rankings.

Trends in Art - Art Licensing Makes a Natural Impact

If you are reading this blog, chances are you have an interest in learning about how to effectively get art into the marketplace. A key factor in having success on such a goal is to make art that is with the current trend. It is more than color, although that's a big part. It's more than subject, which is another huge factor. It's also about macro trends within our culture.

The desire to go green is a growing trend showing no signs of doing anything but getting stronger. Companies in all kinds of industries are responding. Partly because it makes good marketing and partly because it is good corporate citizenry. As an artist or publisher, you can be involved in many ways. You can use recycled materials where possible, you can donate to organizations that promote healthy green habits, you can create imagery that helps create awareness for doing things save Planet Earth. Use your own imagination and creativity to express your interest in this or other macro trends you observe.

The most recent issue of Licensing magazine, which is available free in digital form, offers numerous suggestions on recent trends in the licensing of 2D art. One is messaging as in incorporating an inspirational message within the art. The article on art mentions artist Lorraine Vail, who recently inked a deal with prominent art publisher, Editions Limited. One of her soft landscapes contains the phrase, "success isn't permanent and failure isn't fatal." Who can't relate to that?

Terry Redlin's Retirement Announced

One of the most successful print artists ever is Terry Redlin. According to his www.redlinart.com Web site, he's sold more than 2 million prints and even more licensed images of his work over the past 25 years. Those are achievements few artists ever enjoy.

Enjoyment is at the heart of Redlin's immediately recognizable work, as is nostalgia. The "Spring Fever" piece shown here captures both sentiments and embodies Redlin's enormous talent. With sales totaling nearly 30,000 images, the image illustrates his reach into the marketplace.

His hometown newspaper recently ran an article on him titled, Demand for Redlin's work spikes - Artist's retirement increases interest in prints, but not value. The article provides insights and praise along with some criticism and discourse regarding the terms "limited edition",  and prints vs. reproductions. The arguments are not new, but it's interesting to see them covered in a daily newspaper, especially the hometown paper in a relatively small community. One would have expected the rah-rah homer attitude to be in play. Go figure.

Redlin will turn 70 this year and he plans to enjoy his retirement. He'll do so with a legacy firmly in place courtesy of the Redlin Art Center in Watertown, South Dakota. A place he has always called home. Redlin's son, Charles, designed and spearheaded the center.

It's Good to be Godard - An Art Print Success Story

One of the hottest print and licensing artists in the industry during the past several years is Michael Godard. A self-described, "One-man circus." The demand for his ubiquitious martini and gambling themed prints continues unabated. In a seeming dichotomy, this heavily tatooed, rock music playing artist whose scenes depict merry humorous times around booze doesn't drink.

Godard burst on the scene at the 2005 ArtExpo show. To promote traffic to his booth there, he hired a couple of "little people" and a go-go dancer. The loud music and large crowds drew the ire and protests of nearby exhibitors and the attention of the New York Times. The event created a perfect blend of art and artist ripe to be thrust on the national scene converging with publicity and opportunity.

A recent news item from the Springfield, MO News-Leader provides more details about the artist. It says his art is in more than 500 galleries. That is a feat most artists only dream about.  The story written from a press release mentions his appearance at one of his Oh My Godard galleries in the nearby resort town of Branson, MO. His success is proof that artists with the right look and the ability to promote, publicize and capitalize on fortune can still launch on a national scale in a short period of time. As with many artists' success story, there is a bit of luck involved in his trajectory. But, it came from working and planning and having the ability to respond when the break came.