Art Print Issues by Barney Davey

Selling Art Prints - Exploring Open Edition Print Opportunities

Ideas to Sell More Art Prints

(Ed. note. This post is republished with permission from the October issue of Art World News magazine.

In the September issue of Art World News, I began this series with a brief review of art print market history recognizing the success of artists and publishers in both open and limited edition prints. This month we will look at how using open editions in today’s market can benefit artists.

Don't Jump Off a Winner

To be clear, I do not advocate abandoning limited editions for artists and publishers who have success with the model. As the country saying goes, “Dance with the one that brung ya.” Surely, limited editions will remain as a valid marketing model in the print market.

POD Changed Everything

The emergence of print-on-demand (POD) technology forever changed the art print market, just as it has the music, film, and book publishing businesses. Other coinciding developments, including affordable small business e-commerce solutions, the influence of social media, the quick acceptance by consumers to buying online, the rise of Big Box retailing, and the flood of imports, combined to drive change to breakneck speeds.

Change Is Not Going to Come, It's Here. Learn to Deal with It!

Inevitably, change creates pitfalls and opportunities. How your art business fares depends on your ability to recognize and respond to the changes. Keeping what works, leaving behind what is broken, and leveraging new opportunities are your keys to succeeding in chaotic times.

Change Creates Chaos & Opportunity

Today, artists have affordable technology to create a delivery system to market to buyers predisposed to buy direct from the artist. Because of uncertainty in traditional markets’ ability to endure, I urge developing these direct marketing channels for independent artists. The tools and knowledge are there for artists who want to manage their careers and dictate how their work gets to market. For many independent artists, selling direct is the future.

Nevertheless, some successful galleries and publishers continue to enforce exclusivity on the artists they represent. If artists are comfortable with such conditions, they should try to make the traditional system work for them because there are examples of artists who continue to enjoy success in traditional markets. Still, it’s a smart idea to keep weighing opportunities.

Sheer Numbers of Visual Artists Versus Galleries & Publishers Demands Direct Marketing

The reality is the large number of visual artists versus the declining number of publishers and galleries dictates most artists need to build profitable direct distribution channels to succeed. Fortunately, independent artists have access to affordable, powerful tools and a wealth of knowledge to help them build a successful career.

It is reasonable for artists want to earn a decent living from the result of their labor. A way for some is to avoid artificially capping their income by exclusively marketing their digital fine art prints as limited editions. Open editions provide the means to broadening their collector base in the mass market, and the opportunity for beloved images to sell well for decades.

Open Edition Prints Have a Rich History with Major Artists

In my new e-book, How to Price Digital Fine Art Prints, the prolific and profound art business author, Daniel Grant, says this about pricing limited editions and open editions:

“Pricing, again, is based on demand. One would presume that works from a limited edition should be more expensive than those from an open edition. Still, Ansel Adams' most famous photograph, "Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico, 1041," was an open edition, and he printed new versions over a period of decades. Prices for these works have stayed high, because of the attraction to this image and the connection to the artist”

Does Your Art Marketing Cater to the New Breed of Art Buyers?

It appears a new breed of art buyer is developing. One who prefers choice, convenience and high quality, as opposed to being forced to buy a fine art print with no say in size or substrate. With a growing image library of 3,000 images, the success of the ArtThatFits.com site, which is owned by picture framing giant Larson-Juhl, caters to such buyer tastes.

The bottom line is if the art is powerful and reproduced in the highest level then it can be marketed to those who might be called art buyers, as opposed to art collectors. While in both limited and open editions, the primary desire is to own the image, the secondary buying choice for “art buyers” is based on quality, convenience and variety.

Today's Art Buyers Are Being Underserved from POD's Potential

Until POD evolved, buyers with these needs could not be served and, as such, were never identified or developed.  Steve Jobs' magic at Apple was creating hot products, not by asking what consumers wanted, but rather by developing accessible technology to fill previous unmet needs. Once buyers realized how cool iPods, iPhones and iPads were, they were hooked. I think today’s art print market greatly underutilizes the full marketing capacity of POD in printmaking.

Granted, art buyers who want quality and convenience are different from collectors who will only buy limited edition prints. Instead of annoying these collectors with established preferences for limited editions by attempting to convert them, the suggestion is to market to buyers who will pay premium prices for high quality work, but prefer the options offered in open editions prints.

Knowing the Distinction Between Buyer Types Is Crucial

Consumers have great access to information, and most have near photo quality digital desktop printers. As such, they know giclées, produced by top digital print ateliers, can be faithfully reproduced as high-end digital prints with no limits. Given the circumstances it seems obvious that consumer behavior is moving towards high quality open editions, especially if they are buying online. Removing the burden of limited edition provenance and the risk of being duped has to simplify the decision and increase sales.

Fine Art Photographers Are Finding Open Editions Profitable

Jeffrey Stoner is a leading fine art photographer who has read my books and blog for many years. He was influenced by my thoughts and decided to work in open editions. He recently contacted me to with results from that decision. The following comments from him were originally posted on my ArtPrintIssues.com blog:

"Your writings about limited versus open edition prints were one of the deciding factors in my choice to go to open prints in 2007.  It was the right decision for me.

I began a series of Angora Goat images in 2008.  There are now five in the series. The goats are part of a 10-year experiment to control the growth of Canadian blackberry bushes on the open balds.

The balds are treeless mountain tops and are found at 5800’ along the Appalachian Trail on the Tennessee / North Carolina border.  The goats are brought up to the mountain top on the first day of summer and back down the last day of summer.

The series, which I made in 2008, took off with the first goat image (Arlo shown here.) He became my best selling image of all time in just 9 months after being published. If I had limited the sales of this, and succeeding, goat images, I would have lost a lot of income. And, Arlo is still a big hit. One gallery owner jokes that sales of Arlo prints will pay for my retirement.”

Do You Recognize the Hidden Costs in Publishing Limited Editions?

Other things to note about limited editions are the hidden costs involved. The artist or publisher has to establish a system for tracking every limited edition. For a prolific artist, this can become an arduous task. There are laws in 14 states regarding limited editions. New York and California are considered the most stringent. Artists legally need to comply even if they are selling via the Internet from another state. The burden of time-consuming, costly, extra bookkeeping is eliminated with open editions.

Arthur Secunda Proved You Can Have It All!

The renowned artist, Arthur Secunda, has been shown in leading galleries and museums worldwide. He also had a successful poster printing run with Haddad’s Fine Arts. He was known to express his poster sales helped pay for his studio in France and grow awareness for his work. It didn’t ruin the career of Pablo Picasso when he had a successful open edition print series sold in Sears’s stores in the 1950s.

Terry Redlin is one of the most revered Americana genre artists of any generation. He has huge museum that is a major tourist attraction in his home state of South Dakota. During his career,  he has sold both open and limited editions of the images. Some of his images were dissected and sold as smaller images. None of this has dissuaded his collector base. Although he officially retired a few years ago, collectors still flock to the museum and continue to buy editions of existing images.

Creating An Ethical Means to Sell Both Limited & Open Editions Is Possible

Last month, I suggested artists could produce a numbered limited edition of 100 in one size and one substrate hand-embellished by the artist. At the same time, lower grade open edition prints of the same image could be marketed. The key to success here is to be fully transparent by operating one’s business with integrity and honesty. If buyers know the facts, they won’t feel duped about what they are buying. And, those with a collector mentality can still get a precious limited. And, smaller editions are easier to manage on the back end and more likely to succeed on the fickle secondary market.

In the End, It's What You Make of It. You Determine Your Success

Like the art market in general, the art print business is personal, subject to change and difficult to grasp at times. What works for some artists is suicidal for others. While not every artist has the heartstrings appeal of Terry Redlin’s work, all can take lessons from what worked so well for him.

What it comes down to for artists is the need to research, to be introspective, so you know what works best for you. You have to be willing to try new things and equally willing to give up on them if they don’t work out. Ultimately, the decisions about open versus limited editions can only be made by the artist. It is your life. You have to decide what is best for you and your career.  When you are comfortable with those decisions, you can plan a course of action to achieve your goals with dignity, integrity and great results.

Exploring Open Edition Art Print Market Opportunities

Art World News Reports on the Fine Art Print Market

The article here is reprinted with permission from the September issue of Art World News. The publication is must reading for visual artists, fine art photographers, art publishers and galleries. This is the first of two articles I wrote on the subject of how artists can benefit from working with open edition prints.

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Exploring Open Edition Art Print Market Opportunities

Reviewing the history the art print market reveals its growth has been fueled by both limited edition and open edition prints. In recent decades, the market divided into camps of limited edition and open edition print publishing models.

Whole cottage industries of art print publishers matured around one model or the other. When managed properly, both models have proven to be successful. This is due to mainstream art buyers rarely favoring one model to the exclusion of the other. Such openness fueled opportunities for both limited and open edition print business models.

Limited editions were borne from necessity.

When the first prints were made, printing techniques forced small print runs. For instance, because etching plates degrade with each press pass, only a small number of high quality prints are possible. The practice of numbering prints was a natural evolution. Art sellers instinctively realized numbered limited editions created a powerful marketing tool, one still used in modern fine art print marketing.

Although there are no limitations to producing very high quality digital prints, many artists and publishers, who have grown their business with limited edition prints, continue to use them to market gicleés. It is easy to understand why these marketers reject upsetting a profitable working model to move into open edition prints. Nevertheless, there are untapped prospects for them in the open edition market.

Massive Change Creates Chaos and Opportunity

Changes in the art print market over the past decade mirror other industries. Major factors include worsening economic conditions, changes in both wholesale distribution and consumer buying habits. Big box retailing, foreign imports, and the growth of e-commerce with its comparative shopping power and purchasing ease compounded the deviations. The speed of changes and widespread acceptance to them completes a picture of chaotic market disruption.

Changes such as these have closed the doors on old business practices while creating new ones. The swift shuttering of 135-year old Decor magazine and its once dominant Decor Expo Atlanta tradeshow is a prime example of how quickly a business can become irrelevant and obsolete. On the upside, artists and publishers are finding new ways to use the significant advantages of print-on-demand (POD) technology, social media, online galleries, personal websites, blogs and more to create new marketing opportunities.  

Print-on-demand Technology Forever Altered the Music, Book Publishing, Film and Art Industries

Smart art marketers use POD technology to meet consumer demands as never before. Although adopting the idea of offering open editions that come in multiple sizes has not come easily to some limited edition art publishers and galleries, it’s time they take note. The future is calling.

The success of Artaissance.com, a publishing company owned by picture framing manufacturing and distribution giant, Larson-Juhl, demonstrates how to take full advantage of POD technology. It encourages buyers to choose canvas or paper. Artaissance understands the importance to buyers of being able to order their art in the size they need to fit their unique spaces. This is a consumer benefit and sales and marketing opportunity rolled together. It’s no surprise the company uses www.ArtThatFits.com to promote its offerings.

Many of Our Most Revered Artists Have Leveraged the Art Print Market

There is a rich history of artists whose works made the case for the open edition print market long before the advent of digital printing. Imagine how the estates of such print market giants as Maxfield Parrish and Ansel Adams would have suffered, as would have millions of their art buying fans, had either chosen to sell strictly limited editions of their images.

The huge success of Art.com verifies art can effectively be sold via e-commerce. Since its business model is nearly all open editions, it also proves strong buyer demand for them. Interestingly, if you research top selling prints on Art.com, you find a mix of classic works by artists such as Van Gogh, Picasso and Monet along with contemporary pieces. This illustrates the interest in quality, both old and new and eclectic buyer tastes.

It's About the Art - Open and Limited Editions Both Sell Well

These observations confirm that quality compelling work, whether old or new, and whether an open or a limited edition, can always find a market. And, they further demonstrate consumers are less concerned about open versus limited editions than wanting to own and live with an image special to them. Limited edition digital prints are not driven by consumer demand. While limiteds offer sales support in a closing room, it is the art itself, whether original, limited or open edition that brings buyers and sellers together.

The achievements of Jen Bekman’s 20x200.com limited edition print online gallery attests to efficacy of the limited edition model.  An April 12, 2010 article on the FastCompany.com website reports, “Since its launch, 20x200 has sold more than 65,000 prints by both emerging and established artists, and in 2009, 20x200 received $885,000 in funding in a Series A round led by True Ventures.”

Marketing Decisions Are Personal Business Decisions Only the Artist Can Make

These are impressive results, especially given recalcitrant market conditions. Such success aside, the question remains whether the site’s accomplishments come at the expense of profits left on the table for those artists whose work would sell well for years to come in open editions.

Given there is ample evidence of potential success with both limited and open edition models, artists frequently ask if they can use the same image both ways. There is no consensus about this question. It’s an ongoing debate leading to a personal decision only the artist can make.

Why Should Visual Artists Be Saddled with a Business Model That Limits Their Income?

I believe visual artists should not be forced to accept artificial caps on the potential income from their works. There is no model in any of the other arts where artists’ works are limited. You don’t find it in films, books, music or theatre. Nor is there any “sold out” backlash when a book, film, or record sells millions of copies. Visual artists should not have artificially imposed limitations on their income when more profitable options are available.

Given digital printing dominates the print market, and has no constraints on endlessly producing pristine reproductions, the idea of using only limited edition digital prints seems arcane and not the best model for the print market in the 21^st Century. I believe artists can succeed with the same image in both limited and open edition prints, if done with honesty, integrity and transparency.

A Workable Model to Sell Both Open and Limited Edition Fine Art Prints

A limited edition of 100 prints in one size on one substrate, hand-embellished by the artist is suggested. This would serve gallery or collector demand for limited editions with full disclosure about open editions. Such an exclusive edition would create a collectible print edition and potential secondary market for the image.

Open editions of the same image could then be offered on a variety of substrates and sizes. They would be of stated lesser quality than the limited edition. Because there are no industry standards on how to manage such practices, artists and publishers need to be transparent with their actions, including publicly posting notices of their publishing practices. 

Reputation Management is the Key to Success Building Repeat Buyers.

How a publisher or artist manages providing full disclosure to all buyers of availability of both limited and open editions is crucial. Treating your buyers, prospective buyers, galleries and dealers with honesty, integrity, and consistency is how to succeed in the print market with open and limited editions.

Savvy consumers have easily available powerful research resources, leaving no room for shabby marketing practices. By the same token, if artists conduct their business in a way that exudes high quality and high integrity, they can build a business model that will allow them to profitably sell their images in both open and limited edition markets without losing sleep or collectors.

A second part to this series will appear next month. It will cover how open editions can affect an artist’s career and legacy. Readers will learn about the hidden costs in limited editions, and get details on artists who have had success being in both limited and open edition print markets.

Limited Edition Prints Versus Open Edition Prints - More Perspectives

When it comes to digital fine art giclee prints, readers who follow this blog know I hold strong opinions about using open editions for marketing them.

There is no single solution on the open vs. limited edition debate.

It's not that I am against tradition. It's more that I believe the arguments for using open editions outweigh those for continuing to use them.

I also am the first to admit there is no 100% solution for all artists. How could there be when there is ample evidence there are many artists who continue to effectively market their fine art giclee prints.

There are believable points and great examples to support both sides of the debate.

In recent days, I have been reminded about how some artists are doing well in open editions while others are profiting from limiting editions. Here is a note from fine art photographer, Jeffrey Stoner. He is a long-time follower, friend and supporter.

"Your writings about limited vs. open edition prints were one of the deciding factors in my choice to go to open prints in 2007.  It was definitely the right decision.

I began a series of Angora Goat images in 2008.  There are now five in the series. The goats are part of a 10-year experiment to control the growth of Canadian blackberry bushes on the open balds.

The balds are treeless mountain tops and the one they are on is at 5800’ along the Appalachian Trail on the Tennessee / North Carolina border.  The goats are brought to the mountain top on the first day of summer and come back down the last day of summer.

 The series took off and the first goat image (Arlo) which I made in 2008 was my best selling image of all time with 9 months. If I had limited the sales of this, and succeeding, goat images I would have lost a lot of income. 

And, Arlo is still a big hit. One gallery owner jokes that Arlo will pay for my retirement. I've included shots of Arlo from 2008 and Nash from 2010.  I’m working on the 2011 edition to the herd." — Jeffrey Stoner

The other side of the coin has compelling rational to it

I had a long chat with Roger Laudy, the CEO and mastermind behind Image Wizards the other day. His company is the premier provider of fine art and fine art photography printed on aluminum. The results for the right images are nothing short of spectacular. Roger listened intently as I laid out my argument for why I believe in open editions:

• I'm an artist advocate and I don't believe artist should have to arbitrarily cap their income by limiting how many copies of their work get sold.
• I believe most collectors will buy open editions as freely as limited, or that the upside on the open will exceed the loss on the limited.
• In an age of digital printing where even lightly informed buyers understand there are no actual limitation to possible number of prints produced, it seems somewhat disingenuous to be selling limited editions.
• I have more the argument, you can read about it in this post, The Double Entendre of the Visual Artist Selling Out Redux, or get more perspective on any of the posts here.

Roger is in touch on a regular basis with some very successful fine artists and fine art photographers. He made the powerful point that his best customers, those who place the most frequent orders, nearly all sell their work in limited editions.

He gave me the example of the fabulous oceanic photographer, Marc Montocchio who has a limited edition print on metal of a live marlin in its natural habitat in the ocean.

This is a one-of-a-kind piece. He is selling a very limited edition run of the image, and stands to make a boodle doing it. You can view the YouTube video on how the image was taken here.

Ultimately, every artist will come to his or her own conclusion

So, I get it. I can look at artists like Ford Smith, Jennifer Vranes, Yuroz and countless more who are profiting in the limited edition market. It proves it is not an open and shut case. My only retort to such overwhelming evidence of success is to question how much money those artists lose by capping their income.

The heirs of Maxfield Parrish and Ansel Adams continue to get royalties from their estates. If these artists had opted for limited editions of their work. The income from those original prints would have long ago dried up.

The open edition print versus limited print debate is ongoing and likely to never be resolved

I'll leave it at that. As always, I know you will come to your own informed decision. Two competing ideas that are both wildly successful are Art That Fits, a company owned by Larson-Juhl, the world's largest supplier of picture frame moulding and supplies. It is notably owned by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway group. Art buyers can browse its site and order open edition prints in a variey of sizes.

The other is Jen Bekman's 20x200.com site that sells very limited editions. It has enjoyed VC investments in the millions. She is proving the argument for limited edition prints. And, the debate goes on... and on.

P.S. If you live in the U.S., you can order a free sample kit from Image Wizards. International orders pay a small shipping fee to have the samples sent to them.

The Case for Open Edition Digital Prints - Part Two

This piece started out as a reply to the comments on my previous post, Milton Glaser Post Goes Viral - A Lesson for Not Limiting Editions.

When I realized it was more than a couple of thoughts or a quick reply, I decided to publish it as its own post so more readers would see it.

So here goes with more thoughts on why I am against limiting digital fine art prints.

Thanks to Alan, Maria and Daniel for commenting here. Alan, I'm glad you agree. Maria, yes, I am advocating against limited editions of digital fine art prints, aka giclees. I totally agree with your husband, Drew. Other than marketing gimmick, there is no justification for limited edition giclee prints.

It is not always easy to take an unpopular or controversial stand on an issue, especially when those pitted against you really get the knickers in a knot. However, I believe this issue is too important to ignore and will continue to champion open edition digital prints because in the long run every body involved will do better as this way of thinking gains traction. The change is underway, it is not whether, but when limited editions of giclees becomes passe.

Limited editions arose out of necessity

That necessity became a tradition in the art business. Now some dealers and artists have it in their head it makes their art "more elite" or "more marketable" or "more collectible." REALLY? Do the research. For every limited edition that makes it to the secondary market and sells for greater prices than originally offered, there are thousands of limited editions that never sell out. Why bother?

Do you know you have to comply with the laws of 14 states when you sell limited editions, including sales made over the internet? Who needs that for something you might otherwise be able to sell many more of at a slightly reduced price without the bookkeeping headaches of managing limited editions. This extra bookkeeping is annoying and is a hidden cost that puts a drag on the profitability of print marketing.

Buyers buy art they like, not limited editions

I believe most art buyers make the purchase decision on the fact they want to live with the art in their home or work place and that being limited is not a huge buying factor. I also believe there are many dealer and galleries addicted to the notion without realizing it is costing them money in the long run. Does anyone believe consumers are not fully aware that digital prints can be reproduced endlessly and perfectly? Then why in the 21st Century are we trying to pull the wool over their eyes with limited editions?

You can still sequentially number open editions

If you want to number them, fine. Just don't limit them. I believe there would be some prints that were open edition, but numbered, that would still find the lower numbers collectible. If you look at the crazy things that are in plentiful supply, but numbered somehow, and how the lower numbers are worth more, it says it all about the collector's mentality. Low number license plates in Delaware go for half a million. Does that make sense when you can get a brand new one for rack rates? No, but collectors don't care.

Give your buyers what they want

One of the greatest advantages, besides no inventory, to giclees is they can be made to order to suit the customer. This is a first for the art business and the industry has not picked up on the fact more art would be sold if you allowed people to order the size they want. We are completely missing a huge opportunity to fill the needs of buyers in ways never before possible, and it is easy.

Show me any other art form that artificially limits how many will be sold. You would laugh at recording artist who limited sales to 1,000 copies of their CD, or film makers who only let 10,000 people see a film, or a Broadway play that closed in two weeks when the demand for tickets was still high. Yet, this is exactly what artists do when they artificially limit the number of pieces of their work.

What if Maxfield Parrish only sold 1,000 copies of Daybreak?

Other than blindly sticking to hidebound tradition and being fearful of not being capable of getting good prices for open editions, is there any viable reason for dealers and artists not to favor open editions? What if Maxfield Parrish or Ansel Adams had put all their works into only limited editions? Can you even imagine what a loss to mass culture and art appreciation that would have been?

I can understand an artist creating a limited edition of a print that is also open with the difference being the piece was handworked by the artist after the printing. In such a case, the artist would probably not want to make more than a 100 or so prints that way. This would be a way to make a small limited edition that makes sense and is worthy of the effort. And, can be done without sacrificing the ability to sell open editions of the same image.

This brings up A/Ps (Artists' Proofs) for digital prints. What the heck is that about? A way to jack up the price on a more limited edition of the same print? If limiting giclee is a gimmick, then A/Ps take the notion to another level. It flies in the face of the original idea which was that the first prints off the press, which traditionally are Artist Proofs, would be the crispest with the greatest fidelity before the plates wore down, and thus more valuable. Explain how that works with digital prints.

Later made digital prints should be better than the first ones

This brings me to Daniel's excellent observation about improving and changing images to make them better. I have argued his point before as well. That is, digital printmaking is an evolving art form. It is most likely that by the time an artist makes the same print in the thousands, or for years to come that the process to make them will be better. Improved printers, substrates, dyes, inks and software help printmakers to continue to turn out better reproductions than the first in the batch. Not to mention the improved skills of the printmaker, too.

This evolving situation turns the whole notion of A/Ps upside down when later prints stand a greater chance of being better than the first. We are living in different times. Consumer tastes are changing, we need to keep up with or be in front of their desires. I don't see how limited edition digital fine art reproductions fit into the equation when the demand is for authenticity and transparency with a potential backlash against anything that doesn't meet those standards.

Limited editions limit the income of the entire pipeline

Why should artists, dealers, galleries and printers be forced to shut off their income stream when a print with viral potential gets shelved because we are beholden to an antiquated form of marketing that doesn't make sense for anyone?

I believe a well-made compelling great image can be sold as an open edition at a fair price that approximates what the price of a limited edition would be. Anyone who doesn't believe this is possible is not selling on the value of the artist and the work, but is instead selling on some perceived notion of  exclusivity and implied potential future value. Any truly good art salesperson should be able to easily transition to selling this way with no real loss of volume or income.

Things are different now and they are not going back - Time to get with it

It seems to me if those who continue to rely on these outdated tactics are going to have an increasingly difficult time in the future. It was not that long ago that many people in the industry thought giclees and digital prints were the worst thing that happened to the business. Turns out print-on-demand was one of the best things in the past 100 years for the business. It's time now to move so the marketing of this wonderful technology catches up with the benefits the technical development have brought us.

West Coast Art & Frame Show & SmARTist Telesummit week.

Last week was a bit hectic. It started Monday with a presentation to the 2010 SmARTist Telesummit attendees on my topic of creating a second income through the art print market.

While I have conducted many seminars via the telephone and Internet, this one was different. After a brief introduction from show producer, Ariane Goodwin, I was off to see how deep into a 41-page slide presentation I could get in 45 minutes.

What made this unique was I talked with no feedback as the attendees' phones were muted. Like most speakers, I prefer getting vocal or visual clues, so this was a challenging way to present. I trust my listeners took value from the presentation. The talk was intended to be enlightening regarding the print market with some basic art marketing concepts included.

Finish one presentation and hit the road for the WCAF Show

Once the SmARTist seminar was over, my wife, Mary, and I jumped in the car for the 300-mile trip to Las Vegas where the first day of the Ninth Annual West Coast Art & Frame Show was underway. There were lots of old friends to see from the art print market, including many I had not seen in years.The print side art business is still in flux and I was eager take the pulse of the market.

Hat's off to the Gherman family and their long-time employees for producing another consistent show in Las Vegas. Watching them and their staff from Picture Framing Magazine interact with exhibitors and buyers was educational in itself. They work very hard at maintaining high touch relationships with all their constituents. The results are proof their efforts pay dividends. I did not encounter sour grapes anywhere, which is remarkable for any tradeshow at anytime. At this juncture, I suppose exhibitors are pleased for a decent chance to get exposure to buyers.

Seeing old friends still producing great work with a hopeful attitude was invigorating

Since I sold John and Laurie Chester of Wild Apple Graphics their first ads and tradeshow spaces, I was thrilled to help them celebrate 20 years in business at their booth. I also realized I was the rep to first sell trade ads and show space to to Michael and Susan Singleton' for their Sagebrush Fine Art and likewise to Nasser Shortorbani and Laurie Downing of Poems Art Publishing. Those companies are just a few years junior to Wild Apple. To find myself decades later still in the art print business with such friends is a precious rewarding experience.

Trade media promoting new venues for Decor Expo Atlanta and ArtExpo New York

This show offered a chance to visit in person with the intrepid bunch from Next Step Media. These former workmates included Kim Feager, Kim Klatt, Renee Pinner and Kristin Stefek Brashares. With Kim Feager's leadership as publisher and new CEO, they salvaged Decor Magazine and the Decor Expo shows from being shut down and put out of business. Fred Rogers also was there. He recently joined the Decor team after years as an exec with former owners Pfingsten Publishing LLC and Summit Business Media LLC.

This group is rightfully excited about relaunching Decor Expo in Atlanta on September 11-13. They are equally thrilled to be back in the refurbished America's Gift Mart running concurrent with the Atlanta Gift Show. It would be a great tribute to them and a sign of industry resilience to see Decor Expo Atlanta roar back to life this fall. They have my fondest wishes for huge success there.

Eric Smith was there representing his Redwood Media company which rescued ArtExpo New York from letting its former owners put it out of business. Like every show producer these days, Eric has his hands full trying to put together a strong enough lineup to draw buyers. In 2010, there are no sure things in the art print market. The recent history of art business tradeshows and art consumer shows proves it.

While I have had issues with ArtExpo's previous investment banker owners, I, then as now, believe losing ArtExpo New York would be a stinging blow to artists, art publishers and the industry at large.  As such, my hope for Eric and his exhibitors is the show does well this coming March. It was a pleasure to visit with both John Haffey and Sarah Seamark who were there to cover the show for Art World News. Their trade publication has been an important voice in the art print market for decades.

In these tough times hope springs eternal ... and it is more than just wishful

Just as my experience with art print exhibitors was fun and inspiring, I found it invigorating to connect with colleagues and friends who remain stalwarts in the art trade media and art tradeshow business. Changes in market conditions have been very hard on art print publishers and harsher yet on the trade media and tradeshows supporting them. So, it was delightful to observe a universal dogged determination to succeed among these long-time industry veterans.

Despite our very difficult economic times, and with other challenges around, these professionals maintain a palpable and realistic positive outlook as they demonstrate their belief the industry they serve is prepared to create new opportunities in bringing the art print market to a new era of prosperity.

Remembering Vivian Kistler

I doubt many reading this post knew Vivian Kistler, which is a shame. You can learn more about her life and contributions to the picture framing industry here. Nevertheless, I want to offer a few words of condolence to her family, friends and co-workers. She was a remarkable dynamo who for 30 years worked tirelessly at educating picture framers.

Vivian was a larger-than-life smart, funny, sassy, no-nonsense woman who produced books, workshops, seminars, videos and other materials for the benefit of those in the picture framing business. You did not have to know, or want to know anything about picture framing, to enjoy watching her put on a seminar. It was guaranteed to be lively, humorous and spot-on with great common sense business advice. Hers is a voice and legacy that will never be known again in our industry.

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.

How to Sell Art Prints - a reader question answered

Occasionally, I get questions from readers that are good sources for blog posts. That is, they are general enough in context to help most who read this blog regularly. If you have specific questions, I also offer consulting in the form of hour sessions by phone or via email.

In either of these consulting cases, I urge you to first read my book because it may have the exact answer you need, or it will avoid you spending time in consulting on what you could have easily and more afford ably learned by reading it first. And, should we proceed from that point, you'll be better informed to ask better questions and get more from the experience.

I do have a day job and find it stimulating

Because I also work an 8-5 gig in the marketing department of a high tech firm to help with benefits and retirement income, (and because I like the diversity and the fun of working with a talented group of creative individuals.), I have limited availability for consulting, especially phone sessions. Accordingly, I don't actively market my consulting services. But, if it is important to you, I will find time for you.

Here is a great question posed to me via email:

My name is Kasie Sallee and I'm a young artist and mother. In the past year I've been focusing very seriously on my art with the hopes of building a career. I recently bought and read your book "How to Profit from the Art Print Market" and I truly want to thank you for writing it. The book is a treasure trove of information that I will be referring to over and over again.

In the past year I've begun a series of work, promoted my art through a blog, and very recently have set up a website. I have a question about the best path forward and was wondering if you had some advice.

My ultimate goal for the future is to license my work or to work with a publisher. My question is:

If this is my ultimate intention, will selling prints on my own, say through a site like Etsy, cause publishing companies to not want my work? I guess what I'm trying to say is will publishing companies want to work with images that I have already printed and sold?

Thank you so much for your time. I'm a long-time reader of your blog and I sincerely respect your advice.

Here is my reply

Dear Kasie:

Thanks for your kind words and question. You are on the right path in setting up a Web site and accompanying blog. They are both integral components of a solid marketing plan for an emerging artist. Both are works in progress and investments in your future. That is, neither are likely to immediately begin to return a substantial income right away. However, if both are properly maintained they will be invaluable components of your marketing efforts for years to come.

Your goal of licensing with a publisher is a good one. If you are thinking posters or open edition prints, you have to realize the income from such a situation is likely going to be minimal, especially at first. If you are thinking about giclees, your income could be more substantial as price points are far greater. 

As a way to broaden their lines, many poster publishers are now also offering POD print-on-demand reproductions. These are usually open edition and lower priced than limited edition publishers. Overall, it is a most challenging time for poster publishers with no real relief in sight. I think it will take more than time to revive the market.

Many poster publishers are also active in the third party licensing arena as represented by such tradeshows as Surtex and The Licensing Show. Surtex is where one would primarily find find companies seeking images for stationery, wallpaper, linens and so on. The Licensing Show tends to run to the animated and action figure images and less to fine art, but both can be important as sources of tertiary passive income for artists. The royalties are small and it can take a few years to make it worthwhile, but for artists with the right look, it can turn lucrative over time.

To be successful in getting a contract from publishers, you need to determine where your prints fit into the market, then determine which publishers are the best fit and most likely candidates for you to contact. It takes researching time, but it is just part of what you need to do to pursue appropriate publishing opportunities. Regardless of the outcome, the education will serve you well throughout your career. I think it was Yogi Berra who said, "If you don't know where you are going, any road will get you there." This is true of all of us. You have to make an informed conscious decision about what you want from your career and use it as a North Star to guide your underlying decisions.

To answer your questions about being on Etsy, or other online sites that can sell your work, I will say no, in general, it does not affect your ability to land a publishing deal. If anything, if you have some demonstrable success with online art sales, you will give most publishers more confidence they can move your images to their customers. That said, publishers are not going to accept you competing directly with them for the same images, if at all.

There are some high-end publishers you would expcect to look down their noses at artists doing business on Etsy, but if your research is effective, you would have ruled them out as unlikely candidates to approach anyway.

Some publishers will want an exclusive on the images they want to run. Others may want more exclusivity. You have to be aware of the quid pro quo to make a good deal for yourself. This means making negotiations with publishers. I recommend you read at least one book on negotiating, such as Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In. A little studying now will help you to make better deals for yourself in every aspect of and all throughout your career.

A couple of caveats here. If you paint slowly, it could be a problem for you if you have to create a new line for a publisher who in most cases will expect to be fed a steady stream of images. The other is if in your researching, you find the publishers most desirable to you frown upon seeing your work online, you may need to reassess your online strategies and marketing efforts.

The best situation for artists working with publishers would be the publishers immediately finding a bevy of repeat buyers for your line. The more likely scenario is you have to grow into your role with a publisher learning along the way what its needs are and what its buyers needs are. Conversely, a good publisher will seek to understand how to best work with you.

I would hope you get a publisher that will allow you to publish your own work. In some cases, artists use a Nom de Brusse (alias) to avoid having a conflict with their publisher. There is no hard fast rule regarding any of these situations. You must keep in mind you need to do what is best for you. You have to know whatever you are going to invest your time, talent and energy into that you stand a decent chance of getting a reasonable return for your investment.

With that in mind, do what you can to further your career, to sell more work regardless of the source. In the end, it's up to you to make it work. Having a great publisher to help you get started is wonderful advantage and great learning experience. As with many, if not most, things in life it is not where you start, it is where you end up. That is, did you fulfill your dreams and talent potential? Making the right choices for yourself is a key to your future success and your own self-satsifaction.

You see examples of this all the time. The music industry is easier to relate with this concept because much of what happens is on a national or international scale. Think about song choices and how that affects an artist. No matter how talented, ultimate success requires making good choices for content, style and ability. It's the same with visual artists even if it is harder to judge how things are going for visual artists. They don't have the equivalent of Billboard Top 100 list to let us know who is moving up the charts and who is just treading water. Nevertheless, if you consistently find some artists tapping the zeitgeist and getting great results with a steady stream of print sales over the years, you can be certain they have not only an eye for art, but an instinct for what their buyers will want to own and display in their homes and businesses.

I hope these thoughts help others as well as you Kasie!  All the best to you,

Cheers,

Barney

Creating Collectible Value in Open Editions

Regular readers know I am a frequent guest blogger Absolute Arts, one of the most heavily trafficked fine art sites on the Internet. My current post there is titled, "The Dichotomy of Rare and Plentiful."   The essay discusses the seeming dichotomy of things that are simultaneously plentiful and still some in the abundance of varied items turn out to have great collectible value. If it can happen with books and license plates, why not open edition, sequentially numbered art? 

Can such occurrences be manufactured by clever art marketing techniques? Or, do they just have to happen naturally as the outcome of publishing art that is popular? I have a framed vintage print of Maxfield Parrish's "Daybreak."  The image continues to sell well on Art.com and elsewhere for about $75.00 framed. My copy, is older, probably a bit faded and is worth anywhere from $400 - $750. It is the exact same image, something that has been reproduced thousands of time, and still in its abundance, the older vintage pieces are worth 5-10 times more.

My point is if you are using limited editions as a selling technique for a medium such as giclee that you can endlessly reproduce in any size or substrate, you may be leaving yourself and your heirs at a huge loss for the potential with no guarantee of a possible greater price point and cash flow. Imagine what a loss it would be if giants like Parrish or Ansel Adams had chosen to only sell their images in relatively small editions. Conversely, what would it look like if they had sequentially numbered their open editons? Let me know what you think.

Terry Redlin -- An Original Who Will Be Missed

Now it's time for all of us to say goodbye
This is coming to an end.
I know, I know,
You will not forgive me
Because you are my friend. --  Leslie West

I posted a year ago almost to the day about Terry Redlin's coming retirement event and now it upon us.

It's true in our selfish hearts those of us who love his work and admire Terry Redlin as a person won't forgive him for retiring. Not because we don't think he is entitled to a well deserved retirement, But, only because we will miss what he has come to represent as a human, an artist, an American, as a role model and inspiration to thousands.

Mostly we'll miss knowing he won't be turning out a steady stream of work that is instantly recognizable and as comforting, heart warming and touching as any artist has created. His "Spring Fever" image pictured here exemplifies his unique touch as a consummate  artist, visual storyteller, and heart string puller. We will not see the likes of him again.

A Well Deserved Rest Indeed!

Truth be told, who could argue Terry at 70 years young deserves the right to rest. Not only has he arguably created more limited edition and open edition prints than any artist, he has personally signed each limited and thousands of open editions too. In these days of automated signing equipment, it is quite a testament to his character. Here is a quote from him that says it all when it comes to signing prints:

"Throughout my career, I have hand-signed every limited edition print I release. Today, there are many ways for artists to market their prints as signed - even when the artist never touches the print. I have never changed my signing technique. Over the past twenty-five years, I have hand-signed literally hundreds of thousands of prints. It is important to me that you know when you buy a signed Redlin print, I am the person who signed it. My staff hand inspects every print, they hand number the limited editions, and they deliver them to me for my signature."

Some would say Terry had perfect timing in that he hit his stride in the heyday of the limited edition on paper market. That much is true. However, I believe with his talent, vision and drive he would have been a smashing success in any era. That is something to ponder for artists just starting out. Don't envy Terry for being lucky to be in the right place at the right time. Rather think how he might have used his talent today if he were a young man just starting a career.

He's Throwing a Free Concert

If you are a fan and going to be any where near Watertown, SD in early August, there is a free concert as part of the party to celebrate Terry's retirement. Here is the announcement from his PR guru, Tom Benson's Networking Newsletter:

REDLIN ART CENTER WILL HOST THE OAK RIDGE BOYS
The Redlin Art Center is proud to announce the Oak Ridge Boys as the featured performers Saturday, August 2nd, 2008! This FREE concert will be held on the grounds of the Redlin Art Center and everyone is welcome. Redlin Art Center 1200 - 33rd Street SE / Mickelson Drive  Watertown, SD 57201 - 7103 1-605-882-3877 1-877-TREDLIN

God Bless Terry Redlin!  All best wishes for a fruitful well deserved well lived retirement to Terry.

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.