February 5, 2005
artists and galleries
From an e-mail from artist/sculptor/blogger John T. Unger:
I’m in the process of extricating myself from the whole gallery thing and offering commissions to friends instead if they can find buyers for my work. I think I’ve nearly got the model nailed for this and should be sending out the initial invite this week. Very hughtrain, cluetrain, ect.
John and I have been swapping e-mails a lot recently, basically talking about how once you’ve lost your Cluetrain/Hughtrain cherry, how hard it is to do business through conventional channels, be they art galleries, book publishers, ad agencies, whatever.
A very well-known art dealer recently told me that if the internet thing was working for me [which it is], I should stick with it, because “apart from a tiny elite minority, galleries don’t actually work for artists.“
i.e. We know it’s bullshit but we do it anyway, because besides lucking out, we don’t really have a plan.
A lot of buisnesses are like that.
Anyway, kudos to John for trying to push the envelope.
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I’d like to know more about this. i mentioned to you once checking out Vancouver galleries (which I should have been doing) but my ass has been nailed to this chair in my office for too much of the past three months or so.
However, using a who-chain to sell your stuff is i figger just about one of the best ways over time .. hey, just look at Amway
yeah .. galleries aren’t really artist-friendly .. just another good place to practice brown-nosing if you’re a talented but unknown and poor artist .. and then if and when they give you the recognition you’re craving, they stick it to you financially.
Much better to do business with friends and existing fans … who of course will have a genuine and more-than-vicarious passion for your success.
Jon,
feel free to ask me any questions you might have re:“more about this.“
Use the mailform at http://www.johntunger.com and I’ll be happy to respond. Or you can post questions in the comments over at ArtBuzz.
I should probably point out that there are galleries I have had *good* relationships with. The galleries who consistently sell my work tend to be the same ones who buy work for their private collections.
What becomes clear is that people who believe in you enough to buy your work are the best, most motivated people to sell it. So why not offer the commission to buyers, whether they have galleries or not?
Bring down the overhead and make the work more affordable for everyone (or leave the prices where they are and learn to live without the struggle. heh.)
I think my rule of thumb is going to wind up being a refusal to show work with anyone who doesn’t buy it themselves. A real simple litmus test of commitment.
> I think my rule of thumb is going to wind up being a refusal to show work with anyone who doesn’t buy it themselves. A real simple litmus test of commitment.
I think your test is flawed because quite honestly a person’s passion to change things (in this case support you and your creativity) has nothing to do with their ability to purchase your artwork.
My partner and I started a gallery because the system seemed elitist overall. Most people sit around and complain, but complaining changes nothing. An individuals desire to change the world, and the action(s) they take towards manifesting that desire, that’s what changes things.
We’ve shown artists that we believe in so strongly, but we can’t afford ourselves. I have several stories like this. One of them recently got into Yale’s Masters Program as a result of the work that was created to show here. No one else was interested in him at the time, but he’s suddenly a pretty hot item. I’m not saying that we are what “made his career” as an artist… his vision did that, but we recognized something no one else was seeing at the time. That was a result of our dialog. What you’re proposing is to completely end the conversation. You just need to find the right people to talk to. That takes work on your end as well. And believe me, I know it can be frustrating.
I drove from California to Pennville, GA in search of a man that I heard on tape recording presented by my art instructor from a talk he had attended. The man’s voice captured me completely. It was a few days before our winter break so I rented a car (that wasn’t supposed to leave the state) and drove over 7,000 miles round trip in less than 2 weeks (that was a tough one to explain to the rental agency). When I arrived to his studio and sculpture garden I wanted so bad to buy a piece of his art. I could only afford a $40 piece, but it’s one of my favorites in our small but growing collection. The artist was the Rev. Howard Finster.
Great story .. thanks, brian. We, and the world, need more passionate and committed people like you !
Brian, I guess I was a little unclear above: There’s no requirement that people purchase my work in order to participate in ArtBuzz…
In fact, Artbuzz is a great way for people who can’t normally afford my work to acquire it
Hey John, actually that was real clear. It was the part about your “refusal to show work with anyone who doesn’t buy it themselves,” that I was responding to. I thought (think) that’s a mistake.
Also, just for the record, I wasn’t referring to you when I said nothing is ever changed by complaining. You’re actually doing something about it. I think you’re business model is quite brilliant actually. Even though we own a gallery, we are constantly looking for ways to help artists bypass the gallery system. At least the old system.
Things are definitely changing in the business of art. Look at the growing success of Art Fairs. I think part of it is that people are tired of being told what to like and when to like it. We know what we like when we see it; When it speaks to us. It’s empowering to recognize it for yourself. “No one can get more from a work of art than he brings to it.“
I also completely agree, there’s nothing romantic about the “starving artist.”