Unfortunately, members of the “Art World,” like those in our popular culture, give special attention to young (under 40) artists even though much of the world’s greatest artworks were created by artists who were over forty when they created them.
Below are special tips for creating greater interest and sales for mature artists:
1. Be proud of your age. Your age could be a selling point for potential collectors, especially if your artwork references or honors a theme from a previous decade or event, like World War II.
2. Make your maturity work for, not against, you. No doubt you have a long list of contacts, including neighbors, friends and current and former co workers. These people make up your mailing list! They might be thrilled to learn that you are an artist, and interested to see and perhaps acquire your artwork.
3. Go out of your way to be friendly and, if possible, wear something that indicates you are more interesting to talk to than the average person. Engage others in conversation, and let them know you are an artist. It could lead to sales. One of my artists wears unique handmade hats to every event she attends. People invariably approach her and admire her hat. She engages them in conversation, letting them know she is an artist. Often, this has led to sales of her artwork.
4. Create business cards that feature your artwork and make it a habit to keep them with you at all times. For ten years, my father visited a doctor who knew he was an artist, but had never seen or acquired his artwork. I created business cards for my father with a lovely watercolor on it, a sample of his work, and my father was so proud of them he gave one to his doctor. The doctor phoned me, made an appointment to see his work, and bought two large watercolors that same week!
5. Make it easy for people to reach you. On your business cards, list your email address, phone numbers and website that will link to your email so you can be contacted by potential buyers immediately.
6. Expand your contacts and join organizations. Art organizations and guilds are a wonderful way to stay connected to other artists and to learn about competitions and art methods and materials, but those organizations are not necessarily filled with potential collectors. If you join a volunteer organization, especially one affiliated with your local museum, you will be connecting to people who are interested in art, and have the time to volunteer. You will be plugging into potential buyers of your artwork immediately.
7. Obtain press coverage when possible because press you don’t have to pay for, and it may lead to future sales. I have sold numerous paintings from the images of them that were reproduced in the newspaper.
8. Buy and learn how to use a digital camera. Often I sell art by embedding images into emails – images that I have taken with my digital camera. This is an essential tool for every artist! Even if you don’t know how to embed the images, or put them into a website, having images of your art in electronic form will make it possible for others to use those images to promote you and your artwork. (You will also need digital images to send out with your press releases that are sent to the media via email.)
9. Try not to be disappointed if a sale doesn’t happen. Sometimes people change their mind, so if a sale does not happen immediately, try not to seem disappointed. Be gracious. It pays off in the long run.
10. When speaking with someone about art try to discern their taste and avoid putting down other artists’ work. Each of us has strong opinions about art. Of course you are going to be a fan of your work, and images that are like it. Someone may hear you put down another’s artwork and be offended. You risk sounding like a sore loser, so it is best to avoid putting other artwork and artists down.
11. Learn how to use the internet, and email. Get a web presence, even if only one page long, with your contact information and samples of your work on it. Try a Constant Contact or Intellicontact Pro - type web based program for sending regular newsletters/announcements where you can embed images of your artwork and use those to stay connected to existing and potential collectors. If you do not wish to create a website, then create a blog and start posting to it which is very easy and inexpensive to create and maintain.
12. Nothing is perfect. Your promotional materials (including your website) will improve over time. My first website was coded in Italian, with a program given to me by a friend of the family. I knew little Italian and ended up with a site that was very simple, with only 12 paintings on it – which all sold!
REPRINTED ON ARTS AND CASH BY PERMISSION
© 2010 Margaret Danielak, DanielakArt
To learn more about author Margaret Danielak and her book A GALLERY WITHOUT WALLS visit her website at www.danielakart.com To learn more about her her workshops visit www.theartengine.com To see a television interview with the author, visit www.gallerywithoutwalls.blogspot.com
Art Publishing - How to Make Money in the Art Business By Jan Weiss
There are a few ways to get into the business. You can be completely independent; creating, printing, marketing and distributing your own images. This is a worthy aspiration. You can also work with a publisher and have your work published by them so that the bulk of the financial responsibility rests of their shoulders and you receive a royalty based on sales. Both of these work, yet are vastly different. It's up to you to learn the difference and decide which direction to go in.
If you decide to publish your own work then it's a matter of making your images print ready as you will be responsible for selling them. Preparing your art for printing means cleaning it up through Photoshop to make sure colors are working, the digital files are clean and there is proper copyright notice included. Your digital files should be at least 10 megabytes but not much larger than 50 or 60. You may want to create the digital file so that the images can be printed in a variety of sizes.
Once you have cleaned your images and they are print ready you can upload them to user generated on-line galleries that will feature your work and sell it and you will receive a royalty. They will be the printer - all you have to do is add your images. Imagekind and Finerworks are two sites that offer this feature. If you decide to be entirely responsible for printing it then you will need to work with a printer who will give you a cost per print, decide with you on the paper quality and will be open to drop shipping to your customer. It is up to you to market your work. You can do this through blogs, Twitter, word of mouth, brick and mortar galleries and Facebook. It's a tough way to go but if you enjoy social web sites and marketing then this is all part of the fun. You reap the rewards of 100% of the profit.
If you decide that working with an art publisher is the direction to go then it's up to you to do the research into which publisher. You can attend tradeshows to meet them or gather information through internet searches. Once you have a list review their sites to see if the work they publish is similar in style to the kind of work you do. If they are a publisher of very traditional western art and your work is urban inspired and very digital then this is probably not a good match and you are wasting your time. Look for a good fit. Once you have found that fit you will need to find out who the product development manager is and contact them. They will want the quickest and easiest way to review your work. Try sending them either your web address or a photo sharing site like Flickr that can be a quick way to review it. If they reject it, don't take it personally...everyone gets rejected some time or another; just keep trying till you find one that fits. However if you have little success signing with a publisher then you may need to take an honest look at your art. No one wants to hear that their art isn't good enough however a publisher is making large investment in your art - they need to be reasonably certain that it will sell. If they don't feel good about it then they won't work with you.
Finally, do your research. Find out what the hottest trends are and try new artistic directions. Be bold and understand that making money from art is a good thing. You aren't compromising yourself if you earn money from it, you are making a living and being paid for something you are good at. Rejoice in that.
I am a published artist with fifteen years in the art industry. I focus on modern digitally inspired art. I also dedicate much of my time to featuring emerging artists on my blog http://www.tuesdaymoonstudio.blogspot.com Additionally I make my art available on my ImageKind site. http://www.tuesdaymoon.imagekind.com/store/ This on-line store is my internet presence to buyers looking for inspiring and originally created art for their homes, offices and as excellent additions to anyone working in the hospitality industry; great for hotels and healthcare facilities. All pieces have companion images and are offered as finished product. Art is my passion and offering my experience to others is what I enjoy.
If you decide to publish your own work then it's a matter of making your images print ready as you will be responsible for selling them. Preparing your art for printing means cleaning it up through Photoshop to make sure colors are working, the digital files are clean and there is proper copyright notice included. Your digital files should be at least 10 megabytes but not much larger than 50 or 60. You may want to create the digital file so that the images can be printed in a variety of sizes.
Once you have cleaned your images and they are print ready you can upload them to user generated on-line galleries that will feature your work and sell it and you will receive a royalty. They will be the printer - all you have to do is add your images. Imagekind and Finerworks are two sites that offer this feature. If you decide to be entirely responsible for printing it then you will need to work with a printer who will give you a cost per print, decide with you on the paper quality and will be open to drop shipping to your customer. It is up to you to market your work. You can do this through blogs, Twitter, word of mouth, brick and mortar galleries and Facebook. It's a tough way to go but if you enjoy social web sites and marketing then this is all part of the fun. You reap the rewards of 100% of the profit.
If you decide that working with an art publisher is the direction to go then it's up to you to do the research into which publisher. You can attend tradeshows to meet them or gather information through internet searches. Once you have a list review their sites to see if the work they publish is similar in style to the kind of work you do. If they are a publisher of very traditional western art and your work is urban inspired and very digital then this is probably not a good match and you are wasting your time. Look for a good fit. Once you have found that fit you will need to find out who the product development manager is and contact them. They will want the quickest and easiest way to review your work. Try sending them either your web address or a photo sharing site like Flickr that can be a quick way to review it. If they reject it, don't take it personally...everyone gets rejected some time or another; just keep trying till you find one that fits. However if you have little success signing with a publisher then you may need to take an honest look at your art. No one wants to hear that their art isn't good enough however a publisher is making large investment in your art - they need to be reasonably certain that it will sell. If they don't feel good about it then they won't work with you.
Finally, do your research. Find out what the hottest trends are and try new artistic directions. Be bold and understand that making money from art is a good thing. You aren't compromising yourself if you earn money from it, you are making a living and being paid for something you are good at. Rejoice in that.
I am a published artist with fifteen years in the art industry. I focus on modern digitally inspired art. I also dedicate much of my time to featuring emerging artists on my blog http://www.tuesdaymoonstudio.blogspot.com Additionally I make my art available on my ImageKind site. http://www.tuesdaymoon.imagekind.com/store/ This on-line store is my internet presence to buyers looking for inspiring and originally created art for their homes, offices and as excellent additions to anyone working in the hospitality industry; great for hotels and healthcare facilities. All pieces have companion images and are offered as finished product. Art is my passion and offering my experience to others is what I enjoy.
Image Licensing - How to Earn Money From Your Images By Jan Weiss
How do you even start to get into this business? I got into it by working for an art publisher, learning everything there was to know about art publishing and pushing the art developers to look at my art. Eventually they did and eventually my art was licensed on product such as kitchen accessories, clocks, journals, notepads, olive oil bottles, memo boards and pens.
If working for a publisher is not the route for you then it will be up to you to take the initiative to research and learn about licensing companies as much as possible. It is best to work with an agent because they have all the contacts. Of course part of your earnings will go to them but they are the ones covering the expense of attending tradeshows and getting your work in front of the right people.
The next step then would be getting an agent. Doing a Google search for licensing agents is one way to start and you will get your information. However I recommended attending a licensing show such as Surtex, which will be held on May 16th, 17th and 18th at the Javitz Center in New York City. The biggest names in giftware image licensing will there along with textile design firms. You will need to have a resale license to attend so if you either own your own business or can get someone to come along with you who owns their own business then do this. Once you are there walk every aisle and look at every booth. Most people attending will see right away that you are an artist. A word of warning...do not carry a large portfolio only carry something small that you can hand out like a large size postcard with samples of your images. Look for image licensors that seem to represent artists with a similar style to you but not exactly like yours because they wouldn't need two artists that are so similar. If the licensor is obviously representing artists that are very traditional and you are very modern then keep walking. If they are not too busy in the booth then approach these people and ask for a minute. Do not steal their time however, they are there to license images to manufacturers and have spent a lot of money to be there so do not monopolize their minutes. If they are obviously busy then get a card, leave a postcard and follow up at a later date.
Once you have done this, gather your information and make some decisions about what direction to go then begin contacting the licensing agents and see if they would be interested in representing you. Don't get disappointed by rejection. Most agents have many artists they represent and may not be able to take on new ones. Some may be looking for the next new hot artist and that could be you. Ask for submission guidelines and follow them exactly.
Above all...be honest with yourself about your talent. If you feel you are not ready for this step or are unsure of your work then wait. Develop your style; be confident about your talent. Many artists do not do well in licensing because there work does not adapt well to this business. That's OK - not everyone does. Do your research, learn the business and do not let your ego get ahead of you. Licensing agents see a big ego coming a mile away and they run the opposite direction. Be open to new ideas, listen and learn.
I am a published artist with fifteen years in the art industry. I focus on modern digitally inspired art. I also dedicate much of my time to featuring emerging artists on my blog http://www.tuesdaymoonstudio.blogspot.com Additionally I make my art available on my ImageKind site http://www.tuesdaymoon.imagekind.com/store/. This on-line store is my internet presence to buyers looking for inspiring and originally created art for their homes, offices and as excellent additions to anyone working in the hospitality industry; great for hotels and healthcare facilities. All pieces have companion images and are offered as finished product. Art is my passion and offering my experience to others is what I enjoy.
If working for a publisher is not the route for you then it will be up to you to take the initiative to research and learn about licensing companies as much as possible. It is best to work with an agent because they have all the contacts. Of course part of your earnings will go to them but they are the ones covering the expense of attending tradeshows and getting your work in front of the right people.
The next step then would be getting an agent. Doing a Google search for licensing agents is one way to start and you will get your information. However I recommended attending a licensing show such as Surtex, which will be held on May 16th, 17th and 18th at the Javitz Center in New York City. The biggest names in giftware image licensing will there along with textile design firms. You will need to have a resale license to attend so if you either own your own business or can get someone to come along with you who owns their own business then do this. Once you are there walk every aisle and look at every booth. Most people attending will see right away that you are an artist. A word of warning...do not carry a large portfolio only carry something small that you can hand out like a large size postcard with samples of your images. Look for image licensors that seem to represent artists with a similar style to you but not exactly like yours because they wouldn't need two artists that are so similar. If the licensor is obviously representing artists that are very traditional and you are very modern then keep walking. If they are not too busy in the booth then approach these people and ask for a minute. Do not steal their time however, they are there to license images to manufacturers and have spent a lot of money to be there so do not monopolize their minutes. If they are obviously busy then get a card, leave a postcard and follow up at a later date.
Once you have done this, gather your information and make some decisions about what direction to go then begin contacting the licensing agents and see if they would be interested in representing you. Don't get disappointed by rejection. Most agents have many artists they represent and may not be able to take on new ones. Some may be looking for the next new hot artist and that could be you. Ask for submission guidelines and follow them exactly.
Above all...be honest with yourself about your talent. If you feel you are not ready for this step or are unsure of your work then wait. Develop your style; be confident about your talent. Many artists do not do well in licensing because there work does not adapt well to this business. That's OK - not everyone does. Do your research, learn the business and do not let your ego get ahead of you. Licensing agents see a big ego coming a mile away and they run the opposite direction. Be open to new ideas, listen and learn.
I am a published artist with fifteen years in the art industry. I focus on modern digitally inspired art. I also dedicate much of my time to featuring emerging artists on my blog http://www.tuesdaymoonstudio.blogspot.com Additionally I make my art available on my ImageKind site http://www.tuesdaymoon.imagekind.com/store/. This on-line store is my internet presence to buyers looking for inspiring and originally created art for their homes, offices and as excellent additions to anyone working in the hospitality industry; great for hotels and healthcare facilities. All pieces have companion images and are offered as finished product. Art is my passion and offering my experience to others is what I enjoy.
How to Get Internet Exposure For Your Art By Jan Weiss
The more places you submit and show your work the better the chances you have of being found through search engine marketing (SEM). There are two ways you can be found through searches. First there is the organic way. The more hits on your site the higher up in page ranking you become. Don't think you can fool the system by clicking on your site over and over...your IP address shows up in the searches and the search engines are smarter than that. Then there is search engine optimization. You know when you search for a particular item and there is a special search box at the top and the side navigation bar? The owner of that site has paid for that placement. They submitted a keyword or key phrase to the search engine, like Yahoo, Google or Bing and when the browser puts that word or phrase into the search box a paid subscriber shows up in that space. This is pay per click meaning that that retailer or owner of that site pays each time you click on their advertisement. Be nice...don't click over and over.
Ok getting back to what I said about submitting your images to sites. Here is a list of ways to show your art.
• Start a blog. This is like a web site but it changes a lot more. This can be free if you use Blogspot, a Google owned service, some have a small fee such as Typeface and WordPress. Every day write a paragraph about your art and add an image. Use key words like your name or the material you used for your art such as "acrylic painting" or "Digital photography". If there is a location in your art such as "San Francisco Zoo" use that word in your paragraph. Blogs can be simple and straightforward. If you want to monetize it then you will need to learn about ad space. There are help buttons; use them.
• Etsy. Etsy is retail site for handmade art. It is free to set up a shop. Once you submit a product for sale it costs you $.20 to list it. If it sells then there is a small percentage paid back to Etsy. You will need a Paypal account to have an Etsy shop. Popular products on Etsy are jewelry, handbags, invitations and original art.
• Flickr. Flickr is owned by Yahoo. It is a photo sharing site. You can upload your images for free. If you want to have several galleries within your account there is a small yearly fee. Upload items that are about 1000 pixels. Don't go any larger than that. For added image protection, watermark your images. Flickr offers the opportunity to join and connect with other artists worldwide who create art similar to yours. Flickr is an excellent way to show many images at one time rather the sending jpegs which can be slow and clog up your inbox.
• The last suggestion for today is Twitter. Twitter is free. It allows you to send a message up to 140 characters (including spaces) to your followers. Use keywords in your tweets. If you add a new item to your Etsy shop, then send a tweet and watch your traffic increase. In order to get Twitter followers you will need to follow others. So in the search box on Twitter put in the word Etsy. Artists on Twitter that have Etsy shops may have posted their listings. So click on their Twitter account and follow them. They will get a notice that they have a follower and quite possibly will want to follow you. Avoid tweeting about inane stuff like what you ate for breakfast; other then you no one else is interested. Use this space wisely and don't tweet all day; three to five tweets is plenty.
I am a published artist with fifteen years in the art industry. I focus on modern digitally inspired art. I also dedicate much of my time to featuring emerging artists on my blog http://www.tuesdaymoonstudio.blogspot.com additionally I make my art available on my ImageKind site. http://www.tuesdaymoon.imagekind.com/store/ This on-line store is my internet presence to buyers looking for inspiring and originally created art for their homes, offices and as excellent additions to anyone working in the hospitality industry; great for hotels and health care facilities. All pieces have companion images and are offered as finished product. Art is my passion and offering my experience to others is what I enjoy.
Ok getting back to what I said about submitting your images to sites. Here is a list of ways to show your art.
• Start a blog. This is like a web site but it changes a lot more. This can be free if you use Blogspot, a Google owned service, some have a small fee such as Typeface and WordPress. Every day write a paragraph about your art and add an image. Use key words like your name or the material you used for your art such as "acrylic painting" or "Digital photography". If there is a location in your art such as "San Francisco Zoo" use that word in your paragraph. Blogs can be simple and straightforward. If you want to monetize it then you will need to learn about ad space. There are help buttons; use them.
• Etsy. Etsy is retail site for handmade art. It is free to set up a shop. Once you submit a product for sale it costs you $.20 to list it. If it sells then there is a small percentage paid back to Etsy. You will need a Paypal account to have an Etsy shop. Popular products on Etsy are jewelry, handbags, invitations and original art.
• Flickr. Flickr is owned by Yahoo. It is a photo sharing site. You can upload your images for free. If you want to have several galleries within your account there is a small yearly fee. Upload items that are about 1000 pixels. Don't go any larger than that. For added image protection, watermark your images. Flickr offers the opportunity to join and connect with other artists worldwide who create art similar to yours. Flickr is an excellent way to show many images at one time rather the sending jpegs which can be slow and clog up your inbox.
• The last suggestion for today is Twitter. Twitter is free. It allows you to send a message up to 140 characters (including spaces) to your followers. Use keywords in your tweets. If you add a new item to your Etsy shop, then send a tweet and watch your traffic increase. In order to get Twitter followers you will need to follow others. So in the search box on Twitter put in the word Etsy. Artists on Twitter that have Etsy shops may have posted their listings. So click on their Twitter account and follow them. They will get a notice that they have a follower and quite possibly will want to follow you. Avoid tweeting about inane stuff like what you ate for breakfast; other then you no one else is interested. Use this space wisely and don't tweet all day; three to five tweets is plenty.
I am a published artist with fifteen years in the art industry. I focus on modern digitally inspired art. I also dedicate much of my time to featuring emerging artists on my blog http://www.tuesdaymoonstudio.blogspot.com additionally I make my art available on my ImageKind site. http://www.tuesdaymoon.imagekind.com/store/ This on-line store is my internet presence to buyers looking for inspiring and originally created art for their homes, offices and as excellent additions to anyone working in the hospitality industry; great for hotels and health care facilities. All pieces have companion images and are offered as finished product. Art is my passion and offering my experience to others is what I enjoy.
eBay, Amazon, Etsy, Artfire - Which is the Best Place For Selling Modern Art? By Avril Harper
Like many people I do most of my online selling on eBay, I rarely sell my products anywhere else. I had better rephrase that: I don't actually sell ANY of my products outside of eBay. That applies to antiques and collectibles as well as more recent creations usually sourced direct from their maker.
And that means I occasionally sell other people's artwork on eBay, usually artists I've met at art and craft fairs and some I've seen exhibiting their work in local art galleries, restaurants and numerous other locations.
Most of these artists are good at creating and naff at selling and that's why you see other businesses displaying artists' work for a share of the profits on every sale. As an example, two of the major auction houses I visit monthly display local artists' work in their foyers and restaurants and you'll always find the artist's name featured alongside the price for the item. And for reasons you'll learn about soon I always make a note of artists' names for artwork I think I may be able to sell on eBay. Back at home I research those artists' names on Google and usually find contact details from which I write or telephone, sometimes email my offer to sell the artist's work on eBay.
But given a chance conversation with an art dealer at an auction last week I've decided to try other marketplaces alongside eBay to earn ten or twenty per cent of the prices of paintings priced in hundreds and sometimes thousands of pounds. That person told me she sells other people's art online, not just at eBay, but also from her own web site as well as several other online marketplaces I'd never even heard about.
And because I also want the widest market possible for other people's high priced artwork, I set about researching those sites, notably eBay and Amazon, Etsy and Artfire, and others you'll read about now.
This is part of what I discovered:
* eBay is a great place to sell modern day art, as long as you don't expect to make much money from it. That's because so many good artists, also very bad artists, list their work on eBay, and that usually means good artwork gets lost in the crowd! That also means work that's taken days or weeks to create might fetch little more, or maybe less than another person whose 'art' was knocked up on the kitchen table in the time it took for the kids to eat breakfast and the washing up to begin. And that's why I think people making the most money selling original modern art on eBay are promoting inexpensive items or limited edition prints of better creations.
* Amazon, Etsy and Artfire - and many other places to promote artwork online - lack the 'flea market' perception some people associate (wrongly) with eBay and which stems from eBay's early image as a place to sell cheap wholesale goods and unwanted household items, not rare art and collectibles. This means, if your item's a copy or an original piece of art you could - and should - promote it in hundreds of different Internet marketplaces, earning small profits from each and high profits combined.
* At most online locations selling other people's artwork I discovered a thriving marketplace for prints created on canvas, especially larger items. These items sell well at twenty or thirty dollars apiece, notably on eBay and Amazon. The best prices for original artwork came from Etsy and Artfire.
Check out the scope for selling canvas prints on eBay by choosing main category 'Art' and sub-category 'Canvas / Giclee Prints'.
For Amazon sales go to their home page, then key 'art' into the 'Kitchen & Home' category top of the screen to see dozens of stunning canvas based artistic creations.
Check out a few of the sellers on eBay and Amazon and make a note of how many items they have listed and how often they list new items at the site. Lots of items and frequent new stock is a sign of a good and thriving marketplace.
* It's a very good idea to have a web site independent of places like eBay or Amazon, Etsy or Artfire, or numerous other online marketplaces, featuring original artwork and prints from where your past customers can purchase new items in future - without you paying hefty fees to those other sites. That separate site or blog is also a good place to offer a newsletter to keep past and future buyers updated on items you are currently selling on eBay, Amazon, and elsewhere.
* At most sites listed later you can open shops dedicated to selling art, old and modern, new and second hand, your own or belonging to other people. Spend time studying other people's shops before starting your own and include good write ups about your chosen artists and their work, then expect search engines like Google to pick up your shop in search engine returns and send lots of lovely, big spending traffic your way - completely free of charge!
Now that should give you something to think about but if you want to learn more then you can download FOUR STEPS TO INTERNET MARKETING MILLIONS at:
Like many people I do most of my online selling on eBay, I rarely sell my products anywhere else. I had better rephrase that: I don't actually sell ANY of my products outside of eBay. That applies to antiques and collectibles as well as more recent creations usually sourced direct from their maker.
And that means I occasionally sell other people's artwork on eBay, usually artists I've met at art and craft fairs and some I've seen exhibiting their work in local art galleries, restaurants and numerous other locations.
Most of these artists are good at creating and naff at selling and that's why you see other businesses displaying artists' work for a share of the profits on every sale. As an example, two of the major auction houses I visit monthly display local artists' work in their foyers and restaurants and you'll always find the artist's name featured alongside the price for the item. And for reasons you'll learn about soon I always make a note of artists' names for artwork I think I may be able to sell on eBay. Back at home I research those artists' names on Google and usually find contact details from which I write or telephone, sometimes email my offer to sell the artist's work on eBay.
But given a chance conversation with an art dealer at an auction last week I've decided to try other marketplaces alongside eBay to earn ten or twenty per cent of the prices of paintings priced in hundreds and sometimes thousands of pounds. That person told me she sells other people's art online, not just at eBay, but also from her own web site as well as several other online marketplaces I'd never even heard about.
And because I also want the widest market possible for other people's high priced artwork, I set about researching those sites, notably eBay and Amazon, Etsy and Artfire, and others you'll read about now.
This is part of what I discovered:
* eBay is a great place to sell modern day art, as long as you don't expect to make much money from it. That's because so many good artists, also very bad artists, list their work on eBay, and that usually means good artwork gets lost in the crowd! That also means work that's taken days or weeks to create might fetch little more, or maybe less than another person whose 'art' was knocked up on the kitchen table in the time it took for the kids to eat breakfast and the washing up to begin. And that's why I think people making the most money selling original modern art on eBay are promoting inexpensive items or limited edition prints of better creations.
* Amazon, Etsy and Artfire - and many other places to promote artwork online - lack the 'flea market' perception some people associate (wrongly) with eBay and which stems from eBay's early image as a place to sell cheap wholesale goods and unwanted household items, not rare art and collectibles. This means, if your item's a copy or an original piece of art you could - and should - promote it in hundreds of different Internet marketplaces, earning small profits from each and high profits combined.
* At most online locations selling other people's artwork I discovered a thriving marketplace for prints created on canvas, especially larger items. These items sell well at twenty or thirty dollars apiece, notably on eBay and Amazon. The best prices for original artwork came from Etsy and Artfire.
Check out the scope for selling canvas prints on eBay by choosing main category 'Art' and sub-category 'Canvas / Giclee Prints'.
For Amazon sales go to their home page, then key 'art' into the 'Kitchen & Home' category top of the screen to see dozens of stunning canvas based artistic creations.
Check out a few of the sellers on eBay and Amazon and make a note of how many items they have listed and how often they list new items at the site. Lots of items and frequent new stock is a sign of a good and thriving marketplace.
* It's a very good idea to have a web site independent of places like eBay or Amazon, Etsy or Artfire, or numerous other online marketplaces, featuring original artwork and prints from where your past customers can purchase new items in future - without you paying hefty fees to those other sites. That separate site or blog is also a good place to offer a newsletter to keep past and future buyers updated on items you are currently selling on eBay, Amazon, and elsewhere.
* At most sites listed later you can open shops dedicated to selling art, old and modern, new and second hand, your own or belonging to other people. Spend time studying other people's shops before starting your own and include good write ups about your chosen artists and their work, then expect search engines like Google to pick up your shop in search engine returns and send lots of lovely, big spending traffic your way - completely free of charge!
Now that should give you something to think about but if you want to learn more then you can download FOUR STEPS TO INTERNET MARKETING MILLIONS at: http://www.dailyprofitplans.com
And that means I occasionally sell other people's artwork on eBay, usually artists I've met at art and craft fairs and some I've seen exhibiting their work in local art galleries, restaurants and numerous other locations.
Most of these artists are good at creating and naff at selling and that's why you see other businesses displaying artists' work for a share of the profits on every sale. As an example, two of the major auction houses I visit monthly display local artists' work in their foyers and restaurants and you'll always find the artist's name featured alongside the price for the item. And for reasons you'll learn about soon I always make a note of artists' names for artwork I think I may be able to sell on eBay. Back at home I research those artists' names on Google and usually find contact details from which I write or telephone, sometimes email my offer to sell the artist's work on eBay.
But given a chance conversation with an art dealer at an auction last week I've decided to try other marketplaces alongside eBay to earn ten or twenty per cent of the prices of paintings priced in hundreds and sometimes thousands of pounds. That person told me she sells other people's art online, not just at eBay, but also from her own web site as well as several other online marketplaces I'd never even heard about.
And because I also want the widest market possible for other people's high priced artwork, I set about researching those sites, notably eBay and Amazon, Etsy and Artfire, and others you'll read about now.
This is part of what I discovered:
* eBay is a great place to sell modern day art, as long as you don't expect to make much money from it. That's because so many good artists, also very bad artists, list their work on eBay, and that usually means good artwork gets lost in the crowd! That also means work that's taken days or weeks to create might fetch little more, or maybe less than another person whose 'art' was knocked up on the kitchen table in the time it took for the kids to eat breakfast and the washing up to begin. And that's why I think people making the most money selling original modern art on eBay are promoting inexpensive items or limited edition prints of better creations.
* Amazon, Etsy and Artfire - and many other places to promote artwork online - lack the 'flea market' perception some people associate (wrongly) with eBay and which stems from eBay's early image as a place to sell cheap wholesale goods and unwanted household items, not rare art and collectibles. This means, if your item's a copy or an original piece of art you could - and should - promote it in hundreds of different Internet marketplaces, earning small profits from each and high profits combined.
* At most online locations selling other people's artwork I discovered a thriving marketplace for prints created on canvas, especially larger items. These items sell well at twenty or thirty dollars apiece, notably on eBay and Amazon. The best prices for original artwork came from Etsy and Artfire.
Check out the scope for selling canvas prints on eBay by choosing main category 'Art' and sub-category 'Canvas / Giclee Prints'.
For Amazon sales go to their home page, then key 'art' into the 'Kitchen & Home' category top of the screen to see dozens of stunning canvas based artistic creations.
Check out a few of the sellers on eBay and Amazon and make a note of how many items they have listed and how often they list new items at the site. Lots of items and frequent new stock is a sign of a good and thriving marketplace.
* It's a very good idea to have a web site independent of places like eBay or Amazon, Etsy or Artfire, or numerous other online marketplaces, featuring original artwork and prints from where your past customers can purchase new items in future - without you paying hefty fees to those other sites. That separate site or blog is also a good place to offer a newsletter to keep past and future buyers updated on items you are currently selling on eBay, Amazon, and elsewhere.
* At most sites listed later you can open shops dedicated to selling art, old and modern, new and second hand, your own or belonging to other people. Spend time studying other people's shops before starting your own and include good write ups about your chosen artists and their work, then expect search engines like Google to pick up your shop in search engine returns and send lots of lovely, big spending traffic your way - completely free of charge!
Now that should give you something to think about but if you want to learn more then you can download FOUR STEPS TO INTERNET MARKETING MILLIONS at:
Like many people I do most of my online selling on eBay, I rarely sell my products anywhere else. I had better rephrase that: I don't actually sell ANY of my products outside of eBay. That applies to antiques and collectibles as well as more recent creations usually sourced direct from their maker.
And that means I occasionally sell other people's artwork on eBay, usually artists I've met at art and craft fairs and some I've seen exhibiting their work in local art galleries, restaurants and numerous other locations.
Most of these artists are good at creating and naff at selling and that's why you see other businesses displaying artists' work for a share of the profits on every sale. As an example, two of the major auction houses I visit monthly display local artists' work in their foyers and restaurants and you'll always find the artist's name featured alongside the price for the item. And for reasons you'll learn about soon I always make a note of artists' names for artwork I think I may be able to sell on eBay. Back at home I research those artists' names on Google and usually find contact details from which I write or telephone, sometimes email my offer to sell the artist's work on eBay.
But given a chance conversation with an art dealer at an auction last week I've decided to try other marketplaces alongside eBay to earn ten or twenty per cent of the prices of paintings priced in hundreds and sometimes thousands of pounds. That person told me she sells other people's art online, not just at eBay, but also from her own web site as well as several other online marketplaces I'd never even heard about.
And because I also want the widest market possible for other people's high priced artwork, I set about researching those sites, notably eBay and Amazon, Etsy and Artfire, and others you'll read about now.
This is part of what I discovered:
* eBay is a great place to sell modern day art, as long as you don't expect to make much money from it. That's because so many good artists, also very bad artists, list their work on eBay, and that usually means good artwork gets lost in the crowd! That also means work that's taken days or weeks to create might fetch little more, or maybe less than another person whose 'art' was knocked up on the kitchen table in the time it took for the kids to eat breakfast and the washing up to begin. And that's why I think people making the most money selling original modern art on eBay are promoting inexpensive items or limited edition prints of better creations.
* Amazon, Etsy and Artfire - and many other places to promote artwork online - lack the 'flea market' perception some people associate (wrongly) with eBay and which stems from eBay's early image as a place to sell cheap wholesale goods and unwanted household items, not rare art and collectibles. This means, if your item's a copy or an original piece of art you could - and should - promote it in hundreds of different Internet marketplaces, earning small profits from each and high profits combined.
* At most online locations selling other people's artwork I discovered a thriving marketplace for prints created on canvas, especially larger items. These items sell well at twenty or thirty dollars apiece, notably on eBay and Amazon. The best prices for original artwork came from Etsy and Artfire.
Check out the scope for selling canvas prints on eBay by choosing main category 'Art' and sub-category 'Canvas / Giclee Prints'.
For Amazon sales go to their home page, then key 'art' into the 'Kitchen & Home' category top of the screen to see dozens of stunning canvas based artistic creations.
Check out a few of the sellers on eBay and Amazon and make a note of how many items they have listed and how often they list new items at the site. Lots of items and frequent new stock is a sign of a good and thriving marketplace.
* It's a very good idea to have a web site independent of places like eBay or Amazon, Etsy or Artfire, or numerous other online marketplaces, featuring original artwork and prints from where your past customers can purchase new items in future - without you paying hefty fees to those other sites. That separate site or blog is also a good place to offer a newsletter to keep past and future buyers updated on items you are currently selling on eBay, Amazon, and elsewhere.
* At most sites listed later you can open shops dedicated to selling art, old and modern, new and second hand, your own or belonging to other people. Spend time studying other people's shops before starting your own and include good write ups about your chosen artists and their work, then expect search engines like Google to pick up your shop in search engine returns and send lots of lovely, big spending traffic your way - completely free of charge!
Now that should give you something to think about but if you want to learn more then you can download FOUR STEPS TO INTERNET MARKETING MILLIONS at: http://www.dailyprofitplans.com
What To Look For When Looking For A Gallery
Artists often ask me what they should look for when looking for a gallery to represent them. As an art rep and daughter of a gallery represented artist (the late painter and illustrator Robert G. Stevens) I recommend that you obtain answers to the following questions before you attempt to approach a gallery about representation:
About Certificates Of Authenticity
About Certificates of Authenticity
The Certificate of Authenticity (COA) is important for the protection of both the Artist and the Collector of fine art works and limited edition reproductions. For the artist, it is a way to ensure that unauthorized and illegal use of copyrighted materials is not mistaken in the marketplace for authentic works that they have produced. For the collector, a properly authorized COA is irrefutable evidence of the provenance of the work acquired which serves to protect the value of the investment and eliminate questions of origin including fraudulent copying.
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