The "ART" market

[Brian Newman]

When I started making pipes (1993) my work was crap but I could make descent money for a bachelor. We are all aware of what happened to prices with the influx of work from India and the massive increase in the number of people blowing. In the past couple of years I have been trying to do more "artwork". I have never marketed myself, and have always thought that consignment was a dirty word. I need to change my thinking. With a family to support, and bills in arears, I have been lowering my prices to keep the cashflow, and, suprise suprise, this makes it worse. One day, I would like to open my own store, but until that day, I could take 1 day a week to make something nice and put it in a gallery at a respectable price.
I have never made a portfolio, I never saw the need. Do you think it nessisary?
What advice do you have for approaching galleries?
I want to sell my chains, mostly. A nice one takes 8-10 hours to make and I have been selling them to friends for $200-$250 Canadian depending on the chain, but I don't sell more than 1 or 2 a month with word of mouth. how much should I charge if I am expected to wait until it sells?
Any advice on breaking in to the "ART" market, other than to stop putting quotation marks around it?

Thanks in advance,
Brian

[broken glass]

I think 65$ an hour should be the least an artist should ask for, some would say 65 + materials, is the lowest. I wonder how many actually get it?

[Chris Juedemann]

Watch 'Field Of Dreams'.

Chris

[slinger]

i posted this once before, but it sums it up pretty well:

tips for breaking into the art market (http://www.donnymiller.com/howtobecomeanartist.html)

[Jones Art Glass]

Find a product you enjoy or are competent at making. Find a show...Not a lot fest or anything...a real pay your booth fees and sign a contract kind of show. Force yourself to save your dough...reinvest in yourself..."You're not a Businessman...your a BUSINESS man..." Nothing will go very smoothly at first but stay at it. Selling pipes probably didn't jump off excactly the way you planned but you stayed at it right???? Same thing.
If you already have a product you believe in make more... Find a way to stockpile an actual inventory of that product. After you have something to sell find your outlet...By beating down doors...Staying online to keep yourself abreast of upcoming craft shows/bead shows anything that gives you more exposure. Send samples to Magazines...Give them away to city council members... anything for more exposure. You mentioned you sell a few month word of mouth...Try selling pipes word of mouth youll probably move one or two month as well. Would you step into a shop with only one or two pipes?? Same with any other product.
I think the reason why this is all easier said (typed) than done is usually a matter or financial discipline or lack there of. Any pipe maker here shuold be able to pull a better living off the torch than one would at a 9-5 "Straight job" and if not please go get a "straight job" becasue lampworking is hazardous so you should at least make some money at it. Save your dough...Get better equipment...Photo your work. Make promo flyer and send it out to your local chamber of commerce...Dont know how?? RingofFire.com can help. Its all about getting yourself out there because no cares who the best glass blower they've never heard of is...

[glsgrl]

Milon Townsends book (the 2 volume one) has great tips for Marketing yourself. Some gallieries that are more well known will want an artist statement and a resume. Most galleries are now taking 40%, some take 50%. Try to find a co-op type gallery if you can spare a couple days a month. That way you would pay a portion of the rent and also have to work a couple of days a month, but you will keep 100% of your profits...sometimes, not always, it works to the benefit of the artist. Another tip would be to try to find an artist who is willing to help you out....alot are....I've talked to owners of galleries that I've been in and helped others get into them....Also, check out the "tourist" cities and just start talking to shop and gallery owners...Right now, my work is in a few galleries and surprisingly the "shop" that I'm consistently getting a check from is a stained glass store... she has a small gallery w/gift items and I've got my stuff in really nice galleries and some so-so galleries, but this little shop is giving me a check every month....but its in a tourist town and I'm the only one there besides her....so I do well AND its all glass.....

[Steve Sizelove]

The art market isn't exactly consistent cash flow, and it's definitely not a quick fix when it comes to money issues. In fact, for someone new to the art/craft market, dollar for dollar, it's more work than the pipe market.

Here are a few of my suggestions from trial and error as well as absorbing things from more experienced:

1) Pictures!!! You need the best quality images possible. Go to a professional regularly, but also take the time to learn to photograph your own work.

2) Get a well designed website. You probably won't sell any work through it, but it's your online business card showing everything (worth showing, that is.)

3) Educate yourself on what your market is. Are there artists doing work like you? Where do they sell it? How much do they charge? You're not doing this to undercut them, but to learn about your own work. Where does it fit? Be critical and honest.

Then approach that market through professionaly designed and printed mailings. Buy mailing lists if appropriate.

4) Do local holiday art/craft shows. These are generally O.K. in sales and really help to learn about doing shows. Then as you feel more comfortable, begin applying to bigger and more selective shows.

The only other things are to be OGANIZED, work hard, and expect only about 25% of what you make to actually sell.

[rumplephorskin]

make a SHITLOAD of christams ornaments and promote them like youve never promoted anything before. do things like going to bars you would never be caught dead in because the crowd is all middle aged yuppie scum. Go to bars that have female bartenders and ask them things like "Would you like to see my balls???" and when she looks at you like youre on crack; put a couple of ornaments on the table:D nine times out of ten youll drink for free and the wives of the yuppie scum will want your balls as well!!!! Make sure you have a bunch of business cards and a website going because these ladies will invariably tell their friends and theyll wanna get ornaments too. Its not a long term plan but the season is coming up bro and you (or any of us for that matter) can make a killing. Talk to coffee houses and get some displays set up and check with them like once a week to restock them and get your money.

[rockstar glassworks]

Wow, I've heard that $60 - $65 an hour is whats needed to survive. I've been in the business for 3yrs now and I'm in total prodo land. I have a huge account with a major wholesale company that pays most of my bills.
Of course I average about $20-$30 an hour though. I find that setting your price is the hardest part of the business. When you've got rent, utilities, food, fuel, car insurance, oxygen, propane, glass, dental bills, and entertainment all due constantly it's kinda hard to stock up on inventory.
Another year or so maybe and I'll be good enough to start to bankroll enough cash to go month by month instead of week by week.
Beat down doors, beg, be humble about yourself, deal with mean arrogatn buyers who think since they've worked in the same silly shop for 15 years that they're king of the world.
Touristy places have good turnover rates on merchandise. College towns do too.

[Racer X]

Steve aint lyin'.

I been in the art market now for a while as well as my partner. We are not short on publicity and choice shows... but it's a crap shoot. We treat it as a bonus when we sell well. We cover our bases the best we can on other fronts and at the moment I am planning to do a holiday booth for the very first time.

Chris has the best veiled advice in this thread. Watch field of dreams. Build it and they will come. That is the key. If you got the work... everything will work itself out.

I wish I could just stand on the street and throw dogshit at a schoolbus and call it art and get paid. But it takes a solid effort and a whole lot of personal risk... so you may want to focus on little risk- big take right now if cash is the focus. Art is alot like crime. It doesn't pay unless you're a good thief.

[steven p selchow]

Rex an Steve are both right. I had my own store for 13 years in a tourist area, some of that in someone elses store front. most in my own. also have 14 years of doing the mall thing at Christmas, a kiosk, which I've been out of that for 11 years now, plus I have 5 years of doing art shows as experience. When I had 2 things going I did well. I find people representing gallieres come to me, as having seen my work at shows, rather than find them. I have down times, which I work on new lines of work, which is a must to stay on top of the other guy. Get a book by sunshine artists, a show listing of good quality shows around the country, and get ads from within that for more publications in your area, then apply and start off, its one way to get aquainted with the art market.

Steve

[barefoot stash]

Make art for the Love of of making art!!! If it's your bills your worried about, whip out some prodo that's what it's for. Just because it's not a pipe, doesn't make it art. Come on, slinging ornaments in a bar, it may lead to some sales but there are probably better ways to use your time more efficiently. Point taken though that sometimes you need to try a little off the wall to get noticed. And hey, if it worked then what the hell do I know right.
Milon's book is excellent, it's one of the texts I use in my class and I reference it often. The marketing section and all the basics on marketing i.e resumes, slides etc. With a lot of tenacity and hard work you'll break into the art show circuit. It's good to start small, to get a feel. What I have found most important though is once you find a good show, be sure to do it year after year. You will start to get a following and can make the shows less risky. Also, if you're going to travel any more than say five hours from your studio try to get a few shows in a row. This will spread your risk and mitagate the effect of a bad show, rain, etc..
None of this however will make you rich. I've done a ton of shows and met a lot of extremely talented artists, not too many of them however were really monetarily wealthy. Atleast not by slinging art. Mind you, they live some of the richest lives of anyone I've ever met. That's why I picked this lifestyle. I think as pipers though we got spoiled into thinking that glass is a get rich quick scheme. We forget that these artist that we look up to Mickelsen, Towsend, Chihuly, etc have spent 30+ years building the careers that they have by doing what they love and pushing, clawing, scraping the medium forward.

[ArtGlassHouse]

LOts of great info here! The best info I have seen is in the Milon Marketing book. It really is a must have for any type of artist. It very well could be the best $20 you ever spend.
I have this debate all the time..... production vrs art. I really don't know of any high end glass artist that does not have some kind of production line. The better the selection you can offer, the more type of buyers you'll attract. "Starving Artist"......... those words have been used for generations. It takes good marketing and business skills to do really well. Try and learn the areas that hold you back or slow you down.
Best wishes
Ron JR.

[Snoopy]

My wife and I do lots of production like ornaments,pendants and the like and it helps make money while you're waiting on the more expensive artwork to sell.One thing that I have noticed is that eventually everything sells,some things just take longer than others.All of the above info is the story of my life and it's working but it's an assload of work!Work all week and sell all weekend...Steve is right,good pictures are everything if you want to apply to an upscale art show.It's the only thing they have to go by.
Good luck people,
Shannon Norris
www.fireworxglass.com

....If you build it they will come.............That's great Glass Kitchen!