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'Tips from Benjamin Brice (Abstract Artist, Melbourne Australia.)

Becoming a successful artist requires two things, great art and great marketing.

If you are like me then you'll feel more comfortable with the 'great art' side of things rather than the 'great marketing'. When I first started out I like most emerging artists thought that if I produce truly beautiful works of art, that are challenging and unique, galleries would snap them up. I found out that most galleries are willing to look at you until you have a list of solo exhibitions as long as your arm (or spanning at least 5 or 6 years). So putting aside the making great art bit, here is my advice for how to go about marketing yourself as an artist.

1. Visit as many local galleries as you can an get a feel for which galleries are accepting the work of emerging artist's like yourself.

2. Decipher which galleries, and parts of town are suited to your style of art work.

3. Be aware that there are essentially two types of commercially run galleries.

o Some Galleries run end to end exhibitions of solo or group shows. They select the work usually almost a year ahead and book you in for a 2-3 week period. Getting an exhibition at this style of gallery is great for your CV, but expensive as the gallery will usually charge you a hefty fee for 'hiring' the gallery for that period of time. You can also expect them to take 20-45% commission of any thing that sells, and you might also be up for opening night costs (food, wine, and service) plus and hanging fee! The success of any exhibition is usually dependant of the quality of your invitation list. Inviting the right people who will be willing to buy your work (rather than friends and family who will sing your praises but not be able to fork out the cash for your work) is the key.

o The other type of gallery is one that consistently shows a selection of few selected artist that are 'represented' by the Gallery. It is this type of gallery that is a more desirable gallery to pursue for the emerging artist. To become represented you must first of all convince them to take your work on, perhaps even just for trial period. Then if sales abound, the gallery will continue to stock your work. Of course this type of gallery is likely to take a higher commission from sales, (typically 30-50%) however they are no other costs involved for the artist. The main benefit of this type of gallery is that you have a space in which your work is constantly displayed, which should lead to more sales overall.

4. Create a PDF of your work and email the galleries you would like your work to be shown in.

5. Follow up with a phone call, ask to speak with the gallery director, and promote yourself. Talk about you work, what it speaks about, what success you have had in the past, why you would like them to take on your work. Arrange an appointment for them to view the work.

6. Be persistent, if at first you don't succeed, then call back, and try again.

7. Set your price point according to how established you are as an artist. Price all your work according to size, not according to how much you like or don't like a piece. If you set a price too low for one, clients will hesitate to buy it because it is out of relationship with the others, making them think it's inferior.

8. Remember buying art should never be about, getting a cheap deal, or discounted price. Clients of art, want to feel they have paid for something of value.

9. Don't arrive at a gallery with your work and ask to see the director. Always call first to arrange an appointment. It looks unprofessional and pushy. You want to maintain the appearance that your work is sort after and that they would be lucky to have the chance to represent and artist such as yourself.

10. Having a website to showcase your work is always a good idea. Creating a website is a cheap way to advertise your self, and if galleries try to Google your name, it is reassuring for them to find a whole site on you and your work.

Here is a site showcasing my work, check it out and please let me know what you think.

I work in the unusual media of Resin on Canvas. Transparent Colour Field Abstraction. I live in Melbourne Australia.

http://www.benjaminbrice.com.au