Managing
an art sale versus art seeing expectations
There are
two viewpoints that are at contretemps when it comes to visiting an artists
studio/gallery. The artists and the clients. Unfortunately both camps have
to get over their pre-conceived notations of what is to go on. That does
not mean that you can‘t have those thoughts – just that the thoughts have to
be tempered with reality.
For the
artist the client visit will be objective and to the point. The artist
thoughts are that all visits are going to lead
to quick sales. In addition, the client is, or should be, focusing solely
on the art in the room or wants to discuss a commission today and give the
artist a down payment to get the process started. The thing to be avoided
is the
client speculating or doing “blue sky thinking”. This burns up the artist’s
creative time. Unfortunately for the artist,
he has been surrounded by the art for a while and knows it cold. He is
familiar with all the nuances and details.
The artist just knows, from his point of view, what the best piece is and
that the client should be happy with the
artists decision and buy the artwork.
From the
client point of view, all of the above could not be further from the truth.
The client is coming to see the art – yes, but and this is a big but,
not necessarily to buy. Above all the client wants to browse the
art, discuss the motivation behind the making of it, engage in some small
talk, almost anything to get away from a quick commitment/buy. The client
does not want to be rushed into a quick decision, particularly if this is
the first visit to
the artist’s studio/gallery. Occasionally, there is also the expectation
that the artist’s work that the client saw elsewhere has now taken a
radically different course either in design, subject matter, color, etc.
So there is
bound to be some conflict here.
The key
is to understand that each side – the artist and the client - both have
valid points of view and that their
mutual destination is the same. Eventually the client/artist situation will
work itself out – though from personal experience – never in the artist’s
time frame. The artist always wants it quicker.
Visiting an artists studio for better
pricing
Some
Clients visit artists studios to, in their mind, receive better pricing.
Some clients, and to be honest some artists, buy into the notion that the
artist can sell art cheaper through their studio/gallery than through their
gallery representation. Some clients actually befriend artists to get their
“artist friend” to make them a piece of art. There
is a reason artists sell through galleries – that is so that they do not
have to invest in the time and money to meet
and greet clients on their turf. This frees up the artist to produce work
to supply his/her gallery network. This can
also be seen as profit for the artist. All businesses like profit.
Most
times the client well understands that they are taking advantage of the
artist. The client also does not care
that the artist, by selling his work at a wholesale price, is undermining
his galleries. To the client, this is a one time transaction and a good
deal. The artist though, has driven a stake in the gallery/artist trusting
relationship that is
so necessary to sell art. No wonder galleries are so leery of artists
selling their work independent of the gallery.
When
artists have their own stand-alone gallery, the artwork prices should also
be exactly what their galleries sell work for. Clients in this instance
think that since the artists gallery is not on prime real estate that they
should pay less. To turn the tables a little bit, if the client was in the
artists position, should they lower their price? Just
because the overhead component is less than a typical gallery do you use
bargain basement pricing for a limited edition product? Not in
conventional economics and not in a real world scenario.
Custom Orders always welcome.
