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I was chatting with a dealer recently about a particular artist whose work we both like. Due to a recent gallery closure the artist is now without gallery representation. During the conversation the dealer let on that he had been interested in taking on this artist. Asking around, he found that the artist has a reputation for selling out of his studio while represented. After exercising what he called “due diligence," the dealer found the rumors to be true. An invitation to the artist for gallery representation was never extended.
If you are not gallery represented
Go ahead and sell out of your studio. That’s one of the reasons Open Studios have become so popular. Indeed, studio buildings that might have had one event a year now have two or more, often pegged to the holidays. Collectors go—at least we hope they go—looking as much for bargains as for new work by new artists. Dealers also visit open studios, too, and they do so with an eye to finding new artists
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If you are gallery represented
If you are gallery represented
Selling out of your studio is an established No No in a business that has few established rules. The reason is obvious: No dealer wants to invest in your career only to have you snatch a sale (and their commission) out from under them. And if you're selling at a price that's lower than the gallery price, you're undercutting your own best interests. If your dealer is not working for you, it seems to me that trying to have it both ways—representation by the gallery, sales out of your studio—is not going to serve you well in the long term. Someone is going to do their “due diligence” and you may end up selling out of your studio for a good long time.
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And let me state the obvious: You worked hard to find the gallery that represents you. Why not let them do what they do best so that you can do what you do best?
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And let me state the obvious: You worked hard to find the gallery that represents you. Why not let them do what they do best so that you can do what you do best?
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The gray area
The gray area
There are some areas in which the “rules” are less clear. For instance--and I'm purposely exagerating here--suppose you live in Portland , Maine , but are represented by a gallery in Portland , Oregon Oregon Maine
Still, there’s a gray area within the gray area: Did the Oregon
Suggestions for gallery-represented artists
Suggestions for gallery-represented artists
. Talk to your dealer or dealers. What do they expect from you? How do their other represented artists deal with these issues?
. Talk to the other represented artists, too
. Read the fine print on any contract they ask you to sign. Courtesy be damned; you may be legally prohibited from selling out of your studio
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If you would feel uncomfortable explaining the sale to your dealer, maybe you should rethink the way you make the sale
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. Because I work with several galleries, I always ask the collector who contacts me, "How did you find my work?" If it was via a postcard or ad, I direct them to the gallery that generated it. If the response is a vague, "From the Internet," I direct them to the gallery nearest them. Because savvy collectors often browse several sites where an artist's work is being shown, I may let more than one gallery know of a collector's interest. That allows them to contact the potential client directly--or to work together--to make a sale, letting me step back from the commercial end of things
. There are many other ways you can work with your dealer. One is to have the collector over to the studio and when the sale is about to be made, call your gallery and let them handle the details--including sales tax (a bonus here: galleries take credit cards, which most artists don't). You'd work this out ahead of time with both parties, of course
. Or arrange for a studio vist where dealer and collector meet at the studio. The dealer can personally make the sale. If there's a problem with the sale later (check bounces, there's a credit card issue) your dealer will handle it
. Another artist I know collects the gallery price from a studio sale, including sales tax. She has the collector make the check out to the gallery, who then pays the sales tax and handles shipping, installation and the disbursement of funds
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. Because I work with several galleries, I always ask the collector who contacts me, "How did you find my work?" If it was via a postcard or ad, I direct them to the gallery that generated it. If the response is a vague, "From the Internet," I direct them to the gallery nearest them. Because savvy collectors often browse several sites where an artist's work is being shown, I may let more than one gallery know of a collector's interest. That allows them to contact the potential client directly--or to work together--to make a sale, letting me step back from the commercial end of things
. There are many other ways you can work with your dealer. One is to have the collector over to the studio and when the sale is about to be made, call your gallery and let them handle the details--including sales tax (a bonus here: galleries take credit cards, which most artists don't). You'd work this out ahead of time with both parties, of course
. Or arrange for a studio vist where dealer and collector meet at the studio. The dealer can personally make the sale. If there's a problem with the sale later (check bounces, there's a credit card issue) your dealer will handle it
. Another artist I know collects the gallery price from a studio sale, including sales tax. She has the collector make the check out to the gallery, who then pays the sales tax and handles shipping, installation and the disbursement of funds
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Over to you
Artists: Do you sell out of your studio? Do you do so even if you are gallery represented?
Dealers: How have you dealt with artists if/when you find out they have been selling without your involvement?
