Tuesday 25 November 2014

The Joys of Exhibiting

We exhibit artworks for different reasons - sometimes with no illusions about actually making money out of the weekend/ week or month after our outlay of materials, time, blood, sweat etc. and of course entry fees!

I've just had a busy couple of weeks showing in Worthing and Shoreham and I thought I would share my experiences due to a major factor affecting clubs and societies across the country.

It's harder balancing the books for art societies and one stream of income is commission from exhibitions. It's great as an individual to sell a piece of work and it's human nature to feel a little sad as the percentage of the sale is taken off in fees but that sale is life blood to both parties.

Art societies cannot afford to make losses on exhibitions especially when venue hire and insurance are ever increasing costs.

I always "people watch" and read body language pretty well so I wanted to share my observations of the "dance" of the artist and prospective buyers at the latest art event in Shoreham.

30 artists and makers in a big hall, all having been allocated spaces and everything set out very professionally albeit in quite a compact way. We all had to steward our own pitch and deal with sales directly.

So where do you put your chair? How close do you sit? Do you engage in conversation with passers by? Are you "blocking" comfortable access to your work?

I watched people come in to be confronted with a high artist to public ratio and many seemed to be on a "fast track" route round the hall, I think to avoid the "Can I help you " "shop assistant" scenario we experience in stores when there are a number of assistants.

I know it's a luxury to have a lot of space to hang and to observe artwork so we can't expect everyone's comfort zones to be accommodated, but we need to be aware of creating an atmosphere that engenders relaxed viewing with the right amount of supervision. 

I find that a gentle "Hello, I'd be happy to answer any questions you might have about the artwork on display" works, especially if accompanied with a slight withdrawal to talk with an arty chum but to still be in accessible range.

You've also got to be aware that some people will come up and talk about art for England (like me) and will block potential sales from others, so you have to manage your stewarding time.

This might sound a bit corporate but it does give you a warm glowing feeling inside when you sell a piece and it can help to put food on the table and contribute to the society's survival!

I look forward to seeing you all at future meetings.

Kind regards,

Marcus Finch.

Saturday 8 November 2014

Katie Sollohub presentation and charcoal workshop

A lovely afternoon finding out about Katie Sollohub and how she approaches her work, followed by a workshop to re-invigorate a love of charcoal and all its possibilities.



Peoples Choice Award 2014

Congratulations to Aylin Dengizer-Sharp for Boats at Broadstairs being voted the Peoples Choice at our recent exhibition at Worthing Museum.