You make artworks yourself and you want to sell your paintings. Do you have to sell your paintings online, or offline through a gallery? And how do you do that? How do you create your own website? Can you approach a gallery? What should you pay attention to?
Sell your paintings. Offline & Online
Simply put, there are 2 routes to sell your paintings: offline and online. Of course you prefer to use both channels, but day does take some effort. However, it is often a wage for (art) works. For the beautiful paintings you can have the best option now.
Sell offline paintings
There are various options for selling your paintings “offline”. Below we look at a number of options.
Gallery
The first channel that you will think of is a gallery. It is definitely worth trying to get to a gallery. Remember that the chances are that they will be interested, so don’t be disappointed if you get “no” sold.
To increase your chance you have to look good. Make sure you have everything in order.
Collection
Take a look at the gallery
View the collection of a gallery before you make the step to contact a gallery.
If you make abstract art and the gallery only sells realistic works, then it is lost time.
If they only sell works by famous artists at prices for a new car, then as a beginner you can probably forget it.
If the collection and the pricing match what you make, then you can venture the contact.
Approach
Work neatly and make a plan
If you are approaching a gallery via email, you must have a website that you can refer to. Make sure it looks neat, has a biography on it, and offers the possibility to contact you. You can read more about creating a website later in this article.
Also make sure that the email is textually correct! A gallery sells products (art products) and would like to do business with a producer (artist) who delivers quality. That applies in full width. If you are not good at writing a good email (both in terms of content and text), let someone else help you!
Think of a strategy before you step inside
For example, you can first come in as an interested person and start talking to the gallery owner. This allows you to control the gun factor and so carefully introduce your work. This probably works better than stepping in and throwing your portfolio on the counter.
Portfolio
Make sure your portfolio is in order
So always take a printed portfolio with you. Just invest in quality by having your works printed on beautiful paper by a printer and present it in a neat folder or have it actually bound as a book. That requires a relatively small investment, but if that ensures that you are taken seriously, it is more than worth that investment!
And also make sure that you look well-groomed. You only get 1 chance to make a good first impression!
Exhibitions
At a gallery you can get long-term exposure of your artworks, but there are also interesting short-term options.
Art multi-day and art markets
An art multi-day or art market gives you brand recognition and you can sell your work there.
Markets and multi-day events take place throughout the country. Just search in Google for options. There are also websites with calendars or notice boards where announcements are made about art events and opportunities.