Product Description

How to sell one's art isn't taught in art schools, yet it's an essential ingredient in getting work displayed and attracting art commissions. This straightforward, inexpensive guide is written for artists who want to present themselves and their work in the best possible light to the largest possible audience. Topics include creating a winning marketing package, getting a gallery, finding an artist representative, and obtaining free or low-cost advertising. Also included is a thorough resource listing that includes inexpensive sources for slide development, contact information for artist representatives, suggestions for durable mailing packaging, and contact names for foreign news media.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #285174 in Books
• Published on: 2000-09-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 160 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781556524134
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Review
"This book should be in every school of art, college art department, and artist's pocket." -- V.A. Howard, author of Artistry: The Works of Artists and Learning by All Means: Lessons from the Arts

About the Author
Sean Moore has exhibited nationally for more than 30 years, and his paintings are hung in private and business collections. He lives in Newton, Massachusetts.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Grants

An arts grant is a gift of money (not a loan) to an artist or arts group for the purpose of advancing the cause of the artist or group. The recipients of grants must do only three things:

1. Seek out these opportunities (research), 2. Prepare the proposals to apply for the grants, and 3. Spend the money when you win the award.

The difficulty of the first two is the reason that most artists don’t get grants. Another reason is that most artists think of the need for money as a general, overall, and constant need. To get a grant you must detail a specific need, for a particular purpose, with definite limits and a precise dollar amount. This requires planning and research.

It’s OK if the purpose is self-serving, such as mounting an exhibition, creating a work of art, producing a catalog or other printed piece about your art, or studying something in the arts. Your aim can also be altruistic, such as teaching at or creating art for an arts center that serves children in need or a small museum of ethnic art. As long as your project is well defined, costs a specific amount of money that you don’t have but need, and is something you are capable of, then you’re ready to apply for a grant.

When you research grants, try to narrow your search to those where the qualifications apply to you. Many grants are given only to certain kinds of artists, such as those from a particular region, age, sex, or ethnic background. Don’t waste your time applying for any grants where you aren’t a perfect fit.

After figuring out what activity you want a grant to support and how much this activity will cost, the rest of the application process is mostly writing. Writing a grant proposal can be a challenging task. They must be tightly written, pithy, precise, and follow directions exactly. Your library and bookstores are packed with guides on how to write grant proposals. If you can’t do it with the help of these excellent guides, you can hire a grant writer. (See grants in the Marketing Resources section.)

Customer Reviews

no news flash
It's no secret that if you're an artist (or do anything of an "artsy" inclination) that, sadly enough, sometimes what you're selling has little to do with your product (err, art) but rather your package (that would be you). I think most of the advice given in here is common sense, like you need to market yourself and act professionally. I also believe that this book could benefit from the use of anecdotes -- I would like to hear some stories of successful fine artists. Now for the specifics. The author's gems of advice for your resume are "Don't set your resume on a typewriter" (yes! a typewriter! I checked to make sure that this book was really published in the year 2000 and indeed it was) and "Use serif type. This is the most important advice you will ever get about typography..." He then goes on to state that the reason that print media often uses serif type is because it is "easier" to read -- right here is where the author starts losing credibility because usability studies have shown that actually sans serif fonts are the ones easiest to read. But no, he claims that sans serif is good only for "art directors and graphic designers" -- and naturally, no self-respecting artiste would want to be confused with a designer now, would they?! Another point of contention (out of many) is that he is a proponent of artists using free website hosting services such as Compuserve or making use of your space on AOL. I don't know if anything would scream "I am an amateur hack" then having your "professional" website hosted on Geocities, complete with annoying pop-ups. I'm sorry but to make your sale and complete your marketing package, you've got to be professional, and professionals are willing to shell out a little money to get something that looks like you've got it together. Another favorite piece of advice is that the artist should chop up color photocopies (or something printed from your all-in-one home fax machine/copier -- horrors!) to create business cards. Believe me, I know that artists are on a tight budget and all, but again, that is not the image you want to be projecting. Lastly, if you are an aspiring artist and did not get your BFA/MFA in Art, and have never had a gallery show in your life, this book is not going to help you break into the business in any way.

Aside from these nit-picky details, there is the fact that this is ostensibly a book about making money. But really it's not. Essentially an artist is an entrepreneur, and any basic business book is going to tell you that to have a successful business, you will need a business plan, some sort of way of tracking your finances/expenditures, profit loss statements etc. How else will you even know what is making money and working for you? I know it's unsexy as hell but any smart and savvy artist would need to know these basics if they really want to make it (it's a pity that they rarely mention this reality in school). I would recommend that you steer clear of this book and check out some really basic entrepreneurial books with an accounting bent instead. And pick up a couple of basic graphic design ones too to understand how to put together a compelling marketing package.

The Cliff Notes for How to Survive and Prosper as an Artist
I've been raking the bookstores in search of all the information I can find regarding the subject of making a living as an artist. I've already read through two excellent books:
"How to Survive and Prosper as an Artist" AND
"Taking the Leap: Building a Career As a Visual Artist"

Both of those books had a wealth of information, and although they overlapped in some areas, they both brought their own perspectives, tips, and information to the table - and a lot of it at that. This book, "How to Make Money as an Artist" is a much thinner book, and only seems to overview a lot of key topics. I found the book too lightly skimmed the surface of many important issues that really do require a more in depth review.

I personally wouldn't recommend this book because I think you can get a lot more out of the other two books I suggested. If you only need a little guidance, and don't have a good grasp of the basics and common sense, this might be a place to start.

Not for Artists!
If you are a college freshman, this book may be useful. For anyone who is out of school, there are many better books available. One that has some depth is How to Survive and Prosper as an Artist. How do I know? I purchased both at the same time.