How to Succeed as an Artist and Get Your Art in a Gallery
When you make art, it’s important that other people see it, right? But how do you get your art in a gallery? How do you get your work in front of people who will love it? And how do you develop your artist practice so you feel confident you have something to say? These are all questions most artists will ask at some point.
Firstly, it’s worth asking why it’s important that others see your art. For me, it’s nothing to do with vanity. If nobody sees my work, I’m creating in a vacuum. No feedback, no inspiration and no financial benefit…
Art is about communication, so you need to have an audience to communicate with.
Of course, many of us create art for the sake of creating. Because we have something to say. But there are only so many hours in a week and financial pressures can make it hard to find time to create art. Unless you can begin to build some income from your work.
One of the best things I’ve found about having art exhibitions in the diary, is that it helps develop my practice. It makes me reflect on my work, and it motivates me to create more of it.
This is my experience.
An online virtual gallery walk-through from King House Gallery
Reflect on Your Work
First, it’s worth understanding what art galleries want. They want work that is unique and memorable. And they want work they know they can sell. This means some galleries may choose slightly generic pieces, because they’re a safe bet. Don’t take this personally. If you need to create work that’s esoteric as hell, just follow your own path. There’s no point commercialising your style if it doesn’t fulfil you.
How do you Know your Work is Ready for a Gallery?
I spent a long time worrying about whether my work was “technically” good enough. But the feedback I receive is that my paintings are incredibly expressive. It took a long time for me to feel confident. But you can begin by asking yourself the following questions:
Does my work offer a unique artistic perspective?
Do I use interesting techniques, materials or symbolism?
Does all my work look like it was created by the same artist? One of the things about famous artists is that their work is instantly recognisable. I used to have all my old work on my website — various different genres and styles I passed through as I found my voice. Now I’m sure of what I’m saying, I curate my site so all my work fits.
What is the inspiration behind my work? Can I explain it?
Would anyone want to hang my work in their home? If you’ve already made a few sales, you’ll know the answer to this. And remember, it says, “anyone,” not “everyone.”
One of the earlier group shows I took part in, with a collective of local Devon artists.
How to Get Your Art in a Gallery
Not for the faint hearted, but there are many open calls you can apply for. Follow mailing lists and sites that share listings. Here are a few of my favourites:
The OLIST
Mall Galleries
RA Summer Exhibition
But don’t just apply for everything. For a start, submissions generally cost money. Second, each open call has a very careful concept behind it. If your work hits that concept square on, you’re more likely to be accepted.
I applied for many open calls before I was accepted for exhibition. My work, Don’t Surrender Your Loneliness, just happened to exactly describe the idea behind an exhibition that came out of the pandemic and lockdown. It was my first London group show — because my work was right for it.
The Resilient Self — my first London group show from an open call.
Again, don’t take it personally if your work isn’t accepted. Galleries and curators tend to have specific tastes or favour particular styles of work. Or they may already have an artist whose work is too similar to yours. Never change your work to fit with one subjective opinion. Create work that speaks your truth, and look for places that fit your existing style.
And remember, when you sell through a gallery, they will always take commission. It can be 50% or more. So make sure you read the small print, because it’s better to price your work to accommodate the commission than to practically give it away. When you sell direct, you don’t have to worry about this.
Look for Local Opportunities
Get involved with local art groups, team up with other creatives and look for local businesses that display art. Small, local exhibitions can be a good stepping-stone for larger shows.
When you connect with fellow artists and make the effort to be supportive of their work, it does something really positive to your own practice. And, it means you have a network through which you might get referrals to galleries. It's quite common to get your art in a gallery because another artist recommends you. Be proactive and take the time to build relationships with other artists. We’re stronger together.
A joint exhibition with my partner
Create a Strong Online Presence
Instagram is free, and it’s perfect for image-based businesses. Try to develop a consistent posting schedule. Make good use of hashtags. And don’t just share your own work — engage with other artists, galleries and art lovers too.
You might also find it useful to build your own website. Here you can include info about all your exhibitions, share press articles, build a shop — it’s your space. Curate it as if it were your own art gallery.
You can even build a blog to optimise your site for organic traffic. For the non tech-savvy this means you blog about things that will interest your ideal customer (the person who wants to buy your work). If you paint local scenes, blog about local art. It will help the right people to find you.
Since the start of the pandemic, more galleries are using online exhibitions as well as in-person shows. This means, if your work is accepted for an open call, you can share a virtual gallery walk-through with your social media audience, or link to it on your website. Which all helps make the experience more fun and interactive for your site visitors.
Seasons Exhibition, online and in person, King House Gallery.
Try Established Online Galleries
Some people enjoy a lot of success with big online art galleries like Saatchi and Artfinder. Or, for artists who sell prints and lower-priced items, Etsy is perfect.
Personally, I find these online galleries very sales-based, as you would expect. They tend to prefer artists who are very prolific and produce a lot of work in a narrow style. And remember, there’s commission, just as there is with any physical gallery.
But, if you don’t want the expense and stress of building your own website, they might just be ideal for you.
A group show in New York.
Be Aware of Vanity Awards and Pointless Advertising
Once you have an online presence, you’re likely to receive a lot of emails about exhibition and press opportunities. These can range from legitimate advertising to vanity projects. For instance, it’s common to be offered a “prestigious” international award that you have to pay around £400 to collect.
If you want to get your art in a gallery, open calls charge submission fees, which are usually around £10-£40. And some galleries charge admin fees. But most legitimate galleries make their money from commission, not by charging the artist to exhibit.
You may also get offers from magazines to be featured in their art or interiors spread. It might be nice to say your work was in Vogue or Cosmopolitan magazine, but are the readers your ideal audience, or will they just flick past without a second look?
Whenever an opportunity seems too good to be true, do your research and make sure you’re happy with any costs.
There are many ways to show your work, but if you want to get your art in a gallery, keep on creating, and keep your eye open for opportunities.
If you found this post useful and are still looking for inspiration, you might also enjoy reading some of my favourite quotes about creativity. Or head to my exhibitions page where you can see how and where I show my art.