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After an abortive trip to Texas, and a bout of feeling lackluster and burned out, and just laying (lying?) around watching TV, I'm back in the studio and am absolutely loving it. It's fabulous to have TIME to paint, to experiment, to think about how I can improve and then work at doing it. It's grand. 

I'm going to go bigger this year, and bolder. I'm delving into figurative work - people in motion, mainly. I'm raising the colors in my palette, and cutting down on my strokes. I'm excited about this new direction - and scared, too, for sure. But fear often jazzes me. 

All of this is helping me look forward to the next show season, instead of sort of dreading it, as I was a couple weeks ago. I hope you all are having the same sort of rebirth, in this cold, dark month! 

I am really perplexed about this especially regarding some of the top shows.  We're experienced artists at shows.  Often a promoter's instruction sheet, instructs artists to submit the photos representing the full range of their work which means if you are a 3D artist with functional ceramics, you are to show not only your more intricate items but also your "more ordinary," for lack of a better word items:  the ones that are  less complex to produce and less impressive and lower priced.  When 3 or 4 pictures are required, (not counting a booth shot, we always submit the more complex pieces requiring and showing more skill and more imagination.   We also have those pieces and others like it in our booth. One year after getting into a top rated show, we were approached by a jury person who walked around and we were told that our photos didn't include the full range. That was true as we make about 20 different items and certainly didn't think it would be impressive to do a group shot of the lower range items.  The following year, we submitted one out of 4 photos that did show a more ordinary piece.  We were not accepted that year and speaking to other artists, we were later told not to listen to those instructions in the paper work.  Always send the best of your work, other artists advised us since the competition does the same.   I now think the jury who looks at maybe several thousand photos is not going to be impressed with the artist who includes the mundane photo.  I'd like to hear from artists as well as jury people.  What is your experience with photos and also a jury person's response at shows when you see a booth that doesn't include the full range.  I'm not speaking here about artists who apply in one category, but  then slip into their booths a high percent of something else that would actually fit into a different category.  I'm talking about one body of work that holds together.  Thanks for your response based on your experiences.

Let me premise this one by a wonderful quote from someone a few of you may have heard of:

God is really only another artist. He invented the giraffe, the elephant and the cat. He has no real style. He just goes on trying other things. - Pablo Picasso

Think God would make it past most juries these days?  Sure doesn’t seem like he has a “cohesive body of work” according to many jurors.  Guess he never had to face an art show jury in his day.

Also, if jurors are composed of "art experts" or "experts in their fields" - should definition of terms really be so widely interpreted and varied in their application?

Such terminology or dare we say "definitions" as "consistent body of work", "cohesive body of work" or "breadth of work" are thrown around IMO carelessly without definition or example in the prospectus and then again in the jury process, without supervision creating a confusing and in many ways lethal scenario for the fate of artists and patrons.

If a show prospectus says something akin to: the jury slides and booth slides you submit should represent the body of work, or breadth of work ...... what exactly are they saying?  How are we interpreting these words and combinations of words? Are we to micro-interpret that if the wording is "should" rather than "must" that leaves it more open to open interpretation by the artists?  Or is the intent clear either way?  Clear to the show?  Clear to us?  Do shows evaluate their documents to see if their choice of words (i.e., wordsmithing) is crystal clear?  Clearly transmitting their intent without ambiguity? Is whatever the definition of these words by the SHOW that wrote these terms clearly and unambiguously communicated to their JURORS?  Can jurors score submissions based on a different set of definitions or interpretations?

So for your consideration, some examples. All these where the prospectus says the jury and booth slides should (or even if they say "must") represent the "breadth" or "body" of work to be shown":

• Your a photographer shooting both black-and-white and color, about equally.  Do you only submit B&W?  If you perceive, based on your experience, jurors will respond more positively to B&W than to color - or - believe that jurors seeing a mix of B&W and color are more likely to say that is not a "cohesive" or "consistent" body of work and score them down - either way - would mixing B&W and color imagery be an inconsistent body of work?  If you only show B&W in the jury slides, should you be allowed to also show your color work? Is the B&W imagery just one manifestation of the body of work, that cover the body of work, the style, the vision?   What if that ratio is not 50:50 but more say 80:20 of B&W vs. color images?  Does THAT matter?  Would showing only say B&W images then also be considered representative of the "breadth" or "body" of your work?
• Your a ceramic artist creating both functional (e.g., bowls, plates, mugs) and nonfunctional works (e.g., wall pieces or large decorative vases).  Should you only submit images of your functional work? Only of nonfunctional? Are you compelled to show both in their jury images submitted?  Show the functional pieces as their jury image slides and include the nonfunctional pieces only in the booth image and assume that is okay and meets the definitions/rules of the prospectus?  Are you okay with the show saying "you didn't include images of your nonfunctional work in your jury images so you cannot show them at the event?"
• Your a painter creating images of flowers, seascapes and pastoral landscapes - must you show them all in the jury slides?  Does a mix of flowers and seascapes and landscapes, if that is what your paint, demonstrate an inconsistent or non-cohesive body of work for which you might be penalized by the jurors for showing an inconsistent body of work?
• Your a jeweler doing typically jewelry (e.g., necklaces, rings, earrings) yet also create non-functional sculptural pieces.  Must you show examples of both in your jury slides?  Just show the traditional work in their jury slides and the nonfunctional pieces in their booth slide?  Okay if the show says you can't show one or the other because of what you submitted?

Okay.  Now let's put you in the seat of a juror.  

• You see a submission of 3 verticals and one horizontal - then the booth slide.  Is that an inconsistent body of work because horizontal and vertical images are mixed?
• You see three images with strong reddish colorations and one with a bluish coloration.  Consistent body of work?  Not?  Consistent presentation?  Not?
• You see two large outdoor installation sculptures, and two small table-top-sized sculptures.  Consistent?  Inconsistent?  Penalty in scoring? Or none?
• You see a handmade large wooden table, a large wood rocking chair, a standing clock, and a small wooden jewelry box.  Consistent?  Inconsistent?  Penalty in scoring?  Or none?
• You see a giraffe, an elephant, a cat, and a bird ...... okay - I digress

These aren't meant to be laughable, nonsensical examples (except that last one of course).  These are real.  They have happened.  

Definitions have a purpose - to clarify.  These terms referring to a "consistent", "cohesive" and "body of work" among others are in no way - IMO - clear.  They are written as words by a show in a prospectus that represent a binding legal contract and equally binding ethical contract with us - artisans - to say this is what we expect you do to, to submit, and then how you will be judged and what you will be allowed to show - based on these characteristics of your work as represented by your jury images.  Are these terms clear to you?  Are you okay with them not being clear?  And are you okay with thinking in reading the prospectus that you understand and choose your images and pay your fee accordingly, only to find out later than that is NOT how they were judged?  Perhaps that show staff pre-juried you out because of such inconsistencies, or perhaps that jurors applied a different interpretation of those words or concepts?  Part of this absolutely is Show Management (last topic to be posted here shortly) - clear and unambiguous teaching of the jury what the rules, definitions and interpretation of those definitions are.  The other part is a clear stating of what these terms, concepts and ideas are to us so we have a target to shoot for.  No?

Your turn.

I am posting three separate discussions on the issue of jurors and jurying at shows.  Please, do not write or respond on this particular discussion – it is intended only as the intro to the other three discussions.  This came about – besides the years of being an artist and previous good discussion on this site as recently as a few years ago – as a result of two comments made by artists responding to a post by a great friend of mine, Rich Fulwiler, in his blog “Total Disconnect”.  Most recently by Mark Turner’s post bringing attention to this subject.

In Rich Fulwiler’s original post, one comment from Thomas Felsted was “… jurors are soooo overly qualified elitist a who curate art to a level of snobbishness that is disconnected with the buying public.”  The second comment was from Barrie Lynn Bryant who wrote “I think that judges are usually quite qualified and only sometimes a little less than qualified.”  Defines a breadth of opinions about jurors.  

The issues being raised by these postings are related to jurors and the jury process.  Each aspect has qualities that need to be thought about and discussed separately – hence the separate discussions, even though they interrelate at some point. Because far too often each aspect goes awry – it is through their unholy union that we as artists, and art patrons suffer as the failing parts combine to make a failing system. 

In my opinion:

There is no single point at which our fate as artists, and those of art patrons, are more consequentially affected than through this single point of the jury process.

These topics would be somewhere in the realm of ludicrous-stupid-insane-ridiculous-hideous-mildly entertaining from an outsiders perspective versed in business as in “.. so THAT’s how they do BUSINESS???? Art shows are a business after all.   Since we are intimately involved in the landscape of art shows, the impact “jurors” have on our lives as artists is staggering and no, not funny or amusing.  Definitely stupid, ludicrous, insane and ridiculous.  An absent from the entire process in most all cases is the voice of the public that comes to shows and buy art – patrons.  Even more stupid, ludicrous, insane and ridiculous.

There also is the frustrating aspect that we as artists, shows, and jurors throw concepts around without ever stopping to define them as if we believed everyone defines something as we do – critical error.  We do not.  Defining what you are speaking about and relating to is crucial to understanding what you are talking or thinking about.  For example, what is a “good juror”?  What is a “consistent body of work”?  What is a “good jury slide”?  Why does a set of slides get you juried into 3 shows and not accepted into 8 others?  Or in your first year of applying and out the next four years?  Or four jurors think your work is stunning (i.e., highest scores possible) and one juror thinks it sucks (i.e., lowest score possible).  If jurors were so “knowledgable” and “expert” and “experienced” – should they not be more consistent?

The four major points about the jury process that I take serious issue with – and wish fervently that all artists did– are the following.  I will ask PLEASE do not ramble on about your personal experiences (e.g., “oh I get into this show all the time and thus the jurors are good and I never get into these shows and thus those jurors are bad”).  As the TV character Perry Mason used to say:  “Irrelevant, incompetent and immaterial”.  Think about things like when you get into a show and do poorly, did the jurors choose unwisely?  When you are one of the best sellers in your category at a show and next year get juried out does that make sense?  When you see a fellow artist win an award from a “judge” (aka: another iteration of a “juror”) and not sell a piece of art at the event – and you know THEY are back in the show next year because of winning the award while the person across from them who sold out may NOT because of ….. juror response, reaction, scoring next year?

The major points I wish to bring up for thought and discussion, one-by-one, are the following:

• What makes a “good” juror?  Why?  What characteristics should be considered?  Are they “experts”?  Or merely critics?  Knowledgeable of all they see?  Or merely opinionated?  Representative of what the public wants to see and purchase?  “Or merely responding to some ‘pushing of the envelope’?

• What is “good management” of the jury process by a show?  For example, To what extent, if any, should jurors be allowed to go outside the guidelines written by the show in their prospectus to artists as to how they will be juried?  One of the chief issues being booth slide and cohesive body of work? And should not the top level show management ALWAYS be present THROUGHOUT the duration of the jury process to answer questions from jurors and monitor the jury process itself?  Is that not a critical aspect of “show management”?  One that we pay for with our jury fees?  And necessary to ensure the jury process is fairly applied?

• What are the definitions for such important jury concepts as “cohesive body of work”, “representative of the body of work” and “good jury slide”?  How do these concepts relate to what the show says in their prospectus – if anything – about the images submitted representing the “body of work” of the artist.  How is “body of work” defined?  If a “body” of work is diverse (e.g., color & B&W photography, functional and non-functional ceramics or functional and nonfunctional glass) is the artist mandated by show rules to show the breadth of work?  Or just a selection (e.g., just the black-and-white photography or just the functional ceramics or glass) that they artists believes may be more positively perceived by the jurors as a “consistent body of work”?  However, if they do so, will any portion of that body of work NOT shown in the jury slides be disallowed at the event?   And should it be? 

What relevance or correlation exists between juror scores and sales? It is not a moot point.  Sales is the voice of the public speaking from the very people the show asked to get off their butts and put the event into their schedule, to drive to the event, to walk the event and – purchase artwork.  Also the very people we, as artists, rely on for our success.  If listening to those that actually BUY art isn’t critical then we are all deluding ourselves about what we do.  And what business in America does not listen to what people in their ‘store’ buy?  How do they expect to succeed if they don’t listen, don’t care?   Art patrons are the essence of this whole exercise.  If they don’t exist or come support the arts at such “art events” then we don’t survive as artists.  Shows can ALWAYS find SOMEONE to give them money for that piece of pavement or grass on which to set up a tent and sell or promote something, even if buy-sell or totally unrelated to art. The “art show” component however will go away.  As will we.

So, following is the first part - The Jury Process: Part 1 - What Makes a "Good Juror".  Remember, it is an exercise about expressing your thoughts, ideas, perspectives on these points and listening to what others have to say - seems the essence of the learning process.  Understanding viewpoints on how the system works - or doesn't - and what positive things can be done to improve our artist environment.  

This week’s blog is focusing primarily on how I price my polymer clay sculptures for sale. It isn’t an exact science and I’ve played around a lot with it. I have found that pricing my art fairly and within market value range is extraordinarily important.  

I really shot myself in the foot when I first started out. I waaaay over priced something to someone who very easily could have been a long-term client. Big mistake. My problem?? Was ignorance.

It was right around the time that lots of local people were seeing my work and I was tinkering with the idea of charging more than just the cost of materials. A lady saw my work and she wanted a logo made. {She owned a business of her own} She explained what she was looking for, we brainstormed and she seemed to love my ideas. She wanted to own the rights to the artwork and put it on all of her apparel. She asked me for a price, and I told her I would think about it and get back to her. Sounds pretty good so far doesn’t it?

On the drive home I spoke with my husband and told him of the opportunity. He being married to me thought as highly of my work as I did and saw first-hand how much effort went into them. He saw how many sketches I did before I ever put paint on the brush. He told me that I should look online and see what people charge for exclusive rights and logos. Still sounds pretty ok right?

This is where it goes wonky. I wish I could blame it on bad fish or temporary insanity, but nope. It was me being me. Darn it. I looked up logos and exclusivity.  What I found was an agency in New York who had created logos such as Nike and Abercrombie and Fitch. So those logos cost somewhere in the range of 4,000.00 to 10,000.00. I was blown away. I showed my husband and did a little dance around the living room. {Seriously… can I just blame the fish?} When I spoke to this lady again, I brought up what I had seen. Keep in mind I never looked past that one page. I never once checked out local artists, or even stopped to consider the fact that the lady I was speaking to was not any different than you or me. She was an everyday lady trying to be in business for herself, doing what she was good at. I sometimes wish future me could go back in time and slap past me.

{Deep breath…} I told her what I had found, and what ‘people were paying’. Not once did I actually give her a quote. But by bringing it up, the damage had been done, absolute and irrevocable damage. Fish anyone?

I have since tried desperately to regain them as a client even offering ‘freebees’ but to no avail. I had stepped outside of the trust circle. I had to accept what I had done and learn from it. It was a tough lesson and completely avoidable, had I done more research before biting off more than I could chew.

Ok. So, here is what I have so far, and so far it seems to be working for me. I am borrowing several bits and pieces that I have learned from others and adding a few changes that I have found that work very well for me. I want to share this with you in the hopes that you are able to figure out a pricing system that not only works for you, but also for your clients. They can be hard to come by. So we, as artists, want to take very VERY good care of them. We want to be able to explain why our art costs what it does. Just in case we are asked. At some point…they always ask. {insert wink}

EXPENSE    {we must count our expenses. This is okay. Don’t feel bad, because this is a business and people do understand and even expect it} 

Let’s say my monthly expenses are 1000.00, I divide that by 4{weeks}=250.00 I divide that number by/40{hours} giving me a base rate 6.25 per hour. {This number will vary depending on your expenses.} If your monthly expenses are higher and this is your primary source of income than you will have to adjust your expense rate. If you are just beginning to build your business and you have help or additional income to help you with your expenses then you can be a little more lenient. Your base cost should be this number and you should build the remainder of your piece’s cost from there

• {rent, electricity, gas, etc, I add my etsy/paypal/advertising fees into this amount }

Materials {always pay attention to what you use and how much. This will give you a great idea of what it takes to produce your art, and in my case helps me to avoid wasting}             

• {clay, glaze, metals if you’re making jewelry, paints, resin…etc, glass eyes I buy or resin eyes I make.

One standard sized sculpted figure typically takes me 1 1/3 block of Sculpey Premo clay. These are between 2.77-3.00 each {depending on where you are-I don’t account for sales or promotional costs because I can’t guarantee I will always be able to get them at that price} if I gloss the piece, I add .30, if I paint it or do detail work with the paint I add .30 {Remember this is just materials and not time.}

• Sometimes I will add little ‘trinkets’ to my pieces, for example miniature items or charms. These are things that I will make in batches. For example, it’s Valentine’s Day, and I have made a bunch of chocolate covered strawberries to add to figures. I can make a batch of 25 strawberries from one block of clay. So I will divide 3.00/25= so each strawberry will cost me .12 to make. The chocolate costs me .04, the headpin for the strawberry charm costs me .03 and the lobster clasp for the charm costs me .11  do you guys see where I’m going with this?

Let’s review what we have so far…

Say that I make a standard sized figure {glossed and painted} with an accompanying charm

4.00 + .30 + .30 + .30 = 4.90 {just materials} add that to your ‘expense’ 4.90 + 6.25 = 11.15

Let’s say that minimum wage is 12.50 an hour. I want to pay myself at least 12.50 an hour for labor. Add this to the amount above:

11.15 +12.50=23.65 Multiply this amount x2 and that will give you the wholesale price of 47.30 this is the base amount I must charge to by the skin of my teeth justify all other expenditures.

Theoretically for retail price it is the wholesale x2 so 47.30 x 2= 94.60

Ooooh… but here is where it gets a little sticky, because the more time it takes you to create a piece the greater its value, right? Not necessarily. I have not yet been able to charge what I am calculating retail to cost to be. I auctioned a piece off, and got close. In the meantime, wholesale lets me stay in business. Replenish what I have used and hopefully put money back into my business.

When I am trying to figure out what to charge, ultimately I have to take into account….’factors’ {seriously, that should be a four-letter word.} “What is a factor?” These are those annoying little things that effect what we can charge vs. what we want to charge.

Some examples of factors would be: Competition {take a look around you… see what some artists are getting for their work. I’m not referring to Picasso or Dhali… but you and me. The little guy with the great big dreams {encouraging look of…encouragement} Find work that is similar to yours. If you are using an internet based storefront, browse around and check out the other stores.

Don’t look skin deep. Really get in there and see if they are making sales. There may be one person charging 150.00 or higher for one piece but if they are only selling 1-2 pieces a month. This is not the way to go, for me at least. On the other end of the scale, there may be an artist selling pieces for 10.50 and has 100 sales in a year. Still not going to cut it, I mean great for them =) but I personally want this to be a monetarily successful business, so I want to find out what people are willing to pay for what I have on a consistent basis.

I’ve looked all over at everyone I can find… I’ve checked out as many online stores/sales that I can seek out who carry anything even similar to what I have. I write to the artists. It is probably one of the most educational and simple things I can do. Most of them are extremely helpful. Only twice have I run into artists who are so fiercely protective of their methods they’d sooner plaster their eyes closed than to give me information. But no worries, life goes on. I fell in love with the majority of the artistic community and I want to pay it forward.

Back to competition. I’m not going lie… there are a couple of people out there who can’t have their stuff up for 5 minutes before someone snatches it.. I’ve seen customers have bidding wars over their art... I’m talking 3-400.00 for one piece! This is my goal…seriously.

I know it sounds terrible but on more than one occasion I have just been beside myself wondering ‘why aren’t these same people wanting my stuff and paying that price? My art is just as nice as theirs.’ The answer is semi-simple. These people have worked their tushies off and in the process gained a fan-base {nothing but respect for these amazing artists} we’ll get into that later… back to factors.

Buyer’s Remorse… that’s an icky one. The more money a person pays for something, the higher their expectations, as they should be.  If they buy something from me and this ‘something’ shows up at their door in anything less than perfect condition, then the buyer will lose faith in me and I will have lost that customer for life. You don’t want this to happen. Word of mouth can go a long way, especially in the art world.

No worries!! Your talent and beautiful artwork captured their attention. So much so, they gave you money for it and that is a wonderful thing! Now it is time to capture their hearts. Because this is an area that we can really shine!  There are so many little touches you can give your packages for very little expense, and this can mean the difference between one time buyer and repeat customer!! There are lots of factors that can apply. It is up to you to figure out which ones will impact you/your business the most. In the long run, it will be the little things that keep people coming back. Be sure that you don't skimp on the little things. Take the time to talk to people who have questions. You never know who you are talking with or what connections they have. If you make a great impression, chances are they will get your name out there. That is exactly what you want. 

When I package my pieces, I use gift boxes. I get them in bulk either from the dollar store, or www.Uship.com great shipping stuff in bulk by-the-way. I decorate my gift boxes, something simple like glitter-tape that color coordinates with my business cards, a ribbon or seasonal fun from the dollar store… I love the dollar store… I add fun tissue paper and a personal hand-written note, and ‘TA-DA!’ It feels like a real treat when they are opening their packages. What a nice surprise for them! I like opening gifts..Don’t you?

I don’t add the cost of the shipping materials to the purchase price of the piece itself. I add it into the shipping cost. I add the box < 1.00 depending on where I get it, .05 for the tissue paper {if I get a box of 20 from the dollar store} .05 for the ribbon or glitter tape. It is inexpensive for me. It is a little extra effort on my part, but this is what I want to do. I am sending a small part of my soul that I created and I want the new owner to treasure it as much as I do.

I hope this is helpful to those of you who are struggling with the idea of pricing your art for sale. For me, this venture has been a most humbling journey. I hope that in some way you will have benefited from my mistakes, and found this material useful. Your feedback is always welcome.

Remember, you are a beautiful and creative soul, truly a gift among people. Here’s hoping you all have a wonderful week full of fresh ideas and inspiration.

As always, until next time,

XO ~Alicia, LDA

Came across this blog post and thought I'd pass it on!

What was the intent of art fairs in the first place? How many (promoters) have forgotten that?

http://karencooperpaintings.com/blog/34965/the-summer-art-fair-would-i-be-an-artist-there

Remembering that it is work and happy for the acknowledgement of that fact!

http://karencooperpaintings.com/blog/34817/the-summer-art-fair-should-i-be-an-artist-there

This season-by which I mean Spring until the end of November, possibly into December-will be the first time I do anything aside from Hallowe'en. I'm a potter and a sculptor living and working in California, and I'm branching out into more "mainstream" ceramics to expand my business as I'm still working at mastering my craft. I have functional pottery available, such as cups, pitchers, plates and the like, plus I'll be making some "fine art," higher-end sculptures for the shows where I'm most likely to have that kind of buyer. I'm taking my first steps in discovering where to show my work, and man, do I need help!

I've found a few places to show and have started a list, but I have no idea which fairs will be the best fit for me. There's one in San Francisco that I hope to get into next year-the deadline to sign up for this year was last June, and I obviously missed the deadline!-I figure 100,000 people walking through will be good for sales. It's difficult to come up with the money to rent out booth space for these places, which I'm sure everyone here knows already, and covering all business expenses, travel, materials, booth fees, etc., will be challenging. I can already see I need to upgrade my kiln within the next year or two if I'm going to be more efficient with my fuel costs vs. product made, and I am literally having dreams of how to best set up my booth space and what "furniture" I must have vs. what I can put off until later. Of course, around the corner is the necessity of buying a new SUV or van, and/or a trailer for my stuff. Any ideas? 

It's all dizzying!

So here's the question I have for everyone out there: where in the Northern California/Lake Tahoe/Nevada areas are there good prospects for shows and (dare I ask?) actual profit?

If there are any ceramics folks out there, how do you pack your product so you can pack and unpack quickly? Not all of my product is of a standard size, so I find myself individually wrapping everything in paper and putting them in big plastic bins. This take for-flipping-ever to pack and unpack, and I know there must be a better way.

Oh, and any thoughts on how to take credit cards? I have a Droid Bionic, and would love to get a reader or something for it. Any recommendations? And any thoughts as to what to look out for when I'm starting an account?

Well, thanks for any info you can give me! Good luck to all of you this coming Season, too!

Well guys, sorry I haven't been posting or 'blogging' but alot has happened since my last post. The economy is making a come back but you have to 'evolve' your self and your work. If you have been on the art show circuit for along time, your stuff becomes 'tired' looking and  people that have seen you for 3 -5 years at the same shows start to see it too. Time to relook your work and think of ways to 'update' it. What? Do I hear that is what my work is and I'm not changing a thing? Well, as artists, we evolve every 5 to 7 years wether you want to or not, it just starts to happen in your work. Take a look at your work that you did 5 years ago and look at the stuff your churning out now...do you see the difference? So does the art festival goers.

So go ahead...go play with that idea that has been churning in your head and work it. See what happens....and let me know!