Getting the opportunity to exhibit your work in a gallery should be a positive experience for any artist - but it isn't always. Share your gallery exhibiting experiences, the good, the bad and the ugly, with us here.
Re: Good gallery experiences / bad gallery experiences.
Earlier this year i applied to exhibit at a gallery in Notting Hill. I wont mention the name for fear of a lawsuit !!! The opportunity was to be represented by the gallery for three months, to rent a space and pay for the to represent you. Now because i am desperate to get shows, opportunities and exposure i was willing to pay ! as mad as it seems !
The interview went well, They loved my work ! I paid a deposit of quite a sum for a poor Artist. and i went home, but i had a funny feeling inside that something wasn't quite right ! So i contacted a few of the artists who are on their books to ask about the reputation of the Gallery. The Response i got back was not good...... Don't touch them with a barge pole ! and certainly don't pay them to represent you ! My heart sunk !
The start date was a few months to go and i had not signed a contract, i spoke to my credit card company and they said there was nothing i could do... So i tossed and turned with the idea do i trust them or not ? It wasn't until the week of the opening that they sent me a lengthy contract on a friday night at Five pm ! ( No chance of getting a lawyer to look at then and have it returned to them by monday morning ) Luckily for me my partner a business man went through the contract and realised that without a full re-write of the contract the Gallery could quite easily screw me over on everything from sales, to royalties, to actually owing them more money for promoting my work !!!!
Hence a lengthy debate started with the Gallery. and they refused to hand back my deposit ! Funny as i thought they were there to help support young emerging artists not screw them over !
I cant believe that there are Galleries out there that are willing to take advantage of Artists many of whom don't have Business training and only wish is to have the opportunity to exhibit their work.
But alas in the end GOOD won over EVIL ! and my credit card company managed to procure the deposit back for me ! I certainly did learn a thing or two ! and as i've read else where don't bother paying an Art Gallery any money to represent / exhibit you if they truly believe in your work they will do it because they believe in you !!!
Earlier this year i applied to exhibit at a gallery in Notting Hill. I wont mention the name for fear of a lawsuit !!! The opportunity was to be represented by the gallery for three months, to rent a space and pay for the to represent you. Now because i am desperate to get shows, opportunities and exposure i was willing to pay ! as mad as it seems !
The interview went well, They loved my work ! I paid a deposit of quite a sum for a poor Artist. and i went home, but i had a funny feeling inside that something wasn't quite right ! So i contacted a few of the artists who are on their books to ask about the reputation of the Gallery. The Response i got back was not good...... Don't touch them with a barge pole ! and certainly don't pay them to represent you ! My heart sunk !
The start date was a few months to go and i had not signed a contract, i spoke to my credit card company and they said there was nothing i could do... So i tossed and turned with the idea do i trust them or not ? It wasn't until the week of the opening that they sent me a lengthy contract on a friday night at Five pm ! ( No chance of getting a lawyer to look at then and have it returned to them by monday morning ) Luckily for me my partner a business man went through the contract and realised that without a full re-write of the contract the Gallery could quite easily screw me over on everything from sales, to royalties, to actually owing them more money for promoting my work !!!!
Hence a lengthy debate started with the Gallery. and they refused to hand back my deposit ! Funny as i thought they were there to help support young emerging artists not screw them over !
I cant believe that there are Galleries out there that are willing to take advantage of Artists many of whom don't have Business training and only wish is to have the opportunity to exhibit their work.
But alas in the end GOOD won over EVIL ! and my credit card company managed to procure the deposit back for me ! I certainly did learn a thing or two ! and as i've read else where don't bother paying an Art Gallery any money to represent / exhibit you if they truly believe in your work they will do it because they believe in you !!!