I am coming across what I feel is an overabundance of galleries (well, spaces rented out by people calling themselves galleries in the interest of making money without their primary focus being the sale of art) charging hanging fees.
I am on the fence about it, because, truth be told, if there was a prominent gallery that would be good for the ol' resume and had a reputation for showing work that tends to sell, I would be inclined to opt in.
The Big But:
I am finding a large number of places who are hosting, on a monthly basis, "small works" shows that boast about hosting hundreds of artists. They "allow" artists to have several pieces in the show and charge 15-30 bucks per piece for handling and hanging. Bullshit. That means that the gallery doesn't have to have any true interest in actually selling any art in order to stay in business. Their operating costs are taken care of before the show even opens. Add on to that the strange local custom of charging admission to patrons on opening nights.
It is part of a gallery's responsibility to hang art. I am pulling out an oldie here, but Doi! It is the curatorial process to pick art and artists whose work is connected somehow to the gallery, whether it's thematic to a specific event or to the genre the gallery customarily shows.
Plus, galleries get a commission for sales, which is compensation (well-deserved) for their selling of the art by motivating new buyers or pulling from their previous clients with the appropriate preferences. I totally get the commission thing. I am not the best salesman,and that's the risk a gallery takes to host the art. The rent and other overhead of owning a gallery are paid for by the commissions they earn.
I recently stepped into a steaming pile that caught me by surprise. I was looking over ads in the artists section of Craigslist and spotted this beauty:
So I followed the link and saw among regular guidelines:
Did you catch that and its full meaning? Would you pay someone who is hiring just to look at your resume? Fuck no, right? His time is more important than your time, not to mention the time and money one would have to invested to create a body of work AND have a website built, photos taken of the work, and/or any mailing costs to submit the files.
In trying to be fair, I contacted the gallery:
The response I got (partly) was:
I'd hate to see this guy's house. He must have to special-order all of his books on scroll, because turning that page is "extremely difficult."
All his foods must be prepped in the backyard over a fire pit, kabob-style, because using an oven is "extremely difficult." (The stick is for cooking with AND eating off!) Maybe he supplements his entire diet by eating a lot Lunchables, too. Constructing a sandwich without all of the components handed to you in one package might prove "extremely difficult."
I don't know if this guy survived the digital TV transition... maybe he is still on the helpline as I write this. He probably has no doors on any of the rooms ("extremely difficult"), just tarp hanging from the frames. Plus, there's a Clapper in every room; finding and using a switch is "extremely difficult," although I heard that if you visit him, he'll turn on the TV and a lamp if you give him $5... in advance, via Paypal, of course.
I am on the fence about it, because, truth be told, if there was a prominent gallery that would be good for the ol' resume and had a reputation for showing work that tends to sell, I would be inclined to opt in.
The Big But:
I am finding a large number of places who are hosting, on a monthly basis, "small works" shows that boast about hosting hundreds of artists. They "allow" artists to have several pieces in the show and charge 15-30 bucks per piece for handling and hanging. Bullshit. That means that the gallery doesn't have to have any true interest in actually selling any art in order to stay in business. Their operating costs are taken care of before the show even opens. Add on to that the strange local custom of charging admission to patrons on opening nights.
It is part of a gallery's responsibility to hang art. I am pulling out an oldie here, but Doi! It is the curatorial process to pick art and artists whose work is connected somehow to the gallery, whether it's thematic to a specific event or to the genre the gallery customarily shows.
Plus, galleries get a commission for sales, which is compensation (well-deserved) for their selling of the art by motivating new buyers or pulling from their previous clients with the appropriate preferences. I totally get the commission thing. I am not the best salesman,and that's the risk a gallery takes to host the art. The rent and other overhead of owning a gallery are paid for by the commissions they earn.
I recently stepped into a steaming pile that caught me by surprise. I was looking over ads in the artists section of Craigslist and spotted this beauty:
Call for Artists - ********** Gallery
Reply to: ********************************
Date: ********************
**********, a new contemporary art gallery located in ********* and opening in August, 2009, is currently putting together its 2009-2010 show schedule. The gallery will be presenting a mix of solo, two and three-person, and themed group shows in 4-6 week intervals.
We are on the lookout for artists to join our roster of talent - the main curator lived in ******** for 4 years and would love to bring the amazing talent from ******* down to ********.
If you're looking for some ********* exposure, please visit our website for gallery description and submission guidelines:
LINK
So I followed the link and saw among regular guidelines:
Submission Costs
A $20 administrative fee is required for all submisions. We know it sucks, but life isn't fair, time is money and this helps separate the jokers from those with serious intentions. We will accept cash, check or you can pay online using paypal by clicking here:
Did you catch that and its full meaning? Would you pay someone who is hiring just to look at your resume? Fuck no, right? His time is more important than your time, not to mention the time and money one would have to invested to create a body of work AND have a website built, photos taken of the work, and/or any mailing costs to submit the files.
In trying to be fair, I contacted the gallery:
Hello,
My name is LD Grant, and I'm responding to a craigslist post I read in which ProjectX Art Gallery is looking for new artists. Since "time IS money," I thought I would save us both some and just give you the link to my website.
http://www.gutterfresh.com
That way you can see faster and with less formality if I am a good fit for your gallery and get a better sense of who I am and what I do. Then the $20 submission fee I save can be better spent on materials to create more art for your gallery and make us both some money.
Please feel free to contact me with any questions or to schedule an interview
Thank you for your time and consideration,
LD Grant
The response I got (partly) was:
I like your line of reasoning (and your Pedestrian story better).I particularly like the compliment to smooth over the fact that I should still pay him some money. The dude read through an article on Pedestrian Rage (rather than "cutting me a break" and looking through the actual art) yet couldn't handle navigating through a site that has multiple search and super-simple categorizations? He could have looked over by year, color, etc., but for him it was "extremely difficult."
What I don't like is the navigation in the gallery section of your website. This is exactly why we are charging a $20 administrative fee: it is extremely difficult to review your work given the lack of simple "next" and "previous" or similar navigation. Picky I know, but when I'm trying to cut you a break and waive the $20 fee, it matters.
The art I did see looks promising though, I can tell you that. If you're willing to pay the submission fee, I'm willing to deal with your site navigation and do a thorough review. If not, best of luck- I'm sure you're doing fine up in LA with this work.
I'd hate to see this guy's house. He must have to special-order all of his books on scroll, because turning that page is "extremely difficult."
All his foods must be prepped in the backyard over a fire pit, kabob-style, because using an oven is "extremely difficult." (The stick is for cooking with AND eating off!) Maybe he supplements his entire diet by eating a lot Lunchables, too. Constructing a sandwich without all of the components handed to you in one package might prove "extremely difficult."
I don't know if this guy survived the digital TV transition... maybe he is still on the helpline as I write this. He probably has no doors on any of the rooms ("extremely difficult"), just tarp hanging from the frames. Plus, there's a Clapper in every room; finding and using a switch is "extremely difficult," although I heard that if you visit him, he'll turn on the TV and a lamp if you give him $5... in advance, via Paypal, of course.