1 of 8

Write now Article Tools

As an artist, do you want to sell your work yourself or through a gallery? This question is more complicated than it seems. Here are some suggestions of how to think through the decision, and what you may find out is you need to sell your work yourself and through a gallery, at least while you are establishing yourself.

Establish why you are selling your work.

Are you selling your work to make a living or because you have too many pieces around the house or to give to friends? How much time do you want to spend selling? Do you like to interact with customers? Are you more concerned with getting more profit per piece or just more pieces?

If you want to make a living selling your work and you are a new artist, you will have to spend at least some of your time selling. Galleries are more likely to sell more aggressively for you once you are an established seller. Selling your own work means that you have to be able to talk about it, and listen to customers normal chatter. You will need to spend time at weekend shows in all kinds of weather, and spend money on show fees.

If you are just selling your work to get rid of some of it, then you should probably just sell through a gallery. Since time is not a factor, then it won't be as important for you to sell your work more quickly and you will spend less money trying to sell it. That way you can spend more of your time creating, instead of selling.

Selling through a gallery is less expensive than selling your work yourself. When you sell yourself, you have often pay between $100 to $600 to get into shows, not including any travel time or expenses, and all of the booth necessities that you will have. To put up a booth at a good art show, you need at minimum a tent, a chair, and display fixtures for your artwork. Depending on what you are selling that may cost up to $2000. You also need to have insurance to cover your booth.

Are you comfortable talking to customers?

Another very significant factor is whether you enjoy interacting with customers. If you sell your own work, you will have to talk to customers about your work, deal with unusual customer situations, and sometimes talk to upappreciative, ignorant, or rude people. If you do not like talking to people, then this is not the job for you. Find a partner or agent to sit at shows or sell through a gallery only.

Do you want to spend your weekends at art shows in all kinds of weather? Artists who sell their own work spend time most weekends at art shows in rain, hot weather, very cold weather, in wind, and even snow sometimes to sell their work. Work can get ruined due to weather, and the days are very long.

What kind of profit are you looking for?

Everyone has a different approach to this and it depends on what type of work you do, but it is important to know how much profit you need from each piece. If you are just trying to support your hobby, then you need much less profit than someone who is trying to make a living. Your profit margin also contributes to your decision of where to sell your work. Selling wholesale or through galleries will cut into your profit but will also release you from the costs of selling. The gallery pays for that instead.

Lastly, how many pieces do you want to sell anyway?

If you are doing this for a living, having your work in a gallery will get your name out there more than you can yourself alone. In this case, you will most likely want to sell your work in and outside of galleries. But be prepared for large orders, and having to go into a "production mode." The more places you sell, the more you will have to fill orders. Galleries want to work with popular artists, whose work sells well.

Learn more about this author, Paula Atwell.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

Add your voice

Know something about How to decide whether to sell your art yourself or through a gallery?
We want to hear your view. Write now!