For Art Galleries

What makes me sad sometimes about the Cleveland art scene are the great galleries that pop up, and then in time prove to be inconsistent, have erratic show schedules, or disappear in the slow decline altogether. I also get irritated with the "hobby" gallery people. The ones who open a space because to them it is like playing dress up, then they realize it is actual work, that they didn't do any prepartion or research, it all costs money, and they shut down. I've seen people who stop wanting to "play gallery" after only two shows.

Believe me, after working at a few snazzy establishments and exhibiting over the years in many cities -- I know it is a wealthy person's business. At least, in any city with high rent it is. Still, if you are in an area such as Cleveland where overhead is hardly an issue (especially if you live in the building anyways!), there are some steps you can take to ensure you don't fall into these patterns -- they happen too often in this city. What I'm about to write is based not just on Cleveland spaces, but on other ones throughout the US as well. The same issues come up no matter where the art scene is.

Did you do your research? The internet and libraries are free you know. If you are not prepared to run like a business or are just doing it as a way to make a quick buck -- you should just stop right there.

Do you have money for intial start-up costs? No? Well, you better find some then eh? Because you know what costs money are important things, like light bulbs, paint, windex, air conditioning, heat and so forth.

Co-ops, they kind of suck. Some small co-ops may work in various touristy bad art cities like Laguna Beach or Scottsdale, but they have a history of not working as they should -- especially in Cleveland -- and it is a good way for artists to go out with a bad taste in their mouth. It is really, a good way for friends to become bickering enemies.

Have shows regularly, plan ahead. How many galleries do you know have shows that suddenly pop up every 3 months, every month for a while, and then nothing? Quite a few, especially when they use the excuse that cold months are down, so why bother having a show. No friends, always have a show, every month, and be consistent. People have short memories, not to mention are less likely to buy art from a place that "seems fly by night". Don't keep people guessing, after a while they'll stop caring. Plan your exhibit year ahead of time, and if winter is slow, plan something really friggin' awesome -- naked women are awesome, so are monkeys dressed up like rodeo clowns.

Get a real website, and UPDATE it! There is really no excuse why you should not have a properly working website that is updated. It makes you look more professional these days with blogs and MySpace in effect killing the art of good, functional web design. Not only should you have a phone, physical address, and email clearly visible, you should have an option for people to buy artworks online with the prices listed (this eliminates time wasters, seriously). No, having a MySpace is not a website! It should not be your only online presence. And how many have you looked at, have crazy layouts, wallpapers, and no address listed on it anywhere? It makes you look like a 15 year old kid.

Press releases and advertising, it is good shit. Don't keep people guessing when the next opening is; do the pr, keep your text short, send out photos, and do it with enough lead-time. Monthly magazines can need 3-5 months (especially for a feature), a monthy art calendar, 4 months, and alt weeklies and newspapers at least 2 weeks minimum. You should also advertise, not just locally but nationally. If print ads aren't your thing, find websites that are complimentary to your exhibit and take out a 2-week banner ad. Print flyers, mail postcards (yes people still enjoy physical postcards with art and are prone to remember that more than an email). If you are one of these so-called "underground" art galleries, then what is the point if you don't sell anything, no one writes about it, and no one comes except to drink your beer? That ain't a gallery, that's my living room.

Filing Cabinets are good too. Can I be totally sarcastic for a moment? You see, there's this thing called a filing cabinet; it is where you keep imortant papers, hardcopies etc. They are good to have, so like, if someone asks you a question, you gotta find an old buyers address, mailing address of an artist to pay them, or the list of past works you had in the space or old press clippings, you can like, open it up and find that info! And it won't crash or anything like a computer will. An address book or filofax is good to have as well. Because as we know, emails get deleted by accident, and so does financial information.

Pay the artist, you pay the plumber, so pay them. Oddly I've found that the galleries that had me sign the most long, ridiculous contracts, were the ones who most likely didn't pay me, or took forever to pay me. I've also known galleries that have loaned art to museums without ever having paid the artist, and lost money from an artist in the stock market. You wouldn't do that to your plumber would you? Nope. So, when you get paid by a buyer, pay the artists immediately, before you go and spend it on something you weren't supposed to. You got your %, so now get them theirs. Trust me, artists talk. Gossip happens, and when you don't pay one or two, or are severly late, they talk, and suddenly you have a bad reputation or people bailing on your establishment.

Have a visible sign, a flag, anything! People aren't looking for a rave, they're looking for your gallery, stop trying to be cute with the incognito crap.

Contracts, they're handy. If you are one these places that "doesn't do contracts" because you think you're being punk, or a hippy, or whatever, it will get you into a lot of trouble later on -- trust me. And artists should always have they're own contracts anyways, so don't get snippy if they in turn ask for you to sign they're paperwork too. You can get screwed by anyone these days kids, you never know what will happen; haven't all these daytime court shows taught you anything?

Answer the phone! In fact, answer your emails too, that would be nice. Especially when it is something like, "where's my money" or "where's the art I bought last month".

So yeah, those are just some things I could think of right now, I'm sure there's more. So many things have been written about what artists should and should not do regarding thier career and showing at galleries, but it does go both ways, no question.