Note: This article was amended in December 2016 when the “Artist X” decided that it would be better for her new goals to remain anonymous.
Artist X has sold 45 original works of art over the past five or six years – on her own – without participating in art festivals.
X's prices range from $350 to $10000, with an average of about $1800 (it's a guess, she says). Art sales are her sole source of income.
Here's how X has broken down her sales (all notes are hers):
Friends and friends of friends……………….6
Contacts who found me via my website, 2 private and 3 dealers…………..10
An annual one-night group show at a country club (2 one year and 0 the next but a contact I made there bought 2 almost a year later)……………4
Bartered for dental work………….4
Bartered for stay in customer's cabin in Colorado………1
Teaching a workshop (only one, I rarely teach but plan on doing more)…..2
Local (free) media coverage……………………………….2
Small holiday bazaar (I was really surprised by this one!)………………2
eBay (but not enough profit)………………………..2
A costly ad in national art magazine but still cost less than the 50% a gallery would take……………….1
Doing a demo for local art leagues…………..1
A website just for bird art (small commission paid for sale)…………………………1
Small art show at a local state park (first 3 shows no originals sold, 4th year a $4,000 painting)…….1
Showing at a local theater………….1
Plein-air paint outs and plein-air festivals………..5
Facebook, reconnected with old friends…………2
Total originals sold by myself………………45
I've been with quite a few galleries since starting roughly 6 years ago and pulled out of most due to not enough sales or bad business ethics (like not paying for sales without me threatening legal action – contracts really do help!). I am now down to one gallery that is doing well but I really need another good one or two.
Total sales of originals through galleries: 25.
The lesson is simple: keep shooting buckshot and keep pushing myself to network, meet, contact and show. It can get discouraging at times, but every now and then I look over my shoulder and see that somehow I have been making it on my art alone for a few years!
I hope you'll learn from X's generous sharing of her sales numbers.
Most artists who want to earn a living from their art can't rely on a single sales stream. You've got to look at multiple streams of income. And, oh yeah, keep track of how the money is coming in! I think you'll be surprised, as X was.
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