Sales from your art gallery are not what you expected or need them to be.
They sold a lot of your work at one point, but sales have dropped off significantly in the past couple of years—especially during the pandemic.
So what now? Do you ask for your work to be returned?
Not quite! Before you take such drastic measures, do the hard, but professional thing. Talk.
Opening a dialogue is your first course of action, but I don’t want to get ahead of myself. First things first.
Assess Your Relationship with the Gallery
The conversation you have with your gallerist about slow sales depends on the answers to a number of questions.
How long have they have represented you?
How much work have they sold for you in the past?
What are the terms of your agreement with the gallery?
What is the nature of your past relationship?
What is the current state of the gallery’s business? How has it been affected by the pandemic?
What is the demand for your work outside of their venue?
2 Options for Opening a Conversation with Your Gallerist
Based on how you respond to the questions above, consider 2 options for opening a conversation about slow sales from the art gallery.