As I get closer to showing my work for the first time I wanted to touch base on Gallery Shows and Art Fairs as I knew little about the differences when I first started thinking about showing my work.

Over the next few months I will be showing in each type. Below is what I know so far about each event and when I talk about Gallery and Art Shows I’m limiting my scope to those that generally work with new artists. Hopefully some of these details will help you decide which is right for you when you start deciding to show your work. 

Gallery Shows:

A Gallery Show as the name suggests is a display of work within a gallery. These typically last a month at a time unless that gallery is an exclusive dealer for a specific artist then they may showcase for a much longer period.

A gallery typically forms more of a relationship between themselves and the artist. In addition they often provide resources to help newcomers with detailed information in person or on their blog for marketing, selling etc. They can also help you understand how to price at the start since they know what price ranges work in the gallery and for the area. 

 A gallery tends to also be more community focused since they are physically limited to a certain location and rely on locals and tourists for their sales. For example, a gallery that works with a lot of new artists will likely not feature work in the tens of thousands of dollar range and instead likely have work up from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars. 

For smaller galleries there is generally an application and interview process in order to showcase your work. When you go through the interview process they are looking for a few things: 

• Is the work cohesive?

• Uniqueness of the work (i.e do they already display something similar?)

• Pricing of the work (i.e is it within the gallery range)

They will provide some feedback if they think you’re not ready to show as your work may be good but not cohesive enough to fill a full wall in the gallery. This item is really important when you are thinking about applying. You should really spend time to narrow your work down if you’re someone like myself that has a few styles of imagery within the genres I photograph in. 

Since you have a month to show work in the gallery it’s important to think about having replacement pieces however you do have some time to make new prints. 

Finally, an additional benefit to a gallery is they will have the infrastructure in place to process all your sales and provide you with the necessary receipts and paperwork.

Art Fairs:

Art fairs are generally short term events which last around 3 - 5 days. They are often hosted at unique locations in order to maximize attendees and they work to design fun art spaces for showing the work on display. For example, stARTup finds unique hotels and takes them over with each room becoming a mini art gallery for the artist.  

Because art fairs are temporary by nature there is less opportunity to build a relationship with the artists or provide guidance for new artists. I myself would have not been as prepared for showing in an art fair if I had not gone through the gallery process first. 

Unlike a gallery, an art fair will likely spend more on marketing since they need to build up a lot of attention to attract attendees for the few days they will be open. The benefit here for the artist is they may bring in collectors and a larger volume of people than a typical gallery due to the limited time. A gallery on the other hand has a whole month to keep promoting your work and attracting potential collectors.

Like a gallery there is an application process to showcase your work but no in person interview since they are likely not based in your area. The questions are often similar but they will also ask for details on your experience showing your work. Because art fairs are temporary they will not have the time to hand hold you through the experience and rely on you to appear organized and ready to showcase your work. This includes knowing exactly what you would show, your price ranges, and sizes.

Many art fairs will also require that you have your own way of handling sales so it’s up to the artist to figure out how to take payments. You will also need to have more replacement art pieces on hand since you will not have any time to print new work due to the short span of an art fair. Finally, despite the fair setting up the venue they may suggest bringing some additional equipment such as lighting which adds to your costs. 

What are the Costs?:

I wanted to separate out costs as there is a big difference between a gallery and an art fair from what I’ve seen so far. 

A gallery may charge you a small fee to showcase your work but generally takes a percentage of your sales in the range of 30 - 50%. As a result there is less upfront costs for an artist which makes galleries more approachable. Artist run galleries which are great places to start may also require you to volunteer some time for gallery specific functions so you need to consider that as well.

For art fairs they typically charge high upfront costs instead of taking a percentage of your sales. This can be in the 1.5k - 4k range which varies based on spot and space selected for the fair. They will also often charge visitors for attending the event unlike a gallery which is generally free. As a result it’s a lot of upfront costs for an artist, especially new ones since you’re not sure if your work will sell. 

Final Thoughts:

Showing your work is a big step as you develop as an artist. It does require you to focus on the business side a bit and a financial commitment as well. However, it’s very exciting and there is really nothing like having your work up somewhere for others to appreciate and hopefully collect. 

If there is anything else you would like to know please feel free to reach out. I’m learning as well as I venture into showing my own work but hope these help.