I know how I tell but decided it would be a good idea to check out with my readers:
- what you think are the main indicators of a vanity gallery
- what questions you ask to check them out
Please take a look through and see if there are
- any refinements you'd like to suggest
- or any omissions of aspects which you think are indicative of a vanity gallery or similar exercise.
A Vanity Gallery is one which requires you to pay to show your art. This may involve a fee for each item of art shown or a fee to be shown in their gallery and/or have an exhibition.
The business model of a Vanity Gallery revolves around extracting money from artists rather than selling artwork to art lovers.
Characteristics of a Vanity Gallery
Below are headings which cover different aspects of a Vanity Gallery. The bullet points indicate characteristics and they are followed by suggested questions to ask to investigate the status of any offer.
TARGET AUDIENCE
- A naive / emerging artist without an art gallery - who wants to get his or her art shown
- People who will pay good money to get their art shown
- People who know little about the reputations of those who operate in the art market
- Artists who know little about how proper commercial art galleries operate
- People who produce art which is not very good i.e. unlikely to ever become a gallery artist or get their artwork shown in a proper commercial gallery
- Artists who don't check out reputations and track records and don't ask questions
- Why would they approach you - out of the blue?
- Do you think your artwork is good enough to be exhibited in a show? (This answer might well depend on how many exhibitions you've been to see)
- How does the Gallery recruit their artists? Is it based on the quality of their artwork or their ability to pay their fees?
- Check out the name and reputation of the gallery amongst artists who know more than you do. There's one gallery in New York which is a well known vanity gallery. If you see a link to it on an artist's website then you know that person has a lot to learn
- Google the name of the gallery and look at what people (other than the gallery) are saying online
- How many people characterise it as a Vanity Gallery? There's a school of thought that says you can damage your career by exhibiting with a Vanity Gallery - since the exhibition is dependent on you paying rather than the art being good enough. Having a Vanity Gallery on your CV could damage your chances of becoming a gallery artist at a "proper" art gallery
MARKETING
- Vanity galleries typically pitch their offering via a standard letter which indicates absolutely no awareness of your artwork ie the same remarks might have been made about anybody's art.
- They may highlight one artwork to demonstrate they've looked at your website
- They may advertise for artists to exhibit work in their gallery (such a good way of identifying quality art!!)
- Not all vanity galleries are B&M galleries on the street - some are online. Vanity activities may seek artwork for an online competition or a book in return for a fee.
- They may offer you a link to their website in return to a link to theirs (it's what Saatchi did!)
- Exhibitions at such galleries often get no coverage by reputable art critics
Questions to ask:
- Does the email used to contact you one which seems like a typical standard/spam letter?
- Are there any indications they have looked at your work
- If you contact them can they remember your work without prompting? Do they know what it's about?
- Ask them to send URLs for coverage of recent exhibitions in art journals
- Ask them to a file of press cuttings re exhibitions at the gallery.
- Do the press cuttings relate to press releases which the artist had fed to home town newspapers (ie artist generated) or to art journals with a reputation for reviewing exhibitions?
- How much traffic does their website get? (For Online Galleries see Online Art Galleries and Stores for Artists)
- How does their website rank relative to others?
- Check out the background to art competitions
- Check out the reputation of these people as publishers of books about current artists
GALLERY ARTISTS & EXHIBITIONS
- Successful galleries often have an identify in terms of the type of art they show. However the exhibitions held in Vanity Galleries tend to be very diverse suggesting:
- either that the people who they market exhibitions to have very eclectic tastes
- or a lot of the marketing will be wasted on people who simply don't care for most of the artwork
- Serious commercial art galleries tend to have a 'roster' of gallery artists whose work they sell on an ongoing basis and whose exhibitions they hold from time to time. Vanity galleries typically do not have "gallery artists" although they may well try to suggest that they do.
- If you review the list of past exhibitions and/or the artists' bio pages, it's typical for:
- serious art galleries to show their artists over a period of years in group shows and solo shows (more than one)
- vanity galleries to have artists who hold one show only
- What sort of artwork do they focus on? Is their answer reflected in what's on their website?
- Do they highlight testimonials from satisfied artists? Serious 'proper' art galleries simply don't do this
- Do they have a list of gallery artists who remain with them over the years?
- Check out with a gallery artist (or artist which has used their services) what type of arrangement they have (or had) with the gallery and whether they recommend the gallery.
- Do they want your email list of "followers" or are they happy for you to distribute invites to the exhibition yourself?
- Do they want to frame your work for you? (Frame shops can keeps their framing business ticking over by making frames for artists who then have an exhibition in their space.)
FINANCIAL
- Some vanity galleries:
- try to avoid any risk to themselves by charging the artist a hefty fee
- have a complex system of fees which involve you paying for absolutely everything
- and still want commission for a sale!
- Their business model seems to revolve around success in getting artists to pay them fees rather than success in getting people to buy art.
- How does the Gallery make its money - fees from artists or sales to buyers?
- Will they take your work if you only pay them commission for what they sell? If not, why not?
- What do they actually spend money on for the fee they ask?
- What other activities do they undertake to cover their overheads?
- What's the incentive for the Gallery to work hard at selling your art if you've removed all financial risk in relation to their own activities and outgoings?
- How is risk shared?
- Do they lose if you sell nothing?
- How much do you lose if they sell nothing?
- Is the amount you have to pay reasonable for the work they are doing?
- How much artwork do you have to sell to break even?
PAPERWORK
- Vanity Galleries can often be averse to proper documentation and records of transactions between the artist and the gallery.
- Contracts which do exist may distort the proper balance and sharing of risks and expenses of an exhibition.
- Do they have a proper commercial contract for representing your artwork? Ask them to send you a sample contract
- If your artwork is damaged or lost while in their care who pays?
- How you are going to recover your art if you never hear from them again? READ Protect Your Art with The Consignment Agreement by Renee Phillips (The Artrepreneur Coach)
Don’t leave any art work anywhere, for any time period, without a signed consignment agreementRenee Phillips
Here's a list of activities which some artists confuse with a Vanity Gallery - and the reasons why they're not.
Group Show with specific areas for individual artists: Do not confuse a vanity gallery with an artist's co-operative. A co-operative generally has a no-profit basis and artists contribute to the exhibitions held in diverse ways eg covering the gallery and selling artwork. However also beware that a gallery which starts off as an artists' co-operative can degenerate into a vanity gallery if too few artists put in the effort required to run a gallery.
Payment of fees: Payment of a fee per se does not define a Vanity Gallery. Many juried exhibitions by reputable art societies and art competitions also charge fees. All such exhibitions and competitions cost money to run and the organisers need to recover their costs somehow or other. The fees may be high if an organisation is long established with a good reputation (think Summer Exhibition of the Royal Academy of Arts). However that does not make it a vanity exercise.
Pay to show: Not all spaces where you pay to show your work are Vanity Galleries. Vanity Galleries have business models which revolve around the artist who pays. Commercial Galleries have business models which are based on selling art. However galleries who make their space work hard may have a sideline which involves letting space to artists - whatever is left over after commitments relating to their main business. It's a typical arrangement for galleries which regularly hold major exhibitions for prestigious art societies - but have space/time left in the calendar which can be sold. Their fee is typically a rental for the space and they take no commission if you handle your own sales or a moderate commission if they handle sales for you. How you market your exhibition is up to you. However there is scope for business models to change given the popularity of the art fair model for selling art with art collectors.
How do you tell when it's a Vanity Gallery?
Over to you. How do you tell a Vanity Gallery from a "proper" gallery?
Please also share this post with artist friends who you think might get some value from it.
Vanity Galleries - Resources for Artists
- Robert Genn - The rise of vanity galleries
- The Artrepreneur Coach: Renée Phillips
- Vanity Galleries: Pay to Play at Your Own Risk
- Artists: Beware of Vanity Galleries
- Another Article About Vanity Galleries
- Joanne Mattera - Marketing Mondays: Co-op Galleries, Yes. Vanity Galleries, No
- Art Biz Blog: Alyson Stanfield - Beware vanity galleries
- Fine Art Views: Brian Sherwin
- Vanity Galleries: Can they be harmful to your reputation and art marketing strategy?
- Vanity Gallery -- Art Scam or Art Opportunity?
- Artspanblog: Sid Bailey and Joan K. Smith - How to Identify a Vanity Gallery
- artemerging.com - Vanity Galleries
- Nicole Pellegrini - Why Artists Should Avoid Vanity Galleries
Please note subscriptions only become live after you have verified the link in the email you will receive
I was contacted by a vanity gallery and my first thought was that my art wasn't good enough to be in a gallery anywhere. I asked a fellow blogger about this weird email I received and she told me it was a vanity gallery. Glad I listened to my gut there. And I do believe it was in NY. If I ever have a vanity gallery, it will be in my own house where it is free! LOL Good topic as I'm sure there are others out there who have been contacted and thought it meant something wonderful.
ReplyDeleteI had never heard of the term 'Vanity gallery' until about 2 yrs ago when a friend was approached by one. Galleries have always daunted me so even the thought of one actually approaching me about my work (when I did any art work) would have instantly aroused my suspicions.
ReplyDeleteThanks for all your useful information. I often refer people who are looking for help or information to your blog.
Thanks Jacqui - it's good to share!
DeleteI have gotten my share of unsolicited emails from these vanity galleries in the form of promises they will provide "marketing" and "exposure" for your career for a fee. That is the first red flag. Yes they do look like form letters. I have been "offered" to be published in a book for a fee too. What they don't tell you is what happens exactly once it' published. They will use vague phrases like "have you work seen by industry professionals" , what does that really mean? I had my work published in one but in that case the fee was nominal to cover the cost of publishing the book much like a juried competition and the reputation was legitimate.
ReplyDeleteA real gallery will show interest in your work first without any mention of money. It is the beginning of a conversation that may or may not lead to a business relationship.
I am not sure but I would guess most reputable galleries have no need to send out bulk emails looking for artists.
Good post Katherine. I learned a few new things here so I can be even more vigilant about those that prey on the anxious artist.
Thanks for this post. Thought I should let you know I've referenced and quoted you in a post at http://diane-duncan.com/?p=5115
ReplyDeletei had an email from a vanity art fair, researched them, dodgy looking site, and lots of negative remarks on google! Also giving you very short notice for the actual show, like 3 weeks. They used the term 'curated art fair' . Show in london but company is not british based.
ReplyDeleteVanity galleries are great! There is nothing wrong with providing a service to artists who are unrepresented, want to exhibit their work and are willing to pay for it. To say that a vanity galley is not legitimate is wrong. It is a legitimate location, legitimate business that lacks a gatekeeper. Why should a curator be a gatekeeper and decide the fate of artists or control trends? A vanity gallery gives power to the artist and allows the public to decide if the work is good or bad.
ReplyDeleteThere are a number of spaces which provide a service to artists who want to get their art shown. I wouldn't characterise any of them as vanity galleries.
ReplyDeleteNot all vanity galleries are good. A number of them exploit artists and make money by charging fees to artists rather than from selling art.