The RA Summer Exhibition and AI: Submission to Display to Sale

I think I've uncovered a bit of a problem relating to the legislation and regulations which apply to all info provided to buyers in art exhibitions (who have protected rights) - from Submission to Display to Sale.

Earlier this week, I wrote about how the Royal West of England Academy allows AI into its Annual Exhibition

There have been a lot of comments on the post on Facebook as a result - which you can see here. Mainly this has been confined to whether or not AI should be eligible or only serves to undermine the original work of artists.

What I didn't realise at the time, is that the RWA were not the first.

The Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition and AI

This year's Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition indicated in its Frequently Asked Questions that it was OK to use AI as part of an artwork

Can I enter an AI work?

If your work is generated, partially or entirely, using artificial intelligence, then you must declare it on your artwork form by adding ‘AI’ to the medium field.

Extract from RA Summer Exhibition 2026 - FAQs

In other words, the RWA appears to have just copied what the RA did!

Omission of fact / poor descriptions of art for sale

So I went to look at all the artworks - to find the clearly displayed "AI" in the medium field

I found 59 entries were listed in "all the artworks" when I searched the database for "AI".

I didn't sample everyone. But of all the ones I looked at in detail, not one declared the AI as having contributed to the image or the artwork.

So the RA may know that AI contribute to the artwork - but they aren't sharing that information with the general public.

I then did another sample - of all those that were available to buy online. 

• This time I got 54 entries.
• I looked at a few more - and still could not find any exhibit which openly declared that AI was used in its creation.

AI Findings: Submission to Display to Sale

• The Royal Academy of Art required all artists to declare AI on their form If your work is generated, partially or entirely, using artificial intelligence, then you must declare it on your artwork form by adding ‘AI’ to the medium field.
• The Royal Academy of Art appears to have chosen NOT to disclose the use of AI in any of the information provided to the buying public.
• it's not listed in the catalogue under the medium
• it's not listed on the Sales website for any of the artworks which were triggered by the search term "AI"

I wonder why.

I'm also wondering if anybody asked the RA Solicitors for their advice as to what needs to be disclosed within the context of the range of legislation and regulations which are pertinent eg see "How to sell art" on my website Art Business Info for Artists

• Trading Law and Regulations - see my Trading Law & Regulations for Artists (mainly UK) page
• the various regulations relating to selling online and consumer rights - see my E-Commerce for Artists page

One of the requirements of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 is that

Every contract to supply goods by description is to be treated as including a term that the goods will match the description.

In other words, when describing the medium for an artwork, if AI was used then AI needs to be highlighted.

• I am sure this requirement is essentially what is behind the RA requirement for the artist to spell out AI in the medium box if relevant. 
• So why has that info not translated through to the description of the artwork for the purposes of sale to the public (ie the people protected by the Consumer Rights Act 2015!)?
• My conclusion is that we appear to have "a left hand and a right hand within the RA who are not talking to one another"!

Clearly, use of AI is new and mistakes may be made at the outset. 

However I personally would expect that an organisation like the Royal Academy of Art which has, over time, been absolutely exemplary in its highlighting of changes in legislation (eg re VAT registration for overseas artists; new money laundering regulations for art etc) and spelling out what that means for artists entering the Summer Exhibition SHOULD have picked this up and dealt with it better. 

I have frequently highlighted RA advice contained in its T&Cs and FAQs to other art societies as "this is the way to do it" (whatever "it" was)

I'm now expecting that all mistakes made this year will be corrected for 2027.

I also expect to see next year that the same standard of exemplary guidance produced by the RA in the past will now be also applied to EVERY ASPECT OF AI where people (i.e. ALL THE BUYERS!) have a "need to know" 

In other words - that next year all relevant legislation and regulations will be covered by all necessary parts of the T&Cs and FAQs and any other guidance the RA sees fit to issue.

Only 10 paintings sold?

The 159th Annual International Exhibition of the American Watercolor Society has finished at the Salmagundi Club. Some statistics - one jumped out to me (in red):

• 3,300 visitors 
• during the exhibition which ran for 3.5 weeks from April 7 – May 1
• $54,000 in awards, and 
• ONLY 10 PAINTINGS SOLD! 
• That means 
• only 0.3% of the visitors wanted to buy a painting!
• only c.6% of artists sold a painting

Facebook Post by AWS

You can find the names of the exhibited artists here (both AWS members and those selected from the open entry.)

These are the Award Winners. Paintings selected for awards can be viewed here.

Thirty-nine awards totaling over $54,000 were selected this year by the 159th Exhibiton Jury of Awards.

The only images online are those of award winners. They do not contain any details about size, materials or price.

Critique 

When art societies were first formed, the major reason was to share the costs of exhibitions of artwork so that artists could get their artwork in front of more people and stand a better chance of selling it.

It wasn't about showing off. It was about financing the artist to make money to enable them to continue being an artist. That's still - or should be - one of the primary reasons why artists exhibit today.

If an annual international exhibition by the one of the oldest and most prestigious watercolour societies in America can only sell 10 paintings then something they are doing is wrong!

AWS Facebook Page

Context

First, by way of comparison I'm going to highlight the number and percentage of sales of artwork exhibited at the Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolours last three annual exhibitions at the Mall Galleries (a large gallery supporting national societies of artists in the centre of London - accessible to fans, tourists and people walking up the Mall to/from Buckingham Palace)

As you can see, the RI have significantly more sales both in terms of actual paintings and percentage sold.

Postal Services to the USA cancelled across the world! What does this mean for artists?

At midnight on Sunday, I spotted a post on social media which indicated there was going to be a major issue for ALL ARTISTS - anywhere in the world - who sell artwork to buyers in the USA.

MOST POSTAL SERVICES AROUND THE WORLD 

HAVE CANCELLED DELIVERY TO THE USA

+ 

ART SALES TO THE USA ARE GOING TO CRASH

I spent most of yesterday and this morning working on a new page for my website - called Shipping Art to the USA i.e. https://www.artbusinessinfo.com/shipping-art-to-usa.html 

Today, being a bank holiday is not the best day to announce it's now public - however the proverbial will be hitting the fan today and tomorrow.....

My new web page for all those caught out by the change in tariffs / border control
and the comprehensive suspension of postal services
Link is https://www.artbusinessinfo.com/shipping-art-to-usa.html

I know a lot of artists - across the world - who regularly sell art to Americans are very worried about what this means for their business.

My new website includes sections about

• three key drivers around the problem for artists
• what has been happening in the last month
• what it means in practical terms for artists
• what it means in different continents and countries around the world.
• plus lots and lots of references

The irony in the title is that the AIRLINES are the current driver leading to the comprehensive suspension of aircraft for carrying post to the USA.

"No longer shipping" courtesy of Astral Synergy Productions

Bottom line, yet again, the change in policy at motormouth speed is way in advance of the systems developments required to deliver what the USA wants which is

• cancellation of the exemption from tariffs for all post and parcels with a value of between $800 and $100 
• all post/parcels for imports MUST arrive in the USA marked up "Delivery Duty Paid" (this is Trump's notion of how to get the other countries to pay him money)
• On top of this there's an argument going between lawyers as to whether Trump can cancel the almost universal exemption of certain classes of art from any form of tariff duty payable.

The airlines have seen the writing on the wall and they are NOT HAPPY! (I'm assuming they worked out the reality, i.e. masses of small packages not going anywhere fast and stuck on planes because space has run out in normal storage areas before packages are processed). 

So they pulled the plug! Well done the airlines is what I think!

So given the complete carcrash of a mess which is currently exploding around the world, I thought I better get on with my new page!!!

So what I've published is my "best effort to date" BUT it is neither comprehensive nor do I guarantee everything on it is correct. However I've included a lot of references to people writing about this issue in other places and will continue to review and update in the coming days.

This is the short section providing headlines about implications for artists

Implications for Artists
- as producers and exporters of art to buyers in the USA

I'll be writing more about this - but right now I'd like to have lunch and get out in the sunshine and "have some time off"!

NEW BBC Art Programme about buying and selling art

I'm not sure what I think about this new BBC Art Programme but what follows is what I've found out so far!

From Facebook

A NEW BBC Art Programme about buying and selling art

I've seen other approaches for people to get involved in television programmes which look way more professional than this one.

There's 

• an individual on Facebook called Cara Doré (the name makes me suspicious to start with!) 
• who posted the following on the Art Teachers UK Facebook Group (why are they asking teachers?) 
• just before Christmas (who would post anything they want a response to on 22nd December?!!)

I'm currently casting on a brand new BBC art show and we are keen to here from any art teachers or retired art teachers to take part.

We’re looking for competitive pairs to take part in a new BBC Art show. Whether you are a pair of best mates; mother and son; nan and granddaughter; stepsisters or a couple… if you reckon you make the ultimate dynamic double act, we want to hear from you!

To apply email – takepart@stellifytv.com

The notion is that is a new BBC programme where you:

• put your sales skills to the test (so why are they asking teachers to participate?)
• play the art market (really?)
• try to win a life-changing amount of cash (this has got daytime written all over it so the definition of "life-changing" might be up for debate)

So the facts are:

• somebody is touting for participants 
• who has a very unusual name (name change for the media maybe?) 
• who doesn't appear to be very media savvy and/or professional (dreadful image)
• but is apparently a Casting Researcher at Trilogy Casting
• far too little information as to what the programme is about e.g. what are they actually going to DO?
• stellifytv.com does not exist as a website - so how can that email work?

HOWEVER Stellifymedia is "an award winning multi-genre unscripted production company" set up as a joint venture with Sony Pictures Television.

and that's the ONLY this bit which finally led me to publish this post.

It all sounds VERY WEIRD to me. If anybody finds out what it is do let me know. I just know somebody out there will want to know more....

Pricing your art for Open Exhibitions - a review of a sample of exhibition metrics for 2024

This is all about how to sell the art that gets selected for an open exhibition by a national art society.

One of the ways in which artists can promote their art is by being selected for an open exhibition by a national art society. 

However, they help their profiles enormously and enhance their case for membership of a national art society if they can also demonstrate that their artwork is not only good enough to exhibit - but it also sells!

I personally find it very frustrating every time I visit an exhibition is to see good art which is overpriced - and which I know will not sell.

None of what I say applies to any artist who is not dependent on their artwork selling to have a normal life. If you have independent means, you can price however you like.

By way of contrast, what I say is crucial to the understanding of those artists who "need to know" how to achieve sales i.e. study the marketplace, what's on offer and what the price competition looks like.

UPDATE 31 December 2024: This post has now been UPDATED with reference to artists who sold more than one artwork - providing summary details of the type of art and prices of sold artwork.

Why artists get prices for their art wrong

Artists are very invested in their art. They often price in an unsound way which reflects motivations which have nothing whatsoever to do with selling art. 

The reasons for getting the price wrong are:

• thinking too much about the hours and effort put into a painting and not enough about whether that's marketable
• not visiting an annual open exhibition in advance of submitting an entry
• not observing the prices of the work which has sold - when your research can be done online
• not looking at last year's exhibition online - and noting the price bands where there are few sales
• not reading this blog! I've been banging on and on about the need to tailor prices to the marketplace for specific art galleries. 
• specifically in relation to the FBA Societies at the Mall Galleries
• specifically in relation to pricing just below and not just above important threshold prices i.e. the level at which people start thinking "No" rather than "Yes" 

Bottom line, your art is only worth an "inflated price" if you can find somewhere where it will sell at that price. Otherwise it's just numbers on a label and a painting which will be returned to you unsold.

I can by the way spot all the artists who have been reading this blog and have adjusted their prices and are now selling again after a fairly rough marketplace in recent times. :) 

While writing this post, I also noticed an awful lot of artists who used to sell well on a regular basis who are no longer doing so. Time maybe to review their strategy for getting their artwork sold?

2024 Annual Exhibition Sales Metrics by FBA Societies

Below you will find charts of sales at the 2024 annual exhibitions of the art societies who belong to the Federation of British Artists based at the Mall Galleries i.e.

• Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours
• Royal Institute of Oil Painters
• Royal Society of British Artists
• New English Art Club
• Royal Society of Portrait Painters
• Pastel Society
• Royal Society of Marine Artists
• Society of Wildlife Artists

Each chart is the exact same size - which helps make each comparable with the others. However the numbers of sales by members/associate members and those selected via the open entry are

• identified by price range in which they sold 
• with a coloured column each for member artists and open entry artists
• with an additional total column for all sales in each price range

UPDATE 31.12.24.: I'm also adding in - under each chart - the names of artists who sold well (as in 2 or more sales) in the 2024 exhibitions. It is possible to identify the TYPE of art which can sells well. Of which more in the future....

Who are the buyers at the Mall Galleries?

I started characterising buyers at the Mall Galleries as being essentially "middle class, middle aged and middle income" some years ago. 

• They typically like buying artwork priced at less than £1,500 - and they like it even more if it is priced at less than a £1,000. 
• You should bear this in mind as you review the charts and commentary below and as you check the profiles of the price ranges of artwork sold in the charts below

Essentially annual exhibitions at the Mall Galleries are about affordable art for most of those who visit, view and buy art.

Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours

They exhibited 450 artworks and sold 87 paintings (19%).

• members sold 47
• open entrants sold 40
• The top priced painting was £3,250

No open artist sold a painting for more than £1,000. 

There were a LOT of sales priced under £1000 with specific hot prices such as £650 and £450. Interestingly

• open artists dominated the below £500 category
• members dominated the £501-£1000 category

Unsurprisingly, watercolours are considered to be more affordable artwork - so long as artists produce suitable sizes and prices for them to be considered affordable. When they do, they sell like hot cakes!

Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours
Annual Exhibition Sales Metrics - number sold by price range and type of artist

Artists who did well include:

• Member: Matthew Phinn RI RSMA - 2 x landscape paintings @ £1,700 and £550
• Member: Paul Talbot-Greaves RI - all landscape paintings 2 x £400 and 3 x £750
• Member: Hannah Woodman RI - two watercolour and gouache landscape paintings @£3,250 and £1,950
• Member: Geoffrey Wynne RI - all landscape paintings priced under £2000, sold 4 including 3 at £850
• Open Entry: Miranda Brookes - sold two landscapes at £650 each
• Open Entry: Sandra Doyle - sold two botanical art paintings (£750 and £425), which she could have sold again and again!
• Open Entry: Julia Groves - 2 x flower paintings @ £870 each
• Open Entry: Kate Osbourne - sold 2 x watercolour and gouache paintings about allotments @ £395 each
• Open Entry: Jian Yuan Ong - sold 2 @£400

Note the theme re subject matter?

SEE ALSO: RI Annual Exhibition 2023: Analysis of art sales metrics and pricing artwork for the future

Royal Institute of Oil Painters

All that glitters is not gold!

A thought struck me this morning as I pondered the racks of clothing items for sale - particularly the stuff with gold sequins sewn on! It struck me as very relevant to art as well. 

When you visit sales, what's on offer is very often all the items that didn't sell very well. 

Below were observations this morning - related to clothing. 

• all the very loud colours - the colours that you can spot from 50-100 feet away! Dayglo is an especially hard sell!
• all the really boring colours - the ones which make you disappear into 'neutral' walls (there was a wall of pale grey tops against a pale grey wall)
• anything which is too dominating (gold sequins anyone?)
• the very small sizes (they're often overly optimistic that the young things that are that size will shop in the same stores as me - and I'm 70!)
• the very big sizes (they still don't realise that while it's good to offer bigger sizes, it's stupid to do this for clothing that simply does not suit bigger people!)
• the special offer at a very high price - which never sold and still doesn't sell even thought they've halved the price
• too old fashioned / too contemporary - either end frequently do badly

Lots of gold sequins - UNSOLD!

Tips for Artists

If you think about it, this recipe for leftovers on the shop floor is not that dissimilar to the observations one might make at an end of an exhibition.

Very often, to make a sale you have to make people happy. They cannot walk away and ignore something they really like. I've lost count of the number of times I've thought "I would have bought that - too!" for items which have already got a red dot.

I find that what often gets left on the wall are:

"Look at me" artwork

• paintings in very bright and/or dayglo colours
• any subject matter which is very "look at me" - which is not what you want on most domestic walls because of the potential for headaches
• paintings which are far too big for most domestic settings

"Don't look at me"

• paintings which look very insipid because they are so muted
• paintings where you notice the frame more than the painting
• everything that's just plain boring (the opposite of "look at me")

Market and product prices - out of sync

• ALL the paintings which are overpriced
• ALL the paintings which are in the wrong exhibition / wrong location
• most of the paintings which looks the same as most of the other paintings i.e. they lack a clear and individual style which is attractive rather than outlandish

Next time you're in an exhibition

Here's what I do:

• walk round the exhibition
• note what has sold
• sit down and describe the characteristics of what has sold in simple visual terms + price

Next review what's left on the walls. 

• See if you can pick out the artwork which is very unlikely to sell to those that will see it.

FINALLY - Check back online after the exhibition has finished and see if your observations and assumptions match up with what has happened in reality.

I get very consistent patterns in most exhibitions I visit. 

Plus I also see lots of very good paintings which should be walking off the walls - but for the fact that the artist has not researched the market re pricing.

Is a minimum price for artwork in open art exhibitions necessary?

This post argues that the use of a MINIMUM price for artwork entries for an OPEN art exhibition/competition needs to be ELIMINATED.

In my view, any use of a MINIMUM price for artwork entries for an OPEN art exhibition/competition needs to have 

• a clear and cogent business purpose - based on facts and not assumptions
• which generates positive results i.e. more income not less
• produces better value than no minimum sale price!

READ ON:  My investigations to date have produced no good reason for the use of a minimum price - and even less for raising it above the affordable art level if it is used!

PS. If you want to know why I write about the money side of art a lot, you might want to look at my background.

The Open Art Exhibition / Competition

The basic business premise of an open art exhibition / competition  is that it aims to

• attract lots of entries - and thereby generate funds via entry fees 
• get lots of good calibre art entered
• select art which is good AND is priced to appeal to buyers
• which sells well - and thereby generates funds from sales 
• which means more exhibitions next year!

However it cannot just be about wishful thinking.

Generating sales at an open exhibition/competition needs to be focused on:

• good calibre art - which appeals to people AND art buyers
• artists understanding how to price their art to sell (see How to Price Your Art) 
• including art which people can afford to buy (see my previous two posts: 
• What is "Affordable Art"? and
• The important things to know about pricing Affordable Art)
• attracting and getting visitors who want to buy - and not just look at art
• creating funds so you can do it all again next year!

Generating funds is about:

• covering the direct costs of the this year's exhibition
• making sure next year's exhibition can take place i.e. creating a reserve for expenses related to running next year's open exhibition - many of which need an outlay in advance of the exhibition opening
• contributing to the overheads of running the organisation / art gallery / competition etc
• making money for the artists 
• paying taxes!

What the exact business model is varies according to every open exhibition, its organiser and their business aims and financial / budgeting expertise.

So it's worth looking at what currently happens....

Specifically in relation to the concept of "the minimum price" for art entered into an art exhibition / competition.

What is a minimum price?

Very simply, SOME open exhibitions or art competitions require that art entered must be priced at or above a minimum specified price.

However, this is NOT a rule. It is NOT required. It is an OPTION.

I've rewritten this blog post a number of times. It keeps foundering on trying to define any sort of rationale for a minimum price - of which more below.

Who uses a minimum price for art in an open art exhibition/competition?

A number of open art exhibitions stipulate a minimum price for artwork entered into open art exhibitions. 

BUT NOT ALL DO. Below I've identified whether or not art competitions and open exhibitions use a minimum price

ABSOLUTELY NO MINIMUM PRICE

Cy Baker: solo exhibition of wildlife art

Cy Baker - winner of Wildlife Artist of the Year 2022
demonstrating his art in his solo exhibition of his artwork 
in the East Gallery of the Mall Galleries

There's no mention on the Mall Galleries website or the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation of the artwork being displayed by Cy Baker who won the Wildlife Artist of the Year Award in 2022 in the East Gallery of the Mall Galleries. 

It's even more odd given that when I visited on Tuesday, he had also sold all but one of his paintings and for not insignificant sums. 

Exhibition of paintings by Cy Baker - winner of Wildlife Artist of the Year 2022
in the East Gallery of the Mall Galleries

In fact, in terms of best selling wildlife art for significant sums this was where all the action was this week!

So below, is a short overview of Cy Baker and his artwork

This is a short video of how the exhibition came together at the Mall Galleries

You can see more of his solo exhibition at this link on his website.

Cy Baker - Wildlife Artist of the Year 2022.

Cy Baker was in the East Gallery, demonstrating how he creates his very effective paintings and I had a chance to talk with him and find out how he works and how he sells his paintings.

After winning David Shepherd’s Wildlife Foundations Wildlife Artist of the Year last year I chose to spend my winnings on visiting the project doing incredible work in Uganda. I was utterly blown away by the work being done to save these animals lives. All the work sold in this exhibition will have 50% of the sale money go directly to saving wildlife all over the globe.

His paintings

Cy Baker has been creating wildlife artwork on canvas using a biro and oil paint for c. 10 years.

• He first creates a gesso surface on the canvas incorporating a very weak solution of Titanium white to produce a light buff finish
• Then he uses a biro with lightfast ink to create a drawing on the canvas and a complete tonal pattern of his subject matter. He's stroking the biro onto the canvas and hatching where appropriate. It took some time to find a biro which worked well with canvas.
• He then uses weak solutions of Winsor and Newton Titanium White to enhance the 3D nature of his paintings. In effect he "cuts in" with the white after the drawing has been developed.

This video has Cy talking about he uses his biro to create the artwork and how he creates his compositions which are a very strong feature of his artwork

About Cy Baker

He studied scientific illustration at Southampton Institute and Blackpool and the Fylde College of Art in the 1990s after which he worked for about five years as a freelance illustrator. 

He then worked fulltime in Customer Services for 14 years before giving up his job in April 2015 to try and make it as a full time professional artist. 

He's succeeded in getting noticed, being selected for open/juried exhibitions and winning awards - and selling his artwork!

• Wildlife Artist of the Year: 
• Overall Winner – 2022, 
• Highly Commended – 2021, 
• Category Winner – 2019, 
• Finalist – 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2016, 2012
• Society of Graphic Fine Art: Dry Red Press Award – 2021
• Royal Society of Marine Artists – 2020
• Society of Wildlife Artists – 2019, 2013, 2011, 2006
• Marwell International Wildlife Art Society: 
• Best Bird in Exhibition – 2011
• Best in Exhibition – 2010
• Exmoor: Best in Exhibition – 2010 

How he sells his paintings

Cy has learned over the years how to sell artwork and how to make money (they're two different things!). He does not have a gallery and organises his own sales - and consequently has better control over his selling expenses.

• He attends a number of Art Fairs where he is now a regular exhibitor and where his artwork sells well
• He has a shop on this website where he sells original artwork, limited edition prints and open edition prints direct to customers
• He also works on commission and describes the process on his website

He's also providing different offers for different pockets - with 

• original artwork in different sizes
• limited edition prints
• open edition prints

Rather than having standard prices for specific sizes, he makes adjustments depending on the complexity of the work.

I'm a fan of his approach to creating consistent pricing and sales!

• He's progressed to his current prices over a number of years having found the market for his work and fans who love to buy his artwork. 
• He did NOT start out with a bang asking for a lot of money but rather found out prices worked in relation to generating consistent sales of his artwork. 
• He now raises his prices in small incremental changes over time. 

Like I said he's sold all but one painting within 24 hours of the exhibition opening. I think he's got it about right!

Subscribe to Making A Mark - and receive every blog post via email

You can find Cy Baker on his:

• Website https://cybaker.co.uk/
• Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/cybakerart (the banner is the piece which won him Wildlife Artist of the Year in 2022)
• Instagram https://www.instagram.com/cy.baker/
• You Tube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@cybaker2367

Artist of the Year Gallery: Artwork for Sale

This year the Artist of the Year team at Storyvault Films Ltd (SF) have developed the offering to artists past, present and future by creating a website which enables pod artists to sell their artwork.

It has some good points - and some significant weaknesses on the finance side - but nothing which cannot be addressed. Better sooner rather than later.

Artist of the Year Gallery Website - Home Page

What's on the Gallery Website

You can see:

• the artists - Artists are listed in order of their appearance on our programmes, most recent first. However not all artists are participating - partly because this is a new initiative and partly because some artists will have existing arrangements for selling their art which they won't want to compromise.
• the artworks - are produced by artists who have participated in the programmes - but not all artworks have been produced for the programmes. 
• The How It Works explanation
• Terms and Conditions (very important) - The Terms and Conditions need to be accessible via a PDF printable document for Artists to file - for the record - which they are not at present.

It's an interesting proposition because one of the things many artists struggle with is selling their artwork online - which is much less straightforward to do properly than people might think.

Consequently, just as any artist has to who is trading online and distance selling artwork has to do, this SF ecommerce operation MUST comply with all the rules and regulations around

• trading law and regulations 
• e commerce law and regulations 
  
• VAT on Art

(Note: These links go the relevant pages of my Art Business Info for Artists website)

BUT IF they're doing everything properly (see below), this site could be a BIG saving in time and effort for an artist in terms of mastering all the ins and outs of online distance selling of artwork! 

I haven't checked the site out thoroughly for ALL the aspects in detail but I assume they've done the wise thing and had 

• an expert ecommerce lawyer advising on what they must do and cannot do - and 
• an expert ecommerce adviser telling them what's the best approach for an operation like this.
• a VAT expert checking to make sure they got all the VAT aspects right.

However on a quick review, I ended up feeling a bit like "a party pooper" as I have reservations about whether SF have been wise in the approach they have adopted to 

• robust and secure monetary transactions / payment processing
• money laundering regulations for art galleries / dealers / agents
• VAT liability, transactions and associated documentation

At the end you can see how it works. 

Immediately below is a summary of the financial weaknesses I spotted which I think need addressing.

British Art Fair: how to check out a lot of art galleries in one place

Art Fairs essentially benefit serious art collectors. They offer a very easy way to look at a lot of art - across all price ranges - offered by different art galleries and dealers in one place - with nice food and drink.

After the pandemic decimated art fairs, there's a lot of effort going into making sure those being held in 2022 are a great experience for buyers. Indeed, the British Art Fair is under new ownership for this year's Fair. 

Art Fairs with reputable art galleries also offer a benefit for artists. If you're keen to become a gallery artist and want to check out a number of galleries, then this could also be the place for you! 

You can check out:

• the art by other artists represented by that gallery - and how it is presented
• the people representing the gallery
• what sort of art these art galleries think is worth paying a major fee to show to people with lots of money
• the general "vibe" you get from the stand. Does it make you feel that this could be an art gallery you'd like to approach at some point in the future.

HOWEVER - and this is VERY IMPORTANT - an artist visiting an art fair is market research activity ONLY!

• The art galleries are there to sell art to wealthy individuals. Period.
• They are really NOT interested in talking to artists. 
• The very last thing you should do is announce you're an artist looking for a gallery to represent them
• If you pull out an iPad and start pitching your art, you'll get blacklisted and your name will be mud.

copyright making a mark publications

British Art Fair (BAF) 2022

View of the British Art Fair Homepage Cover Image:
Displays by Alon Zakaim Fine Art, The Nine British Art and Alan Wheatley Art at BAF 2019.
Image credit: Piers Allardyce

The 31st British Art Fair is being staged on all three floors of the Saatchi Gallery between 29th September and 2nd October 2022.

The BEST ways and places to sell your art - RESULTS

Back in January I created a POLL: What was the best place to sell your art in 2021

• on this blog - and
• also included it on the How to Sell Your Art on my Art Business Info for Artists website - which introduces the different options for selling art considered on the website.

The question artists were asked was 

PROFIT FROM ART SALES: Which 3 options generated the most profit (after expenses) for you last year? (i.e. 2021)

107 people have responded to it - and this is the chart of their responses - followed by a commentary on all the various options and suggestions about what some of the results might mean. For me they mean it might be instructive to try some more polls focused on particular ways of selling art.

If you want to see a bigger picture of the chart

• right click and open the pic of the chart in a new tab, you'll see a bigger picture.
• Or you can go to the  How to Sell Your Art  page my website - which provides a bigger picture

Of course it all depends on what you're viewing it on! I don't think you'll get the best view on a smartphone...

Commentary on profitability of different options for selling art

Scope of responses

Responses are from people who view the Poll and vote. There is no way of knowing which country they are from or whether they are 

• amateur, 
• semi-professional (i.e. beyond hobby income) or 
• professional (i.e. make a living from being an artist).

So the results need to be viewed with this in mind. Nonetheless they provide some interesting perspectives.....

Profitability

Never forget that this is a Poll and Chart about PROFITABILITY i.e. 

• NOT how many sales you make 
• but rather which options make you the MOST PROFIT.

People who have successful businesses understand how they make profit. 

Never ever confuse turnover with profit because If you have significant expenses you won't be making much money. 

By way of contrast if you don't need to incur third party expenses and are good at marketing your art, you can eliminate commissions to galleries and listing feeds for third party sites.

The big surprise

The most expensive still life painting ever sold?

"The Basket of Strawberries"  (Le panier de fraise des bois) by Jean-Siméon Chardin (1699-1779) was sold at auction in Paris on 23rd March 2022 for €24,381,400. (That's $26.9 million or £20.5 million).

The predicted sale price was between €12-15 million - so the owner and auctioneers must have been very pleased by the final outcome!

Jean-Siméon CHARDIN Paris, 1699-1779

The Basket of Wild Strawberries

oil on canvas, h: 38 w: 46 cm

signed, by J. S. Chardin

(Auctioned by Artcurial in March 2022)

This is a video by the auction house about the painting. If you have captions switched on in YouTube then you get the English version of the commentary in French by the French curators and auctioneers.

 

The painting was sold to a US Dealer and The Art Newspaper now reports that the Louvre suspends sale of Chardin's record-breaking strawberries. 

The French museum is now seeking funds to buy the still-life painting, which was sold last week by Artcurial to a US dealer for €24.3m 

This is an article about the painting Chardin, a Proto-Impressionist 18th-Century Painter

The most expensive still life painting ever sold?

The question it prompted for me was "Is this one of the most expensive still life paintings ever sold?"

It's certainly not the most valuable still life painting. I can think of several which might fulfil that criteria - but then they've been in art galleries and museums for quite a while and have not been sold of late. 

I started to look up "most expensive paintings sold at auction" and noted that none of them included a still life painting.

Wikipedia maintains a List of most expensive paintings - which is ordered by consumer price index inflation-adjusted value (in bold) in millions of United States dollars in 2020.[note 1]

This identifies Vase with Fifteen Sunflowers by Van Gogh as being the most expensive still life / floral painting ever auctioned - on March 30, 1987 for $39.7 million (£24.75 million) which equated uib 2020 to $90.4 million

....and that's about it.

So maybe the basket of strawberries is the second most expensive still life painting ever sold?

The Still Life Genre

For more about the Still Life genre see my 2007 post What is a still life? which is a VERY LONG post which attempts an overview of the genre. 

Although I eventually concluded I'd barely scraped the surface!

Jean-Siméon Chardin (1699-1779)

For those like me who love paintings by Chardin (back in 2009, I spent a long time in the Louvre photographing all their paintings by Chardin!) you may well be interested in the details of his story, training and approach to painting the Internet Archive digital version(s) of "Chardin" (1969), the Catalogue Raisonné, and commentary by Georges Wildenstein and Daniel Wildenstein. 

It comes in various formats and can be read online and/or downloaded.

In fact the still-life was by no means a monopoly of Chardin, and this makes it ail the more interesting to note how he imposed his per- sonality on it to such effect that he was often thought to be its inventor, or at least renovator. And it is here that the opinions of his contemporaries are enlightening.

Chardin made numerous variants or replicas of the pictures which he regarded as his most successful. Thus we fmd whole sériés of works with cauldrons, kitchen tables, baskets of plums, peaches or grapes, eut melons, hares and a game-bag, game hung from a nail in a kitchen and the like. Some household utensils which figure several times belong presumably to the same period: a teapot, a mortar, a bowl, a jug.

POLL: What was the best place to sell your art in 2021

I'm going to revive my monthly opinion polls in 2022. On the whole, I think they provided some very useful feedback for both professional and amateur artists and those who aspire to do more with their art - particularly in relation to the business side of art activities.

Most polls have continued in terms of 

• either charts of the results on this blog (see below) 
• or ongoing live polls on my Art Business Info. for Artists website

I'm starting the year - an the monthly polls - by reviving polling about the best place to sell art. I've run this a number of times and had interesting results each time.  

MOST PROFIT: What was the best place to sell art in 2021?

My first topic is PROFIT

• WHICH place/option - which generates sales of your art - also generates the most profit?
• the "most profit" might be due to e.g.
• LOTS of sales - even if the profit margin between income and expenses is low
• VERY LOW EXPENSES - so that all sales max out your profit
• HIGH VALUE SALES - which make you a lot of money - even if expenses are high

You can find the Poll below

Below the Poll I explain what platform I've used to generate it and anything else you might want to know

POLLS PLATFORM

My previous platform (CrowdSignal) no longer works for me, so I'm switching to Google Forms. I've just spent a lot of this afternoon learning how to use them for Polls of this sort - but may not have got it right! Do let me know if you run into any problems.

Don't worry, I've set the poll up so that no personal data (like emails) is asked for or collected. 

With any luck we should get a result which indicates the three most popular options for generating PROFIT in 2021 (i.e. income you generated for an option less the expenses associated with that particular option)

I'll also be putting this Poll on my website Art Business Info so that it can continue to collect data on the most profitable places 

You can also find the poll on this page too How to Sell Your Art

Previous Polls

Below you'll also find links to the poll results in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012

• 2014 - Most Revenue or Best Profit? What was the Best Place to sell Art in 2013?
• 2014 - POLL: Selling Art in 2014 - Is the best place for generating cash the same as the best place for making a profit?
• 2012 - 2012 Poll Results: What's the best place to sell art? (Part 1) - this reveals 4 places where (1) the most money & (2) the most profit were made from selling art in 2011/12.
• 2012 - What's the best place to sell art? Trends in selling art 2008-2012: (1) direct from the studio; (2) via third party galleries ad art societies.
• 2012 - The Best Place to Sell Art - (Part 2 More Trends Trends in selling art 2008-2012: via temporary venues and online websites.
• 2011 - What's the MAIN way you have sold art in the last 12 months? (Poll results)
• 2010 - What's the MAIN way you have sold art in the last 12 months? (Poll Results)
• 2010 - What's the best place to sell art? Trends in selling art 2008-2012: (1) direct from the studio; (2) via third party galleries ad art societies.
• 2009: MAM Poll (August) results: the MAIN way you've sold art in the last 12 months
• 2008: What's the MAIN way you sell your art? - The Results.

How to sell a painting to a Prime Minister

I admire Mary Casserley. Not only has she developed a style of painting the Chilterns which echoes that of old fashioned British Rail posters. She's also sold her painting of Chequers to Boris Johnson, the UK Prime Minister!

So how did she do it?

About the Painting of Chequers and the Johnson family

Chequers Court by Mary Casserley

The painting bought by Boris Johnson shows an image of Chequers Court - the Prime Ministers's official country house at the foot of the Chiltern Hills halfway halfway between Princes Risborough and Wendover in Buckinghamshire.

Besides a view of the house and garden, the image includes very simplified images of Boris walking the dog Dilyn near to his fiancée Carrie and their baby son Wilfred having a picnic on the lawn.  

I think her talent is to introduce very simplified figures into landscapes without them dominating. The lack of detail helps - as detail always draws the eye.

Mary achieved the sale by:

• printing cards of the painting using a local press
• sending one to the PM with a covering note
• who then enquired via a handwritten letter whether he might buy the painting
• so she sold it to him for her normal commission price
• and the payment was made using PayPal! (Organised by his personal assistant!)

About Mary Casserley

Mary Casserley paints images of the Chilterns using gouache in bright uplifting colours and flat and simplified style employed in the 1930s by those creating images for railway posters which could then be printed easily.

My work revisits a classic era of Railway poster design, recreated in the vibrant tones of 1930's travel art.

Having been born and bred in Berkhamsted, she belongs to a railway family - which goes some way to explaining her interest in the railway poster style.

I personally always think of posters as "happy images" - either because of the subject or the aesthetic and often both. They're ideal for the times we're in at the moment.

Her vivid images focus on local high streets, local landscapes, well loved pubs, railway scenes and significant buildings in her area. She then gets her paintings printed, using a local press, as A5 cards, and A4 and A3 prints via her website - with all financial transactions then being conducted securely via Paypal.

I'd also add that Mary also impresses because she has a "giving back" page on her website which illustrates how she uses her images - with her permission of course - to be used for various local charitable ventures. 

The moral of the story is that there are any number of ways of selling art - and painting first and then showing people what you've done afterwards is very definitely one of them.

Here's a picture of Mary with packs of cards of views of Pinner.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by BrOOK’S (@brookspinner)

REFERENCE

• Mary Casserley website
• Prime Minister Boris Johnson snaps up 'terrific' painting by Berkhamsted artist | Hemel Today (16th April 2021)
• Boris Johnson buys a painting of himself and his family at Chequers - using PayPal | Daily Mail (27th April 2021)

Hardship lies ahead #1: Checklist for Artists

This post provides some CHECKLISTS FOR ARTISTS 

• thinking about the future and 
• wanting to get to grips with the basics of surviving as an artist AND an art business within the context of both Covid AND the Recession.

i.e. Neither the Coronavirus Pandemic nor the Recession are going away completely in a hurry - so it's time to tease out and get to grips with some of the practical implications for the medium and longer term.

For what it's worth I reckon it will be at least two years before we get back to normal.  Possibly three.

In the meantime people have some difficult decisions to make.

"Hardship lies ahead" is the new slogan of the Chancellor of the Exchequer - and he's absolutely spot on.

• Not all businesses will reopen
• Not everybody will have a job in the businesses that do
• Not everybody is going to enjoy the income level going forward that they have had in the past
• LOTS OF PEOPLE ARE GOING TO FEEL VERY UNCERTAIN - and lack of confidence depresses spending on art.

PLUS at some point, we'll all have to pay for the enormous bailouts which have been going on around the world - which may well mean tax increases in the longer term.

This post is about translating that context into the PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS for artists and selling art generally and providing CHECKLISTS for

• artists - this post
• future posts re.
• art societies 
• art exhibitions 
• art galleries
• art teachers

A preamble

I last wrote on this topic in The Pandemic Recession: Likely Impact on Art Sales and Artists

HOWEVER I gathered afterwards that quite a few people felt I was probably being too negative and miserable - and that "everything will be back to normal soon".

I wonder if others might also now feel it wise to revise that view?

The COVID-19 pandemic has triggered one of the worst jobs crises since the Great Depression. There is a real danger that the crisis will increase poverty and widen inequalities, with the impact felt for years to come. OECD

Now that

• business closures and job losses are now being announced on a very regular basis as we begin to come out of the furlough period (i.e. closure of 8 branches of John Lewis is NOT normal! Nor is M&S reducing staff by 950 jobs.)
• businesses are talking about it taking years to get back to normal AND
• we're seeing some very fierce covid-19 spikes (i.e. second wave) around the world (notably in the USA) as people "got back to normal" much too fast and without taking appropriate precautions 
• PLUS as of today we're got local lockdowns in the UK and we're back to no more than 6 people meeting together I think it's time to get serious.

I'm really NOT being negative.

I'm essentially a really pragmatic person who likes to know the parameters of a problem - including the nasty bits!

I'm also a great believer in planning for what's coming.  Probably because I'm "cursed" by a very marked talent for being able to predict what's coming over the horizon - and a very good track record of being right. It has proved to be useful in a career (sometimes) - but there's always been a tendency to want to "shoot the messenger!" when people really don't like the message - so I wasn't surprised at all by the reaction to the last post.

I'm going to be like Chris Whitty and Dr Fauci and just keep saying what needs saying until people get it!! :)

CHECKLIST FOR ARTISTS

Just for a moment consider the following scenario - and how realistic it might be.

• Your art galleries close down - and your art gets stuck inside
• Your sales incomes dries up or reduces significantly - because fewer people are buying - because of lack of confidence in knowing how long the pandemic / recession will last
• Your regular Bread and Butter job which pays basic bills disappears - it's happening to a lot of people even if they are working for FTSE 100 employers!
• Your online platform suddenly shuts down - don't forget it's not just bricks and mortar businesses which shut down. Small entities are the ones which shut down in the last recession. Consequently all my blogs and websites are with very big hosts for a reason.
• Your partner loses their job - it happens.
• You will be living on a much reduced income - do you know how much you need to keep a roof over your head - and or how long you can last on just savings?
• BUT you haven't got a clue about....
• what you do that makes money or maximises your income and 
• which activity/activities is/are basically a self indulgent money pit

Bear in mind a lot of people have had to face this already.

So now is the time when spending some time on working this out is a really good investment. 

Otherwise life may very well come and bite you on the backside when you're not looking!

TIPS: FINANCIALS

Now is a really good time to work out the ABSOLUTE BASICS

• which income streams maximise profit for time and effort expended and 
• which represent a really poor return after you take every aspect into account.