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Tuesday, July 31, 2007
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Things Your Parents Should Have Taught You
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I had my wisdom teeth removed last week, and as a result, I’ve been away from business and this blog and most of reality for the past few days. While I was recovering, a couple of incidents occurred at the office that had me thinking about artist professionalism, and in some cases, the lack thereof. Through Ugallery, I deal with a lot of very talented, professional, hard-working young artists. These are the people that we created the gallery for and proudly represent. I have also encountered a fair number of artists who, for one reason or another, don’t seem to know how to properly approach or interact with a gallery. Some of these people are incredibly talented, but because of their lack of professionalism, are impossible to deal with. In this post, and maybe a few more down the road, I thought it would be helpful if I pointed out a few key points of being a professional, business-minded artist. The following may seem like basic common sense to most, but I am amazed at how often I experience these problems, especially the last two, which your parents should have taught you:
- Have great images of your work. The most important thing to have when approaching a gallery is a good set of photographs of your art. It makes it much easier for the gallery to see what you do, and lets them know that you are serious. These images represent everything about you and your art.
- Know your work. This mainly seems to be an issue for budding photographers. If you say you are a photographer, than you need to be an expert (or as close to as possible) about everything related to your camera and your prints. What is the make and model of your camera? Film or digital? How do you print your work? How large are you able to print these pieces? Are they part of a limited or unlimited edition? How many prints in the edition? Signed and numbered? To truly be a good photographer or painter or gallery owner or doctor or lawyer or anything else, you have to know your trade.
These last two points go beyond working with a gallery; they need no explanation and should be followed everyday.
- Respond promptly to all emails and phone calls.
- Do what you say you are going to do when you promise to do it.
I would like to keep this list open and constructive. I realize that some of these things are easier to fix then others, but I do hope that these points help.
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Tuesday, July 24, 2007
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Less is More
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Although I may be a little biased in reporting on the story Art for Less in this past Saturday’s Wall Street Journal (Ugallery.com is mentioned as a spot to find student art), the article as a whole offers collectors some excellent tips for finding potentially valuable work without breaking the bank.
The current art market needs no introduction. I imagine even those who pay very little attention to the art world have heard about the huge auction and fair results and booming art hedge funds and the price for a diamond encrusted skull and the like. But unless you are Eli Broad or Steven Cohen, these stories might as well be myth. For most people, the challenge is to find nice looking art for the home or office that doesn’t cost a fortune and that may increase in value. As the Art for Less story points out, one of the best ways to achieve this is with emerging art, and specifically student work. The article gives good advice on finding art students and approaching them, as well as on shopping art fairs, fundraisers, and the web (Ugallery.com).
Beyond finding a good deal or an investment, emerging art can be some of the most exciting work out there. I am constantly amazed by the quality of work and new ideas that I see from student artists. And by collecting their art, you are giving them the opportunity to make more. Thanks to Lauren Schuker for writing this piece.Labels: art, art for less, wall street journal
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Wednesday, July 18, 2007
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What Would You Buy with $100 Million?
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Damien Hirst’s $100 million diamond encrusted platinum skull, For the Love of God, has still not sold. In case you’re thinking about whipping out the American Express Black card, here are a few alternatives to earn those airline miles.
- 400,000 nine-course chef’s tasting menus at Thomas Keller’s ultra chic Per Se restaurant at $250 per person
- 180,180 shares of Google at $555 a share
- 701 cases of Chateau Cheval Blanc 1947 with a recent Sotheby’s hammer price of $142,600 a case
- 357 Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano F1’s at a base price of $280,000
- 8 Learjet 45 private jets with an MSRP of $11.15 million
- A starter collection of the most sought after contemporary art from Sotheby’s record-breaking May 15th auction comprised of Andy Warhol’s Large Campbell’s Soup Can ($5,528,000), Francis Bacon’s Study from Innocent X ($52,680,000), Willem de Kooning’s Figure in Landscape 1 ($4,072,000), Mark Rothko’s Untitled ($3,064,000), Roy Lichtenstein’s Girl in Mirror ($$4,072,000), Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Untitled ($14,600,000), Tom Wesselmann’s Smoker #17 ($5,864,000), Ellsworth Kelly’s Black Venus ($2,952,000), Richard Prince’s Dude Ranch Nurse #2 ($2,504,000), Gerhard Richter’s Waldstuck ($3,064,000), and Cecily Brown’s Guys and Dolls ($1,104,000)Labels: $100000000 million, art, damien hirst
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Tuesday, July 17, 2007
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The Market
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While reading my favorite blogs this evening, I was pointed to a great essay by Jane Kallir in The Art Newspaper about the state of the art market titled The problem with a collector-driven market. Edward Winkleman blogged that it “has got to be the most lucid and accurate description of the current art market I have read (and I read a good deal of art market press).†I couldn’t agree more. Jane’s article is the first I have seen on this subject that addresses the important balance between the “four principle pillars†of the art world: artists, collectors, dealers, and the art-historical establishment. Everything else I have read is too quick to place the successes or failures of the market on one of these groups alone. Now that we have gotten the finger pointing out of the way, it’s time to address the problem; “At every level of the art world, deeper knowledge and principled guidance seem to be in short supply.†Labels: art, jane kallir, the problem with a collector-driven market
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Friday, July 13, 2007
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Will Make Art for Work
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How far have you gone, or would go, to get the job you wanted? I just read an article in this month’s ARTnews about a guy who really wanted to work in New York’s Museum of Modern Art. Jason Polan was so intent on working in the museum—at any job—that he spent 12 days reproducing in pen and ink everything that was on view in MOMA. He then sent the drawings in with his resume to show, as he says, “how serious I was about working thereâ€.
Jason didn’t get the job. Although I have never met Jason or seen the resume he submitted, I am shocked that they couldn’t find something for him to do. It is rare to see someone so passionate about what they want to do. Not to mention, when was the last time you saw a museum guard who looked happy to be there, much less conscious of the art around them?! (A funny topic for a future post)
Well, there is a happy ending to this story. Jason compiled his drawings in The Every Piece of Art in the Museum of Modern Art Book and is selling it for $20 in New York at Printed Matter, Jack Spade, and the St. Mark’s Bookshop, as well as on his website, jasonpolan.com. His minimalist drawings are both interesting, and light and playful. I especially enjoyed his depiction of Monet’s Reflections of Clouds on the Water Lilly Pad (pictured below).
 Labels: art, jason polan, the every piece of art in the museum of modern art book
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Tuesday, July 10, 2007
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Young Enough to be My Dealer
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In today’s Boston Globe, there is a great article about a new wave of young art dealers. It is exciting to hear about others my age that are making their way in the art world. But more importantly, the story points out the importance of younger gallery owners. Nick Capasso, curator of the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park, sums it up best:
“It's great to have a younger generation come along and start filling the gallery world. They're willing to take a lot more risks. They're young and idealistic. They don't have a stable of 18 artists to whom they have to respond. They can show things the more established galleries can't or won't.â€
Young art dealers are exactly what this market needs. They are bringing new ideas to the established art business, and giving unknown artists a space to emerge. It is from these galleries that the next generation of great artists will appear. Congrats to those mentioned in the article.Labels: art, young art dealers
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Monday, July 2, 2007
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History Painting: What Didn’t Really Happen
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In this past Saturday’s Wall Street Journal, in anticipation of the 4th of July, David McCullough writes about John Trumbull’s revered history painting The Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776. McCullough’s article, An Icon’s Secrets, looks at the mixture of fact and fiction in the work.
So, according to McCullough how historically accurate is Trumbull’s The Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776?
The common understanding, of course, is that the painting portrays the birth of the nation at the Pennsylvania State House (Independence Hall) in Philadelphia, on July 4, 1776. And certainly the official title would seem to confirm that. But the common understanding is wrong. The signing of the document (which was indeed dated July 4) did not begin until August 2, and even then not all delegates to the Continental Congress were present. Those who were absent did not sign until weeks, even months later. One man did not add his signature until 1777.
What the scene appears to depict is the moment on June 28 when a committee of five named to draw up a declaration of American independence—John Adams, Roger Sherman, Robert Livingston, Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin—presented Jefferson's unedited first draft. But again no such ceremonial moment with all present took place. And besides, nearly everything about the setting is quite inaccurate.
The idea for the painting was hatched by Jefferson and Trumbull in Paris 10 years after the fact, in 1786, while Trumbull was a guest at Jefferson's mansion on the Champs-Élysées… In the course of a conversation in Jefferson's library, Jefferson drew a floor plan of the Assembly Room of the Pennsylvania State House as he remembered it, and on the opposite side of the same sheet of paper Trumbull made a tiny rough sketch remarkably close to what would turn out to be the final composition.
As it turns out, with the exception of the faces of the delegates, which Trumbull painstakingly recreated, almost everything else pictured is fictional. McCullough writes, “Whether it was from Jefferson’s faulty recollections or Trumbull’s artistic liberties, or both, the resulting scene bears little resemblance to how it really was.â€
By taking the historical inaccuracies at face value, McCullough really misses the boat on this one. I challenge you to name one significant “history painting†that accurately portrays a historical event. History paintings have nothing to do with recording the facts. Instead, they serve as cultural icons (as McCullough accidentally stumbles upon in his title) and even social and political propaganda. They are intended to inspire and persuade. The nearly three million people who march past The Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776 each year in the nation’s capitol building don’t scrutinize why Trumbull only included 48 of the 56 delegates who signed the Declaration; they marvel at the greatness of the men depicted and the wonderful nation that they built.Labels: art, the declaration of independence july 4 1776, trumbull
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Ugallery Blog
Read weekly art segments featuring Ugallery artists and news about the art world at large. We hope you enjoy this insight into the inner workings of our gallery and invite you to take part in the discussion as well.
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