Life as an artist is a very insecure one, you never know where your next sale is going to come from. You can plan and prepare for exhibitions and work on your social media, but it’s impossible to know how many people will see and respond to them.
That’s why it’s really important to take stock, and celebrate the success you have achieved and thank all the supporters and collectors who have helped you over the year; whether it’s a positive comment on a blog post, a “like” on facebook or an instagram post, the sale of a mounted print, a greeting card, a commission or the sale of a painting. They all help keep me going! You may not believe it, but artists have fragile egos (this one has, anyway) and they need encouragement, especially if they venture off into new directions, as I so often do.
Here’s a review of some of my sales of paintings and mounted prints from the first part of 2018. Many were sold via the online gallery Artfinder but increasing I have sold direct via my own website. Each painting is a unique work. I don’t paint generic people or landscapes. They are all real people and locations. In April’s collection you can see many of the Gower painting I did as part of the Gower Coastal Path Project. Bloggers’ comments and encouragement really helped me complete that project. Thank you, all.
March Sales 2018
April Sales 2018
My next post will complete the review. Thank you to the brilliant people who have supported me and bought my work this year, I couldn’t do it without you!
What a beautiful collage these images make.
Something has happened to my phone which means that I cannot register a Like on several and various different blogs. It just won’t allow it. But please be assured that I am liking your posts even if my phone is not.
Happy Christmas
Thank you so much. It’s annoying when technology lets us down like that, isn’t it??!
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I didn’t know that! Thanks, Alli.
Well done, Emma! You are such a PRO!!! I hope 2019 brings you loads and loads of sales and lovely, moral boosting comments as well – and let me just add, I have really enjoyed your company, here in blogland! Best wishes for a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! 🙂
Thank you for your kind words, Hilda. I’ve enjoyed your company too in the varied and wonderful place that it is blogland!
Staggering number of sales Emma. Well done and thank you for your helpful comments throughout 2018
Thank you David, I have learnt a lot about watercolours from you too.
I counted more than sixty paintings Emma.That means on average you sold one per week.One per week is really good! You’d be hard pressed to paint 2 a week for a year I bet.So your right in the zone!
Congratulations!
Thank you for taking the time to count them up, Wayne. I am a “paintaholic”, I love painting and paint most days. So I will paint 2-3 paintings a week (depending on the size, smaller ones are usually quicker, it depends on the subject matter). I have this weird “rule” where I will never spend more than 3 days on a painting (they don’t have to be consecutive days) so I paint fast, and if it’s large painting I may be at it all day long. In the summer I paint until the light goes so that can be 9.30 pm. In the winter I can last until 5.30pm with artificial lights. Once I stop for tea I find it hard to psyche myself to go back to artificial light. Still, to make up for all that studio time, if the sun is out, I am off outside looking for new subject matter to work from. We have had weeks of overcast skies here in Wales so I have been well and truly chained to my easel. The painting is the easy part the selling is the really tough job and me and my husband also spend a lot of time posting paintings to social media and online galleries and most importantly of all, our own website. It’ll a full-time job and those sales don’t come at a regular pace. It’s usually feast or famine (as it is for all self-employed people) obviously, I prefer “feast”! How about your photography? Is that a full-time endeavour or do you have some other pay-the-bills job too?
Your lighting tecnique is reminiscent of the Dutch masters.They only painted by natural light & your style is reminiscent of the Group Of Seven. If you were up in Northern Ontario on the Canadian Shield area,I bet your paintings would look close to the group of seven.
My photography doesn’t pay.I’ve found people are buying less & less because they now can take their own.Everyone is discovering they are a great photographer because of the digital camera. Shots I was selling for hundreds back in the eighties/nineties are now $50. Market is flooded with these weekend camera warriors.
I’m sorry to hear that Wayne, because I’d be amazed if you could take those sorts of incredible photos you take without specialist equipment (and a lot of patience). It’s a brutal business. On a different point, I’ve always liked the work of the Group of Seven. I like the sense of the wilderness in their work. Its a large part of the reason I love Donegal in the north of the Republic of Ireland, it’s beautiful wilderness.
I once made a pilgrimage to Canoe lake in Algonquin Park. I wanted to see where Tom Thompson lived/painted & died.
His death was tragic & I strongly suspect suspicious. One does not drown with cord wrapped around their feet. I think he had a fight with another male & was accidentally killed.I think that fellow tried to get rid of the body in Canoe lake by weighing it down.Thats what the cord was for.
Ah, I never quite understood why there was a mystery surrounding his death but that explains it. A great loss.
Thompson died because of a blow to the head that created a hole near his temple. It was speculated the two men fought because of common a love interest.
It doesn’t sound accidental at all, a hole in his head and feet bound up! Yes, a “fight” would be a generous interpretation. So his love rival followed him out to the wilds of Canada to have an argument with him? Hmmm.
Someone wrote a book about “the incident”. They gave the scenario that this fight happened inside.The woman & two males were in a place with a fireplace.Thompson fought this fellow & was knocked to the ground hitting his head upon something by the fireplace,there by killing him.
Of course this is speculation after the fact.The body was buried before the Coroner could attend. His over turned canoe was found first.He was more a woodsman than I am.I think the death was accidental but the cover up intentional.
Thank you for that potted history, Wayne.
I’m sorry to hear that Wayne, because I’d be amazed if you could take those sorts of incredible photos you take without specialist equipment (and a lot of patience). It’s a brutal business. On a different point, I’ve always liked the work of the Group of Seven. I like the sense of the wilderness in their work. Its a large part of the reason I love Donegal in the north of the Republic of Ireland, it’s beautiful wilderness. BTW, I particularly love that vista stretched on the front page of your website by the way, the narrow photo with lots of islands and snowy peaks, where is that?
Thank you Emma,that is Tofino.I took that from on top of the water tower one cold snowy morning.It’s the best picture I’ve ever done. When people see it they say “OH yes I know that shot”.Many locals have it over their mantle.
You always have to make a special effort for a really good shot and that one is brilliant! Tofino is very beautiful!
You are very talented and also very productive! I am amazed at all the paintings you have sold.
Thank you, Hein.
Congratulations on a successful 2018 and may the new year bring many more well deserved sales! Your blog looks very nice as well. I’ve been having trouble leaving comments on some blogs for some reason, or I would leave more. Hope this one goes through. Happy New Year Emma!
Yes, it did. Thank you, Pam, and a Happy 2019 to you too!
[…] To be honest, I feel like there is so much I don’t know about Art marketing, but I did sell over 200 pieces, originals and prints last year and half of these were direct sales to collectors so […]