![Marketing Art: A Fresh Approach [Official Guide]](https://sidearts.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Marketing-Art.png "Marketing Art: A Fresh Approach [Official Guide]")
The tactics needed for marketing art and elevating your creative practice are different for every person. A one-size-fits-all guide that runs through the usual art marketing, eCommerce, website, social media, email, legal, and contract strategies may offer helpful components, but isn’t applicable to everyone. This is because artists and crafters come from so many varieties of experience, socioeconomic backgrounds, disabilities, and adversities to overcome. Express your unique visual art practice with help from Side Arts’ representation and custom visual artist certified one-sheets.
Marketing Art: A Fresh Approach
- Understand your instincts
- Define your motivation
- Set positive goals
- Develop a process
- Scale your efforts
- Analyze your results
- Network for opportunities
1. Understand Your Instincts
What is common in all artists’ journeys is that you FEEL a certain way about implementing these strategies. This is something that CAN be managed and adapted to having a positive experience with marketing art.
So rather than talking about the latest social media strategy, let’s start talking about how you feel about using social media to promote your artwork. Whether you are a digital native or technophobe, your instincts are at the core of how you use platforms to promote your work.
Being a digital native may lend to being over-confident about the potential results. Being a technophobe may undervalue what can be accomplished. It’s best to try to be somewhere in between. Here, it helps to be rational:
- You don’t know what you can do until you try.
- Even the smallest results can be a step in the right direction.
- Be exact and truthful when measuring the results.
The most important step: Before you begin to try something new or view the results of something you have tried, 1) imagine a realistic positive result, 2) remind yourself to accept whatever the results are, and 3) commit to learning something from them. This will help put you in the right mindset to try the next positive step forward for your creative practice.
2. Define Your Motivation
The best question you can ask is, “Why?” It’s a question that children learn early. They are relentless with it! Their young minds are processing so much information. Ours are, too, although we often don’t have the patience or time to work through the reasons. It’s important to keep asking why.
The Five Whys
Ask yourself: Why do you want to create and sell your artwork? Then, ask why you gave that response, then ask why again, and again, and again. Ask yourself why five times to get to the heart of the matter. It’s challenging to be that honest with yourself, but you may discover something important that you hadn’t realized before. This can help inform your creative practice in new ways.
Why can be a tough question to answer. If you’re having trouble getting to the root of the matter, try reframing the question with “What…” Such as, “What is it about this type of art that inspires me.”
The Money Issue
I know. I know. We all want to make money. Some of us more than others, and that’s okay, that’s your right. The important thing to realize is that money is the by-product (rather than the purpose) of a transaction. The transaction is what is important. You have something and someone else sees the value in it. Therefore, the transaction is an item exchanged for validation. How much money is assigned to that validation is an abstract construct.
What Is Your Motivation?
Ask yourself: What do you have to offer and what type of validation are you seeking? It is important to know the answers to these questions so that you know what and when you have accomplished something. You’ll be able to state your accomplishments clearly.
3. Set Positive Goals
Goals are important because they help you understand the work you have accomplished and provide direction for your next steps. How often have you said to yourself, “I just don’t know what to do next?!” The first step in answering that question is looking back to what you have already done.
Try making a list first. Break the list into two columns. One column for things you have tried which have worked and another column for things that haven’t worked or yielded any results. Put this list somewhere you can see it every day. Make a commitment to stop doing things that you know don’t work and start doing more of what is working.
SMART Goals
SMART goals are defined as Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound. Focus first on things that are working (80% of your time) and then on new things that you have not tried before (20% of your time).
Examples:
- Send out two email newsletters within the next four weeks. Try Madmimi, Mailchimp, or Constant Contact. Focus each on a new piece of work with a description and call to action to purchase.
- Sign up for a social media platform which you are not currently using (i.e. Tiktok). Post four pieces of content within the next week and measure engagement.
- Review your Google Analytics account for your website. Identify the pages which have the most visits. Update and/or republish these pages with new or additional content within the next week.
- Increase your email list by 20% in the next 6 months.
- Increase your sales by 10% in the next 3 months.
Projected and Stretch Goals
For each goal (try only one at a time), set a projected and stretch goal.
Projected goals are those based on past data. For example, if you normally attain 5 new facebook followers a month, try changing how and when you post and see if you get 7 new followers each month for the next few months.
Stretch goals go beyond your average projections, but not too far (add 10%)! Using the same example as above, try for 10 new followers per month.
Compare Yourself To Yourself
It’s easy to look at others with massive followings and sales and become discouraged. Remind yourself that they started out with zero followers at one point. Rather than comparing yourself to others, look at what you have been able to accomplish. You might be surprised that the difference in results from this year to last are extraordinary compared to the results from five years ago.
Remember to celebrate the small victories. They add up! This might be a good opportunity to spend some time checking your feelings. Review what you have accomplished so far and how they relate to your motivation. Update your list of things you have tried. Having trouble getting motivated? Try these productivity tools.
4. Develop A Process
There is no set path for marketing art as a visual artist, but there is a standard journey for customers. For the purpose of this guide, customers may be clients, patrons, buyers, gallerists, curators, or commissioners.
Attract, Engage, Delight
To attract an audience, you’ll need to put yourself where they are. Everyone consumes information differently and has preferences as to how they want to be contacted. Most are best reached by email. But before you get their email address, you may need to publish content on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, or your own website.
Go where you think your audience is. If you paint, go where people expect paintings. If your paintings are about environmental issues, go where people expect to talk about environmental issues. Think broadly about your audience and their various preferences.
Engage with your audience. Educate them about why you do what you do and how you do it. This is more than a picture and one word description. There are so many ways to engage with your audience. Make a list that feels authentic to you and narrow that list down to three to five items. Use these consistently.
Artist engagement
- Show works in progress step by step
- Write a story and rationale for each piece made
- Do product reviews and demonstrations
- Film short videos of works of progress
- Studio selfies!
- Provide lifestyle stories, tell who you are outside the studio
Give your audience a delight that will have them sharing the experience with their friends. This may include:
- Personalized notes with each purchase
- Mini-print contests
- Fan appreciation give-aways
- Take your packaging to the next level
- Thank customers for at-home pictures of your work
Engagement Funnel
All of the above components fit within a art marketing engagement funnel. Think of it as a big letter “V” where the top is how customers find out about you and the bottom is making a sale. Not everyone gets all the way through the funnel. It is important that the top of the funnel is continuously fed with new people. Most funnels are structured from top to bottom like this:
- Social media – introduction
- Website – education
- Email – owned communication channel
- Purchase – validation
Once someone has gone through the funnel, they are likely to go through again. Encourage the process by acquiring testimonials and referrals. This provides additional content to promote and new people being fed into the top.
5. Scale Your Efforts
Once you know what is working, there are a number of ways in which you can increase your artwork marketing momentum. You may want to try repurposing content, paid media ads, and alternate art sales channels.
Repurpose content
Take the communication you have already developed and repackage it in a new way. These can be used for both engagement initiatives and value add sales applications.
- Create an ebook or art book out of your works in progress and final exhibit / at home images.
- Teach a class about your process
- Offer an instructional manual
- Offer special commissions based on current works
- Create monthly patron or student webinars
- Launch a podcast series (limited or on-going)
The key to success is using information and content that you already have with an established audience. They are likely to share with their networks and increase your visibility.
Paid media ads
Ads are most effective when they promote content that is already successful. Always point ads to your educational materials, rather than at a sales page. In turn, the educational material should offer a call to action that leads to your sales page. One way to think about this: “you have to ask me out on a date before you ask me to marry you.”
Value Add Applications For Marketing Art
You can obtain more information that informs your strategy of marketing art by participating in a variety of events. Getting live interaction directly from the source provides the best feedback. Remember that it is not just what they say, but what they do and how they do it that is important to recognize.
Other than direct art sales, consider participating in:
- Requests for proposals
- Grants
- Vendor events
- Platform sales
- Licensing
- Exhibitions
- Competition
Click here for more information on each of the art sales channels. You won’t know what works best unless you give it a try. Do what is best for your creative practice, time, budget, and community.
6. Analyze Your Results
Take a break, at least once a month, to look at some of the data you have gathered. You may learn something new about what works, when to do something, and who to focus on. It’s easy to look at the data and move on, but it’s more important to make a commitment to make the small changes it suggests.
If you have your own website, set up Google Analytics. It will help you understand what pages get the most traffic and where the traffic comes from. You can determine which pages to target for ads and which sources generate more leads.
Almost all social media platforms offer some analytic data on your account. On these accounts, it’s most important to make adjustments in terms of who is visiting and when.
When using email marketing platforms, like MadMimi, Mailchimp, and Constant Contact, keep track of how many people are on your list, what percent open your emails, and what percent click through from content in your emails to your links. Change the content and / or formatting of your emails based on the highest open and click through rates.
Remember to look back on data from a year or more back to see how much your creative practice has grown. Take a moment to reflect on how you feel about these changes. Are you comfortable with what you have done? Do you feel you need to be more proactive? It might be time to revisit your SMART goals, both projected and stretch. What, if anything, do you want to do differently? Make a commitment, write it down, and plan your changes.
7. Network For Opportunities
If you want your strategy for marketing art to elevate to the next level, then network for opportunities. Many artists have similar opportunities when it comes to setting up their creative practice. There are free website hosting services and website templates, social media platforms with analytics, Google Analytics data, Google suite for managing content, and scalable email marketing platforms. All of these are available and mostly accessible to artists and crafters equally.
Personal networks are unique to each individual. These relationships should be fostered with care. There are many ways to do so.
- Collect email addresses from anyone that seems interested in your artwork
- Connect with your contacts on LinkedIn
- Search for and connect with 2nd degree connections on LinkedIn that may have similar interests
- Volunteer at trade shows, exhibitions, and art and craft fairs
- Join a professional association in your field of interest
- Attend meet-ups
- Get Certified with Side Arts and join your local artist registries
Have a few high net worth contacts already? Ask them out for coffee once every six months. Set up a recurring reminder on Google calendar for each individual. Keep a few personal notes on each contact. Besides art, what are their other personal interests? You’ll have some easy talking points for each conversation. Ask how you can help them before asking for help yourself.
Marketing Art Strategy Conclusion
Try thinking about your strategy for marketing art as a process of deliberate practice. It’s not about doing the same thing on repeat, but understanding your feelings and motivations, focusing on SMART Goals, and making adaptations. That hard thing is sticking with something that may feel uncomfortable at first or making a change the data supports which goes against your preconceived notions. Small steps first.
Next Step
Are you ready to invest in yourself and showcase your artwork? Apply to become represented by Side Arts, a leading agency connecting artists with exhibition opportunities. With limited capacity and a rigorous jury review, Side Arts ensures that your work gets the attention it deserves. Click here to learn more about how Side Arts can elevate your art career and provide you with exciting opportunities to display your talent to a wider audience.
Take the leap and step into a world of endless possibilities for your artistic journey with Side Arts. Don’t miss out on this incredible chance to share your passion and creativity with the world. Apply now and open doors to a bright future as a recognized visual artist. Click here to apply.
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Calls for artists are indirect sales channels for your artwork. How frequently do you apply to calls for artists and for what type do you typically apply? Where have you had the most success in generating the most margin on sales?
Side Arts can help. Learn more with our official guide, Marketing Art: A Fresh Approach.
Calls for artists include
- Requests for proposals – Commissions for your artwork
- Grants – Funds that are available for the completion of a project or growth of a practice
- Vendor events – Sell your own artwork at a rental space
- Exhibition opportunities – Agents sell your artwork at a relatively high commission.
- Competitions – Compete with others for a limited number of prizes
It is helpful to think of them in terms of both direct and indirect sales channels as they relate to the margin on your artwork. In other words, where do you get the most money relative to your efforts.
Margin By Sales Channels
In direct sales, requests for proposals, and grants, you are typically setting the terms of engagement. You know the inputs and there are specific results expected.
Vendor events rank slightly lower. This is because you cover the costs of the booth rental fee. More importantly, it introduces more variables that are outside your control such as rain, advertising for the event, and the attendence levels.
Likewise, platform sales, such as Etsy and EBay introduce flat and variable fees for including your work on their sites. Although they offer extra promotion services, they come at higher prices. Therefore, promotion, which costs time and money, is on you.
When utilizing licencing, the burden of promotion is now on the vendor to whom you have licenced your work. Since they do all the promotion, they take a much higher commission which reduces your margin considerably.
Exhibitions work the same way as licencing. The burden of promotion and sales is on the gallerist or curator hosting the exhibition. If they are not offering promotion and sales support, then it is simply a pay-for-play vendor event. The purpose of participating in an exhibition is to take advantage of the organization’s exclusive buyer’s lists which should align with the type of artwork you offer.
Lastly, competitions offer the greatest risk and least margin for your time and effort. You have no control as to how many others are participating, there are often fees to participate, and there may only be one winner.
Conclusion
Before applying for a call for artists, think through how best it fits with your goals and the risk you are willing to take. Make sure you know quantitative answers to questions regarding promotion, buyer’s lists, and commission percentages.
Most artists looking to grow their professional network and sales opportunities apply to 10-15 calls for artists per year. The average cost of applying is $25-45.
Next Step
Are you ready to invest in yourself and showcase your artwork? Apply to become represented by Side Arts, a leading agency connecting artists with exhibition opportunities. With limited capacity and a rigorous jury review, Side Arts ensures that your work gets the attention it deserves. Click here to learn more about how Side Arts can elevate your art career and provide you with exciting opportunities to display your talent to a wider audience.
Take the leap and step into a world of endless possibilities for your artistic journey with Side Arts. Don’t miss out on this incredible chance to share your passion and creativity with the world. Apply now and open doors to a bright future as a recognized visual artist. Click here to apply.
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![Call For Artists Application Questions [What To Include]](https://sidearts.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/How-To-Guide.png "Call For Artists Application Questions [What To Include]")
When looking to promote calls for artists, it should include all relevant information needed for an artist to decide whether to apply for your opportunity as well as for you to make an informed selection. The call for artists application is how artists send their information to you, whether it is for an exhibition, vendor event, competition, request for proposal, or grant.
Applications should use webforms with the ability to upload images. Applications by email, mail, or in-person are difficult to track and often have inconsistent entries. Many types of webforms are free. There are several reasonably priced online juried application management services available.
Side Arts recommends webform providers such as Jotform, Gravity Forms, and Google Forms due to their simplicity and affordability. Depending on your needs, you may also consider using juried application managers such as Wufoo or WESTAF’s CaFE or Zapplication.
Basic Application Questions
- Name
- Address
- Phone number
- Website
- Artwork medium(s)
- Artwork description
- Artwork size
- Artwork price
- Image uploads (minimum of three)
Specific Call For Artists Questions
In order to better qualify your applicants, we recommend adding additional quantitative and qualitative fields (not all of which are relevant to every opportunity). These may include:
- Keywords that describe your artwork (up to five)
- Demographics (if they relate to the opportunity)
- Describe how your artwork is relevant to the artist opportunity
- Instagram account
- Instagram number of followers
- Total number of people in the artists’ email list
- eCommerce websites (i.e. etsy, zazzle, and so on)
- Business name (if applicable and incorporated)
- Resume (include exhibitions, vendor events, RFPs, and awars within the last three years)
- Is the artist exclusively represented by a gallery/agent (No/Yes, if so who)
- Any special accommodation requests?
- How did you find out about the opportunity?
- For RFPs, include mock-ups, if applicable
Keep your application questions short and concise. Start with the name, address, and demographics questions, then move on to the questions which are specific to the opportunity. Remember to enable an automated email that informs the applicant that their applicaiton has been received and what happens next so applicants understand the process.
Looking for more writing tips? Check out our official guide, How To Write A Call For Artists.
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[Side Arts Certified Sponsored Listing] Southern Tier Center for Emerging Artists (STCEA) announces a call for artists for an online art exhibition, All Creatures Great And Small: Animals In Art. This show celebrates our special bond with animals, whether at home or in the wild.
Click here for the application / registration
Enter by: 15 May 2024
All styles and mediums are welcome. Art containing wild animals in captivity (zoos, theme parks, animal shows) will not be accepted.
100% of All Creatures Great And Small exhibit proceeds benefit Chautauqua County Humane Society, the former home of STCEA’s paws-itively best staff member, Eliza Jane!
A Best in Show (cash prize) and Awards of Distinction will be awarded to the works of highest artistic merit based on technical skill, creativity, innovation, and adherence to theme. An Artists’ Choice and People’s Choice award will be selected based on popular vote.
STCEA provides a safe space for you to build creative confidence. Have your work evaluated through a competitive juried show process that is welcoming to art students, new and emerging artists, and seasoned artists alike. Having your work displayed in an international juried show is a great way to boost your artistic presence, increase sales, and build your exhibition portfolio for future show opportunities, gallery representation, or entrance to MFA programs – or just for fun and personal growth. Online exhibits are good for the environment and your pocketbook – you save shipping fees and artwork preparation costs as your work is professionally displayed in an online gallery with shareable links for your website and social media feeds. Plus, direct viewers to your online shop, where you’ll keep 100% of the proceeds for any artwork sold.
About Southern Tier Center for Emerging Artists
Southern Tier Center for Emerging Artists believes in art that does good and makes the world a better place. STCEA donates a portion of the proceeds from every exhibition to support local and national non-profits doing good work in the communities they serve. Needs addressed through the contributions from STCEA exhibits include food security and basic living needs, racial equity, environment and natural resources, substance abuse and mental health services, animal rights and care, refugee resettlement, music education, affordable housing, and health and human services.
For more information, contact southerntierartists@gmail.com
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[Side Arts Certified Sponsored Listing] Southern Tier Center for Emerging Artists (STCEA) announces a call for artists for an online art exhibition, Where The Heart Is: The Art Of Home.
This exhibit invites you to explore the artistic interpretations of home, offering a contemplative journey through the spaces, emotions, and memories that define our sense of belonging. From cozy living rooms to bustling kitchens, serene bedrooms to vibrant gardens, each artwork invites reflection on the roles these spaces play in shaping our identities, fostering connections, and capturing the warmth and nostalgia that home evokes.
Click here for the application / registration
Enter by: 15 April 2024
20% of the Where the Heart Is exhibit proceeds benefit Chautauqua County Habitat for Humanity, building self-reliance through affordable home ownership.
A Best in Show (cash prize) and Awards of Distinction will be awarded to the works of highest artistic merit based on technical skill, creativity, innovation, and adherence to theme. An Artists’ Choice and People’s Choice award will be selected based on popular vote.
STCEA provides a safe space for you to build creative confidence. Have your work evaluated through a competitive juried show process that is welcoming to art students, new and emerging artists, and seasoned artists alike. Having your work displayed in an international juried show is a great way to boost your artistic presence, increase sales, and build your exhibition portfolio for future show opportunities, gallery representation, or entrance to MFA programs – or just for fun and personal growth. Online exhibits are good for the environment and your pocketbook – you save shipping fees and artwork preparation costs as your work is professionally displayed in an online gallery with shareable links for your website and social media feeds. Plus, direct viewers to your online shop, where you’ll keep 100% of the proceeds for any artwork sold.
About Southern Tier Center for Emerging Artists
Southern Tier Center for Emerging Artists believes in art that does good and makes the world a better place. STCEA donates a portion of the proceeds from every exhibition to support local and national non-profits doing good work in the communities they serve. Needs addressed through the contributions from STCEA exhibits include food security and basic living needs, racial equity, environment and natural resources, substance abuse and mental health services, animal rights and care, refugee resettlement, music education, affordable housing, and health and human services.
For more information, contact southerntierartists@gmail.com
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[Side Arts Certified Sponsored Listing] Annmarie Sculpture Garden and Arts Center announces a call for artists to submit original artworks to POP! Art with Mass Appeal. This juried exhibition seeks to showcase artworks that capture the essence of, or provide commentary on, pop art’s evolution in the digital age. Artists are encouraged to delve into the vibrant world of popular media and consumer culture. Explore how it shapes and redefines our views on each other, society, and the world. From traditional pop art aesthetics, to internet memes, viral fame, music and television references, popular animation and illustration styles, and logos and icons, Annmarie Sculpture Garden and Arts Center invites artists to interpret this theme with creativity, imagination, satire, and/or a sense of humor.
Click here for the application / registration
Enter by: 10 March 2024
This show seeks art that embraces bold colors, dynamic compositions, and a graphic style that defines the heart of pop art. Whether through traditional mediums or digital formats, Annmarie Sculpture Garden and Arts Center is looking for artwork that visually resonates with the energy, intensity, and even the absurdity of contemporary popular culture.
POP! Art with Mass Appeal is open to all media. 2-D, 3-D, indoor, and outdoor artwork will be considered. Digital artists must provide all display equipment, but please be aware the gallery is full of windows and natural light. Projections don’t work well in the space. All work must be created within the last four years. Artists must be 18 years or older. Artists must be living and working in the United States.
POP! Art With Mass Appeal Artist Benefits
This exhibition will be open to the public in the Kay Daugherty Gallery of Annmarie Sculpture Garden and Arts Center from May 3, 2024, to September 22, 2024.
Artists have the opportunity to exhibit and sell work in the beautiful Kay Daugherty gallery. Exhibitions are promoted through social media, the gallery’s website, MSAC, and targeted advertisements. Foot traffic for galleries during the months this show will be on display averages 7,500 people.
Funding for shipping is avaliable via a scholarship application.
Three Juror awards are chosen with each exhibition. The Juror is Teri Towler, Director of Collections at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Gardens.
About Annmarie Sculpture Garden and Arts Center
Annmarie Sculpture Garden & Arts Center is located in scenic Solomons, Maryland, where the Patuxent River meets the Chesapeake Bay. The sculpture garden features a shady walking path that meanders through the woods past permanent and loaned sculpture, including over thirty works on loan from the Smithsonian Institution and the National Gallery of Art. Artists in the collection include: Antonio Tobias Mendez, Barbara Hepworth, Cesar, Robert Engman, Jean Arp, Kenneth Snelson and Fransisco Zuniga. Young guests can frolic in the Fairy Lolly Creative Play Space and explore the many trails, including the Tree-mendous Trail.
The award-winning Arts Building includes rotating exhibition space, the Nature Nook, the artLAB Creative Reuse Studio, the Annmarie Gift Shop, and lovely wrap around patios. Annmarie presents a variety of popular annual festivals, rotating exhibitions, family activities, and creative public programs. The Studio School offers classes for all ages and abilities – from pottery to dance – taught by professional artists and arts educators.
For more information, contact exhibits@annmariegarden.org
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Calls for artists are most effective when they include a single call to action. A call to action is what you want an artist or crafter to do. It can include clicking a link, opening a document, looking at a picture, or leaving a comment.
Side Arts includes a call to action after the first paragraph of text in each call for artists promotion. It is usually stated as, “Click here for the application / registration.”
Having clear language, consistent wording, and uncluttered formatting encourages qualified artists to apply.
- Clear language helps the artist understand what you want them to do. Be direct. For example, “Click here to apply.”
- Use consistent working. Avoid alternating the text in a single promotion between application, registration, order form, and so on.
- Uncluttered formatting draws the readers eye to what you want them to do. Avoid small links which may be easy to miss.
Call To Action Formatting Tips
The best format is a single hyperlink to an application near the top of the page. Buttons and alternate text formatting/colors are helpful as well. This is proven to be the clearest format and most effective for attracting qualified applicants.
Digital application links are preferred, rather than submissions via email addresses because they streamline the process for the artist and client.
There are many good reasons for using digital applications:
- A consistent format allows participants to be more comfortable which increases application rates of qualified artists.
- Click-through rates can be tracked, proving effectiveness.
- Unique content creation optimizes Google ranking and SEO, adding to a listing’s visibility.
Looking for more tips, check out Side Arts’ official guide, How To Write A Call For Artists.
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[Side Arts Certified Sponsored Listing] The McKinney Performing Arts Center (MPAC), with Arts and Music Guild volunteers, announces a call for artists for the Unique By Nature juried art competition and exhibition.
Click here for the application / registration
Enter by: 15 March 2024
One large scale artwork will be awarded a $6,000 Purchase Prize and become part of MPAC’s permanent, public art collection. The artwork must be 36″ on any dimension (not including the frame). No 3D artwork will be considered for the Purchase Prize. Based on received applications, 10 large scale pieces will be selected. The selected artwork will become a permanent part of the MPAC collection, which welcomes over 100k visitors annually.
Daisha Board of Daisha Board Gallery, Dallas, Texas, will identify the winning artwork in addition to judging the cash prize pieces.
About The McKinney Performing Arts Center
McKinney Performing Arts Center is considered the community arts center for McKinney, Texas. MPAC is home to two theater groups and hosts events, meetings, schools, concerts, city sessions, and church on the weekend. Since their Cultural District designation in 2018, the Center has added 12 public art pieces and continued to grow their collection. Visitors to Downtown McKinney not only get to shop, dine, and play, but also are exposed to great art and storytelling. The Center’s goal is to continue to provide a space for the community to share their experiences, culture, and ideas in the unique form of fine and performance art. The location and activity in the building has been a wonderful catalysis to the booming economy within Downtown McKinney, Texas.
For more information, contact jbrunell@mckinneytexas.org
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[Side Arts Certified Sponsored Listing] Superfine Art Fair announces a call for artists for the Superfine Art Fair San Francisco Spring 2024.
90 colorful and creative art professionals will be hand-picked to showcase with Superfine Art Fair, the most widespread artist-driven art fair in the United States, as it returns to the Bay Area for its most popular show of the year. New in 2024, Superfine takes over Fort Mason’s acclaimed waterfront space, the Gateway Pavilion, from March 21 – 24, 2024. Situated near the bustle of the Embarcadero with views of the Golden Gate Bridge, this 10,000+ square foot venue offers artists an immense scenic backdrop to display their works.
Click here for the application / registration
Enter by: 8 March 2024
Hurry! Only 20 booths remain. Reserve them before they sell out!
Superfine Art Fair San Francisco Artist Benefits
- No Commission: 100% of your art sales go directly to you.
- Expand Your Reach: Meet face-to-face with collectors; over 75% of visitors report coming to buy new art.
- Personalized Guidance: Expert advice, one-on-one guidance, educational sessions, and unlimited calls with Superfine’s co-founder.
- Diverse Community: 60-70% of Superfine artists identify as women, LGBTQ+, or disadvantaged minority groups.
- Exceptional Venues: High ceilings, warm atmospheres, well-trafficked, and located in the heart of the cities.
- Inclusive Infrastructure: All the logistical details are taken care of; just bring your art, hang it, and be present to sell.
“I met a lot of buyers, interested gallery owners and public art representatives as well as brilliant fellow artists, and the very juicy cherry on top was that I sold 13 pieces over the 4 days! On top of that I also sold 2 more pieces after the fair had finished thanks to being on the Superfine website. It felt like I was part of a great family and I can’t wait for the next one!” – Valerie Auersperg, Superfine San Francisco Exhibitor
“I view my participation in this fair as planting seeds. Sure, I made art sales, but more importantly, I made connections with people that are going to help me grow my business over the next year.” – Joseph Shook, Superfine San Francisco Exhibitor
About Superfine Art Fair
Superfine Art Fair started in 2015 to transform the way that art fairs are run. Since then, Superfine has evolved into the #1 artist driven art fair in the United States and has brought together artists from all over the world to show in cities like New York City, Los Angeles, Miami, San Francisco, Savannah, and Seattle. With 6 shows slated for 2024, artists won’t want to miss the opportunity to receive personalized advice and build up their art careers.
For more information, contact info@superfine.world
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[Side Arts Certified Sponsored Listing] A.I.R. Studio Paducah offers residencies of two weeks to three months year-round to visual artists, composers, architects, improvisational dancers, poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers. This residency affords residents the time and space for focused, independent work, the development of new ideas and experimentation.
Click here for the application / registration
Deadline: Rolling Admissions
Applications are currently being reviewed for 2025 residencies with limited dates still available in July and August 2024.
Residents are provided with a private efficiency apartment and studio space, located in the Lower Town Arts District of Paducah, Kentucky, six blocks from the Ohio River. The cost of the residency is $700 for two weeks and $1,000 per month.
Accessibility accommodations include an accessible front sidewalk and entrance, accessible studio doorways, and a walker-accessible bathroom with handrails.
A.I.R. Studio Paducah is a residency created to offer a quiet live and work environment to a wide spectrum of creatives. The studio is in walking distance of several area cultural centers, galleries, and performance venues as well as the tranquil banks of the Ohio River. The studio features a storefront multi-purpose display space that can be used to host exhibitions or special presentations during the residency. Visiting residents not only benefit from supportive interaction with the surrounding arts community, but also benefit from joining a network of past residents with whom they can exchange ideas and form lasting professional relationships.
“The time at AIR was creative, meditative, restorative. The two of us lived a simple life, made good food, came together for meals twice a day, walked to several nearby restaurants for a change of pace. The flexibility of the space was great for writing — we were able to pitch separate camps or share space to work together according to our needs. We used the front window, the dining table, miscellaneous perches that the lightweight folding tables made possible, and, thanks to a spell of marvelous Kentucky weather, the picnic table outside, where I greeted first light, enjoyed happy hour, and sometimes wrote well past dark. Twice a day we went walking around Lower Town, enjoying the wide streets, the lovely buildings, and the friendly greetings of strangers. I did not anticipate enjoying Paducah so much.” – Bill Beverly
About A.I.R. Studio Paducah
A.I.R. Studio Paducah, now in its 19th year as an artist residency program, is situated in the heart of the LowerTown Arts District, Paducah, Kentucky. Since 2004, creatives from around the country and abroad have passed through A.I.R. doors to make the most of the space and a stretch of undistracted time as envisioned by founder Alonzo Davis, himself an artist.
Drawn to Paducah by the Artist Relocation Program, Davis initially considered LowerTown as the location for a personal studio/retreat. Inspired, however, by working retreat experiences in California, Costa Rica, Connecticut, Wyoming, Colorado, and Virginia, Davis decided instead to establish an artist residency program. Not only would visiting artists benefit, but also interaction with a changing influx of creatives from outside could lend an additional dynamic to the evolving LowerTown community. An active residency program heightens the arts district visibility in the world of artist’s communities nationally and internationally.
For more information, contact airstudiopaducah@gmail.com