Art Matters: Illuminating Contemporary ArtShepparton Art Museum2015

LECTURE 6: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW AS AN ARTIST(BUT WERE AFRAID TO ASK)

“Melbourne Portraits”, Ala Champfest, Issue 7, 2013, p.5

Philippe Parreno and Rirkrit Tiravanija, Untitled (2005)

(A set of puppets in the likeness of artist-curators Liam Gillick, Pierre Huyghe,Hans-Ulrich Obrist, Philippe Parreno and Rirkrit Tiravanija)

WHY DO WE NEED CURATORS?

Curator, Brown University, date unknown

Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev, global independent curatorCurator Documenta, 2013

Christo and Jeanne-Claude Wrapped Floors and Stairways and Covered Windows,

Museum Würth, Künzelsau, Germany, 1994-95

WHY WORK WITH A CURATOR?

Exhibition opening, Centre for Contemporary Photography, Fitzroy

How do you curate your work?

Taken from the Arts Council of Britain publicationTaste Buds: How to cultivate the art market, October 2004, p.6

ParaSite Art Space, Hong Kong

Artist Run Initiatives (ARIs)

Rose Street Artist Markets, Melbourne

Art Market Stalls

DanielVonSturmer.com

Artist Website

Tony Garafilakis at Meyers Place Bar

Retail Outlets

Craft Victoria Shop

Regional and Public Galleries

Justin Andrews installing atShepparton Art Museum

Anna Schwartz Gallery, Melbourne

Commercial Galleries

Approaching Commercial Galleries

• Prepare a submission, including:

• A letter of introduction and contact details• A CD of images and/or hardcopies• Follow up with an email to ensure the

material was received• Make an appointment to meet with gallery

staff if you have not been rebuffed

The Elevator Statement

A 15-20 second summary of your art practice

What to include in a database

• It can be as simple as an Excel spreadsheet or a list in Word

• Include:• Name• Position• Organisation• Address• Suburb• State• Postcode• Phone number• Email• Category (eg. artist, curator, media, gallery director, collectors

etc) • Notes

Networking

• About connecting with relevant people in your field

• Prepare an introduction

• Consider using a business card

• Follow up with people you have met

Marketing’s Six P’s

• Product: end product and formal product• Price: asking price and market price• Place: where people can access the product• Promotion: how the work gets out there• People: not the clients – you and your team/people• Process: how you do what you do

Marketing strategies: questions to consider

• What is your objective?• Who is your target audience/audiences?• How are you going to reach them?• What is your timeframe?• What outcome are you after?• What is your budget?

The Media Release

• Start with an attention grabbing headline• Keep it to under one A4 page• Include all vital information in the first paragraph• Use 10-12 point font and double spacing• Keep sentences short and avoid jargon• Use a quote• Spellcheck and proofread!• Acknowledge funding received or other support• Include a small image file of the work• Follow up with a call or email

• Make sure you have all the information on hand• Remember: journos often receive 100 media releases a week

• Always thank journos for any coverage

Documentation of Patricia Piccinini, Still life with stem cells, 2002

Documentation

Thomas Demand, Archive, 1995

Archiving

Andy Warhol in The Factory

Ideas for space or time pressed artists

• Devote 30 minutes a day to some form of art practice• Conceptual development• Taking photographs• Writing• Sketching• Creating a task or proposition to fulfill

• See an exhibition• Go to an opening• Meet with another artist or curator

New York photographer Ryan McGinley editing his work

Leonardo Di Vinci, La Jaconde (Mona Lisa), 1503-1506

Celebrities in front of the Mona Lisa(Clockwise from top left: Camilla, Eminem, P Diddy and Kim Kardashian)

Natasha Bieniek, October,oil on wood, 4 x 5cm, 2010

“Enlargements don’t just clarify what we glimpse, they bring out new structural formations in matter”

Walter BenjaminThe work of art in the age of mechanical reproduction, 1936, p.29

New York photographer Ryan McGinley editing his work

What is your work about?

10 Tips for Success1. Visualise succeeding at your goals2. Get regular reviews on your work from your peers3. Review your goals on a regular basis4. Maintain your support material/documentation5. Thank people who help you6. Be creative7. Travel and explore8. Make art donations9. Know the key players10. Read trade journals/magazines

-New York Foundation for the Arts

James Mills, Everything Must Go!, 2008