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THE ART OF SELF-PROMOTION
THE ABILITY TO MARKET ONE'S WORK IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A HOBBY AND A CAREER BY BARNEY DAVEY
F 50
or many artists, the idea of self-promotion is something to dread, comparable to public speaking on the list of tasks they'd rather avoid. Many artists fear that
too much self-promotion could cause them to lose cred- ibility as a serious artist. T ose artists couldn't be more wrong. An artist's success
is directly related to actively getting his
or her work to the market via direct sell- ing, advertising, sales promotions, direct marketing, Websites, blogs and public- ity. T ere are no rules about using all of these options, but failing to use enough of them is reason to fail. Here are a few facts about the all-important task of selling yourself.
FACT: WITHOUT MARKETING AND PROMOTION, AN ARTIST HAS A PLEASANT HOBBY
While fi ne art can be most compel-
ling, with undeniable natural beauty and mystique, it does not sell itself. Without eff ective marketing eff orts to shine a
"WE MAY ROOT FOR THE UNDERDOG, BUT WE BUY FROM THE WINNERS."
MARCH/APRIL 2012