London Artist
SMOBLES SCULPTURE NUMBER 04
Branded the runt of the litter by his artistic siblings, this little fella still loves the most. He will always wear his heart on the outside. His birthmark is a symbol for all middle children, runts of any family to be proud and stand tall. This charming and loving...
One-Off Takona Branded Hangers and Sunglasses
These original spray-painted hangers will definitely complement Brighton's Instagram's @takona_official t-shirts brand don't you think? I have also designed a one of one pair of bespoke fashion Takona themed sunglasses too! According to Lewis, Brighton based owner of...
SWAG IN THE CITY – Urban Graffiti Canvas
SWAG IN THE CITY - When spray paint meets up for some random pen action. Sticks and stones don't have to break bones. backgrounds The background on this canvas was made up using numerous coloured spray paints and blended together using various techniques I think gives...
London Art and Artists
London has many well-established and talented artists and this can make it very difficult for newcomers to get their art into a gallery. London galleries have to have art in their galleries that give them a good return on investment, especially as rents are extremely high. A gallery taking on a piece of art from an unknown artist in London just wouldn’t pay the bills! It can be hard to understand rejection from galleries unless you look at it from a pair of commercial eyes, they probably like your art but buyers of art often are looking at the investment opportunity and resale value later down the line. Why would they sell your art for thousands if the gallery can get millions for something like a Banksy piece instead?!
The beauty of having your art in a gallery is they know exactly how to display your work and they have a client base to sell it to as well. Try going outside of the main city of London, going a few counties away can be the difference between a yes or no to taking on your work.
New Artist Challenges
When I started in the art world, I decided to use the power of the internet to reach what I believed would be an even bigger audience than many galleries could offer me, especially for the ones without much authority outside of the town their gallery is situated in. I work hard to promote my brand.
To be a good artist, you have to be creative and original, it is the same for promoting yourself. After all, you found this page!
Can you make a living from your art outside of a gallery?
I believe artists can potentially make more money outside of the gallery if they use their initiative and have something to offer a buyer or collector. Remember, not everyone buys art because they want to hang it on their wall. The internet, especially now with social media, is great for promoting yourself and your art, many artists don’t even exhibit in a gallery and use YouTube, Instagram and Facebook to become well known. I used all the tools available to me when I built my art portfolio and so I now have buyers of art come to me directly when they see something they like. This puts more money in my pocket, takes less out of the buyers pocket, it’s a win-win if there is no middle man like a gallery
This doesn’t mean you cannot enjoy the excitement of showing your work in a gallery. Try and build a business relationship with the owner of galleries because you can help each reach success.
Visiting London Galleries.
Most galleries in London you will not just be able to pop into like the ones in Brighton or Manchester. This is due to the high value of some of the art pieces (millions), they are very much by appointment only, especially where Banksy sells his paintings. Always check by visiting the gallery websites.