Last summer I had the good fortune to meet Amy Lombardo. She is the gallery director at TAG, a cooperative gallery at Bergamot Station in Santa Monica. I told her about my quest to gather and share professional/career information for artists seeking gallery representation. She was gracious enough to speak with me about TAG as well as her experiences dealing with artists. I found it to be a very interesting and illuminating conversation. Hopefully you will too...
Kim Seieroe-Wilson - What is the best way for an artist to approach a co-op gallery?
Amy Lombardo - Basic due diligence. The artist needs to get to know the gallery, come to the events, find out what the gallery is about, talk to the artists since that is whom they will be working with. The artist will need to be known by the gallery and the member artists if they are seeking representation. This is like the 1st date phase. The artist needs to know if the gallery is a fit for them as well as if they are a fit for the gallery. 2nd phase, the artist should ask the director or co-op president for a formal application. I also would encourage any artist to take a public speaking course and learn how to write and communicate. Never underestimate the importance of social skills. A big frustration is when artists don’t do their homework. Cold calling is a turn off. Artists should email or find out what the gallery is about first before making contact with them. I’ve seen artists spend a lot of money on beautiful portfolios that turn out to be a waste of time because the artist lives out of state and does not realize we are a collective and the artist needs to live locally.
KW- Is having a website very important?
AL- Very. It’s not just about the art but also about the entire presentation, “all art.” An artist needs to show they are engaged across the board.
KW- How important is a history of showing work and the importance of where it was shown?
AL - At a co-op, it is not too important but it isn’t going to hurt. It is helpful to see they have a body of work. We want to see you have a consistency. It shows you can catalog and show your work.
KW - Once the gallery represents an artist, what physical assistance is provided to them?
AL - Since the artists work at the gallery, they help with the reception. The gallery will assist with shipping and selling work, announcements and Fine Art and Liability insurance. The artist does the framing. Artists are permitted to store art at the gallery in case a client is interested in seeing more of that artist’s work. The artist’s portfolios are also kept on hand at the gallery.
KW - What are some of the questions an artist should ask and be expected to answer when dealing with your gallery?
AL - They need to learn what their responsibilities are, what art can and can’t be shown, how work needs to be hung (for example, the specific amount of space between work), how much the dues are and what the bylaws are. At TAG, each artist is guaranteed one month per year to show his or her work. If they decide to pass a year and not hang, the Board would need to approve the exception.
KW - What are the common mistakes artists make when dealing with your gallery?
AL - Number one is unprofessionalism and lack of interpersonal skills. I see poorly written artist statements and resumes full of typos, misspelled words and grammatical errors. Artists need to learn how to use a computer and familiarize themselves with the technology and terminology.
Number two is being too obsessed about selling their work – they aren’t coming from an authentic place. They can come on too strongly with potential clients. The best sales pitch is to ask the clients about themselves. This will personalize the experience and will endear the client to the work.
Number three is not being afraid to take risks outside of their actual art. Artists need to be able to talk about their work and be clear on what their intentions are.
KW - What are the initial fees and monthly dues an artist should expect to pay when dealing with a co-op gallery?
AL - Every cooperative is different depending on the business model and costs. Annual costs could be in the ballpark of $2500 per year; often this can be made in installments. Individuals will also have to make a time investment of a certain amount of hours served at the gallery to help in the running of the business.
KW - At a cooperative, what percentage of sales commission goes to the artist and what percentage to the gallery?
AL - Again, this can vary greatly, but the commission taken is usually a lot lower at a co-op than a regular gallery. Assume a regular gallery is about 50% commission. A co-op might be as low as 20% commission to the gallery.
KW - Could you share any additional information specifically related to a collective gallery?
AL - The nature of a collective gallery is the artists are directly involved with the operation of the gallery, which makes it a great learning ground. They have to work receptions, which enables them to talk to and learn from other artists as well as become more involved with their community. When an artist has a show, they will present their work to the other member artists. This gives them the experience of talking about their work as well as the benefit of receiving feedback. A collective gallery offers more freedom than a private gallery in the sense that the artist has a say of what work will be shown, where a private gallery will dictate those decisions.
Some collectives have an unlimited amount of artists, which will restrict the amount of exposure for each artist. TAG has a limited amount of artists represented. We have a maximum of 40 spots. Each artist is guaranteed to show one month per year. They will most likely be showing with one or two other artists.
If there are available artist openings, TAG accepts applications once per year. An interested artist will need to submit a resume, an artist statement and a CD of 12 images. We ask that the images not be sent over email. There is a small fee to apply. Since artists are part owners, there is a yearly membership fee. Since it does cost money to be a member, co-op galleries tend to hit mid-career artists because they are more likely to have more expendable income rather that emerging artists.
Also, each quarter, TAG offers enrichment seminars for the artists. Issues covered include working with VIP clients, how to catalog your work, using Facebook, Press Release 101 and how to talk about and promote each other’s art.
You can check out TAG's website at:
http://www.taggallery.net/
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