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Dear Art Lover, This is the final Part 4 of 4 in a series called “A Business of Art”. You can read the previous parts here. Onto… A Business of Art, Part 4 of 4: Align With Math Inadvertently, in July through October, I’d aligned against math. I’d not assumed the 70% acceptance rate that I was seeing in juried shows. The investments became losses which were substantial. The Holiday Sale was born to offset some of those losses, but perhaps the greatest value to come out of this experience was the learning therein. First - I learned that my work can gain entry to shows, almost any media, scale or subject. I didn’t just enter watercolor shows, I entered, as mentioned, everything I could - and this diversity of work was accepted percentage-wise (I love observing the math) with an even distribution based on scale, media, and subject. I entered and showed in so many different venues and on such tight turnarounds that I didn’t even bother to share the vast majority of places my work could be seen. If you’re curious, feel free to browse my CV, at least I got the 2023 exhibition history filled out. Second, I learned that to be accepted into a show, even to win an award at a show, is no guarantee of selling work. I learned that entering shows in this way does not sell my work, at all, and that to lower the exhibition pricing beyond what I was asking for would not actually turn the math in my favor - it would perhaps generate more sales, but at a loss, only. Third, I leaned that when it comes to media-specific shows, or process-specific shows, such as “watercolor” for the media, or “plein air” for the process, the likelihood of one of my pieces meeting those criteria gaining entry into the show was high, as was the likelihood of that piece winning an award, more often than not, first place. Fourth… I learned that winning an award (even if it comes with a cash prize!) is, still, no increase (so far out of many awards) in the chances of that work selling. Even if I’m wrong and someone, somewhere is currently buying one of my award-winning watercolors from a gallery, we’re look at a 9% chance, less than one-in-ten. So, if the point of the campaign to show work was to have work shown - crazy success. If the point of showing work is to sell work - so far a statistically intact, spotless failure. If the point was to win awards, or feel some kind of validation, fine, awards won, but art is not a competition to me. I don’t even know any other artist pursuing the same projects in the same ways - we each have our path. If winning awards is supposed to sell work? Sorry to disappoint, turns out that has no bearing, so far. However… if there could exist a world where messages like the ones included in these emails could reach a broader audience, an audience who considers the value of investing in art, and the artist themselves is responsible for all benefits from the sale of their work to that audience, there is not only hope, but mathematical certainty in productive sustainability (money). With this in mind, I ask you to share these emails and my work with anyone you believe would dig it. Beyond that, if you are feeling superhuman, just send me your whole contact list.* In the meantime, I’ll be painting and staying in touch, while develop new ways in 2024 to expand the number of people who are aware of my work. *just kidding… but seriously. — Thus concludes “A Business of Art, "Part 4 of 4: Align With Math” As ever, if you haven’t already, sign up for email newsletters on my website, and encourage anyone you think would enjoy them to as well. You can read this complete four-part series and many other newsletters in my Newsletter archive, here. Cheers, David
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