How to Survive Series: Curating the Artist Website

How to survive...doesn't that just cry out for dramatic music, ominous lighting, shadowy figures lurking around the corner?

It strikes right at that primal soft spot we all have - that something awful has happened. 

What, exactly, is that "awful" thing?

Oh.  Consumers aren't buying right now.  Yeah, seen that, done that.  During the 30 plus years I operated my own small business consumer spending went up and it went down.  During the up times, it was easy to get sloppy, to think you were offering such a fantastic service there was nothing you could do wrong.  In the slow times, you realized that just wasn't the case.  The "anybody can do this" folks dropped out, and the serious players changed their game.

Have you thought about changing your game?

In a recent on-line issue of Art Business News, I found a link to a round-table discussion of gallery owners - which you can listen to here.  There were many insights I found to be valuable and which can be applied to the way artists operate their businesses.

The first element that stood out in the round table gallery discussion was how important the quality of the art experience was for a successful client/gallery/artist relationship.    As a society, we are so inundated with messages, one could argue that only the most unique messages, delivered in a way that excites the imagination and enhances the consumer's personal experience are the ones that get through.  

So I asked myself - was I delivering a unique experience to the visitors who came to my websites?

At the same time I was pondering this question I was also researching ways to curate a solo show, and it occurred to me - websites were the equivalent of an on-line solo show.

Next question - was my "show" a jumble of everything I'd created during the past three years, or was there some logic or story telling behind it?

I wasn't all that impressed with my answers to those questions, so I decided to start the curating process at Sue Smith Fine Art.  In the process, I discovered that it's more than just arranging the order of your images.

At Fine Art Studio Online, I have a generous comment field  on the home page and I started there, writing a brief intro that gives the visitor a sense of the Artist Statement and emotion behind the work.  I remembered how I once based a solo show around the work of Annie Dillard, and tried to engage the viewer in a similar manner, using written word, pulling the viewer in to the emotional experience.  I have discovered that this process can't be rushed.  I will also be rewriting my artist statement, and perhaps even post an essay on the site before I move on to curate my other site.

In the round table discussion, gallery owners continually  emphasized creating the experience of quality, seeing a major competitor in the Big Box stores offering mediocre art.  As an artist, I believe it's in my best interests to make sure that I am also focused on providing the Art Experience in every way that I can.

Take a look at your own website.  Does it need a curating makeover?

Or are you just another mini-me version of those Big Box stores?

Comments

[Lori Landis]

Thanks Sue, We are blessed in this day and age to have wonderful information like your blog come to us through the internet. Looking at what we put out there takes new eyes and an openiness to really see. I now see some things that need to be changed on my website that I didn't see before.

[Bill Trikojus]

Good advice. Websites are all too often a low priority for businesses but in an age where the internet is the first place people go to find information, this is an attitude that needs to change. An up to date, well organised website is a vital marketing tool for any business - particularly artists who are creating new work all the time and need to ensure that the latest work doesn't get lost in the jungle of old content.

Thanks

[vivien]

I did this - ummmm no the truth is Katherine did this for me! - for my site after her pointing out that it looked like a scrapbook with things stuck in loosely in a zillion categories and too much stuff as well.

Like you, I looked at it and realised the truth of the statement!

[Jo-Ann Sanborn]

Your ideas are thoughtful, insightful, and right on track. The website is beautiful, and the opening page captures my interest. Thanks for dragging us all along as you search for the path of the future.

[Deborah Ross]

Thanks, Sue. This is certainly food for thought. I've had a blog for almost two years, but still haven't gotten a website up, thinking it not as important as the blog. Now I see that it has to be taken seriously and I've neglected an important showcase for my art. Thanks

[elizabeth seaver]

This is great information. Thanks for sharing. You've given us lots to think about and something to DO in these times.