Exhibition - where to place prices and other info

[Pieter]

I guess it depends on the type of gallery. The photo only galleries I've been to have had it, but of course, it varies -- some show almost nothing, other than a small explanation sheet at the entrance -- that no one even notices.

The shows I have been to at galleries showing only photography don't display technical information beyond the print. If someone is interested, I'm sure a gallery director would be happy to inform them of all the details. But from what I can gather from the gallery people I know, collectors rarely ask or want to know, unless there's a compelling story to be told. That helps them make a sale. It seems the people who are interested in the camera, lens, film, etc are photographers--and they rarely buy anything.

[drj52]

For my last show, the gallery put a number next to each photo, and had a printed list with a thumbnail and details for each image. They put a stack of them at the entrance, and quite a few people at the reception made use of them. No technical info, just title, location, year, medium, and price.

[bob carnie]

We never put anything but the art itself on the walls and small pins which have 1 -40 numbers on them which matches the numbers and descriptions on small pdf 8.5 x 11 booklets ( that give all the info) that we produce for most shows, usually if someone is really interested they will pick up the book.

[Drew Wiley]

A separate price list. Who wants their gallery presentation looking like a grocery store with labels on everything? That might be OK for street fair venues or temporary group shows in a crowded shared rental wall space, but not for anything intended to be elegant. And tech info? - that gets distracting fast; if other photographers ask, those kinds of topics can be addressed in another manner. Most people don't care about those kinds of peripheral details. A gallery opening is not the place for "shop talk".

[Pieter]

A separate price list. Who wants their gallery presentation looking like a grocery store with labels on everything? That might be OK for street fair venues or temporary group shows in a crowded shared rental wall space, but not for anything intended to be elegant. And tech info? - that gets distracting fast; if other photographers ask, those kinds of topics can be addressed in another manner. Most people don't care about those kinds of peripheral details. A gallery opening is not the place for "shop talk".

Museums and galleries regularly have small wall labels next to the art on the walls. A line with edition information and price doesn't make it look less "elegant" or like a grocery store. People rifling through price lists can be annoying, blocking the art on the walls, especially during a crowded opening.

[jnantz]

We never put anything but the art itself on the walls and small pins which have 1 -40 numbers on them which matches the numbers and descriptions on small pdf 8.5 x 11 booklets ( that give all the info) that we produce for most shows, usually if someone is really interested they will pick up the book.

Exactly

[Drew Wiley]

What a number of "galleries" do looks downright hokey to me. If they have any respect for an artist or photographer at all, they should allow them to have a significant say in how their own work is presented. I've never seen people "rifling through price lists". If they want a piece, they want it,
and will ask the price. Just beware of billionaires - they haggle and try to pay the least they can.

[Corran]

If they want a piece, they want it,
and will ask the price.

In my experience and what I've heard from other artists I am friends with: having prices visible is conducive to sales. For those not wealthy, it removes the awkwardness of having to ask for a price, which they expect to be more than they can pay when not advertised, and for those well off, they don't care anyway and will just say "I'll take it."

I have had the opportunity to look at original Adams, Weston, Mann, etc. prints straight from a portfolio box at a high-end gallery in Atlanta, and they were not sheepish about the prices, some of which were getting up towards what I make in a year. From what I've seen, if prices are not really shown or talked about, then rent is paid by the artists who are showing their work and likely not many sales are made or expected. If the rent comes from commissioned sales, well then they need to make the sale, and will have prices ready.

[jp]

If you can fit it all on a sheet of paper both sides with your or the gallery contact info, have a stack of them and people can take them home. it would be like having an exhibit catalog for a larger exhibit. You can put the PDF of that document on your or the gallery's website if people need to know what's in it.

[Drew Wiley]

There are all kinds of potential venues. In many of them, the photographer or painter is likely to lose money after all the expenses and commission are deducted; but they are willing to go down that road just to get public exposure. Then at the other extreme, you have public auctions of known collectible commodities, which behave quite differently, and with the auctioneer covering most of the expenses. For most of us, common sense lies somewhere in between those two extremes.

I personally like a high-end presentation, capable of attracting serious buyers. Even did all my own framing. Too old now to want to fuss with gallery gigs anymore; but I certainly learned a lot in my time. I broke even on my shows the first 20 minutes, and then most of the profit came within the first week thereafter. Many of the sales went to other photographers, including one whose last name was W. Then there were a lot of trophy wives of local billionaires, who were nice and didn't haggle like their filthy rich husbands. Some eccentrics too - the gallery director almost threw out a filthy smelly guy in tattered clothing who wandered in, until he pulled out a wad of 20 thousand-dollar bills from his pocket, and counted off enough for six print, as I recall (he certainly didn't spend all 20); his Rolls Royce was parked around the corner. That was all interesting. But I got more satisfaction simply selling ordinary people prints at prices they could realistically afford, even if my net profit was minimal. It's all about the shared visual experience. There are easier ways to make money.

I had the advantage of putting together several high-end showrooms myself, along with their pricing strategies. My own gallery Rep had a flip-flop career bouncing back and forth between museum positions specializing in introducing Asian Modernist paintings to US audiences, and his own need for a more tactile woodworking career catering to local Tech gazoolianaire houses, furniture, and mega-yachts. There is some amazing talent in this area, and many of them have become lifetime friends. Thinking outside the box comes with the territory.