In the past decade, emerging artists have really begun to branch out of the traditional gallery setting for displaying their art. Instead, they have sought out alternatives exhibition venues. Often, an exhibition venue is as close as the nearest place to get a cup of Joe. Yes, coffee shops are one of the best places to show your art.

Exhibiting at coffee shops has a lot of advantages that galleries do not. Foremost, a coffee shop attracts a much more diverse range of clientele than a gallery. In a single coffee shop, you can often find students, businesspeople, housewives, senior citizens, blue-collar workers, a few bums, and a range of ethnicities, ages, and backgrounds. Rarely will an art gallery attract all these people. Further, even the people who do like to attend gallery shows cannot always do so. Galleries keep odd hours which are not agreeable to most. With a coffee shop, there is a much higher likelihood that interested parties will have the opportunity to see your artwork.

Many artists reject the idea of coffee shop art exhibitions because they feel that it will destroy their reputation as a serious artist. However, it is unlikely that any collector is going to hold it against you that you had an exhibit in a local coffee shop, not just in esteemed galleries. In most cases, the coffee shop exhibitions serve as a stepping stone to getting gallery shows. By gaining local exposure and building up a name for oneself, an artist is more likely to be offered shows and have better attendance when they occur.

Coffee shop art exhibits are a symbiotic relationship between the shop owner and artist. The artist gets exposure and change to sell his/her work. The shop owner gets free work to put in the shop and also builds up a reputation for supporting the local arts scene. Some coffee shop owners will take a percentage of any sales that occur through the shop exhibition. However, artists are in a much better place to bargain about what this commission percentage will be – something which is not always possible with galleries.

If you are an artist looking for exposure, it is important to realize that coffee shops are not going to put up a call for artists. If you want a coffee shop show, just find a coffee shop that you like and ask for a show.

The amount of galleries who charge artists for exhibitions has been steadily increasing over the past few years. In many cases, these galleries charge fees to cover their own expenses so they don’t have to rely solely on sales commissions to survive as a business. However, there are plenty of unscrupulous galleries who prey on desperate artists and profit directly from the so-called exhibition expense fees.

Successful galleries do not need to charge artists for exhibiting. They utilize good business practices so they can be sure to make a profit from the show or at least build up a good reputation for themselves for exhibiting your work. Yet, there are some cases in which you may want to pay for an exhibition. For example, there are several large art fairs which charge for a booth. Some of these fairs may attract thousands of visitors. The sales you make could outweigh any expenses. Further, they could provide great exposure for furthering your career.

Before you pay for an exhibition, it is vital that you take some time to do research in order to determine whether the show will be worth the investment. Do not pay for an exhibition until you have visited the gallery several times throughout the year! Also, you will want to investigate the gallery with the Better Business Bureau to see if it has any complaints against it.

Here are some of the questions you should ask of the gallery or investigate before paying for an exhibition:

• Is there a contract? And does the contract protect your rights or just the rights of the gallery?
• Do the gallery owners act respectfully towards you and are they willing to provide you with all the information you ask?
• When looking through past shows, is the quality of exhibitions consistent? Were the exhibitions presented in a professional manner with quality lighting and arrangements?
• What promotional materials are covered for your exhibit? How much of the fee goes towards these materials?
• How successful have their past shows been in terms of sales?
• Are past artists happy with the gallery? Have any of the artists remained with the gallery and, if so, for how long? Is the gallery willing to give you the contact information of their past/current artists so you can ask them questions?
• Will the gallery proactively work to sell your artwork (such as through contacting collectors, advertisements, mail, or networking) or will they rely solely on gallery visitors?

• What artwork do you want to ship?
• From and to where is the artwork being shipped?
• Who will be handling the work while it is being shipped?
• How long will the shipping process take?

Your shipping needs must address all of these questions in order to insure that your artwork arrives safely and intact.

1. Packing the Artwork

The type of artwork being shipped will determine the materials which you must use. If it is a very fragile sculpture, for example, you can expect to use padded boxes with plenty of packing foam or other protective materials. Some of the most basic materials needed for packing artwork include: bubble wrap, cardboard boxes, foam core, foam packing nuts, foam boards, glassine paper, crates, plastic sheets, packing tape, and tissue paper.

2. From and to locations

The distance that your artwork is traveling will partially determine the mode of transportation you use. If you are just bringing a painting from your studio to a gallery around the corner, then you may be able to carry it by hand. However, if the object is very heavy, then you may want to hire professional art handlers for the job. If you are shipping an artwork overseas, then you must decide on which method best will accommodate the artwork so it arrives safely. Considering the distance of the journey will also help you get an idea of how much insurance you need for transport. Keep in mind that accidents can happen in transport no matter how short the journey. Always insure works for their full amount!

Don’t forget to factor in the weather differences of your starting and end destinations. You should make sure your artwork is protected against humidity, heat, or other elements.

Some useful links:

• https://www.usps.com/
• http://www.fedex.com/us/services/customcritical/markets_industries/art.html
• http://www.artexfas.com/services/
• http://www.dhl-usa.com/en/express/shipping/shipping_advice/packaging_tips.html

3. Who will handle the work

Are you or an assistant going to be personally transporting the work? Or do you have to rely on an unknown person in the postal service? If you are not handling the artwork yourself during shipping, assume that the person in charge has no idea what you are shipping and will treat it roughly. Imagine the shipping container getting thrown onto conveyor belts, stacked amongst hundreds of other objects, and enduring various weather conditions.

Fragile or valuable objects going long distances are often best handled by professionals who specialize in shipping art. They are more expensive than a standard postal service but are more secure.

4. The length of the shipping process

If you need a fast delivery of an artwork, it is going to cost more than standard shipping. Aside from the costs, the length of the shipping can affect the work’s integrity. For example, if your work is going to be boxed inside a crate in a humid environment for a month while on a ship overseas, it could sustain serious damage. The longer the journey, the more precaution you will have to take to protect the work from the elements.

You must pay taxes on all income, whether through sale of your art or from a regular job. Do keep in mind that you can deduct many of the expenses associated with the art sale, like material costs, transportation, and your studio space.

I sold an artwork through a gallery. Do I pay taxes on the full price or the price after commission?

You will pay taxes on the full price of the artwork but deduct the commission fee on your tax return form.

My studio is within my house which I pay a mortgage on. Can I still claim my house as a deduction on my tax forms?

If your studio is at home, then you can deduct part of the home costs as business expenses. The way that you determine that amount of the deduction is by calculating the percent of the square feet which is used for business purposes only.

I have received a grant/award. Do I have to pay taxes on it?

Aside from scholarships for educational degrees, all grants, awards and other financial support is taxable. Generally, the organization giving the grant will have outlined tax information within the grant.

My art is not selling. Can I get unemployment as an artist?

Artists are independent contractors and not entitled to unemployment benefits. You can only get unemployment benefits if you have been laid off by an employer.

How do taxes work for art assistants?

If you have an assistant, then you should establish a separate account for payroll. This will include social security and unemployment taxes on the Federal and State level. If you and your assistant decide to hold tax fees from the assistant’s regular pay, then you must record this so they can be included in the government’s tax returns every quarter or year.

What costs are deductable as an artist?

All costs related to your business as an artist are deductable on your tax forms. This can include transportation of art, supplies (all tools, materials, model costs, etc), studio expenses, travel costs, and healthcare, to name just a few. You can also deduct 50% of entertainment costs as they relate to your career as an artist, such as the cost of food when hosting an open studio event. Always keep receipts of all expenses.

Should I use an accountant?

It depends. An accountant can help you as an artist because he/she will free up your time and accountants can also pinpoint deductions you may have overlooked. However, accountants can be expensive and may cost you more than you’d save in time and deductions.

As an artist, you probably don’t need to worry about SEO too much. It takes a lot of time and resources to meet the core requirements of SEO. Since there are millions of other websites out there and the web is constantly changing, SEO is a never-ending process. One day your website may be number 1 for “public artist from Milwaukee” and the next day you may be nowhere to be found. However, artists should at least be aware of SEO when they are building their artist’s websites. Certain practices can mean the difference between appearing on the web and your website getting lost in cyberspace.

Text is King
SEO experts will tell you that “content is king.” Really, they mean that text is king. Search engines are NOT people and cannot look at your website and figure out what it is about. Instead, they use complicated mathematical codes to analyze the words on your website and try to decipher what it is about. Search engines can NOT “read” images! If you only have images on your website, then it will get lost in cyber space. You should always make sure to have your name in text (not embedded on the images) and descriptions on every page. This is not just good SEO practice, but crucial for making a good artist website.

Add and Get Links

You may have seen companies offering to submit your website to 1000s of directories so it will show up on the search engine results. These services are not worth the cost. Search engines “find” websites through virtual “spiders” which crawl around the web. The spiders basically go from one website to the next, branching out in all directions. So long as you put one outgoing link on your website to a site which also has links, your website will show up in the search engines – though it may take a few days before the search engines find it. In the meantime, visitors can always reach your site directly by typing in the domain name.

Besides for helping you make it onto the search engine results, links are like a vote of popularity for your website. The more links you have coming to your website, the better it is in the eyes of the search engine and the higher they put it on their results. It isn’t enough to get links from anywhere though. The more popular the linking site, the better it makes your site look. For example, a link from Nytimes.com is going to help you a lot more than 100 links from no-name blogs. To help your rating, links should be one-way to your site (meaning they link to you and you don’t link back to them).

Some great sites where you can learn about link building:

• www.seomoz.com
• www.seobook.com

Update Regularly

If you are hoping that visitors will randomly find your website through searches, then you will need to update regularly. Don’t waste too much of your precious time on updating though if you don’t have anything new to add. But, if you have news like you’ve started on a new project or have an upcoming show, make a press release and put it on your website.