Demand is everything to every business person.
I am a businessperson. I sell products, mainly art, so demand is everything to me.
This is the one defining factor of a successful artist—demand. You might see artworks that are good, bad, excellent, and/or awful; none of that influences sellability.
The buyer drives success.
Commitment to an art piece—whatever its subject, execution quality, medium, size, shape, or form is what makes demand.
This is how representation works. A gallery is a shop. The shop’s audience calls the shots and defines the stable. If the audience doesn’t buy the art, the shop closes.
As an artist and gallery owner, I feel much pressure to perform and sell! I can’t take up the precious space of another artist.
This week, I received tremendous encouragement—I sold work before my December exhibition at Queenscliff Gallery (QG).
I have a demand for my art. And I have more patrons interested in the new works.
Let me beam a minute… this has been a long time coming.
It’s also a welcome relief that the piece sold this week is from my new body of work, which takes a different direction from anything I’ve done before.
Artists take huge risks, and we must!
I’m fusing my love of design with my love for travel (specifically Italy right now) and keeping my identity in the mix.
My facade artworks (Venice, Paris & Melbourne) have sold quite well, as have the minimal works I’ve released of the marionette series (I’ve chosen to sit with most of the works for a while now – I’m not ready to part with them).
As the director and curator of QG, I know my work wouldn’t be exhibited if it didn’t sell. I’d be taking a huge back seat and maybe participating in the salon hangs—even that would depend on demand.
So, for now, I get to breathe thanks to my lovely patron (I’m going to a fabulous collection!).
I am encouraged to paint more and continue on my new path.
The ultimate icing is that in two weeks, I will head back to Italy (finally taking last year’s trip), taking this sale and encouragement with me, which I know will pave the path for the next body of work.
For an artist, that’s as juicy as art can get.
Enquiries
Sign up to Soula’s mailing list below or sign up / follow Queenscliff Gallery
Soula’s upcoming exhibition details:
David Frazer / Soula Mantalvanos / Sue Poggioli
Exhibition dates: Dec 5 – Dec 23, 2024
For acquisition enquiries, contact Theo Mantalvanos theo@qgallery.com.au
Payment options available (ie, secure now, pay later!)
