Dena I have admired your work on Instagram for a long time. I did not realize you did these You Tube tutorials that are so well thought out and calming! I have been a nurse-artist for 38 years and am now transitioning to artist-nurse. It is all very intimidating. Somehow you break it down to a calm, logical, well approach that is not overwhelming to me. From the bottom of my heart thank you!
Oh my goodness, Dana, your compliment warms my heart!! Thank you so much for watching and commenting. I really appreciate your comment as my goal is to be encouraging and helpful and this makes my day!
Your tips are invaluable. And your videos are quite calming and reassuring. I sincerely appreciate you and want to tell you that you work is so lovely! Thank you for all the wonderful tips ❤God bless!
Such great advice! I feel more confident after listening to you, to how to go about the whole thing. Especially when just starting out, thanks a bunch 😊
Hi Dena!! Thank you so so much for this video, it must have been one of the most educational i've seen and such luck to have it pop up on my main page.
This video was really interesting Dena. I'm trying to build up a body of work -14 large paintings - so that I can seek gallery representation. The only problem is each one of my paintings takes a long time to create. The other worry I have is that I've not seen a gallery yet where I think my work would fit. You've inspired me to keep looking though :) Thank you for putting this video together.
Hi David! Thank you so much for watching and your comments. The key also is painting size- some galleries sell a variety of sizes, some like large work, others prefer to sell medium or even small works so if your large works take a long time to create, an idea could be to focus on medium or small works. It is possible your gallery fit may be a distance away, so you would need to ship work or travel with it- the medium and smaller works would be easier to transport so that could factor into your decisions as well. Ultimately the key is to work in a size you feel most comfortable with and then go from there. I wish you all the best on your gallery search!!
@@DenaTollefson Thanks Dena for the advice. I wonder whether my artworks would be classed as medium size. I maybe think they're large because of the amount of detail I add. They're all about 72cm x 27cm. But framed they're a fair bit bigger than this. It's a good point to take into consideration when I'm looking around. Thank you :)
That's neat to hear you were an engineer! I was a geologist before I switched to being a full time artist. Thank you for the great advice. I mostly just sell my artwork online now and make custom commissions, but I am still in the process of creating a list of galleries to contact, so I'm hoping to get gallery representation in at least one gallery this year! Good advice on price range comparison and starting locally. :) I'm glad we found each other on TH-cam!
Hi Steph! I could sense there was a fellow woman of science here! You are very talented and I love your work. I am so glad we found each other as well! Hugs to you!
Hi Rebecca! Thank you so much for watching and your kind compliment. Yes, it can be frustrating finding the right fit. I encourage you to keep marketing your work and making those personal connections which will lead to representation. All my best to you
Dena Tollefson thank you 😊 I like your advice about only showing one theme/art style to art galleries when approaching them. This has clearly been one of the mistakes for me. I’m prolific..... it’s tough deciding 😊
Dena Tollefson well for me - I create loads of works per day depending on the mediums - I prefer gouache 😊 But I use charcoal, inks, watercolors, paint pens, and create loads of different designs such as African Hunters, fish, non realism basically 😊 I think my main fail when approaching galleries was not actually knowing what they are looking for as they are not very clear and they change their minds frequently. I’d attach African hunter design samples along with other recent designs I had created so probably first of all should have just sent only African designs. Do you prefer panels or canvas box frame things? I’m doing Etsy next year 😊
Some of the best advice I've seen on the internet. I've been painting for a long time and most of my sales have come from art fairs but I've never been able to figure out Galleries and what you've said makes sense. I also think I've been a little afraid of them so you've given me a good starting point. Thanks.
Wonderful video, thank you so much for the advices. I am also an engineer in my early 30s wanting to become a full time artist which was my original childhood dream.
Thank you so much for sharing that was pretty selfless of you. Im a new artist from Jamaica starting in Germany and I really needed some advice from a professional. Thank you
Hello Dena, thanks very much for this, very helpful. About pricing - if you charge £1 per sq inch, say a 16 x 20 is £320, say the gallery is going to double that price for their gallery price in order to take their cut. So does that mean that everywhere else online you also need to charge double? Or else there won't be parity. If different galleries charge different amounts of commission where does that leave you? Once a gallery "represents" you, does that mean the the work hanging on their walls can't be sold privately by any other means? Do they have to hang the work or can it end up in their storage? If it doesn't sell within a set period of time, can you retrieve that work? Sorry for all the questions, I hope you have time to answer. Once again, thanks for your insights. :)
Hi Melanie! This is an excellent question, I think it warrants its own video. I will give a quick answer here, and please be looking in the future for a full length explanation. So basically the idea is to set the price for your work with enough buffer to accommodate the fee your gallery charges, this is the retail price. So in the example you gave, a 320 pound painting will retail at 320, when it sells at a gallery who splits 50/50, you would receive 160 pounds. If you sold it directly yourself online or elsewhere you would also charge 320 and you would keep all 320, if another venue takes say a 40% commission, that same painting retailing at 320 pounds would give the gallery 128 pounds and you would receive 192 pounds. So when you move from selling yourself to having a gallery, typically there is a price increase everywhere on all work to compensate for the gallery fee. Please let me know if this makes sense or if you have any follow on questions and I will do my best to address them in the upcoming pricing video. Take care!
@@MelanieMaguire Oh, sorry I had not answered the other part of your question. Yes, once you consign your work to the gallery, they have control over the sale and it should not be sold privately. So if a friend wants to buy a painting but it is hanging in the gallery, they will pay the gallery for it and you will do your standard gallery split. They can choose to hang it (hopefully they do), or they can choose to store it/rotate it through. You as the artist have control of what you give to them to sell and when you take it back and rotate in fresh pieces. Yes, if it doesn't sell in a certain time you absolutely can take it back. I tend to follow my gallery's lead on if they want to swap items out or get new ones. Typically this is coordinated as they may have a certain time they want to rehang the gallery, this varies by gallery.
Hi Elena! It was great meeting you at Artsy's premiere. Your channel is great- I love your paper flowers (so intricate!) and your sweet Bengal cat Leo. Take care, Elena!
Thanks for the information. Please let us know how to actually make money from a sale. I don't know what percentage of the sales price you take home, but after doing the math I figured if I sold a painting for $1000 I would be taking home only $100 after taxes and gallery take plus material costs. Ouch. That really feels like not a lot of money for my time and talent. I do love my art so selling is painful anyway. I often feel I would rather just keep it if all I bring home is $100 off of the deal. Do you ever cringe at the amount you actually keep? I am considering just keeping all of the ones I care about and selling only the ones I'm not as happy with. What are your thoughts?
Hi Saffirance! Thank you for writing- you bring up some issues many of we artists encounter. This would be a great topic for a future video. Regarding profit, managing art related expenses as a ratio to art selling price is key to doing this full time. On the issue of attachment to our art, I encourage fellow artists to keep some special/favorite pieces back and not sell those, this makes selling the others emotionally easier. When we create a work of art, we put our heart and soul into it and it feels emotional to part with it. I tell myself that when I make a painting, I am launching it into the world and it is fully completed as a work of art when a family/business/public building brings it in and displays it in a way others can relate to. Kind of the idea if a tree falls in a forest, it makes a sound only when others are nearby to hear it. Hopefully this is helpful.
Hi Dana- Great question! Each art gallery will have their own preference and range of sizes they will sell. A great way to find out is to check the artist's pages on the gallery website you are interested in and see what sizes they have- check at least 4 of them and you will be able to map out what prices and what sizes they sell in. I love your question and will incorporate this as a discussion point in a future video!
Erika, thank you so much for your wonderful comment. I just watched your 8 tips for making time for art video and loved it- your figure drawings are so excellent. Feliz Navidad and Merry Christmas to you!
Thank you so much for watching. Please weigh in on these tips if your are an artist thinking about seeking gallery representation. If you are an artist who is represented by galleries, please leave a comment which may be helpful to others watching and reading these comments.
Hi dena! Great video! I’ve sold lots of art online but never had gallery representation. Just never went for it. I painted for about 8 years straight but my pricing was too low... and yes it would sell out. I think it was at 55 -1.00 sq inch. I didn’t do my research obviously. However I took a 2 year break due to my health and now I just launched a whole new site with large pieces and a different style... now my pricing is at 1.50-2.00 sq inch. So it was a shock for my previous customers. But I have to move forward because I need people who will value my art and not always try to negotiate in pricing for lower price. I also want to be represented by a gallery and realize they take a commission around 50%.. so I need to make a profit. What do u think about this?? I’m eager to find a gallery to represent me (I’m in nyc and my art is on jenramos.com) although I have no experience with galleries. Looking forward to hearing from u.
Hi Jen! I think you are definitely on the right track with setting your prices higher, especially since you are interested in gallery representation. Please stay in touch and let me know how it goes!!
Thanks so much for the great information. I found your page via Instagram. I'm hoping someday to quit the traditional day job I really appreciate this advice on pricing and shopping for a gallery. Thanks and happy New year!
Local galleries hate local artists! They want to show already well known artists that can better their reputation. Also how many close galleries can match your type of work? not many! Just to mention one of the so many problems with geography!
Hi Sasha! Thank you so much for watching and your comment. Yes, finding a good gallery match can be tricky. Sometimes widening your search range can help. Take care Sasha and I wish you all the best in 2021!
Thank you so much for this video! You are so sweet and kind and your art definitely represent you 🌈❤️
Thank you so much!!
Dena I have admired your work on Instagram for a long time. I did not realize you did these You Tube tutorials that are so well thought out and calming! I have been a nurse-artist for 38 years and am now transitioning to artist-nurse. It is all very intimidating. Somehow you break it down to a calm, logical, well approach that is not overwhelming to me. From the bottom of my heart thank you!
Oh my goodness, Dana, your compliment warms my heart!! Thank you so much for watching and commenting. I really appreciate your comment as my goal is to be encouraging and helpful and this makes my day!
I meant to write “well thought out”. 😆
Thank you for that information. When doing a series for a gallery, is it best to stick to one size per series ?
Dana Morvant Hi Dana! I will add this question to my list of topics for the next video . Take care!!!!!
Your tips are invaluable. And your videos are quite calming and reassuring. I sincerely appreciate you and want to tell you that you work is so lovely! Thank you for all the wonderful tips ❤God bless!
You are too good in putting those patches .... huge fan of your work
Thank you so much, Art Candy! Your landscape premiere was wonderful. You are so welcoming and I appreciate you kind words.
Beautiful texture...thank you for the knowledge!
My pleasure 😊 Thank you
This was extremely helpful!! Thanks for sharing!!
Hi Ralph- I am so glad it was helpful. Take care and have a great rest of your weekend
Thank you for sharing. I recently am showing in 2 local galleries and your video really helps.
Glad it was helpful! Take care David and have a super weekend
Such great advice! I feel more confident after listening to you, to how to go about the whole thing. Especially when just starting out, thanks a bunch 😊
You got this! Thank you Sredna
Very helpful, thank you!
Thank you Jen! I love your owl painting
@@DenaTollefson thank you 😊
Great video, thank you for sharing, very helpful!
Glad it was helpful! Take care Ignatius and have a super weekend
@@DenaTollefson You too!
Really great tips, thanks for sharing!!
Thank you so much!! I love your new electric bass watercolor painting. Take care - I appreciate you watching and commenting.
Awesome just beautiful...
Thank you Drawing Book! Take care and Merry Christmas to you
Hi Dena!! Thank you so so much for this video, it must have been one of the most educational i've seen and such luck to have it pop up on my main page.
Glad it was helpful! I appreciate your kind words, Lily
Thank you for this video and information ❤
Thank you so much!
Beautiful......Love it😊😊😊
Thank you so much, NSP Art!
super sweet lady! thank you for sharing this info!
You are so welcome! Take care Sarah and have a blessed Sunday
Thank you for sharing!!!! This is soo informative!!!
Thank you so much, Cori! I adore your prickly pear in bloom drawing.
@@DenaTollefson you are so kind!
This is a great video Dena. I personally don't do any of the things you talked about, I have in the past. Now I just put on my own shows.
Hi Rod! Thank you so much for your kind words and your support of me and my channel. I am excited about your upcoming trees themed show!
So lovely! It looks like Van Gogh
Thank you so much for watching and your wonderful compliment!
wow!! very nice dear
ctgbashi-চট্টগ্রামবাসী Thank you so much!!
This video was really interesting Dena. I'm trying to build up a body of work -14 large paintings - so that I can seek gallery representation. The only problem is each one of my paintings takes a long time to create. The other worry I have is that I've not seen a gallery yet where I think my work would fit. You've inspired me to keep looking though :) Thank you for putting this video together.
Hi David! Thank you so much for watching and your comments. The key also is painting size- some galleries sell a variety of sizes, some like large work, others prefer to sell medium or even small works so if your large works take a long time to create, an idea could be to focus on medium or small works. It is possible your gallery fit may be a distance away, so you would need to ship work or travel with it- the medium and smaller works would be easier to transport so that could factor into your decisions as well. Ultimately the key is to work in a size you feel most comfortable with and then go from there. I wish you all the best on your gallery search!!
@@DenaTollefson Thanks Dena for the advice. I wonder whether my artworks would be classed as medium size. I maybe think they're large because of the amount of detail I add. They're all about 72cm x 27cm. But framed they're a fair bit bigger than this. It's a good point to take into consideration when I'm looking around. Thank you :)
Wow!! It’s awesome!
Thank you so much
I love the way you mix your advice with painting and mixing colors. This is the sign of a talented artist.
Helen Schaefer Thank you so much for your wonderful compliment, Helen! 💗
That's neat to hear you were an engineer! I was a geologist before I switched to being a full time artist. Thank you for the great advice. I mostly just sell my artwork online now and make custom commissions, but I am still in the process of creating a list of galleries to contact, so I'm hoping to get gallery representation in at least one gallery this year! Good advice on price range comparison and starting locally. :) I'm glad we found each other on TH-cam!
Hi Steph! I could sense there was a fellow woman of science here! You are very talented and I love your work. I am so glad we found each other as well! Hugs to you!
@@DenaTollefson Thank you! :)
Very beautiful
Thank you so much, Pencil Art! Your portraits are beautiful
cool!
Hi Kaeltv! Thank you so much. I love your pen and ink work!
Gosh I’ve had a nightmare trying for years to get any art related professional interested in my work
Very useful helpful video 👍🙏😊
Hi Rebecca! Thank you so much for watching and your kind compliment. Yes, it can be frustrating finding the right fit. I encourage you to keep marketing your work and making those personal connections which will lead to representation. All my best to you
Dena Tollefson thank you 😊
I like your advice about only showing one theme/art style to art galleries when approaching them. This has clearly been one of the mistakes for me. I’m prolific..... it’s tough deciding 😊
@@ArtistRebeccaLS I hear you, Rebecca! We as artists are always creating and it is hard to narrow it down!
Dena Tollefson well for me - I create loads of works per day depending on the mediums - I prefer gouache 😊
But I use charcoal, inks, watercolors, paint pens, and create loads of different designs such as African Hunters, fish, non realism basically 😊 I think my main fail when approaching galleries was not actually knowing what they are looking for as they are not very clear and they change their minds frequently. I’d attach African hunter design samples along with other recent designs I had created so probably first of all should have just sent only African designs.
Do you prefer panels or canvas box frame things?
I’m doing Etsy next year 😊
Hello mam... I am so much inspired by u... thank you so much mam .. stay connected always... hope a nice reply from your side.. once again thank you
Thank you Radhu! Take care and have a great weekend
A very interesting video!
+71
Thank you Fabio!
That was very helpful 👍🏽
Thank you 🙏🏼
Thank you so much, David! Happy new year!
Happy New Year!!!
Beautiful collection of creativity ❤️❤️
Thank you so much!!
Some of the best advice I've seen on the internet. I've been painting for a long time and most of my sales have come from art fairs but I've never been able to figure out Galleries and what you've said makes sense. I also think I've been a little afraid of them so you've given me a good starting point. Thanks.
Thank you Tim for your wonderful comment! I appreciate you
Enjoyed your chat, beautiful painting. Is that Acrylic or Oil?
Thank you so much, Erin! This one is acrylic on canvas. Take care!
Great information ..
So helpfull for me.....by the way, where are you come from, mam? I from indonesia,💕💕💕good channel
Thank you so much, Jeanny! I am from Cedar Rapids Iowa USA- greetings to you in Indonesia!
My name is Jeanny, I'm ten years old...I have channel about drawing anime, I want to learn so much thing from your channel...
@@JeannyPencil Thank you so much, Jeanny! Welcome to my channel and I look forward to seeing you again!
@@DenaTollefson You are welcome, I like your channel..this is my favorite channel in youtube! Very simple and be helpfull for everyone
Wonderful video, thank you so much for the advices. I am also an engineer in my early 30s wanting to become a full time artist which was my original childhood dream.
You can do it! I love this!!
Thank you so much for sharing that was pretty selfless of you. Im a new artist from Jamaica starting in Germany and I really needed some advice from a professional. Thank you
You are so welcome! I wish you all the best as you advance in your art career. God bless you!
This was very helpful thank you for this advice!
Thank you Brendan! You have a wonderful channel- I am a new subscriber!!
Dena Tollefson thank you dena!
Hello Dena, thanks very much for this, very helpful. About pricing - if you charge £1 per sq inch, say a 16 x 20 is £320, say the gallery is going to double that price for their gallery price in order to take their cut. So does that mean that everywhere else online you also need to charge double? Or else there won't be parity. If different galleries charge different amounts of commission where does that leave you?
Once a gallery "represents" you, does that mean the the work hanging on their walls can't be sold privately by any other means? Do they have to hang the work or can it end up in their storage? If it doesn't sell within a set period of time, can you retrieve that work?
Sorry for all the questions, I hope you have time to answer. Once again, thanks for your insights. :)
Hi Melanie! This is an excellent question, I think it warrants its own video. I will give a quick answer here, and please be looking in the future for a full length explanation. So basically the idea is to set the price for your work with enough buffer to accommodate the fee your gallery charges, this is the retail price. So in the example you gave, a 320 pound painting will retail at 320, when it sells at a gallery who splits 50/50, you would receive 160 pounds. If you sold it directly yourself online or elsewhere you would also charge 320 and you would keep all 320, if another venue takes say a 40% commission, that same painting retailing at 320 pounds would give the gallery 128 pounds and you would receive 192 pounds. So when you move from selling yourself to having a gallery, typically there is a price increase everywhere on all work to compensate for the gallery fee. Please let me know if this makes sense or if you have any follow on questions and I will do my best to address them in the upcoming pricing video. Take care!
@@DenaTollefson thanks very much, I'll watch out for your upcoming video. :)
@@MelanieMaguire Oh, sorry I had not answered the other part of your question. Yes, once you consign your work to the gallery, they have control over the sale and it should not be sold privately. So if a friend wants to buy a painting but it is hanging in the gallery, they will pay the gallery for it and you will do your standard gallery split. They can choose to hang it (hopefully they do), or they can choose to store it/rotate it through. You as the artist have control of what you give to them to sell and when you take it back and rotate in fresh pieces. Yes, if it doesn't sell in a certain time you absolutely can take it back. I tend to follow my gallery's lead on if they want to swap items out or get new ones. Typically this is coordinated as they may have a certain time they want to rehang the gallery, this varies by gallery.
Hello Dena, so happy to discover your channel, love painting and enjoyed watching your video:)
Hi Elena! It was great meeting you at Artsy's premiere. Your channel is great- I love your paper flowers (so intricate!) and your sweet Bengal cat Leo. Take care, Elena!
Well done. Very informative
Thank you so much, Dietrich!!!
Thanks for the information. Please let us know how to actually make money from a sale. I don't know what percentage of the sales price you take home, but after doing the math I figured if I sold a painting for $1000 I would be taking home only $100 after taxes and gallery take plus material costs. Ouch. That really feels like not a lot of money for my time and talent. I do love my art so selling is painful anyway. I often feel I would rather just keep it if all I bring home is $100 off of the deal. Do you ever cringe at the amount you actually keep? I am considering just keeping all of the ones I care about and selling only the ones I'm not as happy with. What are your thoughts?
Hi Saffirance! Thank you for writing- you bring up some issues many of we artists encounter. This would be a great topic for a future video. Regarding profit, managing art related expenses as a ratio to art selling price is key to doing this full time. On the issue of attachment to our art, I encourage fellow artists to keep some special/favorite pieces back and not sell those, this makes selling the others emotionally easier. When we create a work of art, we put our heart and soul into it and it feels emotional to part with it. I tell myself that when I make a painting, I am launching it into the world and it is fully completed as a work of art when a family/business/public building brings it in and displays it in a way others can relate to. Kind of the idea if a tree falls in a forest, it makes a sound only when others are nearby to hear it. Hopefully this is helpful.
What size do galleries like best?
Hi Dana- Great question! Each art gallery will have their own preference and range of sizes they will sell. A great way to find out is to check the artist's pages on the gallery website you are interested in and see what sizes they have- check at least 4 of them and you will be able to map out what prices and what sizes they sell in. I love your question and will incorporate this as a discussion point in a future video!
Nice information just subbed so let's stay connected dear
Thank you so much, Fina Mike! Yes, let's stay connected
Thanks dear
Dena this was amazing! Thanks so much for your advice and generosity, sharing all this information. It was very helpful and inspiring. 🎨🎉
Erika, thank you so much for your wonderful comment. I just watched your 8 tips for making time for art video and loved it- your figure drawings are so excellent. Feliz Navidad and Merry Christmas to you!
Wonderful dena ,I really enjoyed watching your videos, your art is unique .....lovely colors
Thanks for sharing....
Thank you so much, r rayes! I love your clay sculptures and paintings!
Wow this is fantastic well done mate!!!
Hi Eve! Thank you so much! Art hugs to you and blessings for a Merry Christmas
Thank you so much for watching. Please weigh in on these tips if your are an artist thinking about seeking gallery representation. If you are an artist who is represented by galleries, please leave a comment which may be helpful to others watching and reading these comments.
You shared amazing experiences and advices. I am glad to watch this video. Well done.👍
Thank you so much, Divine Art! I appreciate your kind compliment. I enjoyed watching your Singapore video!
Hi dena! Great video! I’ve sold lots of art online but never had gallery representation. Just never went for it. I painted for about 8 years straight but my pricing was too low... and yes it would sell out. I think it was at 55 -1.00 sq inch. I didn’t do my research obviously. However I took a 2 year break due to my health and now I just launched a whole new site with large pieces and a different style... now my pricing is at 1.50-2.00 sq inch. So it was a shock for my previous customers. But I have to move forward because I need people who will value my art and not always try to negotiate in pricing for lower price. I also want to be represented by a gallery and realize they take a commission around 50%.. so I need to make a profit. What do u think about this?? I’m eager to find a gallery to represent me (I’m in nyc and my art is on jenramos.com) although I have no experience with galleries. Looking forward to hearing from u.
Hi Jen! I think you are definitely on the right track with setting your prices higher, especially since you are interested in gallery representation. Please stay in touch and let me know how it goes!!
Amazing art!!! ❤️ Great information!
This is beautiful work, Dena. Your use of the palette knife is amazing.
Thank you so much, Deborah! I just watched your new winter landscape painting- beautiful!
Oh I Love this going,to paint this one!!!! Bless U !!!!!!
Carolyn Miller Thank you so much, Carolyn! 😀
U seem like such a sweet person 😊♥️
What a nice compliment, Julekha! Thank you so much and Merry Christmas
😁👸👍💕🌹🔔🌹👈🙏
Thank you so much!
Amazing art!!! ❤️ Great
Thank you so much, Coloring Book! Great seeing you at Chrissy's live stream
Thanks so much for the great information. I found your page via Instagram. I'm hoping someday to quit the traditional day job I really appreciate this advice on pricing and shopping for a gallery. Thanks and happy New year!
Hi Sean! Thank you so much for watching and for your awesome compliment! I wish you all the best in 2019
hi from a new friend and subscriber ;))
Thank you Intrique Me! I love your Kung Fu Panda drawing
You do my favorite Aspen/Birch Tree! I hope you do more! I only see one on icanvas.com, and I would LOVE them in my home!
Stacy Johnson Hi Stacy! Thank you so much! I have another Tree Series painting in the works. Thank you so much for your support 💕🌸💗
Local galleries hate local artists! They want to show already well known artists that can better their reputation. Also how many close galleries can match your type of work? not many! Just to mention one of the so many problems with geography!
Hi Sasha! Thank you so much for watching and your comment. Yes, finding a good gallery match can be tricky. Sometimes widening your search range can help. Take care Sasha and I wish you all the best in 2021!
@@DenaTollefson Likewise! I know finding a gallery is like finding a partner! Thank you for letting us know your story.
Wish,U,could hook me up with Ur Art gallery that U talking,about,...i,feel I have the,gift. For Art I Love,It,!!!!!
Carolyn Miller Hi Carolyn! You can do it! All my best wishes for you in your art career 🎨🎨🎨