Exhibition proposals & weird promotional ideas
Weekly Art Practice #13. Contacting a group of people outside of the art world that you wouldn't expect.
Every Saturday I share my art practice over the past 7 days. I'm fascinated by artistic practice – it's not just about creating art but the entire process. From influences and ideas to materials and skills, each artist's unique approach shapes their work, making it more than just a finished piece.
Continue reading for this week’s artistic insights...
Thank you,
P.S. This piece is too long for email, so you can read it here in Substack.
Thank you so much for joining me in my art practice this week.
Right, let’s think back over the past week…
Let’s start with the lovely reply from one of my gallery proposals. I’ve not seen myself as thorough, so that’s good to hear :-)
“Hello Steve,
Thank you for submitting your artwork to us recently, we appreciate your interest in our gallery and the effort you’ve put into your submission, it was the most thorough submission I think we have received! Thank you also for your patience whilst we get back to you.
After careful consideration, we regret to inform you that we feel your submission does not align with the gallery aesthetic and focus. While we recognise the uniqueness of your style and subject matter, we believe that our clientele and audience have specific preferences that lean toward more commercially viable pieces. Each gallery has its own niche, and finding the right fit is essential for both artists and curator.
We encourage you to explore other galleries and platforms that may be better suited to showcase your art. We appreciate your understanding and wish you the best in your creative practice.
Kind Regards,
MH“
No rejection felt, only good feelings… Progress! Learning about the nuances of the art world has given me perspective, a ‘no’ from a gallery doesn’t mean they hate your guts, they want to poo on your living room floor and tell everyone how bad your art is. No no no. Your work isn’t suited to that gallery or a whole host of other reasons, none of them are personal! On top of that, there are many tiers and types of galleries, it’s better to find the right one than just picking anyone. Would you purchase 100 pairs of jeans without trying them on? only to settle for one pair that doesn't fit?
Yes, I know I’m a hypocrite, I emailed loads of galleries (over 100) but it’s better than doing nothing and not learning that lesson :-) and I’m sharing it with you too.
Next… I wrote a ‘Stack around 6 women artists I admire. Bookmark it for later.
What next?
A piece of inspo from my old mate “Eddie Gangland” an artist from Miami. Well, we’re not mates, but I follow him on Insta.
He was doing a couple of cool things, he had a sign with his Instagram handle on it and was standing by a main road. Legend. I’d feel like a bit of a dickhead doing that in Swindon. You’d get swore at quite a bit, but I might give it a go.
Secondly, he created stickers with his details on them and put them all over the place on his travels.
I love ‘guerilla’ marketing tactics like this. I have so many other things to sort out first. But once I have my new website up I can do some cool things like Eddie.
Next up…
I proposed an exhibition for the UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUST! Based on my Fistula series of paintings. It feels so good getting these proposals out you know! I don’t feel any worry about the outcome either.
The spec of the space is: “The exhibition space is 2510cm long. This is broken down into spaces of 800cm, 600cm, 370cm, and 740cm.” A 25-metre long space!
What is next dear reader?
Ah yes, the brilliant open call website, callforentry.org I think I may have mentioned it before. Basically, you add all of your artwork and details, then you can apply for multiple open calls for exhibits, competitions, grants and other opportunities.
I applied to two this week. I entered my nude “Blue Man” into one and “Death Bed 1” into another.
You can search for free to enter calls, others are paid.
The cutest thing happened this week and it means the world to me. The 5-year-old grandson of the owners of Baristocats cafe (where my latest exhibit is) drew a picture of my “Wake up puppet boy” piece.
Inspiring future generations is something that really does mean a lot!
Next, I stumbled across two new Art-related Substacks that inspire me no end!
Follow your gut, written by Erin Petronella, an artist who walks her talk and also has young kids. I’ve been hooked so far!
Two Houses, a ‘Stack about a wonderful woman, called Eliza Anderson, who grew up with two amazing artist parents. I’m moving stories and beautiful artwork. I can’t wait to read more!
“Nexxxxxt!”
This one is very exciting! I contacted this… actually, my emotion came through when I first heard the news, when I shared it with my artist friends on WhatsApp…
To give a bit more context to the above, in my town, Swindon, there’s what’s called the Heritage Zone in the centre, where a lot of the railway history resides. Swindon used to be the industrial hub for train building from 1843, so within this area, there are a lot of old buildings, one of them an old hospital (Now community centre) that inspired the blueprint for the start of the NHS. It’s a quaint little area with a lot of interest, so to be able to use a building there is a great opportunity, as it’ll add to the vibrancy of the area.
If you’re a building/history/train enthusiast read more here.
Ah yes, before I go, I forgot to share the weird, unusual group of people to share my art with…
Ready?…
Doctors and other health care specialists…
“What?”
I know, let me explain. So, I had this idea pop into my noggin the other day. Because I wrote a journal called “Art as Psychological Support in My Kidney Disease Journey“ Have I told you about it? (Joking, I mention it quite a lot).
This was the email I sent…
Good Morning,
As an expert in the field, I'd like to share a journal I authored: Art as Psychological Support in My Kidney Disease Journey.
https://www.ajkd.org/article/S0272-6386(22)00801-0/fulltext
The PDF is also attached to this email.
If you have any questions, please reply to this email.
Please feel free to share!
Yours sincerely,
Steven Light AKA SLART
I’ve scheduled daily emails to different renal experts for the next week. From hospitals and universities all over.
I say I’ll let you know how I get on each week, but I forget what I did last week and I forget to follow up with many things. But I keep plodding along, moving forward. Reaching out to people, changing things slightly. It’s not methodical at all, I have my weird way of doing things.
Feel free to steal my ideas in this post and make them your own.
As old fellow Baldy Picasso once said
“good artists borrow, great artists steal.”
Here we are, looking at each other longingly…
My favourite complimentary colour combo, Orange and blue in my day-to-day life this week:
Me holding embracing an orange cushion:
Thank you for joining me in my art practice for this week.
If any of my art moves and inspires you and you’d like to exchange silver coins for it. All you need to do is get in touch via steve@slart.me
Best wishes,
SLART
P.S. If you have any questions, please comment below. Or any tips that’ll help my art career?
P.P.S. Please kindly share this post, positive Karma and Blessings to you! If you’re not into Karma, the person who you share this with will think you’re cool because you know me.
I love: the copying of your piece and the brilliant idea about contacting renal experts and thinking of you increasing the vibrancy of Swindon in exactly that way.
I had a little boy copy one of my pieces that was hanging in a coffee shop once too years ago. I remember that feeling, such a loving warmness. Hold on to that feeling.