# gallery fees: is this normal?!



## JustJazzie (Sep 9, 2015)

I live in a super small mountain town. Last week I  ventured into our new, very small......maybe 20x20 foot local art gallery. 

Of course I got to chatting with the owner/operator and he said they were still looking for more artists to display. So out of curiosity asked what the terms were to display there. The fees are as follows:
6 month contract
$20 a month for one Apple box displayed
$50 a month for space on the shutter's/room divider displays. 
He didn't quote wall space because it was already full.

Then he charges 30% commission on top of that.

He said best sales are priced under $25 and are matted prints.

So basically, after fees and product cost-I have to sell 4 avarage prints a month just to break even on an Apple crate display that I am hoping someone gets on the floor to thumb through.... Or sell I think 6 a month to rent a "premium" zone....

The shop is closed on Sunday/monday, and closes at noon on Saturday. 11-6 t-f.

Are these normal or even profitable terms?.....


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## robbins.photo (Sep 9, 2015)

JustJazzie said:


> I live in a super small mountain town. Last week I  ventured into our new, very small......maybe 20x20 foot local art gallery.
> 
> Of course I got to chatting with the owner/operator and he said they were still looking for more artists to display. So out of curiosity asked what the terms were to display there. The fees are as follows:
> 6 month contract
> ...



Sounds extremely profitable.  Well, for the gallery owner.. for you.. eh, probably not so much.


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## JustJazzie (Sep 9, 2015)

robbins.photo said:


> JustJazzie said:
> 
> 
> > I live in a super small mountain town. Last week I  ventured into our new, very small......maybe 20x20 foot local art gallery.
> ...


That's what I was thinking.... Did people even do the math before setting up with him?....


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## robbins.photo (Sep 9, 2015)

JustJazzie said:


> That's what I was thinking.... Did people even do the math before setting up with him?....



Nope.  They think, I'm going to be an arteest!  I'm going to be featured in a gallery!  I'm sure that if you go back a few months later you'll find a lot of the stuff that was featured by this artist or that artist isn't there anymore as they discover that they are spending more money than they are making.


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## medic2230 (Sep 9, 2015)

I don't see this as any benefit to an artist unless it was in a large city with a lot of customers.


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## vintagesnaps (Sep 9, 2015)

That doesn't seem too high for my area which is more urban, 30% is pretty good, it can be higher. Depends on the location and how much space, it varies; usually less at someplace like an artists co-op or community art center and more at galleries.

Although at a co-op you have to be a member except for seasonal/holiday shows where they may accept works consigned. One in a college town near me is a nonprofit so is only $5/mo. and 20% commission, but you have to volunteer hours each month to work the store. The money goes toward running the community art center. 

I've done submissions to juried exhibits and those entry fees vary but run maybe $25-45 for up to 3 entries that if accepted would be on display for a few weeks. In my area a matted and framed photo depending on the size sells anywhere from $1-200 up to $4-500 for more well known local and regional photographers.


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## Braineack (Sep 9, 2015)

JustJazzie said:


> That's what I was thinking.... Did people even do the math before setting up with him?....


you assume artists can math.


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## jsecordphoto (Sep 9, 2015)

30% commission is fairly standard, the renting space would be a deal breaker for me though. I'd pass


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## robbins.photo (Sep 9, 2015)

Braineack said:


> JustJazzie said:
> 
> 
> > That's what I was thinking.... Did people even do the math before setting up with him?....
> ...



Or even use verbs.  Like "Do".

Lol


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## Braineack (Sep 9, 2015)

*Math is a Verb: Activities and Lessons from Cultures Around the World*


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## The_Traveler (Sep 9, 2015)

JustJazzie said:


> He said best sales are priced under $25 and are matted prints.



This is a no-lose for the gallery owner.
He makes his costs and profit from the artists, he doesn't care what is displayed as long as the space is rented.
The low cost prints are a draw for low cost buyers.
He wants traffic so low end shoppers will buy prints and he can say that the gallery sold lots of prints to entice more artists to rent space.
Ugh.
Avoid this like the plague.


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## robbins.photo (Sep 9, 2015)

Braineack said:


> *Math is a Verb: Activities and Lessons from Cultures Around the World*



You really do scare me sometimes.. you know that, don't you?

Lol


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## Braineack (Sep 9, 2015)

robbins.photo said:


> Braineack said:
> 
> 
> > *Math is a Verb: Activities and Lessons from Cultures Around the World*
> ...


That's what she said.

using tapatalk.


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## TreeofLifeStairs (Sep 9, 2015)

I don't know what pricing is like in our area, but last gallery I was in was run by about 6 of the "artists" that showed their work.  They seemed to simply rotate who sat in the gallery that day.  I wasn't really impressed by their work.


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## tirediron (Sep 9, 2015)

30% is fine, nothing out of the ordinary, but a surcharge to display *and* only being opened 1/2 day on Saturday and not at all on Sunday?  That would be the deal-breaker for me.


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## Derrel (Sep 9, 2015)

Hey...what the heck is wrong with making a $4.19 profit on the sale of a $25 matted print! And pardon my language, but jeebus...open half a day on Saturday, and closed on Sundays, in a resort type town? The sheer dumbness of that boggles the mind.


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## KmH (Sep 9, 2015)

In my experience 40% is about standard.
So 30% was a pretty good deal. 

"He said best sales are priced under $25 and are matted prints."
That is really sad and a good example of Walmartization.


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## PixelRabbit (Sep 9, 2015)

Sounds like the "co-op" structure I was running into here, pay for the space to pay for the venue as a group, I have yet to find one with a good track record or that actually curates in any way as long as you are willing to pay the fee.  Most that I contacted offered space without seeing my work.  Reputable galleries on the other hand curate and often have a long wait to get a showing (I booked 2 showings for 2016 in 2014) and as others have said 30%ish is pretty standard.


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## vfotog (Sep 9, 2015)

if it were just commission, the pricing wouldn't be bad but the fees in addition aren't normal. The hours of operation are just nuts. Hardly surprising that the small sizes sell the best. The only people coming in during the week are mostly people who don't have jobs. Weekend tourists and people who work standard workweeks can only come in and shop on Saturday mornings? Crazy town.


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## Designer (Sep 9, 2015)

Do you think your town would allow you to set up a card table and umbrella on the sidewalk?  Say...a few doors down from the gallery, and open ONLY on Saturday afternoon.  

Yeah, that's what I would do.


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## JustJazzie (Sep 10, 2015)

The_Traveler said:


> JustJazzie said:
> 
> 
> > He said best sales are priced under $25 and are matted prints.
> ...


I can't say I was ever truly interested, mostly just curious if the stipulations were as really nuts as they seemed!


TreeofLifeStairs said:


> I don't know what pricing is like in our area, but last gallery I was in was run by about 6 of the "artists" that showed their work.  They seemed to simply rotate who sat in the gallery that day.  I wasn't really impressed by their work.


The quality of work in there was one of the reasons I even bothered asking. I was thinking "oh, how my (mediocre) work could shine in here." ;-)



Derrel said:


> Hey...what the heck is wrong with making a $4.19 profit on the sale of a $25 matted print! And pardon my language, but jeebus...open half a day on Saturday, and closed on Sundays, in a resort type town? The sheer dumbness of that boggles the mind.


Population, under 9,000 people. Resort town? Not even close. We do get weekend campers in the summer though. ;-) 



Designer said:


> Do you think your town would allow you to set up a card table and umbrella on the sidewalk?  Say...a few doors down from the gallery, and open ONLY on Saturday afternoon.
> 
> Yeah, that's what I would do.


Sidewalk? What's a sidewalk? There's lots of open dirt patches around though! :giggle:


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## Designer (Sep 10, 2015)

JustJazzie said:


> Sidewalk? What's a sidewalk? There's lots of open dirt patches around though! :giggle:


So it's not paved.  Some part of the public way anyhow.  

I'm perfectly serious about my suggestion.  Maybe you wouldn't sell as many prints as if they were in a gallery, but you wouldn't have the overhead cost and you could keep most of the proceeds.  

By being open only Sat. afternoon, you would not (IMO) be in direct competition with the gallery, and for one half day per week you could get out and meet the public directly.


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