More and more fine arts professionals are looking to the Net to study the work of developing and mid-career artists. Why? As it is easier than dealing with large volumes of paper-portfolios. It is also better for the artist as there's substantial cost and time involved in sending out multiple paper and slide portfolios to studios and dealers.
So , what is critical in a site? What do fine art curators look for? Remember the times that you have visited a really art gallery or museum? You were probably tuned into a sense of beauty and elegance and found that the art truly caught your imagination or provoked an intense feeling in you.
Did you realize that only a part of the reason why you liked the art was the art itself? The other part of the picture that your subconscious drank in while you were enjoying the bubbly was the sophisticated work of the Curator. Curating is a kind of art in its own right: look in more detail the next time you are in a fine gallery. It's no different when you showcase your work on the web. A really glorious artist's website will create an ambiance of beauty, elegance, or puzzle round the work. It may shock you or bring a sense of harmony. It may lead you to feel more alive.
How is this done? It's simple. A good artist site designer has plenty of the same qualities as a museum curator. There are things that your eye will not see on the internet site, but your subconscious will - delicate decisions of colour, layout, font, kerning, and structure all build to create an ambiance for the art. Designers and curators know the way to do this from years of training and experience, together with talent! Here are some points to think about when you're planning the visual design of your site. Designers often use these themes as a kick off point.
- Keep it simple and stylish
- Keep the concentration on the art itself
- Use neutral background colors that compliment the work. Good colors are black, charcoal, white, and pale shades. Other colors can look great depending on the art. Avoid bright colours which draw the attention away from the work
- Don't smother the outward appearance of the art or distract with a site that looks too "busy".
- Don't have advertisements all over your portfolio - it devalues the art and your image. We suggest that you get rid of advertising on your portfolio or if you've got to, it should be confined to a section concentrated on resources or links.
As a general rule, we advocate against having large numbers of art-works on your site. Select your very best work, just as you would select slides for a regular portfolio, and add new work as it becomes available. Some portfolio websites will permit you to put up as many as 100 pieces of your work, but we think its too distracting. Lots of the sites we design have 20 or fewer works on view. Think about this: when was the last time you went to a top-end studio that had lots of pieces showing?
Avoid designer-ish effects like flash pictures unless they're executed efficiently and really compliment the art. In the time it takes to play your exotic flash-based entry page your visitor may have moved on.
If you follow these simple axioms, you'll be well on the way to a good artists web site.
A good website should also showcase the artist herself. Selling art is about somebody buying your art AND the image they feel from you as an artist. A well executed website may never replace a meeting with a collector or dealer, nevertheless it can be the significant factor that piques their interest and results in the meeting. The value of that is enormous.
Your artist's portfolio is the foundation on which you'll build your complete online-marketing technique. Every marketing tool and program will seek to draw attention to your site . It's worth putting in the investment in time, thought , and money to make it great!
So , what is critical in a site? What do fine art curators look for? Remember the times that you have visited a really art gallery or museum? You were probably tuned into a sense of beauty and elegance and found that the art truly caught your imagination or provoked an intense feeling in you.
Did you realize that only a part of the reason why you liked the art was the art itself? The other part of the picture that your subconscious drank in while you were enjoying the bubbly was the sophisticated work of the Curator. Curating is a kind of art in its own right: look in more detail the next time you are in a fine gallery. It's no different when you showcase your work on the web. A really glorious artist's website will create an ambiance of beauty, elegance, or puzzle round the work. It may shock you or bring a sense of harmony. It may lead you to feel more alive.
How is this done? It's simple. A good artist site designer has plenty of the same qualities as a museum curator. There are things that your eye will not see on the internet site, but your subconscious will - delicate decisions of colour, layout, font, kerning, and structure all build to create an ambiance for the art. Designers and curators know the way to do this from years of training and experience, together with talent! Here are some points to think about when you're planning the visual design of your site. Designers often use these themes as a kick off point.
- Keep it simple and stylish
- Keep the concentration on the art itself
- Use neutral background colors that compliment the work. Good colors are black, charcoal, white, and pale shades. Other colors can look great depending on the art. Avoid bright colours which draw the attention away from the work
- Don't smother the outward appearance of the art or distract with a site that looks too "busy".
- Don't have advertisements all over your portfolio - it devalues the art and your image. We suggest that you get rid of advertising on your portfolio or if you've got to, it should be confined to a section concentrated on resources or links.
As a general rule, we advocate against having large numbers of art-works on your site. Select your very best work, just as you would select slides for a regular portfolio, and add new work as it becomes available. Some portfolio websites will permit you to put up as many as 100 pieces of your work, but we think its too distracting. Lots of the sites we design have 20 or fewer works on view. Think about this: when was the last time you went to a top-end studio that had lots of pieces showing?
Avoid designer-ish effects like flash pictures unless they're executed efficiently and really compliment the art. In the time it takes to play your exotic flash-based entry page your visitor may have moved on.
If you follow these simple axioms, you'll be well on the way to a good artists web site.
A good website should also showcase the artist herself. Selling art is about somebody buying your art AND the image they feel from you as an artist. A well executed website may never replace a meeting with a collector or dealer, nevertheless it can be the significant factor that piques their interest and results in the meeting. The value of that is enormous.
Your artist's portfolio is the foundation on which you'll build your complete online-marketing technique. Every marketing tool and program will seek to draw attention to your site . It's worth putting in the investment in time, thought , and money to make it great!
About the Author:
Daniel Tardent is the business director for Beautiful Artist Websites, a boutique design studio based in Santa Monica, California. Beautiful Artist Websites have expertise in designing premium artist porfolios selling solutions for artists, photographers, galleries, and other creatives.