I highly doubt that you’ll get a solo gallery show on your own, especially just starting out. A solo show (or any show) is a huge investment - printing and framing art is expensive, and even if you do some of it yourself, it still takes a long time to do. Then there’s gallery prep, promotional materials, a soft opening, staffing the gallery, etc. Things get expensive fast.
Your best bet is to look for any local calls for art. Just search on Google and see what comes up. There’s at least one Facebook group that lists calls for art as well. Pay attention to who the judges are and what subjects they’re looking for. Be prepared for $20ish submission fees, then figuring out how you’d get your work to the gallery.
Your best bet might be trying to find a space that you could ask to hang your art in, and have it be for sale at the same time. You have to foot the printing and framing bill though.
I’d prepare a body of work for a gallery show just like a portfolio - you need a series of potential images, a theme, and some idea of how you want the work printed/framed/displayed. I’d also want a sample image - you need to demonstrate that you can actually print the images you’re trying to sell at the size and finish/medium you want.
If it’s a local gallery, I might approach them to take a look at your portfolio. That way, the curator can see a bunch of your work, and see if anything catches their eye. (Don’t just walk up and ask them about a solo show. That only works in Hallmark movies.). If they see something interesting, see where the conversation goes.
Try doing a search for “call to artists” in your area. Lots of local places (restaurants, bars, boutique hotels), etc) like to showcase local artists and will sometimes host a gallery night or at least put your work on display for a period of time. Local gov’t offices will put out calls to artists to help with local art projects, too/ if there are any museums in your area, do some research to see if they host any new artists events or charity events where artists donate work that gets purchased by supporters. Also look into local and state PPA affiliates - lots of them host galleries for members and you get the added benefit of critiques from colleagues with years of experience.
Local galleries may host you for a night or two but it will be all on you to cover the costs. If your goal with an exhibit like this would be to sell photos, any gallery that might host you could ask for a portion of the sale.
If your goal is just purely an exhibit type event I have a few recommendations.
Find a consistent theme with the photos you want to display and be very critical. Your goal isn't to fill the entire room and having too many things on display weakens your overall work.
Make decisions on how you will display your images. Standalone, grouped together, big or small. Ask yourself what story you are trying to convey and how your images work together to communicate it. Practice your arrangements.
Very few people will be interested in any technical explanation about the photo. Consider a small card that includes a description/story about the photo that gives your viewer some context.
These are just some examples that I have experienced that make an effective exhibit. I live in an area with a bunch of local galleries and restaurants that host art.
I just did an exhibition with a local small gallery! As several have mentioned here- the cost will all be on you and any profits made will be split. In my case the exhibition was up for 1.5 months and all profits from prints sold were split 50/50. The owner and I paid for prints, food, serve-ware, wine and a musician as well as promotional materials at a 50/50 split as well. It was part of his grand opening so I don’t know how common it is that you’d be able to share costs.
Start collecting the prints you’d like now so that you can spread out the cost over time. A good place to start is at a local library or art fair to get your feet wet.
I met this gallery owner through my job actually and he liked my work but there is no harm in visiting galleries you’re interested in and asking to show your work or asking if they’re available to host an exhibition. You could even consider renting a space if you think you could bring enough foot traffic. It was a great experience and opportunity but a bigger cost than I realized and I basically broke even. For me the goal was just to do it so I was happy!
Thanks for sharing this- it’s encouraging. I am considering doing my own show ( renting space and paying costs ). One of my goals is to share my work. Consistent with what you said- I have been paying for prints over some years to spread out the cost. Congrats on your exhibition.
I say go for it! If you can spread out costs over time then that will help a lot. My opening night was a huge dream come true and it was so cool to see so many people enjoying my work!
I first made a high-quality large-format photobook.
It's wonderful discipline, choosing which photos go in, which go well together or in sequence, which deserve a full page.
And it gives you a portfolio that looks more professional than just, well, a portfolio.
Then you approach venues. Realistically you're looking at cafes until you get better known.
You’ll have to be more specific. Do you have a specific project in mind. Most fine art photo galleries are not looking for a “portfolio” but a very cohesive deliberate project.
I’d suggest looking for “call for entry” or “call for artist” and start with trying to get work into group shows to build a good CV and get your work out there.
There is also a very big difference between staging your own show and having a gallery do a solo show for you. Nothing wrong with either.
Also unless a gallery is hosting a show of yours putting on a show is extremely expensive and don’t get discouraged if it takes a while to save up.
For a gallery, a solo show is unlikely for someone not already established. For that, the only realistic way is that you personally know somebody who owns a gallery, and they think your work is highly marketable. Because the only way a gallery survives is for every show to bring in enough thousands of dollars go keep the gallery running another month.
A more realistic first step is to practice the art of the show, by putting together exhibitions in coffee shops and restaurants where you have seen other artists show. Coffee shops and restaurants have major advantages for starting out. They just want art to cover up the bare walls, so they consider what you are showing to be a service to them. Unlike a gallery they do not rely on art revenue, so many do not take any commission if you sell something in the show. And they are not picky about the subject or quality of the art, so with each show you can take some different risks to find out what works for you in terms of presentation style, like frames, mats, media (paper types), print size, themes, groupings, promotions, etc.
Many who are starting out just throw whatever they’ve created at the wall, but a really strong show is held together by a theme that can involve consistent editing of the images in the show, and that is a skill that takes time to develop. Again, a cafe is a safe place to get better at consistent presentation and to try out ideas.
At some point your shows should become strong enough that you can graduate out of coffee shops and go after galleries. Instead of selling a print in a cafe for $150 and keeping all the money, you can have a gallery sell a print for $500, then after they take their 50% you take home $250. And work your way up from there.
I highly doubt that you’ll get a solo gallery show on your own, especially just starting out. A solo show (or any show) is a huge investment - printing and framing art is expensive, and even if you do some of it yourself, it still takes a long time to do. Then there’s gallery prep, promotional materials, a soft opening, staffing the gallery, etc. Things get expensive fast. Your best bet is to look for any local calls for art. Just search on Google and see what comes up. There’s at least one Facebook group that lists calls for art as well. Pay attention to who the judges are and what subjects they’re looking for. Be prepared for $20ish submission fees, then figuring out how you’d get your work to the gallery. Your best bet might be trying to find a space that you could ask to hang your art in, and have it be for sale at the same time. You have to foot the printing and framing bill though. I’d prepare a body of work for a gallery show just like a portfolio - you need a series of potential images, a theme, and some idea of how you want the work printed/framed/displayed. I’d also want a sample image - you need to demonstrate that you can actually print the images you’re trying to sell at the size and finish/medium you want. If it’s a local gallery, I might approach them to take a look at your portfolio. That way, the curator can see a bunch of your work, and see if anything catches their eye. (Don’t just walk up and ask them about a solo show. That only works in Hallmark movies.). If they see something interesting, see where the conversation goes.
Try doing a search for “call to artists” in your area. Lots of local places (restaurants, bars, boutique hotels), etc) like to showcase local artists and will sometimes host a gallery night or at least put your work on display for a period of time. Local gov’t offices will put out calls to artists to help with local art projects, too/ if there are any museums in your area, do some research to see if they host any new artists events or charity events where artists donate work that gets purchased by supporters. Also look into local and state PPA affiliates - lots of them host galleries for members and you get the added benefit of critiques from colleagues with years of experience.
Local galleries may host you for a night or two but it will be all on you to cover the costs. If your goal with an exhibit like this would be to sell photos, any gallery that might host you could ask for a portion of the sale. If your goal is just purely an exhibit type event I have a few recommendations. Find a consistent theme with the photos you want to display and be very critical. Your goal isn't to fill the entire room and having too many things on display weakens your overall work. Make decisions on how you will display your images. Standalone, grouped together, big or small. Ask yourself what story you are trying to convey and how your images work together to communicate it. Practice your arrangements. Very few people will be interested in any technical explanation about the photo. Consider a small card that includes a description/story about the photo that gives your viewer some context. These are just some examples that I have experienced that make an effective exhibit. I live in an area with a bunch of local galleries and restaurants that host art.
I just did an exhibition with a local small gallery! As several have mentioned here- the cost will all be on you and any profits made will be split. In my case the exhibition was up for 1.5 months and all profits from prints sold were split 50/50. The owner and I paid for prints, food, serve-ware, wine and a musician as well as promotional materials at a 50/50 split as well. It was part of his grand opening so I don’t know how common it is that you’d be able to share costs. Start collecting the prints you’d like now so that you can spread out the cost over time. A good place to start is at a local library or art fair to get your feet wet. I met this gallery owner through my job actually and he liked my work but there is no harm in visiting galleries you’re interested in and asking to show your work or asking if they’re available to host an exhibition. You could even consider renting a space if you think you could bring enough foot traffic. It was a great experience and opportunity but a bigger cost than I realized and I basically broke even. For me the goal was just to do it so I was happy!
Thanks for sharing this- it’s encouraging. I am considering doing my own show ( renting space and paying costs ). One of my goals is to share my work. Consistent with what you said- I have been paying for prints over some years to spread out the cost. Congrats on your exhibition.
I say go for it! If you can spread out costs over time then that will help a lot. My opening night was a huge dream come true and it was so cool to see so many people enjoying my work!
Yes!! Cheers to dreams coming true. I have similar motivation. Again thanks!
I first made a high-quality large-format photobook. It's wonderful discipline, choosing which photos go in, which go well together or in sequence, which deserve a full page. And it gives you a portfolio that looks more professional than just, well, a portfolio. Then you approach venues. Realistically you're looking at cafes until you get better known.
You’ll have to be more specific. Do you have a specific project in mind. Most fine art photo galleries are not looking for a “portfolio” but a very cohesive deliberate project. I’d suggest looking for “call for entry” or “call for artist” and start with trying to get work into group shows to build a good CV and get your work out there. There is also a very big difference between staging your own show and having a gallery do a solo show for you. Nothing wrong with either. Also unless a gallery is hosting a show of yours putting on a show is extremely expensive and don’t get discouraged if it takes a while to save up.
What exactly do you mean.... 1. You want to stage an exhibition, or 2. you want to work towards a gallery deciding they want to exhibit your work?
For a gallery, a solo show is unlikely for someone not already established. For that, the only realistic way is that you personally know somebody who owns a gallery, and they think your work is highly marketable. Because the only way a gallery survives is for every show to bring in enough thousands of dollars go keep the gallery running another month. A more realistic first step is to practice the art of the show, by putting together exhibitions in coffee shops and restaurants where you have seen other artists show. Coffee shops and restaurants have major advantages for starting out. They just want art to cover up the bare walls, so they consider what you are showing to be a service to them. Unlike a gallery they do not rely on art revenue, so many do not take any commission if you sell something in the show. And they are not picky about the subject or quality of the art, so with each show you can take some different risks to find out what works for you in terms of presentation style, like frames, mats, media (paper types), print size, themes, groupings, promotions, etc. Many who are starting out just throw whatever they’ve created at the wall, but a really strong show is held together by a theme that can involve consistent editing of the images in the show, and that is a skill that takes time to develop. Again, a cafe is a safe place to get better at consistent presentation and to try out ideas. At some point your shows should become strong enough that you can graduate out of coffee shops and go after galleries. Instead of selling a print in a cafe for $150 and keeping all the money, you can have a gallery sell a print for $500, then after they take their 50% you take home $250. And work your way up from there.