ASTRÖ
My very first exhibition — ASTRÖ — ended a few days ago! It was held at Hachem, a Quebec-based chain of art and framing stores. The event lasted the whole month of September, and now is the time for a retrospective.
The exhibition opening went well. I would have liked to see more people show up, given the time and money I had invested in it (advertisement on social networks and in the local newspaper, catering services, printing of promotional material). But all in all, the event turned out to be quite successful. I even made a sale!
Throughout this experience, I took note of what I had done well and what I could improve on. So here are three of my strengths and my three weaknesses (and yes, I can’t find more than three 😊), all of which are things I want to improve on for my next events.
My weaknesses:
A fatal error – While engaging in a conversation with someone who was praising my art (a potential customer), I saw a friend who had come to support me. Happy to see her and overcome with joy, I went over to say hello, stepping aside from the conversation I’d just started. When I turned around 10 seconds later to resume the conversation, the interested person was gone! I then blamed myself during the whole event, as this person most likely interpreted my action as rudeness, and I ended up missing out on an interesting conversation and maybe a sale. Never do that again, Mawu!
Buying advertising space in a local newspaper – In our digital age, I took the risk of publishing my promotional poster in the local newspaper, which has a weekly circulation of 110,000 copies across five cities. I was certain that this would attract some potential customers, especially senior art lovers who like to follow the news in the traditional (paper) form. Well, I was wrong on this one. Of all the people I spoke to at my opening (regardless of age), not a single person referred to the newspaper ad. The main information channels that led them to the event were social media and, especially, word-of-mouth. The world has changed indeed, and I have learned from my mistake – I don’t see myself investing hundreds of dollars in an ad in the newspaper again. That was a total waste of money.
Not leveraging social media enough (maybe) – To be honest, I’m not sure about the validity of this point, as I’ve noticed that, in my case, many people may appreciate my art online, but not necessarily have the time or inclination to physically go see it in real life. The most effective channel for bringing people to my exhibition was word of mouth. So far, it’s the channel that’s helped me close the most sales, and with far less effort and time than what I invest in social media. Maybe it’s just me, but I think social media is great for getting noticed on a large scale, but it doesn’t necessarily equate to sales. Having said that, I’m not neglecting it at all and will continue to integrate it into my business strategy without spending all my energy on it. In my opinion, there are better levers for success, like this Website, which I feel is more effective in establishing a relationship of trust between us and getting you to buy my artwork. 😊
My strengths:
Top-notch preparation – This event is my very first exhibition, I made sure I was properly prepared to make it a success. In particular, I found a goldmine entitled Le vernissage et l’artiste (The opening and the artist) here (in French only): https://www.amylee.fr/produit/vernissage-artiste/
For the modest price of €10.90 (about 15 CAD), I got invaluable advice that will certainly come in handy for my next opening – including how to pick the right location for the opening and display your artwork efficiently, how to choose the right type of buffet and how to dress to impress.
Good interpersonal communication – Despite the above example of tactlessness, I had some great conversations with many people. This allowed us to share our various sensibilities and interpretations, and to take our imaginations on a journey together. Sharing with my audience was one of the things I loved the most about this event.
Constant learning and practice – This experience allowed me to explore various aspects of the art world from start to finish. Through my encounters with Hachem staff members, artists, and art lovers, I learned about logistics, organization, marketing, communication, and collaboration, among other things. I was able to constantly apply my new notions and adjust them as needed as my exhibition progressed. All in all, I’m very satisfied with the work I’ve done.
My goal is to constantly work on improving all these points to make my next openings and exhibitions increasingly successful events. See you next time!