Art of sale and sale of art

There are so many artists who find it hard to get a foothold in the art market.

There are so many talented artists who are talented at art but lousy at selling. 
How many art galleries do you see on the high street all competing for clients.  Even the best artists are finding it hard to survive or get a foothold into making a career out of what they love.

One or two do make it though but making it in art seems as hard as making it as a popstar.  You are up against a lot of talented competitors in a quick moving undustry.

The question is how do you make it ?  Well the emphasis is on sales and image.  It appears that it is who you know just as much as what you can do that can make you in the art world.  If you can get yourself mixing in the right circles with the right customers then your name gets out and you access one of the most effective forms of sales - referral marketing, where people talk you up on your behalf (same as PR).  This takes time and resources to achieve.

Another problem with many artists is that they try and put across their emotions and hope that somebody buys it.  Rather than consider what the market wants and painting that.  Many people want a painting of something close to them and unlike what many might think, it is rarely a portrait of themself, unless it is a wedding scene.  People have so many interests and loves - like children and pets and image defining possessions that these are perhaps the most popular.

The power of art is that it is one of the few gifts that can really unlock some very powerful doors, particularly if the subject is close to the person's heart (eg Donald Trump's dad - not necessarily Donald Trump himself). 

It makes proud, grown men cry and can be very moving if the subject is of something you really love - it is like the artist understands you on a very deep level giving you a high level of psychological air which is one of our basic needs to survive and is so rarely tapped into.  Thus the power.

It is so nice and rare to find a bespoke product that can tap into such deeply covered emotions.