The Fine Artist's Guide to Marketing and Self-Promotion

Rating:
Summary: Do You Want To Know How To Sell Your Art?
Review: As I am married to an artist, I can well appreciate the immense difficulties artists face when they are endeavoring to sell their art- work.
It is with this in mind that I decided to read and review Julius Vitali's updated edition of The Fine Artist's Guide To Marketing And Self Promotion.

Vitali's question in his introduction- how do fine artists create a reputation and career that will ultimately allow commercial galleries to sell their work- sets the tone of this extremely informative book.
We often hear the common complaint of artists that they have been rejected so many times that they might as well throw in the towel and forget about selling their work. A simple reply to the artist would be to persist and don't be discouraged. However, unfortunately this is not enough.
They must realize, as Vitali points out, there are other factors contributing to making an artist known, such as knowing about publicity, marketing, a clear and articulated aesthetic vision, networking, timeliness, and yes, a certain amount of luck.

Vitali deals with all of these elements in his eleven chapters that clearly point the artist in the right direction. In addition, the reader is also provided with brief profiles of thirteen successful artists, who have implemented to a lesser or greater degree many of Vitali's guidelines. When I was growing up my parents always told me that you learn from the best not the worst. In other words, find out why certain individuals are successful and learn from them. This is basically Vitali's motive for including these thirteen profiles, wherein the reader may be able to implement some of what worked for these artists.

There is also no shortage of interesting advice scattered throughout the book. As examples, did you know that making personal contact with magazines and newspapers is the most effective way to achieve success with these publications; be careful if you exhibit in the same area and repeatedly send media releases, this may turn off reports and reviewers; that more people listen to radio than ever before and this is an excellent opportunity to be known.

In addition to receiving some excellent tips as to how to market and sell yourself, the author provides timely resources pertaining to grants for individuals and special projects, corporate support for the arts, exhibiting your art professionally in a variety of venues, assembling a résumé, portfolio, and letters of recommendation.
A useful appendix at the back of the book deals with digital resources, Internet security and other related Internet topics, useful software, printers, ink and paper, and publishing.

Julius Vitali is a well- known international artist who has exhibited all over the globe, and his work appears in numerous public and private collections.
Artists who will devote the time to thoroughly read and probably re-read chapters that are most appropriate to their situation have the most to gain from Vitali's advice.

Norm Goldman Editor of Bookpleasures.com

Rating:
Summary: Not really designed for fine artists
Review: I found a lot of the suggestions to be "pie in the sky" unrealistic suggestions for the typical fine artist. Most artists aren't in a position to create a career in Europe, for instance--shipping costs, conversion rates alone make the suggestion ridiculous for many artists. Also, suggesting TV and radio publicity--that just doesn't happen in the art world unless an artist is part of either a high profile charity event or a big crafts fair or perhaps represented by a high profile gallery. I have NEVER seen an individual no-name fine artist on TV or heard about them on radio for a show at a gallery. Never. Just doesn't happen. Not a practical suggestion. If you are looking at this title, I would encourage the person reading this review to look at Caroll Michels or Danial Grant or Tad Crawford books--those are based in reality and chock full of realistic suggestions for artists.

Rating:
Summary: Making a Living as an Artist- The Real Deal
Review: My copy of "The Fine Artist's Guide to Marketing and Self-Promotion" by Julius Vitali could not have arrived at a better time. I needed to approach numerous manufacturers to evaluate state-of-the-art video equipment for my own book project. The chapter on corporate support for the arts provided the right combination of factual information and inspiration that let me know I could anticipate a 75% favorable response to a request for product support.

This book prepares beginners for a life of living off one's own wits as an artist.It contains reasonably priced, low and high tech ways to promote your art on your own. It's required reading for anyone seriously planning on making a career in the arts. Art professors would do their students a big favor by making this book a required text.

Julius Vitali encourages artists to think of themselves as small business entrepreneurs, like painters of the Renaissance who ran their studios as businesses. In this revised edition, there are important chapters on running a home business efficiently, using media to get your work into the public eye, Internet marketing and making a career in Europe. Other chapters contain helpful strategies for exhibiting, grant writing, assembling a résumé and portfolio. I've been making a living as an artist for more than 25 years and this book taught me a lot of new strategies and unorthodox methods for marketing and self-promotion. It contains realistic information that could only be acquired from successful daily practice. Why start from scratch when you can get this type of help?

Making a career in the arts takes an aggressive approach to selling. Julius Vitali shows it can be done and how anyone can do it with straightforward, no-nonsense advice.

Rating:
Summary: Helpful and practical information
Review: The marketing and promotional tips offered in this book are practical and geared toward the profesional artist. Artists who seek a career in the world of fine art and developing a reputation are strongly encouraged to read this book. The advice is both easy to understand and will prepare the artist for the real world, not small-time futility.