(Artist in his Studio by Vermeer)
Have you ever thought of a scenario that existed before the advent
of private galleries in the field of art business? How the artists might have
sold their works then? Private art
galleries are a result of the proliferation of capital/wealth and the
decentralisation of the wealthy. Till the early part of the 19th
century wealth was concentrated in a few families or royal houses and they were
automatically the patrons of art. Artists were identified, supported and
promoted by regular collections and by giving them special social status. By
the fruition of industrial revolution and modern technologies like
telecommunication, rail, radio, post and the establishments of parallel
business houses to supported the retailing of the centralized production
plans/plants, it became inevitable for the wealth to flow into more hands that
were not concentrated in one part of the city or the country. The global transmission
of wealth and the global distribution of the wealthy necessitated a system
where fine arts needed retailing outlets so that they could buy art without
soiling their boots by getting down to the slush ridden alleys where the
artists had set up their studios. The private gallery system or the art retailing
system is comparatively a new phenomenon which over a period of time has taken
a centre stage in the idea of art making by false claims.
These days, artists unquestioningly accept the dominance of
the art galleries. They are not prepared to take certain radical steps to think
that the galleries are just like retailing shops that by virtue of their
exclusivity and posturing have made a special space for themselves in the art
scene. The fundamental analysis would take us to the fact that without artists
and the works of art, no gallery could survive. If we think backwards further,
we would come to know that there was a time when the patrons used to meet the
artists directly and pick up the works from their studios. That means, the
artists and their works had some sort of exclusivity; the number of artists was
less as the number of patrons were proportionately less. It had created an
ideal situation for the artists who not only worked as artists but as
designers, commission artists, carpenters, architects and even esoteric
practitioners. As I mentioned before, when the technologies changed and the
wealthy ones got distributed all over, they needed some retail shops; that’s
why we see the framers and art material sellers becoming the pioneering
gallerists in India and the tradition continues to be so in certain areas.
(for illustration only source net)
Now let’s think a bit more realistically (I mean
materialistically). One could buy a handcrafted bangle or a necklace from a
high end showroom in an airport or a mall, or one could buy the same piece from
an emporium in a city centre, or one could go to a crafts mela and get it. If
none of the above is available one could visit the crafts people’s or the
artisans’ village and get it. Which one would you deem as the best buying?
While you would like to flaunt the fact that you got your bangles from the
showroom in Delhi’s swanky T-3 terminal, you would also boast the fact that you
got it from so and so village in Uttarkhand. Very few people talk about they
got their bangles from a mela or from a mall. While the former and the latter
carry some prestige of buying the middle ones do not carry that much pride. It
is applicable in the case of art buying. People proudly display a latest
acquisition, a painting or a sculpture and tell the guests that they got it
either from a high end gallery in the city or from the artist’s studio
directly. If they have bought it from the artist directly, they would come up
with a few words of praising about the artist’s nature (so cool/so grand/so
nice/so hep/so casual/so philosophical), his works (what a work/he is a
colourist/watch out for him/he is going to go to places) or his studio (I love
the ambience of the studio/you could see the whole city from there/he could
make a huge one but he is so humble that he made a modest one/it is lake face/
it is hill face/you get wonderful air from the hills/it’s a bliss sitting
there).
When the gallerist enters between the artist and
buyer/collector (not the investor) all these social niceties die down. Here is
a gallerist and here is a buyer. Everything is clinically discussed between
them; all monetary issues including the tax, tax exemption, how much in cash,
how much in cheque etc etc, and the deal is done. By the time the work of art
reaches the house of the buyer, not only the buyer is tired of all the deals
but also the work of art which has by then reduced to mere commodity of
exchange. Now, it is time for me to clarify my stance on this. I am not against
the galleries that sell works of art. Their job is to do that. What I am
talking about is the experience of having a work of art in your collection not
via gallery but via going out and collecting it all by yourself either from the
artist’s studio or from whichever place the artists display it without the mediation
of a gallery. Why don’t you bargain with the artists directly? Now, there are
several artists who are extremely averse to such kind of bargain. You need to
reach that level so that you could just quote the price and relax. None is
going to bargain with you. To reach that level you should have your own
strategies and independence from the galleries.
(Will have more relevance in future)
To do that all the young professional artists and all those
young artists who want to live a professional artist’s life should think in the
following lines or answer a few questions that I am going to pose. What makes
you create a work of art? What do you expect out of it? What are your life
expectations? Where do you want to go from here? How do you envision your
future? Very simple questions with simple answers but people complicate the
answers and mess up with their lives and works. Let me start answering them
myself if I were a professional artist (and young too!). I make a work of art
because I do not know anything else; all my being is tuned to make a work of
art, that’s all. I want people to see it, appreciate it, talk about it and of
course it should give me some money in return as I do not do anything else in
my life to earn a living. My expectations are very simple; I want to live a
dignified life. I do not go anywhere from here; I want my art to take me
wherever it is capable of taking me otherwise I am happy wherever I am. My
future is to make more art and I want more people to appreciate me and I want
to be in perfect happiness.
Ohhhh....you say. I can see the curiosity, disbelief and
sarcasm on your face. Such an angel, you say. No dear friend, you could answer
in the same lines provided if you could limit your desires and expectations.
Now let me answer like a young contemporary artist: I make art because I want
to experiment with the visual language that I have been taught in the prestigious
institution where I studied art (lie. I want to make money). Whether people see
it or not, I want to engage with a critical mass (lie. I want to exhibit,
people to see it and people to buy it). I want to have a great state of the art
studio, good living conditions and a decent life (I want more money). I want to
go to Europe or America for a couple of years to get exposed to various ways of
making art (I am fed up with this country and I want to go elsewhere, wash dish
and make some money). I would like to establish as an international artist and
want to do socially engaging political art (I want to be famous, fashionable
and art or no art I should be known internationally by hook or crook).
(an artist's studio, source net)
Now let’s see the common denomination factor in all these
answers; while the former one demands moderation in everything the latter one
is talking all about material success and fame in different terms. While the
former would remain happy with limited expectations the latter would remain
troubled and would make everyone around him/her troubled for they make their
art from troubles of the world. I want to ask my young artist friends to think
about it deeply. For example, if you are having an exhibition in a public gallery,
say in Jehangir, Mumbai or LKA, Dehli. Your works are exceptional. But you do
not want to beg and plead before a gallerist. So you have put up your own show.
Now as they are exceptional works, people come to see your works (by word of
mouth publicity) and they would appreciate you and ask for the price (some of
them would do that). It is the greatest opportunity before you! You have two
options; one, say a four by three costs Rs.3 lakhs or two, quote Rs.60,000/-
(sixty thousand). Someone is ready to pay you fifty thousand for it. You say,
no or yes. It is up to you. If you say no, he goes away. If you say yes, he
buys it. And he would follow you, a relationship is built. He would become your
regular collector. He would like to see whatever you do before anybody does.
When it is known to the world that he is an exclusive collector, the whole
world wants to collect you. Now, it is time for you to say yes or no to that.
I have seen many artists crying that they are not getting
galleries to support them. No gallery is going to support them. Our galleries
have become upper class, upper caste and upper whatever establishments. They
are catering to the English speaking, English breathing and English thinking
crowd. They are the Macaulay’s children. They do not want artists who speak in
regional languages. They do not want provincial aesthetics. But here is a way
to counter them. Follow my words carefully now: Artists could support each
other. When five young artists come together, they could make group shows in
public galleries and use the social media to gain attention. Then, four of them
could support the fifth one to have a solo show. It could continue. Remember,
pricing is the key. When your works are not available with retailers, people
will come to you directly. There are machine cut ornaments and hand crafted
ones. People who love handcrafted ones would go to the one who makes ornaments
with hands, wouldn’t they? Believe that you are exclusive and your works cannot
be retailed by anybody. When you do that, the galleries are going to come to
you because they are simply business people and they would smell money and come
to you. But to do this you need tremendous amount of talent, self discipline
and simplicity.
(Raghunath Das, artist from Raghurajpur, Orissa)
Let me close this essay by citing a wonderful example from
Raghurajpur, the artists’ village in Orissa. Here I came to know about so many
young artists who continue the tradition of their families of making pat
chitras, scroll paintings, palm leaf painting etc. They make intricate
paintings in various materials of which the palm leaf paintings done with iron
stylus and ink (a sort of direct etching) are fantastic ones. Patrons and
dealers as well come here often and buy it from the artists. Most of the young artists
are married and their brides also do some crafts. The boys are happy and move
around the village on foot and at times on their bikes. They are worldly wise
and they speak in English to deal with the foreigners. I met this artist,
Raghunath Das who does palm leaf paintings mainly episodes from Bhagavat
Purana, Ramayana and the legends of Jagannatha of Puri. He showed me some of
his works and I was fascinated. I asked the price of those works of art and he
told me that it depends on the number of days he spent on making each one of
them. Das said, “If I spend a month on making this work, I may charge
Rs.30,000/-. Depending on the number of days I spend, I charge. Some works are
sold for Rs.5000/- even.” Das knows that there are dealers who collect works
from him and make double or triple amount from the cities. “So what? That’s
their job. I charge for my work. I am satisfied with that. I am not feeling
cheated or betrayed. I make good money and I am happy here.” At Raghurajpur,
Raghunath Das lives in a traditional house as anybody else here. They do not
live a cut off life. All of them have got high end smart phones. All of them
have ultra modern motor bikes. They wear jeans and T-shirts. But they do not
have one thing that the contemporary artists have in abundance: GREED. If you
could cut down on that, you could get the buyers to your studios and have
dignified life as artists.
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