I went to talk to the gallery today about the pieces I’d dropped off on Monday (the gallery owner had been sick all week.)
Of the 6 pieces, I left with her, she sent 4 home with me, saying they were “no good”. Too dark, too grim, not colourful enough. People don’t want art like that in their homes. I was told there was no feeling in them, and that I didn’t capture any kind of atmosphere or emotion and specifically they didn’t capture any feeling of the sea. She told me that she was glad I had other forms of income.
Oof. Rejection sucks.
First, a rant.*
Arghhhhhkgjkdjkdgjdkgkdgdkhgdfkhhhfh! Stomp stomp stomp. Grumble. Stomp.
Sometimes this art nonsense is frustrating! You work your ass off, you put your heart and soul into something, you put all of your vision and passion into it and you still come up short. You’re still not good enough. You still suck. Arghhh.
And you spend all that money framing! (If you’re me.) Rejection is expensive! Gahh!
There’s this part of my brain that just thinks I am so stupid to think I could produce gallery-quality work. Stupid stupid stupid.
Okay, I’m done ranting. I just needed to get that out of my system.
*By the way, I don’t blame the gallery owner. She was honest, she was kind, she had to make a business decision. I completely understand that, and all of my anger and frustration is at myself and life, not her.
Now, on to what I’m going to do about it.
I’m going to stop selling my work. I’m going to spend a lot (a lot) of time in my studio. Maybe when I feel my work is better I’ll start to sell it again.
I get that part of it is a “wrong audience” thing. Her audience likes brightly coloured paintings. But it’s incredibly frustrating trying to find my audience. There’s also the fact that I’m young, inexperienced, and let’s be perfectly honest here, not very good.
I need more time. I need more practice. So that’s what I’m going to do. Maybe in a year, my work will have improved enough for public consumption. I’m not setting a date on how long I’ll stop selling because I don’t know what life is going to throw at me or how much I’ll improve in what amount of time. I’m just going to take it day by day and make sure that I paint lots and lots.
I’m still deciding whether or not I’ll come up with a curriculum of some kind, or if I’ll just make it my mission to spend X amount of time in the studio every day, or whether I’ll set a schedule for doing different things, like painting from life, plein air studies, drawing and figure work.
All I want to do right now is paint and study, and then paint and study some more. I am bound and determined to get better. I will make great art. Even if it frigging kills me. Even if I never find my right audience and I’ll always be turned away because my work is too dark and too grim with no emotion. Sigh. It’s gonna be a while before I let that go.
But I don’t want to give up my vision. I want to get back to painting for me and my own satisfaction. I want to get better for me. I started painting for myself, as a way to find sanity in a life that often made little sense.
It’s about time I returned to that.
In case you’re curious, the rejected paintings are below:
The Coming Rain © Sarah Marie Lacy, 2010. Oil on canvas, 16″x20″
Sunset in Gold & Pink © Sarah Marie Lacy. Oil on canvas, 18″x24″
River Dee IV © Sarah Marie Lacy 2010. Oil on canvas, 24″x30″
Grassy Cliffs: Gold & Blue © Sarah Marie Lacy 2010. Oil on canvas, 16″x20″
14 Comments
Hi Sarah, I know you’re going to get a ton of comments just like this, but… for what it’s worth, I think the “rejected” paintings are absolutely gorgeous. And full of emotion. Quite the opposite of what your dealer was saying.
Finding the place between what you like to do and what people want is not easy but I guarantee that it exists somewhere. It will probably take a certain amount of time to find it. While you’re looking and exploring and figuring things out, you will have time to work on your art, develop your style, and learn what you want to learn. I think that ten years down the line, you’ll realize that it all worked out perfectly, in its own way.
I also want to remind you that, yes, you are pretty young, and you’re also very talented and seriously on the ball about business matters, in a way that I admire. You have to start somewhere, and you’re starting in such an amazing way, by selling paintings in a gallery and creating a site. This is an incredible achievement for such a young artist. I hope you give yourself credit for that.
Rejection sucks. Worrying about “what the market wants” and whether or not you can provide that also sucks. There’s always a tension and conflict between wanting to paint for others and wanting to paint for yourself. Big hugs for all of this.
I, for one, think you’re doing fabulously well.
SB
I agree your paintings are beautiful and the gallery owner is correct they are dark. There is nothing wrong with dark paintings but I understand the gallery owner’s decision, this may not be what type of paintings they want to represent at this time. Who knows the economy will change and people will be less interested in only having their spirits lifted by brighter colors. Don’t give up on trying to sell your work even now, it is a matter of finding the place that will match with the buyer who is interested in your work. Of course keep learning and keep improving are the best goals.
Good day Sarah,
Honestly I wouldn’t know a good painting if it smacked me in the face. Two things I do know.
1 – beauty is in the eye of the beholder and fortunately there are 6.5 billion sets of eyes on the planet – each with their own view of beauty.
2 – the answer to rejection (as the good book, “the aladdin factor” says) is to say “next” in a loud and clear voice.
Blessings and fortune
Kal x
I love the sunset one. The others are not-me, but that’s me.
Oh, my heart hurts for your heart. Rejection stings. Especially rejection about something as personal as your artwork.
But…I think you’ve got a lot of good going on here, and that means that you’ve got a firm, good platform to build on.
Your waves look like waves.
The beach looks like what a beach looks like after water has just washed over it.
There’s room for darkness in paintings. It just has to be for the right audience.
They are out there. Your art will find a home.
I’m imagining antiques roadshow circa 2150 a.d.
“It’s hard to believe that The Coming Rain was rejected by a gallery when it was initially painted. We’ve been hoping to see this one come in. We estimate its value at $5.3 million dollars.” (*Gasp!*)
Owner: “We love it. We wouldn’t sell it for any price.”
Rejection sucks!!! but we’ve all been there. and like the others have said, dust yourself off and move on. and none of it means you’re “not very good”. it only means that this particular gallery is not on the same page as you–they’re simply looking for something else. if you only walk on sunny days, you’re never gonna get there.
Ahhh Sarah, I have had very similar experiences, and TRUST ME I know how much it stings. All I can say is that you have the right kind of “never going to give up” attitude and your persistence will be key to sustaining your career. That being said I think that by putting a stop to your sales, you will really just be punishing yourself. This gallery wants to make money, and knows what their audience is. That doesn’t mean that the paintings she didn’t take are not any good. And furthermore only YOU know how much emotion you’ve put into them. I suggest you take a look at each one that she didn’t take and try to be really honest with yourself about whether or not you think they can be improved. Put good and bad out of your mind. Can they be better? Do they embody the “atmosphere” that YOU wanted to convey? What matters is that you are happy with the work that you’ve done in the end. And maybe not every gallery will be the perfect “fit” for all your paintings, but I have no doubt that with your persistence, success will come. (Because YOU ARE TALENTED)
From my experience, sometimes a little criticism is the best tool available to push your work to the next level. It might hurt like hell, but you’ll be a better, stronger, artist by being able to hear it, and use it to your advantage. (even if all you learn from it is that you disagree with their criticism) Put your pride aside and see if anything this woman said can make your work better according to what YOU want your work to be.
Thats all I got. Hope it helps.
The paintings seem fine to me. However using a principle that master photographers use: landscapes need tohave foreground, middle ground and stuff in the distance. It gives greater depth.
I like rejection much MUCH more than ignorance. I can learn from rejection.
That said, it does suck because of the ego we attach to our work. If you look at completed work as separate from you now, as detached, then you can treat it as your work and not you. It makes it easier to sell and easier to reach your right people, as Havi calls them, because you’ll look at your art as something to serve.
Your ability to connect with people is apparently wonderful so continuing that dialog will certainly give you lessons to take along, and do practice practice practice. In my opinion, truthfully, most artistic skill is more practice than gift.
Peace,
@vinylart
rejection does suck. yes, you can learn from it. that’s the positive.
it can also ruin the love, the desire, and the joy of why you do what you do.
if you let it.
the best thing to do is take it, put it on the back burner, let a few days pass (when the emotional sting has stopped burning), then try to look at it objectively.
maybe you _will_ learn something that will enable you to grow as an artist.
or maybe you’ll learn that the rejector is full of #!$%.
some people like grim. some people like little fuzzy kitty cats and puppies and smiling, cooing babies. you paint what you _feel_, and as cliche as it sounds, that’s what matters. your art will find its audience in due time.
Hey,
please resist the urge to hibernate. Regroup. Redirect and focus. Keep going.
I saw this post and thought of you. Don’t know if you follow this blogger already. The timing is perfect.
http://joyfullyjobless.com/blog/2010/05/making-peace-with-rejection/
x
1. The only one who should determine the quality or marketability of an artwork is the artist. Otherwise you’re extremely vulnerable to any retail clerk with the delusional impression they “know” anything about art. Unfortunately, there are a fair number of people who will use your art to make themselves feel better… By saying it stinks, is of low-quality, or won’t sell. You have to take all compliments/complaints the same – check them against your own knowledge of the work.
2. It’s beyond stupid to say anything on the variation of “dark paintings don’t sell.” Uh right… Caravaggio is really unpopular. So is pop surrealism etc. What that really says is, “I’m not actually selling art – so much as sitting by it and waiting for people to buy it.” Not the same thing. Go open a liquor store then. It’s a confession of incompetence, laziness and ineptitude – but one that the store manager tries to dump on you. Inability to sell dark paintings sure ain’t your problem.
3. All galleries are hardly created equal and the majority are not very good. Always remember that you employ them to distribute and sell work. They do not employ you. They are a retail venue, their only role in your life is to move your product. Nothing more. Their opinion is not important unless they’re asked for it… And never ask.
4. Work on branching out. Diversify. Get other galleries (if you want), self-represent through open studio shows (once or twice a year) etc. Spread the risk out more. And never ever sign an exclusive agreement with anyone. This is business. Not “art business” (which makes no money for artists) but real business.
5. Work on being less nice. Unfortunately, in order to self-advocate, protect your interests, and not get steam-rolled by the legions of passive-aggressive people – it’s necessary to step on toes (and sometimes chop them off).
6. Business is business. Whether it’s selling toothpaste or fine art – basic principles are the same. Don’t be afraid to conduct your business totally independent of what you’re “supposed” to do as an artist. Oddly, what artists are “supposed” to do tends to benefit everyone but the artist…
Above all, never ever allow external feedback to affect your work. Trust a few people’s opinion perhaps (who don’t sell your work) but lack of self-confidence combined with asinine feedback from others will kill your art dead. And that would be a tragedy since it’s very good.
Kick ass and take names… No, on second thought don’t bother taking names… Just kick ass.
Sarah!
It is a bit the 1/2 full and 1/2 empty glass…
You should be happy the Gallery took 2 paintings…
And although you should take into account what a Gallery owner tells you, I want you to always remember Van-Gogh.
He only ever sold 1 painting in his life time and his mother gave away the whole lot she had, that was to a rag and bone merchant who burnt the whole lot !…
That IS rejection !
And he was full of colours….
Also you feeling disappointed is good.
It will make you stronger and more determined.
In my professional opinion, 2 of the “rejected” paintings are very good.
I have sold 100′s of painting over the years, and when the Gallery you went to, closes down, you will be still painting beautiful art.
Take my word for it.
This said if they dont sell dark or monochromatic it is their loss, but it could also be that the type of clients they have have not been educated, their eyes have not been opened…
Their is always “Hong-Kong” paintings for those….!
I’m going to take a different approach here… at first, I was like, “Ouchie!” when I read the rejection part. But then I saw the rejected paintings. I had to agree.
I’m going to be blunt but fair. I’m no studly artist myself, but I can offer some suggestions nonetheless to help you improve.
The Coming Rain – looks like 2 paintings combined into one. The composition on this one, as well as the others, is lacking. When you look at it – does your eye move around? Turn them upside-down and try again. Is it “heavy” in one area?
This is where I try to be constructive because I think you’ve got a lot of potential here, just that the execution is lacking. I recommend going through the elements and principles of composition/design as a good place to self-critique.
I’m not going to expound on them, but I did do a basic Google search and found this for you:
http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/content/3902/
Something else to consider is perspective – not just the converging lines sort of perspective, but atmospheric and detail perspective. For example, Sunset in Gold and Pink, if you cover up everything but the rocks in the foreground, there’s nothing to tell me the rocks recede into the distance – looks like a pile. Size should decrease more, details should get fuzzy quickly, and colors should gray out.
Unless that’s the effect you’re going for (I don’t think it is).
Grassy Cliffs has the same problem with the grass – the yellow doesn’t fade as it recedes and the darks don’t gray out, either. Cover up the beach and sky and it looks like a hill, not a plateau stretching out into the distance.
I constantly find myself struggling against “less is more.” I think you are, too. Don’t force it. Try a bigger brush to break the instinct. Try a limited palette to help kill the “pasted on” look. Follow your instincts.
And the gallery owner was a jerk to say she was glad you had other forms of income. That’s just rude, but the rest was pretty constructive.
Just my 2 cents… looking forward to see what you do next!
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