2023 is nearing its end. As we close out another year I encourage you to take time to do some housekeeping for your creative business. The following end-of-year to-do list for artists of all levels. If you haven't done any of these, now is the time to start implementing good practices.
Update your Curriculum Vitae or Artist Resume
As 2023 comes to an end now is the time to update your CV. Add to it all the accomplishments you have obtained for your art career in 2023. These include having artwork in group exhibitions, solo shows, any awards received, membership to art groups, continued education, press, and more. Be sure to group these items so it is easy to read. If you need help drafting your CV and don't know how to organize it head over to Art Connective's online learning and enroll in the Documents Course. This is by far one of the most important courses you can take.
Photograph Artwork
If you haven't already, gather all your work created in 2023 and have it professionally photographed. I do recommend you find a professional photographer in your area who has experience photographing original artwork. It can not have glass on it. If you do not want to have all your pieces professionally photographed then pick the work that is most important to you and that you see yourself either creating reproductions of or entering into exhibitions.
Finish Artwork
We all have pieces we started and haven't finished for whatever reason. They are sitting on a shelf or hidden away. Now is a good time to revisit these artworks and decide if they are going to be reworked to start something new or completed.
Hardware
Gather all artwork that does not have hardware on it, signatures, or titles. If you can do it yourself add the appropriate hardware to the back of the pieces, sign & date, and create titles for them. Remember, this is part of finishing a piece of art. There is a saying, it's not done until it's signed.
Inventory
I know, I know, no one likes doing inventory. I remember my retail days and having to come in to work extra hours to inventory a whole store...not enjoyable but necessary. Once you have the images of your work it's time to add it to your inventory. One of the best platforms to do this is Artwork Archive, I use them for my practice and if you become a member of Art Connective there is an exclusive discount to join at a lower cost. What this program helps with is uploading images, adding price, size, title, creation date, and more. It is essential to know how much work you have, where it is on display, and what has sold.
There are more things to accomplish at the end of the year but this is already a long list with a lot to do on it. Start with one of these and go from there. Do not overwhelm yourself and try to tackle this all at once. Instead, pick one and focus on that until completed, and then move on to the next.
Wishing you a successful and creative 2024!
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