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Interview with Tayler Murphy of Laguna Gallery

So this is taylor I absolutely adore her and she is representing the joanne artman gallery so she basically helps run the show over there and that's one of my prince sitting there behind her and that's one of my fifty inch prints? Yep, she's modeling it for me so I adore this gallery they're one of my galleries that represents my work they have been so amazingly good to me, so I wanted to get them on here and I wanted them to answer your question, so I went on the internet a couple weeks ago and I asked everybody to just submit their their top questions if they could ask a gallery anything, what would it be? So I've got those questions compiled here, and I'm just going to ask the most popular questions that continually popped up from people let's jump in. So you yes, so taylor, the first thing that everybody wanted to know is what who shouldn't artist contact first when they're approaching a gallery. So when I is that you do some research on galleries that you're looking into on galler...

ies that you're interested in because galleries often have submission policies and each gallery is probably going to have a unique submission policy for example hours we prefer the artist to eat male three images to us and then we look at those and then if we're interested, will contact that artists and set up an appointment and further that connection so I would suggest doing some reach research you don't want to walk into the gallery on emailing is the best way and you want to show work that you feel really strongly about, and I would suggest not sending too many images you want to select items that you I feel best represent your work that are really strong pieces that you're confident and showing because galleries get a lot of submissions and you know you want your work to stand out and, um, that's probably what I would suggest doing that's really good advice. Thank you. So when an artist approaches you, how much do you expect them to know about the process of showing in a gallery? So are you looking for people who already know all of their print sizes in additions and all of that and what kind of paper they print on? Are you willing to help them out a little bit in that way? Well, each calories different to certain galleries once already well established artists, but there's many galleries who will take emerging artists as well and it's best. If you have an idea of what you're going to show, that just makes you stand out even more if you kind of have found your voice and you have an idea of what you want to represent and to a gallery and what you want to show the gallery that's best but I need there's unique situations where we see artists and their emerging artists and were willing to work with them because we see something and then that we truly find inspiring. So, um my suggestion would be to have an idea ready and tohave some strong pieces that you that are in your portfolio to show a gallery but like I said, there's opportunity cell for galleries to work with emerging artists definitely so what is it now? This question might really sort of stand out as being one that anybody could answer differently, but what makes an artist desirable? This was something that so many people wanted to know. What is it with that thing that you're looking for where you know that you're going to make sales with that artist? Well, you know, we kind of have figured out what our climb tellis looking for and what is best represented in this space at this location because every market is different and what showing on the west coast isn't necessarily what is showing on the east coast, but when we see artists joanne and I joanna ll get the emails and if she sees something that just she feels a connection to it all of the artist that we represent we really are passionate about their work, we really believe in them and there's a connection there that we have that you know, there are guys that we want to have an our own collection and so it's just that it's that genesis kwan you know, it's it's a personal connection to the artist and the gallery and, you know, every every gallery is going to be different but for us it's it's finding just like a little spark and something that we see that we believe in that we feel as though other people will enjoy a swell I think that's really great to hear too, because you sort of are saying that, you know, no matter where you are in your career, somebody might be attracted to the art that you've created so it's worth putting yourself out there absolutely, I mean, you know, there's, you you have to take a chance because you never know and, you know, we want to take a chance on artist too, because way believe in artists and we want to see them succeed and I don't know it's so wonderful watching artist coop ears grow and watch their their work change and evolve and you gotta dig jan, you just don't know, you just don't know exactly I mean, when I when I approached you guys, I had no idea what I was doing, and I had really only been doing photography for a year year and a half or something like that and I mean, I remember you guys just took me under your wing and sort of said, okay, this is how it's going to be and we're going to help you through it and it was really amazing and that's why I try to encourage people you know, whether europe fine artist right now or you want to be whatever it might be for your situation it's still worth pursuing so you never know who's going to take that chance on you? Absolutely we some of our artists are self taught artists and they don't have the educational background and they're doing tremendously so you don't necessarily have to have that educational background if you just have that that talent you know, some people just really have it and they need to express it and you just have to try to get out there and keep working because, you know, even if you apply to galleries and you don't get in right away on a couple of years, things might change and your style will change and you just never know what will happen that's awesome. Thank you, taylor I really appreciate it. You're so welcome I'll visit when I come home oh good, we can't wait to see it we miss you I miss you too, okay, five dollars oh that was fun so great awesome so I'm really glad that she sort of expressed herself in that way because you know it's really just like what I've been trying to say you never ever ever know you know you could do the research you can know sort of a little bit if you might fit into that gallery but for example when I approached the joe and our gallery you know they didn't have any photographs in that gallery I didn't really fit there yet but they saw potential in it and so they took me on and then we've been work king together ever since so it just goes to show that if you feel any connection with a gallery why not try it really can't hurt you ready for some more questions absolutely do some q and a before we go to break um that was awesome by the way it was fun that was really fun okay, so uh courts angel from mexico says why is your signature or logo not on your prints or do sign the back uh yeah so these prints that I have here I have not signed yet and numbered just because I have others of these in the works at galleries with numbers on them so I don't know how many will sell until I have to sell this one if that makes sense so I do number my prince I do sign my prince I do that right on the front. So if this were a signed print, I would have my signature and the number or vice versa backwards, signature and number, but it doesn't really matter as long as it's somewhere down there, some people put a title right in the middle. Some people signed the back, but what you do want to do if your printing on paper it's important to sign the actual paper? Because if you're signing like the back of the frame or something like that, the frame could be discarded and then your signature isn't on any more. So I do sign everything that I produce, so that doesn't get confusing. If you have prints out that you have signed and say you have four, five of them out, it doesn't get confusing that you don't do it right when you print them signed them all, it doesn't, because I keep a spreadsheet really, really well dated, so I have a spreadsheet saying the title if it's sold or not, what the addition is, if it's circulating in which gallery things like that, so I know exactly what number print it is, what title where it is and if it is sold or not, so I have all of that information written down, and I have to consult that list every time I make a new print so, you know, if somebody today were like, I want to buy this print from you right now that I would say, okay, and then I'd go online looking my google drive, pull down that document and say, ok, I've sold this print two more time, so this is number three of fifteen, and I would number it and then give it over. You might want to get your pen out because I think all of us I just wanted to say really quickly, though, but that that perfectly answers a question from somebody in the chat rooms and who was just saying, how do you keep track of your images? So it's something that I hadn't really considered right? Yeah, no, you'll be in big trouble if you fail to consider that. So everybody consider it now. Yeah. So what do you think? Just a zoo basis. So you say what? Which prince you have out there and where they are? Yeah, I make sure to say who has it in their possession. That's really important. I say, what edition number? That print is so that I can look at that and say, ok, the last thing that I did was number two of tens, the next one's going to be three of ten yeah, and then I sometimes I I I'm trying to get a little bit better with putting as much information as possible. So all right, down the price that the prince sold for how much I got of that, things like that, and I just try to keep it as detailed as possible because what I have found consistently is that mme or things will crop up as you go on that you I couldn't even imagine that you would need to know beforehand. So I just tried to write down every little detail that I possibly cancel, and I can't get in trouble later. Good thinking. All right. We have some questions pop over here. Yes, we have come to ask questions. I have questions. Okay. So when you have your prints it's not like you go when you get ten of these printed and this is print one print to print, reprint for and then print two's over here. Print threes over here. The edition is in the order that it's old. So once one sells that now becomes number three. Yes, that's what I do personally because I don't have the funds to print every single image at every single size in all the additions, I would be so incredibly broke if I did that. I would probably never make up my costs but so yeah as somebody orders it, it will get printed fresh I will number it based on what has sold before that and then and then you ship the print to the gallery or the client or whoever maybe and so is the print that's hanging in the gallery itself number one always not always not always it depends you know, from printing a brand new show of new work then yes, because I haven't sold those before but I mean, there are times when I'll release an image online somebody will see that go to my gallery by the print and then the gallery want that same print at that size two exhibits and that'll be number two totally depends. Okay, thank you. Is it true that when you have like okay say fifteen prints print one a fifteen is worth more or more expensive than print ten or fifteen fifteen interesting you know, I don't think there's a real rule to that. I think that I've had people say I will on ly by one of your prints if I could get number one and then I've had people say I don't care at all then I've had people say, well, we're getting to the end of the addition so we're going to start charging more for those because they're running out so I've never heard a standard question from by chance, do you ever sell a prince exclusive rights, meaning you must remove from all galleries and the internet? I have never done that. I've never even thought about that. So it's something to look into? Certainly, I think that would require a very high price tag. Fair enough? Yeah. Oh suzanne, from vancouver, vancouver, um says, is it possible to sell fine artwork through galleries and license dick or work at the same time, but in different marketplaces under a different brand? Interesting? I think it is, I would imagine so as long as you're not telling the same images in different ways like that, you know, you don't want to sell a print, teo say a design company on license for six hundred dollars or something, and then sell it in a gallery for four thousand dollars and have it be those two huge price differences extend the gallery is going to say, well, if a client can get it for six hundred at this other place than why am I putting this price tag on it? Nobody's going to come to me so it's an important thing to note is that if you have multiple galleries in multiple selling places, you do need to keep your prices consistent throughout all those venues. David g from carlsbad has an interesting question have you ever thought about putting your work on postcards, tote bags and coffee mugs? I thought about it this is a great story to tell because within I guess I was doing photography for about five months and I was working as a receptionist and everybody was so awesome at this company they would always come behind my desk at lunchtime to see what new picture I was editing and stuff, and they're so encouraging, and one of the guys who worked in the building came to me and he said, you know, I wantto take your brand and we're going to put it on calendars and this and that, and he wrote a check and slapped it on my desk and he said, I'll give you this much money if we can start this business right now together, and I thought about it for a long time, and I was so uncomfortable with this because, you know, I didn't have any money, I was just fresh out of college and I said, you know, to my husband, I said what, you know, this could be something we could do this we could sell calendars and he said, yeah, but you don't want to sell calendars, you know, that was never your goal and I said, okay, you're right, it's not for me so I decided then that that's really not the route that I want to take with my art I wanted to be fine art I want it to be you know, valued and collected and homes and you know, just seen as art instead of as a product like that so that wasn't through that I wanted to go but I considered it once do you think that that will ever come up again in your life? Maybe you might change your mind at one point I don't know I don't know there are certain things that I would dio for example like a making workshop t shirts right now but that's just like a special thing for my work shoppers you know nothing like I would sell mask produced or anything so I don't know I never say no never say never that sounds really dorky and it's a justin bieber song we all secretly love it jane's gone with um sf tattoo um is wondering if you could clarify something for them so they say is the addition run different from the licensing and how do they affect each other? Yes they're completely different completely separate so if I am licensing images that's totally fine it doesn't have to do with the actual print so the printing is the physical print that you're going to be holding in your hand that you're going to circulate as in a limited edition so what if for example, what I would not do is you know, if somebody said I want teo take this picture and make posters out of it, I would not license my image in that way because I don't know the specific details about the legality of that of having you know, this print versus a print as a poster and things like that so I'm not going to take that chance, so I'm definitely going to ask about it first on top of that, I don't want posters of my my work, so I also wouldn't consider it for that reason too suzanne wanted to know if you ever include a certificate of authenticity yes, I d'oh now I included if they ask for it it's always available for whoever buys a print tohave that included typically the number and the um the number and the signature is just fine, but if somebody requested I do send it write a question in our studio audience so when a gallery sells a printer, did they contact you to see one number they should be put in and do you contacted the other galleries to tell them the print was sold? Ok, good question so if a gallery sells a print typically if the person buying it asks what number is this, then they'll contact me to confirm and then we get that squared away usually they don't ask I don't have a lot of collectors demanding a certain number in the series I don't let my other galleries no unless another gallery has that exact print, so if a gallery you know another gallery sells the same print they're going to say to me, okay, we've had this print sail and then I might say to them okay, this number two because I've already sold that one so it's on a case by case basis so as it pops up that's when I will choose the number for that print do you ever have a client asking the gallery one number? It isthe so they have to contact you first to double check on the number I d'oh I've had a couple people say I'm only going to buy this if I have if number one is available things like that I had somebody contact me once and say my favorite number is seven do you have number seven available? So if somebody has a specific number that they want, I will number at that even if I'm not there in the siri's yet and then just skip over that when the time comes question from sienna photo how many galleries are exhibiting your work at the moment at the moment I have two galleries that represent me and that's the jo an art gallery and maurren galleries s o they always have my work either in the back room or on the walls, that just depends and that's what I mean by represented. They keep my work, and they promote me as one of their featured artists. Um, I have my work right now in a gallery here in seattle at twilight gallery. Um, I have work in chicago at the moment, not currently hanging, but in preparation for a show that's happening in september on dh. Then I'm sending more work to a gallery in florida soon, so I've got a few different galleries in the works. I don't know which of those will turn into representation, if any, but I do have a few things going on.