Best Represents Your Work

Sounds like to much work to me! I'd rather just make my art and then have my own show or showing and by pass all these hoops. :-) Roger, you said say what you want to say, I just did.

I did this recently in book form - selecting some examples in case any asked - what kind of work do you do?



I picked from ones I liked, some that have sold, some that represent various types of images - portraits, landscapes, still life.

5, The five that will follow your very own formula....A formula that you will now tell us what it is.

Ok...what it is is...

I look at it.
Close my eyes.
Look again.
If the first reaction is WOW I'm Good....it is in the yes pile
If it is then ... what was I thinking???? It is a no

I am about to do this for a magazine and I guess I will choose the five I think best represents my style.

i can choose them at random... my work is that good.


---Mike Savad
http://www.MikeSavad.com

It would depend on who or what it was for. That being said - of the three categories: photograph, photo manipulation, and my digital abstracts - I would choose #2 - the five I think are my best work.

My work has been too much of a moving target. Choosing some of the art over other work does not make sense to me. The work is so constantly different.

Dave

Five recent works, last few months, that I think are my best as of late.

My 5 best since my body of work is basically all wildlife except for a few.

Please note:

I just added the following to the cover posting:

Edit:

Now the question is.

Since the jury is to believe that those 5 examples do represent the body of your work and unless you chose #1 will that dictate on what you will display at the show, even when you know what would be your best sellers are not one of the five?

Over the years I've submitted artwork to numerous juries to have my work in a show, festival, or art competition - I believe that the judges are hoping you are showing them your best work and it will be indicative of the kind and quality of the work that will be actually submitted. It is 'dangerous' to ever try to put up what you think a particular judge or jury will choose based on their own work. Numerous times I've seen that fail - artist/jurors that worked primarily in oil and what ever genre are just liable to pick a really good watercolor.

Phyllis wouldn't even have to look - just walk in her studio blindfolded and pick out five - lol.

I would choose the five best images and ones that were very easy for me to paint.

I normally study the judges/jurors. But it is no sure fire way. Sometimes they go eeny meeny miny mo.

I have been in over 60 national shows and still cannot get a system as to how to get in.

I am only interested in selling shows so I only submit what I think will sell based on whatever knowledge I can glean on that particular situation. I don't care what they want.

I choose the five that I have on hand that best represent the theme of the show.

I do this exercise on average a couple of times a month, deciding what to put in shows. After a while, it just becomes part of the drill of showing frequently, I don't agonize. My best work goes in when I have my best work on hand, and it's not in a different show.

I tried paying attention to what jurors like, and decided it's a waste of time, except for choosing art that has good composition and will hold it's own RE: technical proficiency compared to the pool of other people who are likely to enter the show.

Over time I've found that there are certain jurors who seem to like my art generally, regardless what the art is (whether it's a type of art that the juror has posted on his/her own website or not, or is similar to pieces of my art that the juror has liked before, or not), and certain jurors who don't seem to have the same taste in art that I do. I don't find that it pays to try to figure out which specific pieces a particular juror will like this time, though, because I usually guess wrong.

I also think it's a bit of a numbers game. If there are a large number of artists entering piles of art for a show that's in a fairly small venue, then the juror has to cut a lot of work in order to get the right number of pieces of art for the wall space. Everything else equal, I can expect to get more art into a show that has (a) more wall space; and (b) fewer artists entering.

I only do local shows because for out of state shows the cost to ship (or drive) the art there (and back again if it doesn't sell) is a killer. If it's not within about an hour / two hour drive, I don't do the show.

I also look at entry fees. If it's a high entry fee, and I'm not pretty sure that (a) I'll get in, and (b) if I do get in I'll sell enough to cover the entry fee, I don't do the show.

I would pick the five that I thought had the best chance of selling at that particular show.

Was that an option?

JC,

This thread, is a direct spin-off of your "WOW" thread, focusing here on a situation many have faced.

When applying to a show, how you present yourself by those few examples you choose, seems always to be a daunting task.

Initially the goal is to sell to the jury....,to get into the show

But that work that gets you in, might not be necessarily the work that the public will buy.

So, at the show, would you push your "Bread & Butter" work or would you feature those particular "WoW! pieces instead..

The quandary is ( probably the same as selling on-line) how do you want to be perceived by the public, your peers, and in this case especially, the jury that got you there?

I ditto everything R Allen just said,

I'm truly surprised that he would be saying it.,

I would still likely stay with the answer I gave and let it ride.

Thing is while my Capitol is nice and sells very well would it influence a jury for the Gulf Shores art show?

There is actually a part of your question that leads to another question as the answer to that would have a huge influence on the answer.

Can I submit small prints to the jury or does it have to be large wall ready art? I know the gallery I where I do show my work requires ready to hang work to jury in. If I have to spend a lot of money on something for a show or gallery the dynamics change. For large expensive art my requirements are it has to be something that has a good sales potential OR can lead to sales AND it has to be something I would like to hang in my house because if it doesn't sell that is where it will end up.

I have a few different styles and many different interests...I could pick five from of my candid street portraits; five from pics of cats, scenics, female nudes, etc....

JC,

I know, back in the days when I applied to shows, the question often asked by the jury upon seeing the slide (now, it's a digital file) of a piece ,"How big is the original?"

And to the jury, "The bigger the Better"..so if the piece is big you better make sure they know it's big...If it's not big, you let them wonder.

The outlay for shows ain't cheap,,,so you pray that the whole shebang is worth it.

Robert,

You only have five, so you have to choose

Perhaps 1 of each, to emphasize the diversity of your work, and especially is all subjects will be displayed at the show.

"JC Findley2 Hours Ago
I would pick the five that I thought had the best chance of selling at that particular show.

Was that an option?"

Yup, Number 4. The five you know from experience, will be the best sellers