The Business of Art

The 'Business of Art' involves dealing and handling art as though it is a commercial commodity. It encompasses the buying and selling of art, the valuing of art through appraisal, and working with galleries, art fairs, and dealers that market works of art. For those who study art for its aesthetic appeal or its reflection of society, the business end of the art world is somewhat unnerving.

There are currently 673,656 businesses in the US involved in the creation or distribution of the arts, employing 3.4 million people. This represents 4.1 percent of all businesses in the US and 2.15 percent of all employees. Art is big business.  Creative Industries Report

Here at ‘Artists Aflame’ we’re just starting out with our family business and are having to learn all about the art business world. Maybe you are in the same boat. If so, you might want to check out the following selected links we have collected and explored so far on the ‘Business of Art’:

Art Business - Organizations & Companies

• Americans for the Arts: Arts & Business
• Art.Com - One of the largest e-Commerce Art sites.
• ArtPal - Helping you buy or sell your artworks online.
• Artsy.Net - Resource for art education and collectors.
• EasyCanvasPrints - One of many sites that put photos on canvas
• Etsy - A global e-Commerce site for the creative arts.
• SmugMug & Flickr - Online sites for Artists and Photographers to display and sell their works.

Art Business - News & Information

• ArtsyShark Blog - Provides many useful tips on better art business practices, artist vignettes and interviews with gallery owners.
• Art Business Institute Blog – Blogs on business for artists, news, online art courses, and more.
• Art Business News - Providing art industry news for almost 50 years.
• Digital Art - Providing comprehensive coverage of the art of graphic design, 3D, animation, video, effects, web and interactive design.
• Digital Photo Magazine - A publication focused on the art of photography and filmmaking.

Art Business - Education & Training

• Arts Administration Degree Programs by Association of Arts Administration Educators.
• edX Business & Management - Free Online Courses
• ArtBusiness.Com - Providing information on art advising and consulting services, art appraisals, art pricing, and more.
• Coursera - An online learning platform  that offers massive open online courses (MOOC) offered by major universities around the world
• CreativeLive - Offering over 1,500 free curated art classes to the global community.
• National Art Education Association - The leading professional membership organization for visual arts educators in the U.S.

Art Business - Tools & Technologies

• Art Aflame: Tools & Technology – Provides links to many free and open source software (FOSS) tools now available for artists.
• Technology in the Arts - Providing the arts community with resources to better understand and benefit from the intersection of arts and technology
• OSALT.Com – Provides links to many other Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) alternatives to well-known commercial products.

* Recent articles about technology for artists include recommendations for the following tools you might want to check out: Google Blocks, Google Autodraw, Corel Painter 2018, Rebelle 2, Tuxpaint and much more.

Selected Art Suppliers & Businesses

• ArtPal - Provides assistance in selling original art and prints, custom framing, and more.
• B&H Photography - A premier destination for cameras and photography supplies in the US.
• Blick - Providing a wide selection of painting supplies, drawing supplies, and more for sale online.
• CanvasWorld – Helps artists create high quality canvas prints of your photos and artworks.
• EasyCanvasPrints - Provides print design services and canvas prints of photos and artworks.
• Michaels - The largest arts and crafts specialty retailer in North America.

We hope the links and information we have provided will be of use to you as you start and grow your own art business. Send us any other links you think our readers would appreciate.