LAST EDITED ON 12-Oct-00 AT 08:26 AM (GMT)

I work with a variety of artists and craftsmen around the country. And I have noticed that you have several things in common: a desire to have a wider audience for your work; you want to be able to understand the dozens of critical areas of the artworld that are so important to your career including marketing and sales, publicity, and buisiness planning,just to name a few. Each one of you is hoping that you will come across an agent or a gallery dealer that will handle all of these details for you. But this isn't happening, is it? It is frustrating to try to figure out how to get your art to a wider audience.

I hear more stories about the galleries that didn't work out than about the ones that did. I DO believe that twenty percent of the galleries you run across will make some attempt to help you with your career---the other eighty percent just want to make money on your art. And you know what? That is OK, as long as you know it. This means you have to know the rules of the artworld. One of my goals is to help artists understand the rules of the artworld.

I have been an artist, an arts writer, a gallery dealer, and am now an advisor to artists. I talk about the facts and realities of being an artist today. It is tough being a professional artist, but I believe there are more opportunities for artists out there than can be taken advantage of.

I work with artists in several ways: hourly consulting, one-on-one telephone coaching, the Artist's Career Training (a comprehensive six-month program,) and workshops given around the country. I also have a free monthly email newsletter called "ArtMatters," and give a free teleclass once a month. Check out my web site to register for the newsletter and class at www.gormanart.com. The site also has lots of other useful resouces on it.

I will be responding to messages on this site on a regular basis so make sure to get into the habit of visiting frequently. There are so many issues to talk about, and here is something I know: one of your best resources is other artists out there, take advantage of their knowledge and experience. Let's get the dialog started!