First gallery show

For a while now I’ve toyed with the idea of trying to display some of my art, but wasn’t quite sure how to go about it. I don’t have enough work for a full gallery show (and wouldn’t know how to facilitate that either), but I’ve found that juried shows have a lower barrier to entry. A gallery hosting a juried show will choose a theme, judges, and set a small fee for submissions. Artists can submit their work according to the set theme constraints, and the judges will decide which pieces to hang in the show.

I’d applied to a couple of these before without getting any pieces accepted, but recently got accepted into my first show for Bay Area Printmaking at the Compound Gallery in Oakland. My submission that was accepted for hanging in the gallery was my newest print, and first multi-color/multi-layer attempt. It’s the John Muir trail winding around Wanda Lake, heading up to Muir Pass in the high Sierras.

In addition to a framed piece hanging in the gallery for two months, I was also invited to submit extra prints of any work to be sold in the gift shop for the duration of the show, so I brought replicate JMT prints, as well as some of my dog/couch prints.

Wanda Lake, John Muir Trail (JMT) print

Final copies of my accepted print to hang and sell in the gallery

JMT print, in progress

As I noted, this is my first multi-color print, and I have to do it in two layers, with time to dry in between. First, I print the colors of the path, grass, and lake, and then I later overlay the black and white detailing. I was working on these prints in the dining room because my studio area in the garage had been packed up for home repairs, so I just dried prints flat on the floor, with Totoro keeping watch.

I Am Pillow

Extra copies of “I Am Pillow” and “You Are Pillow” to sell in a variety of colors.

The Compound Gallery

I hadn’t previously know about the Compound Gallery in Oakland, but I was delighted when I arrived to drop off my work. It’s a wonderfully cheerful building with great space inside. They have artist work space and studios in the back, in addition to a small gallery and shop up front.

My print, hanging!

Gift shop

I found some of my dog prints in front of the print shelves in the shop, which was another kind of thrill. I’ve never sold anything from a legitimate brick and mortar location before, and it felt very official.

Opening reception

The Bay Area Prints show had an opening evening reception that I attended, which ended up getting surprisingly crowded. We arrived at the start, and the space was pretty jam packed within the first half hour. It was particularly fun to see strangers admiring my work.

Me, at my first gallery show

Final sales

The whole show was up for two months, and during that time I had no real idea about whether any of my prints were selling. So it was a very pleasant surprise to go to the pick-up on the final day and see that I had sold a total of 8 prints- half of everything I created. 4 copies of the JMT print were purchased, as were 2 sets of “I am pillow”/”You are pillow” (4 prints). I’ve sold a few things through Etsy before, but this is the most inventory I’ve moved at a time, and it’s fun to think of where these pictures might now be hanging around the Bay Area.