Advice and information about selling your art via Open Studios

This page covers:
  • What are Open Studios? Plus where they can be held and what they involve.
  • Advice about Open Studios - before and during + Guidelines about how to hold Open Studios by different groups
  • Open Studios in the UK - a developing list of open studios in the UK - to compare how you do to others
The open studio tour is an event in which artists invite the public to visit their workshops and display spaces. It’s an excellent opportunity to talk first-hand to the artists and to view their work in the environment in which it was created, or to just enjoy ‘having a nosey’ through the various venues.
Wirral Open Studios website
Note: This page is a work in progress

What are Open Studios?
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Open Studios can be
  • held in a variety of venues
  • large or small
  • very local or county wide
  • initiated by an artist
  • organised by a local arts group
  • organised as an Art Trail
  • very successful or a complete washout - it's up to you (and the weather!)
Range of places to hold Open Studios:
  • an artist's home
  • purpose made studio
  • work room 
  • gardens / in tents / under awnings
  • public venues e.g. Church Halls (for those who are unable to open their homes for practical reasons)
What is an Open Studio?

An open studio event is an event in which, for a limited time, artists and makers open their studios to the public. It can be thought of as a number of studios that are not normally an open studio, becoming open within a locality and within a time frame defined by the event.
Open Studio Event | Wikipedia
Picture
Claude Monet in his home at Giverny - with his paintings hanging on all the walls
Open Studios involves lots of work - including:
  • opening up your studio or your house to strangers so they can buy your art
  • a lot of organisation before, during and after - so not for the faint-hearted or those who don't like hard work
  • photographing your artwork for the brochure/website
  • thinking about how best to present your artwork - in frames, matted, matted in clear envelopes etc
  • working out how to price your artwork
  • making sure you have adequate publicity
  • erecting signage to get people to the right venue and through the right door - and to the loo!
  • taking payment for your art and not getting ripped off
  • taking responsibility (i.e. business insurance) for your liability for the safety of people in your studio/home (i.e. if they have an accident on your property you are liable)
Open Studios can involve (i.e. entirely your choice):
  • belonging to a Group - participating in an event organised by a local community of artists.  This will take place over a specific time period. You need to (1) pay a fee for registration; (2) observe their code of conduct and (3) benefit from general publicity (and support if your local organisation is well managed)
  • sharing an event with friends in your area
  • sharing a venue with other artists
  • interviews with local newspapers
  • a lot of posting of flyers about your event in the local community (check the bye-laws first to see where you can post without attracting a fine!)
  • a lot of work on social media

IMPORTANT

ALERT: It's very much YOUR responsibility to do all the necessary checks to find out what you must and can do if you want to an open studios event from home.  Please note how "the rules" work will very much depend on where in the world you live. What I say on this page does not necessarily apply to you - but it might! I also do my best to keep this page up to date and find everything relevant - but cannot guarantee it is and no legal liability is accepted for any of your actions based on what you read on this site.
This site does NOT provide:
  • Definitive answers on matters relating to legislation and regulation on selling art from an open studios event home
  • "Professional advice" is available from somebody with a relevant business advice and/or accountancy or tax qualification, membership of a relevant professional institute and CURRENT expertise of accountancy requirements or tax affairs anywhere in the world.
ADVERTS

Advice about Open Studios
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If you want to sell art from your studio at home or from exhibitions held in your home, you first need to read Selling art from home.
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LIST OF GUIDELINES from various Open Studio events
What you might gain from participating in an Open Studios event:

Sales from your studio (for some events the sales are few and mostly of low-priced items).
Contacts with artists and curators for future projects.
Contacts with collectors for future sales.
Feedback and discussion about your current work.
A deadline to encourage you to finish work.
Reflection on your work as you decide what to show from the past year.
The benefit of a thorough tidy to your space.
Catching up with the other artists in your studio building, between visitors.
Time to visit with friends and collectors.
​Preparing for your Open Studio | Jackson's Art
Before Open Studios - SUMMARY GUIDELINES
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  • you MUST HAVE Public Liability Insurance; you MUST check what your house insurance says if selling from home. (See Insurance for Art and Artists)
  • organise / photograph content for the website and handbook - which means decisions need to be taken early.
  • identify dates for being open; events; etc
  • how many visitors you get depends on how much publicity you generate e.g. send invites - with personal notes; create a press release; distribute flyers, brochures, postcards, be active on social media within your community (see How to write a press release)
  • think about how best to use social media - and how to avoid the downsides (don't invite thieves!)
  • have a rota for who covers at all times - including while you "ablute"
  • setting up and tidying up takes time - re:
    • what needs to be cleared away and put out of sight
    • what needs to be hung or positioned and have a label or price sticker prepared.
    • BUT don't become too clinical, remember to make it look like art actually gets made here!
  • your studio needs information about you - remember to include:
During the Open Studio - GUIDELINES
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  • make signage effective and visible - how do you tell people they've found the right place?
  • make sure your venue is completely safe - no trip or other hazards; no risks to health or safety plus insurance for public liability
  • have a private view for previous buyers or big fans - make people feel special; (see The Private View Invitation)
  • attract more visitors by having a practical event where the public can "have a go" or watch you demonstrate. Basically learn how to engage with people and what works and what does not.
  • do NOT offer discounts to people - except for regular buyers. Discounts are a reward not a given. Focus on getting your pricing right rather than underselling yourself. 
  • Do NOT have a bargain/sale bin - it detracts attention from your better work - and devalues it!
  • have a sales assistant to make sales if your work / open studio is popular so you can talk to visitors about the work
  • ​taking payments can be risky - look at the pros and cons of different options (remember most artists won't have the option to take credit cards and a lot of visitors won't necessarily have enough cash)
  • Use a visitors book - i.e. get permission to take down personal details as per data protection guidance - and then you can send publicity next year and avoid being labelled as a spammer!
  • Keep people from leaving - offer food and drink!
  • provide directions to other artists' studios - and they will do likewise
Creating our artwork takes time. Getting good at it takes time. So does an open studio!
Luann Udell
REFERENCE: 

Articles and blog posts by those used to using Open Studios to sell their art or visiting Open Studios and Art Trails. Lots of practical insights and tips for getting it right!
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Luann Udell has a series of posts about Open Studios in her HOW TO OPEN STUDIO  series​

Open Studios in the UK
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This essentially is an opportunity for artists to check out how others go about it!

Check out how others present their Open Studios and
  • provide information for the public - some have well designed and free downloadable guides to what's on offer - and some do not! Some have well thought out and well designed websites (with responsive templates so they work on mobile devices) - and some have clunky ones which do not!
  • provide advice for artists - some provide very little; some hide it behind a password controlled members area; some are very transparent and helpful to those thinking about participating
Check out
  • how different Open Studios promote themselves on Facebook, Twitter and via a newsletter - or if they continue to rely on local publicity. 
  •  how customer oriented the websites and downloads are
  • where links to their social media sites are placed on their websites? (Do they catch your eye?)
  • whether they have a fast and easy download to where studios are - which works well on a mobile device?

Open Studios in London

  • Bow Arts Open Studios - across East London
  • Cockpit Arts - Open Studios - an an award winning social enterprise supporting craft practitioners
  • Crouch End Open Studios - includes a Group Exhibition as well as open studios
  • Hackney WickED Open Studios - 100+ practitioners across 20+ buildings in Hackney Wick. In 2017 there's a series of smaller scale curated events, focusing on each of the key pillars of engagement: Art Exhibitions, Open Studios, Performance, Music, Film and Development
  • N22 Open Studios - based in the Chocolate Factory and the Wood Green Cultural Quarter

Open Studios - East of England

Open Studios - North of England

Open Studios - South of England

Open Studios - West of England

  • Open Studios Cornwall - 293 artists, craftsmen and designers opening their studios for 9 days; provide a downloadable event guide as a pdf; organised in four areas of Cornwall