Invitation to Art Walk Artists Past and Present
Our records show that over 1800 artists have participated in the Whyte Avenue Art Walk over the years. It has always been our mandate to connect artists to patrons. This summer, it is especially meaningful to help art buyers shop on social media and online for local artists.
Other virtual art tours like Raw and Night of Artists have proven successful. We hope to continue the momentum though the entire month of the Whyte Avenue Art Walk festival. It is our hope that this momentum will continue and pay it forward to other festivals like the Leduc Art Walk and the Strathearn Art Walk.
‘The Whyte Avenue Art Walk is so busy. I never get to see all the artists!’ This is a common phrase we have heard over the years. This year we have a solution.
Our goal is to fill the social media hashtag #yegartwalk with images and videos to bring to life the vibrancy, diversity, and professional quality of The Whyte Avenue Art Walk. Below is a list of our brain-storming. Pick a few and do what works for you.
1. Art is for sale = #YegArtForSale Take images of your work and post them on Instagram. Artists are asked to go back through their art, already posted, and make sure to add an appropriate hashtag from below. These hashtags will help patrons searching for art within their budget. The festival will feature a promotion like – “Its $100 Art Day!” and encourage the purchase of art between $100 -$199 by using #yegartsale100. All tags will be featured a couple of times during the month of July.
- #yegartsaleunder100
- #yegartforsale100
- #yegartforsale200
- #yegartforsale300
- #yegartforsale400
- #yegartforsale500
- #yegartforsale600
- #yegartforsale700
- #yegartforsale800
- #yegartforsale900
- #yegartforsale1000
- #yegartforsale2000
- #yegartforsale3000
- #yegartforsale4000
- #yegartforsale5000+
2. Make a video of your easels and grid walls in your yard or living room.
A keen artist might set up a booth in their own backyard or front of their apartment building (get landlords’ permission and notify your neighbours). It is easy to market through facebook to invite people to buy art from the artists’ yard. Please use #yegartwalk to leverage your invitation and attract patrons.
3. Share videos of your work in progress.
- Share photos of the stages of your work.
- Be ready to answer the inquiries in Facebook, Instagram, and website contact forms.
- Drive buyers to your website.
- Ask for followers to like you on social media.
4. All sales will be conducted by you in the manner of Facebook Marketplace or Kijiji. You arrange delivery of art and use e-transfer, Paypal or suggest a safe a public place for exchange of art with cash-in-an-envelope.
5. Follow at @yegartwalk and #yegartwalk
Be sure to tag @yegartwalk and @thepaintspot so we can add highlights to the website and repost on various social media platforms. Repost your friend and have them repost you. Share the love!
6. More ideas for collaborating with the #yegartwalk hashtag.
- Share your process. People love to see before and after.
- Show the finished piece along with the stages of work.
- Who can resist tuning-in for a timelapse painting?
- Take a selfie beside your art or with your inspiration.
- If you have the art hanging in your house, take a picture to show how good it looks over a desk or in a dining room. It will help a future patron visualize the size and how it may look in their own home or office.
- Share another artist’s work. Did you buy from another artist? Take a selfie and give them a shout out.
- Make use of your Instagram or Facebook “Story”. A great way to engage patrons.
7. Turn Your “30-second elevator-pitch” into a longer video.
Every artist is encourage to share an Artist Statement in video form. Make a short video to introduce yourself while standing in your workspace. Here is a link to our helpful post on how to write an artist statement.
- Who are you?
- Are you self taught? Where did you get your art education?
- What do you paint?
- Why do you paint?
- What is your goal for Art Walk this year?
- How will selling art help you? Will the money help you create more art, clean out your studio, fund a trip, help you teach or even just make you feel more accomplished
- Where can people find/see more of your work?
- Remember to mention your website, social media.
8. Put a watermark on the art image with your website or Instagram @.
A watermark may deter digital copying of art. More importantly, it provides viewers with more information while they are quickly finger-scrolling through Instagram and Facebook. This information may help people find you, see more of your work and earn you more followers.
The easiest way to get information on your art might be to simply take a photo with a handwritten price tag (as seen in the above image). It is even better to put the words directly on a corner of the image. Try an app like Font Candy or Canvas.
Include as much information, as possible, in your post.
Provide all the basic information suggested below. It will help you attract the most suitable clients while reducing the amount of redundant questions you will be answering via social media, direct messaging, and website contact forms.
- Title
- Medium
- Size
- Price
- Framed or unframed
- Delivery options
9. Watch the Virtual Tour Come to Life or follow us on instagram @yegartwalk.
10. Visit Whyte Avenue and share the Whyte Avenue Art Walk Window Display