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Why I Hate Art (And How To Sell It)
By Tim Gross - Internet Business Blog | February 27, 2007
As a marketer and copywriter, I hate art.
Why? Because usually it has no “real” inherent value when selling it. For instance, here’s a photo I took of a terrible (to my eye) painting from the San Francisco Museum of Fine Art last week:
At our local street fair, they sell paintings literally created by chimpanzees that look as good as that. (I’m not exaggerating)
The difference between the two paintings? -One of them is hanging in a highly respected museum, the other one you can buy for a small donation to support simian habitats.
I can picture two painters talking, one who does Norman Rockwell-type realistic paintings, and the other guy splashing paint on canvas like in the above photo. They could easily sell for the same price:
Norman Rockwell: “I spent 3 months on mine full time, how about you?”
2nd Painter: “I got drunk last night, blindfolded myself, and slashed at the canvas with my brushes for about ten minutes.”
Norman Rockwell: “God, I hate you.”
2nd Painter: “Hey, I suffer for my art to… I’m still nursing a hangover from last night!)
So How DO You Sell Art?
Well, why do people buy art?
- To impress friends & family
- To make money (buying as an investment)
- Personal satisfaction/happiness
Hey, hold on a second… Make money, impress people, and be happy? Maybe selling art isn’t so different from selling other products after all. 
Tell the story of the artist, compare it to other famous works of art, explain the possible gain in value, whisper that you heard the artist has a bad heart (that’s a joke, art goes up in value when the artist dies), tell them to imagine impressed their friends will be, and how much joy it will bring them to own, etc, etc.
Hey, maybe I don’t hate art after all.
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