Seeing 👁 Is Believing, Even When There Is Nothing There
Last month, a 67-year-old artist, Salvatore Garau, sold an “immaterial sculpture” - which is to say that it does not exist.
The Italian artist priced 🏷 his artwork at €15,000 ($18,300), and that piece of artwork 🎨 is... well, nothing.
To be fair, the artist might disagree on conceptual grounds. For Garau, the artwork, titled Io Sono (which translates to “I am”), finds form in its own nothingness. “The vacuum is nothing more than a space full of energy ⚡️, and even if we empty it and there is nothing left, according to the Heisenberg uncertainty principle, that nothing has a weight,” he told the Spanish news outlet Diario AS.
“Therefore, it has energy that is condensed and transformed 🔄 into particles, that is, into us”. He explained that we do not see it physically, but it is certainly there as it is made of air 🌬 and spirit. He further explained that it is a work that asks you to activate the power of the imagination 💭, a power that anyone has, even those who do not believe they have it.
Everyone probably feels vulnerable when we put our work on display, and it is understandable that we want it to be able to speak 🗣 for itself. You would not want to explain to someone why they should buy 💰 your art and dread you might come across as “salesy", pushy, or desperate 😩 when you do.
Unfortunately, your work does not speak for itself. Well, take Salvatore Garau’s artwork for example. Io Sono definitely could not speak for itself. You need to learn 🧐 how to explain your work and connect it to your audience in order to succeed 🌟 with your creative business, just like how Garau did with Io Sono.
Learning how to write ✍️ and speak about your art in a way that allows potential customers, clients, and collectors to recognise its value helps potential clients realise 😯 why they need your artwork in their lives. You need to learn marketing. Here are 9 steps to help you do that:
1️⃣ Know your target audience
Do you know who your best customers are likely to be? The more you know about the people who love 😍 your creative work, the easier it will be to connect 🔗 with them and market to them. Think about your ideal customer, what they like, and why they are attracted 🧲 to your work.
2️⃣ Learn where your target audience gathers
Knowing your target audience also includes researching where those particular people gather - online and offline. Knowing where they gather means you can send your marketing materials to those places 📍 to reach out to them. The best marketing materials will not do you any good if your ideal customers do not see them. Hence, put your marketing in places they are likely to notice 👀 them the most.
3️⃣ Write to one person
Now, you need to target 🎯 your ideal customers in your writing. This is your chance to reach out to them directly when you are writing 📝 your marketing materials. Hence, do not write like you are writing to everyone, write to that person in particular as if you are speaking to them personally.
4️⃣ Use stories to engage
Stories 📖 are more engaging for your audience, which means they will be paying more attention. They are also more emotional in nature and will connect 🤝 on a deeper level with your audience. In addition, they are memorable 🧠, which means your work will be more memorable and people are going to be more likely to talk about your work to others.
5️⃣ Write persuasively
Marketing is all about persuasion. You are writing or talking to people about your work to try and persuade them to buy 🤑it, share it, or utilise your services. You have to write persuasively in order to do all of that. You cannot just list 📋 the facts or say, “buy this”. Instead, you need to pull on their emotions to connect them to the work and promise them they will gain something from their purchase as a benefit 👍.
6️⃣ Focus on them
Your creative 💡 process is about you. Your work is about you and how you see the world 🌎. However, your marketing is all about your audience 👥. Everything in your marketing needs to be focused on your potential customer and what is in it for them. You are only mentioned in your marketing materials because of their interest in you.
7️⃣ Talk about the benefits
You will start making more sales 📈 if you learn about your audience and can then talk to them about why they should buy your work. Connect it to their emotions. If a piece makes them happy 😃, make them realise they cannot live without it. Perhaps what you do has a direct benefit, like a handmade quilt. In that case, you can talk about the emotions behind the design and colours, while also focusing on the benefit of staying warm 🌤 in a quality-made 👌 product, high-end materials, and unique design.
8️⃣ Recommend
Pretend like you are recommending it to a friend instead of trying to sell something. Ignore for a moment that you are going to make money off of the transaction if they buy it and try to connect it with that customer or client. When you recommend a restaurant 🍽 or book 📘 to a friend, you are not doing it for money. You are doing it to help them experience something you thought was great. That is exactly what you are doing with your artwork too.
9️⃣ Use a call-to-action
Sometimes people need a little reminder 📟 as to what you want them to do. Give it to them with a quick call-to-action by saying things like, “See the new series here” as a clickable link, or “Visit my website 🌐 for more", etc. Let your audience know what next step 🪜 you want them to take, and make it as easy as possible for them to take it.
By following these 9 steps, you are one step closer to being able to market YOUR invisible artwork. Are you interested to learn more? Hit us up in our direct messages or in the comments 👇👇👇😎.
References:
Artwork Archive
Dafoe, T. 2021, June 3. An Italian Artist Auctioned Off an ‘Invisible Sculpture’ for $18,300. It’s Made Literally of Nothing. Artnet.
