Fine Art in South Carolina | SC Art Galleries, Museums and Artists | Local Pictures, Painters and Paintings

Art Galleries in South Carolina

In general, art galleries in South Carolina are places where different kinds of art are displayed. The kinds of art can include many different types of mediums and formats, including drawings, paintings, sculptures, photography, and more. The purpose behind a South Carolina art gallery is to display the work of artists in an attempt to get spectators to purchase the works. Most art galleries offer not only original pieces of work but prints as well. Purchasing the print of an artist's work not only makes the work more affordable but also allows the artist to sell more and get more exposure.

Finding an Art Gallery in South Carolina

Art galleries are more prevalent than you may think. Most major cities in South Carolina have numerous art galleries to choose from. These major cities include but are definitely not limited to Greenville, Columbia, Hilton Head, Myrtle Beach, and Charleston. Most of the major art galleries are found clustered together in a major urban center. However, even most small towns have at least one art gallery. To find art galleries in your South Carolina town, check in your local yellow pages or use an online search engine such as www.ArtGalleries.sc.

Contemporary Art Galleries

The term contemporary art gallery refers to an art gallery that is privately owned and for-profit. These types of galleries sell works of art to the general public for profit, as opposed to a gallery that is non-profit. Contemporary art galleries are usually open to the general public; however, some of these galleries are semi-private. Contemporary art galleries normally make money by taking a percentage of an artists' sales. Normally, galleries will take anywhere from 25% to 50% of the artists' sales.

The Focus of an Art Gallery

Every South Carolinian art gallery has a specific focus. All of the art in the gallery must somehow connect to the gallery's particular focus. An art gallery's focus can mean that all of the art was made by artists of a certain region, art in a certain medium, art of a specific style, or other art with a particular cultural focus such as political art. In South Carolina, there are many galleries that focus on local artists. For example, in Charleston, there are galleries focusing on LowCountry art that portrays Charleston scenes. Other types of regional focuses would be galleries that house only African art, Chinese art, and more. In some cases, art galleries only contain art that is from a specific period in history. An example of this would be a gallery that only housed Civil War-era art. An example of the different mediums that a particular art gallery could focus on include paintings, sculpture, jewelry, pottery, photography, and more. Art galleries that focus on a specific medium normally house art from a wide variety of artists. Another type of focus that an art gallery could portray is that of a cultural focus. This focus can be political, historical, or medium based. An example of this would be an art gallery that houses only comic art, or one that displays political artwork from Holocaust survivors.

Art Gallery Shows

There are many different types of shows that are given at various art galleries in South Carolina. One type of show is by invitation only. At these types of gallery shows, previously unviewed works are displayed to that particular gallery's elite collectors. The works are all tagged as having been sold, but are left displayed for viewing by the show attendees. This is a type of marketing used upon the unsuspecting gallery show attendees. It is an aspect of human nature to want what you cannot have; by marking these works as "sold," gallery owners are playing into this human trait. Another type of show is one that is open to the general public. These shows are most common and are not invitation-only. As the public show closes, unsold works are considered "shopped," since the general public has viewed them. These "shopped" works of art are then placed in an outer gallery for the casual window shopper or onlooker to enjoy. Gallery shows can also either focus on one particular artist or a group of them. Most of the time, if a show contains art from different artists, there is a certain theme that connects all of the work.

Online Art Galleries

If you have internet access, you can view virtual art galleries. This way, you're not only limited to those galleries in South Carolina; you can view the works of national--or even international--galleries. The way an online art gallery works is simple. The art work is photographed; the photograph is then posted on the website for others to view. The aim is to sell the works of art through the website. Many virtual art galleries make money by commissioning the works of their artists. This means that the galleries charge the artist a fee for every piece of art that the artist sells. The fee is deducted from the sale; the remainder of the money goes directly to the artist him or herself. Some online galleries forgo the commission and simply charge an upfront, one-time fee to the artist before featuring his or her work on their website. This arrangement is similar to a landlord-tenant relationship. The artist is, in effect, "renting" the website space from the gallery in order to gain more exposure in an effort to sell more art. After all, exposure is the key to being a successful artist. If no one knows about the work of a particular artist, how is he or she going to succeed? For the fee that the artist pays (either in commission or the upfront fee), the artist is somewhat paying for promotion of his or her works. Sometimes, online galleries will feature more than one artist at a time, allowing for a more expansive group of art. While many online galleries only feature new artists, many of them focus strictly on well-known artists. In these cases, you are able to view famous works of art easily from the comfort of your own home.

Creating Your Own Online Gallery

If you're an artist, it's undeniable that you want to have your art viewed internationally, not just in South Carolina or even just the United States. It's easy to create your own online gallery for your own work--all you need to do is get your own domain name. Then, it's up to you whether you want to pay a web designer to design the webpage for you or if you want to design the online art gallery yourself. Now, you just upload pictures of your art and go! While setting up the webpage is easy, the marketing aspect of having an online gallery is where things get a little bit more complex. In order for your online art gallery to be successful, you need to make sure that you market the webpage accordingly. Analyzing web statistics can be helpful in determining how to make your online gallery more appealing to web surfers and art lovers. For example, if you find that your online art gallery webpage is getting a lot of hits, but you're not selling any art, then it would seem as though the problem is not in the marketing of your art but whether or not the art itself is up to par. Conversely, if your webpage is getting very few hits, then you would need to work on your marketing strategy. Another idea for your own art gallery webpage is to set up a webcam so you can virtually "talk" to those who are stopping by your page. Collectors would be more apt to purchase your work if they were able to speak to the artist--you.

The Architecture of South Carolina Art Galleries

Sir John Soane established the architectural form of the art gallery in 1817. His design established the art gallery as a building consisting of numerous interconnected rooms with plenty of wall space for hanging works of art. Most South Carolina art galleries have a similar type of architecture. However, many modern day art galleries are branching out and creating much more elaborate buildings to house art. No matter what the architecture of an at gallery, the main event is the art inside.