Well, the verdict is in. My first high school art show sold eight out of the 18 artworks that were for sale. That is nearly 45% which isn’t that bad for a first attempt. It certainly exceeded my expectations. The majority of the 54 pieces were not for sale because the student wanted to keep it or it was being held for the School’s annual fund-raising Gala.

A Few Observations

1. No parents bought artwork. I can’t say this surprises me because the parents don’t strike me as being supportive in that way, especially regarding something as esoteric as student art. Who knows. It could very well be it wasn’t pushed enough. The school did contact each family via their automatic phone messaging system. Perhaps I need to send out a formal letter next year? Then, I could follow that up with a self-addressed stamped postcard for feedback on why they didn’t purchase or participate? (But, that’s the marketer in me. LOL!)
2. Only 3 teachers purchased pieces. Statistically, that isn’t good since we have about 30 teachers at the high school. I’m planning on sending out an informal survey via email to see what kind of responses I get back.
3. Only 2 staff members bought artwork: 1 administrator, 1 support staff. This surprised me since the superintendent is a huge supporter of my program and the arts.
4. Only ceramic pieces were purchased; none of the paintings. I’m hoping to get some insight from the informal survey I will be sending out. We do work in a building with cinder block walls which makes hanging artwork less practical. On top of that, most of the 2D work was not for sale.

For Next Year

1. Send out a letter to parents ahead of time encouraging participation. Truth be told, my art show included a limited amount of kids from my classes; it was (and was meant to be) a “best of …” event. So, many parents would not have an intrinsic incentive to come and look at what is up.
2. Time the event with parent-teacher conferences (3rd quarter) to maximize visibility. This will only go so far since our turnout, in general, is poor at the high school.
3. Consider an art exhibit prior to the holidays to maximize intrinsic public need. That said, I don’t want my art program being about making money at a student art show. Many of the pieces that were up were technically painting studies that simply turned out well; I understand that they may have limited interest. To me, if you want a fundraiser then you create a product as a fundraiser and then market it as such (e.g., soup fundraiser: you come, buy a student-made bowl and then are given student-made soup to fill it.)
4. Have the school purchase the pieces for the Gala as part of the bid process for the art show versus me listing those pieces as not for sale. Then, they could  turn around and resell the pieces at their fund-raising event for a higher price after having them framed. Everything would be for sale at that point and I’d get a better sense of overall interest.

When all was said and done, it was fun to see my students’ artwork on display. It was so enjoyable to see what was accomplished over the year. The experience of hanging it and then reviewing it for the next week and a half gave me time to reflect on what was done, the kids who did the work and next year’s possibilities. I certainly liked seeing my kids’ work in the three display cases (versus the normal stuff put in there) and I know that they enjoyed it being put front-and-center too.

Questions for the Reader

1. How often do you put out student work in a formal manner?
2. Do you have an annual or bi-annual art show/exhibit?
3. Is your art show/exhibit open to any of your students or do you pick the best work?
4. Do you sell your student’s work during an art show/exhibit?
5. How do you get parents to come out or be involved?

Looking forward to your comments!