First Gallery Showing- how to display photos?

I've got a shot at exhibiting my work at a local gallery. I'm on a tight budget but this opportunity is

something I don't want to pass up. Any suggestions on a budget minded way of displaying my photos. Most of the

work are of people in various settings- anything from walking through traffic with a gun in one hand and a bottle

in the other to fashion shots on roof tops.

 

I'd love advise on appropriate size of prints and affordable ways to display them. The goal is to show my work

and maybe pic up some clients.

 

Thanks!<div></div>

my advice would be to try to make it a coherent series because that comes better accross than all kinds of different subjects like you described above. Another important thing to consider is to check the lighting conditions in the gallery and print according to that. Also check how much the gallery's percentage is in case they sell photo's of you and get that in writing.

For the rest it very much depends on the lay-out of the gallery. Prints of 8x10 inch always work.

almost forgot: have lots of fun

We show framed 16x20 and larger. Simple black metal frames by Neilson-Bainbridge. A kit costs about $20 plus glass. Be aware that virtually no one will ship glass, so consider plexi. Some unframed pix in a bin are nice for travelers as well. It is important to have a good mat.

 

One of the finest presentations of B&W I have ever seen is a Monroe Gallery in Santa Fe (they used to be in NYC but left after 9/11). I'm talking about $40,000 pieces and they have the right to produce limited prints. But the key is that the walls are white (a bit too much for me) and the photos are in a single level around the room. No clutter.

I choose a simple system of corner-mounting the prints to matboard; double mat between photo and glass. This way,

your print is not permanently bound in anything. This may help you conserve supplies in the long run; that way if your

"great" photo was a dud, you can just dismount it and reuse the framing materials.

 

Please note, I'm closer to "garage sale" than $40K gallery space. Although, even here in my small town city, the

galleries usually tell artists what their display guidelines are.

 

Another technique I use is to pre-pack in acetate bags, and rotate prints through display frames. Another one was to

purchase prefab frames in plexi, and outfit them with glass as needed. The acrylic travels better, but customers want

glass. Point is, I lined up stuff to stay flexible in different applications. Good luck and congratulations. J.

Watch your stack thickness when using prefab commercial materials. I initially began building stacks to 3/8" foamcore; the

final stack was too thick for customers/gift recipients who wanted to use off-the-shelf commercial ready-made frames.

 

One more: buy samples from your supplier before committing to the bulk purchase. Sometimes what they've not told you

is what will stick you after purchase. J.

Thank you guys for all the info. I'll take all the advise I can get. If anyone thinks of anything else please post!

 

Thanks!

I purchased glass for a show from a glass supply shop - the kind that normally makes custom windows and shower doors and such - rather

than an art supply or frame shop. Cut-to-size at the shop, I saved lots of both time and money. The available thicknesses weren't quite

art-standard (a little thinner if I recall) but it worked fine.

 

brad

<p>I bought black painted frames from habitat for 20x24" prints - and half took off the paint so they didn't look so characterless - this worked out really well, interesting large frames for £30.</p>