I wouldn�t have bothered with setting up a website in, say, 1995, when the Web was less a part of our culture than now. But by 2000 I was obligated to bother with it, and now certainly have no choice. All galleries have a bloody website, so we have to have a website too. I advise that you, as an artist, maintain a website as well. Besides, the Web is slowly replacing the Yellow Pages as a resource.

Actually the site’s been beneficial, though I�ve yet to see any great boon develop from it. Art buying, by my experience, is a firsthand sort of business, where the client normally must see the work before making a decision. This is where the Web is at a disadvantage. But it can serve as a useful tool in introducing prospective clients to a gallery, who can then view more of the artists� works through e-mailed visuals, mailed visuals, or by appointment. The tough part is getting those clients to find you within the informational black hole that the Web has become.

Normally it is easier for a gallery to be found on the Web than individual artists. Why? Because any well organized gallery will make certain that their web address is listed on all business cards, stationery, postcards and ads. They�ll also place their website with a wide variety of search engines. With the amount of marketing that most galleries do, this spreads the information rapidly. Artists, by their very nature, are less likely to promote their website so extensively. But this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t make the attempt.

If you�re already with one or more galleries, try to make certain that they include your work on their site. If possible, try to get them to devote an entire page exclusively to your work.

You want to set up your own site? Good idea. Just be aware that setting up a stunning site can be an expensive undertaking, costing several thousand dollars if done through lavish means, or several hundred dollars if done through simpler means (in other words, through a web-savvy grad student). I set up our first site through a freelance designer for a little under a thousand dollars. You can do the same, and probably for much less.

For individual artists, setting up your own site can have obvious advantages. If you�re a painter, you can be listed under �Artists�, �Painters,� �Muralists,� �Impassioned Lunatics,� and as many other descriptions as you can come up with. Artists in other disciplines can also be listed under a wide variety of headings. The difficulty lies in making certain that the right prospects are able to find you should they undertake the search.

In all likelihood, few clients will achieve this by tossing an electronic dart into the expanding ether of the Web. As with the galleries, you�ll have to file with as many search engines as you�re comfortable with, falling back an advisor or consultant for the most effective approach.� That same consultant will need to advise you on the simplest way to update your site, since this becomes an essential ingredient as your career advances and changes. Also list your web address on all business cards, postcards, stationary, and your forehead. Without these steps, your site will just become more and more deeply buried, bringing you little impact beyond the monthly fee you�ll pay to maintain it. If it comes to this, you may as well scrap the thing.

Still a well laid-out site can achieve favorable results, especially as you approach new galleries and clients. It will probably not affect you dramatically, or make you a rising star overnight, but it will provide one more piece in the myriad puzzle that is your career, and further help in establishing it.