Marketing Mondays: "Educating the Public"

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On top of a full workload in the studio and often an outside job, some artists seem to feel—or are peer-pressured into thinking—that it’s their responsibility to “educate the public.”  I’m talking about providing talks or demonstrations in conjunction with an exhibition or open studio, or even creating events specifically for education.  

The topic comes up today because of two recent situations:

Situation 1:  Discussing the solo museum show of an artist who works in encaustic, I heard several artists say, “The artist really should give a demonstration so that the public will know how it’s done.” Really?  Does Jasper Johns give encaustic demos when he has a museum show?  Did Louise Bourgeois give tips on marble-carving when she had her shows?  Did Rembrandt give demos to the public on his glazing technique?   

Here's how the public gets educated about art: Museum curators prepare wall texts to inform gallery goers of the historical or technical points of the work. Docents, from the Latin word docēns, to teach or lecture, take small groups around particular galleries within a museum, sharing facts and encouraging discussion about the works on display. Most museums have programs specifically designed for school children, and many have free-entry evenings for adults sponsored by one corporation or another. Audio guides are available for a small fee when docents are not. In the galleries, dealers inform themselves and their staff about an artist’s work so that they can speak knowledgeably about it to any visitor who asks (one of the reasons you need to provide a cogent artist statement). 

Art schools may provide open studios with demos, talks or workshops. These events are designed to attract potential students, but members of the community are usually welcome to attend. Not-for-profit galleries may have, as part of their funding, a program specifically for community outreach. Great! These are precisely the institutions that should be educating the public. And if these institutions want to engage artists to speak about their work, demonstrate a technique or teach a class, it is their responsibility to come up with the funds to pay you.

If you're an artist, your job is to make the art, to find a venue in which to show it if you don't have a gallery, and to create interest in getting folks in to see it. When you focus on demonstrating, you are deflecting attention from content and intent, effectively saying, "I don't know how to talk about the work so I will show you what I do."  What's the takeaway for a viewer? That artmaking is easy? Or that it's hard? Where's the engagement with the art? And isn't engagement what you're aiming for? By the way, the artist whose exhibition precipitated this discussion gave a talk about his work and how it relates to contemporary art and practices, not a demo. 

Situation 2: In a recent Facebook conversation about Open Studios, the discussion turned to which artists would be giving demos to “educate the public.” Artist and blogger Nancy Natale was having none of it: “I have stopped doing open studios because I find it too disruptive and without any real benefit to me. Call me a curmudgeon but I don't feel that I have any duty to somehow enrich the neighborhood by opening my studio for people to walk through and look around.”   

In an email exchange later, Natale expanded her position: “It would be one thing if we were supported by the public in some way, but it's another to be expected to just open our doors for entertainment." Amen.

 Artists who are looking to fill workshops or sell instructional books or videos are likely to feel differently, as are those who depend on tourist dollars for sales. That's fine; for them an open studio or demo is advertising for what they have to offer.

Call me a curmudgeon, too

I’m not against educating an art-going public, but it's futile to bring out the dogs and ponies for people who enter a studio or gallery with dripping ice cream cones while declaiming loudly that their five-year-old could do better or asking "What does it mean?" without really listening to your answer. Doing a soft shoe for museum-going tourists more interested in flash-photographing themselves against Picasso-as-a-prop is equally as futile. You can't compete with ignorance. 

Educating with a Purpose

Here's a win/win: Some artist grants, particularly at the local or regional level, come with an educational stipulation. In return for financial support you're required to give a talk or provide some sort of teaching experience to the community that gives you the grant. That seems fair to me.

Given the decrease in arts funding everywhere, I applaud artists who come up with ways to educate the public while creating work opportunities for themselves. For instance, I could imagine an entrepreneural artist launching a Kickstarter or USA project within a PTA or alumni association to encourage members of that community to support their (the artist's) educational project. The funding organizations provide the structure for community organization, and their time-based fundraising period creates a legitimate sense of urgency.

Here's another: As I was writing this post, I received an interesting email from the A.I.R. Gallery in Brooklyn. Topic: Enriching Your Home with Art.  “A.I.R. Gallery hosts a workshop on how to begin buying art that enlivens your home or office. Join us for this exclusive opportunity to view affordable works by contemporary artists and get tips on buying art. A.I.R gallery staff members and artists will be available to answer your questions and offer advice. Gallery Director Julie Lohnes demystifies the art gallery and discusses how to search for art you will love. Barbara Siegel, artist and Associate Professor at Parsons The New School for Design, explores drawings and other works on paper through creative examples selected from the gallery's flat files. Jeanette May, artist and faculty at the International Center of Photography, presents contemporary digital photographs and traditional silver prints, and discusses photographic media, techniques, and editions. Light brunch included in workshop fee of $20. Workshop limited to 25 participants.”  

What I like about the event just described is that the presenters will show and discuss art related to acquisition, something that demos do not do. A range of art will be presented for discussion; in this context it's perfectly appropriate to address the artist's technique as it relates to a particular body of work or a specific piece if the question comes up. More pointedly, there’s a signup and fee, which requires a commitment on the part of the public. I think A.I.R.'s concept hits all the right notes. If you’re going to “educate the public," make sure the public wants to be educated. 

Over to you.
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