When artist Jean-Pierre Roy created the Nachlass in 2015, he had no idea it would be sold to Hollywood celebrity-cum-environmental-crusader Leonardo DiCaprio. It turned out DiCaprio had spotted the painting on Instagram and had contacted the gallery holding the piece to finalize his purchase.
The days of visiting the art gallery to purchase paintings and sculptures may soon come to an end. This is predominantly due to the rise in influence of social media in art.
Key institutions like the Van Gough Museum and the Musée du Louvre are actively using Instagram to engage and educate followers about art and artists. These institutions aren’t just leveraging the power of social media; they are also leveraging the reach of key artists and museum curators to get the word out about art.
Social media is turning into a highly fecund arena to stage your talent and showcase your work.
Influencer marketing and the fine arts
Often, the impact of social media on art can be seen in the benefits it brings to artists. Not only is social media giving artists an audience to talk to but it’s also allowing them to reach out to experienced peers with thousands of followers, who can mentor them and who can help them sell their work.
These experienced people with a huge follower base are called influencers, and in the world of art, they can be anyone from the fashionista-next-door to the curator of the biggest museum in America.
Take curators like Alexie Glass-Kantor, the Director of Artspace Sydney and Nancy Spector, the Deputy Director and Chief Curator of Brooklyn Museum. They are two people who are renowned in art circles for their knowledge, expertise, and fine taste.
High-profile influencers like these can actively encourage the ultra-rich to invest in the advancement of artistic pursuits. When they post on Instagram or Twitter, these curators can actively speak for the painting or sculpture, can promote budding artists, and can seek contributions to art foundations and institutions.
The rise of the small artists
Influencer marketing doesn’t just help big artists. In fact, a large section of beneficiaries is small-time artists who are looking for their big break. Take influencer Ted Chin for instance. He is a travel photographer and art lover, who attends local events and helps budding artists promote their work by photographing them in action.
Wedding photographer Erin Johnson is another example. She’s renowned for her award-winning wedding photographs, which don’t just focus on the bridal couple but also on the tons of clothing and accessories they wear. If you’re a brand specializing in wedding clothing, accessories, footwear, catering, décor or anything else, Erin will be one of the best people to enlist for your influencer marketing campaign.
How can you promote your work?
If you’re an artist and you’d like to get your name out in art circles, then choosing to go the influencer way would be a good way to start. If you don’t know how to reach influencers or aren’t sure whom to enlist for help, then don’t worry. You have specialized influencer marketing services platforms like ifluenz, who will search for relevant influencers for you and will help you get in touch with them. These companies also help you plan your influencer marketing campaign.
Influencer marketing isn’t just beneficial for painters, sculptures, and designers. It can also work wonders for theater artists, musicians, dancers, and singers. Basically, influencers can be found for each type of art. Influencer marketing companies can help you find the right person.
Influencer marketing can help you in multiple ways. It can:
- Introduce you and your work to the world
- Give you a leg-up against competition
- Allow you get exposure to artists and art trends
- Help you build a large follower/customer base
- Sell your products or services to a highly engaged audience
With so many benefits, it makes sense for artists to invest in influencer marketing. For all you know, doing so may launch you into the high-profile art world you’ve been dreaming of since you were a kid.