Exhibiting Photography in the Real World
Monday, May 11, 2009 by stephanie roberts 
Pictured here is my friend and honored guest Imogene at the opening reception. She is featured in a number of my Project 365 images on display.
Last Friday night was the opening reception for my first solo photography exhibition, Project 365: Daily Discoveries, and quite frankly one of the most memorable moments of my life. When I began Project 365 on January 02, 2008, I felt certain that I would complete the project, but was a little unsure of how I would feel about the end result. I liked the idea of sharing the project in the form of an art gallery exhibit, and was thrilled to hear that the Monroe Art Guild gallery was eager to host it, but the tactical exercise of selecting, sorting, printing, matting, framing, and displaying the exhibit was slightly overwhelming (in a good way). Walking through the gallery Friday night, and hugging my family, friends, and a number of very kind strangers made me so thankful for the opportunity to share my work in a physical space.
I encourage you to explore gallery opportunities to share your work in the form of an exhibit, and when you get that first opportunity, here are a few tips to help you prepare and display your own exhibit:
1. Get creative with your display. I wanted the ability to show the breadth of the project by visually displaying all 365 images, but knew that gallery space and budget would limit the amount of prints I could enlarge, frame and display. So, I used Moo to print postcards of each image. On the front of each postcard, I printed each of the 365 images and on the back I printed the name of the project, my name, and my web site address. In the gallery, I wanted to connect the digital photography project to the visual of an old-school darkroom, so I spray-painted 365 clothespins black, hung black fishing line in rows, and suspended the images in sequence with the clothespins on one wall of the gallery space. This format allows visitors to immediately get the impact of 365 days, and to watch the progression of seasonal color and my focus over time.
For the large, framed prints, I shared written stories, quotes and poems in the form of small plaques beside each image to help strengthen an emotional connection between the viewer and the image – just like a blog format. I love getting inside the head of an artist and wish more artists would share their written thoughts behind their work in gallery exhibitions.
2. Consider matting and framing costs and availability before you print. Based on the size of the gallery space and the mobile panels used to display artwork in the space, I selected 33 images from the 365 set to enlarge and frame in two different sizes. Knowing that I would need a large quantity of nearly identical black frames for consistency, I shopped first for reasonably priced frames (Sam Flax in Atlanta) and settled on 27 18 x 24 and six 22 x 28. (This required two shopping trips as I cleared out their stock on the first visit, so be sure that you plan for frame purchase well in advance of your show.) Based on these two frame sizes, I worked with my printer to determine ideal sizes for the prints, allowing for a minimum three-inch mat around each image with a slightly larger width on the bottom edge. To save time, my printer also managed the process of having the archival mats cut for the prints to ensure that they fit the prints and my frames. I then recruited my husband to help me frame them all on our kitchen and dining room tables.
3. Splurge on good paper and befriend a good printer/photographer if you have no desire to learn the fine art of printing. When printing my fine art prints, I work with a individual printer/photographer, Dave Russell in the Atlanta area. In his studio he has a high-end professional, large format printer. Before he printed my digital images, we met at his studio to review my files so he could test colors and image format to ensure the best printing quality possible for my images. He also shared paper samples with me and made a few test prints of my images on the paper selections so I could see the differences in quality before making a decision. We decided on a high quality, archival Hanamule gloss paper. This paper is (not inexpensive), but luscious for large color prints. Had he just quoted the price and not shared the difference in quality with me in person, I probably would have selected the lower quality paper and would have been less pleased with the results.
4. Don’t forget to sign your prints. I’ve seen photographers sign the bottom edge of mats, but I don’t think this is a good idea as the mat can easily be separated from the print over time. I used an artist’s acid-free pencil and signed the actual print in the lower right corner, just above the bottom edge of the matt. What’s nice about this is that you can see the signature if you look at the print from a certain angle, but it’s not readily visible when you step back to view the framed image.
I’m sure you have more tips or have seen really cool photography exhibit display ideas that have inspired you. Please share them with us in the comments.
Reader Comments (21)
http://esterdaphne.blogspot.com/
Great ideas. Thanks for sharing them!
very exciting!
I love the clothes pin idea also. Very creative.
I've been a fan since the first time I viewed your photography.
How long will the exhibit be up? I have an upcoming trip to Atlanta.
I have to say after framing a few of my photo's for my home recently...You must of spent a Mint! Keep up the great work and Thank You for sharing your tips ♥
I've sold two pieces so far and am THRILLED! It might not sound like much, but I only have 3 images there at a time, and the whole show has sold 15 pieces from about 50 artists in the 2 weeks it's been going so far. There was a debate, apparently, on whether to include photographers and in the end they included 3 of us amongst the painters. Almost a third of all sales have been our photographs, since I know 2 other photos were sold from another photographer. Yay for validation!