would selling portraits to certain stores be a good idea so they can resell them?

Question

I live in the Bahamas, and I can draw beautiful Bahamian culture drawings like flaminoes, blue marlins, landscapes, etc. I was thinking of going to the straw market, or some place similar, to show them what I can draw, try to sell them a drawing so they can sell it over at a higher price (they need their profit too, just like I need mine). Is this a good idea or a stupid one? If it's good, can you tell me why, and tell me how it'll be helpful? If you think it's a silly idea, then do you have any better ones?

Answer 1

If you're asking if you should talk to the people at the market then, sure... why not? Take along your best stuff in a portfolio or an album that would allow you to easily present your work in the best possible way. Figure out ahead of time how much your materials cost, and how much time it takes you not only to make each drawing, but market them and obtain your materials, etc.

Come up with a price that would allow you to make a fair income and also allow the resellers to make a profit. You might also want to look into making reproductions of your drawings, and keeping the originals, along with reproduction rights. You could purchase color reproductions to sell to the dealers at the market, or draw and print line drawings that you could hand color, sign, and number.

If you had the skills you could also look into drawing sketched portraits of tourists, letting them choose from your original prints as a background for the portrait.

If you really want to go big time learn how to draw beautiful Bahamian women in local settings like Leeteg did with Tahitian women, and sell prints or original art. That might sound cheap, tawdry, and exploitative, but he turned it into an industry. You don't have to make them topless or nude though...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_leeteg

http://www.barracudamagazine.com/leeteg.htm (WARNING: Semi-artistic painting of bare-breasted model in article - don't click if that would offend you)

http://www.gettingit.com/article/65

http://www.scn.org/villavelour/

http://www.passionforpaint.com/EdgarLeeteg.html

http://www.seattleweekly.com/1999-09-01/arts/paradise-painted.php (WARNING: Semi-artistic painting of bare-breasted model in article - don't click if that would offend you)

http://www.acfnewsource.org/art/black_velvet.html

Good luck!