Of course, you can ask that I keep my comments to myself, but then you would be asking a legitimate, experienced consumer of such services as yours to keep important observations to himself. And this would not be an honest cross section of the whole market that you most certainly attempt to reach.
I speak as a first-hand participant in four such publications, all with higher pricetags for participation.
Yeah,... I have no doubt whatsoever that YOUR publication is every bit as impressive as the ones I've been a part of. But let's get real.
Look at the sheer number of artists wanting exposure. Look at the sheer huge demand on viewers of art to actually look at art. On a national or international scale, this boils down to a huge number of people who never have heard of the artist or never have seen the artist's works to develop an interest in him/her. On this same national and international scale, there are a huge number of museums, galleries, etc. being bombarded with queries and free publications to expose artists. These viewers looking for new talent probably have their information channels already developed, when it comes to hiring, buying, or otherwise enlisting new artists.
I don't care how many free, beautiful publications they are offered, they seemingly just would not have any viewing time/energy left outside those channels. The whole game is just too big to make an impact as a strange artist to a strange viewer seeing him for the first time in a pretty, new, free art book.
The only people who ever contacted me form the books I appeared in were other artists asking me was it worth it. I always told them honestly that this depends on what you mean by "worth it".
If you are looking for a guaranteed return on your money of any kind, then I still maintain.. NO .. it's not worth it. If you enjoy the endeavor of being part of a quality publication, then YES, it is worth it to be a philanthropist for the artworld. giving away your money to support more art publications.
I believe that NEW artists need to focus their personal money on developing their own local fan base from the ground up,... while promoting themselves on the internet in free sites designed to do exactly what you do. Network, network, network.
Of course, if you have the cash for an extra toy, then go ahead (like I did a few times) and buy a new toy. But these days, I just can't afford it, given what it returns practically.
Don't speak MY side of the truth? I don't think so.
Happy publishing,
RK
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