Adding photos to the gallery mix brings sales into focus; veteran photography dealers explain the benefits of bringing photography into contemporary art galleries and give advice on how to do it effectively

Art Business News, Oct, 2002 by Julie Keller

No longer considered too cutting-edge or controversial in its position in the world of fine art, photography has filtered its way into nearly every level of the market. From fine art fairs to galleries to auction houses to museums, photography is coming into focus in a universal way and can spell big bucks for dealers who carry it. According to experts, now is the time for galleries that have traditionally shied away from photography to consider stocking up.

"It's a very hot medium," related Stephen Perloff, editor of the monthly The Photograph Collector newsletter. "While not every gallery can be an expert in every medium, I think a lot of people are missing the boat if they are not dealing with photography now. Galleries are in business to make money ... and there is money to be made selling photography."

Yancey Richardson, owner of the Yancey Richardson Gallery in New York and a board member of the Association of International Photography Art Dealers (AIPAD), agreed, adding that photography is virtually unavoidable in today's contemporary art market. "So much contemporary art making is photo-based," she said. "Photography really permeates--and to some extent dominates--the contemporary art market right now. So if you are dealing in contemporary art, I think it is hard to avoid dealing in photography."

Most experts agree the roadblocks of acceptance and respect of the medium have been all but demolished, and the photo biz is booming.

Many even think that the delineations between fine art photos and paintings have been erased. "The market for photography has been steadily growing for a long time now," said Tom Gitterman, gallery director of New York's Howard Greenberg Gallery. "It's not about the medium anymore, it's about the art."

Nancy Dunwell, creative director at Wild Apple, a Woodstock, Vt., publisher that has found success with its line of open-edition photo prints, agreed. "Photography can have an appeal equal to paintings as lo ng as the image speaks to the consumer."

Unlimited Potential

Indeed, photography seems to be able to touch collectors of all levels in a way that other art forms cannot. "Photography has always been and continues to be one of the most accessible media in terms of people understanding it and being able to get close to it--they get it," explained Barry Podgorsky, co-owner of Soho Triad Fine Art in New York. "They can look at a photograph, and they understand what it is."

Photographs are also relatively inexpensive, which makes them quite attractive to both collectors and the gallery owners who sell them. Galleries can test the waters, so to speak, without having to necessarily make a huge investment. "You can buy a picture by a contemporary master of traditional photography for $1,000 to $5,000, which is very little money compared to prints or original paintings," said Perloff.

The potential collector base for photographs is also bigger than it's ever been. No longer the darling of just the young and cutting-edge, photography has found a home in the collections of art lovers at all levels of the market. High-end collectors have been dropping millions at auction for work by such masters as Ansel Adams or Alfred Stieglitz. Yet other collectors are happy to plunk down a mere $500 to take home work by a yet-to-be-discovered artist.

"In a way, you have people with a lot of money at the high end and people with a little bit of money at the low end," said The Photograph Collector's Perloff. "Obviously, there are also any number of longtime collectors in between, as well."

Podgorsky said the potential collector base is also quite large due to the accessibility of photographs. "Some of the old stuff that goes along with visiting galleries about how art-educated you have to be, how knowledgeable you have to be, sort of disappears when you look at photography," he said. "You look at it and you know what it is. Everybody can identify in some way with a photograph."

Getting Started

For many gallery owners who are hesitant to break into photography, the process isn't as complicated or intimidating as it may seem. Most dealers agree that getting started in the photography market is really not all that different from bringing on a new artist in a medium you already carry or planning to bring sculpture into a gallery that traditionally only carried fine art prints or paintings.

"It's just like moving into any other segment, like prints or sculpture or something they haven't handled before," said Perloff. "The drill is pretty much the same."

The first and most important part of the process is education and research. Stock up on photography books. Bone up on the hottest photography exhibits at museums and galleries. Subscribe to the most up-to-date trade and consumer publications on the market, such as The Photograph Collector, Aperture or American Photo. It's also vital to visit as many photo shows and important art fairs featuring photographs among the varied art offerings, such as Art Basel, Art Chicago, The Art Show and The Armory Show. (See "Show Snapshots" for a listing of today's hottest photo shows).