In addition to selling works, the gallerist promotes his artists. The main goal is to contribute to the influence of the artists he supports, to increase their visibility and thus increase their ranking according to the principle of supply and demand.

In order to promote he maintains his materials and address book (Press file and client file), creates a network (relationships with other professionals in the art world, auction houses, institutions), communicates (print files, mailings, publication of the catalog, photographs). He can also issue reasoned catalogs of artists whose fame is already established.

To increase their visibility, the most important galleries participate to national or international exhibitions.

Some galleries can also support a particular project by finding and often paying people who will assist the artist – craftsmen, specialists (such as a sculptor founder) and other suppliers – or by pooling the necessary financial resources, such as a director. For example, the French gallerist Denise René, in a conversation with Catherine Millet, testified about the plastic artist Jesús-Rafael Soto that “the gallery was heavily involved in financing and implementing his large-scale works, especially those that required funds. important receptions and the help of assistants that the museums did not provide. In order to produce certain metal works, highly specialized factories had to be found and selected ” . The more complex and expensive the creation, the more the gallery’s involvement is needed, but such large-scale projects help to increase the artist’s visibility and therefore promote the gallery’s work.

Part of the gallery’s activities can also be devoted to the publication of cartoons and sculptures. Since the late xixth century , as art dealer Ambroise Vollard had the idea of encouraging artists of his gallery to explore other mediums to express themselves as a lithographic stone such. “My idea,” he explained, “was to ask for engravings from artists who were not engravers by profession. What could be taken as a challenge was a great artistic achievement. ” . He also asked artists such as Auguste Renoir (who agreed) or Edgar Degas (who declined) to create sculptures, invited Paul Gauguin to make some of his statues in bronze or even edited Aristide Maillot’s sculptures in bronze . He managed all these editions, ordered prints directly from artisans (founders, lithographers…) as needed and sold them. He understood that such multiples, sold at prices more affordable than those of individual works, allowed for wider distribution and an opportunity to approach a new audience. Of course, he wasn’t the only one.

The contract between the gallery and the artist
There is no standard contract between a gallery and an artist. The contract is usually oral, trust being the key to the artist-gallery relationship: but the prevailing rule is subject to the general principles of commercial law and intellectual property law. This dual legal framework protects both the artist and the seller from abuse.

On the gallery side, there are varying degrees of commitment, ranging from renting the rails for the paintings, to sharing the costs incurred, to one-time or partial contracts, or even to contracts of exclusivity.

The nature of the agreement can vary from gallery to gallery. Either the gallerist buys the work directly from the artist, who receives no commission. Or the artist deposits the work for a certain period and receives a percentage of the sale as part of a profit-sharing deposit-sale. In the latter case, transparency is the rule without which it is impossible to establish trust between the parties.

The gallery owner must respect certain rights of the artist, such as the right of resale, the right of reproduction and the moral right to the work. These rights vary from one payment to another, from a codified legal space to a legal space based on usage and jurisprudence.

Finally, prices are usually determined by the gallery in consultation with the artist depending on the state of the art market .