Photography Exhibitions - The Logistics of It.

[Aryan]

Hello everyone, as the title of this thread says, it would be good if someone could brief us all regarding photography exhibitions. Basically, everything regarding an exhibition vis-a-vis things like:

1. How to go about holding an exhibition?
2. What are the costs involved?
3. Is it beneficial?
4. Is it viable?

And perhaps lots more information which I am pretty sure not only me, but a lot of us would like to know. After all, it is a dream of every photographer (newbie, amateur or professional) to hold his/ her own photography exhibition atleast once. :) Please do share any kind of information that you guys might have regarding the same.

P.S: I remember vividly that anvancy did have a photography exhibition in Pune, whereby he showcased some of his photographs. If he could perhaps share a detailed 'procedure' of the same, it would be really good.

[KrishnenduKes]

Query Approved

Seeing the importance of the post, I moved it to the Universal Section.

Good thread started Aryan.

I remember scouting around for space for an exhibition for a couple of my friends. There is one lovely space available... Alliance Française at Lodhi Road.

Go fix up a meeting with the Director saying you are a photographer and would like to showcase your work. He will ask you to prepare a portfolio with your work and an SOP. This will be screened by their cultural committee. If things go in your favour, you may get the space for a week. A good portfolio and presentation is the key here.

There is another space at Select City Walk, Saket. Though I do not know about the formalities there.

There are other spaces as well, like the Pragati Maidan. Again I am not aware of the procedure.

[Aryan]

What is an SOP? :confused: Also, if possible I would love to know the kind of money that is involved. I do not have much. :p

[KrishnenduKes]

SOP = Statement of Purpose. Something in the lines - that you are a budding photographer and would like to showcase your work. The language here is crucial and the presentation. Also stating how France and Alliance Française in particular encourages young artists at work and promotes art in various media.

It is better to have your work based on a thematic study, which hopefully clicks with the Cultural committee evaluation. It it does, then you are on a roll and you will not have to pay anything. At least for the space and time. You will have to pay for your prints. Which is a substantial amount depending on how many you want exposed and a good framing as well.

Again timing is crucial. You cannot ask for their gallery when they are having their Beaujolais Nouveau wine expo... check out when that happens over the net coz a lot of Big Wigs try to make use of that time to expose their works since in their gallery since a lot of "Important" people come for the Beaujolais Nouveau testing/tasting time.

[anvancy-(macro analyst)]

exhibitions is showcasing stuff.people love to see photography.

ANS 1.you first decide whats your motto behind the exhibition?pure paisa?fame?glamour?or you simply wanna "showcase" minus people like it or not?

ANS 2.costs involved are.
a.printing cost.
b.framing cost.
c.hall cost.
d.advertising cost.
e.working capital cost.
now for e i mean drinks,eatery stuff,chairs tables if required etc.

a b c d e all are crucial costs.fluctuations are there.and you have to balance it out.

another thing to keep in mind is your printing quality.bad print means bad showcase.in our P@P exhibition people complained that why we did in matte?simple.our science teachers had taught us that glass is a very reflective surface.so when you put a spot light in front of your photo,the spot is gonna reflect on your shot.true that gloss makes photo vibrant but u cant deny the fact of reflections.paintings is a different story.we are talking photos here.

ANS 3.that depends on what you thought before putting up the exhibition.

ANS 4.for an amateur like me.the answer is 99.999% NO.why?cause i have absolutely zero image in public.so even if i spend moolah on NDTV telling public to come to my exhibition hardly anybody will come.tomorrow if some honcho puts up exhibition people will flock.that flock will include many socialists etc.

so best is to go through groups.thats why P@P where photographers from pune showcase on a combined basis.there the crowd is better than solo.once u get enough REP you can go solo.

another way to go solo is exhibiting at say school functions or college days.hell even if u put ur stall in college and showcase youngies will surely get attracted.cause u are at the same mind level as them.

hope that helps.

anvancy.

[Aryan]

SOP = Statement of Purpose. Something in the lines - that you are a budding photographer and would like to showcase your work. The language here is crucial and the presentation. Also stating how France and Alliance Française in particular encourages young artists at work and promotes art in various media.

It is better to have your work based on a thematic study, which hopefully clicks with the Cultural committee evaluation. It it does, then you are on a roll and you will not have to pay anything. At least for the space and time. You will have to pay for your prints. Which is a substantial amount depending on how many you want exposed and a good framing as well.

Again timing is crucial. You cannot ask for their gallery when they are having their Beaujolais Nouveau wine expo... check out when that happens over the net coz a lot of Big Wigs try to make use of that time to expose their works since in their gallery since a lot of "Important" people come for the Beaujolais Nouveau testing/tasting time.
Thanks for that in-depth information.

@anvancy: Finally, I get a reply from you. Thanks for sharing those pointers; quite important ones at that. :) I really appreciate it.

[KrishnenduKes]

Thanks for that in-depth information.
.

My pleasure.

Furthermore, I have known quite a few Directors of Alliance Française in the past. One even married a classmate of mine from JNU. Remember, these guys are cultural ambassadors of their countries. Hence they are pretty open, outgoing and they are pretty encouraging towards upcoming artists. Your biggest hurdle would be the Cultural Committee which comprises of some Indians!

It is a good thing that you are getting "Real" and planning forward to showcasing your stuff. Alliance Française on Lodhi Road AND the French Cultural Centre on 2 Aurangzeb Road are definitely two very good places to showcase your stuff. Go there once in a while and visit their galleries and the words of Indian and foreign artists. Meet them... who knows, you might strike a chord with someone and doors will open for you. Networking does go a long way in these matters you see.

[Aryan]

My pleasure.

Furthermore, I have known quite a few Directors of Alliance Française in the past. One even married a classmate of mine from JNU. Remember, these guys are cultural ambassadors of their countries. Hence they are pretty open, outgoing and they are pretty encouraging towards upcoming artists. Your biggest hurdle would be the Cultural Committee which comprises of some Indians!

It is a good thing that you are getting "Real" and planning forward to showcasing your stuff. Alliance Française on Lodhi Road AND the French Cultural Centre on 2 Aurangzeb Road are definitely two very good places to showcase your stuff. Go there once in a while and visit their galleries and the words of Indian and foreign artists. Meet them... who knows, you might strike a chord with someone and doors will open for you. Networking does go a long way in these matters you see.
Thanks a lot for all the information that you have been providing in this thread! :) I really appreciate all of it.

Alliance Française at Lodhi Road is one place which I DO visit regularly. Close proximity to my work place also helps, you see. ;) But, when it comes to networking, I have NIL. Yes, I am trying to get "real". Let's see how far I can go.

If there is any more information that ANYONE has, please do share it. :)

Thanks.