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How To Describe and Sell Your Art on Online Art Platforms? Tips for Writing Artwork Descriptions for Up-and-Coming Artists

Lala Mouradian February 09 2022

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In order to sell your art on online art platforms, it is necessary to write clear and concise descriptions to accompany your works of art. Here are a few tips for emerging and student artists on how to effectively write artwork descriptions to sell art online.

While a picture may be worth a thousand words, when it comes to selling your artworks on online platforms, written words are just as important as visuals. It is essential for up-and-coming artists to get into the habit of articulately and thoroughly describing their artwork. This way, art buyers can become fully familiar with the elements that make up the artists’ works and get more encouraged to buy art online. So, how can you write compelling artwork descriptions?

Tip 1: Write About Your Creative Process and the Inspiration Behind Your Art

This section of the description should directly refer to the artistic elements of your work of art. This is your chance to get personal; explain to potential buyers your inspiration behind creating the artwork, clarify what the piece means to you, and describe its artistic meaning and value.

It is a good idea to start with defining the source of your inspiration (be it personal, historical, or a unique experience) and explain how that incident affected the elements of your artwork, such as color, texture, or composition. Then, move on to discussing your personal relationship to the work of art and explain what it means to you as an artist and as a person. However, be careful to not repeat information from your bio or artist statement. Your words need to be specific to the artwork at hand. Finally, briefly discuss the artistic meaning and value of the piece and explain what makes it unique and special.

Remember that this part of the description should be detailed, personal, and inspirational. As an artist selling art on the internet, this is your opportunity to give your artwork a unique character and personality. That way, buyers feel connected to your experiences and creative process, and get encouraged to buy artworks on online art platforms.

Tip 2: Get technical!

For this component of the description, it is important to include all the factual and technical information about your work of art, so that potential buyers have all the necessary details before purchasing art online. So, what should you include in this part of the description?

- Specify the materials used in creating the artwork, such as canvas type and art materials.

- Include the dimensions of the work of art.

- Explain the packaging process and delivery services. For example, will your artwork be packaged or rolled?

- Encourage the buyer to contact you to further discuss details about your art piece and the shipping process.

- If your artwork has other specific and unique details, you can also include that information in this part of the description.

Tip 3: Be Clear and Concise in Your Writing and Avoid Art Jargon

Writing effective artwork descriptions is important to sell your art on online art platforms. As a student artist, you might be accustomed to using vocabulary specific to your art discipline. However, keep in mind that consumers may not be familiar with art jargon, so make sure to use clear and simple language to describe works of art. If you find it absolutely necessary to include art-specific words or refer to specific events, art movements, or people, make sure to provide a brief explanation of them to your potential buyers. In other words, never assume that consumers buying art online are already familiar with art-specific terminology.

There is one final component to writing artwork descriptions; coming up with a title for your works of art. Perhaps the first thing that buyers notice when purchasing art online is the name of a piece of art. So how can you write an interesting and thought-provoking title to immediately grab the attention of consumers buying art online?

First, include a keyword in your title that describes the final art product. That way, viewers can fully understand the meaning of the artwork through the title. This strategy can be especially useful when selling works of art online, as sometimes buyers search for artworks through specific keywords. Second, although including keywords in titles is important for selling art online, it is also necessary that a title reflects the main theme of the work of art without explicitly revealing its complete meaning. This way, viewers can make connections between the title and the artwork, while at the same time constructing their own unique interpretations of the piece . Finally, it is better to not write titles that are too long so that potential buyers are not distracted by too many words.

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christinamarando21432 replied 1 year, 3 months ago Great article Lala! Thank you for all this amazing advice :)
wlande199925 replied 1 year, 3 months ago Super helpful thank you!!!