How artists find an audience and get the word out
Courtesy of Marc Settembrino
Dr. Marc Settembrino, assistant professor of sociology, poses with his artwork. Through the Hammond Art Guild, Settembrino advertises his art to the community.
Artists incorporate a variety of techniques to promote their work to the public.
L’Oreal Willams, a freshman business administration major, discussed how social media has helped her promote her photography business, “L’Oreal Productions.”
“I use a lot of social media to do promoting,” stated Williams. “I promote on Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, and in addition, I also work events around campus, and that’s how people find out I am a photographer. You never know who’s seeing your work.”
Dr. Marc Settembrino, assistant professor of sociology, explained what led him to begin painting and sharing his work with other people.
“A few years ago, I started painting just as a part of my human expression,” said Settembrino. “At first, it was experimental. Over time, I started sharing what I was doing with my friends on Facebook. One of the cool things about being on Instagram as well, is it exposes your art to people who may not know you or may not know you’re an artist.”
For Casey Saba, a 2006 alumnus and musician, in-person promotion can be an effective tool as well.
“In my personal opinion, nothing beats old-fashioned shaking hands and kissing babies,” shared Saba. “Digital promotion is fine, but the problem you run into is that everybody’s digitally promoting themselves. Word of mouth is powerful, so if you meet somebody and make them smile, they’re way more likely to come to the show than just seeing some random post.”
In addition, Settembrino advertises his paintings to the community with the support of the Hammond Art Guild.
“I joined the Hammond Art Guild and started entering my work in different exhibitions the art guild was doing,” explained Settembrino. “The Hammond Art Guild is a community group of artists who help to promote each other’s work.”
The Hammond Art Guild provides various opportunities for artists to reach out to the public.
“The Hammond Art Guild will do different events throughout the year such as ‘Starry November Night’ and ‘Hot August Night’ where I can show my work,” said Settembrino. “People are out and about, and you get to interact with people that you normally would never interact with.”
According to Settembrino, some artists face difficulties when finding venues to promote their art.
“In a place like Hammond, it gets difficult for them because there aren’t many galleries available,” stated Settembrino. “We have the regional arts center and the contemporary gallery on campus, but those are not really accessible to the individual artists.”
Settembrino believes artists benefit from showing support to one another.
Settembrino expressed, “The easiest routes to promoting my work has been through the Hammond Art Guild and through social media, but perhaps sometimes, I wish there was more of a community of artists that were fostering collaboration and working together.”
Showcasing artwork to the public may require artists to stand out and make connections.
“Artists who are really trying to get their work out there in a small town setting means they have to be a lot more creative whether it’s social media or events,” shared Settembrino. “If you are an artist, and you are looking to promote your work, the best thing you can is find a community that’s going to help you do that.”
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Nancy Lowentritt • Feb 20, 2019 at 12:46 am
I surely did enjoy reading this article, and particularly pleased to read Marc Settembrino’s comments about Hammond Art Guild. He is a perfect example of a former fledgling artist who I met when he was not showing his art yet, but attended a lot of art shows ad an art appreciator. Before I became President of the guild, I began encouraging him to become a member of our art guild so that he would have multiple venues at his disposal to show his art, meet other artists, and get feedback on his work. We were so glad he joined us, and over the last 4-5 years, he has shown his art at multiple shows all over Tangipahoa Parish. It’s been such a thrill to see the progress in his development as an artist; He’s sold some work and has been awarded ribbons on his work and has many more friends in the art community of Hammond, now. Becoming a member of Hammond Art Guild offers anyone 18 years and older, the same opportunities that Marc has experienced. Our 57th Annual Spring Open Judged Show is coming up very soon. if anyone is interested is exhibiting with us in this huge, exciting show, please go to our website at http://www.hamartguild.com, click on Spring Show Prospectus for all the details about entering this show, as a member, or a non member. You could also stop by the SLU Art Dept and pick up the same show info, or go to our Hammond Art Guild Facebook. Join many art students and graduates in experiencing what it’s like to compete in a judged show, for cash awards in three categories! Thank you to Marc Settembrino for mentioning the guild. You can find his work starting March 7th in a group show at PJs Coffee st 1914 SW Railroad Ave, across from Hammond Mall, and of course on April 5th at the Opening Reception of our 57th Annual Exhibition at Hammond Regional Arts Center. Thanks also to the Lions’ Roar for their continued support of the wonderful world of art! Nancy Lowentritt, Publicity for the art guild. 985-386-2068.