When selling work through a gallery, how does an artist deal with VAT on sales commission? This guide by financial services experts Counterculture and VAT advisory service SOC VAT explains the two principle methods.
A practical guide for artists on different payment options, sending invoices, chasing payments and dealing with debtors.
A budget is an essential tool for any artist planning a new project, making a funding application or drawing up a business plan, while a-n’s Exhibition Payment Guide asks artists to provide a clear exhibition proposal and budget in advance of negotiation. This guide by the Cultural Enterprise Office in Glasgow offers straightforward advice on how to construct and manage a simple budget.
Artists and advisers identify key questions to ask to help sift the good opportunities from the mediocre, and the downright mendacious.
Juan Bolivar, an artist and curator, explores the history and practice of curating, and provides ten key questions for independent curators and artists to help guide you in developing your first exhibitions. Bolivar’s painting practice runs parallel to his curating practice; first initiating TRAILER (2001-05) – an artist collective utilising temporary locations to stage exhibitions – and since, going on to curate over 40 exhibitions as an independent curator.
Hen Norton explores the use of fundraising platforms online and offers her top ten tips to help you build a sustainable creative business or project, and reach a wider and more engaged network of supporters through crowdfunding.
A best practice reference guide to use when creating an agreement for a solo or group exhibition with a gallery or organisation presenting visual arts. You can also use the a-n Contracts Toolkit to build a contract to the specific exhibition context, and this checklist will support you with this.
Proactively seeking out opportunities to realise exhibitions and projects is an important strategy in the arts. Adam Smythe, Curator at the Bluecoat in Liverpool, gives some advice on the best methods of approaching galleries with exhibition proposals for your own work or for curatorial projects.
For this follow up to her Approaching galleries guide, Jennie Syson asked artists, arts managers, curators and gallery directors to share their top tips, and dos and don’ts advice.
Jennie Syson offers some advice on approaching galleries, through setting out the different research routes and methods you might use.
The group of 27 artists and lecturers who collectively worked for the National Gallery for over 500 years has won the case it brought to tribunal after a successful crowdfunding campaign.
As an artist or freelancer working (on a paid or voluntary basis) in certain environments – such as running workshops in schools or with vulnerable adults – requires you to undertake a check by the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). Educator Sarah Blaszczok explains why a DBS check is needed, how to get one, and the costs involved.
Artist Catherine Bertola is concerned that HMRC’s new ‘Making Tax Digital’ proposals, which the government claims will make tax administration more efficient and easier for taxpayers, will result in additional administrative pressure for many artists and self-employed freelancers with low and erratic incomes.
Primarily aimed at self-employed artists, this guide sets out why people should be considering a pension or retirement plan and offers advice on a number of different choices that are available.
Artists on low incomes may be able to apply for Child Tax Credit or Working Tax Credit. This guide offers advice on eligibility and how to apply.
If you are an artist or arts organisers who earns income from a variety of sources, self-employment is usually a good option as it enables you to work for many different people and perform more than one type of work. This guide by financial services experts Counterculture explains what self-employment means, how to register as self-employed, and how and when you will need to pay tax.
Enables artists to calculate an individual daily rate for services they supply based upon their unique circumstances and overheads and to prepare quotes when pitching for freelance work.
Universal Credit is a new benefit that is designed to support people who are on a low income or out of work. This guide by financial services experts Counterculture explains how Universal Credit is calculated and how it may impact those who are self-employed.
Getting paid a fair fee is not suggestive of a revolution. So why does it sometimes incur resistance, both from those who pay and from ourselves? This guide by Rod McIntosh introduces ideas towards getting paid what you want and indeed deserve.
In an ideal world you would only embark on projects where there is sufficient funds available. This guide by Rod McIntosh outlines an approach to finding workable compromises whilst maintaining quality for times when money is tight.
This guide by Sheena Etches and Nicholas Sharp outlines issues and practicalities to be aware of when negotiating and agreeing a contractual arrangement.
A contract is an agreement between two or more people that is legally binding. It can be verbal or written. This guide by Sheena Etches and Nicholas Sharp outlines the essential ingredients of a contract, offer and acceptance, and implied terms.
This guide by Sheena Etches and Nicholas Sharp looks at how to handle contractual disputes, and how to terminate or re-negotiate contracts.
Although a contract need not be in writing to be legally valid, the advantages of having a signed written contract usually easily outweigh the risks of not having one.
The following checklist by Sheena Etches and Nicholas Sharp covers many of the issues that arise when artists enter an arrangement with a private gallery, dealer or agent.
