Do you struggle with keeping your artwork organized like me? I’ve been struggling a bit with keeping an inventory of my art. I have files on my desktop AND my iPad AND in Google Photos. I have art that I need to scan or take photos of. I have digital work that only exists on one of my devices: the iPad or the Mac. There’s a lot of keep track of!
How I tried to organize my art inventory
I upgraded my Google storage account so I can access files from any of my devices. That doesn’t help me track of how artwork is related or give me any details about the work though.
Lots of artists and designers love Notion and AirTable. I have played with those both. They both provide excellent databases that are easy to use and offer a lot of customizable options. That’s the problem though. If you’re anything like me, you want to spend time making art, not setting up software to keep track of the art.
The solution to my organizational problems
That’s what is so perfect about Artwork Archive. It’s a database DESIGNED for keeping track of art. Instead of you having to build a separate table for each aspect of your work that you want to relate, you can just add the details.
Artwork Archive even lets you keep track of individual pieces, vs collections vs editions and runs. You can keep track of the status of all of your art all in one place. That is SO helpful for art licensing and pending submissions.
The Artwork Archive setup
First you have “Pieces” which are separate pieces of art. You can add images, videos and audio files to each piece. You can add information about the piece including:
- Medium
- Dimensions
- Creation Date
- Availability
- Price
- Exhibitions
- Collections
- Tags and categories
Adding to your art inventory
You can go piece by piece adding as you go. If you’re anything like me though, you probably have a lot of pieces already. Luckily you can bulk upload! Select up to 20 images at a time.
Portfolio without separate hosting
Need a website to show off your work but you’re not tech savvy? Artwork Archive has you covered. When you add your pieces, select the “make public option” then your work is shown on your public profile.
Track calls for entry
The Exhibitions feature helps me add the dates for submissions rather than add tasks to my Google calendar. Because I don’t always remember to add things. I missed the submission for the Minted nursery art challenge completely. That sounded right up my alley too!
In summary
Keeping up with everything art related is definitely a struggle! Between pitching, making new work for art calls and remembering deadlines, things definitely slip through the cracks. Yes you could cobble together an artwork inventory system with spreadsheets and calendars. But why put in the work to build a custom artwork inventory when there’s a relatively inexpensive option that’s already designed for artists?
Save 20% off your first year of Artwork Archive with my referral link: https://www.artworkarchive.com/?ref=58563a