How to Inventory Your Artwork

Know you need to take inventory of your art but don't know where to start?

An art inventory helps you organize, strengthen and optimize your art business. Besides, it's not the beast you think it is.

We've broken it down into ten easy steps to make it even easier.

So, turn on your favorite tunes, enlist the support of generous friends or family members, and start inventorying your artwork.

You'll be so glad you did, and when you're done, you'll have a living archive of every job you've ever done, all your business contacts, all the places your work has been exhibited, and every competition you've had. I have ever entered everything on .

This organizational happiness will set you free to do more of what you love and sell more art!

Work back

Inventorying works of art worthy of your career can seem like a daunting task, so we recommend working in reverse. This way, you'll start with the art that's fresh in your mind and the work you need to have parts on hand for potential galleries and buyers. You can then take a trip down memory lane and archive your past work.

Take quality photos

While this may seem obvious, it's tempting to type in the title and dimensions of the piece and be done with it. Don't fall into this trap! We all know that artists are visual creatives and it's so important to have a visual reminder of your work.

As the years go by and the work is forgotten, it can be easy to forget which picture goes with which title. It's also nice to have beautiful, high-quality images of your work that you can send to interested art collectors, buyers, and galleries using a .

Having an inventory of all your art with beautiful photos and the right information allows you to instantly send buyers and galleries what they need. 

Your job number

It is helpful to have a numbering system so that you can keep track of your work in chronological order and only get the basic information from the label. There is no single way to inventory your art, but there are plenty of great ideas if you don't know where to start.

Artist Cedar Lee arranges her art by the two digit number of the painting she painted that year, then by the letter of the month (January A, February B, etc.) and the two digit year. On her fantasy blog, she writes: “For example, I have a painting with control number 41J08 in my inventory. This tells me that this is the 41st paint of the year created in October 2008. Every January, she starts again with the number 1 and the letter A.

You can also add more details, such as a letter indicating the type or medium of the work, such as OP for oil painting, S for sculpture, EP for print edition, and so on. This will work well for an artist who creates in a variety of mediums.

Superstructure correct details

You will need to record the title, dimensions, stock number, creation date, price, medium, and subject in order to have a . You can also add frame dimensions if needed. You can upload up to 20 pieces at a time using our Bulk Upload feature and enter a title, stock number and price as you upload them. You can then add the rest of the information. Then the fun begins - and no, we are not joking.

Take notes on each part

Write down a description of each part, as well as any notes about the part. It could be the thoughts you had when creating the artwork, the inspiration, the materials used, and whether it was a gift or a commission.

You will relive the creation of each piece, reflecting on past successes and see how far you have come. Your notes will always be private, and your description will only be published if you mark the article as "public".

Assign your work to a location

Once you have registered all of your artworks in the Art Inventory Program, you can assign each of them a specific location. Thus, you will always know in which gallery or venue your work is exhibited.

You'll have the information ready if a buyer wants to purchase a piece that's located outside of your studio, and you'll never accidentally submit a piece to the same gallery twice. You will also know where all your art is located as soon as it is purchased, whether it be your hometown or a place abroad.

Add important contacts

Then you can collect data on your art collectors, gallery owners, interior designers, museum curators and art fair directors in one place. So you can access them anytime, anywhere, and link them to specific items in your inventory. You can keep them updated on your art career and your best customers.

Add your contacts to see who is your best customer. You can then notify them of new art they might want to purchase.

Registration of sales

Next, you can register sales to specific contacts in your Archive Archive account. You will know exactly who bought what, when and for how much. This way you can notify them when you've created a similar job and hopefully make another sale. You will also get a sales understanding of this way to help you with your business plans.

History of records, shows and exhibitions

Having a log of all competitions allows you to see which ones have accepted your entry and which have awarded you a prize. Keeping track of your most successful submissions will help you understand what the jury members are looking for so you can compete with the best entries each year.

In addition, it certainly piques the interest of the buyer if the work wins the competition, so you need to have this exciting information on hand to help in the sale.

Enjoy and share your work

Once you've compiled a list of all your work, you can either view it on the website or turn on and view a beautiful online gallery of your work. Then you can share it with buyers and collectors and sell more art. Our paid subscribers who have marked four or more works as public are represented on the site, where buyers can contact them directly to purchase the work. Better yet, the artists process the transactions and keep all the money!

Start organizing your art inventory with easy-to-use tools! , free for 30 days to build your business.