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Thomas Skupniewitz | Episode 557
Thomas Skupniewitz has been working in clay for the past 10 years. Thomas was a wallpaper hanger for 43 years and he is self taught in many other mediums. Thomas never had the grades or money in his youth to attend higher education but he did not let it stop him. Thomas wishes to convey to The Potters Cast listeners that we have to play the cards we were dealt and simply practice, practice, practice.
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How did you choose which galleries to reach out to?
I started at the top. I found the best gallery in the state and I thought, Well, why not? All they can do is say no. And first try they called and said they would love to carry the stuff, so ya, I wasn’t rejected from a lot of galleries like a lot of stories you hear. I think once you get into a really good gallery other galleries will contact you because good galleries vetted you. So I think that is a good way of doing it and the gallery in North Carolina saw that I was at this gallery in Wisconsin and contacted me. Plus they look at your work on Instagram or Facebook and approach you. I would like to be in some more galleries but I just need to get my production up more. The carving and a lot of that stuff takes a lot of time.
How did you actually reach out to them? Did you email them, send them a letter, send them pictures? What was that process like?
The process for that was they review portfolios every November, so I just made sure I sent them good quality photos and about me and that’s all it took really. So a lot of galleries have certain times when they don’t like to be bugged all the time. They like to set up either one time a year or two times a year that they look at portfolios and decide if they are going to take another artist on. A lot of times it is on their website. Just look at their website and there should be something about applying to their gallery and how to do it.
How did you actually find the galleries?
Well the one in Wisconsin has always been known as the number one gallery. So any time you are in that state you always stop there because they always have very interesting art there, from sculpture, painting, glass, wood, it’s just very nice and the third generation running it now and they are just really nice people.
When you reached out to the gallery did you ever show up in person and ask face to face?
No, that would be awkward for them and for me. I don’t think that would be a good way, you know, you could catch them on a bad day. (laughter)
Did you ever send pieces to actually preview before you got accepted in?
Nope, everything has just been by photos.
How about contracts. Did you ever have to sign contracts that would state what the relationship would be like?
Oh yeah, absolutely. And that is only fair because they are doing a lot of work promoting your work so they don’t want someone within 30 or 60 miles. I think the one in Edge-wood is in the county and I can’t show anything there and that is more than fair.
How is the relationship? Is it almost friend-like or is it strictly business?
It is very friendly. They just had their fiftieth anniversary, I went up to it and did a demo for them, they had over eleven hundred people show up for their anniversary party. No, I consider them good friends. At then end of every season they have a dinner for all the artists that belong to the gallery and it is like a family. There are two artists that have been there all fifty years. I mean you truly are part of the family there.
How do you keep track of inventory?
With them? The gallery?
Yes.
Every thing is numbered and when you take it to the gallery you unpack it and they go through it. You read the numbers off, they check it off just so everybody is on the same page. So I haven’t forgotten a piece or put something else in, the price is agreed to, it is just a very nice system that way. And at the end of the year you have your list and they have their list for what is sold and what is left.
What is the turn around usually from the time a piece is sold and the time you get your paycheck?
They pay the fifteen of every month. And it is always guaranteed and there is always a hand written note and I am sure they do that with all the other artists.
When you think of someone who is thinking about venturing into clay and they haven’t got the pedigree, what kind of advice do you give them?
Just do it. Your work will speak for itself. Don’t worry about a college degree or any of that. Your work will speak for itself. When I send work to a gallery it doesn’t have to have you list where you have your masters from or anything. Your work will sell itself. And I think potters are one of the most approachable people there are and they will help other potters out. You get in some of these co-operative studios and it’s just great, it’s fun working alongside people that are very advanced, people that bring their kids in, it is just a good environment for people to be around. It is not like oil painting or sculpture or anything like that. Clay is very community based medium.
Book
Terra Sigillata contemporary Techniques by Rhonda Willers
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert M. Pirsig
Contact
Instagram: @skupniewitz