How do I balance building my online presence with approaching physical galleries?

You need both, and they reinforce each other. While you’re working on building your online presence and customer list, actively reach out to galleries—but don’t just look at them online. Call them. Visit them if you can. Show them your work in person. Galleries will ask about your website, social media following, and email list, so having those elements strengthens your gallery pitch. But don’t let the online work completely replace the relationship-building and physical presence that galleries value. Use your time efficiently: spend half creating your portfolio and body of work, spend half promoting it through all available channels—online and offline.

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Asked by an artist in Houston exploring galleries · Answered by Patrick · Art Business Webinar · 2026-06-12