Art, Artists, and the Web:Part: 2--First Steps in Building an Artist?s Website

What you should do and know if you are an artist and you have decided to have a website.

1) Look at "Web Sites That Suck."

If you are an artist and have never had a website, the concept of a website can seem unnerving. The first thing to do is look at a web site called "Websites that Suck", www. websitesthatsuck.com by Vincent Flanders. This is a website that is so funny, and so enlightening and it is very hard to stop looking at it. You will also learn a great deal as an artist about the Web and feel much more at ease after that experience.

2) Get a domain name.

A domain name is "www. name.com" of your web site. Artists need to have their own name as part of their domain name, "www. yourname.com" or "www. yourname artist.com". It is not a good idea to have the gallery that may represents you as part of your domain name. Web visitors are looking for the artist, the artists art work, not the gallery. But, by having the website in your name, you also help the gallery, because you can promote the gallery on your website.

3) Find a person to design the website.

People like to design for artists; this is one of the "perks" of being an artist. There are a lot of great people involved with the Web who do not have huge overheads who can design a very good website for you. The cost can be for as little as $500 or less.

4) Find a Hosting Company.

There are many places that will host your website for $100 or less a year. Your web designer should be able to help you with this.

5) Web browsers come in different sizes.

Web browsers come in all different shapes and sizes, from very small to very large. It will be impossible to make your wesite look perfect for every size web browser. This means that you as an artist will need to make some compromises. This is a good thing to know while you are thinking about your website design.

There are websites that let you look and see how your website looks in different sizes and on different web browsers for free. After your web design is completed, lookup "web browser size test tool" on a search engine to find one.

6) Copyright information.

It is impossible to completely protect your images on the Web. People simple do not pay attention to copyright information. Your best protection is to keep the images small, so if a visitor enlarges the image, it will look blurry. Also put "your name © the year" under the image of your art work. All the fancy things that are suggested for protection do not work. You can put copyright information all over your art work, I've seen it done, but it defeats the purpose of your website and web visitors will not return.

© Mary Baker 2005

Mary Baker is a contemporary realist painter, whose studio is in Newburyport, Massachusetts. This New England city, north of Boston, has been the inspiration for the artist's realistic oil paintings. Mary Baker is a professional artist and has shown in New York art galleries.

You can visit Mary at her website, Mary Baker Art, at http://www.marybakerart.com, see her beautiful paintings and read her articles on a variety of subjects including, Art, Artists and Money, Tips on Breaking the Creative Block , Art,Women and Creativity and the four part series on Art, Artists and the Web.

A list of articles can be found on her Site Map and Mary's paintings can be seen on every page of Mary Baker Art.

---

Do You And Your Website Have Credibility?

I recently received an unsolicited e-mail from some company offering... Read More

Making the Most of Your Website: Start with the Basics

One of my most salient memories from when I sold... Read More

If Its Done Its Done for: Make Your Website Part of Your Business before You Build

Web sites are an Ongoing Part of Business.All too many... Read More

Building a Great Intranet Taxonomy

While it may seem like a "quick and easy" task,... Read More

Your Biggest Mistake When You Create a Website?

--------------------------------Why Should You Create a website?--------------------------------A. What do you want... Read More

Making Your Website Shine! Attract and Keep Visitors at Your Site!

When you consider the billions of individuals and companies on... Read More

So You Want To Have A Website

So you want to have a website. You have gone... Read More

Now You Have a Web Site - Have You Ever Heard of Accessibility?

An accessible Web site is easily approached, easily understood, and... Read More

4 Rock Solid Reasons For Building Your Own Website

What is the point of having a website, you may... Read More

Free Isnt Always Good - 5 Reasons Why You Need Your Own Website

Often time I've browsed sites and seen the same thing... Read More

Your Content for Nothing and Your Clicks for Free

The first thing my business consultant (read brother-in-law) asked me,... Read More

What is The Google Toolbar?

No matter what browser you may want to use, you... Read More

Creating a Sticky Web Site

When used to describe a web site, the term "sticky"... Read More

Email Addresses in Web Pages

You want to give your site's visitors a way to... Read More

12 Essential Tips to a Professional Business Website

1. Choose a big enough font size. A size 12... Read More

Content Management

More and more businesses are recognizing the importance of content... Read More

Earning From Your Website

Before you start building your site, ask yourself "WHY?". Why... Read More

HTML Editors - How to Choose the Right One for Building Your Websites

There are lots of HTML editors on the market, however,... Read More

Find the Purpose of Your New / Proposed Website

Absolutely everything stems from the purpose of your website -... Read More

The Web: Your Window of Opportunity

Thinking about starting up a business? The web is the... Read More

Web Measurement: What You Don?t Know Would Make A Great Book

"What's in it for me?" you ask. "Why should I... Read More

Creating Compelling Content , Write It and They Will Come

In a previous ezinearticles.com article,"I Need real visitors, Not Search... Read More

10 Things You Should Be Monitoring On Your Website

Every business needs to know how it is doing. That's... Read More

Increase Hits to Help Increase Your Business

In this day and age most businesses consider having their... Read More

Having a Portfolio on the Internet Can Help you Infiltate the Workforce

If you're an up and coming graphic/web designer just out... Read More

Trinkets, Lockets And Empty Pockets

It never ceases to amaze me how many people set-up... Read More

Benefits Of An Accessible Website: Part 1 - Increase In Reach

The DDA (Disability Discrimination Act) states that service providers must... Read More

What Your Customers Say About YOUR Site! Part 1

The following is a list of patterns that many visitors... Read More

How To Get Your Customers To Trust Your Website

Research reveals three important facts:1) The Internet is one of... Read More

7 Reasons YOU Need a Website

1) A marketing necessityI still hear it said from time... Read More

Make Your Web Site User-Friendly!

Making a web site is easy. Making a good web... Read More

Web Design for the Professional Magician Part I - Selecting the Perfect Domain Name

Selecting the Perfect Domain NameThe first issue I have with... Read More

Profitable Websites for Exclusive Industries

In the region where my company is located, South Bend,... Read More