Benefits of an Artist Collective

Every December, Gulfport hosts a holiday arts event that has become a highlight of the region's vibrant creative calendar - the ArtJones Open Studio Tour. ArtJones celebrates its 9th anniversary on December 6th and 7th as a leading artist collective in the area. The event will take place at various artist galleries and studios throughout Gulfport, including Brenda McMahon Gallery. This year's tour features 23 artists across nine different locations.

Visitors from across the Southeast come to view and shop for works created by ArtJones artists. Our local community eagerly marks their calendars and turns out in large numbers to support the artists, shop, and socialize.

The decision to join an artist collective can bring several benefits to emerging and established artists, including:

• Increased visibility for your art: Artist collectives like ArtJones allocate most of their budget to an annual showcase for member artists. These showcases feature a variety of mediums and artists, attracting significantly larger audiences compared to individual exhibitions.
• Shared resources: Financial challenges like venue rentals and installation expenses are shared by a collective. By combining resources, artists secure more favorable venues and enhance their marketing efforts, which might be unaffordable to individual artists.
• Collaborating with more established artists: Association and collaboration with more experience artists boosts an artist's credibility and visibility in the art world.
• Pooled marketing and administrative efforts: An art collective offers significant marketing advantages by pooling resources to enhance overall visibility and reach. By sharing a unified social media platform, all members of the collective benefit from increased exposure. This leads to increased sales opportunities. Additionally, collectives enable coordinated marketing campaigns that strengthen each artist's presence among a wider audience of potential clients.

Each year, with the support of generous sponsors, ArtJones awards scholarships to emerging artists and those experiencing financial hardship. An often-overlooked benefit of art collectives like ours is the valuable experience that early-career artists gain from our events. These gatherings allow artists to assess interest in their new or experimental pieces and receive important feedback from art collectors. Additionally, collaborating with more experienced artists provides younger or emerging artists with insights from those who have established their careers in the field for much longer.

Make plans to join us!

We invite you to join us on the first weekend of December for the 9th Annual ArtJones Open Studio Tour. This event showcases a remarkable collection of talented artists.  Brenda McMahon Gallery will be the first of nine stops on the tour. To download a map and learn more about our artists, please visit artjonesstudiotour.com. You can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram for updates. We'll see you soon!