by Carolyn Edlund
There are lots of expenses involved in running an art business. Fortunately, there are free tools that can help artists manage everyday tasks, market their work and save money.
Whether you’re preparing artwork photographs, keeping track of inventory, creating marketing materials or estimating shipping costs, the right software can make your work easier. But subscription fees can add up. Finding dependable free alternatives isn’t always easy.
We’ve created the Free Artist’s Toolkit, a new Artsy Shark directory that features more than 40 free tools and resources. Each was selected with working artists in mind.
Free resources for your art business
The directory is organized into categories, which makes it easy to find tools for specific tasks. Here are a few examples of what’s included:
Artwork presentation and mockups: Show collectors how your paintings look at scale in a furnished room. Our free tool suggestion, Framed, places images of artwork into room settings. Then you can download the results without a watermark, and use as you wish.
Photo editing: Photopea is a free browser-based image editor. It helps you crop, resize and prepare artwork photographs for websites, online listings and exhibition applications. They also offer other options ranging from simple image compressors to more advanced editing programs.
Inventory management: Keeping track of artwork can become complicated, as your business and inventory grow. We recommend using Valise, which offers a free plan for cataloging up to 50 artworks. Google Sheets is another flexible alternative.
Shipping: Need to estimate shipping costs? This can be a real challenge, especially if the artwork is large or fragile. Pirate Ship and the USPS and UPS calculators make comparisons easy. They will estimate your expenses so that you can quote an accurate shipping price to a buyer.
Marketing: Buffer offers a free plan for scheduling social media posts. Email marketing platforms such as Brevo and MailerLite provide free options for staying in touch with collectors.
Exhibition opportunities: Resources such as FestivalNet and ZAPP help artists to research art fairs, exhibitions and application opportunities.
The toolkit also includes Artsy Shark’s own free resources, including our Painting Price Worksheet, Gallery Agreement Checklist and Directory of 250+ Places to Sell Art Online.
Video: Free tools every artist should know about
Want to see some of these tools in action? In our latest Artsy Shark YouTube video, Hallie walks through several resources from the directory and demonstrates how they can help with common art business tasks. You’ll learn how to create professional-looking artwork mockups, prepare images for online use, organize inventory, compare shipping costs and schedule marketing activities.
The video offers a practical introduction to tools you may not have known were available, with suggestions for putting them to work in your own business.
Watch Free Tools Every Artist Should Know About on YouTube
Free tools may have limitations
Some resources in the directory are completely free. Others offer ongoing free plans with certain restrictions. For example, a free inventory program may limit the number of artworks you can catalog. A marketing platform may restrict how many messages you can schedule or send. Shipping calculators are free to use, but postage and packing materials still cost money. We’ve included information about these limitations in the directory so you can decide which options meet your needs.
Keep This Resource Handy
You might be in need of an image editing program today, a shipping calculator next month or a better way to prepare an exhibition portfolio later in the year. Our Free Artist’s Toolkit brings these resources together so you don’t have to start searching from scratch.
Explore the Free Artist’s Toolkit and bookmark the page for future reference. We’ll continue looking for useful free resources to add to the collection.
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