Why do artists work in series? Actually, there are many advantages to creating series in art. You do not only get the opportunity to explore the same concept from different perspectives and practice your skill, but you also help your audience get a better understanding of your work. Besides, the point of an art show is also to exhibit a consistent collection of works from an artist. So here’s why you should work in series, too!
When I started out making digital art, I was never too interested in series. I used to think that art series are boring.
The only exception that I created at the time was the Glasshouse series, consisting of three pieces (Glasshouse I and Glasshouse II from 2012, and Glasshouse III from 2013). And then I thought that was it for me with working in series.
Far from it!
There’s a reason why artists work in series, and creating multiple artworks around the same concept actually comes with many advantages.
More than ten years into digital art, I’ve learned to appreciate the benefits of creating art in series. But I still notice that many beginners, like myself at the time, are not aware of the advantages of working in series.
Many beginning artists have quite a random approach to creating art. They make one piece like this, one piece like that, and so on. That’s totally ok, and it probably is the regular route to becoming an artist.
That is certainly a good way to learn to create art. But in the end, you will have a very inconsistent, fragmented body of work. And while all the individual works make perfect sense to the artist, they are hard to understand for the viewer.
Since there is no common thread, it is difficult for people to comprehend what your art and you as the artist are about.
Another worry that artists have about working in series is that it might become repetitive and boring. Some are afraid that they will limit their artistic freedom by creating series and end up in a creative rut.
These are some common misconceptions that I too had at an early stage in my career. But I noticed that art series can actually be the opposite of dull and monotonous. They offer you a great opportunity to explore the same idea or theme in a deeper and more meaningful way – while being able to fully unfold your artistic potential!
What is a series in art?
In essence, a series is a collection of artworks that are immediately relatable to one another. When the viewers look at the artworks, they can easily make out the same line running through all of the works in the series.
This recognizable and coherent line can be anything from color, materials, theme, concept, subject matter, art style, etc.
Generally speaking, a series in art requires some kind of visual or conceptual consistency – or a combination of both. This consistency ties all of the works together, even when theme or concept are expressed differently in each piece.
How many pieces are in an art series?
There is no one-fits-all answer to that question. An art series can include as few as two or three pieces up to dozens of closely connected works.
When it comes to art series, abundance works. Many people can’t fully understand an artist’s work by seeing one or two pieces. They want to see a multitude of works.
That doesn’t mean they want to see the exact same thing over and over again until it gets boring. No. They want to see clearly interconnected artwork that takes them on a journey into what the artist feels and wants to express through their art.
Some artists create all the pieces in an art series in a row, within a relatively short period of time. Other artists add new pieces to a series over the course of several years.
Of course, one and the same artist can also work in series in either way.
For example, my ‘glass helmet’ series consists of three pieces that I created over a couple of years. The first piece was Cat & Mouse that I created in 2014, without knowing that it was going to be a series. Then I made I survive (Fingers crossed) three years later in 2017. The most recent piece, Scared Bunny, followed five years later in 2022.
Even though the pieces don’t represent the same subject matter, you can clearly spot the consistent theme that goes through all three artworks.
Art series examples from my Surreal Stories Collection:
Why do artists work in series?
A series provides the viewer a deeper look into an artist’s world. The viewers get an idea of what moved the artist at the time of creation.
For the artist, a series is not only an opportunity to show off their consistent level of skill, but more importantly to tell a story. Art is visual storytelling.
A series can tell a much more intriguing story than a single piece. The viewer is better able to immerse in the ideas and follow the artist along their creative journey. It’s an exciting experience for the viewer to see where the art takes them.
Both the viewer and the artist can explore the same subject from different sides. Each piece should be a strong enough stand-alone artwork, but in the series they are even more powerful!
With this duology from 2022, I for the first time explored the same concept from different perspectives in Photoshop. I enjoyed experimenting with 3D rendering (of the frame) and representing the same scene from a different angle. However, as I am neither using 3D models nor AI for my work, I had to create face and body all over again (face is always my own).
Telling stories in a series of visual art has even more advantages. Series maintain the viewers’ interest over a longer period of time than single artworks.
People are more likely to buy several of your pieces, because they would like to assemble the entire collection. That means you have the chance to sell more art.
Another reason why artists work in series is that galleries seem to prefer multiple related artworks to exhibit.
Reviewers and critics have more material to write about and can tell more interesting stories about the artist and their theme.
What does it mean when an artist works in series?
When an artist decides to work in series, it means that they can express their inspirations, thoughts, and ideas on a much broader scale.
Series allow the artist to explore the same concept from different angles. The artist is able to gain more knowledge and experience in their particular creative niche. They can explore their preferred style of art, techniques, and tools in greater depth and detail.
More importantly, the artist can convey their thoughts and emotions in a more compelling manner.
Working in series can make it easier for the artist to connect with their audience, because people are better able to understand the meaning behind the art.
What is the point of an art show?
You’ve already been to an art show, for sure. How did the gallery display the works of the artists? Most likely, they exhibited a number of related pieces the artist created.
In fact, galleries like to show a connected selection of works of an artist. Usually, each art show has a motto, or a title. The point of the art show is to exhibit works that have a unified theme and fit that motto.
So why do galleries prefer artists to work in series?
Because gallerists know perfectly well that people don’t buy anything they don’t understand. As we said above, art series help the viewers grasp what the artist is about.
Generally speaking, our brain likes to organize things. That’s why the majority of us prefer to look at a structured body of work, rather than disorganized individual piece that don’t have any relation with each other.
Consistency throughout a body of work also proves that the artist is capable of creating multiple pieces at an equally high level. Gallery owners and critics are constantly on the lookout for artists who distinguish themselves from the rest. If you, as the artist, can convince with a compelling series, collectors and agents understand that you know your craft.
Series are a fantastic selling point for galleries as well, because collectors will want to have multiple pieces from the same series!
How to name an art series?
Naming an art series is just the same as naming an individual artwork. There is no tried-and-true method for naming either of them.
Oftentimes, it’s a good idea to choose a title that helps the audience understand the meaning behind the artwork. The title can be an extension of the visual story you want to tell, so the audience knows how to interpret the piece.
When it comes to naming a series, you can either choose names that reflect the relation between the pieces, or pick titles that are completely unrelated. There is no good or bad way of naming an art series.
If you want the name to show that all of the pieces in a series are connected, you have several options. First of all, you can go for the ‘classical’ naming method using numbers (1, 2, 3 or Roman I, II, III) like I did for my Glasshouse series.
Then, you can select names that have some word or part of a word in common. For example, I called the first piece of a series of mine Space Captain and the second piece Space Junkie.
Examples of using the same part of a word in the title are Dearstand and Dearhunt that I showed you above, or Teatime and Pastime.
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Thank you so much, Tancer. It means a lot to me to hear from my readers (: