We get a lot of questions on this topic, so we wanted to take a minute to share what goes into our curation process. As a quick foreword, much of Society6 is influenced by complex algorithms. So, the below info relates to areas where we’re able to hand-select a mix of new, popular and previously undiscovered art.
For anyone who has curated anything, from an art show to Christmas gifts, we know that a lot of thought goes into those decisions. With so much artwork and range in skill and style on Society6, it’s a challenging task to surface as much art as possible while honoring the development of our business. It’s not a task we take lightly either. That said, here are our top considerations for curation:
1: ORIGINAL ARTWORK
One of the main tenets guiding curation is whether or not artwork is original. We want to share the products of your labor, your resources, your sweat and most importantly, your creativity.
2. TECHNICAL APTITUDE
Using our best judgement and access to your high resolution files, we look at technical ability while needing to trust a design would print well for the customer’s sake.
3. COMMERCIAL VIABILITY
This is artwork that we expect to have, or already has, notable appeal to a broad audience. This does not apply to every project, but is a consideration depending on what we’re curating for.
Artwork outside of what we’ve curated does not mean it’s not a) “commercially viable” or b) any less good or less meaningful in its creative process.
4. YOUR ACTIVITY AS AN ARTIST (ON & OFF SOCIETY6)
Are you creating consistently? We pay attention to Artists who take their creative work as seriously as we take the responsibility of sharing their work with the world. Naturally, we like to support and elevate Society6 Artists who are actively developing a business around their art on the same tenets of curation in this article.
5. ON TREND
Yes, ‘on trend’ feels like a buzz term, but this is determined by a combination of customer purchase patterns and Artist uploads. These are subjects that our marketplace is responding to at the moment. It can be as broad as a popular color or a specific design trend of the week.
To help you with this, make sure you check out our Monthly Creative Brief at the beginning of every month. This gives you an early heads up on what we’re looking for. Basically, we do our best to keep an eye on the pulse and share it so you can get in on the action early.
6. VISUALLY ARRESTING
That’s right. If an image stops us in our tracks, we want to see more. Blow our minds. It’s not uncommon for new, kickass original work to be curated into something and/or start getting solid attention.
So, there you go. Those are the things important to us in the curation process. Each of the items above is on this intangible sliding scale that we are constantly doing our best to make decisions with. It’s not easy and there is no silver bullet to being featured. But please understand, we don’t take the challenge of surfacing new artwork lightly.
Overall, just focus on creating the best work you can. You know yourself. You know your work. Challenge yourself to grow in the direction you want when you’re ready. We trust you’ll be grateful for charting your own path.
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