AREA ARTISTS!
Join Us
Thank you for your interest in the Fifth Avenue Art Gallery. This information is for professional artists who may be interested in becoming active members of the gallery. Membership is open to professional artists and fine crafts persons living and working in Melbourne and surrounding areas. Our gallery is artist owned and operated and prides itself on being the premiere gallery in Central Florida, founded in 1975. As gallery membership grew the original location on Fifth Avenue in Indialantic was replaced by a larger space on Highland Avenue in Melbourne where the gallery currently resides. The gallery continues to evolve as new artists join and bring their unique creativity to the space.
How the gallery works
For those of you who may not be familiar with just what exactly a member gallery is, here’s a brief run down: Every member artist is involved in the day to day operation of the gallery from press, marketing, hanging, to painting, replacing bulbs, gardening, dusting, cleaning – you name it we do it all. What makes this gallery look so attractive is the hard work, creativity, and elbow grease of every member. Active participation by all members is essential to the success of our gallery. Members are also responsible for working in the gallery a couple of days a month. They handle inquiries, sales transactions, and basic daily tasks.
Eligibility
Fine artists or craftspersons residing in Melbourne, Florida and surrounding areas are eligible to apply for membership. We showcase the work of local artists who want to take an active role in the Eau Gallie Arts District. Your work must be original, recent, hand made, and different from other work that we are currently showing. The best way to know if your work will be a good fit and a fresh addition to the gallery is to stop in and visit in person. You can chat with one of our member artists to get a feel for what we’re looking for.
Membership
Prospective members must return a completed application (SEE BELOW) along with 6 to 10 original examples of their work, a resume/ bio, artist’s statement, price list, two references and printed portfolio for consideration on the Thursday PRIOR to the fourth Tuesday of the month. When gallery members meet on the following Tuesday, your work will be juried for quality, professionalism, and the needs of the gallery. You will be notified promptly as to our decision.
What we ask of our members
The gallery is a wonderful way to showcase and sell your work, but members must never forget that they are the ones expected to keep the business running. All members are required to attend monthly general meetings to keep up to date on gallery business. In addition, members must participate in one or more gallery responsibilities, which may require up to four hours or more of their time each month in addition to their days working at the gallery. Think about where your talents lie and what you’d like to do for the gallery.
skills
- Maintaining our mailing list (snail mail and email)
- Marketing & Design
- Printing
- Painting, Maintenance and upkeep
- Merchandising
- Web design/maintenance
- Schedule upkeep
- Public Relations
Beyond gallery activities we ask that you keep your designated space filled to gallery standards and that the work displayed is fresh and up to date. Varying the work on display at least quarterly helps keep the gallery interesting and invites visitors to come back often to see what’s new.
Additional Support
Each gallery member supports the operations of the business through a monthly financial contribution and an initial membership fee.