COMMERCIAL ART GALLERIES
PURPOSE
To collect economic data about commercial art galleries.
DESCRIPTION
The Commercial Art Galleries collection was conducted by mail-out questionnaire as part of Service Industries Surveys in respect of the financial year 1999-2000. Its scope was all commercial art galleries (including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art centres) operating in Australia during that year. For the purposes of this collection, a commercial art gallery is defined as a business which has as its primary activity the display and sale of artworks. The survey did not include sales of artworks by businesses such as art museums, department stores and market stalls; nor businesses which sourced their main income from craft sales. The ANZSIC class of which commercial art gallery businesses are part is Class 5259 Retailing n.e.c. Because there is no single comprehensive list of Australian commercial art galleries, a list of potential data providers was compiled from various sources. These were Telstra Yellow Pages, the Commercial Art Galleries Association, the Art Almanac and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission Visual Arts and Crafts Resources Directory.
GEOGRAPHIC COVERAGE
Australia
FREQUENCY OF COLLECTION
Irregular
DATA ITEMS
Number of businesses
The number of businesses mainly engaged in operating commercial art galleries as at the end of the reference period.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Status
Indicates whether the business identified its main activity as operating an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art centre.
Artist representation status
Indicates whether the business was representing Australian artists on an on-going basis as at the end of the reference period.
Number of artists represented
The survey classifies the number of Australian artists represented by the businesses on an on-going basis into two categories. The categories are:
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
Other Australian
Number of locations
The number of locations at which commercial art galleries were being operated as at the end of the reference period.
Employment category
The survey classifies employment into a number of categories. These are each in turn classified by sex. The categories are:
Working proprietors and partners
Permanent full-time employees
Permanent part-time employees
Casual employees
Total sales of artworks
The items which make up the total sales of artworks are:
Artworks sold on commission: first sales
Artworks sold on commission: secondary sales
Artworks owned by the business
Income
The items which make up the income of commercial art galleries are:
Commission from the first sale of artworks
Commission from the secondary sale of artworks
Income from the sale of artworks owned by the business
Commission from the sale of craftworks
Income from the sale of craftworks owned by the business
Income from framing (separately invoiced)
Other sales of goods and services
Government funding
Other income
Background of artwork creator
Categorises the backgrounds of artwork creators. The categories are:
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
Other Australian
Overseas
Background of craftwork creator
Indicates whether the background of craftwork creators is Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander.
Government funding
The government funding of commercial art galleries is classified by the level of government:
Federal government
State/Territory government
Local government
Expenses
The items which make up the expenses of commercial art galleries include:
Wages and salaries
Employer contributions to superannuation funds
Workers' compensation costs
Fringe benefits tax
Purchases
Rent, leasing and hiring expenses
Framing costs
Advertising, marketing and promotional expenses
Commissions paid to artists by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art centres
Other expense items
Purchases
The items which make up the purchases of commercial art galleries are:
Artworks for resale
Craftworks for resale
Other goods for resale
Art materials
Other purchases
Inventories of artworks
Refers to the levels of inventories of artworks held (and owned) by commercial art galleries at the beginning of the reference period and at the end of the reference period.
Business size
The size of the business in terms of its number of employees. This can be grouped into ranges such as:
0-2 employees
3-4
5-9
10 and more
Geographic area
Data are available for Australia, while some data are also available for States and Territories.
HISTORICAL DATA
The collection was previously conducted in respect of 1996-97. Care should be taken in comparing data from 1999-2000 with that from the earlier collection because the 1999-2000 collection had a wider coverage, especially with regard to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art centres.
DISSEMINATION
Publications
Australian Bureau of Statistics 2001, Commercial Art Galleries, Australia, 1999-2000, Cat. no. 8651.0, ABS, Canberra. Price $18.00. Also available for 1996-97.
CONTACT
In the first instance, refer to To obtain data or further information in the Introduction to this directory.
Manager
Service Industries Surveys
Australian Bureau of Statistics
Locked Bag 10
BELCONNEN ACT 2616
Telephone: Canberra 02 6252 5633
Facsimile: Canberra 02 6252 7004
Email: client.services@abs.gov.au
Print Page