Exhibition catalogs serve as professional documentation of your show and provide visitors with a keepsake they can take home. Crafted Call's catalog generation feature automatically creates beautifully formatted catalogs from your exhibition data, saving hours of manual layout work and ensuring consistency across all artworks.
What Is an Exhibition Catalog?
An exhibition catalog is a printed or digital document that documents all artworks in your exhibition. It typically includes:
Exhibition title, dates, and location
Artwork images and titles
Artist names and biographical information
Artwork descriptions and specifications
Prices and contact information for inquiries
Exhibition narrative or curatorial statement
Index and acknowledgments
Catalogs serve multiple purposes: they're marketing materials that elevate your exhibition's perceived professionalism, reference documents for collectors and critics, and keepsakes that extend visitor engagement long after the exhibition closes.
Auto-Generating Catalogs from Your Exhibition
Crafted Call streamlines catalog creation by automatically pulling data from your exhibition:
Tip: Before generating your catalog, ensure all artwork records are complete and accurate. Missing descriptions or artist information will be noticeably absent from the final catalog.
Catalog Format and Layout Options
Crafted Call offers several catalog layout templates to match your brand and exhibition style:
Standard format: One artwork per page with full-page image, title, artist, dimensions, price, and description. Professional and gallery-standard.
Compact format: Multiple artworks per page (2-4 depending on orientation) with thumbnail images, titles, and key details. Ideal for larger exhibitions.
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Grid format: All artwork images arranged in a visual grid with minimal text, allowing images to speak for themselves. Modern and visually striking.
Detailed format: Extended space for artist statements, artwork provenance, and curatorial notes alongside images. Best for academic or critically rigorous exhibitions.
Luxury format: Large-format layout with premium spacing, high-quality typography, and room for institutional branding. For high-end gallery exhibitions.
Choose the format that best matches your exhibition's tone and your organization's brand guidelines.
Artwork Details Included in Catalogs
Each artwork entry automatically includes:
Essential information:
Artwork title and year created
Artist name and (optionally) artist statement
Medium and dimensions (height × width × depth, as applicable)
Price and sales status
Optional details:
Artwork description or exhibition narrative context
You can customize which details appear for each artwork, allowing flexibility if some pieces have minimal information while others are extensively documented.
Customizing Catalog Content
Before finalizing your catalog, you can:
Add exhibition-level content: Include a curator's statement, exhibition narrative, or acknowledgments page at the beginning.
Reorder artworks: Arrange works by wall layout, artist, theme, or acquisition order rather than the default system order.
Include or exclude pieces: Deselect artworks you don't want printed (e.g., works that didn't arrive in time, pieces with artist restrictions).
Add promotional content: Include your organization's mission statement, upcoming exhibition previews, or membership information.
Adjust formatting: Modify fonts, colors, and spacing to match your institution's visual identity.
Add images: Insert your logo, exhibition poster, or institutional photographs.
Best practice: Create a master template once, then reuse it for all future exhibitions to establish a consistent, professional house style.
Print-Ready Output
Catalogs are generated in high-resolution PDF format optimized for professional printing:
Color mode: RGB for digital display, CMYK for commercial printing (specify your preference)
Resolution: 300 DPI for print quality, 72 DPI for digital-only viewing
Bleed and margins: Professional print specifications with crop marks if sending to a printing vendor
File size: Optimized for email sharing while maintaining print quality
If printing commercially, provide the PDF to your print vendor with these specifications:
Paper stock recommendations (80 lb. cover, 100 lb. text, etc.)
Quantity needed
Using Your Generated Catalog
Once created, your catalog becomes a versatile asset:
Print copies: Distribute at your exhibition opening and display on front-desk tables.
Digital distribution: Email the PDF to your mailing list, upload to your website, and share with media contacts.
Archival documentation: Store as permanent record of the exhibition in your institution's archives.
Artist portfolios: Provide PDF pages showing their work to featured artists for their own promotion.
Media materials: Include in press kits sent to journalists and reviewers.
Online gallery: Embed the PDF on your website or Crafted Call virtual exhibition.
Social media: Create teaser images from catalog pages for Instagram and Facebook promotion.
Timing Catalog Generation
During planning: Generate a draft catalog to verify all information is complete before opening.
Pre-opening: Create final version 1-2 weeks before opening so printed copies are ready for day one.
Post-opening: Generate final version after exhibition closes with any sold status updates for archival.
Anniversary: Regenerate your catalog annually or when significant artworks sell, maintaining accurate pricing.
Troubleshooting Catalog Issues
Missing images: Verify all artworks have high-resolution images uploaded. Low-resolution images won't meet print standards.
Incomplete descriptions: Review artworks with missing titles, artist names, or dimensions. Update records before regenerating.
Formatting issues: If layout looks wrong, try a different catalog template. Test PDF on your computer before printing.
File size too large: For digital-only catalogs, choose lower resolution (150 DPI) to reduce file size.
By generating professional catalogs directly from your exhibition data in Crafted Call, you create polished documentation that enhances your exhibition's professional presentation and provides lasting value to visitors and collectors.
