I’ve recently been looking into some software that will allow me to keep a database of my art — to allow me to track the works while they’re out on exhibition, on loan, or after I sell them. Once you actually start looking, you can find a few good candidates, some of which even have point-of-sale features. One of the apps I’m looking at is called “Art Affair”. Despite the unfortunate name, unfortunate splash screen, and unfortunate colour scheme, it’s a very handy database, and allows you to list your art, complete with images, and cost/resource tracking for each work. It also allows you to keep a contact database, and you can print up invoices for sales to individuals in said contact database. The interface is a little dated, and the underlying database structure is flat text files, but it does have some good robustness, and it backs up your data every session. It also allows you to export your data, should you decide to go with some more enterprise-level stuff.
I realize I could simply write my own database software, or somehow adapt Movable Type into an art database, but for $139 US, it’s a pretty good deal.
You can find more about these guys at http://www.artaffairsoftware.com
creative solutions