Mission
CAI aims to empower artists by sharing the unwritten rules of the world, crucial career tools, documents, and strategies for success in the highest realms of the art world. As a hybrid platform and contemporary art gallery, CAI aims to empower artists by providing adequate and industry-approved advice to increase your chances for long-term success in the highest realms of the art world.
CAI responds to the high demand for accessible online information and advice for artists and the problematic lack of practical information for artists when it comes to trustworthy and authoritative sources on the World Wide Web and social media. Today, we encounter numerous blogs, channels, and pages offering advice for artists. However, these sources often have little to no in-field experience and authority in art, resulting in conflicting or even harmful advice for artists.
The high-end art world can be challenging to navigate—or even more, to enter—when being an outsider. As a result, CAI has identified this issue and aims to bridge this gap, empowering artists by researching, documenting, advising, and sharing the unwritten rules, expected behavior, and inside information of the art world to make this information available and accessible to everyone.
As a result, our kaleidoscopic approach bundles proven strategies, real-life experiences, and industry-accepted information from the perspective of the artist, the gallery, the collector, or the curator—working closely with various actors active in the field. As a result, it is not our aim to discuss the obvious ingredients for success for artists—such as patience, willpower, sacrifice, dedication, or discipline—but to identify and raise awareness when it comes to the unwritten rules of the art world. Specific actions that actually make a difference—if not, thé difference—to start a professional career as an artist.
CAI Advice for Artists is hosted by Julien Delagrange, a Belgian contemporary artist, art historian, and the founder and director of the CAI platform. Delagrange studied Science of Arts at the Ghent University, graduating my master’s degree magna cum laude, worked for various art world institutions, including the Centre for Fine Arts (BOZAR) in Brussels, the Jan Vercruysse Foundation (artist estate) in Brussels, the Ghent University Library as a senior in the Special Collections, and as a freelancer, contributed to various exhibition catalogs, magazines, galleries, and educational programs as an art critic and guest lecturer.
As an artist, before his 30th birthday, Delagrange was represented by various art galleries, with solo exhibitions at renowned galleries across the globe. In 2021, the host founded Contemporary Art Issue (CAI), the artistic denominator for the art world ventures beyond personal artistic practice. The platform consists of an online magazine, contributing to the online canonization of contemporary art, rethinking the art platform, and surpassing the online reach of numerous established art platforms in just a few years.
Most recently, thanks to the CAI YouTube channel, it has become the mission of CAI to empower artists by providing adequate and industry-approved advice for artists. Thanks to CAI audience, it became clear that there is a problematic lack of—and incredibly great need for—accessible online information and career advice that actually works in the art world. Due to in-field working experience and the network of CAI, consisting of numerous successful artists and galleries, but also operating as an art gallery and climbing the ladder of success as an artist personally, Julien Delagrange learned the unwritten rules of the art world. Rules, strategies, and information that are crucial to succeed but are nowhere being taught. Even more, there are so many false sources online, people without any in-field experience or success, guiding artists in the wrong direction and providing advice that is most harmful to an artist’s career.
Therefore, it has become a personal avocation and moral duty to provide trustworthy, adequate, and proven career advice, sharing everything you need to know to become a successful artist, but nobody is telling you.
