Primer is an independent art management platform built for galleries, artists, nonprofits, and private collections. Since 2014, we’ve helped art professionals work more efficiently by giving them powerful tools without charging extra for essential features.
Our clients work directly with a small, dedicated team of experienced developers and art world professionals, receiving hands-on training and thoughtful support as part of every subscription. We value expertise, discretion, and long-term relationships over scale.
Why galleries, collections and studios choose Primer
A clearer, more intelligent art inventory
Primer’s inventory records the full life of each artwork — including exhibitions, offers, sales, and client interactions. Seeing who engaged with a work (even if they didn’t purchase) creates valuable context for future offers and placements. Over time, Primer becomes both a daily working tool and a reliable business archive.
Contacts that work like institutional memory
The Contacts section is more than a database. It’s a living record of collector interests, relationships, and patterns. Using Primer’s layouts, searches, and analytics, galleries and artists can anticipate what to show clients next — and build stronger, more thoughtful relationships over time.
Documents built for the way the art world actually works
Create and edit professional PDFs in seconds — no Word or Adobe required. Offers, invoices, consignments, loans, artist payment statements, previews, price lists, and labels are fully customizable with your branding, language, and formatting. These tools were designed by art world professionals who wanted a faster, cleaner way to work across galleries, studios, and art fairs.
Everything included, without limits
All features are available to every user. Unlimited records, documents, and viewing rooms. No contracts or tiered pricing. Support and training are included, with real people available to help — whether the question is technical or practical.
Independently built, intentionally focused
Primer does not spend on expensive marketing campaigns, inflated pricing structures, or investor-driven growth. We invest instead in software improvements, free data imports, and responsive support. Our move to Nashville in 2017 helped us streamline costs and keep pricing fair. Your software should earn its place in your business every month.
Why we don’t offer websites
Website platforms like Squarespace and Wix already offer sophisticated, affordable solutions that outpace anything built specifically for the art world. Rather than duplicating those tools poorly, Primer is designed to integrate with them — so each platform does what it does best.
Primer was founded in 2012 and supports clients based in North America and Australia. Existing Primer clients with technical needs, please email support@primerarchives.com. Regular business hours for scheduled assistance are 10 am - 7 pm (ET), Tuesday-Saturday, and 9 am - 2 pm (AET) for Australian clients. Whenever possible, urgent technical requests are responded to immediately, including after hours.
Other questions or to purchase:
info@primerarchives.com
Support for existing clients:
support@primerarchives.com
"Primer" database and "Primer" web services are registered trademarks of Primer Archives LLC.