Publish your first artwork

Once your site is live, the next step is to publish your first artwork. The path is the same for a unique painting, a photographic print, a giclée edition, or a bronze sculpture: only a few choices change along the way. This article walks through the form step by step.

Start a new listing

Go to Dashboard → My works and click + Add an artwork. You land on the listing form.

At the top of the page, two action buttons are always available:

• Save as draft — the listing is saved but stays publicly invisible. You can return to it any time from the list of your artworks.
• Publish on Artworks page or Publish on Editions page or Publish showcase — the label changes based on your choices in the form (see below).

Step 1 — What would you like to publish?

Two exclusive choices:

• An artwork — the listing is published on your Works page. Recommended for an original creation (painting, drawing, sculpture, signed and numbered photographic print, hand-pulled engraving…).
• An edition — the listing is published on your Editions page. Recommended for a reproduction of an existing work (poster, giclée print of a painting, art print…).

This distinction has no automatic effect on tax, but it shapes the rest of the form and the final publish button label. See Works and editions: how Khroma draws the line for the vocabulary.

Step 2 — This artwork exists in…

The stock mode changes based on the previous step.

If you chose An artwork:

• Unique piece — only one copy exists.
• Multiple copies, one format — for instance a print run of 8 photos in 40 × 60 cm, or a bronze pulled in 8 + 4 APs.
• Multiple formats or sizes — each format has its own dimensions, price, and copy count.

If you chose An edition:

• One format — the reproduction is offered in a single size.
• Multiple formats — the reproduction is offered in several sizes.

This choice drives whether the Print run or Available formats sections appear further down.

Step 3 — Sell online

A Sell online toggle determines whether the listing is for sale or not:

• On — Visitors will be able to buy directly. The Price section becomes required.
• Off — Showcase page — visitors will be able to contact you. The artwork appears in your catalogue but without a buy button.

You can flip this toggle any time, even after publication.

Step 4 — Photos

Drag up to 5 photos into the upload area. The first one is the primary image shown in your gallery. Favour sharp, well-lit images that are faithful to the work. Avoid photos taken from an angle (unless the work is three-dimensional and you want to show its depth).

Khroma resizes and optimises your images automatically for the web. Originals are kept at full resolution server-side; visitors receive a version optimised for their screen.

Step 5 — Description and details

The form provides a rich-text editor for the description and several structured fields:

• Title — leave empty if you want the AI to suggest one, or enter your own.
• Description — your intent, your technique, the context of the work. This is what buyers will read first.
• Category — painting, sculpture, photography, drawing, digital art, printmaking, ceramics, mixed media, illustration. For an edition, you choose the category of the original work.
• Technique — oil on canvas, acrylic, watercolour, pastel, charcoal, giclée print, silver gelatin, silkscreen, lithograph, bronze, marble, wood, other.
• Dimensions — width, height, depth (cm). Depth is optional for a 2D work.

A Technical details box lets you add the support (canvas on stretcher, cotton paper, wood…), finish (gloss varnish, matte, framed…), signature (signed bottom-right, signed and numbered…), year of creation, and a Ready to hang toggle.

Step 6 — Print run or Available formats

This section depends on the stock mode from step 2.

Mode Unique piece

No Print run section: the listing matches a single copy. The price is set directly in the Tax section.

Mode Multiple copies, one format

A Print run section appears, with:

• Number of copies — enter the total.
• Unit price (€) — applied to each copy.
• Sale price (€) (optional) — a discounted price. Leave empty if no promotion.
• Promotion starts and Promotion ends (optional) — application dates. Without dates, the promotion is active immediately and unlimited.
• Numbered and signed print run (toggle) — each copy is numbered and signed by you.
• Artist proofs (AP) (if numbered) — copies outside the main numbering, traditionally reserved for the artist.

Mode Multiple formats or sizes

An Available formats section appears with:

• Edition mode — Global edition (all sizes combined): a single total covers all formats. Edition per size: each format has its own run.
• Total number of copies (in global mode) — every sale, regardless of size, decrements this total.
• Numbered and signed print run (toggle) — each copy will be numbered.
• Variants — you add row by row: format label, price (€), sale price, width, height, depth, weight, Limited edition (per-variant count in per size mode, leave empty for unlimited).

An Apply a template selector reuses a variant grid you have already created. See your templates from Dashboard → My works → Templates.

Step 7 — VAT class and tax

If you've enabled Sell online and you're VAT-registered, the Tax section displays a Tax class selector. Pick the class to apply to this listing from those you've configured in Dashboard → Shop → Tax.

If you have VAT exemption, this selector does not appear — no VAT is collected.

Khroma may display inline warnings when the combination looks unusual:

• This printing technique is a mechanical process — when you publish on the Works page with a reproduction technique (giclée print, digital print).
• Beyond 30 copies, a photographic print no longer qualifies for the reduced VAT rate — when a photographic total goes above 30.
• You are publishing on the Editions page with a reduced rate. Editions (reproductions) generally fall under the standard VAT rate — when you apply a reduced rate to a listing published as an edition.
• Beyond 8 copies, a sculpture no longer qualifies for the reduced VAT rate. Artist proofs (AP) are accepted in addition by administrative doctrine — for sculptures over 8 copies.

These warnings are informational: they do not block publication. See Configure your VAT classes and Tax thresholds to know.

Step 8 — Shipping profile

Shipping section. Select the profile to apply to this listing. All variants of a same listing inherit the same profile. If you haven't created profiles yet, see Configure your shipping profiles.

Step 9 — SEO (optional)

A SEO accordion exposes three fields:

• SEO title — recommended limit 60 characters. If empty, the listing title is used.
• SEO description — recommended limit 155 characters. This is what Google displays in search results.
• Keywords — for your own notes; has no major effect on modern Google ranking.

Publication

The publish button at the top right reflects your choices:

• Publish on Artworks page — if An artwork + Sell online on.
• Publish on Editions page — if An edition + Sell online on.
• Publish showcase — if Sell online off (showcase page).
• Save as draft — to come back later.

A sidebar (visible on large screens) shows a Before publishing checklist: Photo, Title, Description, Price. As long as an item is missing, it stays unchecked — this is a guide, not a block.

Once published, the listing is immediately visible on your site. The public URL follows khroma.art/{your-name}/artwork/{slug}, where {slug} is auto-generated from the title. You can adjust the slug from the edit screen.

Frequently asked questions

How many photos make a good listing?

Three minimum if the work allows it: an overall view, a detail, a contextual shot (the work in its environment, or at scale next to a hand or a wall). Five photos is the cap. More adds nothing and slows the page.

Are my prices displayed including VAT or excluding VAT?

Including VAT. On Khroma you always enter the final retail price (VAT included). VAT is computed by subtraction from the class you assigned, and shown explicitly on the invoice issued to the buyer.

Can I edit a listing that has already been sold?

The listing is still editable, but copies that have been sold are marked sold and the available stock decrements automatically. If the listing is Unique piece and the only copy is sold, it disappears from the public page.

How do I add a variant after publishing?

Edit the listing, go to Available formats, and click + Add size. The new variant inherits the shipping profile and VAT class of the listing.

Can I duplicate a listing to save time?

There's no direct duplicate button in the current interface. To save time on homogeneous series, use variant templates (Dashboard → My works → Templates) that you can re-apply to multiple successive listings.