A room or series of rooms for the display of artwork as public or commercial exhibitions. The gallery system we know so well has been around for not much more than 100 years. At the time of Raphael the only way to see his work was to visit one of the palaces where his work was made or visit his studio. Gradually rich collectors would buy and sell artwork, but you still needed to be on their guest list. In middle class Holland some artists like Rembrandt became dealers. Vermeer is thought to have had a room for sales at the front of his studio. It was in the 19th century that private galleries really took on their modern form. The modern artist should be aware of what is selling by visiting galleries and should promote future exhibitions and sales by networking with galleries and making certain that the galleries are aware of your latest work. Often a good starting point is to hire a gallery space for the first exhibition or two, maybe even share gallery expenses with one or two other artists.