Hi Suzanne, I can feel your pain. I think you are trying, but maybe not in the right way. It makes sense you just can’t start grilling people about their lives. That sort of information comes from conversation. Good communication originates from a genuine interest in the other party. Having some pat open-ended questions helps, “I love to know where my art is going to be on display. Can you tell me what are your plans for this piece?” “I’m always curious to know something about my buyers. Do you own other pieces of original art?” “Would you like some suggestions for hanging this piece of art?” “Great, tell me more about what you are doing with it. Is it going to your home or a business?” Learn to share something about the piece you are selling. “You know, when I was working on this piece, this happened, or I had this thought, or I made this one tiny change because an important thought came to me while I was creating.” Anything you can impart that personalizes the work, the more likely someone will respond back with more questions. These scenarios all lead to you casually asking questions about your client’s life. FOAR stands for family, occupation, associations and recreation. You can get nearly anyone to talk with you by sticking to those subjects.