Do you only sign a contract after seeing their spaces in person, or is that asking too much?
Got burned once early on. Gallery had good photos online, good reputation on paper. Signed, shipped work, then visited in person for the opening and half the space was a storage room they rented out. My pieces were hung in a hallway. Never made that mistake again.
Now I won't sign anything without seeing the actual walls. Lost two promising deals over it and I don't care. If they won't let you look at where your work is going to live, that tells you something.
Am I being too rigid here or do you all do the same?
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Not too rigid at all, honestly I think you're smart for it. I don't work with galleries much (mostly local fairs and the odd commission), but the one time I did, everything felt fine on paper and in the photos too. Then I showed up to drop work off and the "gallery" was basically a gift shop with a few walls of art crammed in the back. Nothing wrong with gift shops, but it wasn't what they'd presented themselves as.
I think seeing the space in person tells you more about how they treat artists than any contract will. If they're put off by a visit, what else are they glossing over? Losing a couple of deals over it beats getting burned again. I'd rather have my paintings sitting in my studio than hung in someone's hallway.
That gift shop thing tracks. It's always the ones who oversell on paper who get salty when you actually want to look. A straightforward space doesn't mind a visit.
The local fair circuit is no small thing either. Different problems but at least you see exactly what you're getting into every time you set up. No surprises on the day of.
And yeah, losing a couple of deals over it stung at the time. But I figure if a gallery can't handle one honest question before they get my work, that's the answer right there. Saves everyone the trouble later.