A Site for Emerging Artists
Posts tagged confidence
Thinking Big and Taking Action/Interview with Lesley Riley
Jan 22nd
What’s the secret to an artist’s success? The right mindset and a lot of hard work. Let’s get started . . .
Lesley Riley is an internationally known artist, teacher and author with a passion for spreading the magic of art. While she likes to make things, she now devotes her time to making things happen for other artists through her company, Artist Success. Lesley provides resources, creativity management, coaching and mentoring to artists, enabling them to achieve their vision of success.
AS: Lesley, you oftentimes work with client on their mindset and thinking about the bigger picture of what they can achieve. What does that mean?
LR: Any artist can have the kind of success they dream of, but so many believe that it is an impossibility or out of their reach. That’s called thinking small and is a result of self-limiting beliefs. What holds many artists back is acting small. Taking the actions that propel you towards your dreams are often difficult and scary and the process seems overwhelming. There are so many things that hold your back – confidence, courage, know-how, commitment and self-worth. I help artists see what’s possible and then we work to break it down into doable steps.
AS: What do you find that artists struggle with most in stretching themselves to grow their businesses?
LR: Discipline. If you don’t treat making your art as a job, then it becomes your hobby. You cannot expect to make a living or grow your business with a hobby mindset.
Having a successful career as an artist is no different than working 9-5 at McDonalds or a desk job. You show up and work in order to keep your job so you will get paid. Being disciplined sounds counter-intuitive to creativity, imagination and artistic endeavors, but it really is the key to creating the success you desire. Show up in the studio on a regular and consistent basis.
To make success happen, you need a plan, a marketing plan. And then you need to take consistent action on that plan. Lack of time is not an excuse. Small blocks of time add up to success. I know. I built my art career with 5 children at home and an almost full-time job.
AS: Galleries are closing and the market is getting tougher out there. What recommendations do you have for artists who want to increase their income?
LR: My recommendations:
- Sell smaller works on Etsy
- Teach an online class or one 1-day workshops
- Barter for services
- Create affordable table art: paint or mount work on 5 x 5 or 8 x 8 gallery wrap canvases
- Sell a small ‘artwork of the month’ subscription series of your work
- Add a Pinterest link to the art on your site so others can publicize it for you
- Figure out your unique factor and build your brand around it. Then market it.
AS: Please tell us about your speaking engagements and your workshops.
LR: I speak to groups and teach 1 and 3-day workshops based on my Artist Success Action Plan (ASAP). If you haven’t realized it by now, taking action is the key to success. Just as I do with my private coaching clients, I break down the necessary steps into accessible and doable actions, add in the mindset and guide artists towards achieving their personal vision of success.
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Tumblr10 Resolutions for Artists to Make this the Best Year Ever
Jan 18th
By Carolyn Edlund
Start 2012 with renewed energy and a resolve to make this your most successful year ever.
- Face the truth. Be kind to yourself, but honest. Are you satisfied with this past year? Were there things that went undone? You can’t change the past, but you can acknowledge where you are now, so that you can move forward and . . .
- Make a bodacious plan. Then, become accountable for it. That means you have to get really clear. Create a vivid mental picture of your big goal for the coming year. How does it look, feel, and sound to achieve it? This type of clarity and planning will help you . . .
- Step into action. Big goals might seem unmanageable. Break them down into smaller goals, on a quarterly, monthly or even weekly basis. Work backwards from your desired result and resolve to take action today. What can you do now to start the momentum? Today is the first day of the rest of your art career. And remember . . .
- Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. Have you screwed things up? Yes, you have. No matter your level of education, chances are you took a few credits at the School of Hard Knocks. You remember well the lessons learned then, because you had the guts to take risks and try something new. You don’t have to be perfect. You just have to . . .
- Be true to yourself. If you want to sell your work, you have to understand your customer, and their interests. But you don’t have to try to become what you think they want you to be. Your inspiration comes from the heart and your creative mind. When you express yourself authentically, you will be fulfilled and happier with your work. One crucial part of that happiness is to resolve to . . .
- Give up the negative self-talk. You have the power to improve the quality of your art, become a better businessperson, and achieve success. The biggest thing holding you back besides fear is a negative belief system. Shed any tendency you may have to put yourself down or give up. Actively cultivate a positive mindset. Part of that is to . . .
- Hang out with the right people. The right people are those who support you, even at your very worst. Your true friends. Hang onto them. Unfriend the naysayers and the vampires who drain your energy, creativity and happiness. And then . . .
- Resolve not to be jealous of others. This one is tough because there is a lot of really great artwork out there and sometimes you feel small. Want to know a secret? There are many people out there who are jealous of you! It’s true. Most men and women commute to work each day to a job they don’t like, feeling unfulfilled and uninspired. The life of an artist is like a dream to them. So, smile and . . .
- Give yourself credit. What you are doing is hard, and you have to make your own way in a very competitive business. Most people out there couldn’t do it. But it’s also fun, challenging and rewarding. So . . .
- Be grateful. Why? Because you have the best job in the whole world. This is a marvelous gift you have given to yourself. Be grateful that you have the talent, inspiration and passion to follow your dream.
Now, go out there and rock your art business this year!
Artists Look to the New Year
Dec 29th
By Carolyn Edlund
Artists talk about the year just passed, and their resolutions for 2012.
Some took risks, or had tough learning experiences. They all grew in their businesses and their art. Here are their stories:
2011 has been a year of reviewing my true vision as an artist and making necessary adjustments. It has also been a year of growth for my art business as I have gained representation with new galleries due to my diligence in marketing myself via LinkedIn and other online venues.
Being added to several art consultants rosters will bring new commissions and sales for 2012. I already have several acceptances for juried fine art exhibitions across the US so 2012 will be a continuation of the progress made in 2011 getting my artwork out for collectors to see and purchase.
This past year has been pretty good, and I’ve had a slight increase in sales over the previous year. Every year I add a few more goals to my list, in addition to ones that carry over from previous years. For instance, one of my annual goals is to add another gallery, and I try to find at least one new one every year. I usually lose one every year, too, due to closing or performance issues; so it’s actually very hard to gain ground on this one. Other goals that get repeated every year are things like booking workshops, writing magazine articles, entering juried shows, earning Signature Memberships, teaching classes, etc.
This year, the extra goals on my list include joining more artist societies near my new home, more plein air painting, expanding my online sales, and producing a new DVD. This doesn’t sound like much, but it’s on top of everything else I already have on my list that gets repeated each year, so it’s enough!
I definitely want to spend more time making art in 2012 than worrying about art business. In 2011 I had the busiest exhibition schedule of my career with five solo shows spread over four states. I met several benchmarks such as showing at a large public university in a large city via the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. It was also a big step to show my work for the first time in the leading art markets of Miami and New York. Meeting many of my online contacts in person was a great experience as well which has led to other opportunities in the pipeline. But promoting shows back to back while dealing with the logistics of organizing so many large solo exhibitions was a real wake up call.
Managing life beyond art plus all of that has left me just plain worn out. I haven’t produced much work at all this year, which has been frustrating. I’ve learned my lesson though. From now on, the core of my energy will go towards time in the studio. As artists if we lose sight of that, we run the risk of leaving out the joy of discovering the full potential of our creative path. I’ve already started some new work. I’m really excited to ring in 2012 with momentum!
This past year has helped me figure out the direction I want to head with both my art and my business. It has included gaining the courage to turn down areas of work I no longer wish to provide, rekindling a passion for areas I thought I would no longer pursue and struggling with time management.
This January 2012 I hang my solo show at The Delaplaine in Frederick, MD. I’m excited to share my new body of work, Beautiful Silence, which features winter landscapes in and around Carroll County, Maryland. The reception is February 4th, 2012. I hope to build print sales through my online store. And just like in this previous year, I would like to hang my work in at least a handful of shows, not limited local venues.
This new year should also include some site updates for myself and to feature other artists on my site, an idea I pushed last year but that lost momentum. Over the past three years, I’ve improved my skills in business, marketing and relationship building – not to mention I’m more and more excited by my designs and I can manage my own website! And the drive to do more and get better just keeps on coming!
In 2012 I will continue making art about medicine and health, but with a stronger focus on internal and emotional issues in addition to my interest in the body. This past year I continued with my “Scarred for Life” project, in which I make body prints from people’s scars and collect their stories of trauma and healing. I shot a television pilot about this process, and how the experience serves as a cathartic expression for many of my subjects, a cap to their “story.”
I also started a new series of paintings in which I embed photos and documents from my parents and grandparents into the compositions. I recently visited my brother, who has a serious longterm illness, and got some of his creative notebooks from his youth as a folk singer. I’m starting to collage these fragments into new paintings about him, exploring the effects and his suffering of dementia and Parkinsons. It’s possible I’ll also mix human ashes (my mom’s) into these paintings. Finally, I started a business called ArtandMed.com last year, and in 2012 I’ll continue to present lectures to health providers and patient groups about art and medicine.
My hopes for 2011 were big. At the end of 2010, my boyfriend and I began subleasing a retail space that we turned into an art gallery/portrait studio. I was really excited that it would allow me to reduce the number of art fairs that I was doing, help my boyfriend build his new photography business, bring in new customers and start moving in a new direction.
Long story short, after a long winter that came with huge snow plowing bills, light rail construction in the area that kept people away, crime on the rise in the neighborhood, and not being able to keep regular hours because of my schedule, I came to the conclusion that getting into a retail space was a huge burden that came with a big lesson. I realized that I was continuing to fall back on the safe decisions of more of the same (though it took on a different form) to avoid the big scary decisions I needed to make to make significant changes to my business. I spent the year spinning my wheels instead of making much progress.
In January, I’m taking a four day mini-retreat to a family cabin to get away and focus on what I really want for my 10th year in business. For 2012 my biggest hope is that I can find a wayto travel more so I can create new artwork which will in turn expand my licensing opportunities. I’d also like to take a bigger step towards doing more corporate art. My resolutions are to ditch the toxic part-time job, stop resisting the really big changes that will take me out of my comfort zone, as well as stop putting off the little things that could make a big difference down the line.
December 25th marks my second year of selling pet portraits on Facebook. I have continued to work with watercolor and acrylic on a daily basis. When not busy with pet portraits I would paint different subjects such as flowers and carousels which are located in three small local galleries. Painting every day is not a chore for me and my love for my art and for animals brings me much support from a vast network of people. It is important to me to share my natural talent with others and to give back as often as I can. My fan page grew to over 7,000 and my sales are steady.
For 2012 my goal is to learn how to create portraits with graphite and color pencil in addition to my paintings. Many people seem to be drawn to the simple elegance of graphite. So, my first free portrait for 2012 is going to be a 8×10 graphite drawing. Fans are eager to see my work progress and they encourage me to continue.
What’s Your Story and Your Vision for the New Year?
Top 10 Articles on Artsy Shark for 2011
Dec 21st
By Carolyn Edlund
This year’s countdown of the ten most read and shared articles on Artsy Shark.
10. Making Art and Making a Living - Do you have to support yourself through your art to be an “artist?” Or does the financial pressure hurt your creative growth and your sanity?
9. “You’ll Never Make a Living as an Artist” - Are you surrounding yourself with supporters, or naysayers? Who is holding you back? Your family, your friends? Or is it you?
8. Matching Artists with Corporate Buyers - Joyce Creighton’s fascinating story of how she is connecting artists whose work is appropriate for corporate settings with clients looking for their work.
7. How to Make Your Customers Fall in Love with You - Want more business and repeat customers? That’s right – spread the love.
6. Do You Want to be a Childrens Book Illustrator? - Cherish Flieder discusses the steps in childrens book illustration, and how to get started in the business.
5. Creative Marketing for Artists - Think outside the box when it comes to promoting your work. Here’s some examples of how other artists did it.
4. 6 Ways to Improve Your Greeting Card Sales - Is your line balanced? Is it big enough? How often should you update? The basics on what you must do to have a successful greeting card business.
3. What’s Wrong with Your Art Website? – Artsy Shark asked the experts for their pet peeves when visiting art websites. Are you guilty of any of these sins?
2. A Guide to Pricing Your Artwork – Professor, TED speaker and entrepreneur Karen Atkinson gives great advice for artists on this perplexing but essential topic.
1. Are Your Prices Unrealistic? – Are your prices too high? Too low? How your competition affects your perspective. Lots of comments and opinions about pricing.
6 Ways Your Artist Statement Can Work for You
Aug 26th
By Carolyn Edlund
Courtesy John Borys
Have you created an artist statement somewhere back in time, and not looked at it lately? Writing a concise, effective statement that encompasses your ideas, methods, practice and intention is not easy, but it is really worthwhile. Perhaps you would rather just ignore it. Or maybe you believe you really don’t need one.
Why is that statement useful, and how can it help you get noticed, gain publicity and make sales?
- Use your artist statement in a press release, press kit, or to grab a reporter’s attention and get an interview. Featured artists on Artsy Shark frequently send their artist statement with their portfolio when submissions are open. Take a look at the Featured Artists category and scroll through. Check out all the different ways your fellow artists express themselves through their statements.
- Want to get funding? An artist statement is frequently required when applying for that all-important grant. Even if you are seeking donations on Kickstarter or other crowdfunding site, use your artist statement as a launching pad to explain your project and pitch your cause.
- Have you been asked to speak to a group? Perhaps as a visiting artist, presenting your work to a class or describing your art to gallery visitors? Draw from your statement to plan your talk, whether it is a full lecture or merely speaking clearly about yourself. Refer to it to stay focused on what makes you and your artwork stand out.
- Your artist statement allows others to talk about your work. This could be a gallery owner, a curator, docent or reviewer. It could also be a gallery visitor who wants to know more about you as an artist, or to describe your work and ideas to others. Or it could be a customer, using it to share your information with others who admire your work.
- Use your artist statement when proposing a project or show. A well-written statement and proposal helps decision makers to understand your vision, and will influence them.
- A brochure with photos and information “about the artist” is a promotional tool you can use at retail and wholesale shows, through direct mail, or as a “leave behind” to gain publicity. A strong, well-composed artist statement helps you create effective marketing by sharing your story and ideas with prospective collectors.
Need help in writing your artist statement? Renee Phillips offers excellent suggestions in her article, “How to Write Your Artist’s Statement with 26 Tips”.
Artwork by John Borys. For more information about this artist, please visit his website.
Featured Artist Leah Jay
