A Site for Emerging Artists
Posts tagged success
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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TumblrTop 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.
Storytelling for Artists
Dec 13th
By Carolyn Edlund
As a tiny kitten, Lorenzo was tossed in a garbage can at birth and left for dead. Joann Biondi rescued him and brought him to her Florida home.
By the time Lorenzo was three months old, he was sitting up on command and jumping through hoops. When he heard her shout, “Hooray Lorenzo,” he preened like a proud lion. Although eager to please, he was also a self-contained spirit with plenty of spunk—he loved to sink his teeth into a bare ankle as it passed him by.
He had another bad habit as well, and that was stealing panties from the dirty laundry basket. One day Biondi got mad at him for this and decided to get even. She put a spandex tank top over his head and onto his body. Lorenzo was unfazed. He adjusted his shoulders, threw out his chest, and looked at her with an expression that said, “You think this bothers me? Well it doesn’t. In fact, I like it.” He walked around wearing that tank top for days.
These days, Lorenzo is an international online sensation, dressed in clothes for every occasion with a rockstar feline attitude. Biondi’s photos of him have become so popular that he has his own Facebook page, Twitter account and website.
That is Joann Biondi’s story. She clearly understands the power of storytelling as part of her photography and how it creates the appeal that Lorenzo has for his many fans. In fact, each photo of Lorenzo has a quirky caption expressing his personality as a proud metrosexual male with a clothes fetish and a very hip character.
Storytelling is crucial to an artist’s work as either an integral part of the piece itself, or as a way to understand the artist’s history, methods or inspiration. The creative process itself imbues each piece with a part of the artist’s creative soul. By sharing stories, artists add greater value to the purchase and ownership of their work. Collectors in turn share these stories with others; they become permanently linked in the mind of the owner along with the physical work, and add to the pleasure of ownership.
Right Brain/Left Brain
The written or oral story appeals to our left brains as explanation or clarification of the artist’s intent, and to define the art. Viewers search for meaning in art – witness how many people at a gallery will look for the title of an abstract painting. What is the artist portraying? The title alone can have a profound effect on the perception of the gallery visitor.
A recent article on the Real Clear Arts blog analyzes a study done by London’s Daily Mail at the Tate Britain, seeking to find out whether classical or contemporary art held the interest of visitors longer. The classics won, hands down. Author Judith H. Dobrzynski explains, “To me it says something about aesthetics and narrative. People are more engaged when they see something that is ‘beautiful’ and something that contains a discernable story. If an art work has both, all the better.”
Does your work tell a story? Or do you have a story to tell about yourself and your art? Think carefully about how you will tell your personal story of becoming an artist and developing your own style. Perhaps you have a fascinating story to tell about the process or materials you use. Does your subject matter have a deep meaning, or is it controversial? Sharing this with your potential collectors enhances the experience and the opportunity to sell your work.
Perseverance and Results
Dec 9th
Guest blogger Jacqui Hawk shares how she visualized and created success this year. Through giving and sharing, she received a bounty in return.
By Jacqui Hawk
My blog is full of posts about charities I have supported this year; The Painted Bra Art Project, which went viral on Facebook, Trees for Life in Edinburgh which I also attended and joyfully brought me together with my father whom I recently found after 42 years! Another very special post was “Paying it Forward,” a post about Jack Burke and Joey Middlemiss – two little boys each challenged in different ways, but connected with their courageous hearts and spirit and the paintings I did for each of them.
Many artists feel that charity events are ultimately not a win/win … I appreciate that you have to be selective! The ones I have given to have personally given back to me threefold. Artists could perhaps negotiate a 50/50 split of the silent auction profits if they find themselves doing a lot of fundraisers. The goal is to give quality art and raise a lot of money to achieve these goals. I believe it has to be a fair arrangement.
In January of 2011, I had a clear vision of my success and tried to visualize what that looked like and work towards it. I have been dedicated to painting every day. I get up early and paint for an hour before work and then paint for 2-3 hours in the evening, juggling a full time job at the University of Massachusetts in Lowell. Managing my time - life as a Corporate Project Manager has helped me keep on task, stay structured and achieve goals.
I took part in 21 events this year (gallery exhibits, solo shows, and fundraisers) This clearly helped raise awareness for my art. When I google my name now, there are about 30,000,000 more than last year.
I invested in a new website. This is very important I believe. Being one in a sea of thousands on a third party website was not for me. My goal in 2012 is to build my own “shop” on my own site.
I embraced Facebook, and created a Facebook business page where I organized all my paintings for sale, sold, etc. I network with a lot with artists all over the world on Facebook and Twitter, many of whom are becoming great friends. I make sure that I’m very visible in the art world on Facebook, and I am totally inspired by the amazing work I see being created. I make a point to share the work of artists I love; they also do the same for me and so the energy and momentum builds.
I network and collaborate extensively with other artists, especially those whose styles are very different to mine; great things can happen! Because of this, I receive many invitations to join other artists in new gallery opportunities.
An example of this is “Art Reach,” a collaboration between St. Joseph Hospital and six artists to “harness the healing power of art.” I painted a huge 6 x 6 ft canvas in the dark during the terrible October East Coast snow storm by candlelight.
I am a member of several art associations, and this year I became a regular artist member of 263 Art Gallery in Nashua. This gave me a lot more exposure. I intend to widen this net next year. I went through a huge attitude change this year. Every time I felt like giving up because I came away from a show where I sold nothing, it made me dig deeper and deeper and become so much more resilient – and I enjoyed 33 sales this year! You recognize those moments as a ‘turning point’ in your artistic journey. It’s not a race, and success is different for everyone. I intend to pay my art dues, showing up at my easel every day because I love what happens in those magic moments.
8 Steps to Jump-Start Your Art Career
Nov 27th
By Carolyn Edlund
I often speak with artists who are frustrated, and sometimes not pleased about how their careers are going. They are looking for guidance, suggestions, or representation. This is totally understandable. It’s tough out there, and can be very discouraging and confusing, particularly if you’re going it alone. Eventually this leads to one very important and unavoidable fact – the bottom line.
The absolute bottom line is this:
Like it or not, if you are an artist and you want to make a living at it, you are a businessperson. And – you’re in marketing and sales.
A lot of questions come up. “How can I find people to buy my work?” “Should I try to find a rep?” “Why doesn’t my work sell?” or even, “I’m not sure what to do, or if I’ll make mistakes, and so I freeze and do nothing.”
Quite often, I go over specific steps with clients to help them understand what they want out of their art career and how to get there. Here are eight basics to get focused and jump-start into action:
- Make a plan. Define what it is that you want to do. Write down your plans, in general and then more specifically. Is it realistic? Are your goals too narrow, or too broad? Write a five-year plan. Where would you like your career to be in 2016?
- Define what you need to do to get there. Who do you need to meet? Where do you need to live? What steps lead up to your goal? Read extensively on how the business of your future career works, and how the successful people got there. Get very clear on the circumstances you will have to create to make it work. Decide if your perceived goals will fit your lifestyle, and your level of ambition. If not, redefine what you really want. That’s perfectly OK. Your goals belong to you.
- Break it down into bite-size pieces. It can be overwhelming to think that you have to find a prestigious gallery or start giving your own workshops if you’re just starting out. Work backwards from the goal, writing down each step in the process, to what you can do today.
- Take action now. Do something every single day to move your art career forward. It may be placing a phone call, improving your website, finding a great photographer to shoot your portfolio, or making a To Do list. Cultivate this habit, because it’s something you are doing for yourself, and it really matters.
- Be willing to adjust. Perhaps you are running into roadblocks, or circumstances are changing. That five-year plan isn’t written in stone. Adapt and get creative with new plans.
- Don’t do it alone. Get a mentor, take a course, surround yourself with people who believe in you, and participate in your community.
- Be willing to pay those people you need to make your business work. Delegate tasks to avoid being overwhelmed. Hire a bookkeeper or accountant, get someone to clean your house while you are working, have someone watch your children so that you have studio time. You might need marketing assistance, a coach or a website designer. You could actually save money by paying for services which would eat up so much of your time that you cannot create.
- Don’t give up. If you think it can’t be done, then you’re right. Persistence is the most important factor in making your plans a reality.
You knew when you started that it wouldn’t be easy, but you also know it’s worth the hard work. Basically you need some talent, a plan, an understanding of how business and commerce works, and a lot of effort. Working toward a defined goal with a specific road map is much more productive than having a vague idea that you want to be “successful”. Successful people didn’t get there by accident, and they rarely made it overnight.
Do you consider yourself to be a successful artist? How long did it take? What’s your best advice for other artists who are starting out?
Featured Artist Leah Jay
