Category: I’d Rather Be in The Studio

Yet Again, the Operative Word is Yes

I said “Yes” again. Am I becoming braver as I go along? I don’t know about brave, but I’ve been more agreeable to new things. I take long thinking things over though. Then I say yes. Yes to blogging. Yes to social media stuff. Yes to going to the beach alone to paint. Yes to the 100 Paintings Challenge.

The latest Yes is to a weekend workshop a short drive from my area. The Art Biz Coach, Alyson B. Stanfield is coming to Long Island, NY to help artists get their act together business-wise. The host is a group called Women Sharing Art. They are not located in my immediate area so I’m not familiar with them. But I have read Alyson’s book I’d Rather Be in The Studio. It covers the business side of things they don’t teach you in art school.

Maybe it was last year, I found out a workshop was happening in Pennsylvania. Although do-able driving wise, I didn’t try to go. It’s a couple hours and I felt uncomfortable going somewhere I’d never driven before, and alone. This time around this is happening not quite an hour from my home, but I still had trepidations.

Would I benefit? As the time came closer I decided that if I could clear my calendar I would go. I did and said Yes. Anything else that pops up now has to wait. I think reading a book for information is great. Attending a class with an instructor in an informal setting with peers is even better.

After submitting my application I received some information on what is needed for the two day workshop. Of course paper and writing implements, but Alyson asked that we bring our portfolio, business cards, and if we have it, our artist statement. Oh boy!

I wrote an artist statement a while ago when I was asked to do the possible book deal thing. I checked Alyson’s book for an outline and wrote one up. It probably needs work, but okay. The portfolio is another story. What do I bring? Both old and new work?

Thinking I had Sunday to put this together I started looking through my latest paintings. Well, wouldn’t you know the garden guys show up. And they have questions. And instructions. And they want to shoot the breeze. Um, yes, haha, I have stuff to do! Thanks alot, but I’d like to go back to my thing, you go do your thing, and everyone will be happy! No.

What you see is where I am up to..nothing done.

The Art of Self Promotion, with Help

Night Self Portrait, Oil on canvas ©1977 Dora Sislian Themelis
The process of self promotion for artist’s these days is involved.  I guess any kind of promotion takes time and effort if you really want to get somewhere.  Whether someone wants to find job, get elected to office, meet new friends or find a mate, all the information I have come across says to get yourself out there.  And where is “there”?
For some of us the hardest thing to do is go to the studio to get some creative work done, let alone promote it.  Once we’ve developed a body of work I think it’s easier to feel some detachment from it to sell it.  I know that the portrait of my son and his Greek bagpipe will never be sold because it’s too personal to let it go to a stranger. 

In a way I wish I had painted someone else so that I wouldn’t feel uncomfortable selling it.  That doesn’t mean I’m attached to some other recent work. They can go!  

Besides networking online through all the social media and this blog, I’m thinking about having a small gallery show eventually.  A local church has gallery space that many artists use and the fee for its use is a small percentage of sales.  They offer postcards as advertising and invitations, and I have a nice long list of people I know through my travels that I can invite.  It’s totally doable, but I need to have work I’m willing to sell.  That means doing.  It’s not going to happen all by itself, right? 
A helpful book I’ve been reading is I’d Rather be in the Studio, by Alyson B. Stanfield.  She is an art career coach I bumped into on facebook and she has great information on promoting one’s art career.  From reading her book I was inspired to throw myself into all the social media stuff and work it.  Little did I know I would really enjoy doing it!  She wrote in her book: don’t ask why, just do it, and I did. 

Stanfield hosts various classes online through her website ArtBizCoach.com and in person workshops.  She’s holding a workshop in Pennsylvania May 11-12 and if I lived closer I’d check it out.  On her website Alyson is hosting an online Blog Triage class, but I think the class is already full.  I believe it’s great to be able to have coaching like this because most of us artists are not business minded.  We may not know how to go about getting our product “out there” other than hooking up with a gallery and have them take all the profits, if there are any when they’re done with you. 

On Stanfield’s suggestions I had business cards made.  I carry them around in case I find an opportunity to hand them out.  During Christmas shopping I struck up a conversation with another shopper about the items for sale and how expensive they were.  This shopper remarked on my scarf and said how much she liked it. 

When I told her I’m an artist and I knit it myself she flipped!  She said, “You probably don’t have any cards with you.”  Ah, but I did.  I whipped out my business cards and handed two to her.  She was thrilled to meet an artist on the check-out line in Macy’s! 

Self-promotion for artists is possible and doable if you are willing to suck it up and forge ahead.  I know some of us are intimidated by the business end of art, but it’s not all that bad.  We just have to be ready with work, keep our eyes open for opportunities to show it, be open to talking to people, and have our information at hand if asked for it, like me.