Passageways
Advice On Being An Artist
So you want to be an artist and are wondering where to start. Here are 15 tips to help you get started.
- Don’t ask me. I’m still learning! No really. I’m not an expert. I’ve had a lot of successes and have been extremely lucky, but I’ve also had failures and get frustrated at times. I know where I want to be, but I’m not there yet.
- Work hard. Something you may not want to hear….being an artist is less about talent and more about how bad you want it and how hard you are willing to work to get there. There are a lot of talented people out there who go unrecognized; and there are a lot of people with only marginal talent that are hugely successful. Don’t expect to be an overnight sensation. It doesn’t happen often; and it never happens without a lot of hard work and dedication. Don’t expect anyone to hand success to you. You have to go out and earn it.
- Get an objective opinion. Put your work in front of people other than family and friends. Our loved ones are always kind and want to be encouraging. They are not good critics of our work. Anyone that’s ever watched American Idol knows that family and friends will not say “dude…..you suck”, even when they should to prevent someone from wasting their time or making themselves look like idiots!
- Take all opinions with a grain of salt. Sort of. Weigh where the opinion is coming from. Some opinions you should treat as gold, others listen and try to understand where the person is coming from, but don’t necessarily put a lot into their opinion. There are going to be a lot of people who will blow smoke up your (ahem) thinking they can use you to get ahead themselves. And there will be a lot of people who let envy cloud their opinions. Learn to weed these people out. Learn the people who can make or break your career, and listen to them carefully.
- Get a tough skin. You are going to hear rejection. Learn to deal with it, without letting it affect your belief in yourself. Don’t allow it to derail you or prevent you from taking your career where you want it to go.
- Do your homework. If you are submitting to a gallery or a juried show, do your homework and make sure your work is a good fit. I can’t say this often enough. As a photographer, unless I have a good reason to do so, I should not submit to galleries that represent only painters. Don’t submit contemporary work to galleries dealing with historical art, or florals to a gallery that carries mostly landscapes. The only way you should do something like this is if you’ve spoken to someone associated with the gallery and know they are looking for something different.
- Educate yourself. There are a ton of resources available to help artists learn to write an artist statement, write a cv, and how to prepare submissions. Go to your library and do some online searches.
- Be prepared to invest in your career. How bad do you want to be an artist? Would you be willing to hire someone to help you? Be careful here – there are a lot of people willing to take your money – from vanity galleries to consultants, and a host of people along the way. Know when you are investing wisely and when you aren’t. Be willing to hire an image consultant who specializes in art to help you create your submission documents or write grant applications. Don’t pay for shows at vanity galleries. They won’t get you anywhere.
- Attend a portfolio review. Find the nearest city that offers portfolio reviews and go there. The people doing the reviews can make your career take off if they believe in your work. Even if they don’t, you will have gotten an honest evaluation of your work and know if you need to make changes. A reviewer will be able to point out the strengths in your portfolio – something which is difficult to assess ourselves.
- Network. Join local arts associations. Go to art openings. Attend arts conferences and workshops. Talk to other artists. Talk to gallery owners. They are people too, just like you or I. Be an artist, but don’t lock yourself away in seclusion. Know who the other players are, and let them know who you are. They can help you. You should be willing to help them.
- Write a business plan. If you don’t know what a business plan is, do some more research. You need to define who you are as an artist; what makes you different from all the others, and where you want your career to go. Set goals. There are a lot of options and if you can’t difine where you’re headed you’ll never get there.
- Be professional. Being an artist is not like any other profession. You are as much a part of the product as the actual artwork. Collectors will want to know more about your personal life – who you really are, and where you are coming from as an artist.
- Be consistent. Just because you can be a jack of all trades, doesn’t mean you should. This is one area that I am really struggling with right now myself. Producing a cohesive body of art with a consistent style or theme will show you are focused and dedicated.
- Start small. There is a heirarchy to galleries and exhibitions. Don’t start at the top with commercial galleries. That is like starting a medical career as the chief of surgery. You have to put in a lot of time at group shows, alternative exhibition spaces, and artist run and non-profit galleries before you’ll get your foot in the door of a commercial gallery.
- Don’t always take rejection at face value. Sometimes it pays to phone or visit a gallery that has rejected a submission. Be polite in asking for clarification on why they rejected your submission and if there’s anything you could do to make your work a better fit for the gallery.
Posted on February 2, 2010 at 6:58 am by Roberta · Permalink
In: Art, Daily Photo · Tagged with: Art, art gallery, art show, career advice, coastal, first nations, longhouse, people, totem pole
In: Art, Daily Photo · Tagged with: Art, art gallery, art show, career advice, coastal, first nations, longhouse, people, totem pole
on February 2, 2010 at 8:30 pm
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Reading this is so well timed for me. I gave notice at my job and am wrapping things up this week. The reason: because I want to take some time to work as an artist full time, at least for awhile. It’s a little scary not knowing where my next paycheque will come from, but I am really looking forward to giving my art work my full attention.
on February 2, 2010 at 8:49 pm
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I am a huge fan of your work and have no doubt you will be successful! Everyone……go check out Rachael’s art on her website.