How I MONETIZED a self made artist life style by age 25
#1 : Make a large amount of work, and create ALL THE TIME.
First and foremost, you have to be addicted to making art. You have to live, breathe, eat and sleep this passion and that's how you know in your heart this is right for you. It begins with a moment and as you weave the moments together , one day you will be looking at the incredibly crafted tapestry that is your life, you will see what you have become and how each connection, each thread holds its own value and importance. Through the creation and experimentation of making art you practice a variety of problem solving and creative skills applicable to the real world. You will begin to become the mathematician, the anatomy expert, the botanist, the historian, the engineer, the explorer and the observer. If you want to even begin to try and make it as a professional painter you must have a large body of work. This is how you overcome the initial challenges of creating a unique style, figuring out what your message is, who your audience is, and the perspective of the world that will inundate and feed you for decades to come. The more you paint and create, the stronger your skills become and the better your chances of making "the one" that will get you noticed. In the game of numbers, add... add, ADD to your inventory!
#2: Tell everyone you meet about yourself.
Honestly, this one is a no-brainer. Put yourself in places that well educated, important people might frequent. I found these people through coffee shops, art galleries, cute places to dine, book stores… I've even made connections in cell phone stores just running errands. You have to remain positive, open and have some kind of cool vibe to get people to notice you are doing something different. Frequenting my favorite, trendy spots while working from a tablet allowed me to be in front of important people over common connections, most of the time the connection being caffeine! Get a cool business card, and while you’re at it just play around with designing things in general because graphic design is going to help you in the long run. Connect your card to a professional looking website, take pictures of your inventory, notify social media when you make a sale and post photos of happy clients.
Social media is going to be a huge factor right now with our shifting world. Create original content about what you are doing and the message behind it, send people customized emails that are exciting to look at. Include some of your personal inspirations and see who else in your world connects with that vision. Your creativity is your largest asset and you must use it to keep bending the rules. Share on social media when others support you, because in the business of buying originals, people want to know that they are purchasing something of value, and value in the contemporary art world means how much you've sold, what you are selling for, and who is supporting you. Connect with the galleries in your local city but also never underestimate the entire world outside of that. Most of my important clients came from the tech industry, successful startup companies, young entrepreneurs with fire in their heart and a variety of other connections that had nothing to even do with the art world. I stay focused and specific on the things I am passionate about from tech, yoga, cooking, music, traveling and I meet interesting collectors on a variety of platforms.
#3: Apply, Apply, and Apply again:
In the age of the internet there are TONS of opportunities for artists. Start by making a list. Find any award, competition, residency, opportunity for emerging artists that you can apply for free. APPLY TO ALL OF THEM. Cafe arts is a great place to start. The more you write the more succinct you will become about your work and slowly ... after a lot of rejection, you will begin to win. Which by the way feels amazing. Apply to competitions with fees but be picky about these because there's alot of people out there that will try to give artists “free exposure” or “opportunity” that is actually you decorating their space for free. You will never monetize your business like this and your art will suffer for it in the long run. There are a variety of ways to protect yourself including leasing contracts, purchasing contracts or creating curatorial services for rotating collections… as you likely know other artists in your community you are connected with.
#4: Be Creative with your money:
If you don't want a day job you are going to have to seriously start being creative and professional about your art life. Keep an updated list of clients on a spreadsheet and email them minimum quarterly about new works and new things you are up to. Teach private art lessons for kids, sell prints of your work on a variety of price points and find "the sweet spot" price point where people are purchasing the most.
Create your own events and solo shows in spaces you personally rent. This cuts out a 50% gallery fee... it puts all the work into your hands as far as getting the people there, and hosting the event, which is a huge feat... but if you are connected and sell a piece or 2 keeping 100% it might be enough to keep you floating. Who knows, the world might surprise you, i’ve personally sold out 2 out of 5 solo exhibitions I created that supplied funding for an entire year of furthering my art making practice. You can rent your space out on Air-bnb to cut your studio rent down. Invest time into learning the skills that people will pay for commercially, hand painted lettering, chalkboards, murals, print series for new buildings, graphic design, photography, modeling, ghost writing, workshops, airbrushing custom cars, tattooing, yoga … whatever you can do creatively that will tie into your soul path of being an artist… do that! Keep a spreadsheet of all the people you work with along the way, including any information you can write down on them. You will want to continue to collect data as you move through your independent art path so you can build value to your portfolio as a business and have a tailored entourage behind your dream.
#5. This is the hardest one to convince yourself. NEVER give up.
There are times when I question the path of being an independent artist, if I could actually make it a career. It's important to remember why you make art in the first place. For me, it's to add to culture, to give my life over to something greater than myself, to create something beautiful for people to live around. If you are honest, hard working, kind and have a bit of charm you can make it. People will come and support you if you are truly living in by example. Be smart, be bold, courageous and brilliant! Save your money, spend it wisely and monetize your self made, artist lifestyle. You already have everything you need for success within you and it’s just taking small steps every day towards the larger dream. I believe in you!
Kels entrepreneurial art book list :
Stephen R. Covey : 7 habits of highly effective people
Jordan Peterson : 12 rules for life
Gay Hendrix : The Big Leap
Toni Robins: Money, master the game
Sam Harris : Free Will
James Taylor : Break shot
Brenè Brown: the power of Vulnerability
Thich Nhat Han : The Art of Living