Graduation is just around the corner…
Now what?
What is your plan?
Will you start doing freelance work? Are you going to look for an internship with some big company like Disney or Pixar? Are you going to sell prints of your work online? Will you submit your work to galleries?
The amount of choices that are available to you can be overwhelming and exciting at the same time.
Its Time to Start Asking Yourself the Hard Questions About How You Will Make a Living
If your time at art school was anything like mine then you probably weren’t taught a thing about the business and marketing skills you’ll need if you want to make it as a solo artist.
If you’re going to work for someone else then you don’t have to worry about things like writing contracts, sending invoices, getting leads, or follow up with potential clients.
If you’re working in an organization then someone else gets to worry about all of that “boring” stuff and you just get to focus on your creative work.
Sadly, solo artists and freelancers don’t have that luxury.
Spend Less Time Making Art And More Time Learning Marketing
If you want to work for yourself then you’re going to have to learn at least a little bit about business and marketing if you want to have a successful practice.
For some reason artists tend to hate this kind of stuff. We aren’t interested in running a business, doing paperwork, staying on top of emails, filing taxes, filling out legal forms, etc.. We just want to make art.
From one artist to another, I totally get it.
I never thought I would be the kind of person interested in marketing or business, but now I am. Let me rephrase… I’m REALLY into business and marketing.
I’ve Learned More About Business in The Last 3 Months Than I Did During My Entire 4 Years In Art School
In 2017 I read over 20 books on entrepreneurship, business, and marketing.
We’re talking everything from exciting biographies like Poor Charlie’s Almanac and Lincoln The Unknown, to less-than-glamorous texts like Cash Flow Quadrant or even reading through an entire Googles 200+ page manual on website guidelines.
Now it’s 2018 and I am working 40+ hours a week for a property management franchise, helping them to establish their marketing department, and I spend WAY LESS time making art… But I’m happier than ever.
But what the heck Brandon? I thought you said you were an artist.
I am an artist.
How can you be an artist when you work an office job and you don’t make art?
I never said I don’t make art. I still try to draw and work on commission work for one hour every night. In fact, I’m close to finishing up a $2,000 drawing this week, and then I get to start on my next commission for $2,400.
I think this still classifies me as an artist.
Yeah, okay. That’s cool and all but that isn’t what I want to do. I want to be a real artist. You know. Like work in my studio all day, sell my work in galleries, and have my work shown in museums and stuff. I want to be an artist full-time!
I wouldn’t recommend it. At least not when you’re first starting out.
You Aren’t Prepared To Be A Solo Artist…Yet
I have a friend named Bakari who’s father is one of the best known folk painters in the state of South Carolina. I’m talking big time artist. His work is well known in the painting community, and he has been in all sorts of art publications and museums.
Bakari also makes art. If he wanted to, he could have gone into being a full-time artist as soon as he finished college.
You see, Bakari had been around professional studio artists his entire life, and he knows the ins and outs of the art world and the finances of the art world because that’s the world he grew up in.
Bakari would have no problem going into being a full-time artist, because he knows exactly what that discipline and lifestyle looks like. And on top of that he could get support, mentoring, and coaching from his father.
That’s Bakari. That’s not you.
Talent Will Only Get You So Far
If you’re like I was when I graduated from college then you probably don’t know the first thing about what it takes to run your own art practice, generate consistent cashflow, or how your art skills are going to help you pay the rent each month.
You see, when you put pressure on yourself to pay the bills with your art, then you are forced to make decisions you wouldn’t normally make. You don’t give yourself enough time to finish a drawing properly, or you end up taking on work that you don’t want to do but you do it because you need the money.
This is not what you want.
Don’t put that kind of pressure on your art.
Figure out how you are going to pay the bills, take some time to get adjusted to life in the “real world”, and maybe experience what it’s like to sleep for more than 4 hours in a night.
You can always be an artist. The art is always there, waiting for you to come back to it and give it the attention it deserves.
Connect With Experienced Artists That Can Mentor You
Be patient. Take your time. Figure out what works and what doesn’t so you can get the results that you want.
And give your art the time and attention it deserves WITHOUT bullying it into doing things like paying the bills for you.
Paying the bills is YOUR job. Your art might not be able to handle the pressure.
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