My Four Year Artiversary - All on April Fool's Day

I've been doing art in some form for most of my life, but over four years ago I made the decision to leave my job of..... how many years did I work there? 16? (It seems like a lifetime ago.)

There's a lot of misconceptions that I started out with. One is that if I had a web page the people who wanted my work would FIND ME and orders would begin to pour in. Another is that I would be alone in my studio day after day painting away. (My husband was worried that I'd be lonely - being a social person by nature.) Talent will get you wherever you want to go.... another misconception. Never underestimate the power of good marketing.

The truth was that I had entered a life filled with friends, challenges, learning opportunities and days much fuller than I ever dreamed of. All of a sudden I was learning computer programing, bookkeeping, marketing, to name a few of the challenges I would face.


I started out in my studio listening to pod casts of Artist Helping Artist with Leslie Saeta. Turns out, it was an excellent place to start. I knew nothing of marketing, social marketing or very much concerning the business end of art at all. I learned a lot in those 300 podcasts including how to run a biz page on Facebook, Instagram, u tube, Pinterest, pricing, commissions, art shows to name a few.

One of Leslie's suggestions was to join the local art group. I joined the Rockford Art Guild in February of 2014. They were preparing for Spring Art Scene - a city wide art party held two times a year. Getting involved in that show helped me get to know some of the members a bit better. I was hooked. I started going to the monthly board meetings. This gave me a closer look and better opportunities to learn more about the business. Most of all, it provided me with an incredible base of artist friends. Some of whom would become my mentors, advise me in marketing, teach me new techniques, ask me to show with them, paint with me, and on occasion, drink with me.

You can't embark on something like this without a lot of help from those close by. My husband, Mark was incredibly supportive through this whole process - as always. He encouraged to follow my dream, built my first booth for shows and went to every show hauling and setting up all my equipment.


Probably the most significant thing he would repeatedly say to me was,  
"This is not a sprint, it's a marathon." It's a great thing to remember whenever I feel things are not moving fast enough. Things take time. Don't give up.


When my daughter Samantha, a graphic artist, joined my team I began to have a more polished look.She helped me move from my old web page, that I loved but couldn't program to one that was intuitive. She became one of my roadies, along with my son, helping set up each show and staying for the duration, crocheting behind the scenes waiting in case I needed anything. My family and friends have purchased a lot of my work and scheduled private painting parties. They continue to do so and I'm grateful to them.

One of my favorite things about this profession is the roller coaster of good and bad days. One day you're incredibly talented, the next you're some schmuck artist wannabe. The highs boost your confidence and the lows push your creativity and motivate you to work harder. Both are necessary for success.

 

Four years later, I'm

 still chugging along. 

 Things have changed. I know there is nothing else I want to do other than my art business. I never feel as if I have enough time to paint - I'm working on it. I have a new booth. Classes and workshops as well as public speaking have been added to my venue. I'm taking classes at RVC to sharpen my business skills.  There's some great shows coming up. I'm looking forward to moving into the front half of my studio/gallery soon. (Thanks to Mark again, for building it for me.) I even may have some
exciting "news" in the very near future.

Best of all I know what I want to do today - paint. 

And it all started on an April Fool's Day. 

Turns out, it wasn't foolish at all.

A Review of the January 30 in 30 Painting Challenge.

January 31st

It's official, the 30 in 30 challenge is over.
And although I didn't paint 30 paintings this challenge, I am most proud of this one out of all the other challenges that I have done. I ran my art business during the month of January and I spent a good amount of time painting. What I struggle with the most is balance; time painting, marketing, getting ready for shows, personal goals etc. The 30 in 30 challenge forced me to look it how I spend my time. I don't have any of it resolved but I know I can run my art business and continue to paint. Sometimes I feel like the business is taking over and leaving little time to paint.

What I do know is how important it is to keep painting. It is the whole reason I'm doing this in the first place. I also know how important it is to keep exploring and trying new things. I didn't reach my goal of doing oil paintings, painting bigger, try a mixed media collage or doing batik paintings. I understand how important it is for me to continually have new pieces for the shows, galleries and shops let alone my web page. But on the other hand it was a pretty busy month for me and I fared okay. And in the end I tried some new things.

This month I:
 Spent the first seven days on a family vacation, worked one painting party, held 3 alcohol ink classes, did 1 show, took 5 art classes for enjoyment and exploration, registered for 3 shows while mapping out the list of shows to apply to this year, worked on 1 commission, gathered work for 4 different venues including the framing and matting of several new pieces, developed a new class for February, finished my finacial reporting, paid sales tax and had a marketing and financial meeting concerning goals for 2016 with a consultant, put out a newsletter, had a birthday full of fun with friends and family, took a mother daughter wine glass painting night, had a root canal, went out twice with friends for lunch and went to an art guild board meeting. 

I list these things for my benefit, to remind myself that even though there always seems like so much to do, I am accomplishing a lot. I should also mention that I have an assistant, my daughter, who is a tremendous amount of help in all of this. Without her the list would have been smaller and I have to remind myself that one day she will be off working elsewhere so best to get a hold of things now.

But the point is, the balance is not quite there. I'm not getting on my bike as much as I'd like to and on busy days there's no bike at all. My house is a bit unorganized... my desk is hard to find under the piles of papers and art stuff, my kitchen table seems to be the catch-all for all my framing work and my studio needs a good once over. One of my goals for 2016 is to loose 1000 pounds of junk from my house. January didn't see much of that going on. I want to declutter and organize, not just my business but my personal life too.

I would be remiss if I didn't say that the boundaries between my business and play are always a bit fuzzy. In truth, I love what I do. My art is my play and work at the same time. I know I need to write a blog post today - but I'm having a good time with the self reflection. My sister says I work all the time. What is it? Do I work all the time or do I play all the time?

So here I am looking a new month in the face.
I've written out a few personal goals - a few places that I feel I can improve for the month of February. I have a monthly calendar where I get to look at these goals and plan how to make them come about.

In short my goals are: 
Spend less time watching TV and playing games on the I pad. Relaxation is great - plan it better. 
Spend more time on my bike. Read more. Organize my bedroom. Clean and organize my studio and office. Finish my commission.  Try some abstracts, batiks and mixed media. Get new works for Spring Art Scene in April. Organize my business into one note book where I can keep tract of things a bit better.

So thanks, 30 in 30 challenge for reminding me that I can have it all with just a bit more time management and some good planning.

What are your biggest challenges and how do you achieve balance? Leave a comment please.

The Business of Art or is it the Art of Businses?

I've been busy with the business of art.

I'm having been in the studio for three days and I'm dying to get back there today but the truth is there a lot more to an art business than painting. I want to make some negative comment about this fact but the the variety of  chores keeps me challenged and engaged in other ways and I'm grateful (I guess). Besides the daily marketing done on social media there is much more to keeping JR Finally Art up and going.

Cho and I at Picture Salon in Madison, Wisconsin

Friday I was notified that two of my pieces were chosen for a show at our local museum. (Yeah!) These along with pieces to be hung at Katie's Cup and Rockford's Art Scene all need to be framed. That means a trip to Hobby Lobby for mats and Michaels for frames. In the event that they may be sold, a trip to Madison for scanning is in order. Each piece will need a description. Why I painted it. What I was thinking at the time I painted it.

7 new prints will be available soon.

And...

It's almost April 15th. Then of course, there's taxes. I use Quick Books for my record keeping. I like math but accounting in not something that comes natural for me. Although it should all be pretty straight forward at tax time... well, for me, it's not.

Katie's Cup

These are the months to sign up for the summer art shows. As invitations and rejections come in it's time to scurry and find shows for the weeks that are still available, make reservations and plan the summer schedule.

But my heart is in the studio today working on the Katie's Cup alcohol ink  - for Saturday. I have it drawn out, that's it, so I need to move on it.

An idea for Unforgettable Art

I'm also working on tester paintings for Unforgettable Art on the 18th of April.








So there's lots to do today! 
Where does your business lead you?
What do you do on the days you're not in your studio?

Pigs Are Flying Baby - Everyday!

A friend of mine recently asked my why I keep 

this silly pink pig on the dashboard of my car. 

 It's there to remind me that the "Pigs are Flying"

 It was about two years ago (April 1st -April Fools Day) that I left my job of 16 years to pursue my art full time. I have been painting since I was a child but always saw my art more as a long lost love then something I would be able to devote my days to. But that all changed about two and a half years ago when it became apparent it was time for me to move on from my work situation. I began with developing a web page with my nephew who owns a web business. My Father and Step Mother passed away in a fire just two weeks before I was to launch my page. We postponed the launch for several weeks, allowing ourselves the time we needed to complete the project.

When I first launched the page I thought I would instantly get orders for my art prints. I mean you open a web page and now you have access to the whole world and all the people who like your exact type of art will flock to your page. Right? Well I had a few lessons to learn first - about marketing, social marketing, bookkeeping, computers, art sales and business etc. etc. I didn't realize that I was embarking on a very exciting voyage that was nothing like I expected it to be. I'm still on that journey today and I find it totally engaging and satisfying. I have had a lot of help and support, which without I would not have been able to get where I am today.

Where am I today? Just plugging along happy as can be doing my artwork and trying to get it seen by a few people.

Four years ago I don't think I would have been able to share my work publicly let alone do the things I'm doing. If you would have told me that in four I'd be totally involved with my artwork each day and working seven days a week because THAT'S what I want to do I would have told you, "Yeah and pigs fly."

But you know what? Pigs do fly... dreams do come true everyday. The secret is you have to believe in them and your have to work really hard for them.

And you know what happened after I left my job to pursue my dream? My husband did the same thing just one month later! He's rehabbing an Italianate Home build in 1858.
https://www.facebook.com/MarkGolden.AIA?ref=hl

Are we going to be able to do this for the rest of our lives? I don't know. But I do know that today the pigs are flying! I sure don't want to miss seeing them.

What are your dreams? Is it time for you to see pigs flying too?

The Top Ten Podcasts for Online (and off) Art Business

 
I was always interested in art, psychology, science... never marketing, computer programing and bookkeeping (although I did have a career in a bank for awhile.) So when I decided to leave my day job of sixteen years I never really understood what I would need to turn my love of painting into a full time business. It was about that time that Mark, my husband approached me with an article he had just read. "Hey hon", he said, "Did you know that being an artist is listed as the worst profession anyone could have?" Great! I was screwed! But after examining the article closer it became apparent what the message was. 

Being an artist often isn't profitable because artists are notoriously bad at marketing themselves. Okay point taken. It's hard for an artist to praise their own work and convince others to to invest in it. To be totally honest, I had a web page and an Etsy store along with a blog that I occasionally wrote in, that was good enough right? I actually thought the internet is a big place - those who are interested in my work will seek me out and I will be selling enough to help with my family expenses in no time. "Build it and they will come."  Ha!  After a year and a half I can talk with experience when I say, it takes quite a bit more than that.

I didn't realize that by choosing to produce and sell my art full time I was about to enter an exciting and  challenging chapter of my life. The internet is full of thousands of talented artists trying to make a living. It's fair to note, that for art collectors, this is an incredible time to get really good art at low prices. But for us artists, we need a crash course in marketing, social media, computer programing and bookkeeping. These certainly aren't classes that went along with any art curriculum we received in college, although it should.

I turned to Pod Casts to fill in the huge gaps in my knowledge needed to survive as an artist. So here is a list of some of my favorite podcasts that have slowly taught me what to do. Many times I listen to them while I'm painting, occasionally stopping to take notes.







My favorite Pod casts are; in no particular order

Artist Helping Artists: Selling Your Art On-Line with Leslie Saeta. Every Thursday morning Leslie and her monthly co-host discuss a specific topic that addresses how to sell more art on-line, along with guest artists, gallerists, and others sharing their knowledge of the business side of art. Twice a year Leslie hosts a challenge to artists to paint 30 paintings in 30 days which is well attended. 

Art Fair Artists Success Show: This podcast is less frequent, recording once a month. Connie Mettler shares news and insider tips about the nation's top juried art fairs and craft shows. 
 
Blogging Betties Podcast: Bloger Tips - Social Media Tricks - Blogging Tools. Veteran bloggers Poppy Marler, Tammy Soong and Vanita Cyril discuss tips, tricks and tools for women entrepreneurs and bloggers. Each week they interview bloggers who tell their stories.

Online Marketing Made Easy with Amy Porterfield: "Facebook Marketing All in One for Dummies" co-author and online entrepreneur Amy Porterfield shows you exactly how to monetize your online marketing and blogging efforts using her own tested, Actionable lead generation strategies.

Denise Wakeman, Adventures in Visibility: A twice monthly live video show originally aired as a Hangout on Google +. Designed for online entrepreneurs who want to build a bigger online presence by increasing the visibility of their business across the web.

Oh So Pinteresting Podcast with Cynthia Sanchez: Get the latest pinterest news and tips to use in your social media marketing plan for your business. Cynthia Sanchez interviews social media experts, marketers and business owners to bring you the top actionable tips for success for using Pinterest for business.

Beyond Your Blog with Susan Maccarelli: For those who have dipped their toes in the submitting water and want more, as well as those who are new to submitting their writing to other sites. Beyond Your Blog presents submission opportunities, provides tips and tricks to help your get your writing accepted, and interviews bloggers and editors.

Etsy Conversations podcast- Arts and Crafts -DIY- Online Business- Ecommerce with Ljeoma Eleazu: Get to hear the personal Etsy stories behind your favorite Etsy shops. Get tips, techniques, and tools to make you a better more successful Etsy seller.

 Savvy painter Podcast with Antrese Wood: For fine artists who mean business. Learn how leaders in plein air and landscaping painting got their start along with habits of top artists.  Includes interview with experts in the field about business of art and how it gets created.

Build Your Tribe hosted by Charlene Johnson: Build your tribe- Creating Community - Email List Building - Internet Marketing Social Media. How to create influence that matters and content that creates conversation. Interviews and practical strategies from top internet influencers.

What are your favorite podcasts? Which ones did I miss?  
Let me know in the comments.