Having a light-filled space entirely to yourself to create whatever work you want to is a real privilege, and I really appreciate my studio room – it would have been impossible to do some of my recent work without it, like all of the casting prep and grinding for my pewter coin.
This week we had some friends around, and the studio doubled up as a garden room, so of course it was appropriately sanitised and stripped down. I’m fairly sure that we’re going to pull up the carpet and put down something more splash-friendly like lino… but I will admit that fake grass crossed my mind for that surreal feel.
Seeing my room in “display mode” impressed on me just how important it is to edit.
I love having all of my supplies, books and tools on hand, but now that I’ve let go of some of my older supplies, I feel even better. The clearout continued when I gave a few books away as well (only a few).
The best part of the clearout was saying no to a pointless task that I felt I had to do.
Pruning projects
I was on the edge of committing to finishing an abandoned painting – because I hate feeling as though I’ve wasted my time and effort, and because maybe doing something different for a bit is helpful (maybe?) – but the truth is that it isn’t doing anything for me right now, and it wouldn’t help me to take the money project further, or make more bodybuilder prints.
Everything I’ve done with the money project up until now has been fun and very interesting, but it can be so much more, and it can incorporate so many more mediums. It’s great that the series I’ve already started is the thing that’s sparking my creativity right now, and this is what I’m going to run with before anything else.
Still waiting for sunshine…
I have a plan to restretch some aluminium screens at home – but I need to do it outdoors. The glue is evil, and there’s no way I can get away with doing it indoors. I’ve got a good ventilator mask, but no extraction, so there’s no way I want to risk the fumes building up inside.
Once the screens are done, I’ll start working on the drawings for a new denomination!
Stuff I’ve written…
As I was writing my post on branding yourself as an artist, I started to think about typography and the role it plays in branding, and how hard it can be to pick a typeface that works with your visual style and doesn’t take over.
So I started work on a series on typefaces for artists, and I’ve got the first one on fonts for painters ready to go. Look out for that soon.
Artist collaboration with brands is marketing gold.
That is, high-profile collaborations between famous artists and big businesses – they’re the campaigns that seem to gain traction and get tongues wagging. Art lends an air of luxury, integrity, community spirit and creativity, all at the same time. It’s an incredibly powerful tool, and the biggest names get access to the biggest names.
But what if you’re a small business – a really small business – that wants to make a mark without a huge budget?
Fortunately there are a few ways that an artist collaboration with brands and businesses can be accessed without deep pockets – by commissioning artwork, providing materials or becoming a patron of the artist.
Artist collaboration with brands: becoming an art patron with a small marketing budget
Most of us will have heard of artist’s patrons – we think of those rich aristocrats who made it possible for artists to earn a living from their artwork, weaving their way into art history in the process.
In recent years the role of patron has been passed on to those who may not be aristocracy, but are usually still rather wealthy… after all, it’s hard to gain traction as a serious art collector if you can’t afford to collect art.
Does this mean that the average joe can’t gain the benefits of becoming a patron? And why would anyone want to become a patron anyway?
What does a patron get out of the arrangement?
Anyone who wants to become a patron of the arts has to ask two things: what will it cost, and what do I get out of it?
Regardless of personal wealth, everyone has to weigh up the cost-benefit analysis to see if a venture or a partnership is worth getting into. Becoming an art patron is a kind of investment, and every investor hopes to see good returns.
Individual patrons
For individual patrons, there will be benefits such as receiving artwork or memorabilia that in itself may well appreciate in value (getting in at the ground level), as well as receiving public acknowledgement of support (so your friends will know how fancy and generous you are).
The level of engagement and reciprocity involved in being an artist’s patron means you’re a step up from being a fan; you’re part of the picture.
Business patrons
For business patrons, there are a few perks:
Great PR
Networking and link building
Valuable advertising
Why your business should become a patron, and how to do it.
There are several great reasons why your business should consider becoming an artist’s patron – here are a few of them as previously mentioned:
1 – It’s great PR!
Supporting an artist enhances your brand’s image. Art carries that feel-good factor that can’t be faked; we all aspire to a bit of creativity and seeing it supported in someone else makes us feel as though it may be supported in us.
Your company will benefit from the association with culture and creativity, and of course, being an individual artist’s patron carries a lot of credibility.
2 – Networking and building links
As a patron you will certainly be mentioned on an artist’s site, and depending on your level of support, receive a link back to your website. That’s one way to naturally improve your SEO without looking spammy.
This is also a fantastic way to network with other like-minded businesses and individuals, and direct traffic back to your brand.
3 – Valuable advertising
Patronage is fantastic advertising for your company. As well as acknowledgement on an artist’s website and newsletter, you can negotiate promotion on their social media channels.
With artists who blog there is also the option to commission sponsored posts or directly support an individual post or page.
If your business produces physical products, you may be able to donate some of those goods to an artist who uses those materials in her work – providing a brilliant ongoing advertising opportunity.
Working with arts organisations or directly with artists
As an example of working with arts organisations, local companies have been able to take part in the Blackburn Festival Of Making by contributing funding and materials to create artist commissions. Artists apply for the commissions, demonstrate how they aim to respond to the brief, and create their work in the context of the event, which brings in lots of traffic for all parties.
Commissioning an artist directly can be even easier than working with an arts organisation as go-between – you can either invite artists to respond to a brief or approach your ideal art practitioner directly.
Being an artist’s patron gives you a pretty amazing feeling!
You may not be as wealthy as a Medici, but even a small recurring contribution makes a difference to an artist. Imagine being able to call yourself a patron of the arts!
How to leverage your position as a patron
You can make your support of the arts go further by integrating it into your own marketing campaigns.
Highlight your collaboration in your own newsletter, blog and social media.
Talk about how your support is benefiting your community, or how your acquisition reflects your company values, or makes your employees’ work experience better.
The weather was gloriously sunny and hot, and I knew it was a great opportunity to try out my Solarfast dyes… but guess what? I went out and had fun with my family instead.
I know – how could I? Seriously though, it was great. I did take advantage of the sunshine by throwing my fabric stash out onto the lawn, sorting through it and bagging lots of it to be passed on or sold.
The fabric storage is now the sculpture storage/cat bed.
But I can see that some of the dye tests that I did last month under a halogen lamp have actually matured in the natural light over the last few weeks, so it seems that what I considered to be dud test was actually proof that those dyes really just want the sun.
So yes, I do regret it a little tiny bit now that it’s rainy, but when the sun does come out again, I’ll be ready for it!
Branding, rebranding and brand tweaking
This week I started writing a post about branding yourself as an artist, and I ended up thinking so hard about my own branding that of course I had to do a bit of tweaking.
The good thing about trying to distil your knowledge into a blog post for someone else’s benefit is that you end up teaching yourself even more.
What really stood out to me though was the fact that you need to have confidence in who you are, what you want to do and why you want to do it.
Even when you already know that you can’t be all things to all people, there’s often a little voice in your head that whispers, “what if these people don’t get it?” and that’s the voice that makes you flip-flop back and forth, and get nothing done.
Anyway, I decided I needed more time to flesh it out with more resources so it’s not published yet, but I’ll link to it when it is.
The studio has been heaving with bits and pieces that made their way in over the last few months and I’ve finally managed the BIG SORT that I’ve been threatening (and dreading) for what seems like aeons.
Now it looks absolutely huge! But in order to create some more space I had to stack most of my books flat… why does this hurt me so much inside?
It’s just so wrong… but the trade-off means I’m just going to have to deal with it for now. I do have way too many books in here, but the art books are non-negotiable, period. So if they have to get stacked, at least they’re staying here with me.
Over the past few years I’ve built up an online publishing business by trial and error, and have ended up in the strange situation where I earn more from blogging than I do from my art!
There’s a lot of good, free advice out there, but unfortunately there’s just as much biased, low-quality information floating around as well.
It can be even more difficult to separate the general advice from the information that will be genuinely helpful to artists – specifically those working in a fine art practice.
There’s also the issue of several cognitive biases at play which means that the market becomes saturated with people barking the same things in the same space for the same reason, simultaneously creating the impression that blogging is something that everyone can do and should be doing, and that everyone who does becomes successful.
Neither of those statements is true.
You want to be a professional artist, not a professional blogger.
When taking in any advice, ask yourself how it will enhance your goal of promoting your art.
You may well find that professional art blogging actually is for you, but that should be a conscious decision. Lots of artists get overwhelmed at all of the technical aspects of blogging and digital marketing and decide that it’s too much for them. Just take the basics that will work for you and run with them, and leave the rest behind.
The benefits and pitfalls of blogging for artists
Benefits:
Search engine optimisation and link building can help your website get found
Blogging can build authority
A blog can provide an additional passive income stream
Pitfalls:
Blogging can consume your limited time and focus
Most blogging advice is geared towards different industries, and can appear out-of-place on a fine art blog
You may end up sounding like everyone else!
Should you start a blog for your art practice?
I do believe that you should.
The discipline of art blogging in itself can do a lot for your art practice, providing structure, motivation and a way to track processes.
Still, if it seems like too much right now, you should have a well-presented static website with the option to add blog posts at a later date.
Blogging can be exactly what you need to enable you to work from home or supplement your creative practice. I do wish I’d taken it up years ago. Yet, that doesn’t mean that everyone will be able to commit the time and energy to regular online publishing, and that’s ok.
For those who need an online presence but can’t commit to blogging, a static website is a good step.
It’s not as serious as naming your child, but it still requires some thought. Translating real-world concepts to the online world takes just that bit more consideration than some give it.
Feeling pressured to be everywhere at once? Welcome to blogging. Here’s why handing the front desk over to a bot isn’t always a good idea.
Is blogging worth it for artists?
I believe it certainly is worth it for an artist to start a blog. It can be a brilliant way to promote your business and supplement your income, all whilst wearing your pyjamas, if you so desire.
However, it can be a massive time-suck, and it can easily derail you into becoming a full-time blogger instead of a full-time artist!
As with everything, it’s best to go into it with your eyes wide open. I hope this helps you to do just that!
Another declaration of thrift – I spent absolutely nothing on art supplies in March! However… I still got some stuff.
Last month I received a package that I’d bought months before, but this time I was given a massive bag of fabrics by a friend. I’m a bit torn about what to do with some of them, but some are definitely going towards a very specific purpose.
The best bit was a green suede skirt that I’m planning to upcycle into a notebook cover and an apron for metal casting. That’ll have to wait until next month though, as I’ve been buying more leather fabric to add to it.
So just like last month, I’m going to share some of what I bought from Jackson’s Art in December – my last big supply spending period.
The paper arrived flat, packaged in a big cardboard box. Some of the paper was plastic wrapped, some of it wasn’t, but it did arrive uncreased and in good condition.
Printmaking paper, printing ink, extender and emulsion remover
I was really excited about finally making this order after what seemed like months of researching what kind of printmaking paper to buy for screen printing. Trying to find the right kind of printmaking paper online was a bit of a nightmare, but I’m beyond happy with these.
I’ll link to the finished pieces that result from them when they’re ready.
You’ll probably see from my other supplies posts that I’m not particularly loyal to one store or brand, but I’ll get the things I need from the supplier that gives me the best value. This time around Jackson’s was the best for the printmaking paper, Speedball and Permaset.
As for the ink and emulsion remover, you can see a bit of their results in the 100 Promises note.
