Your going to be hearing this a lot from me here on Art Palaver, as an artist you need to work on building a fan base first, then worry about selling your art. No matter what medium you work in, you can and should develop a fan base, a group of people who really care about you and your work. So much so that they will give you money to enable you to continue doing your work. Usually in trade for your art but musicians are learning a new way to get money from fans.
Recently, Marketplace, the Public Radio Show by American Public Media that is all about money did a short piece on musician Jill Sobule. Kai Ryssdal talked to Jill because fans gave her $85,000 simply because she asked for it. She wanted to raise her own funds so she could produce her own album and not use a record label. In return for their money she offered fans everything from a free digital download of the album ($10), to singing on the album with Jill ($10,000). And yes she had someone donate $10,000. This is an example of fans coming together to support an artist.
Here is the interview:
[audio:http://www.artpalaver.com/audio/marketplace_jillsobul_interview.mp3]
You can also find the text of the interview here.
Have you thought about your fan base? And when I say fan base I am not talking about that list of names in the book you’ve been setting out at galleries and shows. I am talking about the group of people you’ve made a connection with and who care about your work. The ones that get excited when they see you have a new blog post or an email from you lands in their inbox. Do you have those? If not don’t worry. I’ll help you get them.
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