Has the economy hit home for you? Have your sales changed? It seems no artist is safe from the economy we have put ourselves into. Have you changed the way you do things? Are you thinking about it? Let me offer up a few suggestions:
1. Turn it up a notch. When times are lean it becomes survival of the fittest. This is a good time to focus on your skills and be more intentional about being a better artist. By focusing on improving your art you will be moving towards setting yourself apart from other artists. You’ll stand out in the crowd.
2. Kick over more rocks. Think about what is important to you. Is it more important to be making art in any form, or to stick to your guns and make only the art you want to make? Are there commissions you’ve passed up in the past due to your artistic integrity? Now may be the time to reconsider them. And now is the time to seek creative work in places. Craigslist is a good place to start.
3. Maximize Internet marketing. The web is full of free tools you can use to promote yourself and your art. Whether it be MySpace, Facebook, Deviant, or your own blog, commit time each day to using these tools to get your art out there. Sit down and draw up a strategy for doing this. These options only cost you your time and can be a very powerful way to sell your art.
4. Get out in the world. Get your portfolio in order and head out into the world and show to anybody who will look at it. There are restaurants, coffee shops, bars, office buildings, government buildings, and of course galleries looking for local artists to decorate their walls. Do they know you? Have they seen your work?
5. Don’t watch/listen to the news. Taking in too much of the media can be paralyzing. Hearing about the job losses, foreclosures, and bankruptcies can foster a "why bother" mentality. Don’t buy it. Put on the blinders and keep working and keep going for it. Discover your own reality and draw your own conclusions.
I wish I had a magic formula for you. A tried and true way to prosper as an artist and to continue doing what you love to do. I can only offer suggestions and ideas. And I am know there are better ideas out there. What are they? What are you doing as an artist in these tough times? Tell me about it.
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Excellent advice. It’s easy in hard times to stick your head in the sand and wait it out. That’s not going to do you any good.
Now is the time for marketing, marketing, marketing. Social media is on the cusp of greatness and when it is used in it’s best light: communication, connection and creativity, it is an artists best friend…