In this episode of our podcast, we delve deep into the realm of social media, specifically tailoring our discussion to artists looking to elevate their online presence. The digital age has presented countless opportunities for artists to share their work, grow their audience, and engage with fans in novel ways. However, navigating the vast landscape of social media can be daunting. That's why we've crafted a comprehensive guide, offering 5 essential tips to truly master social media as an artist. Whether you're just starting out or are looking to refine your strategy, this episode  hopes to help you in your journey. Tune in to harness the power of the digital world and let your art shine brighter than ever!

This episode delves into the age-old trope of the starving artist and its relevance in today's modern creative landscape. From the romanticized struggles of past luminaries to the very real challenges contemporary artists face, we dissect how financial hardships, societal perceptions, and personal sacrifices intersect with pure artistic passion.  Join us as we journey through the canvas of sacrifice and dedication that colors the world of creativity and how much we should suffer for our craft.

Dive deep into the complexities of human identity as an artist. We unravel the many layers that define who we are. From the roles we play in society, to the values we hold, our cultural backgrounds, personal traumas, and even the ever-evolving digital realm, identity is far from static. 

Join us as we explore how the myriad of life's variables and dynamic events shape, mold, and sometimes even challenge our sense of self as a creative. We'll unpack the continuous journey of understanding and redefining what it means to be uniquely "you" in a constantly changing world. 

In this episode, we explore a fundamental aspect of the creative journey: learning to be okay with not being perfect. We delve into the process of being real and authentic with yourself as a creative individual.

Join us as we navigate the common struggles that artists, writers, musicians, and creators often face—the fear of not measuring up, the pressure to excel, and the self-doubt that can hold us back. We discuss how these challenges can be overcome by embracing imperfection as a natural part of the creative process.

Discover valuable insights and practical strategies for silencing your inner critic, cultivating self-compassion, and finding the courage to express your most genuine self through your creative pursuits. This episode is a reminder that perfection is the enemy of creativity, and your authentic, imperfect self is where the true creative magic begins. It's time to embrace your flaws, trust the process, and unlock your creative potential.

In this podcast episode, we delve into the dynamic world of art exhibitions and explore the merits and drawbacks of traditional juried exhibitions. We also discuss the pros and cons of online only exhibition opportunities.  Join us as we navigate the fascinating intersection of art and exhibitions. 

We delve into the ongoing AI debate that is happening in our artistic community. Join us as we explore the pros and cons of AI and it's impact on the art and creative communities world wide. This is an ever-evolving discussion.

From the challenges of letting go of familiar techniques to the exhilaration of discovering new artistic horizons, this episode delves into the emotional and creative rollercoaster that accompanies every transformative phase in an artist's career. Tune in to gain a deeper understanding of the resilience, adaptability, and sheer determination required to embrace change and thrive in the ever-evolving world of artistry

This podcast has been a love of mine for over a decade! However, over those years it was never consistent. I put too much pressure on myself to make perfect episodes and it ended with burn out after a few recordings. I put it on hold and would come back again months or years later. 

We are officially back, raw and real with very little editing. 

Do you want to become a better artist but don't know where to start. Have you thought about going to art school but don't have the financial resources or time? If so this video, podcast, and blog post is for you!

Since I felt this topic was important and I want you to make the things you love and improve on your craft, I created this blog to showcase both the video episode and the podcast (both a little different but have the same information).

 1. Be compassionate towards yourself and limitations. 
 2. Try not to overdo it when you feel good.
 3. You can always work on ideas even if you execute them right now.
 4. Understand you are more creative when you are tired and worn out and not at our best.
 5. Be adaptive.
 6. Do something that is collectively creative.
 7. Recognize even healthy people have issues around creativity in general.
 8. Little successes are everything, You did one brush stroke – good. You thought about writing your book – great! You thought of a great idea – wonderful!

SHOW QUOTES
“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, but rather, that which is most adaptable to change.” – 1963 speech delivered by Leon C. Megginson
 
Brené Brown’s research showed 85% of people (surveyed) remembered an event at school so shaming it changed how they thought of themselves and the rest of their lives. And half of them said their shame wounds related to creativity — being dismissed, embarrassed, or belittled in their attempts to “make things”

SHOW LINKS
 5 Inspiring Artists with Lupus & Other chronic Illnesses
 Your Best Creative Time is Now When You Think

Pointers to help artists sell their artwork more effectively online.

SHOW QUOTES
“Gratitude is the healthiest of all human emotions. The more you express gratitude for what you have, the more likely you will have even more to express gratitude for.” – Zig Ziglar

SHOW LINKS
How to Take Great Photographs of Artwork
 

 creative people, we need a space to be creative and make things, and all the better if it’s a dedicated creative space and not the kitchen table. In this episode, we give you some unconventional space ideas to help you carve out ideas to help create your own dedicated space. We show you how any space, big or small can be transformed into an area all your own. 

SHOW QUOTES

• My studio has a personality of its own. It can be a monstrous clutter from one end to the other or, at times, the very model of simplicity.  – Harley Brown 
• To have a sacred place is an absolute necessity for anybody today. You must have a room or a certain hour of the day or so, where you do not know who your friends are, you don’t know what you owe anybody or what they owe you. This is a place where you can simply experience and bring forth what you are and what you might be. – Joseph Campbell

SHOW LINKS
Laundry Room Studio
Art  Studio Spaces on Pinterest
Home/Art Studio Ideas Pinterest
Best Lighting for Art Studios & Work Spaces

 Visual Journaling (Art Journaling/Creative Journaling/Art Diary) has been around for years and is an activity that can help us be more creative, aid in working through issues or promote happiness by having a fun and expressing ourselves. Visual journaling is often rooted in art therapy to work through trauma, loss and as a tool for stress reduction, however, it can also be utilized to express joy, create a memory and/or memorialize something special. Creativity is cathartic.

SHOW QUOTES

• “Art doesn’t have to be pretty. It has to be meaningful.” ~Duane Hanson 
• “Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.” ~G.B. Shaw 

SHOW LINKS
Psychology Today: 10 Visual Journaling Prompts
Strathmore Visual Journals

One of the most coveted experiences by artists is securing a solo exhibition. There is a lot that goes into this aspect of an artists career, but we got you covered! In this episode, we provide useful information and direction to any artist interested in pursuing a solo exhibition of their dreams.

SHOW QUOTES

• Strive for continuous improvement, instead of perfection. Kim Collins 

SHOW LINKS
C&I Episode 7: Getting You Art Into Art Galleries
C&I Episode 4: Why You Need A Professional Portfolio & Website

 So you want to be a working artist that exhibitions work around the world, actually makes money for your creations and enjoys what they are doing, but you are not sure if you should go to art school or keep on with independent studies. In this episode we talk about both sides, give you some advice and tools to help you better make that decision.

SHOW QUOTES
You have to work your ass off, to be taken seriously in the art world.

The world is a university and everyone in it is a teacher. When you wake up in the morning, be sure you go to school. – T.D. Jakes 

You can do anything you want to. Follow your dreams because if you say you can’t do it, you will spend the rest of your life proving it. – Yog

SHOW LINKS

 How Much Does Art School Cost
Skillshare

ABOUT THIS EPISODE 

Ah, art marketing! The thing most artists and creatives hate about having a career in the arts.  Marketing is so important, however, it’s sadly missed as a part of the everyday process of being a working artist. Most artists and creatives just want to create pretty things, and hope that their work gets seen and sold, but that never happens without some effort in marketing. For example, if you had 100% of a day, it is said at the very least, 20% of that time should be spent marketing. Yet, some of the most successful artists and business people of the world treat it more as a 50/50 ratio. There are many ways to market your work; from social networking, contests, works in progress shots, going places to meet people and also giving back to your community. Marketing can be creative and fun, but if you don’t like it anyway I spin it, the truth that it’s still a necessary aspect of a successful career in the arts. 

SHOW QUOTES

• The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little extra. – Jimmy Johnson
• Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not: nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not: the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. – Calvin Coolidge

SHOW LINKS

Instant “NOOOOOO” Button

 So you’re sitting there looking at a blank canvas/paper or the piece you are working on has become so frustrating and not even close to the idea you had in the first place that the local trash can is looking mighty tempting. It’s common to go through creative block, are we offer some advice, along with some website, books and quotes to help inspire you to work through it and get to the other side – where greatness is just a step away!

SHOW QUOTES

• Comfortability KILLS Creativity! 
• Fall down 7 times, get up 8. – Japanese Proverb
• Life begins at the end of your comfort zone. – Neale Donald Walsch 
• A dream is your creative vision for your life in the future. You must break out of your current comfort zone and become comfortable with the unfamiliar and the unknown. – Denis Waitley

SHOW LINKS

My Interview on Entrepreneur on Fire
Runner Falls Down 6ooM Dash, Gets up = WINS!

 Pricing artwork can be very hard for artists just starting out and even those that have been at it for some time. More than anything it feels good to sell work, and feel like you are honored for your talent, however, you also have to make sure you are valuing your time, effort, talent, and creativity with a monetary value. In this episode, we help you with ideas on how to approach pricing your work.

SHOW QUOTES

• Pricing is actually a pretty simple and straight forward thing. Customers will not pay literally a penny more than the true value of the product. – Ron Johnson
• If money is your hope for independence you will never have it. The only real security that a man will have in this world is a reserve of knowledge, experience, and ability. – Henry Ford

SHOW LINKS

A Simple Formula for Artwork Pricing
7 Ways to Price a Painting (Depending on Personality)

ABOUT THIS EPISODE
In Episode 11 we interview California based artist Chet Zar who is notable for his dark visual art, make-up effects, and digital animation. He is most widely known for his work with Tool’s music and live videos and he designed and created prosthetic effects for movies such as The Ring, Planet of the Apes, and Darkman, but after being unimpressed with politics in the film industry, Zar took the advice of horror author Clive Barker, and decided to pursue his passion of producing original works and oil-painting which he is widely known for today as well.

SHOW QUOTES

• “Enlightenment is not imagining figures of light but making the darkness conscious.” Carl Jung

SHOW LINKS

Chet Zar
Tool
Art Marketing 101

We discuss how to get artwork into galleries as either a represented artist or part of an exhibition. We also talk about how to approach galleries, some things to avoid, juried vs invitational exhibitions, and much more.

SHOW QUOTES

• I no longer believed in the idea of soul mates, or love at first sight. But I was beginning to believe that a very few times in your life, if you were lucky, you might meet someone who was exactly right for you. Not because he was perfect, or because you were, but because your combined flaws were arranged in a way that allowed two separate beings to hinge together. ― Lisa Kleypas

We interview Jim Mckenzie who is a New York based director, designer, and animator for TV shows, commercials, and films as well as an established painter, sculptor, musician about upcoming his solo show at Copro Gallery, and his visions as a creator. 

SHOW QUOTES
I know one thing: that I know nothing – Socrates

LINKS
Jim’s Website
Copro Gallery
Chet Zar
The Making of King Gordo Video

We discuss fears associated with being a creative person. We touch on specific fears, what you can do about them and ways to move past them.

SHOW QUOTES

• I believe so much in the power of performance I don’t want to convince people. I want them to experience it and come away convinced on their own. – Marina Abramovic
• “The unreal is more powerful than the real. Because nothing is as perfect as you can imagine it. Because of its only intangible ideas, concepts, beliefs, fantasies that last. Stone crumbles. Wood rots. People, well, they die. But things as fragile as a thought, a dream, a legend, they can go on and on. If you can change the way people think. The way they see themselves. The way they see the world. You can change the way people live their lives. That’s the only lasting thing you can create.” –  Chuck Palahniuk
• Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? – Marianne Williamson

SHOW LINKS
Phobia List
How to Believe in Yourself in the Face of Overwhelming Self-Doubt – Tiny Buddha

We touch base on what it means to have an online professional portfolio. We talk about hosting, urls, WordPress, SEO, CMS, and how important it is to have a portfolio that best showcases your best more relevant work.

SHOW QUOTES

• The lavish presentation appeals to me, and I’ve got to convince the others. – Freddie Mercury

SHOW LINKS
Wix, Weebly, WordPress, Squarespace

Appreciating the nuanced nature of criticism is paramount. It's a common misconception that all criticism is inherently negative. In reality, criticism can encompass a spectrum of evaluations and feedback, ranging from the detrimental to the beneficial.

In Episode 3, we delve into this intricate terrain by exploring the dichotomy between constructive criticism and criticism in its broader sense. By dissecting these two forms of critique, we aim to shed light on the profound impact that well-structured, thoughtful feedback can have in contrast to criticism that may be unhelpful or destructive.

SHOW QUOTES

• Do you have enemies? Good. That means you’ve stood up for something, sometime in your life. – Winston Churchill
•  Criticism, like rain, should be gentle enough to nourish a man’s growth without destroying his roots. – Frank A. Clark

SHOW LINKS
How to Deal with Criticism Well: 25 Reasons to Embrace It

Ira Glass Video on “Good Taste”

“Nobody tells this to people who are beginners, I wish someone told me. All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But there is this gap. For the first couple years, you make stuff, it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not. But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you. A lot of people never get past this phase, they quit. Most people I know who do interesting, creative work went through years of this. We know our work doesn’t have this special thing that we want it to have. We all go through this. And if you are just starting out or you are still in this phase, you gotta know its normal and the most important thing you can do is do a lot of work. Put yourself on a deadline so that every week you will finish one story. It is only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap, and your work will be as good as your ambitions. And I took longer to figure out how to do this than anyone I’ve ever met. It’s gonna take awhile. It’s normal to take awhile. You’ve just gotta fight your way through.