It reminded me of the potential leverage of past accomplishments.

As artists, we don’t make our resumes (CVs) a priority. We participate in swaps, group shows, and see our works published in zines and magazines… and all we do is tell our friends.

Everything that you do as an artist holds the potential to move your career forward.

No matter how small the project, or how many other artists were involved, your participation is still news.

It doesn’t matter if you were part of the project because it was open to the public and you simply signed up for it. Frankly, art collectors don’t always know which are invitational projects and which aren’t… and many don’t care.

It’s the quality of your work that matters, as well as the audiences that see it.

Sign up for every project that you can, if you can participate with quality work.

Then, be sure to add your participation — and a photo or scan of the art — to your website and your CV.

Some of your most powerful leverage is what you create for fun. That’s where the best energy can be, and it’s the energy — not necessarily the technical expertise — that separates mediocre art from art that soars!

For many people, success is about earning a living with art… and only art.  For others, it’s fame.  Yet others want to achieve a certain level of expertise or skill.

Your motivation may be different.

But, to achieve your goals–no matter what they are–it’s vital to dig deeper.

Earning a living

How much is ‘earning a living’?  Ask any rich person if they’re ‘rich enough’ and they’ll probably say no.  There’s always someone richer who seems to live a better, more lavish and happier lifestyle.

So, does ‘earning a living’ mean $280 a week?   If you worked a 40-hour week at $7 an hour, that’s what you’d earn, before paying taxes.  Is that enough?

Do you have another dollar value in mind?  Think about this.   Get at least a ballpark idea of the figure.  That’s the only way you’ll know how much your works (or performances) have to sell for, and how many you’ll need to produce to meet your financial goals.

I’ll tell you my financial goal:  It’s to make enough money to live comfortably (no yacht, but I’d like a nice house on the seacoast and an annual trip to see my daughter in Florida).  I want to be able to make my art without nagging worries about bills or expenses.  I have a general idea of how much that is, and what I need to do to reach it.

Fame

Many artists want to be famous.  Money is a secondary concern.

If you’re reaching for fame, what would it take to say, ‘I’m a famous artist’?

Would you need to be on the cover of a particular art magazine?  Would your art need to sell for a certain amount?  Maybe you want at least one of your paintings in a particular museum.

Until you know what you’re aiming for, you won’t know how to get there.

If all you do is work in your studio and hope that fame and fortune will find you… Well, you could have a long, disappointing wait.

If you want to be in a particular magazine, contact artists–preferably artists in your area, so you can chat face-to-face–who were in  that magazine.  You may already know someone who writes for that magazine, now and then.

If your goal is to sell your art for a certain amount at a particular art auction house, go to their auctions.  (Be sure that they sell contemporary art, not just art from the early 20th century and older.) Chat with the people who buy there and who work there.  Find out what sells for high prices and why.

(It’s best to talk with the staff when they’re not busy selling.  Just remember that they want you to be a successful artist, too;  selling art is the only way they make their commissions.  Generally, they’re always looking for new, popular art–and artists–as well.)

If you want your art in a particular museum, find out how other artists got there.  Did they build their way up through galleries and lesser museums?  Did someone on the acquisitions staff ‘discover’ them?

Skill

Many artists set a goal of being ‘as good as’ another artist.

Just as with fame and fortune, it’s important to define that clearly.

Maybe that other artist–or one who’s nearly as good–teaches classes that you can take.  Maybe you can study with the same person who helped them find their best ‘artistic voice’.

There’s always a path

No matter what your goals and how you define ‘success in art’, there is a way for you to get there.

However, just as you can’t go to the airport and say vaguely, ‘I’d like to go somewhere in Europe,’ you need to have an idea of where you’re going with your art career.

Once you’ve clarified that, you can see the next step to get there.  You’ll know what your next action is, to move forward.

Success in art is achievable.  You simply need to know what your goals are, and the next small step to move towards those goals.

Many artists don’t like to hear that, but it’s true.

When I was a Guest at Dragon*Con 2007, I visited the”Walk of Fame” to see a few friends and buy some autographed photos.

One of the busiest booths in the room belonged to James and Oliver Phelps, who portray the Weasley twins in the Harry Potter movies. In fact, fans were waiting in a line that went fromtheir booth to the door on the opposite side of the hall.

That line was so huge, it was so difficult to walk across the room to get to other booths. Several other celebrities weren’t happy… and weren’t selling many photos. They saw themselves as competing with the Phelps brothers.

What not to do

I approached one celebrity in the room, whose photo was on my “must buy” list.

I said hello. He looked at me somewhat sourly, and didn’t say anything. Well, that could be part of his marketing, since his onscreen character is scathingly sarcastic at times.

I asked for an autographed photo and paid for it. “Are you having fun?” I asked.

“As much fun as you can have sitting in a chair all day,” he replied with some annoyance.

“But isn’t this great, with so many fans and such great costumes to look at?”

“I suppose so,” he sighed.

I wished him a good day and walked off.

Figuring that I should give him a second chance, I returned to his booth the next day. His demeanor hadn’t changed, and no one was buying his photos.

What to do, instead

Throughout the convention, I kept hearing about Marc Singer. People raved & raved about him, talked about what a great person he is, how they’d have to see what he’s doing in films and on TV, and so on.

Why? It’s simple: He greeted people with a smile. Even though his booth was in a hard-to-find corner, he stepped out from behind the table, shook hands with people and cheerfully posed for photos. He clearly cares about the fans. (He’s an excellent artist as well.)

Even on the train to the airport, I was still overhearing conversations about how great Marc Singer is. With over a hundred big-name movie celebs in attendance, that says a lot.

How this applies to you

When I have a space at an art show or an arts & crafts fair, I sell the most–and win the most awards at the show–when I set up an easel or a work area… and work.

I position myself so that visitors can see what I’m working on, but they also see me in profile as I work. (In other words, I don’t turn my back to them.)

I chat with people as they walk by. I shake hands. I hand them a flyer or some freebie that has my website info on it, and a list of galleries and shops that feature my work. If I’m teaching, I mention my next gig. (Art shows are about PR as much as sales.) And, I continue to work.

People like to be able to say, “I bought her art, and I saw her working on something new. It was so interesting to see…”

You don’t have to create art at the show or fair. However, do something (smile, hand out something free…) that makes it easy for guests to interact with you.

In other words…

People buy your art, not just because it’s “pretty” or “interesting,” but because of the energy that’s in it. As an artist, you need to convey that energy personally, as well. That’s what confirms the importance of owning your art and having it in their home or workplace.

Put great, attractive energy into your art, and into how you present yourself.

The quality of your energy–and how accessible it is to others–is key. Decide to have a great time, no matter what, when you’re at an art fair or show. That’s what Marc Singer did.

No matter how frantic you are to sell, don’t get “needy” about it. (Needy people don’t get dates and don’t remain in relationships for very long. It’s the same in every context: That “needy” energy isn’t attractive. It’s a sucking black hole rather than an effusive and dazzling energy that people want to take home.)

Treat an art fair or show as if it’s a party and you’re there to meet very cool people. Be the life of the party, and you’ll win fans and customers.

” Your needs will be met once you can find a way of projecting energy and fulfilling someone else’s need.” — Stuart Wilde

“Making art is a lot about just seeing what happens if you put some energy into something.” — Kiki Smith

“In the end it all comes down to enthusiasm.” — Stuart Wilde

You may want to print out this series of articles, to follow as you set up your first Cafe Press shop.

Open a free Cafe Press account

The first thing to do is to set up a free account at Cafe Press. There are no set-up fees,
no printing expenses… You need nothing more than an image to use on your designs. If you are an artist or a photographer, you already have images to use. Just upload them to your personal image basket at Cafe Press, and you’re all set!

After choosing a username and password, you’ll be ready to open your own Cafe Press shop, for free.Next, select a shop name

Choose a name that’s easy to remember. Use your own name if you like! Later, you can upgrade from a free shop to a Premium shop with the same shop name. We’ll talk about Premium shops in another article. When you’re starting out, I recommend creating a free shop while you see how Cafe Press works.

You can have as many free shops as you likeYou can have more than one free shop, with just one Cafe Press account (username/password).

So, if you want a shop that features photos of your dog or cat, you can have one with just
those images. You can open a second shop that features photos or drawings of your goldfish.
And so on.

The only restriction on a free shop is this: Your shop can feature different designs on different tee-shirts, but you can’t select just one product design–say, a Jr. Hoodie–and offer it with a variety of different designs in one shop.

In my Premium shop, I can select one product–like a bumpersticker–and offer it with
several different designs.

Choose your first image

If you have an image or photo that you’ve already created, you can put it on a Cafe Press product. Or, if you have a copyright-free images (such as the ones on my image CDs), you can use any of them on your Cafe Press products, too.

You may want to mix an image and a clever quotation or slogan, or the name of your business. (The first Cafe Press product I ever saw was owned by my son. It was a baseball cap with the name of his favorite website.)

When you’re designing the images that you’ll put on your Cafe Press items, you may want
to use the templates that Cafe Press provides. If you’re designing a wall clock, this can be handy.

Or, you might prefer to know the precise dimensions of each product, so that you can create a graphic to fit it exactly. These sizes (and links to templates) are listed at http://www.cafepress.com/cp/info/help/help_image_sizes.aspx.

Remember to make your graphic at least 100 pixels/inch, and preferably about 300 pixels/inch.
Cafe Press provides some helpful information about images in their Help pages, if you want
more guidance. (Personally, I try to make images that are at least 150 pixels/inch, and I
upload them as PNGs or JPGs.)

Once you’ve created an image that you’d like to use on Cafe Press products, upload it
into your Media Basket (listed under “Sell Online”).

It’s that simple. Just visit, call or email the people who might hire you to teach.

Other than that, anything that I say reflects only my experiences and opinions. The one and only opinion that matters is that of the person who’ll write your paycheque.

That said, here’s what I’d recommend:

1. Develop your skills as an artist, and think of projects that beginners can tackle–and complete–in a two-hour workshop. And, put your art online at your own banner-free website. (This means being hosted by a service that you pay for.) Learn to use the search engines to attract visitors. (That’s an entire course in itself, btw.)

2. Approach local shops–even Michael’s–with an offer to teach. Also check with Adult Ed, town Recreation Departments, etc. They’ll generally tell you what they pay, or what you should charge.

Let them know whether you’re more interested in making money, or getting lots of exposure; that affects how much you’ll charge. Short, inexpensive classes will generally draw more students.

3. Teach. Teach a LOT. Make sure that every handout has a way for students to reach you… your website URL, your email, and offline ways for people to contact you.

Every time you teach, add that to your resume. At this point, I hardly ever use a resume, but sometimes it comes in handy. I relied on one often when I was a new teacher.

Also remember: It doesn’t matter if you don’t have a degree in art… or if you don’t have any degree. (I have an honorary doctorate, and that’s all.)

Your enthusiasm is what sells you as a teacher, most of all.

4. Keep expanding where you teach. Bigger shops, more students, and so on… that’s not only good PR, but it’s lucrative as well. Also, let TV shows know that you’re available. Many of them–such as HGTV’s “That’s Clever!“–are often looking for new artists to feature.

5. Apply at art events. Watch the websites of art events, to see if/when they say that they’re looking for teachers’ proposals.

A proposal generally includes:

-Class description, sometimes a short blurb plus a longer version-Photos and sometimes actual samples sent to the event organizers-Supply list (what your students should bring)-Your bio, including your website URL

-Your photo (either in a class, or your shoulders & face, aka a “head shot”)

-How much you want to be paid, per student (if you set the fees) and how many minimum/maximum students in each class

-How many days you can teach

-Whether the class is for beginners, intermediate, advanced

-Whether the class is process-oriented (you focus on materials and/or techniques) or designed to complete a project in class (product-oriented)

-How long the class is (sometimes events specify only full-day classes)

-The application form (often available online)

6. Send your art (or photos of it) and maybe articles to every place that you can find, for PR. This includes magazines such as Somerset Studio, of course, but also zines relating to art, as well as to the subject matter of your art if you’re working in a popular/themed genre.

7. Read as much as you can about your kind of art, as well as books about PR, about running a business, and specifically the business of art. Take courses–especially online courses–relating to this.

Keep doing all of this, steadily. If you let up, even for a few months, people assume that you’ve quit or something. The rule in PR is: If you don’t give them something to talk about, they’ll make it up, and it’ll usually be unflattering. So, keep the PR going.

Then, it’s mostly a case of waiting for things to open up for you. And, they will.

When to make changes

If your teaching career goes flat, you MUST make changes. Either start teaching something new in your field, or look for new places to teach. Every time you reinvent yourself, you are faced with the prospect of teaching at a loss, while you build up again.

If you teach a particular style of widget-making, consider how those widgets can be used in other fields. If you can’t get classes at the widget store, consider questions like these:

- Can you add widgets to a fiber project, to teach at a yarn or weaving store, or a quilting shop?

- Would a paper/stationery shop feature your handmade (or hand embellished) journals with widgets on the cover or the pages?

- Can your widgets be added to jewelry?

And so on. There are always new ways to look at your work, at your markets, and the places where students might be eager to learn what you can teach.

Your students come first, always

Put your focus on your students and ignore the paycheck as best you can. If you’re giving your students far more than they paid for, you’ll get word-of-mouth PR that’s invaluable. And frankly, that’s where the teaching gigs come from, most often.

It’s not far removed from saying, “Do what you love, the money will follow.” And, that is the sequence… do what you love first. If you love teaching, please teach.

(If you’re trying to teach just to make money, don’t even start. Really. The students can tell, and the experience will only make you bitter.)

Students pick up on how enthusiastic a teacher is, and how much he/she cares about them as individuals. That’s the most important part of teaching. If you get that right, everything else will fall into place.