Replies: 27 Comments
on Sunday, August 17th, Art Fashion Jewelry said
As a glass artist, I must admit to having had many of the same feelings early in my endeavors. I have donated pieces of glass jewelry that did not receive bids or received very low bids. However; I always try to focus on the fact that sold or not, I have given of myself for a good cause and only donate to causes I believe in. An artist has to put themselves out there, all the time and no matter how often we say we do not care about the opinion of others, we still must because any professional artist must eventually sell their work. I have no issue with doing custom work that is outside what I most enjoy - if it pays the bills and allows for me to not go into the hole, then I see no issue.
Mendy
on Thursday, July 31st, Nantucket Art said
Great to find another site showcasing new Art talent. Intelligent article too. Thanks for doing what you do ;)
on Sunday, July 27th, Ellen said
Maquiamelo- Art will fulfill your needs in one way or another. It is very sad that your country cannot acknowledge you and puts limitations on your creativity. But your spirit shines through! I wish you the very best!
on Thursday, July 24th, maquiamelo said
Thanks Ellen for your words and your honesty, sometimes art is hard, and we have both, the need to show and the need to not show. I was censured by the government of my country Colombia for the connotation of my artworks, after 10 years of exile I decided to not show my work to nobady anymore, except a few collegues and friends(with a bottle of red wine) , more important is to create, is good if you can sale your art but artist like george Andreas can show us the way to foght against art market, I hope you find well. Regards, Maquiamelo
on Monday, July 21st, Ellen said
Hi Yuri-
If I can be of further help you can certainly contact me. I appreciate your finding my blog informative for others. That was the reason I wrote it even though it was difficult to write.
Thanks, Ellen
on Sunday, July 20th, yuri365@gmail.com">yuri said
Ellen, tank you for your blog, it is very helpfull to me. You see, I am writing a manual on "how to become an effective art gallery salesperson" and your blog provides some interesting aspects to an art gallery owner. Some of your feelings expressed in your blog will be referred to in my manual in a section on Ethics "understanding your owner/artiss, to be more specific.
on Saturday, July 19th, Ellen said
Ditto! Good luck to all!
on Saturday, July 19th, good blog said
It takes courage to admit that going down every alley is fruitless. We are told to "put it out there" but getting it out there is difficult. There are a lot of dabblers who call themselves dealers, critics or fellow artists and their motivations are not our motivations. I don't enter shows that cost money to enter or have a portfolio reviewed. Why should I pay to get rejected? Name me another profession where you pay to get rejected. You have to be willing to pass by the bogus opportunities and trust your intuition about what might be worth it to you and what isn't. Good luck to us all!
on Sunday, July 6th, Ellen said
Thanks for the offer Oomph....may take you up on it some time.
Beverly- Keeping art alive is the key! Thanks.
on Saturday, July 5th, Beverly Kaye Gallery said
Thanks for your honesty. Even dealers are wishing they had another source of income in these difficult times. But we all have to be true to our vision and readjust our priorities. Private dealers do shows, artists look for alternative spaces, we take other jobs to pay bills, but all along, we try to keep the art alive, and refuse to make creative compromises.
on Friday, July 4th, oomph said
Im thinking i feel the same, you should try the same as me, make up a page or you are welcome to put your work on my oomph page.
on Thursday, July 3rd, Ellen said
Chandana- I have discovered that a good relationship with people overseeing a gallery/ fair or other space is my best bet. I search for people who want to promote MY ART, not those who want to fill their spaces with stuff. If the promoters/representatives are sincere, they will be able to help you with pricing. If you are selling privately or on commission, pricing becomes (to me)"what the traffic will bear," or what I can live with. All the best to you!
on Wednesday, July 2nd, chandana said
i totally totally agree with you,as a rookie i have no idea where to start,and as you said what to show where to show when to show.i get like atleast 5 mails a day saying this work of mine is so good,so amazing ,but i dont sell any.it leaves me confused ,is it my pricing or is it me or what is it?it leaves me frustrated and then i get back sedated thinking it doesnt matter i'm gna get bck at all of you , i am gna prove myself , i am gna get my recognition and bliss.but deep down i doubt if i'l make it there :( i have this urge to scream out loud " somebody help me"
on Wednesday, July 2nd, C said
One must live pure to die pure. same thing
on Wednesday, July 2nd, Ellen said
Brad- Absolutely right! Showing takes lots of time and energy away from working in the studio, but...I also would prefer to work forever and thank all the powers that be that I am still able to continue.
Pedro- an honor!
Jose- as we have gone back and forth in other blogs, the excellence of the work is forever the goal. Showing is good when the work is right & a nice bank account...well it's like cat nip: keeps me painting! We share that angst.
C- Why die pure when you can live pure?
Barney- your encouragement is wonderful! My sincere thanks!
Thanks to all who have written in: this was a difficult blog to write. As the saying goes: "Meet you all at the top of the maoutain!"
on Tuesday, July 1st, Barney Davey said
Hi Ellen,
Nice piece you have presented here. It is the ages old conundrum faced by all creative people. Who am I making this art for? It also draws the line between professional and amateur. The latter being no less talented, but perhaps less willing to make the art pay.
When work is the price you pay for money, artists who make a living through their creativity often make compromises. The reality is those of use who do rather mundane things trudge through our version of repetitive, sometimes soulless drudgery in order to pay the bills.
I'd say be thrilled you have the ability to both make your art pay and the intellectual capability to realize you want to do more than satisfy the hoi polloi's need for a decorative over the couch piece. After a day of making sales in an industry with nothing to about art, I go home and blog about art and consult with artists. I couldn't do the latter to my satisfaction without the former supporting it. I've come to accept this is the way things are for me and to realize it is pretty much the same for most others. We do things for commercial gain in return for the freedom to do things we enjoy when not otherwise employed working for "The Man."
Keep up the good work and the chin. Don't forget you have achieved more than many artists ever will, and have done so with energy and creativity left in the tank!
on Tuesday, July 1st, C said
Is their life after selling out?
Can the soul repair itself enough to make good art?
Is it better to suffer, starve, and remain unknown than to give your soul to the devil's evil dollar and make crap?
Staying true to your own art has higher rewards than the measly comforts brought by the money from teaching and sales of crap.
Die pure.
Expand the universe.
on Tuesday, July 1st, josé said
A great blog, Ellen, touching on subjects that we have all confronted at one time or another – the fear of being forgotten, the longing for validation, the enthusiasm that we sometimes allow to go over the top and probably gets on people’s nerves… This last one is maybe the easiest of all to tame. The first one is complicated: everything around us is geared to make us think that we have to be omnipresent or be forgotten – but think about, if you press the stop button on the madness we are engulfed in and don’t allow yourself to be carried away, what conclusion do you reach regarding the things that touch you – even within all the madness? I myself find that the things that touch me and become important are not forgotten, I know pretty well where to go look for them and even feel impelled to go look for them. The being forgotten thing maybe fatal in regard to high-tech business ventures and investments where you would want to see a quick and high return. But Art? Art escapes all that. If it touches you once it touches you forever, you’ll never forget who, where or how. So that’s what we have to try to aim for in our own work. But, and here’s the rub, if we do opt for a longer sabbatical in our exhibition history, the next time we show up we better have work that is capable of washing away the time that went by – it’s not the number of shows we manage to fit in to be remembered, it’s the work that counts, and one good show in five years is better than 5 mediocre shows for every one of those years. As for validation, Oh heck, I’ll never get over that one, but I’m glad it hasn’t come yet because I doubt I would keep myself on my toes as often as I should if I had a nice fat bank account.
on Tuesday, July 1st, Pedro Nunes said
Excellent Blog...glad I found a new source for checking out what's new and hot in the Arts...Thanks for writing good content!!!
on Tuesday, July 1st, Brad Michael Moore said
Thanks for the perspective, Ellen. I think I would become very bored as an artist if I were to become famous whilst in the "Still Working," portion of my career. I hope I will be arting till the day I die - however, I also understand that not everyone can stay on their top game their entire adulthood. People take on injury, illness, and other assorted baggage that will weigh one down. So, guess I am saying - how wonderful to be making art - who cares how well it is doing now? How well you are doing, and how you feel about your work is what is most important in carrying on through your day-to-days... If I were exhibiting all the time - when could I find the time to catch the wave again and create to my stream of thought. Distractions are an artist's worst enemy. If you lead a very busy life - then holding on to a string that tethers your work through the times is hard enough. Never mind what someone else thinks - that will bring you madness. When you can be satisfied by the mark of your own measure - that is your ticket home.
on Monday, June 30th, Ellen said
Andrew, you are quite right: disappointment has always driven me. I wonder about those who have "made it" early and can coast.... And, I know that many of my negative experiences have impacted me and my art in powerful ways. Positive ways. Mishaps and obstacles have made me a stronger person and a more focused artist.
Walt, Mark-- the first time I heard a painting of mine called a product, I became physically ill. However, I realized that I was not creating a product, I was creating my art. It is one more obstacle in my path to have those who are unaware/ignorant of what I am attempting to create call it product. Long ago I stopped making mosaic ashtrays...actually, I never enjoyed making them. I liked taking the mosaics in arts and crafts sessions and gluing them to the desk to create landscapes. My teachers didn't like that!
on Monday, June 30th, Mark said
I don't think there is a fine line between product and art, I think it is a wide sixlane highway. What determines the line is the artist, and the path they decide to follow. I agree with Walt that if it is product then it is no better the a 'Home Interior' piece of crap sold in a catolog or a Thomas whats-his-name 'Painter of Light' piece of crap. If the artist has put their all into the work, their heart, their soul, all their feelings and emotions, then it will make people take notice. Will it make you rich and famous, maybe, probably not, but at least the artist knows they created the best work they could at that time and will move on to do better with each work to come.
on Monday, June 30th, Andrew said
Ellen, what we tell ourselves about who we think we are and why we're doing what we're doing, is the product of the experiences we've had. I'd say that if all the experiences were positive, re-enforcing, and legitimizing of our work, then we'd be missing a big part of what leads us to do something better. Ambition to be recognized can be a driving force, a supercharger for our artistic motor. Constant disappointment gives us something to rail against, momentum with which to break down the wall and reach out to the millions of people who really don't give a crap about us or what we do. In my own lifetime, I've gotten through to maybe a few dozen, and that has made it all worthwile. I'm the first to say I don't do my work for myself. I have a story to tell, and it wouldn't be very fulfilling if there wasn't anyone listening.
on Monday, June 30th, walt said
art is really quite different than marketing any other product. It has unperceived value that so outways its actual cost or expense. When business men try to access it in the usual ways it ruins everything. Sorry if someone out there is making an artistic product just to make money. But at somepoint it ceased to be art and became a product. You are probably not the artist who will be known as one who changed the world of art or even one who added to the artistic content of the world. That product just becomes another knick-knack, another celebrity poster, another football jersey behind a frame.
It is a very fine line between product and work of art. It is so easy to trip over and fall. To each their own. One way or another a price is paid. Either you make something that sells but loosens the bonds of deep art, or you make deep art that know one gets or wants cause it makes them think about things they don't want to think about. Nothing wrong with making money. But money is not a deep aspect of life...just necessary.
on Monday, June 30th, Ellen said
Thanks Mark! Thanks Walt! It is often difficult to talk about past mistakes and failures without sounding needy (which I did not intend). I'm glad that the blog was, as intended, useful, in some way, for myself and others. Being my best always involves glancing backwards as well focusing on the future!
on Monday, June 30th, walt said
Thanks Ellen. Its important for all artists to hear this. We are all too often "horny" for recognition and validation. We are often taken advantage of because of this. Promises of exposer are almost never be worth the effort. They get free art we get nothing. And as I always say, artists die of exposure. Donations to charities sound good. But they must be carefully chosen. Otherwise you are giving away perfectly good art at disount prices. In the long run it hurts the value of what you make. Showing in every little venue that 'wants' you? Most of them just want free decoration on their walls and free or cheap marketing. Unless they are willing to contribute to the opening, advertising and have a client list for you to look over, and either take only a small commission or no commission then most likely it is not a valuable venue.
These are all pitfalls that most young artists fall into. None of these venues or circumstances will be noticed by the art world or the local citizenry in general. It is the great anonymity, a great cloak that will cover the life of an artist. If you're going to do things like this you might as well become an illustrator or commercial designer and make some money.
You have learned, like many of us, the hard way. Art is primarily from within you. It is a rare 'other' who will ever quite get it. Let alone know how to help you move forward. As Cezanne used to say "Don't let them get their hooks in you". Never realized what he meant by that until I'd been through some of what you've been through. Now it makes perfect sense.
Gotta do what you gotta do Ellen. More power to you.
on Monday, June 30th, Mark said
'To be the very best I can be at my art.'
That I think is all we can hope for and work towards. Validation from others is like icing on the cake, the substance of your/our validation has to come from within. I too have 'compromised' myself in the past thinking it might help my career, well, it didn't. Sticking to what I wanted to do has been a long and hard path but maybe finally beginning to work and if nothing else, I know I 'Did it my way.' I think it best that each artist go down their path and go where it takes them and not let others sway us in a direction we do not want to go, even if it does promise fame and fortune.
Ellen, a very good blog that I hope all beginning artists, or those who are questioning themsleves will read and take to heart.
As an artist, I am always tempted to show my work: any of my work. I work very hard to perfect my art and I want and need approval for my efforts. Then, too, I am producing visual creations. The main reasons for creating my art are to express myself through my art and to have others view the work. The question is what do I show? To whom do I show it? When do I show it? Where do I show it? And the answer, I suspect, lies in what I expect to gain from showing my work. I have always known the questions and the answer, but it has taken me a long time to refine and define. Recently, a wonderfully insightful photographer told me to focus solely on my objective and the rest will come. I do believe he is right. 
Another time I painted a commissioned portrait that was exhibited (as an example of a portrait that I would paint for the winning bidder) in a charity auction and my donation did not receive one bid. It was, needless to say, a humiliating experience. The attendees at the event bought commercial silver jewelry, sporting goods, and restaurant dinners. Fine. I was showing my work to the wrong crowd for the wrong reasons. I had been told that I would receive great publicity and garner countless commissions. This did not happen, but I learned a very valuable lesson. When I occasionally donate a piece to a charity event there is one proviso: the piece MUST be sold, even if the solicitor has to buy it. Otherwise I will not contribute. There were also the times that I sought out galleries to satisfy the urgings of friends and acquaintances who thought I would have a good chance to exhibit my art at locations of their choosing. On one occasion, my Father's oldest friend suggested that I contact his community center's gallery in New Jersey. To please him, I did. I was rejected for a show that I did not want and felt upset that a) I considered the venue for amateurs to begin with and b) I had given in to an idea that was, in my opinion, a fruitless activity. That is not to say that I would not show in a community center that I felt would showcase my work to its best advantage; or a library, coffee house, restaurant et al. The point is that I must choose and not be accommodating to please others through exhibiting my art.
