Art for the Entrepreneurs: Artrepreneurship

For other young artists like myself - I implore you. I have an entrepreneurial spirit, a sharp learning curve and the desire to be better. In past endeavors this spirit has led me to sell cookies to classmates in primary school - or selling drums from Ghana in college to make it through my last semester. I get energized when thinking about a new way to sell something or a product that may really catch on. I've had lots of ideas and different outcomes but my realization about art has been a recent one that I'd like to share with you.

This is my mantra, "I am most valuable when I am making art"

Simple, yes. But no matter how much time I read about developing websites or selling odds and ends or bartending or consulting the fact is that if I work on a painting for 5 hours that sells for $1000 - then I am working for $200 an hour. Besides monetarily, I am most *myself* when I am making art because I express myself when making art. Art is where I communicate ideas and make concepts manifest on canvas. When I am making art I not only am being productive in a money sense but I am closest to being who I really am - and that is where I find value.

Before this realization I saw the value in making art - but art did not stimulate my entrepreneurial cravings. To me, art was something I made, I got to a gallery, I waited for someone to see it and contact me, I sold it... Not only is this system non-stimulating but it is also extremely passive. I know my gallerists are sometimes working to get my work known and sold - but as an artist am I *only* a production machine?

My recent merging of the two spirits have brought me to a place where I see my art as a product and that I need to taken the lion share of ownership in marketing it and getting it out there. This is my personal artrepreneurial revolution. I recently did a painting of Obama which I then scanned professionally and have available for reproductions on my site. This is not the end, however, my artrepreneurial revolution involves creating yourself as an online artist that mingles with other artists the way artists have done in communities for ages. This involves the fact that as an art lover myself I cannot afford even a modest piece of art. My reaction to that is looking for ways to not only make my art more accessible to many demographics but also to make it affordable. Many people my age may be more likely to invest in a digital image of an artist's work to 'hang' on their social networking page. Some people may be more likely to buy a skin for their laptop, cell phone or ipod that has an artist's image on it than a painting to hang on the wall.

Once I realized the power of an image as a product - my role as an artist will never be the same.

I would love to hear your feedback - where are you in your career as an artist? Are you considering different marketing strategies? Have you come to grips with the reality that as an artist you are the producer, the marketing rep, the salesperson, the accountant, the web designer and the CEO of your company: I'manartist inc.?

For quick resources on artrepreneurship - check out these sites:
www.theartrepreneur
www.judydunn.blogspot.com/
www.artbizblog.com/
www.arts-careers.com/
www.artpromote.com/resources.shtml

That should start you off with the art business stuff - check out these sites too though:
http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/
http://www.gmarketing.com/
http://www.webmarketingezine.com/

The book that addresses my specific concerns and desires has yet to be written - it takes compiling different ideas from different people to make something that makes sense to you.

So - What do you do?

This question probably more than any other question related to my work sends my mind in a hundred different directions. I'm sure many artists struggle between their identity as members of the "real working world" and as artists. At times it takes split second tempering to decide what kind of answer the person is really looking for. A lot of times I cop out and go with my "real world job" as my answer. "I'm a bartender." .... as if I wasn't *really* an artist.


While I don't believe that people should wrap their identity up with what they do to make money - there are certain things that cannot escape the day to day reality of what you do.


After painting for 13 years I am only now coming to grips with the fact that the answer to, "what do you do?" is, "I am an artist."


Okay, the next question is "Oh - what kind of art do you do". This is the real source of dread for me in answering the question because I am doomed to understate my mission. My canned answer is "I paint people".


In case I ever meet you and I give you this canned, halfway answer - here is the real answer. "I paint people in a way that diffuses the social construction of race and casts the subjects of my paintings in colors that do not reflect the melanin-esque realities but the reality of humanity. I want to not only paint humans as humans (and not members of melanin groups) but in an empowering way that speaks to their most realized identity." This usually will lead to people assuming that I think race doesn't exist. Here is my response, "To say that when I look at a black person I don't see color would be ignoring the reality that they have a heritage rooted in their historical context as an heir to their race. But I do believe that the constructs we call 'race' our contrived and social in nature and while recognizing that someone's skin color may influence their identity; I believe that as humans we have stronger ties to each other than as members of our races."
At this point, depending on who I was talking to, would give me a look of consternation and ask, "are you saying that you don't believe there are inequalities or other consequences of race?" No - I am not saying that. I am saying, in reaction to the inequalities and consequences of race and ethnicity in the world I want to create an environment through my art where people can look at people with fresh sight - beyond the visual baggage we have inherited.


This conversation may or may not continue depending on the interest level of my conversation partner... the thing that makes this conversation difficult to spring on people is that it is an involved process that has many facets. So while trying to think of a concise explanation I want to be able to express the meaning behind my paintings.


Try me sometime when you bump into me - or shoot me an e-mail. Ask me, "What do you do?" and be ready for me to ask you.