Comments on: artists are entrepreneurs and marketers, too

By: Barry Howard

Barry Howard — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 21:38:40 +0000

these people are called “haters”…angered and frustrated by their own lack of success, or lacking the courage and ambition to work for it, they take refuge in denigrating those who do have the ambition and courage…
i see so many artists who have painted themselves into a corner, telling themselves that to be financially successful as an artist you have to sell out…funny…that doesn’t seem to be true of other types of art…musicians can get record deals, actors can get major roles…why shouldn’t painters get to be successful too? for me, i am done with that myth…i think we have to take responsibility for our own success in our careers…sitting around waiting to be discovered will insure our status as struggling, starving artists…we need to embrace success as part of the full expression of our work…success is what allows us to devote all of our time to our art.

By: Toni

Toni — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 17:01:49 +0000

As a choreographer, everyone’s comments resonate well. Performing folks have similar time crunch issues with make the work, present the work, market the work, raise the money to do all of the above. Portable online tools do help. Glad to see we’re all thinking about doing this ourselves rather than waiting for someone to do it for us.

thanks for listening,
Toni

By: Lori Woodward

Lori Woodward — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 16:11:28 +0000

Every time I sell a painting, my creativity soars… because I gain confidence in my ideas.

So, putting ample time into marketing in order to sell a painting indirectly feeds my creativity.

By: Zhenlian

Zhenlian — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 23:12:32 +0000

I have 3 websites, I have hoped that I can sell some of my paintings through my sites, to tell the truth I have not imagined that money will keep flowing in , I just hoped to sell one or two of my paintings, but I have given an impression to some people that I am an ambitious person and that I have intended to get rich by my websites, why do I have such an impression? Because I have recieved very malicious remarks about my websites, a guy has said to me ‘you won’t get anything by your websites, you only scare people’ Can somebody explain to me why do people have such reactions about my sites?

By: Keith Bond

Keith Bond — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 04:55:39 +0000

Thanks for the post.

Yes, many artists can be both creative and an entrepeneur. Why is it so hard to comprehend that artists with such creativity cannot be equally creative in the business duties? They can and many are. There are some who aren’t, but is it really that they don’t comprehend business or that they don’t take the effort?

Interestingly, an economics professor in college once made a comment which has facinated me after all these years. Both artists and entrepeneurs share many attributes. We are the same breed.

I am both.

By: Mrs. Z

Mrs. Z — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 22:06:47 +0000

Sadly, artists often discount the necessity of a business plan. Only in rare instances will art sell itself.

By: Stephen Tiano

Stephen Tiano — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 21:58:18 +0000

Well, off course, I’m not a drawing/painting artist, but I always tell people who are considering working as freelancers (designers, graphic artists, editorial types, writers, and production people) that easily 50% of the work of a freelancer is finding that next job.

It’s a neverending cycle: get the job, do the job, get the next job …

By: Mary Anne Davis

Mary Anne Davis — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 12:49:43 +0000

Marketing and being an entrepreneur are age old realities of the serious and successful artist. Albrecht Durer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albrecht_Durer invented etching so he could sell more images to more people. What I find the most difficult is keeping the filter clear so what comes through isn’t polluted. What gets made and focused on is what matters. Time spent cultivating relationships is time well spent. Cultivating the right relationships takes a bit of cunning, a bit of cold (icicle in the heart) because the editor is always present. A successful artist needs cold and heat (passion) to keep it going. Selling work? Child’s play. Staying focused and clear? The work of a master.

By: Daniel Sroka

Daniel Sroka — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 18:51:18 +0000

Reminds me of Thomas Edison, who basically created the myth of the “tireless inventor”.

By: The process of effectiveness « The Comparative Advantage

The process of effectiveness « The Comparative Advantage — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 09:02:53 +0000

[…] is the cartoonist Hugh MacLeod in his blog gapingvoid. This week he wrote a post titled: “artists are entrepreneurs and marketers, too“. The subject of the connection between art and business is a subject he writes a lot about […]

By: Hugh MacLeod

Hugh MacLeod — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 02:05:17 +0000

Thanks, A., I hope you keep coming back

By: Leslie

Leslie — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 02:01:27 +0000

When I’m focusing on creating, I need to keep my business head in the back round. Sometimes I get a creative idea when I’m in entrepreneur mode.
I think our generation can do both.
I’m much better at marketing other people’s stuff tho.

By: Adrienne Fritze

Adrienne Fritze — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 22:28:27 +0000

Glad to have stumbled upon your blog — I love it. Found you through Amazon…

,
A.

By: Hugh MacLeod

Hugh MacLeod — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 15:43:17 +0000

“Do you find that as the entrepreneurial and marketing tasks grow the creativity shrinks?”

For some, yes. But not for all. Picasso thrived when he was busy & successful.

By: Aaron

Aaron — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 11:01:29 +0000

Business is a crazy type of performance art that needs to get the message out to the right people. If not, it is considered unsuccessful.

Ironically, when artists aren’t able to get their message out, that somehow earns them street cred.

Artists and creators of all types need to learn how to send the right message to the right people or suffer the consequences. Otherwise, what are they? — selfish, dense, lazy? Hard words, but where’s the truth?

–former music comp major, business owner