How To Transition Into A Full-Time Art Career
For many artists, the transition from being a hobbyist to fully committing to an art career is not easy. However, once you have made this decision for yourself it can be one of the most rewarding decisions you will ever make. We’re here to help you ease into this exciting and courageous change in your life with our handy list of tips. Let’s go!
Tip #1: Overcome Imposter Syndrome
Imposter syndrome feeds off the idea that you’re not enough and by extension neither is your work or many aspects of your life but we’re here to reassure you that your work is enough. Trust your abilities and continue to learn. In fact, Artwork Archive lists “giving up the not enough mind frame” as the number one thing you should give up to be a successful artist - “Successful artists don’t frame things around “not enough.” There is never enough time, not enough money, not enough confidence, not enough of whatever it is at that moment to make or do what you need to do to be a successful artist.”
According to author and impostor syndrome expert Dr. Valerie Young, “the nature of creative work makes everyone more vulnerable to feeling inadequate and even more so if you are not classically trained” and what makes things more difficult is the subjective criteria used to critique and even covertly assign value to your work.
One of the best ways that we’ve found to be useful when overcoming imposter syndrome is to take a moment to reflect on your journey - where you began and where you are now. This process will help you to realize how much you’ve grown and learned and how much you will continue to grow and learn as your progress.
Tip #2: Develop a business plan
Business plans are so helpful for tracking and staying accountable with your future goals, mission and values. According to Art Business Journal, “a solid artist business plan provides an accurate assessment of your creative product (your artwork) and the market research to show the demand for your work — who will buy it. Financing your business is an essential part of the plan to identify various forms of revenue, anticipated expenses, and ways you can secure money upfront if needed. Finally, an artist business plan will detail actionable strategies and metrics for growing and sustaining your business in the short- and long-term.”
In Art Business Journal’s comprehensive step-by step guide to creating your artist business plan, they outline the first step as Defining Your Vision, Mission, and Goals. To do this, you can ask yourself questions such as:
What type of art do you create?
What’s your medium?
What are you trying to communicate through your work?
What are the likely uses for your work?
Does your work belong in a gallery, or is it better placed in a commercial space like a hotel or office?
Will you need gallery representation or are you taking a freelancer approach to secure your own gigs and clients?
How will you sell your work?
Is success living off of your work? Getting museum or solo exhibitions? Getting paid to do public or private commissions? Licensing your work?
Asking yourselves these questions will be a good guide to better understanding what you want to achieve so you can formulate a path to reaching your goals. This will also give you insight into how you will market your art according to your target audience (i.e) who will buy your work.
The next step is to create your marketing strategy. This will be your guide to where you market your art (ie. Which platforms you will use ex. Facebook, Instagram, Saatchi Art etc.) as well as who is your target audience, what are your business goals and in what ways will you measure how successful you have been at achieve if these goals. Ensure that the goals you set for your full-time Art career are SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achieveable, Relevant, Time bound).
For example, you can say “By November 2021, I want to submit my work to Boynes Emerging Artist Award ;)” or by April 2022, I want to be represented by a local gallery that is beat suited to my style, subject matter, etc.
The last thing to do is to implement your plan! You don’t want to just have a plan that you don’t actually follow or use. Make sure to try and achieve all the goals outlined and remain accountable so your art career can progress.
Tip #3: Build your portfolio
Your portfolio is one of your greatest assets as an artist and an essential component in your business. Simply put, it’s a visual representation of your achievements, progress, and so much more. Typically, it’s also one of the first things that potential collaborators or prospective buyers sort after to review your credibility and learn about your history and your work.
To build your portfolio, you should start by including high quality images of your best work. It’s essential to showcase all your effort, time and energy in the best light possible and great quality images sets to the tone for your brand and standard. It will also be useful to include working links that direct viewers to your website, social media, newsletter subscription form, etc. Equally, also always ensure that your portfolio is up to date!
Tip #4: Look over your pricing strategy
Pricing is undoubtedly one of the most important elements when it comes to selling your art and transitioning to a full-time art career because it can literally make or break you. You don’t want to price too low and literally become a starving artist, nor do you want to price too high that our price yourself out of the market. We’ve compiled the Do’s and Dont’s of Pricing Your Art so you can perfectly price your work so that without breaking your clients’ wallets or making it difficult on yourself financially.
Extra advice from artists who have made the change
Phoenix based artist, Wij.. - “If you believe in yourself and have money saved, then know that it's 100% possible. There is never going to be an absolutely perfect time to make the transition. I will say this though.. if you have a fall-back, you're going to not work as hard. When you treat it like it's your way to eat, then you will have a better chance to make that a reality. If you treat it like a side hobby, then it will forever be your side hobby until you put 100% focus and dedication into it. It truly is what you make it. You must believe and dial in on the process of becoming an artist. After all, it's the process that separates the strong from the weak...”
Melanie Reese - “Being an artist is also being a business owner. A website is a requirement, social media presence is a necessity, keeping an inventory is crucial, and an ability to sell artwork directly is not only possible but desirable and with that comes the responsibility of understanding the intricacies of the art market.”
Caitlin McCollom - “I highly recommend finding a mentor who can show you the road ahead while you're getting where you're going… I would also tell myself to stay positive and know that it IS possible to be a professional artist. I got so many discouraging messages saying my dream was impossible, making it took much longer than I wanted to become a full-time artist. But, it's totally possible. It just takes a little ingenuity and hard work.”
Resources
How To Be Ready To Transition Into A Full-Time Art Career - Artwork Archive
How To Be Ready To Transition Into A Full-Time Art Career | Artwork Archive
7 Steps To Becoming A Full-Time Artist - Life Hack
https://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle/7-steps-becoming-full-time-artist.html
The Path To Becoming A Full-Time Artist - Artist Replete
https://artistreplete.com/blogs/blog/the-path-to-becoming-a-full-time-artist