Comments on: Markings #15 and More about Selling

By: Lisa Call

Lisa Call — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 17:26:28 +0000

As usual everyone had some really helpful comments for me on this thread. I have a lot of thinking to do in this area and right now I’m doing just that - thinking. I’ll be posting more on this topic later.

By: Alyson B. Stanfield

Alyson B. Stanfield — Tue, 26 Jun 2007 14:20:58 +0000

Lisa, I feel kind of awkward saying this because it sounds sadistic, but I am enjoying you struggle with this issue. A few years ago you were so adamant about not being interested in selling and now the temptation bug has hit you. I think you’ve been marketing your art all along–you just didn’t know it. Your participation in the dialog about art, particularly your contributions on this blog, are a big form of marketing. You have built a following in the process. Now . . . how is that mailing list coming along?

By: Anna

Anna — Mon, 25 Jun 2007 00:01:06 +0000

Hi Lisa - I came via Catherine’s blog Making A Mark and I find your blog most interesting, especially hearing you discuss planning, what it means to be an artist, etc. In terms of goal setting, I just wanted to add that I find that too many a goal under too many a heading may actually sap the energy right out of you, as if the left brain is trying to organize the right brain. I have set up a spreadsheet for the year, with a few different categories, including things related to the rest of my life! That way, I can see right away if I am overextending myself. I also find that as my goals (perhaps thanks to the right brain?) change, I do wisely to follow my intuition and revise my course. Thanks for a great blog!

By: Deborah

Deborah — Sat, 23 Jun 2007 23:24:31 +0000

Down time to garden or read books or whatever is as important as all the other stuff. It’s keeps you fresh. Just imagine all the ideas and solutions and new inspirations that are percolating while you are not directly focused on the art.

Have you considered connecting with interior designers? Maybe a person who designs for high end office spaces or other wealthy clients would place your work. I think the style and scale of your work would be perfect in a business setting.

By: Daniel Sroka

Daniel Sroka — Sat, 23 Jun 2007 00:42:08 +0000

You wrote: “should I even be aligning myself to the market at all? That is always my struggle - selling out.”

Ugh, you are NOT selling out! If you start quilting Mickey Mouse, then yes, you are selling out! But understanding the potential markets for your work, and how your can create products out of your artistic vision to fit those markets is not “selling out”. It’s just smart business. And if art is to be your livelihood, you need to think like a business.

By: Melody Madden

Melody Madden — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 23:14:08 +0000

Being an artist is downright hard. For me there is no question about that.. I feel it is continually a struggle. Is my pricing right? Am I selling out? So much work and sometimes it feels as if it is so little payoff in the end. I heard from the one of the galleries that represent me today that they wondered if I was still interested in staying with them as I had only sold 5 pieces of work a year for the past three years. I thought five pieces was pretty good but obviously they thought differently. The owner said she thought fiber art was difficult to move and that anything that was sold by a fiber artist was only covering the artist’s basic costs. She also thought perhaps I was pricing my work a tad too high. My work is not priced too high. I have been working in this field for almost ten years now and I am not willing to give it away. I have a show opening tomorrow and this really put a damper on how great I was feeling but it just goes to show how some gallery owners feel. Sorry Lisa, just though I would rant a little. Your work is fabulous……….keep it up. I so enjoy reading your blog

By: Kiandra

Kiandra — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 22:07:28 +0000

I read the last post, and was trying to think of something to contribute to the conversation, as I have been struggling with the same thing. For me it is a little different, I am a sahm, and my husband supports me both financially and emotionally, and lately my mother has seen what I am trying to do and has tried to help with what she can. Even with this support, it is still hard. I really relate to what Meagan and Jafabrit said, I feel that I have to prove to myself and them that this is legitimate and worth the investment of time and money (even though they don’t feel that way). Even more so, living off of one income, with two kids and a house is very tough, we make a lot of sacrifices (but gladly).

After struggling with this very same issue for the past year, I wish I had some advice to offer. What I can tell you I have done is to seek out other ways of making money with the same product. For example, I am going to start teaching community classes. It isn’t alot of money, but I can see where potentially it could be a decent amount to have coming in on an ongoing basis. In addition to bringing in some income, I realized that I would be reaching more potential buyers of my work, spreading the word of myself as an artist, and getting closer to my goal of writing a book.

I think that your work is hands down amazing, you are quite on your way to receiving more recognitiion for your work. The most important thing I’ve learned is not letting what you love to do, become work. Like someone else mentioned, take time away from your work, even the stuff you love to do to keep the passion there. And, go easier on yourself, people like me still admire you, and how far you’ve come, and what you contribute to the art quilting community.

I stand alot to learn from the way you price your work, I have underpriced myself, for fear of no one buying my work, but then I feel like I am cheating myself…and like cynthia said, I’m going to follow your lead…and value myself…which you already do.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend…enjoy yourself and take some time off, the answers will come.

By: jafabrit

jafabrit — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 21:08:55 +0000

I relate to Meagan in that I have been allowed to stay home 12 years and really work on my art full time. I don’t know how much longer I can do this, which means I will have to change my priorities. It is definitely a quandary. In the end though, I will continue to create, just not on the same scale. My thought is that I have all the tools in place business wise and art wise and so even if I can’t work on art/biz full time, I will be able to maintain the momentum.

By: cynthia

cynthia — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 13:47:01 +0000

I too think the best thing to do is to take your own advice and give yourself a day off once a week. Relaxation and rejeuvenation are important for anyone otherwise burnout will ensue.

I also like the way you price your work. I should follow your lead!

By: Sheila

Sheila — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 04:09:04 +0000

One the hardest things for a self-employed person to do is give her/himself time off. And every artist, whether supporting her/himself with the art or as an aside is essentially self-employed. It’s too easy to push yourself 7 days a week, even rationalizing it because you’re supposedly doing something you really enjoy. But you risk burn-out and you sound a bit close to that. Not burned out in terms of ideas and inspiration and desire to do the work, but burned out physically and mentally and perhaps emotionally as well.

So my advise to you is give yourself some time off - even from the stuff you enjoy - and recharge those batteries. Consider weekly “artist dates” with yourself, or time like you’ve mentioned to read a book or work in the garden without feeling guilty that you should be spending it “more productively.” Everything you do eventually feeds back into your art, whether you mean it to or not.

You may be surprised at insights that may come to you when you’re not specifically thinking about all this. A breather may let you come back wondering what all the fuss was about. Hey - it’s the first day of summer…play a little!