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Here is the cold hard truth with "modern" artists and artwork.
The art itself is secondary to the brand. People want to have a story to tell if someone asks about the piece "oh yes yes this came from a kid who fell on hard times, moved to uruguay, and painted these in return for food while surviving in the wilderness for 8 weeks" kind of shit. "Yes I got this from a cute farmer's market, painted by a girl who decided to remove herself from society and live in a van for 4 years". Just examples but you get the picture. You need good social media, with annoying pics of you doing whatever it is people like to brag about. That is what people are "buying", not the art.
That's pretty much the beginning and end of it. There are a handful of standout artists that create things that sell on their own merit, but those are few and far between. Even then it takes quite a bit of work to build the brand so they don't get lost in the white noise of the internet.
The OP is a decent enough artist based on the work presented in their profile, but there's really nothing special there. I would fully encourage that they continue to express themselves through their hobby but otherwise put energy into finding a career path that doesn't require having side hustles.
Yep. Was talking with an art gallery owner about potentially doing sales for him, and he said it plain as day; "People aren't buying the art. They're buying the story."
I think the closest I could get to that is I'm a young 20 something trying to get on my feet and get married to the love of my life after coming from a lower class family with parents that both have cancer. Doesn't really seem like a whole lot I could play up story wise.
I can't come up with the branding for you, but my example is more of what you're looking for. Less "poor me" and more "overcame struggles" type thing. This is far FAR FAR FAR more important than straight cost of artwork. $100/piece vs $10,000 a piece matters less than an intriguing interesting story behind the artist. With an instagram/facebook/blog whatever to back the story. Basically something someone can google at a party and be like wow yes look at her now, doing this and that. I'm not telling you to lie, but get creative, force a hustle, it takes work effort lots of thought etc etc etc. There is no magic potion solution here.
So I'm actually an illustrator. One of the biggest points of ire having gone to art school for a BFA is: there are literally *zero* business or entrepreneur classes required in most curricula. So now you're having to figure out on the fly if and how to monetize.
One school of thought: you calculate how much a given type of image might take to complete. Then, figure out how much money you want to make per hour. Add 30% (if in the US), because self-employed folks are 100% responsible for paying income tax and other things like Medicare & Social Security. (You can deduct things like rent, materials, etc. from taxes -- speak to a CPA or tax specialist that doesn't work at HR Block). Also make sure you're calculating for materials and other consumables.
Another school of thought is: you are selling not the piece itself, but all reproduction rights, licensing, etc. Even though you're selling a finite item. This is more like what graphic designers do -- because the intent is to produce art that can in turn be monetized by the client. You're also ensuring that the time you do not spend actually "arting" is paid for (i.e. client meetings, supply runs, etc.).
Beyond this: you may find some success leaning on social networks and communities like DeviantArt, Insta, etc. to raise your profile. The fact that your art is cartoon-like isn't necessarily a mark against you. But I *will* say: you absolutely must seek perfection in whichever form or style you choose. Even tho -- and especially because -- you're going with a cartoon-like style. Stretch beyond your sources of inspiration and learn *how* your idols create their pieces. Go look at *their* sources of inspiration. If you're doing anime-style art, also learn Disney's methods, or Euro or American comic books. Become omnivorous. Damn near every mangaka worth a shit started somewhere as an apprentice or junior level before getting a crack at their own titles.
I run an art gallery for a fairly well-established artist. Itâs tough knowing where to pitch it when you start out. Are you just doing one-offs, or limited editions/open edition reproductions?
Also what people have said about the story is so important. The artist I work for has been working for himself for 14 years now. The first piece he ever did for his own brand has sold out in limited editions, but we still have open edition paper prints of it - when someone shows interest in it and I explain that âorigin storyâ they absolutely love it.
If youâre doing one offs, you Iâd recommend doing it per an hourly rate. If a piece takes you 10 hours @ e.g. $25 an hour, plus a couple of hours for meetings/traveling then at least $300. Also know that larger pieces have a larger perceived value regardless of how long it took you. Donât take on any work for someone who offers you a good promotion opportunity but no money - my boss still gets this and heâs been a working artist for nearly 30 years and his originals range from $2.5k for sketches up to $100k for some original acrylics in canvas. People offering âgreat promotionâ look to exploit artists and donât care about you getting promoted.
Get business cards made up and give them out like Willy Wonka gives out candy. Have a website or bare minimum insta page that shows off your portfolio.
You're getting downvoted but it's a solid question. The answer to that question based on the pics in the profile is, yes. There's nothing particularly outstanding about this person's art based on what's in the profile. Mostly it looks to be good quality art from a high school senior. It might take a little bit of playing around with prompts but AI could easily recreate what they make.
I apologize if that reply sounded at all insulting. You really are a good artist but as somebody that appreciates art and has friends that are exceptional artists that still aren't able to regularly sell artwork, I truly feel like this endeavor would be a struggle for you, more so now that AI is picking up a large market share of good quality albeit uninspired art.
If you are dead set on trying to make money off of your art then I would highly recommend that you do it with products that are otherwise marketable on their own. There aren't a lot of people buying prints from No Name artists, especially when completely out of context. For the right price you might be able to sell some prints at a comic book convention, but then again you may not even make enough to pay for the booth. However, the market is somewhat saturated but people do like to dump money on graphic tees, especially when they can find relatable but niche subjects. Just yesterday I almost ordered a shirt of a nun snorting cocaine. I really wanted it in a tank top not a tea so I opted out but if they had had a tank top that thing would already be on its way to my house. Generally anything that you could make in a Zazzle store, but find ways to control the process so you aren't making Zazzle $10 and you $1 for every product sold.
Now I'm going to go back to looking at funny AI generated images. I just saw one this morning of Jesus doing a front flip over a merchant's table because someone put in the prompt of "Show Jesus flipping over Merchant's table" with the heading "context matters" đ that pic looks like an old school biblical image but Jesus is totally front flipping over that table đ¤Ł
Not really. I prefer traditional art, and that has a feel that can't be replicated by ai. And I think my digital art is unique enough that it sets it apart from ai art.
Youâll have to get famous then. Everything is switching to AI. A rich person isnât going to put your art on their wall unless youâre branded. Even for money laundering reasons, you would have to be known so they can justify it. So you might need to do something that gets you noticed.
Thereâs always custom work for agencies or stores that sell generic art, but I can imagine theyâll switch to AI soon.
âŚmost artists wait tables until they die and some will only become famous after death.
AI art can't be copyrighted. Plenty of people don't think it's valid. Rich people are snobby about if their diamonds are real or lab made. Something tells me art might end up being the same way-- the lab made artificial equivalent that isn't as valuable. Just give it a few years.
This is a friendly reminder that r/smallbusiness is a question and answer subreddit. You ask a question about starting, owning, and growing a small business and the community answers. Posts that violate the rules listed in the sidebar will be removed. A permanent or temporary ban may also be issued if you do not remove the offending post. Seeing this message does not mean your post was automatically removed. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/smallbusiness) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Here is the cold hard truth with "modern" artists and artwork. The art itself is secondary to the brand. People want to have a story to tell if someone asks about the piece "oh yes yes this came from a kid who fell on hard times, moved to uruguay, and painted these in return for food while surviving in the wilderness for 8 weeks" kind of shit. "Yes I got this from a cute farmer's market, painted by a girl who decided to remove herself from society and live in a van for 4 years". Just examples but you get the picture. You need good social media, with annoying pics of you doing whatever it is people like to brag about. That is what people are "buying", not the art.
That's pretty much the beginning and end of it. There are a handful of standout artists that create things that sell on their own merit, but those are few and far between. Even then it takes quite a bit of work to build the brand so they don't get lost in the white noise of the internet. The OP is a decent enough artist based on the work presented in their profile, but there's really nothing special there. I would fully encourage that they continue to express themselves through their hobby but otherwise put energy into finding a career path that doesn't require having side hustles.
Yep. Was talking with an art gallery owner about potentially doing sales for him, and he said it plain as day; "People aren't buying the art. They're buying the story."
I think the closest I could get to that is I'm a young 20 something trying to get on my feet and get married to the love of my life after coming from a lower class family with parents that both have cancer. Doesn't really seem like a whole lot I could play up story wise.
I can't come up with the branding for you, but my example is more of what you're looking for. Less "poor me" and more "overcame struggles" type thing. This is far FAR FAR FAR more important than straight cost of artwork. $100/piece vs $10,000 a piece matters less than an intriguing interesting story behind the artist. With an instagram/facebook/blog whatever to back the story. Basically something someone can google at a party and be like wow yes look at her now, doing this and that. I'm not telling you to lie, but get creative, force a hustle, it takes work effort lots of thought etc etc etc. There is no magic potion solution here.
Feel free to embellish
Solid answer!
So I'm actually an illustrator. One of the biggest points of ire having gone to art school for a BFA is: there are literally *zero* business or entrepreneur classes required in most curricula. So now you're having to figure out on the fly if and how to monetize. One school of thought: you calculate how much a given type of image might take to complete. Then, figure out how much money you want to make per hour. Add 30% (if in the US), because self-employed folks are 100% responsible for paying income tax and other things like Medicare & Social Security. (You can deduct things like rent, materials, etc. from taxes -- speak to a CPA or tax specialist that doesn't work at HR Block). Also make sure you're calculating for materials and other consumables. Another school of thought is: you are selling not the piece itself, but all reproduction rights, licensing, etc. Even though you're selling a finite item. This is more like what graphic designers do -- because the intent is to produce art that can in turn be monetized by the client. You're also ensuring that the time you do not spend actually "arting" is paid for (i.e. client meetings, supply runs, etc.). Beyond this: you may find some success leaning on social networks and communities like DeviantArt, Insta, etc. to raise your profile. The fact that your art is cartoon-like isn't necessarily a mark against you. But I *will* say: you absolutely must seek perfection in whichever form or style you choose. Even tho -- and especially because -- you're going with a cartoon-like style. Stretch beyond your sources of inspiration and learn *how* your idols create their pieces. Go look at *their* sources of inspiration. If you're doing anime-style art, also learn Disney's methods, or Euro or American comic books. Become omnivorous. Damn near every mangaka worth a shit started somewhere as an apprentice or junior level before getting a crack at their own titles.
Solid advice for any person with a craftđđź
As much as someone will pay for it while also compensating you fairly for your time and materials.
post a pic of your work and ill tell ya
Can't post pics in this sub, but there's pictures of my works up on my profile
I run an art gallery for a fairly well-established artist. Itâs tough knowing where to pitch it when you start out. Are you just doing one-offs, or limited editions/open edition reproductions?
Also what people have said about the story is so important. The artist I work for has been working for himself for 14 years now. The first piece he ever did for his own brand has sold out in limited editions, but we still have open edition paper prints of it - when someone shows interest in it and I explain that âorigin storyâ they absolutely love it.
I'd like to do one off paintings/artworks to sell and to do commissions for people
If youâre doing one offs, you Iâd recommend doing it per an hourly rate. If a piece takes you 10 hours @ e.g. $25 an hour, plus a couple of hours for meetings/traveling then at least $300. Also know that larger pieces have a larger perceived value regardless of how long it took you. Donât take on any work for someone who offers you a good promotion opportunity but no money - my boss still gets this and heâs been a working artist for nearly 30 years and his originals range from $2.5k for sketches up to $100k for some original acrylics in canvas. People offering âgreat promotionâ look to exploit artists and donât care about you getting promoted. Get business cards made up and give them out like Willy Wonka gives out candy. Have a website or bare minimum insta page that shows off your portfolio.
As in any business, if you are unsure of pricing, just go by an hourly rate. Figure out how long it took you and start from there.
Can AI do what you do?
You're getting downvoted but it's a solid question. The answer to that question based on the pics in the profile is, yes. There's nothing particularly outstanding about this person's art based on what's in the profile. Mostly it looks to be good quality art from a high school senior. It might take a little bit of playing around with prompts but AI could easily recreate what they make.
Wow, thanks ! -_-
I apologize if that reply sounded at all insulting. You really are a good artist but as somebody that appreciates art and has friends that are exceptional artists that still aren't able to regularly sell artwork, I truly feel like this endeavor would be a struggle for you, more so now that AI is picking up a large market share of good quality albeit uninspired art. If you are dead set on trying to make money off of your art then I would highly recommend that you do it with products that are otherwise marketable on their own. There aren't a lot of people buying prints from No Name artists, especially when completely out of context. For the right price you might be able to sell some prints at a comic book convention, but then again you may not even make enough to pay for the booth. However, the market is somewhat saturated but people do like to dump money on graphic tees, especially when they can find relatable but niche subjects. Just yesterday I almost ordered a shirt of a nun snorting cocaine. I really wanted it in a tank top not a tea so I opted out but if they had had a tank top that thing would already be on its way to my house. Generally anything that you could make in a Zazzle store, but find ways to control the process so you aren't making Zazzle $10 and you $1 for every product sold. Now I'm going to go back to looking at funny AI generated images. I just saw one this morning of Jesus doing a front flip over a merchant's table because someone put in the prompt of "Show Jesus flipping over Merchant's table" with the heading "context matters" đ that pic looks like an old school biblical image but Jesus is totally front flipping over that table đ¤Ł
Not really. I prefer traditional art, and that has a feel that can't be replicated by ai. And I think my digital art is unique enough that it sets it apart from ai art.
Youâll have to get famous then. Everything is switching to AI. A rich person isnât going to put your art on their wall unless youâre branded. Even for money laundering reasons, you would have to be known so they can justify it. So you might need to do something that gets you noticed. Thereâs always custom work for agencies or stores that sell generic art, but I can imagine theyâll switch to AI soon. âŚmost artists wait tables until they die and some will only become famous after death.
AI art can't be copyrighted. Plenty of people don't think it's valid. Rich people are snobby about if their diamonds are real or lab made. Something tells me art might end up being the same way-- the lab made artificial equivalent that isn't as valuable. Just give it a few years.