Business ideas for the modern Artist

Have you heard of THE STARVING ARTIST?  An artist who sacrifices material well-being in order to focus on their artwork…. *eye rolls to the roof and back*🙄🙄🙄

The Starving Artist is a dying breed since 2017!

E-commerce and social selling have become increasingly effective means for independent artists to self-sufficiently fund their craft, and most importantly, to gain the independence to sell the work they want to create directly to their niche audiences.

Truth is, to succeed in art, you must also succeed in business.

The Art market is changing. There are so many opportunities for artists to thrive. I have listed a few business ideas that will get your creative juices flowing.

Collaborative and e-commerce platforms like Instagram, Shopify, Patreon etc have removed barriers between seller and buyers, making selling more social, more direct, more fun…

There are a few trends you should be paying attention to, to maximise your creative business

MADE HERE II Your Studio, Your Gallery

#FakeNews, Cambridge Analytica, Data Rights, our trust in authorities has been tested lately hence why people are craving transparency from people and brands they are buying into.

In the culinary world, the open kitchen restaurant has became popular. Today, Designers are putting their spin on the rising trend and are using their studio as a retail store.

You can easily save time and energy by splitting your time from your creative work and also interacting with customers.

On the other hand, it is a real experience for visitors who get to see the behind the scene, and creative process that goes into an art piece. It also gives them a sense of value for a more luxury item (meaning you can get those prices UP! )

D2C II Direct-to-collectors

What if you could get paid even BEFORE you start creating anything…

The Boom of e-commerce platforms lead to brands being able to market to their consumers directly, by-passing the middle man, the retail store.

This, my friend, completely shifted the way we buy everything from beauty products to mattress and even ART!

Today, Creators plays a bigger role in representing who they are, by telling their story, so they can build and own strong relationships with their future buyers (gallerists, curators or collectors)

It is also much easier for collectors to support Artists that they like, anywhere in the world through Online platforms.

Fine Artists Ashley Longshore, push the concept further and offer a yearly subscription model, at $500/ year, for her platform Artgasm, where her 250 subscribers get 4 limited edition Art piece from her.

She gets paid to create. She nurture a community of supporters.  She does not starve. Be like Ashley

LESS IS MORE II Business Minimalism

When you spend 2 hours per day scrolling Instagram and 1 h or more commuting, you get exposed to over 5000 marketing messages per day! “buy me!“, “Laugh at my joke!” “do-better-in-life quote”.

It is Exhausting. It is Overwhelming. It’s noisy.

When it’s your turn to get people attention, help them choosing YOU by taking away the choice.  Get rid of the fluff, FOCUS on ONE thing you want to be known for. Selling a single product makes a lot of sense on a platform known for a feed of single photo posts, doesn’t it?

For a creative, focusing on a unique message, or style takes courage. But by focusing on what really matter to them, it will help them build a unique brand.

Adopting a minimalist approach to your creative business will give you freedom: with less around and less going on, there is more freedom to do what brings actual value to your life and business.

You have to be creative and create values from what you have.

Anyone still posting twice a day on Instagram??!! 👀

Things are changing for the Art market and is a good thing. Wherever you are in the world, know that your talent has value and the power is in your hand. So go ahead, keep going and your tribe will find you. If you want me to help you building your brand as a visual artist, reach out to me , I will be happy to help 🙂