Proving It's Possible to be an Artist and Mother with Elizabeth LeMaster (ep. 188)
The Art Biz
host: Alyson Stanfield Elizabeth LeMaster, my guest for this episode of The Art Biz, has, like so many of us, more to balance than her studio practice and business. She has a family. A young family. A big family. A growing family. How do you find time for working on your art when you have 6 kids under the age of 8? 😳 Elizabeth and I talk about how she has done it because she wanted to share her tips with all artist-mothers out there. She is also very honest about the bumps along the road. Here’s my special Mothers’ Day Conversation with Elizabeth LeMaster. HIGHLIGHTS 06:12 Selling her...
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How to Guarantee that People Remember You with Skip Hill (ep. 187)
The Art Biz
host: Alyson Stanfield My utter bliss is to help artists make business systems that streamline their lives so they can spend more time in the studio. So when Skip Hill said he needed a system for following up with his collectors and important relationships, I knew I wanted to help. In this encore episode of The Art Biz, I walk Skip through the steps to create a plan for nurturing his relationships. We go through these steps to create his plan: What do you want to happen? By when does it need to happen? Or … How frequently does it need to happen? What do you need to have/acquire/learn to...
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The Career Journey of Growth-Minded Artists (ep. 186)
The Art Biz
host: Alyson Stanfield I want to talk about something that I think gets in the way of how you think about what a successful art business is or can be. I want to help you reframe your daily decisions, actions, and results (or lack thereof)—to embrace the volatility of an artist life. To understand that there will be highs and lows, and that just comes along with the territory. One of the most-used business metaphors is the ladder of success, which is problematic for two reasons: Nobody reaches the top of anything in life by going straight up. What happens when you get to the top? I have a...
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Leaning Into Her Roots and Community Art with Marilyn Fontaine (ep. 185)
The Art Biz
host: Alyson Stanfield Some artists are fine working by themselves in their studios. Other artists need to move their art beyond the studio walls and into the public in order to be fulfilled. My guest for this episode is Marilyn Fontaine, a multidisciplinary artist who lives and works in East London. Her work is spiritual with a strong foothold in feminine themes. She has begun marrying that work to the history of the local community—in particular, the stories of those who share her Afro-Caribbean roots. Marilyn and I talk about the work she does within her community, including how it is...
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How Your Art Makes People Feel (ep. 184)
The Art Biz
Host: Alyson B. Stanfield For so long, I asked artists Why they make art. Some artists have a Why. For other artists, being asked why they make art is unfruitful—even debilitating. They feel unworthy if they can’t come up with a good Why. A better strategy is to focus on the people who will be viewing, talking about, and living with your art. How does your art make people feel? Bernadette Jiwa says, "People don't buy why you do something. They buy how it makes them feel." If you think about it, this, ironically, leads to your Why: Connection. 🎧 RELATED EPISODES...
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A Collaboration Between 2 Artists that Led to Creative Growth (ep. 183)
The Art Biz
Host: Alyson B. Stanfield In this episode of The Art Biz I talk with Lori Sokoluk and Susan Purney Mark, who met in my coaching group many years ago and started a collaboration during the pandemic. When I teach about collaboration, I’m usually talking about an exhibition or event. Lori and Susan took it to the next level and collaborated on the artwork itself—resulting in a two-person exhibition that recently closed. I wanted to know what the artmaking process was like when you’re presented with someone else’s marks on the canvas. I think you’ll enjoy hearing about it and what they...
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Rethinking Mailing Lists for Artists (ep. 182)
The Art Biz
Host: Alyson B. Stanfield Your list is something unique to you and your career. No one has this same list. No one makes art like you do; no one knows the same people as you do; and no one has the exact vision that you have. Nobody! Your list is almost worthless to anyone else, yet it’s invaluable to you. It is the primary tool you use to share your art with the world. It’s your #1 marketing asset, but worthless if you’re not using it. The definition of a mailing list isn’t as clear cut as it sounds. I have a philosophy around this 2-word phrase that we frequently take for granted: You...
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Spotlighting Artists Who Bloom Later in Life with Janice Mason Steeves (#181)
The Art Biz
Host: Alyson Stanfield, Art Biz Success My guest is Janice Mason Steeves, author of Bloom: On Becoming An Artist Later in Life. Which, as I say in our interview, is “a lovely mix of insights from a questionnaire, gentle guidance from someone who teaches and leads artist workshops all over the world, and wisdom from academics, professionals, and spiritual advisors.” Janice has been in my orbit for a long time and I have been dying to talk with her about this book, the seeds of which she mentioned to me about 4 years ago. It’s a book that needed to be written and proves that we have a...
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Affirmations for Artists (ep. 180)
The Art Biz
I believe in the power of daily affirmations. I first used them a number of years ago to increase my income and it worked. I increased my income 40% that year. And while I am not now as dedicated to reciting them daily, I know should be! I attribute the majority of my success back then to these affirmations. What possessed me to stop? 🤷♀️ I do not believe that reciting affirmations alone will move the needle. You must have the commitment to your goals in the first place and take appropriate action to move forward. I encourage you to try them as a proven business accelerator tool. It...
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Virtual Assistance for Your Social Media and Websites with Artist VA Hallie Edlund (ep. 179).
The Art Biz
If you’re like a lot of the artist-clients that I work with at Art Biz Success, you would love someone to help you with social media. Or your website. Or maybe anything else to help lighten the load. Having any kind of help sounds like a dream. It may seem like an impossible dream. You might be looking for someone like my guest for this episode of The Art Biz: Hallie Edlund, a virtual assistant for artists. We discuss how she started doing this work and how she helps artists with social media and their websites. We touch upon how she uses A.I. and her advice for using it in your art...
info_outlineKicking off in early 2020, Knit Democracy Together combines interested organizations, knitting circles, and conversation about election finance reform. The result will be a 5 foot by 3 foot knitted sculpture of a state capitol building that Eve hopes to exhibit in multiple venues.
The pandemic has certainly had an effect on Eve’s plans, but it hasn’t stopped her. In our conversation, she shares details about reimagining in-person knitting circles, funding and exhibiting the project, and the art of knitting as a daring act of social activism. Eve explains the stereotypes that she has to push against when using a domestic handcraft to increase social activism and the goals she has for this unique and powerful project.
Highlights
- Eve shares the objectives and the vision behind Knit Democracy Together. (2:43)
- The effect of COVID-19 on Eve’s plan for in-person knitting circles. (7:11)
- How Eve found people to participate in the project. (10:26)
- Details about the yarn and the sculpture dimensions. (14:48)
- The campaign funding message that Eve is working to increase awareness about. (17:26)
- Funding the project and what Eve learned from each declined request. (25:07)
- Questions surrounding the exhibition stage of the project. (27:07)
- Understanding knitting as a daring act of social activism. (28:37)
- How Eve is leading a group project while remaining politically neutral. (32:27)
- Collaborating in a community project just might mean letting go of total control. (34:33)
- Steps that will move the Knit Democracy Together project to the next level. (41:10)
Mentioned
- Knit Democracy Together
- Art Biz Success Community
- Katharine Cobey
- Cat Mazza’s Nike Blanket Petition
- Eve Jacobs-Carnahan
- Eve Jacobs-Carnahan on Instagram
Resources
- Art Biz Success
- Intro and outro music provided by Wildermiss
Quotes
- “People are cynical about elections, but there are ways to improve the system rather than throwing the whole thing out.”
- “We are a community made up of all these different people, but together we can do something bigger.”
- “The goal of all of this is to get people to care more and be able to participate in the election process more than before.”
- “A lot of knitted art is activist art. It’s a tool for social action.”
- “You have to push against stereotypes when you use any textile art, especially with knitting.”
About My Guest
Eve Jacobs-Carnahan makes knitted sculpture. Using the comforting qualities of knitting she explores human interactions with nature, democracy, and society.
Eve’s work has been exhibited throughout the United States, receiving regional and national awards. Her work appears in Lela Nargi’s survey of knitted art, Astounding Knits! 101 Spectacular Knitted Creations and Daring Feats. She loves the notion of knitting as a daring act. When not engaged in such audacious pursuits, she can be found digging in her garden or cross-country skiing through the woods. Both activities put her in touch with the plants and birds that appear in her sculptures.
Eve majored in history at Swarthmore College, and knit several sweaters along the way. While earning a law degree at the University of Chicago she could often be found taking a study break at the Art Institute of Chicago. She lives in Vermont.