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...
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Every Artist Is Designed Differently and What It Means with Jahje Ives (#178)
The Art Biz
In this episode, I have something a little different for you. I want to share a tool I found a number of years ago that helps me in life and in my business. And it’s helped many of my clients. It’s a life map, of sorts, called Human Design. Jahje Ives is an artist and a Human Design coach and guide. While I have worked with Human Design guides in the past, Jahje is the first artist I have met in this realm. I wanted her insights as to how knowing your Human Design could help with your art and art business. To get the most out of it, you have to have a little woo in you. As Jahje says, you...
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Why You Should Raise Prices of Your Art and How to Do It (#177)
The Art Biz
Two things are clear when it comes to pricing your art. 1️⃣ It’s a struggle for most artists. 2️⃣ There’s a good chance that your prices are too low. There are 5 reasons to raise your prices: 🔸 You’ve done the math and realized you aren’t paying yourself. 🔸 Your pricing has become uneven over time. 🔸 The cost of your materials has increased. 🔸 You can’t keep up with the demand for your art. 🔸 You start selling through galleries. I cover all of these in this episode and then tell you HOW to raise your prices. 🆓...
info_outlineRisk is scary. Rejection stinks. Resilience seems elusive. When I think of these three R words, the word practice comes to mind. Taking one step at a time over and over again because we know it is the only way to make big progress. In order to embrace risk, we have to practice. We step into it, try it on, and, almost always, discover that it isn’t as bad as the soundtrack we were playing in our heads. Rejection is also a practice. We build up emotional muscles after receiving disappointing news. After years of accumulated rejections, we begin to understand that they are rarely, if ever, personal. And finally, resilience is something we have to work at. We were born resilient, but, over the years, life beat us up. But rejections give us courage muscles we never had before. And, because we paid attention, we pick up on a number of tools that help us become more resilient.
My guest for this episode of The Art Biz is Christine Aaron. You’ll hear how she embraces risk and has come to understand the role of rejection in her art career. She also shares the tools she relies on to act with resilience, to get back in the studio and do it all over again.
Highlights
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The unusual motivation behind Christine’s first watercolor class selection. (2:08)
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Taking risks and challenging yourself in a rewarding art career. (5:31)
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Refining your art by sharing it with and soliciting critique from others. (12:45)
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Identifying your safe zone and moving beyond it. (21:45)
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Taking on the work that pushes you out of your comfort zone. (25:12)
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Name the risks to work your way through the potential rejection. (32:57)
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What rejection really means about the work that you’re doing. (39:46)
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Honing your resilience skills amid rejection. (40:35)
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Stop comparing yourself to other artists and remember how far you’ve come. (45:45)
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Reflecting on your work, your processes, and your improvement. (47:06)
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The risks that Christine is going to take in 2022. (48:00)
Mentioned
Resources
Quotes
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“There’s not one of us that hasn’t experienced disappointment and loss in life.” — Christine Aaron
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“I make work ultimately because I want it to resonate with someone else. And the only way to do that is to get it out there.” — Christine Aaron
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“Think beyond what you can imagine now and know that you’ll have the ability to get the resources you need to do it.” — Christine Aaron
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“Every artist I know gets way, way more rejections than they get acceptances. But nobody is talking about that.” — Christine Aaron
Guest Bio
Christine Aaron is a conceptual and material-focused artist. Her work is exhibited nationally and internationally. Aaron received an artist’s grant from ArtsWestchester — New York State Council on The Arts, a Surface Design Association grant, and a residency and grant from Vermont Studio Center. She presents talks at The International Encaustic Conference in Provincetown, MA, received awards in printmaking and mixed media, and had a solo exhibit of The Memory Project at California Museum of Art Thousand Oaks.
Aaron holds a BS in education from Cornell University and a Masters in Social Work from Hunter College. She lives and maintains a studio in New Rochelle, NY.
First posted: artbizsuccess.com/rejection-aaron-podcast