The business of getting noticed (part 1)

For Art Month March 2013, ArtEst school at Leichhardt is running a series of seminars on professional development for artists.  Bravo, Jennifer!  There are so many art schools around but most focus primarily on technique, not how to make a living from your art.  We all know that artists are not usually the most business savvy people – the delight is in making art, not to selling it. 

I must admit the business of selling art fascinates me more than most artists, mainly because my other job is management consulting.  I’m always wondering how business principles can be applied to my hobby.  So these seminars were just the thing to illuminate.

The first of the series has Todd Fuller talking about Art Prizes, Grants and how to be noticed.  Todd is 24 and graduated from NAS.  For such a young man, he has done very well to be noticed, and is in fact represented by a well regarded gallery.  It is clear from the talk that Todd understood what it takes to be a professional artist as he was applying for residencies and entering art competitions, even whilst at school. 

The first step is to build up a convincing CV.  To get an idea of what an artist CV looks like, he suggests googling your favourite artist (someone alive, preferably).  Usually, this has a practice rationale which requires some thought to put together.  A hook to get people interested.  And if you have friends who are copywriters, get them on the job!  The CV also lists prizes/ awards and education.  The first requires perseverance as art prizes are a lottery (how can any one pick a winner from a broad range of genre and mediums? Yes, eeny meeny, miny moh).  But there are lots of grass root prizes to try before entering the Mosman prize or attempting the Archibald.