Traveling to 100 Shores with Wildlife Painter and Fiber Artist Eric Jackson
45m
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How to Sell Art: The Abundant Artist Podcast
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Welcome back toThe Abundant Artist, the show that dispels the myth of “the starving artist” and shares how you can live an abundant life as an artist and make a living from your talent one interview at a time.
Cory welcomes Wildlife Painter and Fiber Artist Eric Jackson, who specializes in unique batik illustrations of Chesapeake Bay and Mid-Atlantic species, in today’s podcast. Eric had had a deep interest in water quality and aquatic life since a young age, especially in and around the Chesapeake region where he grew up. Eric was teaching art in public school when he started selling his art at local art shows in Maryland in 2017. After the 2020 pandemic, he left teaching to pursue his art career full time.
In this episode, Eric explains how he conceptualized the One Hundred Shores project, how it connected Art and Ecology, and how it grew in scope – even without much social media presence at that time – to become a huge storytelling project and a successful Kickstarter initiative eventually. Eric also discusses his passion for teaching art, and why he thinks it’s important for kids to learn art in school.
Key Takeaways:
[:46] Cory mentions how fascinating it has been to watch Eric’s art career evolve over the years.
[2:33] The kind of art Eric makes. What led him to make the kind of art he does.
[4:22] Eric is an outdoor person, spending his free time hunting and fishing. How does that impact the subject matter of his artworks?
[5:17] People are not really familiar with the batik technique and how the pieces are made. Eric often receives questions on that account.
[6:53] Cory wants to talk about Eric’s Chesapeake Bay project (i.e. the One Hundred Shores project) as he thinks it’s a really good window into (1) what Eric’s art is about, and (2) how people respond to his work.
[7:09] Talking about the audience for his work, Eric identifies two distinct segments.
[9:00] Eric discusses the One Hundred Shores project in detail. How the Chesapeake Bay and its ecosystem are connected with the residents in the area.
[11:08] How the One Hundred Shores project connects Art and Ecology, and how that resonates with people.
[11:48] How did Eric conceptualize the One Hundred Shores project? How did it evolve from the ideation period?
[14:04] Eric gives an example of the stories collected during the One Hundred Shores project.
[18:32] How Eric got the word out when he initiated the project.
[21:00] Eric launched a separate website for the One Hundred Shores project. Why does he keep it distinct from his regular website?
[22:40] How the One Hundred Shores project press release helped spread the word further, and made people and organizations reach out to Eric to learn more about his project. How his earlier lesson with TAA helped him put together the press release.
[24:19] Cory asks Eric about the latest status of the One Hundred Shores project.
[26:29] Where people can buy Eric’s One Hundred Shores project t-shirts from.
[28:02] Cory congratulates Eric on the success of his One Hundred Shores project, and mentions that it’s a very interesting example for artists looking for starting a project on a greater scale or planning to take their art to a bigger audience.
[30:48] After years of making art privately, Eric started showing his work to people only as recently as 2017.
[35:05] Eric talks about his love for teaching.
[35:43] Why it is important for kids to learn art in school.
[39:07] Advocating for “Art for art’s sake” and maintaining the integrity of Art as a discipline.
[39:53] Why Eric considers leaving teaching his biggest professional decision till date.
[40:45] What is Eric looking forward to for the rest of 2023?
[44:00] Cory thanks Eric for joining the podcast!
Mentioned in This Episode:
Eric Jackson’s Website
One Hundred Shores
Story narrated by Eric in the podcast
Find More Episodes Over onTheAbundantArtist.com
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6 Legal Must-Dos for Artists with Kiffanie Stahle
Welcome back to The Abundant Artist, the show that dispels the myth of “the starving artist” and shares how you can live an abundant life as an artist and make a living from your talent one interview at a time.
Joining Cory in today’s podcast is Kiffanie Stahle, the “friendly” lawyer who helps artists get the legal side of their art businesses in order. A firm believer in focusing on the “why” rather than the “what”, Kiffanie advises artists to first decide what they actually need to meet their business goals, rather than just investing big in legal matters that may not be required at all in their specific circumstances.
In this episode, Kiffanie spells out the six basic rules that every professional artist must adhere to, to avoid getting caught in the legal net. She mentions some free templates available on her website that may be a good starting point for artists just beginning their art career. Kiffanie also talks about how easy it could be to gather tax and other legal information in your state – often just a phone call away.
Tune in to today’s episode for more legal insights, a bit about Kiffanie’s minimalist life traveling the western US since 2020, and her goal to make life easier for small creative businesses. Well, legally at least.
Key Takeaways:
[1:12] Cory asks Kiffanie to tell the TAA audience a little about how she started her journey as a lawyer helping artists with legal dos and don’ts.
[3:00] Kiffanie reminisces about how she founded the artist's J.D. as a place to provide legal tools and resources for artists, and how it has now evolved into a membership community, offering books, courses and templates.
[4:38] How the year 2020 made a big life change for Kiffanie, and how her minimalist lifestyle impacted her legal thoughts.
[6:39] Is getting a trademark necessary?
[7:00] Kiffanie believes that there are only six things that are required of artists when it comes to the legal side of their small creative businesses.
[9:49] Kiffanie explains how a simple email can also be a valid contract in the eyes of the law.
[11:39] Cory asks Kiffanie how Entrepreneur Magazine has a trademark, given that a business name that merely describes what you do is not eligible for a trademark.
[16:15] When do you need to do more legal stuff, if you have covered the six necessary tasks already?
[17:54] Kiffanie has a free template on her website which artists can use to create a really simple, easy and readable privacy policy and terms of service.
[20:04] Cory asks Kiffanie to quickly define GDPR and CCPA.
[22:02] If your creative stuff is primarily targeted at children, there’s a whole lot of separate laws that you will need to be cognisant of.
[23:25] Cory asks Kiffanie to explain what one needs to do to comply with the various tax requirements.
[24:18] Kiffanie often recommends her clients to get in touch with their respective Chambers of Commerce for understanding the tax rules and regulations applicable to them.
[31:39] At what point should artists start reviewing their tax affairs on a regular basis?
[33:30] Who are enrolled agents, and how are they different from CPAs?
[35:35] To decide what legal tasks you must complete, you must know where your business is going.
[37:29] Kiffanie has been out of social media for three years now – this is one of her experiments in life minimalism.
[38:22] Cory asks Kiffanie how artists would get in touch with her if they are curious to learn more about legal matters or need legal help.
[40:06] What is Kiffanie’s takeaway from spending so much time working with creative people?
[42:08] Cory thanks Kiffanie for a super-informative episode!
Mentioned in This Episode:
the artist's J.D.
Stahle Law website
Kiffanie’s Website Policy Mad Libs
Kiffanie’s Legal Roadmap book
Kiffanie’s Join me for coffee each Friday
Find More Episodes Over onTheAbundantArtist.com
Why Personality Matters in Selling Art with Marisa White
Welcome back to The Abundant Artist, the show that dispels the myth of “the starving artist” and shares how you can live an abundant life as an artist and make a living from your talent one interview at a time.
Our guest today is Marisa S White, an award-winning artist-photographer based in Colorado. A drawing and painting major, Marisa fell in love with photography in college and eventually began to incorporate it into her work, creating mixed media collages. In 2012, she was introduced to Photoshop, and her artistic world changed forever.
In this episode, Marisa shares her journey as an artist, why she went from art school to setting up her own payroll business to back in school learning photography, how her “decent personality for sales” has served her well, how she handles her gallery relations, and many more tidbits about her art life.
Join us for today’s podcast to learn more about Marisa's “trials-and-errors” in life which, she believes, have got her to the point where she is now.
Key Takeaways:
[1:20] Cory kicks off the conversation with Marisa asking how she came up with the idea for her series titled Certain These Clouds Go Somewhere.
[4:48] Cory reminisces about his growing up years in Utah, and how he resonates with Marisa’s creative feelings emanating from being surrounded by giant mountains and being in and among the clouds.
[7:19] How does Marisa describe herself – a photographer, an artist, or a collage artist?
[8:12] Marisa shares her art journey with the TAA audience, from art school to where she is today.
[11:20] How going to the Rocky Mountain School of Photography and being exposed to Photoshop there changed the course of Marisa’s art career.
[14:35] Cory asks Marisa why she decided to sell her payroll business and go back to school to learn photography.
[17:22] What does Marisa mean when she says she has “a decent personality for sales?”
[19:40] Cory compares the sales cycle in the mid-upper tier of the art market with that of enterprise software solutions.
[22:23] How Marisa loves to share the stories behind her artworks with visitors in art fairs.
[24:20] Marisa talks about her creative process.
[28:48] Why Marisa thinks that making behind-the-scenes videos of their creative process can be a bit frustrating for artists since they do a lot of things “in the moment,” but why she still recommends doing so.
[30:43] How do buyers find Marisa?
[31:40] Apart from galleries and art fairs, sales through social media have started picking up lately for Marisa.
[32:10] How does Marisa choose the art fairs she goes to?
[34:14] Why it is important as an artist to keep track of where your sales are coming from.
[36:13] Cory asks Marisa whether she has formal contracts with the galleries she is working with.
[39:46] Marisa explains how she handles her relationships with multiple galleries.
[43:10] Why is Marisa using both Photobiz and ArtStoreFronts for her website?
[45:22] Marisa is going to get her own retail space soon.
[47:31] Cory thanks Marisa for joining the podcast!
Mentioned in This Episode:
Marisa White’s website
Marisa’s series Certain These Clouds Go Somewhere
Marisa’s Instagram
Marisa’s Facebook
Kelli Erdmann's Instagram (kelladactyl)
Find More Episodes Over onTheAbundantArtist.com
How Music Shapes Art for Kathy Lajvardi
Welcome back to The Abundant Artist, the show that dispels the myth of “the starving artist” and shares how you can live an abundant life as an artist and make a living from your talent one interview at a time.
Today’s guest is Kathy Lajvardi, a contemporary mixed media artist based in Laguna Beach, California. Kathy was born in Iran and later migrated to the US when she was nine-years-old – a cultural shift that has shaped her as an artist, designer, author and curator. Her diverse artistic background ranges from reflective resin to large-scale paintings that tell a story, are conceptual, and raise awareness.
In this episode, Kathy shares her journey as an artist, from earning her BFA to working with high-profile clients such as Madonna, Beyonce, Lexus, Disney, and Apple. She further talks about how the late night brainstorming sessions with her husband have turned into actual successful projects over the years, and offers her perspective on the Iranian art and culture scene pre and post the 1979 revolution, and how that has influenced her art.
Join us in this podcast to learn more about Kathy’s art journey, and why she thinks artists should go all out to promote their art themselves rather than waiting to get “discovered”.
Key Takeaways:
[0:35] Cory welcomes Kathy to the TAA podcast and asks her to introduce herself to the TAA audience.
[1:20] Kathy talks about how she went on from earning her art degree to working on motion graphics projects for celebrity musicians, movies and companies like Apple.
[4:35] She transitioned into digital experience post her marriage and the birth of her children, and started managing the Graphics department in her husband’s advertising agency.
[6:25] How Kathy and her husband started organizing wine events with winemakers.
[6:38] What was the Somxx event and how did it happen?
[9:22] Cory asks Kathy about her connection with Iran.
[10:57] Kathy explains the connection between her art and the music she likes to listen to, and why she always works with her headphones on.
[13:52] Kathy further talks about her background, and how her choice of music was received by her family.
[17:50] Cory asks Kathy to describe her series titled “Unbreakable Queens”.
[18:52] Kathy further talks about the Iranian singer Googoosh and her struggles, and how that has inspired the artist’s “Unbreakable Queens” series.
[22:05] Kathy offers her thoughts on what Iran used to be like before the 1979 revolution.
[23:17] Kathy explains in detail how she and her husband organize the events, from visualizing to planning the details to getting sponsors.
[30:35] Kathy deep dives into how once she knows what she wants, she plans the steps needed to achieve that.
[32:17] Why the “hustle mentality” is important, and how social media can be used as a platform to reach a wider audience.
[32:44] Kathy takes her marketing flyers everywhere she goes.
[33:29] Art dealers can surely accelerate an artist’s career, but Kathy insists that an artist can be their own art dealer too.
[34:21] Cory asks Kathy how her events/parties convert into sales.
[37:15] Cory thanks Kathy for joining the podcast!
Mentioned in This Episode:
Kathy Lajvardi’swebsite
Sommx event
Drive Through Napa
Drive Through Paso Robles
Unbreakable Queens series
Find More Episodes Over on TheAbundantArtist.com
Art Licensing Explained with Cherish Flieder
Welcome back to The Abundant Artist, the show that dispels the myth of “the starving artist” and shares how you can live an abundant life as an artist and make a living from your talent one interview at a time.
Internationally featured and award-winning artist/designer Cherish Flieder joins TAA founder Cory Huff in today’s podcast. Apart from being a creative entrepreneur, Cherish is also a teacher and the founder of a virtual art licensing community, ArtLicensingShow.com.
In this episode, Cherish explains what is art licensing and how it can actually be a viable business model for artists, talks about her first love i.e. children’s book cover illustrations, and reminisces about her journey of art licensing from greetings cards and book cover to fashion apparel and ultimately launching her own art lifestyle brand.
Tune in to listen to Cherish’s journey in art licensing, and what you must know as an artist to potentially adopt this business model.
Key Takeaways:
[:37] Cory introduces Cherish to TAA podcast listeners
[2:20] What is art licensing? Cherish explains how it’s a viable business model for artists
[3:35] Different types of products on which Cherish’s artwork has been shown. How she started with children’s book cover illustrations after art school
[4:30] Why do most artists start with licensing their artwork for greetings cards?
[5:20] How the process of licensing her art to fashion companies ultimately led Cherish to launch her own trademarked art lifestyle brand, Something to Cherish®
[7:37] Cherish describes her artwork as “whimsical elegance”
[9:45] Why Cherish believes in partnering with experts for production and marketing
[10:22] Cory asks Cherish what she thinks has changed in art licensing in the last couple of years
[11:00] How “Fast Fashion” brands are changing trends even on a weekly basis, and what artists need to know while licensing their art to fashion houses
[12:03] Why artists licensing their art must be connected with fellow licensing artists or communities
[14:51] How can artists position their art in the market to make the most of whatever opportunities come their way?
[17:06] Cherish throws some light on what her business planning process looks like
[18:30] The Notion App Cherish uses for the business side of her creative venture
[22:50] How the Clubhouse social audio network has been a useful community for Cherish
[24:35] Why do so few art schools have courses on art marketing?
[30:03] Why only ~50% of artists taking a marketing course implement the learning in their art business
[32:14] What is a more realistic expectation for an artist who’s just getting started selling their art?
[34:53] Why consistency is key while marketing your art
[35:43] Size of your social media follower base may not convert to actual sales. What social media strategies Cherish recommends for driving the sale of artwork
[43:] What steps does Cherish recommend for artists seeking to license their art to what she calls “companies behind companies”?
[45:09] What are Cherish’s favorite trade shows? Why is it important to visit trade shows to understand your chosen niche in the market for licensing your art e.g. gift items or home décor?
[47:07] Cherish advises artists to start researching the market first on their own before handing over their licensing business to agents. And it is important to have a lawyer check your licensing agreements
[47:32] Cory asks Cherish to explain for the audience what an ASMR video is, and why she recently experimented with creating one
[50:25] Cherish talks about her “Gratitude Practice”
[51:48] Cory thanks Cherish for joining the podcast!
Mentioned in This Episode:
Cherish Flieder’s Website
Art Licensing Community founded by Cherish Flieder
Find More Episodes Over onTheAbundantArtist.com
New Orleans Artist Adam Hall
Welcome back to The Abundant Artist, the show that dispels the myth of “the starving artist” and shares how you can live an abundant life as an artist and make a living from your talent one interview at a time.
Joining the podcast today is Adam Hall, who describes himself as “an artist who paints New Orleans''. Born in Raleigh, North Carolina, Adam's tryst with New Orleans started when he joined Tulane University there to obtain an undergraduate degree in studio art and history. Although later Adam studied in the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (BFA) and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts (MFA), he eventually decided to move back to New Orleans and settle there.
The impact of Hurricane Katrina is visible in Adam’s art, especially in his black-and-white, burnt-paper three-dimensional collages that explored themes of loss and upheaval. A visit to Paris in 2009 and the study of impressionist painters convinced him to switch to impressionist oil paintings.
In this episode, Adam explains why he calls New Orleans his home, his metamorphosis from a sculptor/installation artist to an impressionist painter, how Hurricane Katrina has inspired his artworks, and how he manages the business side of his art career.
Key Takeaways:
[:33] Cory reminisces how he has known Adam since 2013.
[4:05] Why Adam has found his “artistic home” in New Orleans.
[5:45] How Adam’s website captures the fascinating evolution of his artworks.
[7:15] Adam was more into sculptures and installations during grad school. Why has he taken up painting after moving to New Orleans?
[10:05] How has Hurricane Katrina shaped Adam’s artistic expressions?
[12:38] Why it was important for Adam to create artworks that looked similar to oak trees.
[20:12] How over time Adam coached himself to make impressionist paintings of New Orleans.
[32:30] How Adam has designed his life for selling paintings.
[33:40] Adam enjoys the business side of his art career. It’s not “work” for him.
[36:40] How Adam’s New Orleans paintings changed over time and why.
[38:14] How the pandemic impacted Adam’s choice of subjects for paintings.
[41:11] How did Adam figure out what works for him in the business side? How TAA class helped Adam with finding his “voice”.
[46:14] What kind of write-ups Adam does regularly for his collectors. How does he decide on what to write?
[49:07] Social media and his website helped Adam sell his paintings more than outdoor shows.
[51:11] What’s working for Adam on social media?
[53:00] What’s Adam excited about his art business at the moment?
[55:03] Cory thanks Adam for joining the podcast!
Mentioned in This Episode:
Adam Hall’s Website
Adam’s Blogs
Find More Episodes Over on TheAbundantArtist.com