The Business of Art

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ivantirado.com

There are so many things about the business side of art I don’t know about. Many artists, galleries, collectors, and dealers emphasize in its importance, while others want to completely dismiss the subject. I am not sure where I stand yet in this subject, so I need your help. What is your side of the story? I’ve been reading about this in books, blogs, and articles and finding all kinds of mix-messages about how to present yourself as an artist and how to present your art for people to get to know it and buy it. “Don’t put your art for sale!” “You need to let people know it is for sale!” “Art is about creativity not money!” “The artist needs to eat too!” “You can’t consider yourself a professional artist if you do this just for fun and leisure!”… It gets very confusing at times and honestly I don’t have a straight answer or position in the subject.

My wife, who is my greatest supporter, is constantly motivating me and helping me to get the word out about my art. I remember when we visited a gallery in Miami Beach a few years ago. I was drooling with all the wonderful art I was looking at from some of my favorite artists. I’ve only seen these pieces online and being in front of them was just a surreal experience. At that point I was still struggling with the idea of showing my art. To make this story short, after hesitating for a moment I showed pictures of my work to the gallery director. His reaction was very interesting. He removed his glasses in disappointment when he knew all of my pieces were in a corner of my living room and said to me with his card at hand: “Whenever you want to make something of your life let me know”.

Shortly after I had my first show, one of my pieces was requested to be in several shows in contactArgentina, and a commissioned piece ended in Paris. So it began! I am still trying to figure this out as other pieces are in other parts of the world and published (although someone in a very demeaning way called the books paid ‘catalogs’ I feel fine when I see the fruit of this). I was afraid that getting involved in the business of art could affect my creativity and suck the fun out of it. It is disappointing at times to see people making tons of money with artwork that makes no sense to me (art is subjective anyway) and I bet they feel fine about it. This is a lot of work, a lot of pressure, and a lot of sacrifice to have someone tell you that your work is not “all that”. I keep pushing, learning, growing, and trying to figure this out.

I try looking back to some artists in history: Dalí, Picasso, Warhol, Bernini, Caravaggio… and many others who enjoyed the fruit of their labor and still loved their art. Then I look at Van Gogh. Isn’t it a sad story? Now people is making millions when he barely made it through the day. I imagine my art paying the bills so I can get in the studio and worry about nothing but to create. I see nothing wrong with that. In fact, I want that! I also want to share what I know with others and open my studio for others to learn too. The business of art seems scary to me but it should not affect my creative spirit or the love for what I do.

Comments (8)

  1. Stephanie

    Your art is beautiful and your talent immense. For almost seven years, I have had the privilege of watching you grow as an artist and a man. I believe your talent is a gift from God. It is meant to be shared. It is the “business” end that gets the word out, engages your growth, and enables you to make a living doing what you love. Where’s the problem? Rock on, my talented friend!

  2. Sachi

    I’m not a professional artist at all, but I think this is such a great inquiry. It reminds me of businesses in which I have colleagues, mentors and friends where the “business” aspect sometimes becomes a debate and a big thing. One of them is yoga. I know of one place where the “business” aspect is considered and balanced, because paying rent, providing supplies, and having people come through the doors is real. However, the experience of the place is nothing flashy or over the top. The practice is very basic. The space is simple yet clean. I don’t know all the details of what goes on, because I’m not on staff and all, but from the client side, it’s just a positive place to practice, a great warm environment. The “business” of it doesn’t seem to distract.

    In my opinion, it doesn’t have to be a “big” deal. You are a professional artist. And you love to share you art through sculpting parties, teaching, displays, etc. It’s just who you are.

    If the “business” aspect ever becomes too overwhelming or too distracting, there is the option to dial it down, opt out, OR to find a partner who is good with business and can find that balance in supporting your vision and passion as both an expression of you and a share with the world in a way that does not take away from the spirit of the entire journey.

  3. Faith Dance

    Ivan, this is a difficult question and you are not the only one, wondering about the business part. One remark by Leslie Saeta on “Artists helping artists” got me thinking: when she went from partime to fulltime painting, she had to use approximately 50% of her time for self-promotion, incl. art shows, art fairs, teaching classes, and other activities that got her buyers for her art and ultimately helped her pay the bills. This was quite an eye opener.
    I’m not sure myself if I want or can do this, even though originally I was planning to do it. The business part is unavoidable, but everybody decides on how much time you are willing to spend on it.
    It is a vicious circle: if you want to spend more time on creating art, then you have less time for other types of work, that help you pay the bills. When you need to sell more of your art work, you need to put more emphasis on self-promotion and this means again less time for creating art. :-(

    • Dr Ivan Tirado

      Thank you for taking your time to leave a comment. I indeed understand and believe me it is a struggle to figure it out. It is great to have the support of people and their motivation. It becomes easier when the burden is shared.

  4. Corinne McManemin

    You are so energizing! I often think of you as the perfect example of someone using smart business practices to generate expressive and freeing art practices. It is a blessing that you always want to be open and share your experiences. Your learning process benefits us all and your curiosity is contagious.

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