I'm taking a side trip from the nuts and bolts of getting your work into stores today, to throw a challenge out to you.
This is for the people who are hesitating to throw their proverbial artistic hat into the ring. You know who you are! Perhaps you're not only hesitating to approach a store, you're nervous about showing ANYONE your art. Maybe you're unsure about even renting a $10 at a local school craft show.
And I know, because I've been there.
So for anyone who's holding back from even sticking a TOE in the water of selling, or exhibiting, or teaching your art....
Qui bono?
Who benefits?
(Okay, my high school Latin says this should be "qui bono", but I see there are almost as many references on-line as "cui bono". Fortunately, everyone seems to agree of what it means.)
When we get cynical, this translates to, "Follow the money", but let's stick with the altruistic trail today.
Who benefits from you making art and getting it out into the world?
Well, we, the artists, do. If we do sell or show our work, the store who buys it benefits (when it sells.)
I'm thinking about the person who sees something in your art that speaks to them. Your collectors.
(Okay, I cheated a little here. If you are already selling retail--directly to your customers/collectors--you're already speaking to people through your work.)
Last week I got a phone call from a woman who was going through a difficult life change. To protect her privacy, I won't go into any details. Suffice to say, she was determined that one step out of the hole was buying a piece of my jewelry.
She placed an order, and I started working on it that evening.
I thought about her every step of the way. When I sent the jewelry, I added a little card explaining where all the beads had come from, and the significance of the artifact I chose for the centerpiece.
Two days ago, she sent me a card that made me cry.
Why? Because my work had helped her see a little light at the end of the tunnel.
Look, I'm not really a "wise woman"--believe me, I can be the Queen of Foot-in-Mouth disorder. I am often thoughtless, or clueless. I misjudge people and underestimate people.
But I put my heart into my work. And when you do that, people respond.
Why does outsider art have such appeal? And naive, and so-called "primitive" art? Because their heart goes into their work with no translation, no barriers, no watering-down. We see through the clumsy parts, or the lack of good materials and even past the poor technique, to something of the spirit of another human being. A person who HAS to get the vision in their heart out into the real world.
When I make my art, I'm constantly striving to do the same thing--to speak from my heart. Other things get layered over that--Is it good? Will other people like it? Can I sell enough of it so I can continue to make that my main occupation in life? The "first idea" though, is to find what is in my heart and get it out of me and out THERE.
And I am constantly reminded that, when I do, it helps another person, on their own unique journey.
There is something so powerful, so moving about that, it keeps me going when other things get hard.
The world NEEDS your art. (Quoting Deborah Kruger again.) There are people out there who need to have something beautiful, something meaningful, something that urges them to be brave, to have hope. Maybe, sometimes they just need something that makes them laugh.
But they need it today.
They need it NOW!!
Don't hide what's in your heart in your closet. Find a way to let the world see it.
Now, having said that, today is a day I'm working on a different gift. Someone I love, someone I've loved since he was an itty bitty thing, is going through a really tough time, and needs a makeover in his life. Several of us are doing a "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" thing today. A teensy part of me feels guilty taking time out of my studio for this. But women naturally do this all the time, don't we? Balancing our outer life with our inner life. But today is someone else's turn, and I can't wait to get started.
If you can wield a paintbrush, stop by!
