"truth" - Article About Fame, Contests, Marketing, ...

Colin, thanks for sharing this excellent article by the always-savvy Jack White. Every FAA member should read it, imo.


Wendy J. St. Christopher
http://www.art166.net/artist-sos.html

Great article and yes Jack, I've never heard of you! Jack Whites "Spyglass Hill" original oil on canvas 20" x 24" is for sale, only $25,000. It's a great investment. Better hurry, it will sell fast!

For me art is something I do for myself without ever an intention on making money. With the internet you can upload images and create keywords and let it fly. Fortunately some of my prints have made sales over the years and maybe FAA will work out. But I don't expect much.

a good read - and I can add there is "truth" in it. I was reasonably well known, for a part time artist with a full time occupation, back in the 1980 - 1990 time frame. I retired from my full time occupation - wow! it's been 25 years now - Then I got an 'art education' and it pretty much all fell apart. The art I do now is not recognized in this area - there is the annual art league call for entries - oils, mixed media, watercolor, and acrylic; photographs, and children's art. No digital anything - and like here - some of the artists of the league appreciate what I do - that's as far as it goes.

I was wise to this truth long before I ever joined FAA.

One of Jack White's issues is that his work looks like high quality commercial illustration. While it is nice and I could see him developing a following with the "I know what I like crowd", it is not memorable. He added nothing to art that was not already there.

I guess he takes his own advice and would prefer to actually sell.

I would agree with you Edward, except it seems as if he is bemoaning the fact.

Here's a golden nugget:

"The truth is there are no shortcuts to being successful. You will earn every step upward on the ladder of success. Nothing will be given to you."

There is a lot of truth to what he says, no doubt!

Ronald,

Jack White has a highly developed painting technique that is beautiful, as for a "graphic art" look what is the difference between a graphic art painter and an "artistic" painter? Style and acceptability seems to be according to what art group influences you. Mr White is a traditional painter. They (who's "they" anyway, the so called "in art crowd?") said Beethoven was a has been and no longer in vogue during his latter years. So much for the opinions of the "Art crowd!" "Quality" stands the test of time.

I find it interesting that many of the museum art critics want "different" looking for the next newest thing. Some collectors who have a lot of money are looking for something different and want art that is an investment. This isn't necessarily a bad thing it is just another type of thing. It depends on what type of art you feel most comfortable with.

I understand for the abstract high dollar gallery looking to invest in new artists there are websites critiqued by art critics/judges who's opinions are well thought of by these high dollar galleries. I was on one of these websites. The artist pays for a critique by a art critic who's opinions are well thought of by the abstract high dollar art galleries that sell art in the millions of dollars. It is not the same as a contest it is being graded with points. These websites are open to the public for view and collectors pay attention to them. Only abstract art is accepted using traditional methods on these sites, no digital art. Consistent high marks put an artist on a career tract that attract these galleries and collectors that pay high dollar for this kind of art If these art critics like your work and give you consistently high grades you are on a career tract to become successful.

Edward, we ought to have that ingrained across the top of the site

Suzanne, glad you enjoy his work.

I like many types of art. I believe every group has their own taste and style. I'm not sure all of the art that is being bought at high art dollar galleries, for example; "Art Basel" is art that people necessarily relate to or resonates with the buyers. I wonder much is bought for investment. Some of this art can be considered simple like some graphic art. Realism is not well liked by these galleries. This includes the big London art gallery that also has a gallery website (can't think of their name at the moment credited with discovering Andy Warhol). You can get more "graphic art" style than Warhol who used photographs and colored them using the screen print process! When looking to see what page in the search my art was located I noticed most of the realism was relegated to the back pages.

In my view it is not easy to do any style of art that is beautiful and pleasing to the eye.

Excellent article. And if you want to be a famous artist, stop trying to sell prints on POD. That's for reproductions of long-dead famous artists' work sold by other people.

If you want to be famous, find some way to be a "controversial artist" and attract wealthy patrons, gallery owners and lawyers.

Dave Gordon
http://dgportfolio.net

I get email newsletters from the site but have to agree, yea... he's pretty much brilliant.

Quote:
"I realize so many of you have fallen for the myth that winning awards will really help your career. The raw truth is brutal. You think a bunch of blue ribbons from Juried Shows will surely make you famous. Money will follow you like a hungry dog does a bone with meat on it. You can win four dozen ribbons, along with ten other top awards, and still be struggling in obscurity. Collectors could care less about your awards, they want to know if your art matches their drapes or fits a certain spot. "

Brilliant ! (along with other gems in the article). Thank God for artists that think with logic...common sense.. rather than emotion.

Agreed, Dan!

I've sold so much art face-to-face, at real world shows, through clients' word-of-mouth, etc. The two questions I've never been asked by a buyer are:

1. Where did you get your art degree?

2. How many awards have you won?

One question I've been asked many, many times:

"Would you mind coming over to look at the space before we decide?"

I've won some awards along the way (never one I had to buy into), but most buyers don't even have 'awards' on their radar. Any awards I win with my work are for me; they check boxes during interviews and look good on my CV.

But nothing is more satisfying than knowing a client wants to live with my work -- day-after-day, year-after-year -- just like they've chosen to live with those matching drapes. Heck . . . who wants to be famous anyway? ;-)

The article, was well written, but offered nothing I didn't already know. I love the closing remark: "Making and selling art is not for sissies."

Toss the concept of fame out the door. Toss the financial side out the door. What is left? The answer is simple, the artist is trying to produce something significant that expresses who they are and the times in which they live. Will they become rich and famous? Unlikely but that is not what it is about in the first place.

I do well at shows winning awards (cash) and selling paintings so I will keep doing them.

Like the man in the movie that he refrences. "You can't handle the truth" speaker, his thinking is a bit skewed. The guy in the movie that said those words had gained too much power and lost sight of humanity.

It seems that this artist lost some of his sight too. He got very, very famous. Ya, he said he didn't care. I don't believe him. He cared at least a little or he would have ran off and became a hermit.
The article seems a little like old man thinking. There's wisdom too, but mixed with bitterness from losing fame. I know nothing about this guy so it could be just a note that I'm hearing in these particular words he wrote down.

Perhaps this article is about that. Not losing sight of your dream; which is really the pursuit of happiness. That is achieved through the process of enjoying what you do and becoming successful in your craft not in being famous. If you become famous more power to you, but it is the process that matters in the end. Not the money or fame.

It may be better to never have fame than to have it and lose it.

I have read quite a few articles by Jack White as well as a short biography, I think without the context of his history it's easy to misunderstand this particular article. What I think Jack is saying is that fame is not something worth chasing after and won't necessarily make you money anyway. Jack was very business centered about his art career, he didn't chase fame, fame came as a result of his success in selling his artwork and that fame faded as soon as he slowed down the art business, (due to physical impairments.). Jack didn't enter juried shows to build his business, he did it the same way Harley Brown did it....knocking on doors, so to speak. For some, juried shows can bring some sales success and depending on what your goals are they can bring networking opportunities as well, however it's often the long way around, Jack's and Harley's methods were far more direct. I don't think Jack is bemoaning the loss of fame in this article, he's just explaining why fame is not worth chasing after.

I loved this article. I've bookmarked it. Thanks!