...How I Built This
SEASON 1 EP 04
Mentioned in this episode:
Beyond the Studio Podcast
A podcast about the business of being an artist, brought to you by hosts Amanda Adams and Nicole Mueller. Listen Now
On Deck
The On Deck Podcaster Fellowship (ODP) an eight-week remote program for podcasters who want to grow their audience and build lasting relationships. Learn More
Episode Transcript:
Hi, it's me Isotta. Welcome to Episode 4 of Art Is… a podcast for artists. Last episode, we began to explore the outdated binary between art and business by looking at two emerging technologies that have accompanied the shift to remote life: Clubhouse and NFTs. But today, we will be circling back to storytelling and specifically looking at how the “How I Built This” model could lead a sea change for artists’ professional development in the art industry. Let’s talk art. Thanks, and enjoy!
This is Art Is... A podcast where we visualize the future of the art world. As we investigate different ideas, technologies, alternative business models, and more, I keep returning to the simple idea that open conversation. And sharing stories of success, setbacks, and the lessons learned along the way is such a simple but powerful act with an unprecedented opportunity for industry-wide impact.
Every creative is fending for themselves at the moment, which means that being an early career artist is pretty isolating. Especially because of the scarcity mentality that has permeated the art industry. The scarcity mentality is really a combination of many things, including resource scarcity–a feeling that there are only a few opportunities out there, few residencies, funding, opportunities, spots, and exhibitions and prizes. And then this is coupled with the idea of temporal scarcity. As in, I don't have time to make work, keep track of and apply for these opportunities.
Unfortunately, we then layer on the mentality of, I need to do this fast before someone else does. Which ties into our obsession with uniqueness and making or doing something original. And then on top of that, we pair this with the knowledge of the low success rates of artists in the industry and the mindset of, why are they successful and I'm not? These mindsets are destructive forces that make us work and think less effectively while isolating us from our communities and making us feel alone.
Over the summer, I came across Navigating the Art World: Professional Practice for the Early Career Artist. A small booklet produced by the Delfian Gallery and published by Foolscap Editions. One of the many through lines in this book is the idea that no matter how good your work is, how hard you try to get funding or sell your art, “ultimately your success will depend entirely on the strength and quality of your network. No artist does it alone”.
This closing quote from the last essay by Hedley Roberts in the book really resonated with me because as I said before, the scarcity mentality makes us think we can't reveal the secret sauce behind our work. Like, when we figure something out or have a breakthrough that led to the professional success we share that accomplishment, sure! But not the journey that led up to it.
This is also true for our setbacks. There isn't a culture of collective learning, being fostered in the art industry at the moment. So artists, especially young artists, aren't as open to sharing their mistakes and the lessons they learned from these setbacks or disappointments. Because we don't share either of these perspectives, we aren't learning from each other's successes and mistakes. So things remain stagnant or static and artists are isolated and increasingly frustrated. But why are we all reinventing the wheel? Doing everything alone when we can leapfrog over obstacles by learning from each other.
The thing is, we already do this with our art practices all the time. When we make artwork, we seek out inspiration then advice on making or building from teachers, technicians, peers online or offline, and then critiques and opinions, so we can get to the stage of completion. And then we rely on our professional network ties for the works distribution or to put it up for sale or in an exhibition.
Each stage of this process is bigger than just the solo artist. Even if we were doing everything ourselves. The ideated fabricating, critiquing, marketing, exhibiting, and selling. In a sense, we are constantly engaging with each other directly or indirectly, asking for assistance and engagement, or simply by imitating and learning from others. This is how art has been made for centuries, but when it comes to the professional side of art practice, career planning, and goal setting, measuring expectations, and seeking out opportunities, we are alone.
And in that sense, being an artist is a solo game. But it doesn't have to be because just like with making art, where we master material by learning from others who did it before us, we can learn from each other's professional experiences as well.
I'm sure that every emerging artist can think of at least one professional experience they've had. When at the end of the day, some observation or lesson becomes clear and that takeaway positive or negative becomes knowledge stored away–a source to draw upon in the future. But perhaps they'd be apprehensive to tell that story to others because it might seem unremarkable in the grand scheme of things.
I believe the main reason we aren't already sharing as much as we should be and learning from each other isn't that we aren't interested, but because we don't see our own experiences as valuable or noteworthy enough. Maybe it's because we aren't as successful as we hoped, so we measure our confidence against these expectations and think, Oh well, everything didn't work out perfectly so there's nothing to celebrate here or nothing to share with my community.
I think this is related to artists, especially early-career artists, undervaluing their talent. Just as we do with art based knowledge practices as was explored in Episode 2. All the resources we need are in front of us and around us, within our communities. And the hard part, which is connecting, has already been resolved because we have Instagram and Clubhouse and all the power of the internet to support and foster global connection.
In the studio, we are quick to share notes, compliment, and constructively critique. But when it comes to the non-art side of being an artist, we overlook the need and value of storytelling and sharing experiences.
If we were to do more of this, we would bridge gaps in our communities, but also push back against the stigmas around discussing the division between art and business. I always found it odd that we didn't really cover the business of being an artist at university.
I never really heard anything about developing a business strategy or making business plans from any institutions I admired, worked for, or attended as a student. We didn't collectively discuss how to apply or position yourself as a strong candidate for opportunities and how to ensure that you are being compensated fairly, which as we know, is a major issue in the industry.
Because we didn't learn how to talk about the business of being an artist, like we learned how to talk about art and making art, people underestimate the value of their own professional experiences as beneficial sources for their peers and the wider community. I think most people can agree that when it comes to art and business, and by business I really mean how to make and manage money and strategize commercial activities, the conversations aren't usually very straightforward and can be pretty uncomfortable if you're the one asking questions. Cause I've been there and often people aren't open to sharing.
So I actually found a lot of answers by listening to Beyond the Studio, a podcast by Amanda Adams and Nicole Mueller, two gifted artists and wonderful co-hosts who interview a range of very experienced and accomplished artists on strategies they've adopted to sustain themselves and their creative work. They really get to the heart of the business of being an artist, so I just wanted to signpost that resource for you here.
But if you look at the A-list art world, sharing “how I built this” stories is not common practice either. And maybe that's why it doesn't trickle down to us, early-career artists. But I think that there's some glamor and intrigue around the mystery of artistic success, just like there is around the making of art in the first place.
But one of the few who has done this is Carol Bove and her article The Four Hour Art Week is the best kind of “how I built this” story because it's about success and also setbacks. Lessons learned and experiments undertaken, and resources used! This open attitude is awesome.
However, we don't have to be A-list artists to start storytelling and sharing our own versions of “how I built this” on our own terms, on our own time, and in our own ways.
In fact, I'll get us started. Back in 2018, I decided to build a sculptural installation for Burning Man. I was on a year abroad at UC Santa Barbara, and I had always been fascinated by the creative spirit of Burning Man. Relatively speaking, Santa Barbara was way closer to the black rock desert in Nevada where Burning Man takes place compared to Edinburgh, where I went to uni, or Rome, where I'm from. So, I was feeling bold and thought, if not now, when?
So over a period of six or seven months, I designed and fabricated a large-scale installation.
This was the first time I was working on something big that needed a lot of planning and budgeting, and immediately I realized that buying materials wouldn't be an option. So thanks to the support I received from the incredible UCSB Art Department, I learned I could build a big, strong structure out of laminated cardboard and that I could source that cardboard for free. From a loading dock behind the university bookshop, which received hundreds of packages every day. And the other place was a carpet manufacturing plant in town that disposed of these really heavy-duty, but super cool cardboard tubes.
So I had materials and a process, but I realized I needed a way to fund all the costs associated with going to Burning Man, like the tickets, which by the way are heavily discounted if you bring artwork, and getting this sculpture to the desert. So I decided to apply for a grant. And worked really hard on creating a realistic budget while also designing the piece and fabricating it over a period of months. I did all the paperwork and figured out how much money I would need when and why.
And everything was going great until I found out that I had been rejected for the grant. And I didn't have much of a backup plan so of course I freaked out, but then found another way. Got a part-time job and turned to my community for support through a kickstarter campaign collecting small donations and pledges from anyone I knew and anyone that could. And sure enough, we scraped by. We got discounts and free staff wherever possible by scouring the sidewalks, but it was tight. And I learned a lot from that experience, mainly that things always end up costing more than you think, that grants are not guarantees and very hard to get and that making an order of operations for every step of the process in a large project like this is key to success. If you plan every stage out, every piece of joinery you need to make and hardware, you need to secure every surface you need to paint, you will get it done! Cross it off your list as you go, and you won't be overwhelmed. But the key is if you scope it all out, ask for help when you need it, investigate and explore your options with a supportive community behind you, everything works out. But you need to visualize it first and then you can make it a reality. That's what I did and that's what artists always do. And that's exactly what we're trying to do here on Art Is…! Explore and investigate. But most importantly, visualize so that we can create a future art world that works for us too.
This episode, I'd like to thank the On-Deck podcasting fellowship. Thank you for creating an incredible community of passionate podcasters. I have learned and grown so much, thanks to On-Deck. If you're interested, please check out beondeck.com to see all the incredible fellowships and programs they offer.
Thanks for listening to Episode 4. And please check out the Art Is… Bookshop created through bookshop.org–an online platform built to financially support local, independent bookstores. It's important to me that this art podcast is a resource for you, so I've carefully curated a selection of books for your continued personal and professional development. On the UK bookshop, you can find Navigating the Art World: Professional Practice for the Early Career Artist, which I discussed in this episode along with many other titles that I think you will enjoy.
You can find links for both US and UK bookshops in the episode description and on the Art Is… Instagram and Twitter (@artispodcast). Thanks and see you soon!