Competing With A Billion Other Artists In The World 🎨

[AES]

Love em or hate em, I'm reminded of the Grateful Dead. They found a niche, developed a unique style, loved what they did, and worked at it tirelessly. They put their music out there and it resonated with enough people and recognition came naturally. If they set out specifically to gain recognition, they probably would've missed their mark.

it's entirely possible to engineer fame and fortune. Social media "influencers" and celebrity "personalities" as well as corporate media do it all the time. As well as scam artists lol.

Whether one wants to do it like that or be more authentic is another matter. It's nice when it happens naturally.

 

[bob]

@ZenDruid , it's never to late to be "discovered " .
here are a couple late bloomers who changed the art world .

* Grandma Moses ( started painting in her late 70s & was selling her work through a drug store when an art dealer " discovered " her work )
* Bill Traylor ( broke & homeless at age 85 , to pass the time he started drawing & displaying his work on the streets of Montgomery , Alabama )
* Louise Bourgeois ( didn't create her iconic MAMAN sculpture until she was 88 years old )

 

[OleKobe]

it's entirely possible to engineer fame and fortune. Social media "influencers" and celebrity "personalities" as well as corporate media do it all the time. As well as scam artists lol.

Whether one wants to do it like that or be more authentic is another matter. It's nice when it happens naturally.

Very good points.

 

[pcj]

there are 3 types of artists

* Hobbyist
* Amateur
* Professional

My 4 categories of artists

-those who do it for the love of it but who make a living at something else..
-those who do it both for the love of it and hopefully to make a living so that they can continue doing it.
-those who do it for the love of it and for money and recognition but who will not compromise their art just to please an art critic.
-those who will compromise their art for money and recognition

I don't think the word 'hobbiest' can be applied to an artist.
eg: I don't consider art as my hobby. I belong in my first group above. I have always done art
but I'm also a professional pilot. I do both for the love of it but I also earn my living flying.

I do have what I consider 'hobbies' eg: I collect antique brass door knockers .

Cheers,
Patricia

 

[bob]

there are 3 types of artists

* Hobbyist
* Amateur
* Professional

* Hobbyist : may spend years , decades or even a lifetime of creating art strictly for personal pleasure , they have no desire to develop a following or sell their artwork or try to support themselves with their art .

* Amateur : at some point the hobbyist might come to the realization that painting ( or other artwork ) can be an expensive hobby & have thought about selling some of their artwork to help offset some of the costs of continuing to paint or whatever .
Amateurs are willing to sacrifice personal time in the pursuit of making art & selling it .

* Professional : artists who want to pursue art as a profession , to make a living from their artwork .
the people pursuing a professional art career are making a bigger commitment to their artwork .

you must love what you do so much that you become consumed with passion for what you do .... to create your unique style & constantly develop your body of work .

 

[E.J.H.]

there are 3 types of artists

* Hobbyist
* Amateur
* Professional

There are two types of people

* Those who like to put everybody else in their neat little boxes
* Those who don't.

 

[bob]

There are two types of people

* Those who like to put everybody else in their neat little boxes
* Those who don't.

LOL

it is what is & your statement above reveals alot about you , nice little cheap shot at me though @E.J.H.

 

[AES]

 

[stlukesguild]

Probably the only two categories of artist that ultimately matters to me are:

1. Artists whose work interests me
2. All the rest

There have been artists who might be deemed by many during their lives as "hobbyists"... or even individuals who created art as a means of therapy... and yet some created absolutely marvelous work of art: Henry Darger, Martin Ramirez, Joseph Yoakum, etc...

There have been artists who were fiercely defensive of their personal visions. Some created great art: Van Gogh, William Blake, Vermeer, etc...

And there have been a good many artists who at times compromised to meet the demands of patrons or the market. More than a few of these created masterful works of art: Michelangelo, Van Dyck... pretty much any artist who ever worked on commission.

There are probably as many reasons for making art as there are artists.

 

[E.J.H.]

LOL

it is what is & your statement above reveals alot about you , nice little cheap shot at me though @E.J.H.

And thàt statement tells me you seem to be completely oblivious of how your posts in this topic work on people.

For instance the patronising way you told me "that there was nothing wrong with me being a hobbyist artists" (geee thanks, I was really worried) but and I quote again, "some artists have higher aspirations , bigger goals & I'm one of them" (pity you haven't shown us any of your ambitious works here yet)

And now you are wining about a little joke about the way you are pigeon holing people here, come ON man...

 

[stlukesguild]

Arty's first paragraph pretty much says what I would say about my own approach to making art:

My idea of success is to make art that I'm happy/satisfied with. That is in the process department. For the business aspect, I'd just like to make enough wherewithal to sustain making more art. That is all I've ever wanted. That hasn't even necessarily required huge monetary means. Sometimes, especially in the past, it could have been trade or some other means. As long as I was/am able to sustain this lifestyle and not have to do something I did not want to do.

 

[bob]

And thàt statement tells me you seem to be completely oblivious of how your posts in this topic work on people.

For instance the patronising way you told me "that there was nothing wrong with me being a hobbyist artists" (geee thanks, I was really worried) but and I quote again, "some artists have higher aspirations , bigger goals & I'm one of them" .

And now you are wining about a little joke about the way you are pigeon holing people here, come ON man...

I have a feeling your the type of person who gets offended &/ or upset really easily .... but hey , to each their own you know .


if you got " offended " by my saying that there's nothing wrong with being a " hobbyist " artist than that's on you .... not me , I didn't mean that whatsoever in a demeaning way & some artists like myself aspire to be more than a hobbyist artist like yourself ( that's just a fact ) .

secondly I wasn't offended by your cheap shot ( let's be honest , that's how you intended it ) I found it humourous " Karen "

 

[E.J.H.]

Sure Bob, being easily offended is one of my many character flaws.
I am very curious by the way about that professional work of yours. Judging by your statements here it must be quite impressive.
Can we look forward to you posting some of it?

 

[bob]

Sure Bob, being easily offended is one of my many character flaws.
I am very curious by the way about that professional work of yours. Judging by your statements here it must be quite impressive.
Can we look forward to you posting some of it?

you really should pay more attention to my posts when your reading them @E.J.H.
I've never made any such comments on my artwork .
your reading my posts but your not comprehending them .

 

[E.J.H.]

Aaah, I understand. My excuses, so you haven't actually made any of that professional art yet?
Or am I still too dense to get the message (a very real possibility as you rightly pointed out)?

 

[Bartc]

I consider myself a classic "amateur" in the literal meaning: one who pursues something out of love. It has nothing to do with skill or vision, just distinguishes the intent toward sales vs. solely creation. At least, that's how I understand the distinctions and definitions.

 

[Hermes2020]

I came across this definition quoted by someone called Dushka Zapata:

“Amateur” comes from “amatore”, Latin for “lover”. It means “someone who does something for love rather than money” or “someone motivated by love rather than money”.

As a lover of art, I am proud to call myself an amateur.

 

[bob]

I came across this definition quoted by someone called Dushka Zapata:

“Amateur” comes from “amatore”, Latin for “lover”. It means “someone who does something for love rather than money” or “someone motivated by love rather than money”.

As a lover of art, I am proud to call myself an amateur.

LOL ...
Then you'd have no problem giving all your paintings away then huh ?

 

[Ayin Es]

Bob, I suggest you reread the about page regarding stirring up divisive content. Try to be more respectful of the other members of the forum. Thank you .

 

[Hermes2020]

LOL ...
Then you'd have no problem giving all your paintings away then huh ?

Yes, I find it quite easy to find willing victims.