Income Sources
Making a living as an artist rarely looks like one thing.
These articles and episodes of The Art Biz explore how artists build and manage their income, strategically and realistically.
Do you have too many income sources in your art business? (269)
There are many ways to make money as an artist, but adding more income sources doesn’t necessarily lead to more income. Each one requires time, energy, research, marketing, and systems.
In this episode, I clarify the difference between an income source and an income stream, examine the real cost of diversification, and offer questions to help you decide whether a source deserves a place in your art business—or needs to go.
Maintaining your studio practice with a busy teaching schedule with Sally Hirst (164)
Sally Hirst was born to teach, and she was also born an artist. Like most of us, she adapted to the new reality that she was faced with at the beginning of the pandemic.
Sally and I discuss her income sources before and after Covid, the skills she had to acquire to teach online, how she attracts new students, and how she manages to maintain her studio practice with her busy teaching schedule.
She knows exactly how much her art income will be every month with Kelly Pelfrey (162)
Kelly Pelfrey’s goal in 2020 was to replace her $50,000 teaching salary, but she quadrupled that. Her income has allowed her husband to leave his job to focus on his doctorate, feel comfortable about taking maternity leave, and save for college for her children.
In this episode of The Art Biz, Kelly shares her income sources, which are dominated by sales of commissions, followed distantly by releases of small paintings.
How do artists make money? (159)
One thing above all else can get in the way of feeling successful: Money. So let’s talk about it—starting with income sources. Where does the money come from?
In this episode, I discuss why you might want to diversify beyond originals, how to categorize your income sources, and how to analyze where the money has come from in the past so you can plan for the future.
4 considerations for wholesaling your art with Katie Hunt (138)
What does it mean to wholesale your art and products? Who is it for? Who is it not for?
What’s the difference between wholesaling and retailing? Where does licensing fit in?
Katie Hunt, founder of Proof to Product, is a wealth of information, and generously shared 4 considerations for wholesaling as well as a helpful list of 4 things she assesses when making business decisions.
Expanding your skillset to respond to opportunities with Detour (128)
Detour doesn’t want to be limited by what he currently knows, so he’s learning how to use new technologies to help him land complex opportunities. He isn’t afraid to discover that the best way to approach an artistic problem is something he hasn’t done before.
Big on presenting himself in the most professional light, he says, “You never know who is watching.”
Juggling multiple art styles and audiences with Robin Maria Pedrero (103)
In this episode of The Art Biz with Robin Maria Pedrero, you’ll hear about the three different styles and subjects she paints. Robin has a very full art business, and she has joined the podcast to share her story about how she juggles her various styles of art and the diverse audiences for her work.
She also has fun during the process.
A realistic strategy for increasing your income (99)
This is a process for accelerating income, one I’ve used in my own business and adapted to teach artists.
It involves 4 steps that begin with a realistic look at where you are right now and projecting based on your activity, goals, and lifestyle. The secret sauce is your motivation to work the plan.
Transform your creative ideas into multiple income streams with Helen Hiebert (18)
Ten years ago, Helen Hiebert didn’t think of her art as a business. Her shift of mindset changed everything and she now makes her living as a working artist.
Rather than feeling icky about having a “business,” she embraced it and learned to channel some of her creativity into making money from her talents.