Alyson Stanfield, Author at Art Biz Success

The Joy in Artist Community and Paring Back Obligations with Ali Cavanaugh (ep. 190)

A follow-up to episode 189, Ali Cavanaugh discusses her thriving Patreon community, the boundaries she established to manage her art demands, the release of her Ali Cavanaugh Portrait Colors Set, and her upcoming retrospective made possible by keeping prized pieces in her private collection.

Ali’s dedication to her patrons and students shines through as she shares insights from the past five years of her career.

The Joy in Artist Community and Paring Back Obligations with Ali Cavanaugh (ep. 190) Read

Reinventing Your Art Career with Ali Cavanaugh (ep. 189)

In 2014, Ali Cavanaugh had 11 galleries representing her work throughout the U.S. and even overseas. It was all she could do to paint fast enough to supply these galleries with new work. It’s a great problem for any artist to have, but was still a problem for her.

Something wasn’t right. Ali started pulling away from galleries and reconsidering not just her business model, but the art itself.

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Proving It’s Possible to be an Artist and Mother with Elizabeth LeMaster (ep. 188)

Elizabeth LeMaster has, like so many of us, more to balance than her studio practice and business. How do you find time for working on your art when you have 6 kids under the age of 8?

Elizabeth and I talk about how she has done it because she wanted to share her tips with all artist-mothers out there. She is also very honest about the bumps along the road.

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Visiting Enid Oklahoma | Art Biz Success

An Appreciation of Mothers and of My Mom

Here’s to the mothers who are artists. And to the mothers who raise healthy, informed artists who make the world a better place.

To My Mom . . . Who is forgiven for not taking me to museums because she didn’t want me to misbehave in public. (She was probably right.)

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How to Guarantee that People Remember You with Skip Hill (ep. 187)

When Skip Hill said he needed a system for following up with his collectors, I knew I wanted to help.

He was neglecting his important business relationships at the most basic level. He said he was tired of being the stereotypical bohemian artist and ready to hone his business chops. Skip understood that the place to start this new commitment was with his network.

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The Career Journey of Growth-Minded Artists (ep. 186)

I want to talk about something that gets in the way of how you think your art business possibilities: The ladder of success.

I want to help you reframe your daily decisions, actions, and results (or lack thereof)—to embrace the volatility of an artist life. To understand that there will be highs and lows, and that just comes along with the territory. To do this, let’s consider a circle rather than a ladder.

The Career Journey of Growth-Minded Artists (ep. 186) Read

Leaning Into Her Roots and Community Art with Marilyn Fontaine (ep. 185)

Marilyn Fontaine, a multidisciplinary artist whose work is spiritual with a strong foothold in feminine themes, finds fulfillment by collaborating with others outside of her studio walls.

Marilyn and I talk about the work she does within her Afro-Carribean community in East London, including how it is funded and why her growing network is essential. We also discuss her studio rituals, leaning into the discomfort of rejection, and learning to let go.

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How Your Art Makes People Feel (ep. 184)

For some artists, being asked why they make art is unfruitful—even debilitating. A better strategy is to focus on the people who will be viewing, talking about, and living with your art.

How does your art make people feel? Bernadette Jiwa says, “People don’t buy why you do something. They buy how it makes them feel.” If you think about it, this, ironically, leads to your Why: Connection.

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A Collaboration Between 2 Artists that Led to Creative Growth (ep. 183)

When I teach about collaboration, I’m usually talking about an exhibition or event. Lori Sokoluk and Susan Purney Mark took collaboration to the next level by collaborating on the artwork itself—resulting in a two-person exhibition.

We discuss finishing a piece on top of someone else’s marks, how they titled the pieces, how they divided up the work, how the exhibition was organized, and what they learned from the process that they’ll carry forward.

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Jaye Alison Moscariello acrylic painting

Rethinking Mailing Lists for Artists (ep. 182)

Your artist mailing list is your most valuable marketing asset. It is the primary tool you use to share your art with the world. It’s your #1 marketing asset.

Let me emphasize that by saying it a different way: There is nothing more important you can do to build your art business and career than to nurture your relationships.

In reality, most artists have 3 mailing lists, not just 1. Here’s what I mean.

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Alyson Stanfield