Curious Mondays Archives

How Do You Know If You’re a Real Artist? (Curious Monday)

Does this scenario sound familiar?

You’re at a <party/meeting/wherever> and Smarty Pants asks you what you do.

I’m an artist, you say with confidence (of course).

Not missing a beat, Smarty Pants says, “Oh! My aunt is an artist. She does these …”

You restrain yourself – resisting the urge to stomp your feet and throw a tantrum while shouting, You don’t understand! I’m a REAL artist!

Okay, so what does that mean?

What is a real artist anyway? How do you know if you are one?

Please leave a comment with this post and share your experiences.

How Do You Know If You’re a Real Artist? (Curious Monday) Read

Artists’ Gifts for Christmas (Curious Monday)

If you’re like me, you still have a little (a lot?) of gifts to find for the people on your Christmas list.

So … let’s help each other out.

If you have been marketing something as a great gift for loved ones, please describe it and share a link to it in the comments. This might include:

Calendars
Journals
Reproductions
Cards
Books
<Fill in the blank>

Be detailed enough that we want to click and see. You’re pitching your product.

Do it with gusto!

Artists’ Gifts for Christmas (Curious Monday) Read

Painting of Grizzly Bear by Rosemary Conroy

Who Could Help You in Your Business? (Curious Monday)

Artists tell me there is too much work to be the creative director, CEO, chief marketer, and social media manager of their businesses.

Soooooo …

If you could wave a magic wand and have help in your art business, who would you hire?

What would their responsibilities be?

Would they help you in the office or in your studio?

Is it a single person? Or multiple people?

Do they need to work in your space or can they work virtually?

Since you’ll never get help until you define the parameters of the job, let’s start with those questions.

Who Could Help You in Your Business? (Curious Monday) Read

Your Weekly Work Rhythm (Curious Monday)

Some time ago, I learned to block out days for no scheduled calls or appointments.

These “free days” are rarely free, but they allow big chunks of time for tasks such as writing and planning. They are usually Mondays and Fridays, which means my Tuesday-Thursday calendar is pretty jam-packed.

I prefer afternoon client calls to morning client calls so that I can catch up with my team in the mornings.

I leave Monday mornings for recombobulating after the weekend, and Fridays for writing and art-viewing.

How about you?

How do you organize your week for maximum productivity and inspiration in the office and studio?

Your Weekly Work Rhythm (Curious Monday) Read

Assuming Traditional Female Roles with Your Art Career (Curious Monday)

Is it harder to be a woman and have an art career?

I’m not talking about the fact that the art world is still male-dominated. I’m talking about juggling roles that are perceived to be held traditionally by women with your career as an artist.

Do you find it difficult to be wife, mother, caretaker, carpool-driver, housekeeper, and have an art career?

How or why is it harder to do this as an artist than if you were in another business?

What would make it easier? What could you do differently to make it easier on yourself.

And what about you guys? What do you think?

Assuming Traditional Female Roles with Your Art Career (Curious Monday) Read

Where and How Do You Retreat? (Curious Monday)

It’s well proven that we need rest and relaxation for peak performance.

Artists need to get away or get out of their heads in order to be refreshed and newly inspired.

Enter the artist’s retreat.

You might have official getaways planned in the form of retreats. I often refer to Art Biz Breakthrough as a retreat because it allows you to get away from the daily grind and focus on business-building.

How do you get away from it all?

Do you have regular retreats planned? Where do you go? What do you see and do?

Do you plan weekly or monthly retreats?

What do those look like?

Please share in a comment below.

Where and How Do You Retreat? (Curious Monday) Read

Brother and Sister at the Rodeo - Sculpture in Golden, Colorado

Should My Hometown Deaccession Public Sculpture of Lesser Quality? (Curious Monday)

There’s an art controversy in my sleepy little hometown of Golden, Colorado.

Six bronze sculptures have been recommended for deaccession from the City’s collection. The reasoning:

– They were mass produced in China.

– They are judged to be of lesser quality.

– They are signed by “fake” artists. No one can find an artist by these names.

And, yet, many people love these pieces.

I’m curious about what you think.

Should My Hometown Deaccession Public Sculpture of Lesser Quality? (Curious Monday) Read

How Do You Take Care of Yourself? (Curious Monday)

We’re busy.

Busy in the studio, busy at home, and busy in the office. Everyone is so busy that it’s a boring topic. I’ve even made it an important goal to never utter the words I’m so busy.

But lots of the busy-ness involves sitting on our butts. And when we’re not doing that, we might just be so involved in deadlines and commitments that we forget to eat.

None of this is good.

Today’s big question originated from one of my Inner Circle members: How do you take care of yourself?

How Do You Take Care of Yourself? (Curious Monday) Read

What’s Your Social Media Schedule? (Curious Monday)

One of the things we do in Content Camp is create an editorial calendar so you know what you’ll be posting and when.

This naturally got me thinking about what your social media schedule is like.

How frequently do you post? And to which platforms? Facebook? Twitter? Instagram? Pinterest?

What time of day do you post?

Do you schedule posts or always post live?

What types of things do you post?

What’s Your Social Media Schedule? (Curious Monday) Read

About Curious Monday Posts

Curious Monday is a weekly question that is sent only to subscribers.

I’m curious about how you live your life as an artist, how you juggle the demands on your time, and what you’re thinking about.

I hope you’ll read the responses from other artists.

Maybe you’ll get some fresh ideas or even feel a little more connected as a result.

Feel free to email me with suggestions for future Curious Monday questions.

About Curious Monday Posts Read