Putting yourself out there as an artist is painstakingly difficult, not just in getting your name out there but emotionally as well. Artists, myself included, tend to be a sensitive lot, which, ultimately, lends to our craft. Unfortunately, when it comes to selling your art, it can also be a hindrance if you’re thin-skinned.  You need to know when to take criticism either with a grain of salt or as a constructive, actionable offering. Basically, it becomes a matter of understanding the source of the criticism and when to dust your shoulders off and keep on going.

In the last few weeks, I’ve been spending  time in the forums on one of the sites where I sell my work. I’ve come across several posts by individuals wondering why their work isn’t selling, but others are. In taking a look at their offerings, I didn’t see anything glaring that would immediately explain their lack of sales, however I did pause to wonder if their attitude about the other art, as compared to their own work,  was hindering them in any way.

One individual, a painter, wrote that he was dismayed at the abstract art being sold. Art which, according to him, looked like a six year old could paint it. To this, I had several points to make.

Art, in any form, is subjective; just like beauty, what one might find pleasing, another might not. There are no clear cut, black and white rules about what makes art ”good” as opposed to “bad”; it’s all a matter of individual taste. If we, as artists, are creating our work with the sole purpose of pleasing the masses, we are doing ourselves, as well as the art community as a whole, a great injustice. We should be creating out of love for our individual craft, not, ultimately, to win the sale. Does it feel good when a piece of work is coveted? Yes, most definitely, but the recognition should be the secondary reason why we create.

Additionally, we, as artists, regardless of medium, need to support, not disparage, one another. It’s a difficult enough industry to break in to, let alone survive in, without having to worry about negative remarks from our own brethren. Just like those seeking to buy our art, we may not like every piece we come across, however it is no less from their heart as it is from our own, nor does it mean ours is “better” than theirs. I look at other photographers work and love the majority of what I see. That said, some is not quite my taste and, while I may not understand why it might be someone else’s, “to each his own.” If we all had the same taste, if we, as artists all produced the same work, it would be a very vanilla world.

 I’ve spent the last 15 years of my life in a corporate environment where backstabbing and deceit are, sadly, commonplace, and you learn very quickly to evaluate what you hear and try to move on. (I stress try because I am, admittedly, not quite as good at that as I would like) Happily, I have found a creative comfort zone behind the camera lens and hoped that I would deal with less of that from those in the artistic world. I suppose that was naive but I am still hopeful that those negative individuals I have come across are few and far between. Again, naive? Perhaps, but maybe that’s just my sensitive, artistic side thinking for me…

"Hitchcock"