Art Heroes Radio

The future of selling art online, a conversation with Matt Trifiro CEO of 1000markets.com

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Matthew G. Trifiro is a co-founder and CEO of 1,000 Markets, Inc., a Seattle-based technology company that builds e-commerce platforms for "very small" businesses. 1,000 Markets' mission is to provide community-driven retailing opportunities to artisanal businesses and a unique shopping experience for consumers. Their Public Market Platform™ provides a marketplace construction kit where specialty merchants open branded shops and then self-organize into thematic marketplaces.

When I first discovered 1000markets.com I was totally blown away by their design and implementation of an online marketplace… 1KM is beautiful, functional and focused.

Of all the sites I've tried for selling my work online, 1000 Markets has the simplest, fastest and most powerful user interface for creating listings. I love it. I also love the fact that as good as it is, when I made a few suggestions to CEO Matt Trifiro early in the development of 1KM, he saw the value of the ideas and was able to implement them nearly instantly on the system.

This led to a great friendship and some very interesting conversations about how to implement the best possible e-commerce platform for artists and entrepreneurs. The integration of blogs and e-commerce is a subject I've studied exhaustively (see my post on TypePad Hacks: Blogs as Stores: A Comprehensive Overview of Ecommerce Solutions for Bloggers). After years of testing, consulting and advocacy in this field, Matt is probably the smartest and most effective person I've worked with.

Q+A Call In Show— How to talk about your art to buyers at shows

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There's nothing quite so exciting as opening night at a show you've worked hard to create new art for… but at the same time, quite a few artists are nervous when it comes to talking about their work. Working the crowd at a gallery opening or art fair is equal parts stage show, social function, classroom and business meeting. Here are a few of the questions I've been asked about how to put your best foot forward at an art event.

1. At a group show, how do you tell who is a buyer and who is another artist?
2. If you invite friends to your opening, how do you balance time with them and time with potential clients?
   
3. At gallery openings, how do you break the ice? How do you just go up to someone and start talking about your art (especially if they didn't approach you first)?
4. Should you have a prepared statement ready about the pieces you are showing, or just talk informally about your work? How do you avoid coming off as arrogant, pushy or self-centered?
5. How do you find ways to engage people personally so that they take an interest in the ideas or methods used in your art?
6. How long should you spend talking to people? Is it better to spend more time with a couple people who are really interested or should you spend shorter periods with more people?
7. How should you dress for an opening? Is formal dress required, or are jeans okay?
8. What if people tell you they don't like your art? Do you ask questions to find out why or do you just say thanks and exit gracefully?
9. What's the best way to follow up with potential buyers you meet at an opening?
10. Is drinking at an opening an okay way to take the edge off any anxiety you may feel?

Please call in with your own questions about representing yourself and your work at shows or ask me on twitter.

How to be a famous artist without quitting your day job, a conversation with Lisa Call

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For most artists, quitting the day job and making art full time is the dream… and it often feels like the only way to make a serious name for yourself in the art world. But renowned textile artist Lisa Call has built an extremely successful arts career while keeping the job, raising children and finding time to share her knowledge with other artists. We'll talk about why she's chosen to keep her job, how she balances her art career with work and family life, how getting organized helps her create and how she sets prices for her work. We'll also take a look at her plans for MakeBigArt – a website and blog to empower artists to think big about their art, their marketing and their lives.

Q+A Live Discussion— Austin Kleon, Hugh MacLeod, John T. Unger and Cynthia Fedor at Stagira Studios

Panel discussion to examine the relationship between art and money, creativity and profitability, idea and execution, and collector and artist. Cynthia Fedor (Stagira Studios, LLC), Austin Kleon (author of Newspaper Blackouts), John T. Unger and Hugh MacLeod (cartoonist and author of Ignore Everybody).

Learn more about Stagira Studios' efforts to promote a culture of art collecting and raise awareness of the breadth and depth of art and artists here.

Licensing your art, A Conversation with Maria Brophy

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Maria Brophy has successfully represented lifestyle artists for the past decade.  She specializes in art marketing and licensing and gives seminars at various venues to share her experiences.  A fierce advocate for artists, she writes a blog at www.mariabrophy.com that helps creative people to design the life and career of their dreams.

Ten years ago, Maria Brophy became the Brand Manager for her husband Drew Brophy's artwork. Since then, Drew has become known as the top licensed surf artist in history, he has over 30 licensees that pay him to use his art on their products, and he is well respected in the art world.

Maria's vision is "that all creative people get to do what they love for a living (and get paid well for doing it)".

We'll discuss the opportunities and the potential perils of licensing your artwork, including negotiating control of how and when your work is used. We'll also discuss working with art agents— what they can do for your career and what you need to bring to the table.

Q+A Call In Show— How to sell art on twitter (and how not to)

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Is it really possible to sell art in 140 characters or less? Absolutely! Last year, every piece of art I bought was from a link I followed in Twitter.

In tonight's show, I'll look at what does and doesn't work when using twitter to sell your artwork. How do you reach new buyers without annoying your existing base? How do you use twitter to keep your audience engaged? Using case studies of artists who have been successful with selling their work on twitter, I've identified over ten strategies that work best.

This show was pre-recorded, so there were fewer call-ins but I was joined by Jennifer Mathis (@JenXer) who shares some of the ideas that have worked for her.

Life is Art, A Conversation with Chris Guillebeau

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Chris Guillebeau's mission is to help people live unconventional lives, make their own choices, and change the world. He writes for a small army of remarkable people at chrisguillebeau.com.

"My writing offers unconventional ideas for remarkable people. I write through personal experience, including both failures and successes. Among other projects, I am on a five-year personal quest to visit every country in the world." You can follow his live updates from every country in the world on twitter here.

On this show, we'll be talking about living life on a mythic scale, adventure, how life can be art, what heroes are and what they do. We'll also talk about how to conquer the "impossible" and ignore those who tell you that something can't be done.

Q+A Call In Show— Do artists still need galleries or is selling online the best choice?

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Galleries used to be the only serious venue for selling your art, but that's changed dramatically in recent years. Selling art online has become easier than ever, even for artists who don't have the skills to build their own sites. There are many tools and services for selling online that are simple and inexpensive. As the online art market has grown, collectors have become more accustomed to dealing directly with the artist. The role of galleries as gatekeeper is diminishing as collectors become more confident in choosing the work that appeals to them without consulting an expert.

So do artists still need galleries?

Some artists, such as Hazel Dooney have decided to leave galleries behind and take full control of their careers. For Hazel, this has worked extremely well and her career has in fact skyrocketed.

Other artists are still much more comfortable with the idea of focusing on their work and leaving the sales, marketing and reputation management to gallerists.

Both the gallery system and direct sales online have definite advantages and drawbacks. It's possible to do both if you are careful to avoid conflicts or misunderstandings.

Artists' Rights and the Law, a Conversation with Attorney Stephen Zralek

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In this week's Art Heroes conversation with Stephen Zralek, we'll examine why artists' rights are important; what protections exist for artists; the difference between copyright, trade dress and design patents; when you should seek an attorney's assistance and what you can do on your own.

Protecting your work as an artist is important for reasons far more compelling than pure financial issues. As an artist, your reputation is closely tied to your work. We'll also discuss how intellectual property rights protect your name, reputation and legacy and why that may be even more important than protecting your immediate livelihood.

Stephen Zralek is an attorney who helps clients resolve disputes over their intellectual property: copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets and rights to publicity. His clients range from individuals, such as visual artist John Unger and performing artist Sam Moore, to businesses ranging in size from small entrepreneurs to Warner Bros. His cases cover everything from music, film, furniture and software to shapes of water bottles and packaging of dog breath mints.

Q+A Call In Show— How to fix artistic burnout and creative block?

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As an artist, I get paid to me… in fact, in many ways I get paid to play all day. It sounds like the perfect perfect gig, right? But no matter how much you love making art, writing, playing music or being creative, there's times when you just don't feel it. Maybe you feel you've run out of ideas, or just don't have the energy, or can't find the time, or need something new? Maybe you're afraid that no one will appreciate what you're making, or that you're doing it wrong, or that it won't be good enough? Sometimes you can't even tell why you don't feel creative… this can be terrifying because you don't know if you'll get it back. A big part of fixing the problem of block is to figure out where it comes from. On this episode, I'll talk about a variety of ways we shut shut down our creative output and fixes for each of them.

I hope you'll call in with suggestions that have worked for you or to get advice on the how to overcome your own creative blocks.