Ask An Artist - Choosing and changing mediums

It is a sad fact that about 20% of small business fail in their first year and around 60% of small businesses fail within the first 3 years. That is indeed a sobering thought for us working artists, trying to earn a living. And the reasons for this? After poor cash flow, the second reason small businesses give is the inability to source and afford help; help to grow, help to promote and help to create the work we are all so passionate about. So today, Peter and Tom discuss the range of ways they have sought help from others to help grow their business and creative practice, alongside other ideas that may help you as well. 

Welcome back to Season 4 of Ask an Artist. There are a lot of things that have happened since Tom and Peter were last together - certainly lots of things happening around the world and indeed plenty of ideas, problems and opportunities to navigate  through during these challenging times. In this first episode of a new series, Peter and Tom have a long over-due catch-up in the first half and in the second, they talk about their changing relationships with social media (in particular, Instagram) and whether they love it or hate it. For the full show notes please visit www.askanartistpodcast.com

In this episode, Peter & Tom answer some of your tricky questions. This week they give their views on best practice when using reference images, whether or not a listener should consider undertaking a Fine Art degree and how to price work. If you have a question you’d like to put to us and would be happy for us answer it here on the podcast, please send it to us via our website at askanartistpodcast.com or alternatively you can send it to us via Instagram, Twitter or Facebook

In this week's episode, Tom interviews New Zealand based artist, Andrew Tischler.  Andrew has been a professional artist for the past 17 years.  He is drawn to vast landscapes, people, objects and animals, painting a wide variety of subjects in a realist style. His goal for every painting is to achieve a convincing sense of reality and break the constraints of the two dimensional surface.His obsession with realist painting led him to study many of the great masters from the past and seek to understand how they made such magnificent pictures. From this, alongside his passion for painting, he has developed a passion for teaching and is eager to share what he has learnt over the years.He is not only a very successful painter but he has also amassed a huge following on YouTube having started his channel in 2016 which has now grown to over 400k followers. Andrew begins by telling Tom a bit about his back story and how he got to be an artist, before he and Tom dive into the world of online content - what is it and how can we create it, alongside creating our art work?Tom and Andrew discuss the why's and wherefore's, the do's and don'ts and how, if it's ever possible, to create a balance between authentically creating art and creating content. Andrew openly shares his wealth of experience but ultimately concludes by saying that each artist's journey will be unique; in the same way that there isn't just one way to be an Artist, there isn't just one way to create online content as part of your art career.An insightful interview and a must listen for any Artist or creative considering going into the world of video tutorials.If you want to find out more about Andrew and his work, you can visit his website: https://www.andrewtischler.comTo support Andrew on Patreon and have access to exclusive content, take a look here: https://www.patreon.com/AndrewTischlerArtist

Mailing lists – on the face of it, not the most exciting of topics but a crucial part any working, creative business and a fantastic way to stay in touch with an already keen and receptive audience. Both Peter and Tom have developed a newfound love for their mailing lists during the past couple of years and in this episode they talk about what they are, how to collect and manage one, why they can be such an amazing tool and also some of the nitty gritty of being responsible for other people’s information.Mailing lists can be a wonderful tool for any creator. You have a receptive audience of previous buyers or students, interested parties, right at your finger tips and often they will be genuinely interested, if not actually excited to hear from you!  Not only can mailing lists be used to directly sell, you can also use them to help remind people you still exist and they are a great way to take care of those who have supported you and your career so far. For the full show notes, please visit www.askanartistpodcast.com

Symi Jackson is the Sales and Marketing Director for Rosemary & Co brushes. Symi is Rosemary’s daughter and has inherited her Mother’s love of painting and working with Artists. She has been working with her Mum, helping to run the company, for the past 9 years. Her day-to-day role is incredibly varied and, as a result of her role, she has worked with some of the world’s best artists and creatives.  She is therefore uniquely placed to offer advice and guidance about what it takes to be a professional, working Artist.The episode starts with Symi sharing what she loves about working with Artists and what, in her opinion, makes Artists just that little bit special and unique.After the break, her and Peter discuss the do’s and don’t’s of being a professional Artist. Symi concludes by enthusing about her latest project “Workshops in Yorkshire”: bringing some of the best Artists from across the world, to England, to Yorkshire to lead professional, art workshops. If you would like to know more, take a look at:workshopsinyorkshire.comrosemaryandco.com

In this episode, Peter & Tom answer some of your tricky questions. This week they give their views on shipping work abroad, how to get to grips with instagram and whether they wear gloves whilst painting.If you have a question you’d like to put to us and would be happy for us answer it here on the podcast, please send it to us via our website at askanartistpodcast.com or alternatively you can send it to us via Instagram, Twitter or Facebook

In this episode, Tom and Peter talk about their own experience with different mediums, how they came to choose their dominant medium, the pros and cons of changing mediums, as well as how they have found a balance between experimentation and honing their expertise. 

In this episode, Peter visited the beautiful Yorkshire Dales National Park, the home of Rosemary & Co Artists’ brushes, to interview Rosemary herself. Peter and Rosemary discuss exactly how she makes her famous brushes, the tools and materials involved in brush making and why so many artists around the globe consider her paint brushes the best in the world.Painter or not, for anyone interested in Art, this podcast is not to be missed!This week’s takeaway… If you want to find out more about Rosemary & Co and their magnificent, handmade Artists’ brushes, visit https://www.rosemaryandco.com 

Running your own business is a risky business, with 20% of businesses failing in their first year and a shocking 60% failing within the first three. But making decisions and taking risks is all part of running any business, including the creative business of being an Artist. The calculation of risk is an essential skill which all artists and makers need to hone in order to forge ahead in their career. In this episode, Peter and Tom share examples of creative and business orientated risks that they have taken and discuss why and how taking risks can be crucial in helping you to maintain momentum in your business.  They also openly share examples of when taking risks has not worked out, why this may be and how they have used these situations to develop, learn and move forward. Both Tom and Peter agree that the willingness to experiment with new ideas has been the key to their business growth. They bring the episode to a conclusion by talking about less quantifiable results which may emerge from taking risks; just because something might feel like a failure at the time, you never know what may come of it in the future…This week's takeaway... risk taking is a part of running any business and artists and makers are not alone. It is often the risk takers of the world that forge ahead, attract attention and lead the way. Just remember that not all risks are good ones and, when you fail, learn from it; pick yourself up, dust yourself off and move forward.