Art Problems

In this podcast, Paddy Johnson and artist William Powhida discuss the increasing cost of museums, art fairs, application fees, and travel impacting artists and how to beat them.

You'll learn:

Where to stay when visiting New York that won't cost $500 or more a night

How to avoid a large fair entrance fee

And how to lower the cost of museum fees

The start of the fall season is upon us!

And with all fall events, so too comes feelings of excitement, mixed with overwhelm and sometimes even dread.

You might be asking yourself questions like,

"How do I get my art seen when there is so little press to cover the five million shows now open across the country?"

"How do I network at openings and fairs when no one wants to see my work unless I am the exhibiting artist?"

"How do I attend these events without bankrupting myself in the process?"

In this episode, I provide answers.

Relevant links:

Hyperallergic art fair discounts:

https://hyperallergic.com/841510/your-a-z-guide-to-new-york-city-september-2023-art-fairs/

Two Coats of Paint:

https://twocoatsofpaint.com/2023/09/nyc-selected-gallery-guide-september-2023.html

Art Haps Spreadsheet:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/17XFl-TJwmEMvdFPAfwUDVnwSDS6W7tMvdxu94vpmV00/edit#gid=0

Gallery Platform LA

https://galleryplatform.la/events

In this episode, Paddy gives you the skinny on the Guggenheim Fellowship, one of the most prestigious awards for mid-career artists. The talk contains tips and strategies you won't find on their website, including knowing when to apply and how often. You won't find this information anywhere else, so have a listen. Even if you're not planning to apply, this episode will give you strategies for ALL grant applications.

Relevant links:

https://www.gf.org/

In this episode I talk with artist Eric LoPresti about defining success inside an industry that has few markers to gage it. LoPresti talks about his goals for his work, his approach to securing the opportunities he's gained, and a work strategy that identifies artists as either hunters or trappers. Listen to the podcast to learn more!

Relevant links:

http://www.ericlopresti.com/

Welcome to the future where down is up, up is down, and email isn't just a spam storage service.

In this podcast, I share the news that many artists aren't going to like—email is back, baby! In many ways, it never left us, but in this episode, I discuss the recent media shift to newsletters and why artists should be placing their focus there as well.

If you haven't been building your mailing list, now is the time to start. It can transform your career.

Relevant links:

https://www.threads.net/@ezraklein/post/CvlcRaWuO21?hl=en

https://substack.com/

https://convertkit.com/

A gallery with an incredible curatorial record, a publishing wing, a 90% sales split to the artist AND 5% resale royalties may sound like an artist's fantasy, but it exists! Enter Testudo, a new online-first gallery dedicated to inclusivity, transparency and security.

In this episode of Art Problems, I speak with John Dennehy of Testudo, the gallery he co-founded with his partner Kirby Voigtman in 2021. We discuss the gallery model, its importance to artists and collectors, and the company's goals.

Relevant links:

https://testudomkt.com/

https://testudomkt.com/editorial

https://testudomkt.com/editorial/about-testudo

https://testudomkt.com/artist/courtney-puckett

https://www.vvrkshop.art/blog/is-site-specificity-relevant-to-a-generation-of-nomads-not-really

In this episode, William Powhida joins Paddy Johnson to talk about the changes in the art world, since 2017. Powhida and Johnson focus on Upstate Art Weekend and a recent New Yorker profile of Larry Gagosian to examine these changes, and use Powhida's 2017 show, "After the Contemporary" at the Aldrich Museum of Art, which imagines the art world of the future, as a starting point. 

Relevant Links: 

The World According to Larry Gagosian. FT.com

Upstate Art Weekend

How Larry Gagosian Reshaped the Art World. The New Yorker

After the Contemporary -The Aldrich Museum of Art

Oh, this episode is a doozy! In it, Paddy discusses how Netvvrk artists secured nearly a million dollars in grant funding for artists in just two years. The breakdown is in this episode if you want to know what Netvvrk artists are doing to secure awards like the Guggenheim Foundation Grant, The Pollock Krasner, JMF funding, and more. 

The tally, currently at $755,000, represents the dedication of the artists who join Netvvrk and the strength of the membership. And if you want to know more about the membership, I'll talk about it live Tuesday, July 18th, at 7:30 PM EST. 

Register Here  

Does having a day job make you feel a little self-conscious about the status of your art career? If so, you're not alone.

Prompted by a recent discussion on the VVrkshop Instagram, Paddy speaks with Catherine Haggarty, co-founder of NYC Crit Club, and an artist and Macon Reed, artist and Netvvrk member about the day job stigma for artists. We dive into subjects like:

How class and privilege support the expectation that artists work full-time in the studio, starting in art school

How acknowledging that you didn't come from privilege, can feel like you're breaking an unspoken set of rules.

The importance of defining success for yourself rather than letting an industry set those terms for you.

Plus, Catherine coins the term "Art Math" for us and breaks down her formulas.

Relevant links:

https://www.nyccritclub.com/

https://www.camsummer.org/

https://www.catherinehaggarty.com/

https://www.maconreed.com/

https://www.bearcoaches.com/m4w

In this episode, artist and critic William Powhida joins Paddy Johnson to discuss the context surrounding an expanded art fair cycle in New York. What once lasted a week now spans two, which, in this year's depressed market, amounted to a much longer timeline to lose money.

We discuss Frieze, NADA, Future Fair, and Spring Break, and why the growing exclusiveness of the fairs hurts art.

Relevant links:

Hat tip to Michael Anthony Farley and Whitney Kimball for their summary of Spring Break in BMore Art.

https://bmoreart.com/2023/05/cigarettes-ceramics-and-curatorial-chaos-spring-breaks-secret-show.html