HELP! I AM ARTIST

As a visual artist, you love spending time creating your art. It's fun and exciting to turn what you are passionate about into something you can share with others. However, trying to find ways to promote & sell it effectively is another story altogether.

How can something you are so committed to do be so frustrating at the same time?

This is a question serial entrepreneur, marketing expert & television producer Mauritz Briët asked himself. It struck him that the artists he knew were having a hard time connecting what they were creating with an audience ready to buy their art.

'Artists have colourful lives and great stories to tell, yet many don't know how to use their personalities to share and connect with their audiences.'

Mauritz's fascination with the creative soul motivated him to start a brand spanking new online art selling platform, Artists Attic Online.

According to Mauritz, thousands of paintings, drawings, sculptures, and objects are stored in countless studios and attics. It's his mission to bring all that unseen art down from the dusty attic and showcase these artworks on his new online platform.

In this episode, Mauritz shares his vision for art and artists including some hot tips for artists wanting to sell their art online.

Enjoy our conversation.

Check out Artist Attic Online

Looking for ways to Market & Sell your Art? Download your free guide here. ->https://www.sonjasmalheer.com

Need extra support & connection. Join our artist group.

Can you remember where you were this time last year?

How did you feel about your art?

What were your aspirations?

This year might have sprung you some surprises, but you hung in there, showed up, and got to work.

Your journey as an artist won't always be smooth and easy. Your income will fluctuate, your energy will shift, and your focus will change as projects come and go.

Growing as an artist is a continual process of anticipating, pivoting, and learning. Not all your actions will be as successful. It's often in these not-so-successful moments that real growth happens.

As 2021 draws to a close, take a moment to envision where you would like to be this time next year?

Where do you see opportunities & growth for your art practice?

In this episode, I'll be highlighting five areas of your art practice that you can restructure and align to see more growth….no matter what is happening in the world.

Free Art Marketing Guide

As a visual artist, you know better than anyone else that it's hard to stand out & sell your art.

The good news is getting your art seen & appreciated is not rocket science you just need to know how... and I'd love to show you.

In my new E-Book, 10 Art Experts Share their Top Art Marketing & Selling Tips

Download your FREE Guide today to future-proof your art practice & see more growth in 2022

Access your FREE GUIDE here

You've carefully created your art and are ready to share it with the world. It's time to get your art into the hands of your potential buyers.

Your next step is to market your art.

Marketing may feel overwhelming, but promoting your work can be just as creative and satisfying as making your art.

It's never been a more exciting time for artists to promote and sell their art. The online space offers you powerful opportunities to connect with audiences you may never have considered before.

Your first step in creating an effective marketing plan for your art and getting more out of your social media is to understand better who your art audience is.

Who is this mysterious art buyer?

Where can you find the right audience to promote and sell your art to?

You may have heard the saying: 'If you plan to reach everybody, you will invariably reach nobody.' So true, especially when it comes to selling your art.

The more defined your art audience is, the easier and more effective you'll be able to reach them.

In this episode, we'll be taking a closer look at how you can start to define your potential art buyers.

Find out how you can use the online space to ask, listen to & survey your audience.

There is valuable information at your fingertips that you can use to refine your posting, adjust your marketing and fine-tune your message.

P.S. As a visual artist, you know better than anyone else that it's hard to stand out & sell your art.

The good news is getting your art seen & appreciated is not rocket science you just need to know how... and I'd love to show you.

In my NEW E-Book, 10 Art Experts Share their Top Art Marketing & Selling Tips

Download your FREE Guide today if you're ready to be more visible, get noticed & attract the right buyers

Access your copy here

From a young age Dido had 2 big passions. Music & Art!

In this episode, Dutch Artist, Dido de Beer shares her journey of how she turned these passions into a budding art profession.

Dido found her niche. Take a listen and discover how getting really specific about her style helped her build her business and connect with the right art buyers.

Find out what inspires her and what hot tips she has for all those creatives wanting to turn their hobby into the life of a working artist.

BONUS: Dido has a special gift for all the Help I Am Artist Podcast Listeners.

Head over to https://www.sonjasmalheer.com/dido to access 2 of Dido's favorite pop icon wallpapers which you can download as a musical background for your mobile device.

When his parents celebrated their wedding anniversary Ramon surprised them with a special gift. He turned a block of plaster into his very first piece of sculpture. He loved the process so much that he simply kept making and creating.

After being rejected by the art academy Ramon found his way and now tests the limits of his materials in his studio in The Netherlands where he makes personalized sculptures for private & business commissions both locally and around the globe.

In this episode Award-Winning Dutch Sculptor Ramon Schalkx shares more about his artist story and what motivates him to make his art. This episode is filled to the brim with practical tips and valuable insights into how artists can successfully win and complete art commissions.

As promised Ramon has prepared a special worksheet for artists looking to work on commissions. In this valuable document, Ramon explains the 4 steps that you can use to turn those often nerve-racking commissions into memorable occasions.

Head over to my website to download this free special worksheet.

Go to www.sonjasmalheer.com/commission

Find out more about Ramon:

https://www.ramonschalkx.com

https://www.instagram.com/ramonschalkx/

A few years ago, a mutual friend introduced me to working artist, Rachel Teannalach.

Rachel is a contemporary landscape painter based in Boise, Idaho.

In this episode, she shares more about her artistic journey.

For as long as she can remember Rachel has loved to paint. She has turned her passion for painting into daily practices that have fuelled so much of her success.

Her work is characterized by bold, gestural brushstrokes and her ability to evoke the emotional quality of the places she paints.

Rachels work is guided by the belief that the observation of nature revives our recognition of beauty and restores our sense of belonging in the natural world.

Her work inspires viewers to become more conscious of their surroundings and take time to stop and take notice.

Besides original works, Rachel has found clever ways to turn her art into reproductions which in turn has become a major source of her income.

Her focus over the last several years has been collaborations with conservation organizations, supporting their efforts to preserve the lands she loves to paint.

Rachel is known especially for her "tinyExpanse" daily paintings, which can be purchased on Etsy, along with small works and prints. Her work also encompasses large scale landscapes and occasional cityscapes and portraiture.

Find out more about Rachel in the notes of the podcast:

https://www.sonjasmalheer.com/blog/039

Cristian Aluas is a Romanian-born, Canadian living in New York where he works as a full-time artist, author, and educator.

In this episode, Cristian tells his artist's story of finding his way in the competitive art world.

He shares tips and practical insights on how you can earn a living as an illustrator, winning commissions, and finding those precious clients to purchase your art.

Cristian shares his expertise as an illustrator and art entrepreneur in online courses and he has authored a book 'It's a living - Surviving as a freelancer in the 21st century.'

If you have ever wondered how you can earn a living as a freelance illustrator, what steps you must take to prepare to work on commissions or how you go about getting those happy clients?

Well then stay tuned! Happy listening.

If you want to grow in your art and start to make a living as an artist then you need to take ACTION.

If you're tired of making your art, only to have it sitting around your studio collecting dust then take a listen!

If you're frustrated that all your social posting and your artist website is giving you little to no results and you want to move forward but you don't know where to start.... then this podcast is for you.

Are you ready to make 2021 your best year ever?

In this episode I break down your artist's success path into manageable, doable steps.

To help you on your journey I've created a framework, a clear map for you to follow.

This framework is based on these 3 main areas:

1. Who you are as an artist,
2. What kind of art are you making,
3. How are you going to connect that with an art audience?

When you get clear about these 3 things you will start to make your art with more confidence, promote it with more clarity and sell your art with more connection.

In this episode I break these crucial parts so that you can beat the overwhelm and create momentum by breaking it all down into smaller steps, I have poured this success framework into my Working Artist Course.

This online training will give you all the steps you need to make and sell your art.

I only open enrolment 1x per year and on February 15th 2021 I'll be opening up the doors to the 2021 edition of my 12 week course.

Join the waitlist to receive updates and additional course information.

Whatever you choose, your creative success won't just happen by chance, it takes careful preparation and planning.

To get you excited about what is possible for your art and your art career I've created a special resource for you.

The Artist Success Guide is here to help you take your NEXT STEPS.

The questions and tasks will give you more clarity as to how to connect your art with your potential art buyer.

Head over to my website to access this Artist Success Guide

https://www.sonjasmalheer.com/artistsuccessguide

Each day (for 7 days) you'll get the next step of the 7-Step Framework, filled with inspiring examples, direct tasks and actions steps, sent directly to your inbox.

If you commit to getting it done and taking action on the tasks, then you'll start to see results and have more eyes on your art by the end of the guide!

Enjoy the podcast and be inspired as you take steps with the GUIDE.

While the pandemic is real and continues to keep us in it's grip there is a still larger enemy lurking in the shadows.

Whether you are aware of it or not there is a battle commencing.

The fight is for your attention.

1000's of impulses nudges, pokes and pitches are thrown at you every minute begging you to stop and take notice.

This is without a doubt the biggest battle of our time. Those that scream the loudest, poke the hardest, come up as winners.

Their prize is not only your attention but they plunder all that your 'attention' stands for.

They steal your talents, rob your dreams, snuff out your passions and will hold your future ransom. All those distractions are costing you dearly.

If you want to build that enjoyable, sustainable art business it's important to detect who you are giving your attention to.

Your time is precious.

You may not have control over the rate those minutes, hours or days whiz by but you do have control over HOW you spend your time.

When you become aware HOW and to WHOM you are giving your attention, then can you get the control back and use all of that precious time to build your dreams, make your art and live the life you love!

In this episode we'll look at 5 hacks you can do today to find renewed focus to make and sell your art.

This episode comes with a worksheet and is free for you to download here:

Exhibiting your art is one of the most exciting and important aspects of a working artists life.

For many artists, the validation and exposure of working with a gallery, is something they dream of and is often seen as the pinnacle of their artistic success.

But is this realistic? How does the gallery world work?

There are many ways that you can exhibit your work and whether you choose a gallery or plan to only exhibit your own work, understanding gallery representation will help you find your best fit, plan ahead and make the best smart moves for your art and business.

I had the privilege to interview Dutch gallerist, David van der Linden for this episode.

David lifts the curtain to the world behind the gallery door and shares what artists need to know and understand when considering gallery representation.

Find out more about David and his gallery here: https://www.galeriebonnard.com/

In this episode David mentions these amazing artists, go & check them out:

Tania Rivilis

Mitzy Renooy

Keimpe van der Kooi

Sam Drukker

***

How would you like to win a one-on-one virtual coaching session with me to discuss your art business? I know I would love to connect with you.

A one-on-one coaching call is a powerful way to help you move forward on your artist journey. Whether you need help thinking through your art website, setting up an artist routine or organising your first exhibition, a personal coaching session will help you take your next steps.

Here's how you can become a lucky winner...it's really simple.

Head over to the Help I Am Artist Podcast Facebook Community.

It's my Brand spankin new community for visual artists who are wanting to connect with other creatives and me in a deeper more personal way.

I have started this group for artists who are ready to take bold brave steps to turn their creativity into a meaningful, sustainable art business.

Each week you will find me in this group where I will be sharing live videos, new insights, practical tips and more about the featured Podcasts.

It's a place of connection, learning and inspiration.

To celebrate 🎉this brand spankin new art community I'm offering this free in-person coaching call of 30 minutes to one lucky subscriber who joins the group this week.

At the end of the week I will be drawing the name of one lucky artist...and this could be you. If I draw your name I'll be getting in touch with you about this free 30 minute coaching call.

So head over to Help I Am Artist Podcast Facebook Community and join in today.