1. How to create an artist’s successful Facebook page.
2. How much will artists sell online in 2010?

This site I’ve banged the gong for………………..Cornelia Blunt. Cornelia is a portrait sculpture artist who creates stunning sculptures from life in resin, clay, bronze or plaster.

Why Cornelia’s site? It’s a good example of less is more. There are enough clearly photographed images of Cornelia’s work without reams and reams of text to pore through, and great before-and-after shots of the sitters during work-in-prgress and of the finished sculptures. The biography gives a captivating but clear and informative description of the process involved, which would be tempting to anyone sitting for a sculpture! The links page has direct links to the sites of those she’s been trained by; and those sites too are impressive! The photos of the sitters and the sculptures are big enough to not have to squint with simple captions. Cornelia Blunt has a site which perfectly illustrates how an artist’s work can speak for itself with great impact by simply having clear pictures, good details, and enough sense of the artist behind it to leave you wanting a little bit more.

Take a look at this simple but effective site and also at her lovely work. Well done, Cornelia!
http://corneliablunt.theartistsweb.co.uk/

4. IN THE NEXT EDITION OF THE ARTIST’S NEWSLETTER….

• Running an artist’s blog; is it worth it? Is there much to be gained from it? We look at some successful blogs and explore the benefits writing one could have for you.
• How to get more traffic to your website…ways and means you may not have thought about!
• Get your site looking nifty and you could have next issue’s ‘Artist’s Site Of The Month’!
  ….and there’ll also be anything else that I have an ‘Eureka!’ moment about between now and then.

Coming up on The Artists Web Blog…..
Oh, lots! Watch out for our series of interviews surrounding the National Portrait Gallery’s prestigious BP Awards coming up! Also some gallery reviews…are they visitor-friendly? Were the exhibitions good? Worth the money? We’ll be welcoming your comments and experiences of those we feature so do have your say. I’ve also had a nice chat with BBC daytime presenter Alistair Appleton (if, like me, you’re an ‘Escape To The Country’ fan you’ll know who I mean!) about his experiences of art, his influences and what artwork he’d have in his living room if he had unlimited money! Do check out our latest ‘Spotlight’ interview with stained glass artist Rosalyn Mina…stunning work! And of course we’ll be running more Spotlight interviews over the weeks to come. So plenty to keep checking the blog for.
That’s all for now. Till next time!

If you’re an artist who makes a living from their work (or at least has a fair stab at it!), the chances are you’ve undertaken some form of art training in the past. Many artists who study art in higher education are busy enough afterwards trying to sell their work, get established and earn enough to pay the rent to give studying art any further much consideration. The path that an artist has to take in terms of marketing themselves, exhibiting, getting their work into galleries, making a name for themselves and being creative enough to keep producing work they’re satisfied with is certainly an education in itself. But assuming that studying art is in your past (once you’ve got your qualifications and are on the career path) might be a missed opportunity in your career. My latest ‘Spotlight’ interview with Rosalyn Mina (have a look on our Blog!) made me think of this point. Rosalyn had started off her training in illustration at University; whilst she was doing this course she saw some work in stained glass which fascinated her. She begged her tutors to allow her to do her final project with a focus on stained glass as illustration; they agreed and her new passion for stained glass was ignited – you only have to look at some examples of her work on her site to get an idea of the training she had to undergo and skill she had to acquire in order to make it a success! She returned to her love of painting further down the road and now produces lovely work in both paint and stained glass. So you may think that you’re happy with your chosen artistic skill; whether it’s painting, sculpture, installations etc. But you’re creative; you’re an artist – who knows what other skills you may have lurking under your palette?

This is where the good ole’ art course comes into focus. Luckily, there are literally thousands of courses in all art mediums being run pretty much all the time all over the country! You’d find it difficult NOT to find something that might take your interest. So why should you maybe consider taking an art course (leisure or qualification-based) when you’re already an artist?

Well, you could ask yourself the following questions:

• Are you happy with the amount of income you’re making from your chosen art medium right
  now?
• Is there an area in art that’s always appealed to you but for one reason or another you’ve
  neglected to explore it further?
• Have you thought about other areas that your current artistic talents could be put to
  beneficial use? For example, if you paint landscapes in oils, have you ever considered
  illustration? You’re a painter; you can create beautiful pictures – if you could learn to
  base your art to required themes, illutrations could open new doors of opportunity – and
  income – for you!
• Is there another area in art that could earn you far more money per artwork than the
  medium you currently specialise in?

I know some of you may be recoiling in horror at the thought of even wanting to deviate away from your passion, but in Rosalyn’s case, as mentioned above, she thought she’d found her passion in illustration; before she considered stained glass, that is! And once she’d delved in, a new and highly successful passion was born. So if you fancy exploring other possibilities, you might want to start to consider the factors that will affect you as you travel down your new artistic path.

Here’s some points to consider:

• Fitting it in – if you decide you’d like to explore another art medium, your current schedule is going to have to shift around a little bit! Choose a course in your chosen medium which will still allow you the time to continue with your current specialist area of art. At this stage, just one hour a week will be enough to spend on your new interest, to gain an insight into what’s really involved, if it really grabs your interest enough to inspire you to pursue it, the materials involved (cost!) and above all, the satisfaction it brings you – or not!
• Worth your while? Check the finances! – so you’re seriously considering – for argument’s sake – a course in sculpture (you currently specialise in ceramics – so you’re good with your hands!). Have a good look at what adding sculpture to your artistic repetoire could do for your career. Is it a good money earner once you’re accomplished? Could you really benefit financially from producing works in both sculpture AND ceramics? Are the costs to produce the works horrendous? Do you have any equipment already that you use for ceramics that you can also utilise for working in sculpture? Can you effectively split your time between the two mediums to enable to produce enough work to make enough money? And – of course – can you afford it? If money is tight, could you factor the cost of the course into your current annual expenditure? Can you make cutbacks in other areas to allow for the extra cost? Or maybe do a push with your current art and try to produce/sell more works to limit the financial impact. Treat this as a career investment; passion and love of art of course come into it – but at the end of the day, this is your job and finances must be a fundamemtal part of any choices you make within it.
• Space – where will you practice your new subject? Do you have enough studio space to incorporate two art mediums? Are you going to have to find a new place to hire out in order to develop your second skill? If so, you need to factor the costs into your budget.
• Enjoyment – you love what you do now, but could you love another?! Think about the long-term; maybe having a second area of work will keep your current one fresh over the years. You won’t tire of it because you’ll have variety. Do you enjoy a challenge? Could you view the changes as positive rather than a stressful upheaval? Do you feel confident enough to ‘go back’ to being a student? This is quite an important point to consider! You may feel accomplished and confident (most of the time!) in what you do now, but do bear in mind that doing a course will mean returning to the learning/making mistakes side of art that you thought you’d left behind you at art college! Try to envisage the end goal; a job as an artist with two (or multi!) mediums that you’re skilled in and which provide you with financial reward, stimulation, challenge and enjoyment.

Once you’ve decided to go for it, get searching! Word-of-mouth is a good way to find out about courses run in the medium which interests you; get talking to your fellow artists! Check out the library, local listings in papers, community centre notice-boards and of course your local colleges/adult education centres/art schools. Go and see some exhibitions specialising in the medium that’s grabbed your interest. Maybe talk to other artists who specialise already in that medium about the pros and cons.

Is there a teacher in you bursting to get out?

So what about the ‘other side’? No, I don’t mind supernatural goings on. I mean teaching an art course. That idea may fill you with instant fear but you could surprise yourself! I made that transition myself (not in art, but in singing). Having been a singer for most of my life, I’d had more lessons and done more courses than you could shake a microphone at. But then one day a music studio owner suggested to me that I teach the subject – to which I laughed heartily and at the same time shuddered with horror at the thought; too scary! The following week, he called again and asked me to come down and give him a singing lesson. I saw it as a challenge and did so. The next day, he’d booked me a paying student – cue absolute panic, night sweats and what-the-heck-did-I-agree-for rants at myself. Ten years on, I’m a happy singing teacher (when I’m not writing about doing art courses!) with hundreds of satisfied singing students under my belt, a number of amazing achievements made by some of them which make one feel partially responsible and therefore very happy and a huge passion for teaching and seeing people’s journeys as they learn, develop and gain in confidence that I would never have guessed I had in me. I was thrown in at the deep end with hardly any time to think about the change from student to teacher and it was a real case of learning on the job. Sometimes I think I would have preferred to take a course as it would there would have been less panic attacks at night! But at the same time, I know that I wouldn’t have taken a course – because I simply wouldn’t have got around to it. Teaching would have remained on my ‘to-do’ list because I thought it might be an option when I was much older.

To teach a subject you love is fantastic; you never have to worry about conveying your own enthusiasm for the subject to your students because it naturally oozes from you! If you’re passionate about what you do, you’ll have the enthusiasm to pass that passion onto others. Here’s some more bullet-pointed things to consider if you’re now sitting there with your tea thinking ‘hmmmm….teaching! I wonder!’. We love our bullet-points.

• Scared witless by the thought of standing up in front of a class and – well, teaching? Change your viewpoint on it. See it less as a public speech and more as explaining to a friend how they could start to paint a picture. If you’re terrified about teaching a class of 20 – don’t! Start with a class of 6 or 7. Stage it as a drop-in for people to come and see your work, have a look, have a feel of your sculptures, have a cup of tea and a chat…and then they can have a go themselves after you’ve shown them the basics.Keep it small and friendly. You may be a fully accomplished artist, even if you’re not so sure in your less-confident moments. But bear in mind you’ll be teaching BEGINNERS…it’s back to the basics which you know like the back of you hand, but which they don’t.
• Do just one trial lesson with a friend/acquaintance. That was my first experience of teaching a subject I adored and, although scary, was enough to give me a real taster of what it would involve. I hadn’t thought about the repetitions they’d need to do as a beginner before they felt confident to move onto the next point. There was I worrying that they’d get bored/feel they weren’t getting their money’s-worth and all they were concentrating on was breathing from the diaphragm correctly as it was all so new to them! I hadn’t realised how much fun it would be. I certainly wasn’t prepared for the feeling of elation when, at the end of the session, they told me how much fun they’d had and how they’d enjoyed it. As new teachers, it’s so easy for us all to get bogged down and concerned about OUR abilities; but the student’s concerns and concentration will be focused on THEIR abilities to get it right. A trial lesson will show you all this and give you a taste of whether you might love it or decide that it’s not for you.
• Hone your basic skills – after all, these are (likely) what you’ll start off teaching. For a one-hour lesson, you may THINK that you can cover quite a lot. But it’ll be a lot less than you realise! The basic skills of the art you’re teaching you’ll have acquired long ago and quite likely do them now without thinking about them. Revisit them. Look at your most basic techniques and the most basic starter exercises. Make sure you know them inside out. Can you answer questions thrown at you on them? The exercises may take you ten minutes to do but the chances are they’ll take up the whole of a first lesson for a beginner. And no, they won’t be bored! Learning the basics is essential, still a big challenge for a novice and will be enjoyable for them too – so don’t feel you need to overload them with knowledge the first ten or so sessions; that will just be confusing. Keep the exercises basic, make sure you know your stuff and don’t worry about it not being enough; when you’re learning something new, you don’t want to be overwhelmed with information.
• Where could you teach from? Home? A community centre? Look at possibilities. Don’t necessarily worry about not having great expanses of land with stunning views if you’re teaching painting; your students want to master technique and skill and they can achieve this without being in a field.
• Money! It’ll cost you to run a course, there’s no doubt about that…but the financial benefits can be great. If you teach privately, you’re getting all the money once you’ve paid the expenses….and if you’re good at budgeting and can manage ways to keep costs down, you could be pleasantly surprised at how much you can earn after just a couple of hours! Ring around other private art teachers in your area to find out what the going rate is (you can pretend to be an interested student!). Start to work out a budget. You need to factor in:
  • Materials. Think about the less obvious things such as pots for water, cloths to clean
    up any spillages and so on, as well as the more obvious materials.
  • Preparation time. Don’t forget to factor in the cost of your time! You’ll need to make lesson plans, do paperwork, prepare the room etc. This should all be factored into your hourly/two-hourly rate. You don’t just work for the duration of the session you’re teaching! You could be looking at hours of extra work just in the preparation; this all needs to be taken into account when it comes to pricing your lessons.
  • Don’t undercharge! This is common with new teachers; they simply don’t feel confident as teachers yet because they’re just starting out, so they charge less than they could or indeed, should. If you price yourself too low, propective students may ask themselves why that is. Is he/she not very good? Are the materials going to be poor quality? Does the teacher even know his/her craft? Be competitive, but then again don’t price yourself out of the water! Find out the going rate, work out an average and price yourself there. You may worry about teaching but the students simply want to know how to paint/sculpt/make a mosaic – and you KNOW all this and can show them. They’ll be happy to pay you the going rate for it. Trust me on this one.
  • Practice your teaching skills! There’s plenty of books/Youtube clips/advice on the internet on how to teach. But what I learnt was that it’s actually pretty simple; you just need to do the following:
    • Work out the content of your classes/courses. If you’re running a four-week art course, work out exactly which points/skills you’d like your students to reach by the end of it. Don’t overload them and keep it realistic. Think back to when you were learning; how long did it take you to fully get a grasp on the skills you want to teach?
    • Ensure that the methods you’re teaching are solid. Don’t teach short-cuts! That may be something YOU do with time and confidence on your side but don’t pass that on to beginners! Keep the methods tried, tested and make sure you’re covering all the essentials.
    • Plan your lessons. Crucial at first! Work out a time sheet for the duration of your lesson and try to (realistically) work out what you’re going to teach at which point. Factor in demos. Factor in tea break! Factor in setting up and saying goodbye! All these take up the class time and are often forgotten when it comes to planning the lesson! So you may find yourself pushed to get everything fitted in because you didn’t realise it would take 5-10 minutes of that hour-long class just to say the hello’s, get everyone sat down and be ready to start!
    • Practice speaking slowly. Not in a wierd, slow-motion, slurry manner but at a speed which doesn’t scream ‘I’m a new teacher and by jove I’m nervous!’. It’s so easy to speak nine-to-the-dozen if you’re nervous. You may lose your students and make it hard for them to keep up and remember everything. Take your time, speak slowly and once you’ve explained – stop talking! Don’t feel you need to fill the hour with explanations; your students need to be told and then spend most of the time working on it themselves before you come back with appraisals and suggestions.
    • Support, support, support and encourage, encourage, encourage! You know yourself how your confidence can get the better of you sometimes when it comes to art..well, for your nervous-but excited students, it’s going to be at times, all-consuming.
      Always encourage them and practice ways of offering advice that sounds positive and
      not too critical. Start with a positive before you address the mistakes; their
      attempts will always be the best they can do so celebrate those attempts and make them WANT to get improve, not be afraid of doing another clanger. A bit of carefully-chosen language and they’ll feel fantastic, supported and motivated and you’ll feel all mother-hen-like.
    • Keep content varied. You want your lessons to be consistent and well-taught but having the same old format week after week won’t motivate your students. Throw in different exercises; bring in different themes each week even if the skills they’re practicing are the same; don’t be afraid to uses dvd clips of skills/artists you’re studying. Keep thinking up new ideas to get your points across and your students will remain motivated and excited about what next week’s session will bring.
    • Set an end-of-course goal. Staging a small exhibition of your students’ achievements is a great way to steer the course to an exciting and rewarding conclusion. It will also motivate them no end if they realise their work is going to be on show to the public in a few weeks! It doesn’t need to be fancy; you can do it in your home! Invite their friends and family to the event, lay on wine and nibbles and present their work in a proper (if small-scale) exhibition style. It’s a great focus for your students and you’ll see their progress in it’s entirety which is great for you! Most important of all…it’s fun!

Hopefully all the above won’t have scared the living daylights of you and will have shown you what teaching can be – which is a lot of hard work but great fun, rewarding, confidence-building and financially a good bet! I can totally recommend it; making the transition from singer to singing teacher was one of the best moves of my life. Give it a go!

Art shows and fairs dot the calendar year-round, providing opportunities for artists and art-enthusiasts alike to showcase and buy art and to network with those who are also passionate about art and crafts. As an artist, you may well have your own website showcasing your artwork and you may also occassionally exhibit at local art fairs. For many artists, however, exhibiting at an art show is something they are yet to do. It may seem like too much effort, too much expense, too much time off work – or it may simply be down to a crisis of confidence! In this article, I’ll be speaking to Sam Maund and Jenifer Wall, who run Brass Monkeys, a successful Hove shop selling handmade metalwork, jewellery and silversmithing. They both exhibit regularly at shows and have sound advice and experiences to pass onto other artists! I’ll also be taking a look at some of the art shows coming up this year, with dates, details and deadlines. If you didn’t set yourself a New Years resolution for 2010 – how about setting yourself an April resolution and trying your hand at presenting your art for the world to see in an art show this year? You never know…you might just sell something AND have fun!

Jennifer Wall and Sam Maund first started exhibiting in shows some years ago. Jen was already showing at trade fairs and when they first started working together, ‘made’ Sam do one with her! Sometimes it’s a nudge, scary or not, that artists need to get going. Now Sam and Jenifer exhibit regularly and are seeing huge benefits of doing so. Here’s their thoughts and insights on the topic! Although they exhibit at jewellery shows and craft fairs predominantly, their advice and experiences also apply to artists who want to exhibit at art fairs.

How long have you been exhibiting at craft fairs?
Jen – thirteen years.
Sam – I’ve been doing them for seven years.

Why did you decide to start doing them?
Jen – You have to be out there to find customers; they won’t come to you! Certainly if you work in a studio or workshop, you have to find your own customers and show them what you can do.

How do you find out about fairs going on?
Sam – It’s pretty much word-of-mouth. Ask other makers, see what works for them. Look at their work as well, to see if theirs is similar to yours because sometimes a Trade Fair may work for one person but not necessarily for another. The first time you do a Trade Fair it’s never fantastic. It takes a couple for you to get used to it and for galeries to trust you to come up with the goods!

How about the expenses?
Jen – The fairs vary greatly. However, if you don’t factor in your time, a local fair can typically cost around Ј500-550 to do. Whereas if you do one of the London shows, you’re looking more along the lines of around Ј1500. But you factor that into your financial year and that cost really should be incorporated into your selling prices. When you’re pricing your work you need to take your expenses into account and Trade Fair costs should be included in that annual expenditure, maybe under ‘Advertising’.

What is the difference between a ‘Trade Fair’ and a ‘Retail Fair’?
Jen – Trade Shows are for selling to shops and galleries; Retail Shows are for selling direct to the public. If you do a Retail Show (selling to the public), you go along and you sell at retail prices which are much higher than the Trade prices; you should be selling to the public at the same price that galleries would be selling at because you too are going directly to the public. With Retail Shows, anyone can go in whereas with Trade Shows (selling to galleries), you have to show some ID to show that you’re a trader. A Trade Show is half the price, as the galleries you sell your stuff to will sell it on at a higher price.
Sam – you especially have to factor in the cost of a Trade Show when you’re selling to galleris, because you might not make a profit due to the prices you’re selling at, which are so much lower than Retail. You’re selling at cost so you really should factor Trade Show costs into your advertising budget. At Retail Shows you actually usually just manage to cover the cost of that show due to selling at retail prices. Retail shows tend to be a little more expensive to do. Trade Shows are lovely ways to keep in touch with other makers and see what everyone’s doing because you don’t have the same stress as Retail Shows; although you want to sell to galleries when you do a Trade Show, you only need to cover your costs as you’ll make your money throughout the financial year by selling to a gallery. At a Retail Show, you have that one day to make your money! So you have to have lots of stock with you when you do one. But all shows are very nice to do! Apart from when you don’t make lots of money!

How far in advance do you have to apply to a Fair to get a slot?
Jen: It’s a good idea to know what shows are around that you’d like to take part in; take a look at them the year before you want to do it. Some Retail Shows, like Goldsmiths, have strict deadlines and you have to apply a good year in advance. You can often book a Trade Show up to a few days beforehand though, especially at the moment with the economy not being as good. But research the shows and the deadlines the year before; that’s the best idea.
Sam – It’s crucial to visit them before you do them. Then you get to have a look around and decide which area you’d like to have. Some areas for having a pitch are definitely better than others and once you’ve decided on the right spot you can apply for that particular space.
Jen – Another point is that Retail Shows sometimes ask you to submit examples of your work and then they decide if they’ll let you in. That’s why it’s always a good idea to vet the shows beforehand; it’s all well and good if you get in but you need to have seen the standard of other artist’s work beforehand and ask yourself ‘am I happy for my work to be displayed next to this?’.

What do you need to take with you if you’re participating in a Trade or Retail Fair?
Jen – A big pile of promotional material; especially at Retail Shows. Things like postcards with your details and different prices for both Retail and Trade Shows – it’s a good idea to email customers from your mailing list and galleries that are in the area which you’d like to sell to a few months in advance to let them know you’ll be there. It’s a good idea whenever you make a sale at a show to ask that person if they’d like to go on your mailing list.
The other thing is not to get too despondant if you have a terrible show because every maker at some stage has a really bad show, whether it’s down to bad attendance or poor organisation by whoever’s running it.

Does a big dose of confidence help?
Sam – I don’t think a maker is ever overly confident about their work! But it’s almost a case of ‘just book it’! You have to just set yourself the date and force yourself otherwise you might never feel ready. And of course, you’ll get better at doing them the more that you do.
Jen – Try and look positive at your stand as well. Don’t look glum even if you’re feeling it! If you see a maker sat there looking really miserable, you won’t want to go up to them! You have to try and adopt a bit of a fixed smile, no matter what you’re feeling and be cheerful and upbeat. If you do look glum, the day will only get worse….
Sam – …it’s like a self-fulfilling prophecy!

I’d like to thank Sam and Jen very much for their time and for kindly discussing their experiences and offering their advice. You can see their work for yourself on their website below:
http://www.brassmonkeys.org.uk/

And for those of you who now feel brave enough to take part…….
Here is a line-up of some of the UK’s art fairs and shows for 2010. Some of them are booked up…but all of them are worth a visit if you’re not a frequenter of such shows to start checking out the scene and the competition!

Frieze Art Fair, Regents Park, October 14-17, 2010
http://www.friezeartfair.com/

Leeds Art Fair, The Light Headrow, May 7-10, 2010
About: Leeds Art Fair supports local artists from the region and is in it’s 27th year. All work is available for sale and it attracts a good audience each year. The event is held in ‘The Light’, a shopping mall in the centre of Leeds which has proven to be a prime public space in which to showcase the artists’ works. Applications for this year’s event have now closed but if you live in the Leeds area, it’s well worth going along for a look-out and get prepared for next year’s Art Fair…which may include yourself as an exhibitor!
http://www.leedsartfair.org/

Affordable Art Fair, Battersea Evolution, London, March 11-14 2010
This one has a great following….The Affordable Art Fair gives visitors the chance to see and buy paintings, drawings, sculptures, photography and original prints. With works priced between Ј50 and Ј3,000 it features 120 selected galleries from the UK and Europe exhibiting contemporary art. As well as the Art Fair itself, the organisers have set to hosting plenty of hands-on, family-friendly activities, all of which are fun, enlightening and, best of all, free. It’s well worth putting this one in the diary for next year. Great art that is affordable….you can’t go wrong, really!
http://www.affordableartfair.co.uk/

Newcastle Gateshead Art Fair, The Sage, Gateshead, October 1-3 2010
With over 9000 visitors last year, this Art Fair is popular and presents a sound platform for emerging artists in the Emerging Artists Showcase, which gives 15 unrepresented artists the opportunity to showcase their work. Held in The Sage, Gateshead, it’s the perfect space for exhibiting fresh and invigorating art. Applications are being taken now; click on this link to apply: http://www.ngartfair.com/downloads/pdf/AF-10_Application-for-Exhibition.pdf.

Kent & Sussex Art Fair, The Great Barn, Rolvenden, May 19-23 2010
Now in it’s third year, the Kent & Sussex Art Fair is a smaller-scale but no less enjoyable exhibition held in a lovely barn displaying work from 51 artists. This year, furniture is being added to the mix. Go along for a lovely day out and sign up to be added to their mailing list if you’re interested in participating next year.
http://www.kentandsussexartfair.co.uk/index.html

Reading Contemporary Art Fair,Rivermead Leisure Centre, April 23-25 2010
Alas, too late to apply but it’s run by the same organisers of the Windsor Contemporary Art Fair (see entry below) which, hurrah, you CAN apply for!! If you’re not able to make it to Reading this year, you can browse the artwork online. But try and go if you’re in the area; there are also some drop-in workshops going on.
http://www.readingcontemporaryartfair.co.uk/

Windsor Contemporary Art Fair, Royal Windsor Racecourse, November 12-14 2010
2010 being it’s fifth year, the Windsor Contemporary Art Fair is held in a lovely setting with works from over 100 exhibitors. Prices are similar to those in the London Affordable Art Fair, with works ranging from Ј30 to Ј3000. Applications are being taken by artists interested in exhibiting; follow this link: http://www.windsorcontemporaryartfair.co.uk/wcaf_exhibitor_info_pack_form.asp. Again, a good day out if you’re not intending to participate.
http://www.windsorcontemporaryartfair.co.uk/default.asp

London Art Fair, Business Design Centre, Islington, 19-23 January 2011
Applications for next year’s London Art Fair have just opened so move faster than a speedingn bullet to get in there! It’s in it’s 21st year and received a whopping 21,700 visitors this year…one worth being seen at. ‘Art Projects’ is an exciting sector of the Fair; applicants must adhere to some criteria for a subsidised stand, with amazing prospects; some of the stands in this year’s Arts Projects scheme sold out completely! Have a good look round this website, sign nup for the ebulletin and dare to bare your work at the London Art Fair…it’s a good’un!
http://www.londonartfair.co.uk

East Cheshire Art Fair, ‘The Art Of Caring’, Macclesfield Town Hall, 8-16 October 2010
Some definite benefits here; it’s free to take part, open to everyone, it’s in aid of the East Cheshire Hospice and it gets a good visitor count. Sign up for the newsletter on the blog and get on the list to exhibit. It’s all in a good cause and is a friendly, perfect starter-show for those who haven’t exhibited before.
http://www.theartofcaring.org.uk/

The Great Sheffield Art Show, The University Of Sheffield, 9-11 July 2010
Application forms taken till next month. Preview night with sponsors, traders and professional artists. Art demonstrations and workshops along with trade stands make this a popular show for artists. To exhibit, you must submit up to 6 works and then a selection is made by the show committee.
http://www.gsas.co.uk

Animal Art Fair, Fulhum Palace, April 16-18 2010
I was going to say it ‘does what it says on the tin’ but then realised that it might sound like all the art is created by animals. Which it isn’t. Obviously. This is coming up quick and I didn’t know it existed (this being the inaugral event!) but it looks like a good exhibition; over 40 artists and sculptors and a plethora of talent. If you like animals, this one is for you.
http://www.animalartfair.com/

Made10, Brighton’s Design & Craft Fair, Corn Exchange, 18-21 November 2010
Applications being taken till 14 April for this popular design/craft fair in bustling, cosmopolitan Brighton. Over 5000 visitors each year, over 100 exhibitors, every genre possible from sculpture to textiles and most importantly, a nice cafe for a cup of cheering tea and a slice of hearty cake. Yes, I have my artistic priorities sorted. This is a great fair (I should know; I’ve been to a few of them) and a great opportunity to sell your wares in time for Christmas! See you in November!
http://www.made10.co.uk/

Oohhh…hot on the heels of that one….

Is the Brighton Art Fair, Corn Exchange, 16-19 September 2010
Again, deadline for applications is April 14…get the form filled in! You can do it online so it’s quick and painless. This art fair is now the largest on the South Coast with over 130 exhibitors. It’s a friendly, buzzy affair and a great opportunity to network. And if you need to go for a quick break whilst your mum/friend/lover looks after your stall, you can go grab some Autumnal sea air. Lovely. Last year Brighton Art Fair netted it’s highest total sales ever…not bad considering a recession! Don’t miss this one.
http://www.brightonartfair.co.uk/

Palace Art Fair, Fulhum Palace, 7-10 October 2010
This exhibition is run by the same busy geezers who run both Made10 and the Brighton Art Fair! Wonder how their work/life balance is….? This art fair will exhibit just 100 artists – I say ‘just’ because for a London show, this is positively intimate! Unfortunately you’re just going to miss applying for this show at the time of going to press although I did make a point of featuring it on the blog a couple of weeks ago to avoid disappointment. But sign up for their newsletter for notification on how to get in next year’s event…a London show that’s not so vast only major galleries can compete? Got to be worth a look-in.
http://www.palaceartfair.co.uk/

What you need to know, where they are and an interview with two veteran exhibitors with lots of handy advice! read more…

2. ART COURSES – TAKING ‘EM AND TEACHING ‘EM!

1) BECOMING SELF-EMPLOYED (PART 2) – The second installment in our two-part feature, this time focusing on  the  legal (and slightly dull-but-necessary) steps you need to take to set yourself up as your own boss!

2) SELLING PRINTS - are you getting the most out of your website?  Selling prints is a fantastic way to get your art to the masses – and make a regular income too!  A bit of prep work and you’re set to go..this article covers all you need to do.

3) ARTIST’S SITE OF THE MONTH – Our pick this month of a site that we feel is doing it’s job particularly well!

4) WHAT’S WORKING ON THE ARTISTS WEB – Our most popular pages – get clicking!

5) COMING UP NEXT TIME – coming up next time!!

WELCOME TO 2010!
A very happy new year to you all and welcome to the first Artists Web Newsletter of 2010!  We hope you’ve had a lovely holiday, have relaxed and eaten way too much and are ready and willing to launch into the new decade with new artistic goals, ambitions and inspiration!
In this issue, we’re covering a couple of areas which we hope will inspire you to (if you’re not already doing so) try and sell your artwork that you’re so passionate about…and maybe even make that decision to focus on your art as your career and become self-employed.  Scary?  Yes!  Rewarding? Without a doubt…having made the transition from employee to being my own boss myself, I know exactly how daunting the prospect can be.  But the work/life balance is so much better and, although it’s hard work and a lot of self-discipline, working for myself is without a doubt one of the best moves I’ve made in my life.
So besides the admittedly dull-but-necessary-and-therefore-ultimately-useful details of National Insurance, VAT and direct debits, we’ve got our usual Artist Site Of The Month, what’s coming up for the Artists Web in the next few weeks and some advice on ensuring that your work SELLS by using our free Prints Service.  So if it’s still icy out there, put the kettle on, take a break and have a read…and do send us your feedback!

Best wishes and a happy, healthy 2010 to you all.
J Adams & The Artists Web

1) BECOMING SELF-EMPLOYED (PART 2)
Last year we explored the pros and cons of becoming self-employed in order to launch your career as an artist.  This month we’re looking at the practical steps you need to take in order to get going and ensure you’re abiding by the law and doing everything correctly!  It can seem daunting to take the leap into working for yourself, especially if you’ve only ever worked for somebody else till now.  But the benefits, as we explored in November’s newsletter, can be enormous.  So, assuming that you’ve weighed up the plus points and have decided to go for it, you’re bound to have a rather large pile of questions.  Such as….

What are the key things I have to do?
This list is things you MUST do in order to become your own boss!
* Register as self-employed
* Pay National Insurance contributions on a weekly basis (see National Insurance section   below for exceptions)
* Register for VAT if you expect to turn over more than £68,000 per annum….hey, why not aim   high?!

This list is not essential but advisable in order to make life a whole lot easier!
* Set up a business bank account.  Keeping your business and personal money separate really makes life easier when it comes to doing your accounts and submitting your tax return.    Even if you’re not earning much to start with, it really helps and also makes you appear  more professional
* Decide whether you need or want to use an accountant.  Many prefer to save the money and do their accounts themselves, but you have to keep on top of things!  Having an accountant  saves you a lot of work but I used to use one and discovered that if I just got into the routine of keeping my accounts every month, I was able to use my own figures in my   tax-return and saved myself a considerable amount of money every month.  However this is not ideal for everyone, so start to source out accountants if you want to use one.  Word of  mouth is the best way of finding a good-’un.  Ask your self-employed friends for their contacts and recommendations.  Or look in your local area…go and see a few before you decide.
* Regardless of whether you’re using an accountant or doing the books yourself, you need to  be organised when it comes to keeping your accounts.  Start a spreadsheet/ledger to log your accounts at the end of every month. All you need to do is log your income, your business outgoings and keep the receipts for materials you use in your work that you may be able to claim back in business expenses.  By doing this on the last day of each month   you’ll  get into the routine and it’ll become second-nature. It also really, really, really helps when Tax Return Time comes around and you’ve got all your accounts and receipts in order to hand to your accountant or sort through yourself! (Trust me on this one – been there, done that!!)
* Keep track of where everything is going! (Again, trust me on this one).  Sold a picture? Great…make sure you have a record of the exact date you sold it, who to and retain their contact details! Just keeping a record of amounts is not enough.  You also need records of   contacts and buyers.

So….you’re ready to register and so on….here’s some (hopefully useful) info for you!  All links and helpline numbers/downloadable form links will be given in a list at the end of the article for easy retrieval.

Where do I start??
There are many sites online which have advice about starting up your work, as well as many blogs about working as an artist.  However, in my opinion (for what it’s worth!), the best place to start to check you’re doing it all correctly is the HM Revenue & Customs website (www.hmrc.gov.uk/selfemployed/).  This is a comprehensive site and has ‘Business Link’ sections which cover all aspects of starting up and running your own business
(http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/layer?topicId=1073858805).

How do I register?
When you become self-employed you must register for Income Tax and National Insurance purposes with HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). You can register online, by telephone or by post. You need to register AS SOON AS POSSIBLE to avoid a penalty (payable if you fail to register within three months of starting up).  It’s best to look into this whilst you’re THINKING about going it alone in order to avoid missing deadlines!  You need to have the following
information to hand in order to register:
* Your personal details (name, address, telephone number, contact email address, date of   birth and so on)
* National Insurance No. (you can find this on your National Insurance card, letters from   Social Security, documents    sent to you from HMRC, on your pay slips, P45s or P60s.  If   you’re still unsure, call HMRC on their National Insurance Registrations Helpline: 0845 915   7006 (lines open 8.00 am to 5.00 pm Monday to Friday)
* The date you started working for yourself
* Business telephone number and address if it differs from your home details
* The nature of your business
* Your Unique Taxpayer Reference no. (you can find this on correspondence from HMRC, your tax   return notification – or call the Newly Self-Employed Helpline (0845 915 4515) for help.

Now you’ve got all that ready, you’re ready to register!

For online registering, follow this link:
https://online.hmrc.gov.uk/shortforms/form/CWF1ST?dept-name=CWF1&sub-dept-name=&location=40&origin=http://www.hmrc.gov.uk

To register by phone, call this number:
0845 915 4515 (Newly Self-Employed Helpline) – open from 8am to 8pm Mon-Fri & 8am to 4pm Sat & Sun.

To register by post, you need to complete form CWF1: either call the Newly Self-Employed Helpline no. above and ask them to send you one, or you can download one from this link:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/forms/cwf1.pdf.  The address to send to is on the form.

Ta-daaaa!  You’re now registered as self-employed!  Hurrah! Now you need to arrange to pay your Class 2 National Insurance contributions!

What is National Insurance and why do I need to pay it?
Good question.  Almost everyone has heard of National Insurance but if you’re an employee you may not have any dealings with it; become self-employed and suddenly it’s a big deal!!  National Insurance contributions from each member of the public ensures your entitlement to state benefits such as State Pension and other social security benefits.  Payments stop when you reach retirement age and the amount you pay depends on factors such as how much you earn and your employment status (self-employed/employed etc.).  It is a legal requirement that it is paid so it’s a good idea to get on top of this early on so you don’t get a back-log of overdue invoices from HMRC!  It’s usually a small amount each week but it soon adds up if you’re NOT paying!

How much do I need to pay?
Self-employed workers pay Class 2 AND Class 4 contributions:
* – Class 2 is a flat rate of £2.40 per week – payable monthly by Direct Debit or as a quarterly bill.
* – Class 4 are paid as a percentage of your annual taxable profits – 8% between £5,715 and £43,875 and a further 1% on any profits over that amount – payable when you pay your Income Tax.

How do I set up payments or find out more about them?
* – Download this form to set up your Direct Debit payments:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/pdfs/ca5601.pdf
* – Call the very helpful HMRC’s National Insurance Self-Employed Helpline on Tel 0845 915 4655 (8am-5pm Mon-Fri).

Once you’ve done that….you’re pretty much sorted on the legal stuff!  If you do want to set up for VAT if you’re expecting to earn over £68,000 in your first year, contact the Self-Employed helpline on 0845 915 4515.

What about Tax-Returns?  Aren’t they horrendously difficult and scary?
* No!!  Not if you’ve been a good boy or girl and kept up with your accounts/receipts-keeping skills over the months. The first time I did mine, I went to my local tax office to get them to help me – it took five minutes!
* You’ll need your net and gross profit figures, your business goings for the year, any taxable social security benefit   numbers and that’s about it.  You can file your tax return online and follow the links or go and get help at your local   tax office like I did.  For all things tax return-related, follow this link; http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/SA/index.htm
* Most importantly – don’t dread it!  Keep on top of your accounts, get help completing it if you’re not sure and get it in   on time to avoid the £100 penalty.  It’s a doddle after that!

Setting up as self-employed can seem scary but it’s not that bad really – there’s so much help available if you’re  unsure of anything!  Here’s a round-up of all the numbers and links you might need so they’re all in one place (rather than scanning through the above article again!)

* www.hmrc.gov.uk/selfemployed/ – HMRC website for all things tax/NI/employment-related!
* Business Link site – helpful information, tips and articles on setting up:
http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/layer?topicId=1073858805
* Newly Self-Employed Helpline (for all general enquiries) – 0845 915 4515 (8am-8pm Mon-Fri & 8am-4pm Sat-Sun)
* National Insurance Registrations Helpline: 0845 915 7006 (8.00 am to 5.00 pm Monday to Friday)
* Registering as self-employed online:
https://online.hmrc.gov.uk/shortforms/form/CWF1ST?dept-name=CWF1&sub-dept-name=&location=40&origin=http://www.hmrc.gov.uk
* Registering as self-employed by post – downloadable form: http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/forms/cwf1.pdf.
* National Insurance helpline no.: 0845 915 4655 (8am-5pm Mon-Fri).
* Downloadable form to set up National Insurance payments by Direct Debit: http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/pdfs/ca5601.pdf
* Self-assessment & tax returns website: http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/SA/index.htm

Phew!  Hope that hasn’t ‘taxed’ you too much! (Groan!).  Talk to other artists who are working for themselves to get a good idea of what’s involved and for tips they might have to pass onto you.  Be disciplined when it comes to your accounts and you shouldn’t have any problems…..and the best thing is, you’re now your own boss and are doing a job that you feel passionate about!  Perfect!

2) SELLING PRINTS
Now you’re established as a working artist, you really should be working to sell your art!  Selling original pieces of artwork is great and it can earn you some decent money…but then that piece of artwork is gone, never to return…and there may be many, many others out there who wanted it!  The joy of selling prints is that it can provide you with a steadier stream of income than selling one-off original pieces, prints are way more affordable for less wealthy art-lovers and if you sell your artwork through our Prints Program, which is FREE when you sign up with The Artists Web, you don’t have to lift a finger when it comes to selling, shipping and dealing with any returns!  You just sit back once you’ve sent your photographed art off to us and send good ‘buy-my-prints-please’ vibes out to the universe.  Getting your artwork ready to sell isn’t difficult if you use the right means…and it isn’t costly either, especially once you start making the money back from your sold prints!

Have you considered it yet?
So you’ve got your website, you’ve made it look good, you’re happy with your biog; are you selling prints?  If you’re not, you could be missing out on income and getting a name for yourself as an artist!  The prints service run at The Artists Web takes the strain out of selling for you, yet there are some artists who still haven’t signed up for the service yet.  Here’s what you need to know and what you need to do to grab yourself some income and satisfaction that your work is now proudly displayed in the home of another!

So what happens?
It’s really simple; you decide which pieces of artwork you’d like to sell, prepare them for our prints system, upload them….and the rest is taken care of!  Your artwork Will appear on the Easyart website.  Easyart is Europe’s largest online art retailer, selling thousands of prints every day to Europe, the UK, America and Asia, through various websites as well as their own, including art.com, leibermanns.com,barewalls.com and allposters.com. And this list could grow; we are working to find more and more outlets where your work is being published, enabling you to sit back and reap the profits! If a buyer decides he or she wants to buy your art, the whole process is done through Easyart’s professional, friendly service – so none of the dull stuff like packing and shipping comes your way.  Your buyer will select which frame they want, how they want it delivered and make their payment securely to Easyart.  Easyart will ship your artwork directly to your buyer and also deal with any (hopefully non-existent!) returns.

What about commission?
We charge you no commission for this service at all.  Nowt.  Not a bean. (You get the idea!).

How do I get paid for any work that I sell?
Each month, The Artists Web will pay you the money you’ve earned from selling your prints directly into your account.  There is no need for you to do anything – just enjoy looking at your account balance!  You can find out more about commissions with Easyart and payments in the Print Agreement: http://www.theartistsweb.co.uk/Print-Agreement

So now you know how simple it is, read on for more in-depth descriptions of how to get your artwork ready to turn into profit-making prints and how to maximise your opportunity to sell.  You want a career as an artist?  Selling prints is just part of it.

What do I need?
You need a website with The Artists Web to sell your prints; if you’re a trial member, seriously look into selling with us as it’s a great deal and commission-free.  You’ve got two weeks – it’s easy to get going and you could use your free fortnight to make some money!  If you’re a paid-up member but haven’t yet investigated selling prints, you can start the Print Program whenever you like.  You’ll need print-ready art……see below.

Your prints
These need to be high-resolution, high-quality and print-ready, with no cropping needed.  We advise that you seek a photographer to ensure that all the art you want to be put up to sell is ready to go.  This may sound like a bit of a mission but it really isn’t and doesn’t cost much to get done.  You may be able to seek the help of a photographer friend or if you think you know how, have a go yourself.  Once you know how to do it, that’s it!  You can apply it to your other future work and need to do nothing else on that side of things. To get more details on the exact sizing requirements for selling your prints, follow this link:

(http://www.theartistsweb.co.uk/Print-Agreement)

Then scroll down to ‘Print Submission’ and under that you’ll find ‘Image Acceptance Criteria; it’s got all the measurement information you need! If all that sounds a bit technical for you, call in some professional help….it shouldn’t cost too much and it’ll take all the effort off you.

To source a photographer:
simply look online for one in your area and give them a call or drop them an email with your requirements.  It’s a
good idea to get a few quotes first to get the best deal.  You can email him or her your artwork and they can email it right back once it’s done….so it’s really a painless procedure and worth taking the time to get done.  Once they are done you can use them for prints and other applications in the future.

To have a go yourself:
You can have a go yourself if you’re very strapped for cash or you feel you could do a good job.  It is very important that you adhere to the criteria required for prints; resolution and size must be within the limits. Check the criteria in the Print Agreement (link is above in the ‘Your Prints’ section). There are also many tutorials on the internet with helpful hints on how to photograph your artwork.  They may not necessarily be focused on print production, but the techniques are good and you can check you’re adhering to the correct criteria regarding megapixels and so on in the Print Agreement on The Artists Web.  Here are some links to some good tutorials on the web which you may find useful:
http://artlinkswap.org/photographing_art.shtml
http://www.bermangraphics.com/digital-jury-resources/photographing-art.htm
http://www.artistterms.com/artbusiness/promotion/photographingpaintings.htm

Sell, sell, sell!
So you’ve decided which work to put forward, got them beautifully prepared in the right resolution and size – is that it?  Well not quite – you’ve got to let the buyers know exactly where to find your artwork and how much they can buy it for.  So many of our members don’t realise the potential of loading their images with information until they realise they’re not selling as much as they’d hoped.  Potential buyers will scour artwork because they WANT it.  They are prepared to part with their hard-earned cash for some lovely piece to hang on their wall….so make sure thhey find YOURS!  It’s easy to do this: when uploading your images for prints, simply fill in all the fields required.  Include a description, the medium, the size of the work, the price, tag-words (if, for example, your painting is of a red dog in a green field, add the tag words ‘red dog’, red’, ‘dog’, ‘green field’, ‘animals’, ‘countryside’ and so on).  Any phrase you feel might bring up your artwork to the attention of somebody searching for a nice painting of a green field….but who, upon seeing yours, is so struck by the red dog as well that they just have to have it!  It takes just minutes to do but it ensures that your artwork will be flagged up far more often to prospective buyers.

How much can I make?
Please don’t forget to add the price….you know how annoying it is when you finally find THAT item of clothing you adore and simply HAVE to have….and then there’s no price tag and no sales assistant instantly available to ask?  Well, don’t put your customer through that same irritation!  Many of our buyers search by price so make sure it’s on there.

Quality or quantity?
Should you only put one or two choice pieces that you’re particularly proud of or confident about up for sale?  No!  You should go for lots of pieces.  The painting that you think is just ok may be the ideal piece for somebody’s living space….remember that your audience will view your work on an individual basis…so cater for as many of them as you can.  You may be very pleasantly surprised by just how popular some of your personally not-so-favourite works may prove to be.

Ok….NOW am I done?
Yep!  It may seem like a few steps to do the first time around….but trust us, once you’ve got the hang of it (like anything) it will become second nature.  And it’s a great thing to get into the habit of doing.

What if I don’t sell a single thing?
Well, it’s like the car boot sale I tried to do last week; I took down so many great items I was already planning what I’d buy with the profits….and I sold three things, for a huge sum of £8!  Some days you rake it in, other days you see no extra income.  Selling your work depends on so many factors, not just your talent.  The current economic climate may well have an impact.  The time of year too (Christmas is a popular time for hugely obvious reasons!) will affect the amount of people looking online to buy.  You can always run yourself a checklist if you’re having no success whatsoever though:

* Have you priced yourself realistically?  Charging way over the odds for your work (no matter how astounding you
may consider it to be!) can obviously put people off.
* Is your website up-to-date and well-maintained?  Don’t underestimate the importance of having an attractive,
informative website as people who buy your work will almost certainly check out your site to find out more about
you and your work.  Keep your exhibition details current, your biography friendly and interesting and your artwork
easy to see and all priced.  Look as though you’re serious about your art and buyers will take you seriously too.
* Are you sure your artwork is completed with ALL details, not just price?  Double-check this point!  So many of our
members have thought they’d completed everything but hadn’t. And it makes all the difference.  Meta-tags, price, size,   medium, materials used – it’s all valuable information to an art buyer.

Once you’ve got your work print-ready and made your first sale, you’ll be glad you took the time to have a go!  It’s a free service so you’ve really got nothing to lose – and everything to gain!  Good luck!

3) ARTIST’S SITE OF THE MONTH
This month the website of the Scenic Art Co. is my pick.  This website covers the works of a number of artists who make up the company, but I really like the way they’ve done their site. Firstly, the images they’ve uploaded are clear and well-photographed. Always a bonus…it’s frustrating when you have to squint to get the full effect of a picture or if the impact of the work is lost due to a blurry focus!  Secondly, a lot of their work is big…quite literally.  We’re talking 35ft by 20ft backcloths, murals and cut-outs.  This could be quite difficult to convey in a picture without losing the detail or the depth of the image, but they manage to capture the full effect by having close-up of the detail (like Lou Reed on gauze), followed by a picture of the gauze being used in it’s final setting on stage.
The Scenic Art Co.’s site gives enough information on the homepage and in the ‘About Us’ section to convey that they are successful, busy and, from the companies they work for, quite probably leaders in their field.  But it’s done without self-congralating back-slapping, which, although maybe quite deserved, I find to be off-putting and unnecessary when I find it on the sites of some artists; surely the audience should deliver the praise and congratulations, not the artists themselves?
All in all, The Scenic Art Company’s site is uncluttered but clear, straightforward yet informative and understated  but impressive.  Clear images, well laid-out, well-photographed and therefore not needing reams and reams of text to help it out.  Thumbs up from us, guys!
For a closer look, check out their site and their amazing work for yourself!
http://www.scenicartco.co.uk/

4) WHAT’S WORKING IN THE ARTISTS WEB?
It’s clear from our monthly stats that you’re liking:
* Arts Jobs Page…we keep this updated as the jobs come in so keep checking for opportunities!
* Spotlight – our regular interview with selected members is still a popular feature.
* Our interviews – Fraser Kee Scott was a popular one, as was Paul Blake.  More coming soon with some prominant
figures from the art scene so keep reading!
* The Artists Web Newsletter! Hurrah!

5) COMING UP NEXT TIME……..
* ‘Straight From The Artists’ Mouths’….straight advice straight from fellow artists!
* Art Shows – the best coming up this year, why you should be taking part and what it involves.
* Art Courses – could you benefit from one?  Could you run one?  The view from both sides.
* The next Artist Of The Month
* Another good excuse to make a cuppa and have a read!

Please send any feedback/responses/ideas/news you might want to include in the Newsletter to:
jordan.adams@theartistsweb.co.uk

1. Art Competitions 2010

Where they are, why you should enter and what you need to know!

2. Becoming self-employed

How to do it, legal requirements, keeping it simple & making art
your career!

3. Artists Site Of The Month

Whose it is and why we like it!

4. Maximise Your Website

For top tips on getting the most out of your website, read this!

Put your feet up, lay down the paintbrush, make a cuppa and have a good read.

1. ART COMPETITIONS 2010

Art competitions are everywhere. There are so many going on at any
one time that it’s relatively difficult to keep track of all those
that are coming up. Entering an art contest, whether it’s being hosted
by a council, a gallery or a website online can prove to be a daunting
prospect to an artist who’s perhaps never entered anything of the sort
before. Yet it can provide invaluable experience, exposure and who
knows – you might just win something!

**To pay or not to pay?**

Many juried art competitions charge an entrance fee for artists to
submit their work and enter. This can prove to be a very real problem
for financially-struggling artists and can also prove to be the
nail-in-the-contest-coffin for those who were jittery enough about
entering in the first instance. So why do the organisers charge such
fees? After all, hopeful authors are not charged by potential
publishers to submit their fledgling manuscripts. Organisers argue
that it is costly for them to exhibit submitted work and for the panel
to jury the event. But surely this cost shouldn’t be saddled onto the
artists they are encouring to enter? Unfortunately it is a topic which
divides artists and organisers alike; some artists flatly refuse to
enter contests charging a fee whilst others think the exposure and
opportunity is worth it – and some organisers as a rule never charge
fees whilst others defend their decision to do so. It is ulitimately
up to the individual as to whether they go ahead or not. If you feel
that the competition is just too good a chance to miss but you’re
still struggling with the entrance fee, you can always voice your
concerns direct to the organiser. If enough artists feel the same way
and speak out, it may well bring about a change in future rules! It is
wise, however, to find out the following when considering to part with
your cash for the chance to enter such a contest:

*  Is the prize fund substantially adequate in comparison to the
entrance fee? If you are being charged £30 to enter yet the prize is
only around £100, would you feel it worth your time and effort?
*  Is the competition big enough to warrant a charge? Small-scale
contests shouldn’t charge for entries or at worst should charge only a
nominal fee; otherwise entrants could feel they may end up profiting
the organisers!
*  Who is on the jury? If an influential figure in the art world is
judging the work, or even someone you have always greatly admired or
been influenced by, you may feel that the opportunity to expose your
work to them may be well worth an entrance fee!
*  Can you afford it? You may want to check the requirements of any
other contests you are hoping to enter, otherwise they could soon
mount up.

**You’ve decided – you’re going for it!**

Once you’ve decided to enter, you need to check the entry
requirements with a fine toothcomb. Make sure you’re very clear on the
format required, theme, file size if submitting your work online or
electronically, that the competition extends to you geographically,
that you can make the deadline without reducing yourself to a
whimpering heap and that you feel it is a good opportunity for you.
Try to focus on the positive aspects; namely the exposure your art
will get, being able to guage the standards out there and any areas
you may need to work on in the future if you’re not selected which
will only benefit you as an artist, the confidence boost it may
(and hopefully will!) give you – and the chance that you
might just win. Getting your art and creativity seen is what most
artists strive towards and taking risks is part and parcel of the
journey. Art competitions can provide you with a valuable platform and
the more you enter – the more your name and your work will become
recognised.

If the voting is being done by the public, don’t be put off by
questions that might arise in your head regarding the artistic
knowledge of people who may vote….you never know who is looking at
your work in these instances and reaching out to as vast an audience
as possible is important. And if it is a public vote – tell everyone
you know!

**Where do I find out about art competitions?**

The internet is the obvious source for this, although don’t neglect
your local community. Check out venues in your area which host art
courses, the local library, word-of-mouth amongst your artist friends
and the local paper. Online, there are various sites which advertise
art contests (some of which we’ve provided links to below). Check in
on these regularly as art competitions are running pretty much all
year round. The more you network, the more opportunities you will find
out about.

http://www.theartlist.com/
- this is a great resource with frequently updated details and
international opportunities.
http://www.britisharts.co.uk/competitions.html
- does what it says on the tin! UK comps divided by season.
http://www.asingularcreation.com/
- a good resource for contests, competitions and calls for art.
http://www.kinderart.com/contests/
- art and writing contests for children (plus their parents and
teachers!)
http://emptyeasel.com/misc/art-contests/
- lists some important art competitions
http://artdeadline.com/
- more opportunities! You can either browse some free listings or
pay a membership to have results posted to your email to cut down on
your search time.

Select your favourite works and go for it…..you’ve nothing to lose!  Good luck!

2. BECOMING SELF-EMPLOYED

If you dream of selling enough of your art to be able to leave the rat-race behind for a life of indulging in and reaping the benefits of your passion, you’re not alone! Many artists have a day-job to keep afloat and fit their art around what little time they have left. It can be a very daunting propspect to leave your job behind and concentrate solely on your art as your main source of income. You may worry that you won’t sell enough art, your income will be too erratic and that you’ll get into financial difficulties. Yet the fact that you’ll be able to focus ALL your working time on doing the thing that you love can make a huge difference. You’ll have time to market yourself, exhibit more regularly, get your website looking its best and of course concentrate on your art.
Once you’ve decided to go for it, whether it’s part-time or full-time, you’ll need to register yourself as self-employed. This is crucial and a legal requirement – you can’t sell art if you don’t do this! – so don’t start trading without having completed the process first! Before you register, you need to make sure that you have the skills to manage yourself and the commitment. It can be very rewarding to be your own boss but it certainly isn’t without it’s challenges! Here are some things to consider before taking that step:

Is this what you want to do?
You don’t have to be 100% sure but if you’re 50/50 you may need to recondsider: the first year can be challenging financially and personally and it really helps if your heart and mind are totally committed. Setting up on your own can put a strain on your personal relationships. You’ll be working long hours and juggling so many balls at once you may feel you’re about to drop the lot at any given moment! You’ll need the support of family, friends and your partner if you have one. If you have children, you’ll need to make adjustments to your time with them – do you have babysitters you can fall back on? Are you going to have to collect your children from school every day if nobody else can? If so, can you get enough work done during the week to earn sufficient money to keep afloat? If you’re worried, make plans before you begin.

Do you have children?
Tell your friends/family/partner what you intend to do and keep them informed as you go along so they can support you. Try to work out early on a plan for childcare if it’s applicable to your situation. Are there after-school clubs your children could join to allow you to work a bit longer? Is your partner able to and happy to make adjustments to their hours to take on some of the jobs you may have done up till now? Can you afford to pay for extra childcare if it’s needed? If you aim to enlist your family’s help, make sure that you communicate clearly how long you’ll most likely need their help and agree to re-assess after a period of time if you need their help for longer than you intended; that way everybody will be clear on their role and nobody will feel awkward that it’s getting a bit much but they’re not wanting to say. As you settle into your new working life, you’ll most likely find that things settle down into a routine and these issues resolove themselves with welcome solutions – be as flexible as you can as you go along and above all, don’t feel guilty if you find your time with your children is cut much shorter than you’re used to! Setting up is difficult but the pay-offs can be huge in terms of finance, personal satisfaction and work/life balance once you’ve got things under your belt.

Can you handle working alone?
If you’ve worked in an office or similar environment up till now, working for yourself may come as a bit of a shock! You may be lucky enough to find workspace in a shared studio but if that’s not a possibility, you need to be prepared for loving your own company for a while. Setting definite work times for yourself can be a help; that way, if you’re feeling the need to communicate with other people, you know that once a certain hour arrives and your work is done, you can reward yourself with a cuppa and a chat with a friend! Getting out and exhibiting can break the monotony of studio work and be a great social opportunity – not discounting a great networking opportunity. Or you may find that you can fit in time to join an artist’s group; just because this won’t generate income in itself doesn’t mean that it won’t benefit you in your working life. Keeping in the loop with other artists can lead to great opportunities to network, such as private viewings, gallery openings and exhibition invitations.

Are you ready to lose your perks & gain an overdraft?
Being self-employed gives you freedom with working your own hours and without a boss breathing down your neck – but it also takes away paid holiday, pension schemes, bonuses, work parties, pay rises and promotions! You may find yourself devoid of a holiday for the first year or two if you don’t have enough in the bank to pay for it so be prepared for this. However, it doesn’t mean you can’t take a break! It’s crucial that you take some time out for yourself the first year as you’ll certainly need it. Even if you can’t afford a big holiday, look at visiting friends in the UK or even just staying at home, taking the work phone off the hook and indulging in doing nothing! If you budget efficiently you may find getting you-time is easier than you thought.
Speaking of the bank – do you have savings you can fall back on during the first year? Setting up in business is notoriously stressful financially as you establish your position in your new work environment. You may need to look at a business loan or overdraft to carry you through – and if you do this you need to make sure you can afford the monthly repayments. It’s a good idea to look around at various schemes banks run to help small businesses setting up. They often offer low-interest overdrafts and loan arrangements tailored to meet the needs of those starting up. Having an overdraft if you’ve not needed one before can feel like a negative progression, but always bear in mind that this is a means to an end and once you’re profiting from your business, you can start to repay loans/overdraft payments and then start to reap the benefits of your profits! Having a loan if you need one will enable you to invest in areas of your work that will help you look and feel professional and confident. It’s better to invest in areas that you feel will guarantee a return rather than struggle financially with constant worry that you’re not looking or presenting your art to the standart that you feel comfortable with.

Personal skills that can smooth out the bumps!
Working for yourself can reveal personal skills that you never realised you posessed. If you’ve been used to working in a team environment, whether in the workplace or at art college or university, you may find the transition to working for yourself a strange one.  The following qualities can help you on your way to presenting your art confidently, enthusiastically and in a way that draws potential buyers in.

* Self-confidence. Don’t apologise for your work; believe in it, believe in yourself as an artist and try not to compare yourself to others; it’s YOUR work you want to sell, not anybody else’s. A buyer can be inspired by an artist’s passion and belief in their work and your enthusiasm can prove to be infectious!
* Commitment. Agree from the outset that you’re going to be in this for the long-haul. There will be peaks and troughs during your first year but don’t expect everything to run smoothly – and when it doesn’t, don’t bail. Try to tackle each problem head-on and with a calm mind and objective to find a solution. That way you’ll find yourself coping with the good and the not-so-good which is essential to staying the distance when you’re self-employed.
* Initiative. You’re about to become your own boss, PA, publicity officer and admin staff! You’ll need to market your art to the public; use your imaginiation and take up any offer that comes your way, no matter how insignificant it may seem at the time. Word-of-mouth can be a great tool for getting your art out there. Make sure you have a website, business cards so people can look you up after seeing your art at an exhibition and so you can hand out to anyone you feel may be able to help you progress, a portfolio that is up-to-date and time to invest in marketing. It’s no use being the best artist in your area if nobody knows you’re there! Take initiative and sign up to galleries; getting invites to private views can be great for networking and getting an introduction to the gallery itself. Get involved in local exhibitions. Hold one of your own and notify the local media. Use any tactic you can think of but have fun with it and think outside the box!
* Being resiliant. You may come across criticism (constructive or not), setbacks and pitfalls along the way but try to stay focused and positive. Be able to take criticism. Be able to acknowledge when you’ve made a mistake, learn from it and put it down to experience. When the going gets tough, keep going and stay focused on whatever end goal it is that you’ve set yourself; whether it’s art-world domination or just a happy work/life/art balance with enough in the bank to enjoy your life!

Being self-employed has it’s moments. Long hours, tax returns (ugh!), accounting, working alone, no paid holidays – but the rewards can be huge. You work when you want. You do what you want. You can attribute your access to nobody but yourself and work wherever you choose. It’s a lifestyle many envy so keep at it, believe in yourself and in your art and celebrate every little success that comes your way! Enjoy the journey.

Next Month: Registering, National Insurance Contributions, accountants and tax returns – all the fun stuff!

3. ARTISTS SITE OF THE MONTH

This month’s fave site is (cue drum roll……) – Lindi Kirwin!
Lindi has been a member of The Artists Web since 2007 and her site reflects her passion for the art she creates as well as the beautiful aspects of her work! Lindi works in a variety of mediums; dry-brush acrylic, oils, mixed media and pen illustration. Lindi’s site is a perfect example of just what you can achieve with a website of your own; it has not just been used to display her work for sale and that which has already sold – it also gives a great insight into Lindi as an artist.

Points we really like!

• Lindi’s site includes a detailed biography, outlining her artistic background, her inspirations, her passion and contact details, followed by a fascinating mini-feature about one of her works bought by Dragon’s Den entrepreneur, Theo Paphitis!

• Each medium is given it’s own section with clear, beautiful images, explanations of how she achieves the effects and information of how to view more.

• A clear exhibitions page (featuring both past and present) – great to keep up-to-date to encourage those taken with your work on the site to see it ‘in the flesh!’.

• An interview! What a good idea….a real insight into Lindi’s personality and work as an artist. She also offers some tips for other artists here.

All in all, a great site; informative, fun, well-managed, clear and with lots of pictures of the all-important art.

Great job, Lindi!

To see Lindi’s site for yourself, follow this link:http://www.lindi-kirwin.co.uk/

For some tips on how to maximise your own site, read below.

4. MAXIMISE YOUR WEBSITE!

You’ve signed up, you’ve got your site – but is it working as well as it could be for you? Are you selling as much as you hoped you would? Are you not sure what’s wrong? There are a few simple things you could do which could turn things around pretty quickly! Read on for our tips on how to get the most out of your site.

Upload and update!
It may sound obvious, but make sure you upload lots images of your art, whether it’s up for sale or not. For a buyer or even somebody just browsing artwork, to click on a site filled with clear images of art is a treat. It entices them to look at other pages on there, to see what else you have on offer. A ’sold’ page is helpful; all other art should be separate so the potential buyer isn’t confused as to what is and what is not on offer. ‘Sold art’ pages also validate your success! Always appealing!
Keeping your site up-to-date is crucial; if left untouched for too long you may appear to be not trading anymore. Anyone who has favourited your site will likely check back periodically so keep new work listed to keep their interest!

Make it very clear
Ensure that your images are clear to look at and not blurred, cropped or too small. Once a viewer clicks on a thumbnail of a picture/artwork they’re interested in, it will expand to a larger picture – but if the file size was wrong when you uploaded it, this bigger picture could appear grainy or blurred, which is not what you’re after when trying to seal a deal! If you’re in any doubt about file sizes, check on The Artists Web under the Wiki (listed under ‘Resources’) – all you need to know is right here.

Biographies are your spotlight!
Make sure you have a biog. An interested viewer or buyer will want to know about YOU as well as your artwork. Don’t be afraid to list what’s inspired you, your passions, and your favourite point about being an artist. Make it personal; your art is a huge reflection of you and the more you present yourself the better. Include any awards/prizes you’ve felt proud of, any achievements which proved to be a real turning point in your career – don’t shy away from promoting yourself as well as your art.

Info, info, info!
When it comes to images of your art, it is imperative that you’ve filled in as many details on the ‘upload page’ as possible if people are to locate your work on the web. Tags act like flags which help a buyer interested in your genre of art to find you amongst the many others who are also producing work of that genre. When a viewer searches for artwork on The Aritsts Web, the words they put into the search engine will only match up with artwork that has those words in their tags, which the artists puts in when he/she uploads them. Additionally, once a potential buyer has arrived at the work he or she is interested in, it is very frustrating if there is no information such as size, price, medium, title and so on attached to it! Some artists skip writing the info when they’re starting up their site, thinking they’ll come back and do it later – after which it’s easy to forget to go back and do! So take the time as you go through the setup process to fill in the blanks…it will save hassle for the buyers later on and make your site an enjoyable one to browse rather than a frustrating one!

T’s & C’s
Don’t forget these! An interested buyer will need to know your terms and conditions so make sure you include them.

Have fun with your site…take the time to update it regularly and keep it informative and inspiring and you’ll be attracting page hits like bees to the honeypot!

COMING UP THIS MONTH ON THE ARTISTS WEB…..
We hope you’ve read (and enjoyed) our interview with renowned sculptor, Richard Wilson, who so happily (and kindly) gave up some of his gold-dust time to speak to us about his work. Hot on the heels of our interview with Richard, we have the art gallery owner who is famous for picking out the great-and-good artists-to-be before they’ve hit the big time. Fraser Kee Scott owns ‘A Gallery’ in London’s Wimbledon and has a fascinating outlook on art and its place in the world today. The ex-chairman of Tate, Paul Myners, said of ‘A Gallery’; “I don’t see what is so different here (in A Gallery) than in the Tate”. High praise indeed! Make sure you look out for our chat with Fraser on the Blog very soon.

Our next ‘Spotlight’ interview is with Wendy Massey, who has been a member with The Artists Web for some time. Wendy’s insights into her work, how her path has progressed and her work/life balance makes for interesting reading!

WE’RE OUT AND ABOUT……
The Artists Web isn’t just about being online! We’re always out in the art world and making sure we’re seeing first-hand the amazing creations that are being produced. Look out for our reviews and reports on various private viewings and galleries – and if you’re attending any, drop us a line and let us know!

THE ARTISTS WEB ON TWITTER
Our Twitter site has been running since February this year and has already attracted over 4,000 followers! Make sure you log in and follow us – the more people we get to visit The Artists Web, the more art buyers we’ll attract, the more people will be browsing through your art….you get the picture!

COMMENT, COMMENT, COMMENT!
We love feedback! Good, bad and ugly – although the good’s always so much nicer to get! If you read and enjoy a particular article on our blog, leave a comment and have your say. It’s always great to know what you all think and helps us to channel our site to meet your needs and requirements more effectively. So don’t be shy. Also don’t forget the forum…always popular with our members…get in there and get advice/offer support/chat about your art with your fellow members.

That’s all for this month…we’ll be arriving in your inboxes again inFebruary!

Thanks for reading!

The Artists Web

If you don’t have time to read all of this, make sure you at least Register with twitter and follow The Artists Web!

If you have any suggestions, feel free to leave a comment

What is twitter

twitter.com is a "micro blogging" service, it allows people to make ultra short posts (no more than about 20 words) called tweets. The allows you to quickly and succinctly tell the world what you are doing, thinking, liking, disliking, reading, watching, eating or just broadcast any message you like at any time.

When you register you get your own twitter profile page where people can see what you’ve ‘tweeted’. twitter users can choose to ‘follow’ other twitter users in which case they automatically receive that users ‘tweets’.

If you use facebook, or myspace you could think of twitter as the ’status updates’ or ‘mood’ part and nothing (much) else. And yet another way of thinking of twitter is a cross between instant messaging and a blog.

youtube video

So what can artists do with twitter?

As an artist probably the most useful aspect of twitter is the ability to raise your profile and ultimately being able send people to your website/blog/online gallery and tell them about you. It’s a bit like having a mailing list/ fan club – and you can instantly send out a message to all on the list, just finished a new painting and uploaded it to your website? tweet a link to it; got an exhibition coming up? tweet a link to the gallery/post time and date; appearing in a magazine/blog/tv? tweet about it.

But it gives you much more than that! here’s a few examples

• You can network and meet like minded people
• Ask for feedback on your work
• Ask for advice
• Invite people to events/private views
• Follow people/organisations on twitter who’s opinion you respect/ find useful (e.g. The Artists Web Tate Gallery)
• Make special offers or contests "retweet my me and get 20% off my prints"
• Twitter is great for live reporting, post about what’s happening at events/openings/shows whilst you’re there

And check this article on mashable.com with some more tips.

9 Steps For Artists To Get The Most Out Of Twitter

1. Register with twitter and create a full profile

People will read your bio when searching people on twitter, make sure you use this opportunity!

2. Optionally, find a service you like for posting your ‘tweets’

You can update via sms, iphone, facebook, widget etc. see: http://twitter.com/downloads – whatever suits your lifestyle.

3. Find people to connect with

You can quickly find like minded, interesting and influential people on twitter, use http://search.twitter.com

4. Use your profile background to show your work

Although most of the background image is obscured by the tweets, if you create a background image with a narrow image left aligned it shoul!
d be visible in the left margin. Use a twitter background creator like artweet.com. Some example uses of the background image: Tokyo art beat, Jay Goldman and Natasha Wescoat

5. Be Interesting!

If you follow any popular users on twitter you’ll note that many of them are respected in their industry and tend to be giving away great advice rather than Britney Spears-esquse drivel, ‘I had a nice massage/hair do/organic hare and mushroom profiteroles today’

6. Engage with other users

Reply to other users, ask questions to your followers, retweet

7. Publicise your twitter profile

Just as you would publicise your own website, publicise your twitter profile. Invite your friends, put a link (or use a twitter badge/widget) on your website/blog/SNS profiles/email signature, mention twitte!
r when you meet people in the flesh at events etc, tell the wo!
rld you
are on twitter.

8. Keep in sync with your profiles on other social networks

If you are already on some other social networks, (facebook, misplace, bebo etc.) make sure you have the same avatar so people stumbling across you will instantly recognise you if they know your online identity already. You might also like to keep your tweets the same as your mood/status updates. There are tools out there to make this happen automatically for you e.g. facebook app, myspace app and ping.fm

9 For More Great Tips Follow Us!

http://twitter.com/TheArtistsWeb

• Global artwork search trends
• Publicising your art courses
• The Artists Web – Autumn updates
• Cool Globes: Artists wanted – help raise awareness of global warming
• Islington Art and Design Fair

Artwork Search Trends

A readers may already be aware of Google Trends a fairly new and really useful tools for researching what people search for on the internet. The tool is very simple to use, one simply enters a list of comma separated search terms to compare and google will show a historic graph of the relative popularity of the various terms you have entered.

So here’s a few examples for Google Trends:

sunset VS landscape VS portrait VS abstract

original art VS art print

oil painting VS watercolour VS watercolor

So no doubt you’re already trying out searches for yourself and gaining insights into the way people use the internet!

Publicise Your Art Courses

And following on from our previous edition in which we covered finding art courses, this time we would like to bring your attention to a new feature on The Artists Web this month – Art Courses. This section of the website will provide a user friendly and easily searchable databases of art courses. We are aware that a number of members run their own courses and workshops, so we are delighted to announce that members will get first dibs on submitting their info and at no cost! Members of the public will also be able to list their courses but must pay a listing fee.

We already have a number of larger institutions lined up to provide us with their course info, but you can submit yours first and secure your place in our extensive course listings!

So get maximum exposure now before the listings fill up – The Artists Web enjoys great search engine results and thousands of visits from art related visitors every day, a perfect platform for publicising your classes, workshops and courses.

Advertise your courses now:
————————————–
* Login to ‘myaccount’  here: www.theartistsweb.co.uk/myaccount
* Click on ‘add venue’ under ‘my courses’
* Enter venue details for where the course(s) will take place
* Go back to ‘my account’
* Click on ‘add course’
* Enter course details
* You can continue to add more courses by going back to ‘my account’ and clicking on ‘add course’ again

The Artists Web – Autumn Update

After receiving some valuable feedback from the a recent user survey (thanks again to all who have particiupated), The Artists Web will be working on some new features and enhancements this Autumn:

• More art focused home page
• Some general design and layout enhancements on www.theartistsweb.co.uk
• New website builder features including multiple file upload, new design templates, paypal shopping cart enhancements.
• New publishing channels for the print program – we’re pleased to announce that The Artists Web has secured an agreement with The EAW Group who represent 4 of the worlds leading print distribution channels.

So keep your eyes peeled for updates!

Artists Required! – Cool Globes

Hot Ideas for a Cooler Planet is a major environmental art initiative taking place in London from April 2009. Up to 100, five foot diameter globes will be placed in Central London for 10 weeks. Each globe will depict an issue with regard to climate change and, importantly, a solution that can be implemented at an individual level.

Cool Globes is seeking artists to paint the blank globes and is offering an honorarium and £1000 on completion of the globe. Interested artists are encouraged to visit www.coolglobes.com and contact charlie@wildinart.co.uk for information.

Islington Art and Design Fair

And finally a brief mention of an event in London this October:
3-26 OCT 2008 FRI: 1-7PM SAT-SUN: 12-6PM
ADMISSION FREE

FOUR WEEKENDS, FOUR SHOWS:
3-5 OCT: PAINTING AND SCULPTURE
10-12 OCT: ILLUSTRATION, PRINTMAKING, GRAPHICS
17-19 OCT: FASHION, JEWELLERY, TEXTILES
24-26 OCT: FURNITURE, GLASS, CERAMICS, DESIGN PRODUCTS

CANDID GALLERIES, 3 TORRENS STREET, LONDON EC1V 1NQ
TUBE: ANGEL
0207 837 4237
WWW.CANDIDARTS.COM

So that wraps it up for this edition of The Artists Newsletter – thanks for reading!

The Artists Newsletter Team

"At the age of six I wanted to be a cook. At seven I wanted to be Napoleon. And my ambition has been growing steadily ever since."
Salvador Dali

Finding Art Courses

For the artist who may have just rekindled their love of for art and is turning hobby to profession, or the professional artist looking to hone their craft in a particular area, finding art courses to suit you remains no easy task. The Artists Web is constantly looking for quality schools which our artists recommend from experience, but here, we’d like to instead focus on critical areas to research and feel comfortable with before making the (often expensive and most often lengthy) commitment.Main criteria to look for when deciding on which course to choose are:

• Price and location.
• Effective teacher/student relationship,
• Your goals match the proposed goals of the course
• Continuation- Taking the skills home

Price and Location

We advise not simply looking at the fee structure of the course provided, but also to look into greater detail as to what the value added services are. Many more expensive course fees may make the budding artist balk, but it is important to investigate further; what does the school offer in the way of materials / training / open days / exhibitions? Remember that a more expensive school may provide materials and tools which are of a higher quality and standard, translating to your creation being a longer-lasting and more attractive artwork. With relation to exhibiting, schools with gallery affiliations or an attached space of their own are often a good way for the burgeoning artist to gain valuable exhibition experience.Location is also another crucial factor. Of course proximity to your home is important as it is highly likely that you may be transporting canvases back and forth from your class to your home. Much more than that however, is the class spaces itself. After all, this is the place where your creative thinking should be able to shine. Comfort, warmth, and an open space with plenty of light to work in can only be assured after visiting the site; something we highly recommend doing before joining an art class.

Effective teacher / student relationship

Like any other process of self discovery, taking art classes is an important and personal journey, within which students need to be encouraged and strengthened to achieve their goals. The relationship between teacher and student in the field of art is very different from another skill whereby there may be a correct or incorrect answer. In fact, no matter the level of skill, artists in training need to confirm that their learning style suits the teaching style of the instructor.Some students learn most effectively when classes consist of very little dialogue between teacher and student, and the majority of time being attributed to working on their piece. Other less experienced artists may find too much unstructured time irritating, preferring instead to receive detailed instructions on technical processes. To combat these variables being a problem later in the class, we advise meeting your instructor personally and discussing your own goals prior to commencing. One option as well is to ask to sit in on a class of your appropriate level. Pre-exposure to the instructor’s teaching style will help you to decide whether or not you will be able to get the most effective results under this person.

Your goals matching the proposed goals of the course

Having a realistic goal or target before taking your course is a necessary step to take before joining an art course. Ask yourself, why are you taking the course? Is it that you hope to enter a tertiary institution and require a more professional portfolio of work before your apply? Are you interested in learning to pain in greater detail subjects like animals, plants and people? Is this just a hobby that a friend suggested you pick up for relaxation? After you have decided on your own specific goals (and we recommend doing a brainstorming session to attain what physically you would also like to take home after the course) it’s time to compare these goals with those of the courses you have chosen.Also look for the materials you are required to buy for the course: if you are hoping to improve your realistic representations of figures, you may find fieldtrips to the park for a still-life watercolor session and ‘getting to know gauche’ a little on the frustrating side. If you have a particular area of interest, make sure to ask the instructor about how much attention will be given to that area. In addition, if there is a piece that you would like to create, make to enquire about the final piece. These questions will satisfy not only your curiosity but also justify the money you are about to outlay.Another important thing to remember when choosing your art course is to find that perfect dynamic between the ‘personality’ of the course and your own. As budding Tokyo-based artist Belinda 43, describes, sometimes the best option is to find a school where your involvement levels are not all-consuming. She came to this conclusion after recently joining a school which involved activities she was not comfortable with, including presenting at Spoken Word nights, students taking turns to be live models for figure classes, and making extravagant costumes to wear for the end-of-year exhibition. ‘I felt that the classes and tuition really suited me, but I could not really opt in or out of the additional activities with ease,’ she states. ‘I don’t really take too well to dressing up or undressing in public.’You may want to keep your art at a limited time per week, without letting it impinge on your personal or work time. Remember to be clear with the instructor about what your goals are, as communication and research is key.

Continuation – The Importance of Skills Transfer

The right art course for each artist should be one which incorporates mediums they feel stimulated and interested in and be one that gives the artist the opportunity to utilize tools that may not be as easy to use at home- some examples are etching, sculpture and photography. Courses which incorporate complex or messy materials are great to be involved in, but the important thing to remember is that skills attained should be transferable to other mediums which can be done at home. Make sure to ascertain you are learning a process which can be applied to other mediums (such as shading, detailed drawing, cross hatching etc.).Well that just about covers it team! Make sure that you research your art course well and go with your gut feeling as to what is going to work best for you.

May 1st – New Site Launch Date

On May 1st 2008, The Artists Web will be launching the new site displaying some great new features. The site you know and love will remain, but here’s a preview of three of the improvements you are sure to love:

• General redesign of site to enhance buyers’ experience (and make artwork sell better). The Artists Web has been slightly redesigned to include various new features including Comments on Artwork, Selling Prints with ease, and increasing traffic through our ‘favorites’ option being added.
• Interviews Now our ‘Spotlight’ section will not only feature in the Artists News Section, but also on the main site area
• Buyer Process Improvement The buying process will now be much more streamlined, adding ease and convenience to the buying process.

For more information, check out:
http://www.theartistsweb.co.uk/new_features_for_artists

The Artists Web in Tokyo – Design Festa

April’s Website of the month, is for the Tokyo Design Festa.
http://www.designfesta.com/index.html

The Tokyo Design Festa is a freestyle International Art Event open to all artists, both professional and non-professional from all over the world to exhibit their creative talent. Design Festa is the biggest art event in Asia, with approximately 53,000 visitors and 7,000 exhibitors. This art event is held twice a year at Tokyo Big Sight, the biggest event hall in Japan.As part of the upcoming Tokyo Launch of The Artist’s Web, THE ARTISTS WEB will be taking part in the 27th annual Design Festa Art Festival.a

TAW has decided to set up camp at Design Festa as we know it is the ideal place for us to showcase the work of our passionate artists who are looking for a great opportunity to show their artwork to a very large audience from all over the world. As well as the numerous art fans and music lovers who attend this event, Design Festa receives a high level of exposure from the media including the BBC, APTN, CBS, AFP, and Canal+, to name a few.As well as demonstrating the new japanese version of the website, we will be promoting members on the site to visiting buyers at Design Festa. We’ll be printing up and distributing 1000 postcards of selected members work, each with the members name and website. (Members chosen will of course be asked for their consent before hand.)Please make sure to check out the site and see where your artwork will be hitting the Japanese market soon!We’d like to leave you with this quote and wish you here’s to April being a fruitful and enjoyable month!

“The artist is nothing without the gift, but the gift is nothing without work.”

-Emile Zola

Thanks for reading and best regards,

The Artists Newsletter Team