brave new (art) world?

It's interesting that I was directed to this article, The Intersection of Economics and the Arts, at a time when I've been taking a break from 'serious painting' and considering my direction(s). I'm never really stuck for inspiration, which is actually my biggest directional problem: I choose one direction then switch gears because, like a magpie, I'm easily seduced by shiny objects. Right now, rather than head out willy-nilly down a new path in an effort to find both creative and economic nirvana, I am taking some time to clear my head so I can be more productive. I've been told more times than I can count that "If you do what you want to do and not others, then success will follow." If only everything could be reduced to a simple homily. The problem is, I want to do everything and my most successful work, economically, is the work I'm least interested in doing.

One lesson I have learned is that if the bottom line was my prime motivator, I would be painting landscapes. They sell and they sell through dealers (this one went last week), which means I could take the whole time-consuming marketing problem out of my own hands (a lot of it, anyway), but I have very few of them to go around and absolutely no desire to paint more. As a result, this is my first dealer sale in months.

According to Tucker, "Most working artists split their time among the various sectors fairly evenly, according to a report from University of Minnesota. Roughly 39% spend most of their arts time in the commercial sector, and 42% engage in part-time commercial work. Only 19% of the artists surveyed did no commercial work at all." The commercial sector, as he describes it, has taken on a new face. I consider the most successful work on places like Etsy and eBay to be under that 'commercial' umbrella. But the similarities between, say, an artist who sells small, affordable work on-line and one who toils creating large-scale sculpture in a warehouse for the high-end gallery market are more remarkable than the differences. They both march to their own drummer, work in isolation and choose a good idea and stick with it. Multi-tasking seems the intelligent way to go, but I think the best work comes from people who are able to narrow their focus. I can think of a hugely succesful collage artist who writes books, jetsets all over the continent giving workshops, makes podcasts, etc., but I don't think her actual artwork is as successful as her career. She's leading a good life, but will her work hold up?

"The so-called reclusive artist of fifty or sixty years ago, the Horowitzes who showed up, played their concert and then left, although extraordinary artists, are gone. The world has changed a great deal, especially in America," says Joseph W. Polisi, president of the Juilliard School.

I guess that's true to some extent, but on-line sellers are more and more returning to the reclusive lifestyle described here. They see their postmaster far more often than they see the purchasers of their work, let alone anyone in a gallery or shop. Their computers are their link to the rest of the world.

At the end of the day, it's all about finding what works for you as an artist. Recently, Angela took a break from blogging and is producing some stunning work as a result. Like the Etsy artists I linked to above, she has discovered her niche and it's not the same niche as those high-volume print-producers who have successful on-line businesses. Like them, she is narrowing her focus and doing what she needs to do to make it work.

UPDATE: A fantastic link related to this topic is here. Thanks, BeadBabe49.