My husband I were talking about why many famous artists, weren't famous really until they died. Why is that? I'm sure I can spend hours researching this, but I'm going to tell you my theories instead. I have two. They're both connected and it comes down to marketing and sales.
As an artist, when I'm marketing or selling, I'm not creating. When I'm creating, I'm not selling or marketing. And the scale never seems to balance right on this one. However, if someone else is selling for me, then I can spend my life creating. So think back to those famous dead artists.... they got (just go with me for arguments sake) their lives to focus on their art and didn't deal with the selling side. So, no wonder they were good, they got to practice and create often. And if I've taken anything from Outliers (the book I'm reading by Malcolm Gladwell), is that people succeed because of doing, and doing again and doing again.
The second theory is that it's easier to sell someone else's work than it is your own. So, dead people can't sell their work anymore, so others do. They can focus solely on selling and not on creating. They see it from a buyers perspective not an artists. If you don't believe me here, just go out with a friend and try this theory out.
But, I don't think I want to wait until I'm dead. In fact, I know my family doesn't. So, my goal for this year is to change this theory or at least impact it differently. I'm going to work on selling my work actively, but also trying to balance those scales.
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There's a whole movement in the workplace out there right now, championed (marketed!) by the Gallup poll people and written by Marcus Buckingham (Now, discoveryour strengths, GO Put your strengths to work, etc.) that's all about doing what your strengths are. Not beating yourself up about your weaknesses, or even trying to add to them. (And of course you have to buy a book to find these very specific strengths!) Instead of shoring up one's weaknesses (beyond what is needed to survive) the concept is to do what your strengths are and manage around the weaknesses. Now you personally may be a good marketer, or in some aspects of marketing, but not all artists are - or should be. I'm more marketer than artist, though I love to "art"... There is strength in numbers, perhaps there should be an organization/team here that does that.
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