Being An Independent Artist
Right now as an independent artist I have the awful blessing of being swamped with design and art commissions.
I am very excited about all of them. I have never quite been this busy before, my brain is overloaded. Perhaps that why I felt the urge to purge some verbiage into a blog. Hopefully, I can post regularly about being an independent artist, the struggles of being successful in “today’s world”, artistic experiences, and in-progress photos of projects for my customers (and fans?) to see.
I am working on my first published children’s book-illustrations. The book is entitled “Henrietta Harriet: No Time For Haircuts.” There is so much to do, the author and publisher and I have our hands full, but we hope to be published by 2017!!
Also, I am working on a exceptional caricature-painting. Actually, 12 caricatures in one! I can’t wait to finish my sketches, show you my progress, and begin the final piece!
Then, on top of both of these art commissions, I am painting a pair of cats realistically in acrylic paint on canvas. Cute and Fun!
Juggling
How do I juggle all of this artwork and still have time to code websites, arrange private classes, painting parties and spend time with my family? I have no idea. I suppose, mostly, I schedule my time wisely, optimize the number of hours each day, but most importantly – I work my ass off!!
Correction: I work my ass off and I love it!
That right there is the secret to being a successful independent and artistic entrepreneur. I can’t emphasize enough how important it is to love what you do. I couldn’t find a “nine-to-five” I truly cared about. I tried many different hats as full-time artistic nine-to-five careers: Elementary education, print marketing, advertising, web design, even framing. None of these hats fit me as well as all the hats I wear as an independent entrepreneur. I am my own bookkeeper, billing, HR, development, marketing, and IT. It’s tough. But I am my own boss. And that makes up for all the hard work. I feel empowered and creatively focused. I’m ready to tackle all my projects head-on.