Breaking Into The Big Fat Art World - Artists Tips Podcast 

First of all - the portrait looks amazing. Her eyes are gorgeous. Secondly - I'm new to this art experience as well and am trying to figure out my own path and there are really only two things that I use as a sort of guide in the choices that I make. One, never put myself in a position where I give up my power/control. I started this art career so I could make my own business and do things my way and jumping through someone else's hoops to get into a gallery or big art show feels wrong to me. I might as well go back to a 9 to 5 working for someone else. Two, never let anyone else tell me what success is. This ties into that whole control thing. If I let someone else tell me what it means to be successful, then I'm suddenly playing their game and following their rules and that's not why I started this. I know my strengths and weaknesses. I know my capabilities and goals. Only I know when I've reached that point of "success".

Design your business cards to show off your best work on the back and the essentials on the front. Kinda makes your card collectible and less likely to be thrown out or forgotten.

Big expensive art shows are a waste of time unless you want to deal with snotty art people and judgement. Show to people who love your work. Show to people who will eat ramen so they can afford a piece of your art. Those people come back. Those people talk about you. Those are good people.

Hello R&K! Great job on the portrait! Thanks for sharing your experiences!

Something that you touched on in the video that can't be emphasized enough is the importance of networking with other artists. Some of the best opportunities I've had were a direct result of interactions with other artists both in my community and online. You never know who they might be connected to, and a recommendation or a kind word from a fellow artist can be the key to getting past gatekeepers and the "ouroboros of b.s." as Klee calls it.

Those mess up and fix a few times paintings are my best ones! Nice portrait!

My fine art teachers said we'd have to spend so much each year in gallery application fees, my illustration teachers said we'd have to send loads of postcards to employers to get hired, and neither of those felt right to me. I'm still figuring out exactly what I'm wanting to do, partly because I want to do everything (so no one thing gets done, oops)

Be true to your motivation in ART. If for money, then it is a business and there will be many factors to consider that may divert you from your true creativity. Balance is needed. Take it slowly and enjoy the creative journey. GREAT work and advice with fixing art and art world

I'm fighting the urge to start at the top so to speak. I know it's a long shot, but I think with a strong marketing strategy and high quality artwork, it's worth a try. If I were to have many works sold inexpensively, it could taint my marketability at a higher level. Total newbie here but these are my thoughts at the moment.

Once again, an amazing video! Your portrait turned out great! I have learned so much from you guys. I am an artist and I am in recovery. During my addiction I lost everything, not just myself, but my whole portfolio since none of it was digitized. I have grieved that loss, and have accepted it. I am now starting to build up a portfolio so I can hopefully sell my art. Everyone that sees what i do is always pleasantly surprised i guess you could say, they had no idea I was an artist and things like that. I just wanted to say thank you for what you do. You have inspired me more than you will ever know. You two are freakin’ amazing and deserve nothing but good things. Sending love from Philadelphia 💚

Art is so subjective . I've called myself an artist since I've been 16 yrs old. I'm in my 50's now. I've done a lot of different kinds of exhibits, from galleries to coffee shops. At some places you sell... and others your art just decorates their walls. It's all trial and error finding the people who like your work. I guess what I'm saying you just got to do it. Sometimes joining an local art guild or club, attending meetings could help you find venues to exhibit. It's about making honest connections with folks who you like and like you.🎨

I have never heard of art basel so had to Google it. Looks very hoity toity 😳. I can't believe its not in Toronto near me. Its only in Montreal and Vancouver. Toronto has a pretty booming artistic crowd. I get confused sometimes when talking about "shows". Is shows meaning everything? Because for me a show is one that is when either you are exhibiting your work in a gallery or a public place where it is on display. And then we have things like pop-up art festivals, arts and craft fairs and then the flea market. Most of the time being in tents but sometimes in large community centers or school gymnasiums. And obviously flea markets. Not sure if that's how they do things in the states or not. We also have large art galleries that usually have worldwide famous artists and sometimes up and coming locally famous artists. Then we have our small private galleries which are usually like storefronts who sell local art from a few artists. So many different levels and branches of art 😅

It feels like mainstream almost anything is so not trve! Trying to make it in the mainstream rather then in indie circles sounds like appeasing the masses for money at times.. I absorbed the Punk and Metal attitudes over the past 2 years and I'm like "screw trying to appeal to everyone, I'm gonna be me, I'm gonna make the world a better place, I'm gonna bring brutal truths and fun stories to my audience"

Speaking of doing festivals, have y'all ever heard of the Dogwood Festival in Siloam Springs, Arkansas? Love the fact that you take time to answer people's questions like these. Shows that you care.

I haven't watched you in awhile ,but this one really resonates with me. I had to start a full time job a few years ago so I haven't been creating as much as I should. But I haven't given up.I did read a little while ago that you have to find a niche but to me that would just bore the crap out of me. The best times I had was the few times I did a makers fest and brought what ever carving I was doing and working at it right thee. I got a lot of positive feed back and the kids loved it .So even though didn't sell anything it was still a success to me.

oooooh those eyes....popping👌🏿👌🏿👌🏿👌🏿 came out Nice Rafi💕also great advice guys!!🙌🏾👍🏾

Beautiful piece!

Great advice. As you have indicated, just going out there and giving it a wack is the best thing an artist can do. Learn from mistakes and successes. Read tons of books and articles. Talk to artists. Network, which means establishing relationships without the intent of selling, but for being known at that one person who does art. Help others in your network and they will help you.

I’m so glad I found your channel. You and Klee are a delight and so positive.

I do comic shows. Something I will tell you is I’ve seen a couple of artists at the same shows eventually wind up at an Art Basel. Certainly a different path from what my cousin-in-law kept harping on me to enter Art competitions to build a rep that would get one noticed by a gallery. You never know where your art is going to take you.

Beautiful portrait Rafi! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Thanks again, guys! Nice painting, Rafi.

This is great w your new acrylic slow drying paints. I love both of your good advice on art too. Thanks for making another wonderful video for other art enthusiasts like myself

She came out just beautiful 😍 what a wonderful piece Rafi!!!

Great portrait and wonderful advice!

Great topic and LOVE the painting! Thank you!

Wow, amazing portrait. Thanks so much for the great info!

Such good points made here, in this vid...thank you both for your videos!

Stunning 😍 also good podcast

Great information but that painting is 🔥🔥🥰 beautiful work!

WOW! JUST WOW!

We have a couple of those art expo shows in Vancouver, and they start at a couple thousand dollars for a weekend. And while I could afford it if I really wanted to, I tend to step back and calculate how much I would have to sell just to break even. Sometimes, it would be more than I can even take with me, so I opt out. True, maybe connections made there would lead to future opps and pay off in long term, but there's also a hundred other artists vying for attention... That's why I enjoyed the flea market while it lasted because I was literally the only artist there, and perhaps even the very first artist the attendees had ever met... so if they ever want something painted, who else would they know to ask?? ;)

Love the finished portrait. And a cool easel! For getting your name out there, I agree with what you two said. Network with other artists, businesses or institutions that will display or show your work. Be well aware that if you choose a gallery, they like consistency. Which means that as you evolve, they may not like the new you. Galleries are often at their limit for artists they can represent based on their space and time which means the rejection isnt necessarily about you. And not all galleries are a fit for your type and style of art. Definitely go through various shows and galleries. Get a feel for what they are about. Are they high end big names or is it more of a local gallery. Overall, its going to take time to grow and figure out what's right for you.

Great job with those acrylics dude.

Great Information, thank you. (And great portrait - what app or program do you use for your time lapse?). I am wanting to go the on line route with my art at this point in my life. But it is a huge learning curve for me. I have done shows in the past in other creative fields I have been in, and frankly I just don’t have the energy to go that way again. I do though, know what you mean of the importance of meeting people and getting that experience. But I do feel I need to get some videos out there so that people can get a better sense of who I am as a person, I am still figuring all of this out and sometimes can be quite overwhelming, especially with my lack of tech experience. But determined to learn what I need to learn,

Ya the only way in my mind to jump that far into a career is major celebrity endorsements maybe. You just have to put in the time in the smaller shows in good art markets. Likely, moving to where art is actually sold is the best option.

thank you for sharing your experience, and beautiful portrait.

I like seeing your demo on doing a realistic portrait, I ask is that all there is to make an image of that person face. The artist should try to show a story behind why this portrait in important and interesting to make. For me when I was young man, I enjoyed making drawings of young ladies. I suppose I was drawn to them , because they made me feel good and it helped me in begin my art career. Now after doing many drawings and paintings of the full figure. I look at my past work, and say to myself , " Did I really do all that work while in art school ". I also have done a life drawing and painting of myself looking in a mirror, and that was a leaning experience . An artist needs to make objects that hasn't been done before by them , if it is a realistic or if it is an abstraction of nothing is alright too. I have sold a few abstraction paintings , but not vary many realistic works. I guess I'll go on making abstract ant, because it gives me the greatest freedom to take chances in inventing anything I like to put on paper or a canvas.

If a person try to low ball my price, they would need to be able to stand there for 3 hours or 6 days. Slow processing speed.

I appreciate how much work you put into your friend’s piece! You’re a great friend Rafi! Wish you and Klee the best!! Quick couple of questions 1) who’s in the painting? (You don’t have to give their name if that makes you / your friend uncomfortable.... I just want to know their relationship with your friend... EXAMPLE : are they your friend’s mom / sister ECT) and 2) how long did it take you to finish the painting? (Estimated time is all I’m looking for)

Such a beautiful portrait. It was such a pleasure to watch this process! And I can share my experience of taking part in the international art fair. I had this opportunity after I got gallery award, and they covered all expenses(shipping, renting the booth and etc), but that was such a stressful experience. I had to make 12 paintings in 5 months. As usual I make only 1 or 2 a month, so it was such a stressful time. For me that show was successful, but I saw there people, who spent so many money, but haven’t get anything. So i decided to learn and gain more experience, before I dare to take part by my own in such big shows. There is a big question for me how it works.

Poster: see reddot blog. This is a gallery owner that may be willing to answer your questions from a galleries perspective. He educates artists for free on how galleries work.

At the moment I'm enjoying creating art for me with my families encouragement 😊 I would like to sell my work eventually but I want to stay local and small!! Both you and Klee have given me the confidence to offer my work for sale....only thing is I like man of my paintings I'm not sure I can sell them, lol!! Tho I do have a painting I would like to send to you both, would that be OK?? I wanted to thank you so much for being awesome and always making me smile!!xx

Gorgeous portrait! Love your color blending. I'm still trying to figure out my blending technique as well as mixing flesh tones. The two portraits I did took me a few months to do because I had to go over the faces multiple times with different combinations trying to get a color match. It was extremely frustrating and caused me much anxiety. I'm afraid to even take on another commission because I don't want to have a client waiting that long. What to do? What to do?! Do you think that in the near future you'll consider doing an in depth step by step video on mixing flesh tones from light to dark skin?

I almost bought some of goldens open acrylics a few months back but a few of the reviews said they are very runny. What are your opinions on open acrylics? Any good? The portrait you made with them is awesome.

With inflation my .02 cents is now.50 cents

Do you guys have a set work schedule? If you do, what does it look like? I struggle with being organized and I feel like a set work schedule might help me with that, but I have difficulty with identifying priorities, so I don't know how and when to leave room for changes or unexpected situations. I know that this is different for everyone but how do you guys handle it?

What are you thoughts on the Golden Opens?

Don’t despise small beginnings is a motto we constantly repeat in my household

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Chrustmas show for 18k used for tax rebates..

Good luck cleaning up your disaster and hopefully you will hear only good news about your new home.