Author Archives: Mary Bostic, Editor

Lisa L. Cyr’s mixed-media fantasy-inspired work invites the viewer to participate in her imaginative vision. That vision inspires both Cyr’s paintings and her desire to encourage others in creative pursuits. “Create from the heart, innovate without boundaries, strive for greatness and speak to the culture in ways that inspire and motivate,” she says, explaining, “I often use this quote I wrote on my website and other materials.” Full Article

Installing a solo show of your own work is a challenging and rewarding task. A solo show is probably something you’ve worked toward for a year or more. You have a substantial emotional investment—and often an economic one as well—in its success. If your show is in a museum or commercial gallery, installing the show will most likely be the responsibility of the museum curator or gallery director. But if your show is in a co-op gallery, art association, alternative art space, library, bank, restaurant, office space or your own studio, part or all of the responsibility for arranging and hanging the work will probably fall on your shoulders. Exploring the installation process will help you create a cohesive exhibition that will show your work to its best advantage. Full Article

Many artists are unaware of the career benefits that winning a grant can have. A grant can provide help for you to focus on a favorite theme and can lead to publicity for your work in the local press and TV, as well as in social media channels like Facebook and Twitter. Listing an award on your curriculum vitae adds considerable weight to your accomplishments as well. Full Article

Every business book you read will tell you that you need a contract for every client and every project. But in the real world of doing business, it’s easy to let this detail slip through the cracks, especially if you aren’t particularly comfortable with it in the first place. Is it because you don’t have a good contract? (If you read this article, you won’t be able to use that excuse anymore.) Full Article

How many times have you submitted a proposal and then never heard from your prospect again? Or worse, learned that the project was awarded to someone else because your price was too high?

If either of these is a common occurrence, you’re probably wasting valuable time writing proposals you will never win. The only solution is to learn how to distinguish the viable prospects from the deadbeats before you agree to write anything. And that means you have to find out what the prospect’s budget is.

But that’s a problem, because either you’re afraid to ask, or you ask and the response you get is useless. Either way, you’re back to square one. That’s the moment to do something different. Full Article

In the early days of my marketing communications firm, there was nothing I wanted more than a blueprint for what I should be doing as a business owner. I was doing well, but I had no idea how to manage my business, and didn’t know if I’d be around next year—or even next month. There wasn’t a resource specifically written for creative professionals available to me back then, so I had to learn on my own. What follows is a brief overview of the plan I created for myself—the guide I wished I’d had handed to me all those years ago. Full Article

Brought from Japan to corporate America in the 1950s, the OGSM concept was used initially by car manufacturers. Today large corporations, including Fortune 500 companies, employ this framework to keep their workforces centered on goals and objectives. Ideally this tool can express in a one-page document what a traditional business plan takes 50 pages to explain. The initials in OGSM stand for objective, goals, strategies and measurements. So in what way can this concept be applied to an artist’s business or artwork? Let’s walk through the process of creating a sample OGSM and see. Full Article

You run your own freelance business so you can make a living doing something you love with people who won’t make your life miserable. Right?
Even if that’s not your current reality, it could be—if you decide to be the boss. That means taking charge of the way you run your business, rather than letting your clients boss you around. Full Article

For more than 37 years, Artist’s & Graphic Designer’s Market has been the essential business resource for artists. With up-to-date information for more than 1,800 art market contacts, helpful business articles, and inspiring interviews with top artists, AGDM is the … Full Article