OMG! Did you know that it is about the marketing??? Art licensing expert Tara Reed was a great guest full of useful strategic information on licensing your work for products. It isn't all about art fairs, gallery shows, etc. There is this other world where artists stay in their studios and produce imagery that gets purchased for just about every product you can think of: greeting cards, calendars, wall art, dishes, hot pads, jewelry, sheets, clothing, puzzles, tote bags, etc.
Don't hold your nose, folks, this is a very legit business and if you are amenable to creating on demand for a client this may be the place for you.
This is not the "easy" money you can make standing on the street on a weekend, but the real kicker is that you can sell a great image over and over and over, not only once. I asked Tara for the names of a couple of artists who are making the big bucks in this business right now:
Kelly Rae Roberts, self described "artist, author, possiblitarian": www.Kellyraeroberts.com
and
Jim Shore, who has done a bunch of commissions for Disney, incorporating their characters with his unique style: http://www.jimshore.com/content/ (really ugly website, but don't think he cares)
Looking for another stream of income? Listen to this conversation: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/artfairs/2013/09/04/5-things-you-need-to-know-about-licensing-your-art
P.S. I've done some licensing but I learned A LOT speaking with Tara!
Comments
Even if you aren't interested in licensing your art you'll find a lot of solid strategic talk about the business of being an artist in this podcast. Highly recommended!