Support Your Local Artist

I tell things in stories, so bear with me...

Supporting your local artist can mean supporting the arts in general in your community through attending local exhibitions or supporting artists who work in your community by sharing their work with your networks, and if you are able, purchasing work from local artists.

This blog post is actually intended to discuss supporting fair compensation for artists on an individual level, the reasons why, and for those creatives that are on the short-end of the stick, some resources to learn where to get support if you need it.

Backstory

Once upon a time, as an undergrad, I majored in fine arts with a concentration in painting. This came only after deciding math was not the major for me. I had spent three years majoring in math, not knowing what the heck I wanted to do with it…but, ironically, knowing I didn’t want to be a teacher. God’s got jokes, doesn’t he?

In my last year as a math major, I finally was able to take an art class. This was a difficult feat to accomplish! Every semester before, I had it added to my schedule as my first choice for an elective by the registrar’s office. But, every semester, when I got my schedule back, whatever other secondary elective I had chosen was selected for me instead. For three years, it was a horrible cycle…and each semester, I got more depressed by it. Although I felt it would be too much for me, as a math major, I decided to minor in art…and finally, I was able to add an art class to my schedule.

My first class was a Drawing II class. It was taught by a grad student at the school. One day, he pulled me aside and while looking at my work asked me, “Are you sure you don’t want to major?”

I wasn’t.

When I first decided to go to college, I had to choose between art and math. I excelled in both in high school. But, my parents wanted me to go for math because they thought I’d have more doors open for employment with that degree. So, a math major I became.

But, it didn’t work out. After being confronted by that instructor and doing some soul searching as a junior that wasn’t progressing well through a major I ultimately wasn’t interested in, the following semester, I changed my major to art. Although it might not have guaranteed a job, I felt it would definitely make me happier paying the loans back.

Lo and behold, I got way more scholarships as an art major than I did as a math major. But there was still part of the education missing.

The Case for Fair Compensation

My first painting teacher tried to hip me to it. She was a feisty, little woman. She was tiny, with glasses, and long brown hair she wore in a ponytail…and every time she talked, she was so convicted of what she was saying…She was kind of monumental that way. She’s the same woman who had referred me to Virginia Woolf’s essay, A Room of One’s Own. In a different, but related discussion, she spoke to me about pricing my work.

At the time, in our student exhibitions, when people wanted to buy my work, I didn’t know what to charge them. In hindsight, I think I was just afraid to charge anything. I couldn’t for the life of me explain why, I just was.

In that same talk with my fiery, little teacher, she told me I was a very generous person, but that in the end, I was going to have to make a living. She made the case for why I should charge…and charge a fair price for my work (if not extravagantly):

I had prior student loan debt to pay back, and if people wanted my work or services, they should contribute by paying me. Those loans ain’t cheap.
I had invested countless hours in classes and studio work learning my craft, and if people wanted my work or services, they should value my time, effort and education by paying me.
My young child at that time would need to be cared for, and if people wanted my work or services, I’d have to spend time away from him. I should be compensated for that.

The Dilemma

I understood what she meant and I knew she was right. But, at the time, I just didn’t have the confidence to follow through with that.

I graduated at the top of my class and I continued to charge minimally for my work.

I became a grad student teacher and I continued to charge minimally for my work.

Even in the same position as the first Drawing II instructor that had confronted me, my students were charging more for their work than I was!

My fear of charging for my work was leaving me broke and I had to pay my bills to support my growing family.

As life went on, if you’re a reader here, you know I became a K-12 art teacher. There were lots of reasons that went into that. I found I had a bigger heart for kids than I initially thought. While I could never stomach the idea of teaching math, teaching art was much more palatable. I also liked the idea of being able to have a paying career involving art.

Thus, my parents were wrong. I had found a career involving art that could help pay the bills. Problem solved.

But, the one piece that was missing is the actual lesson of the day…

Often, the way I’m approached about doing artwork for someone I know is like a friend…and therein lies the problem. As a friend, I can get underpaid…Or not paid at all.

It has always been a weird area for me since, technically, I have a job…getting underpaid could be overlooked since I’m not exactly hurting for money. But, on the other hand, you tend to get a lot of friendly requests that suck up time, energy and resources without much reciprocation…except more friendship. ..and more projects.

The Reason For This Post

So peep…

One day, a friend inquired about my sandwich chalkboard. She wanted me to do some lettering for her on the chalkboard for an upcoming event.

I had no problems with this. But, the moment I heard the request, the first thing that came to my mind was that I have a child who has been in distress, and every time I take on a project, I spend time away from her, worried about her. And that’s when I remembered the discussion with my teacher and I thought...

I should be compensated. Finally! That part I didn’t really get was starting to kick in!

It was awkward when it came out. But, I blurted it anyway, “Fifty dollars!”

She agreed to pay it because, in her own words, “I do good work.” But, she wasn’t sure why there should be a charge in the first place.

It has been in the back of my mind ever since. It bothered me enough to draw it out and write this post.

Supporting local artists means much more than what I’ve written here. But, this is definitely part of it. When artists and art in general is devalued, it’s akin to saying, “We value your skills and services, but not your profession.” That’s like when Black people say, “They want our culture, but not us.” It’s kind of the same idea…and it all sucks.

I’m sure this was not the intention behind her questioning of it. To be clear, I had never positioned myself as a working artist in this area. I was positioned as an art teacher that does favors and side jobs for a few bucks from time-to-time. Nothing more.

The breakthrough came when I decided to value my work in this form and my time. It’s only when artists do that for themselves that supporting local arts and artist can become a reality.

I’m glad I finally took the step to valuing my work in this area enough to, awkwardly or not, put a price tag on it.

Make the Mindset Shift

It took me a while to even realize this was a necessary step for me. But it’s finally happening.

If this is the stage you’re at in your creative journey with your lettering or any other creative pursuit…if you’re getting requests without the compensation you deserve (and you don’t have a fiesty, little white lady teacher you love talking to you in your head), you’re not alone. There are whole courses for people in the same position.

Here is a list of resources that might help put things in perspective so that you can support your most local artist…you.

Helpful Resources

Panic-Free Pricing-This is a course by youtuber and calligrapher, Becca Courtice, The Happy Ever Crafter. From the jump, this course is talking mindset. Anyone having trouble with pricing definitely needs that. But, it also gives some great guidelines for how to choose your prices…and, bonus, comes with a cheat sheet that you can use to quickly figure out how to quote prices for various genres of lettering. My panicked price of $50 came a few dollars under the quote for what Panic-Free Pricing lists for a Commercial Sandwich Board. But, it was $25 less for wedding signage. If you click on the link on the sidebar, I get a small commission. But, never fear, this one in the post is non-affiliatory (don’t know if that’s a word, but I’m going with it…).

The Big Leap - I heard of this one before. I had to pass on it at the time. But, shortly after my recent mindset shift about this, I happened to be watching a youtube series, in which Alanna Flowers of AGF Studios discussed what it’s like to freelance (that was a bonus since the video is a process video…love those!!). But, Alanna dropped this resource by one of my favorite lettering legends, Martina Flor, called The Big Leap. It’s a course and a book. I have the book and I have had the course on my list of must-take courses since I first saw it. The course is offered seasonally and since I was all coursed-up when it first dropped, I had to sit on the sidelines. But, I’d take Alanna’s word for it because the book is phenomenal (and Martina Flor is a beast). Alanna is no stranger to the freelance world. She is a full-time, freelance, lettering artist. Note: Going full time is not a requirement to do freelance work or to get paid for it. If this freakishly long post hasn’t taught you that if you are doing ANY kind of freelance work, you should be compensated for it, I don’t know what will.
Art for Money-No course, but another excellent book to guide you on becoming a freelance artist. it’s very straight to the point, practical, and best of all…it’s written for creatives by a creative.
Honeybook-This is a resource that I use for a different kind of side hustle. If you are considering setting your freelance work up as a legitimate business, Honeybook can help you get your affairs in order. With Honeybook, you can create contracts, send proposals and receive payment easily. It also allows you to create on-brand brochures and email templates for correspondence you send frequently while keeping a library of items like photos and pdfs that you can use in your client process. It also keeps track of your online earnings for tax season. You can even set up workflows and automate tasks for your projects. I love using this piece of software and am seriously considering it for even off-the-cuff freelance jobs. It definitely keeps things professional-and between the contract and proposals, it stops me from having to worry about payment. As of January 2022, I have switched to using Dubsado for freelance work and I love it! I find the feature set is extremely similar to what I used in Honeybook, so I don’t miss out on anything when I process a client…and the trial period and terms were perfect for a small business owner getting to know the software.