I have several goals related to building my art business. I want art to be a nice little side hustle that brings in some extra income.
Sell art
I want to sell my art. Now I don’t think that makes me a sell out. I would feel so accomplished if people loved my art so much they would want to buy it and place it in their homes. When I decided to go to art school years ago my mom was against it. She wanted me to go into a field that had a better chance of making money. I was young so I rebelled against that and went anyways. After I graduated I had all this debt and I lost all of the connections I made in the art community I couldn’t find a job in the art field and I had to work two jobs to make ends meet. I felt like a total failure. Now that I have some financial stability in my life I want to give it another shot. My goal is that in the next two years I’m making enough per month to cover my monthly student loan payments. (not an insignificant amount)
I’m currently working on this big audacious goal of selling my art. I just sold my first drawing on Fiverr last week. I’m really hoping these small accomplishments help me build momentum.
Tutorials/ youtube
Another goal of mine is to start teaching others. I always loved helping others learn how to paint or draw. I’ve never gotten my teaching certificate so I feel slightly limited in the types of teaching paths I can go down. (that and they time restraints of a full time job) So my goal is to start making online tutorials and youtube videos. This will be a fairly lofty goal for me because I have no experience with youtube or writing tutorials, but I think I could really help others with this type of content.
I’m really hoping to get some fun painting tutorials made in the next few weeks so keep your eyes peeled.
Gallery shows
My first gallery show! This is another big audacious goal for me! The only art shows I’ve ever been a part of were through my school. If I could get into a curated group show I would feel extremely accomplished. To me it would be the validation from another art professional that I really want to experience. It would show that my art is on the right track and that I’m doing great things.
Art fairs
Participating in an art fair is definitely on my to-do list for this upcoming year. The idea of it does scare me a bit. I’ve heard that the high up front costs has made art fairs not worth it for many artists. Still I would like to give it a try. It would help get my art out in the public and being viewed by a larger audience. I could make prints and other small items to sell and maybe even get some commission orders.
Veronica Bouchard 