The protagonist of my first book series (not available yet) is a 20-something with a degree in art and a job that pays the bills (ya need that!). But her dream is to make a living from her artwork.
Other than occasional art classes during my schooling days, I have little training in art or knowledge of the art community. And yet, I’ve been writing a book about a wannabe artist. Yeah, I hear those squealing brakes.
That’s why I have Gabby…
Introducing The Art of Sehn
Today, I’d like to introduce you to my friend, Gabrielle Burke (artist pseudonym: Sehn)! You can follow Sehn on Instagram, Facebook, or her website. And you should, this woman’s got talent.
We two grew up together, and we could tell too many stories about each other. Cool Fact: we also specialize in weird nicknames, one being frozen Popsicles. Yeah, I’m not sure where that came from. We still sometimes yell it at each other.
I wanted to ask the nitty gritty questions about the artist world, and Sehn let me. I think we talked about art for close to three hours!
The Keys to Art
Create an Art Process
Assumption:
I thought that artists have rituals to get themselves into the artistic mindset. In my head I pictured them needing to have a cup of tea, meditate for seven minutes, and then balance a pencil on one finger. A methodical system used to fall into the creative process.
Sehn’s Truth:
Sehn may have just stared at me, for a while, when I shared that thought. She stressed that every artist is different in how they prepare to create art, but she personally prefers to have well-known songs playing in the background.
What helps you start working? Do you listen to music or do you prefer silence? Does your ritual influence how your artwork comes out?
Develop a Definition of Success
Assumption:
When I first started writing my story about an artist, I thought that success in the art world was having your artwork shown in an art gallery. More recently, I’ve discovered that an art gallery is a posh farmer’s market or mini mall renting out space to artists.
Sehn’s Truth:
Sehn explained that she sees success in art as being sought out by galleries and clients rather than hitting the streets herself to chase down buyers.
What defines success for you? Is it if you have a gallery wanting to show your artwork? Or is when you’ve built a large private client base?
Irritating Stereotypes
Assumption:
I remember sitting down to interview with a previous employer, and the man spoke with such disgust for “these artist types” and how they couldn’t keep anything in order. I’m marginally creative, but I was offended by his comments on the behalf of the people I’d be managing.
Sehn’s Truth:
Sehn shared that people stereotype artists as flighty and lazy, and therefore, artists are taken less seriously. And they’re often not paid as they should be for their artwork.
Do you have stereotypes of creatives? How can we break free of these stereotypes?
Know Your Worth
Assumption:
Creatives tend to be demanding and overly proud of their work. They think they are special and can set over the top prices for their work. Or on the flip side, creatives have a terribly low self-belief, not believing they have anything to offer.
Sehn’s Truth:
Sehn recognized this struggle of worth, pointing out that some artists undersell their artwork because they are so self critical. They see the imperfections and forget the hours they spent on their work.
How do you think worth for artwork should be estimated? Should it be based on hours spent on the work or should it be based on the image?
These are only a few things that I learned from Sehn about the artist life, and I think you should go check out her work on The Art of Sehn.
After my conversation with her, I’m finding more ideas for writing my second book in this series!
