5 Comments

Thank you so much, Clint, for writing this post. It's long overdue. It can be very discouraging for an artist who has worked long and hard to attain competency and quality to discover that those who attended a 'sip and paint' now call themselves artists: everyone's now in the game. As an artist and former gallery curator, I know what to do with mediocre paintings. They go into our New Year's Day bonfire. Thanks for reminding us all that quality is more important than ever. Edna

Expand full comment

This is so important Clint and I’m glad you pointed it out. Having written articles for art magazines for 2 decades, I understand what you’re saying about writing like a baby and editing like a nazi. It’s interesting to think about applying the same to my artwork.

Expand full comment

It reminds me of me, right down to the hair style lol

Good post

Thanks, debi yuhas

Expand full comment

You should check out the book, “Grit” by Angela Duckworth. I am guessing you would revise your “better than” statement. Turns out that talent is a very poor indicator of who will succeed and who will not. So, being better than really guarantees nothing.

Expand full comment

It guarantees nothing - but it DOES provide a tailwind behind other marketing efforts which is the point I was trying to make. This is an excerpt from the book in which it is part of the things you need to do to turn your art into a product and has several elements: Quality, Price, Story and Category. You have to do well in some of those categories and Quality is a big one. TALENT is a poor indicator, but QUALITY of the art is not. It may not guarantee anything but as a former gallery owner I can say with confidence that high quality art is 10X easier to sell and if art isn't "good enough" it's almost impossible to sell.

Expand full comment