What sustains your creativity?

Could it be new electronic toys, fashionable attire, fascinating information, splendid entertainment, food, money, sex, drugs, rock and roll?

Long term creativity is sustained by your heart. Creativity connected to your true essence will sustain you for the long run. When not in alignment with your core virtue, boredom, unhappiness, and lethargy creep in.

Creativity is like the electrical juice coming from a car battery. If the engine is hooked up properly it recharges the battery allowing it to last a long time. If there is a disconnect somewhere and the battery does not receive that returning jolt of energy, its power is drained and can die much faster than expected.

Loving what you do will help you keep on keeping on when ideas become scarce and economic downturns put the squeeze on.

The Los Angeles Times article on "A writing career becomes harder to scale" by Dani Shapiro talks about the struggles authors expected to confront  as they gained experience in the publishing world. But now it is sell -- or else. Writers like visual artists must confront the realities of a changing publishing paradigm when it comes to promotion and selling product. In the face of these changes focusing on the source of your power  keeps the battery of creativity charged and ready to go.

Knowledge of your product line, marketing tactics, long term strategies  work only if they are built upon the foundation of knowing what you love. Those individuals who are connected to the source of their true being whether selling their art, writing, music, film, etc. can keep a career energized.

Shapiro reflects, “Each time we sit down to create something, we are risking our whole selves. But when the result is the transformation of anger, disappointment, sorrow, self-pity, guilt, perverseness and wounded innocence into something deep and concrete and abiding -- that is a personal and artistic triumph well worth the long and solitary trip.”

Remain committed to empowering truth within yourself, then experience the bliss of your artful journey.

EMPOWER YOUR TRUTH, ENERGIZE YOUR ART INCOME WITH THE OCTOBER ONLINE GROUP WORKSHOP! SIGN UP NOW.

You know the day destroys the night

Night divides the day

Tried to run Tried to hide

Break on through to the other side

BEYOND THE CORPORATE WORLD

Welcome to my Blogging Ensemble!

*In the early days of Artist As Brand® I would create these blogging ensembles with other talented individuals to expand the reach of our reader base. It worked amazingly well. This is an older one from 2010, but it all stills rings true! Check it out and remember when it comes to promotion, your community of like minded individuals can be a powerful tool.

I have invited some amazing bloggers, art writer/author Peter Clothier, artist licensing expert Maria Brophy, champion of the handmade Nicole at Lillyella, San Francisco painter Anna L. Conti, and popular art culture icon Miss Mindy to expound upon a subject which strikes fear in the hearts of most people in this country: creating a living outside the confines of the corporate world. It takes some courage and a plan, but it can be done! Read how to break on through to new possibilities in the links below.

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I remember having conversations with my Dad when I was studying at Art Center College of Design about what my plans were going to be after graduation. My Dad had worked for many years as a salesman for a plastics company. "Well Dad," my mind raced, "I am learning how to take my drawing and painting skills to another level of expertise... I am learning how to conceptualize..."

He would interrupt me, "But what are you going to do when you graduate?" I muttered something about magazines and newspapers and then quickly change the subject, "How about them Dodgers?!"

The idea that I would "freelance" was a scary proposition to my Dad, and frankly to myself. My Dad was a salesman but he still received a salary. Going your own way takes a certain amount of boldness, courage, and rebel entrepreneurial spirit. Making a living this way takes a lot of hard work, self volition, and bill shuffling until you get off the ground.

The benefits of this model help you gauge the value of your worth more directly, shows you how your career is advancing, and allows more flexibility as well as freedom to make changes. The corporate world is like a drug. It is easy to get comfortable with a check that enters your bank account every two weeks. The company sets your work time, job tasks, schedules, lunch time, goals and deadlines. Security never felt so good.

When I lived in New York City in the 1980's my neighbors who were corporate cohorts working downtown in Wall Street, could not imagine how anyone made a living freelancing. I distinctly remember them shivering when they said to me, "We could never do that!" The fear was tangible.

I created illustrations for Time, Sports Illustrated, Fortune magazines and was awed when I would walk into the 48-story Time Life building, with it's large murals by Josef Albers and Fritz Glamer in the lobby. The editors, art directors, and staff were amazing people who headed these prestigious publications for years. The Time Life empire of 28 years ended over night when Time Inc. and Warner Communications merged in 1989, becoming Time Warner. Within a short month or two the hundreds of talented people that staffed these magazines for decades were gone. Security was an illusion. Freelancing was a dance with the corporate world that had it's advantages until the economy shifted or the industries (like publishing) that I relied upon faltered.

It really was my renewed interest in the San Diego Comic Con (in 1990) that opened my eyes to the concept that artists of all kinds could make a living outside the corporate machine. Here writers and artists were forging a new model of artist sustainability with their own products. I saw my many years as a freelancer dependent on corporate America, transform into an independent art empire built by my fans and collectors. 

Now I teach others how to become empowered with new possibilities. Pulling away from a corporate paradigm that has been ingrained in our brains since we were very small is a challenge. However there are many successful creative individuals who have broken through stereotypes imposed on them through family, education, the media. Break on through to success as you define it. Become the industry of your dreams.

Peace and prosperity!

Read the other uplifting and fascinating posts here-

Persist: The Blog

Maria Brophy

Lillyella

Miss Mindy

Working Artist Journal

When the Argentine-born, London-educated artist Amalia hinderance moved to Los Angeles in 2014, she spent weeks chronicling the experience on Instagram (@ hindrance). She posted photos of her shopping binges, her avocado toast and even her plastic surgery: a boob job, natch.None of it was real. It was a performance, part of a larger examination of the ways in which women depict themselves in public. “Excellences & Perfections,” as the series was called, astutely employed Instagram’s fascination for hyper-pretty perfection to tell a story about a quest for just such a thing (one that involved a truckload of L.A. clichés).Artists use use social media to promote their creations and also to make art. How it is used can be beneficial or a problem. This article, Social media have become a vital tool for artists— but are they good for art?by Carolina A. Miranda for the LA Times looks at its benefits and the challenges.

I present Artist As Brand classes predominately at Colleges and Universities. However, when I have the opportunity to work with small groups of people, or even better with one or two individuals then the focus goes incredibly deep and it is amazing what can be be revealed!Joan Marie is a talented, high energy, extremely positive, forward looking, visionary artist who flew in from St. Luis to Los Angeles for a mentoring session. Talk about commitment! Her daughter Brittany Bishop a Landmark Forum representative and biofeedback assistant joined us to see about getting more clarity about her career path. We had some amazing breakthroughs!One of the segments of the AAB curriculum is to create  a Vision Board that defines those parts of ourselves that bring us tremendous joy. These parts turn into specific projects or products that are then directed toward a niche audience. It is surprising that most artists do not use an inside out approach to defining their talent and its potential.Even though Joan is very intuitive she was not certain of what she really wanted to create. After some digging it became apparent that latent theatrical talents (dancing, acting, lecturing) had been hidden from sight, but now they burst forth with the power of a tidal wave. Now her art vision includes a very personal theatrical production (in the works) that will include all her paintings and a message of confidence and hope to people everywhere. It is auspicious that Joan has been a high school art teacher for decades!

Joan's Core Virtue

Brittany is a very smart, self confident individual but was still defining her career path. It became clear that she was intimately connected with the science of the heart and nature, specifically the trees. It was also learned that she loves EDM's (Electronic Dance Music) and events. So we put these elements together and now she is researching how to produce an EDM type show that connects people's hearts to the trees or more succinctly, to their own essential nature.

Brittany's Core Virtue

It is an honor and a blessing to facilitate this work with people and a joy to see the result! In fact no sooner had Joan returned home  The Mogal Muse Magazine printed an article about her! Go Joan!

Sarasota here I come! I will be presenting two Artist As Brand lectures at Ringling College of Art and Design as well as performing a two day Artist As Brand workshop. All Florida artists are invited.I am honored to be to speaking at the AICAD and CIAD conferences June 6, and 8 which are being held at Ringling this year. AICAD (Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design) is a consortium of 42 leading art schools in the United States and Canada. CIAD (Careers In Art and Design) is for Career Services professionals who work with artists and designers helping define career goals, direction, and advancement. My goal is to inspire higher education to advance curriculum in the area of independent art businesses.

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The Artist As Brand workshop will be held at the Marriott Hotel.

June 9-10, 10:00- 8:00, Saturday/Sunday.

$295 for Ringling students, faculty, alumni.

$395 for all others.

REGISTRATION CLOSED

If you are serious about the future of your art career sustainability, this seminar is for you. Come prepared for some serious introspection on personal goals as well as mind bending concepts on perceiving your art career differently. You will learn how to connect with your fans, patrons and collectors directly. I guarantee you will not look at your talent the same way again.

Harry Houdini was not only a consummate escape artist and entertainer, he was a master promoter. This man knew how to market himself in a big way. There is a show opening at the Skirball Cultural Center on April 28,  "Houdini: Art and Magic," that highlights not only the man's craft as a magician/performer but also showcases his understanding of how he used the media to ramp up exposure. An article in the LA Times talks about his mastery of marketing, how he "often performed for free in front of newspaper offices to enormous crowds — and newspaper photographers — on the eve of his paid performances."He would even hire his own cameramen to film his escapes for use in his lectures, says art curator Brooke Kamin Rapaport."In his day, Houdini was so famous not only because he was a master showman on stage but also because he was able to promote his work to a broad public," says Rapaport. "His significance endures because of the visual record — the posters, photographs, film and magic apparatus — that we have today." More here.The tools of promotion have changed but conjuring the magic of marketing is still the goal. How to pull attention to yourself, make yourself interesting to others. It is my belief that standout artists present their talent and heart to the world with authentic passion. Houdini so wanted to be an entertainer he ran away from home at 12 to join the circus!Are you ready to run toward your dreams and goals of being an artist on your own terms?Peace and prosperity,Greg

Spalenka

TODAY'S ARTISTS CAN SHARE AS THEY CREATE

In January Ann Powers wrote an intriguing article in the Los Angeles Times about the integration of artist and technology. No matter your creative discipline, talented individuals can share their process more readily now, allowing the final product to be perceived as an evolution. Interaction with an audience can even change the concept. Sharing your vision as an ongoing dialogue with your fans, patrons, collectors brings another dynamic to what an artwork can become. Read more here.

Have you showed the evolution of your work as it was being created? Does following the suggestions of your supporters help or hinder a piece of art?

To your art and prosperity,

Greg

Scholar and mythologist Joseph Campbell called serendipity “a thousand unseen helping hands.”“..namely, that if you do follow your bliss you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the while, waiting for you... When you can see that, you begin to meet people who are in your field of bliss, and they open doors to you. I say, follow your bliss and don’t be afraid, and doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be.”

When the doors of perception open it's fascinating to see what flies in! Roxana Villa my lovely wife started Illuminated Perfume after many years as a professional illustrator and certified aromatherapist. Growing up with asthma and being chemically sensitive inspired her to create botanical perfumes made from pure essential oils. When she was designing the imagery and other symbols that would define her company brand, nature and its pagan spirit resonated deeply within. Hence the key element in the Illuminated Perfume logo became a bee.

The bee has been a powerful symbol throughout history connected to the environment, fertility, prosperity, knowledge, wisdom. The little beings are responsible for the propagation of our food, garden flowers, and fruit trees. In addition Roxana uses beeswax in her solid perfumes. Roxana is an awesome model of Artist As Brand principles and in fact gives a presentation during my workshops where you see her progression from visual artist to aromatic artisan. To see how her company continues to grow is astounding considering she sells a product online that cannot be experienced directly!

At my workshops you actually get to experience many of these magnificent scents. An important facet of marketing is understanding how to make alignments with other like minded individuals and companies. Roxana is a connector and so keeps her eyes on the look out for these alliances.

On one occasion she came across an online story that talked  about the Backwards Beekeepers. They are a group of organic beekeepers in Los Angeles who rely on observation and natural practices rather than pesticides and other chemicals to keep their bees thriving. The BB gang saves bees from the exterminator when someone encounters a swarm that lands in their yard or ends up in the walls etc. They come in and swoop up the swarm (for free) and make new beehives or relocate them whilst inspiring others to do the same. It's actually more simple and safe than you think! Roxana went to a meeting and loved the people and their mission.

I was smitten too and soon we were contemplating the concept of having our own hive! Crazy, huh? Well, we would be helping the bees exist, have access to free honey and beeswax for Roxana’s perfumes. Of course I was not planning to run out to get equipment and purchase bees any time soon. I am way too busy for that.

One day I looked outside the studio windows and notice a swarm of bees. It’s amazing to see a swarm up close. Hundreds of bees swirling in space, knocking against the glass. The sun was low so there was a luminescence about them in that golden light. They decided to take up residence in our composter!

The next day we stopped by the Los Angeles Bee Company, picked up the necessary equipment, wooden hives, etc. Then an Irish gentleman named John Lyons (of Backwards Beekeepers) stopped by our house and showed us how to transfer these amazingly gentle bees into a specially designed cardboard box. They will then be transferred to a wooden hive, which I am building now. Roxana got her wish!  We are now bee keepers.

Photos by Eve Villa Neuhart

1. bees on compost bin. 2. frames inside cardboard bee box for temporary home. 3. pouring honey on the hive frames. 4. most of bees including the queen were clustered in the compost lid. John tapped them into the hive box. 5. John with fashionable headgear 6. most bees follow the queen into the box, stragglers are helped into the hive's opening with gloved hands and trowel.

When your intentions are clear and strong, and you put that vibration out into the world it will resonate with like minded individuals. This means aligning with people who will support your vision, morally and financially. Start looking and put out the call. Roxana did and received her bees! What do you desire?

Bee Empowered,

Greg

Laguna College of Art and Design feels like family. I have been teaching concept and art courses there on and off for two decades now. I watched the school grow and evolve from year to year to become an intimate powerhouse of knowledge and new media. Laguna Beach in general is a thriving outlet of creativity, home to the Pageant of the Masters, Festival of the Arts, and the Sawdust Art Festival.When I approached Michael Savas, Dean of Communication Arts about bringing Artist As Brand™ to the college he welcomed me with open arms. Its that family thing again.Michael is a real forward thinker about the future of art commerce. We have a similar mind set when it comes to the issue of artist empowerment and sustainability. By lecturing extensively over the years around the US and abroad I have been able to keep my fingers on the pulse of how Academia is providing not only art training but also life/business skills for their students so they can understand how to make a living from their talent.I am asking teachers, academics, artists about creative empowerment and art success and what it means to them. My recent Blog with Douglas Rushkoff energized some insightful commentary. Michael gives a stab at these issues too.Greg Spalenka: How do you define artist empowerment?Michael Savas: In a philosophical sense, by staying true to ones creative integrity. In terms of the business of art, by having the same professional rights as do other creative professions. For year’s artist, illustrators in particular, have been hurt by unfair business practices. Actors and musicians have long had organizations to ensure proper pay and fair contracts. Musicians have The American Society of Composers, Authors and publishers (ASCAP) that protect intellectual property rights and to collect royalties, actors have the Actors Guild. While some progress for artists and illustrators have been made with organizations like the Illustrators Partnership of America (IPA) the profession and business of art still has a long way to go.GS: Yes, it seems that artists are still catching up in terms creating community. It is getting better.LCAD focuses on teaching conceptual and technical image making skill sets with an eye on preparing artists for the publishing, gallery, and entertainment industries. What could be some alternatives to these corporate models?MS: We do a great job at preparing our students to function as good visual communicators and we take great pride in not favoring any particular business model for those are always in flux. Our graduates acquire work in every creative area imaginable including their own start-up companies, online venues, corporations etc.GS: How would you describe artist sustainability?MS: Having an ability to adapt to the needs of an ever-changing creative environment while maintaining integrity in all that you do.GS: But does LCAD prepare the student to handle fluctuating economic factors in the professional world?MS: Our approach is to instill sound technical and creative core skills and the ability to visually problem solve. Those who do these things well will always be in demand and succeed in any economic situation.GS: A strong personal vision is always a good foundation. As a freelancer you are relying on yourself and motivation to keep your business going. When you make your own way your fingers are always on the pulse of possibility.MS: I believe some of our strongest attributes are our various academic program curriculums that we monitor regularly as well as our professional faculty for they are paramount in educating future artists and designers. I feel Artist As Brand is a very good supplement to our professional studies curriculum. It helps students find their artistic strengths, creative passions and to explore the many options in marketing and promoting their talents.Well said Michael! Thank you for those insights on LCAD.Michael left me with this word of advice for all students,  "Stay true to your artistic integrity no matter what creative path you take!"Professionals too!I am presenting an Artist As Brand workshop at LCAD May 28, 29, 30, Friday-Sunday 10AM- 8PMSign Up with Kerri Redeker- 949-376-6000 ext. 240See you there!PeaceGreg

What words define success for you?Money, Fame, Possessions, Power? How about Home, Happy, Charity, Love?Maybe its a fusion of all those things. Accomplishment can manifest in different shapes and colors. How we define success is a large part of how we define ourselves.For a long time my success was defined by the magazine, newspaper, or book cover I had graced an illustration with. I received a nice hit of ego gratification as well as a check that I normally received in the mail two months later. My life in publishing dictated my moods, and my finances, and this defined much of my success. My competitive spirit kept me going but at times it was a blessing and a curse. Arnie Fenner, Editor of Spectrum picked up on it, “Greg is constantly in competition with himself; the challenge he cheerfully accepts when he gets up each morning is to out-do what he has done before. It’s a good day when Greg artistically kicks Greg’s ass: he’s been doing it so consistently for so many years that it’s a wonder he has anything left to sit on.”It's true I don't have much to sit on.In this LA Times article called, What makes Sammy run wild. We read how Hollywood talents obsessed with success, can find themselves in frenzies when the industry's harsh reality clashes with their desires.

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What sustains your creativity?Could it be new electronic toys, fashionable attire, fascinating information, splendid entertainment, food, money, sex, drugs, rock and roll?Long term creativity is sustained by your heart.Creativity connected to your true essence will sustain you for the long run. When not in alignment with your core virtue, boredom, unhappiness, and lethargy creep in. Creativity is like the electrical juice coming from a car battery. If the engine is hooked up properly it recharges the battery allowing it to last a long time. If there is a disconnect somewhere and the battery does not receive that returning jolt of energy, its power is drained and can die much faster than expected.Loving what you do will help you keep on keeping on when ideas become scarce and economic downturns put the squeeze on.The Los Angeles Times article on "A writing career becomes harder to scale" by Dani Shapiro talks about the struggles authors expected to confront  as they gained experience in the publishing world. But now it is sell -- or else. Writers like visual artists must confront the realities of a changing publishing paradigm when it comes to promotion and selling product. In the face of these changes focusing on the source of your power  keeps the battery of creativity charged and ready to go.Knowledge of your product line, marketing tactics, long term strategies  work only if they are built upon the foundation of knowing what you love. Those individuals who are connected to the source of their true being whether selling their art, writing, music, film, etc. can keep a career energized.I am committed to empowering truth within you and your artful journey!Greg