Mark E Shellshear.

I know you have great ideas about where you would like to take your Art, but great ideas are no good unless you action them. What if this great idea you have will take you up to the next level, break open a new creative experience, but you are just sacred to do it. Scared of what? That it will not be accepted by your family and friends? That it will not be accepted by your buyers? Mostly likely both these groups would love to see you doing new and exciting work and experimenting. No the fear is only in your head and it is stopping you from doing something amazing and wonderful. The way to overcome this fear is to do it, do it until you love it, learning to see the new, it takes time to appreciate your new work, so go and experiment and have fun and let your imagination run wild. Nothing happens until you push past the fear and start.

  . { I was reading through my old blogs and I thought this would be a good repost} . I talk a lot about my attitude to artists who copy other Artists paintings and Art works. Of course for those out there who do copy they really have only two choices when I speak, ignore me or try and get a significant voice to contradict me and silence me, most time I get this quote said to me , “ Picasso said good artists copy and great artists steal.” This always concerned me as I admire Picasso and what he contributed to the Art world. When you have read that many biographies about him I have never seen that quote so I thought, did he really say it? It was Steve Jobs who attributed this quote to Picasso but there is no evidence that Picasso said it, Jobs was badly quoting T S Eliot   (1888-1965) a poet. What Eliot said was, “ Immature poets imitate, mature poets plagiarize.[ steal]” Jobs was wrong he quoted T S Eliott a poet, but Eliot was not as inspirational as Picasso, everyo...

Many people do not understand that we can add more value to our Art business by caring about the people we are selling to and not seeing them as consumers but seeing them as people The most important things we can give our customers outside of selling them an original Art piece, is caring for them and helping them . Giving more than they expect with simple things like kindness, a warm smile, listening to them, taking time to understand their walk in life, giving of your time, your knowledge, your love. Not asking for payment for a kind act. Being selfless not selfish. Being generous not greedy. Being the one to reach out and say, how can I help? Instead of thinking, what’s in it for me? It’s the golden rule, always give more than the customer expects because when we help others, we help ourselves.

  It is amazing what you can accomplish in the Arts when you are not interested in the criticism or the praise of others, especially those who don’t buy your work. It does not matter what others think because we will never please everyone with our Art, so don’t even try to. Yes it is nice when people like our Art, so be grateful for those people and appreciate them and thank them. When you get to that place as an Artist where only the work is important and in itself is the only validation that you need, you will then find fulfilment in your work. Your job is not working to please everyone because that is impossible, a distraction and a lie of the thief. You must do what is important, so please the Muse and give yourself permission, validate yourself and do your work and build the discipline of continuous improvement, because that is where great Art comes from.

For most of us Art chose us and then you have learn to listen to your Muse and not to all the negative voices coming from within and without. Art is a very jealous Mistress, she wants your attention always and requires everything from you and often gives little in return, but she demands your work be done for her with the strictest obedience, this a calling not a hobby. If you are struggling with your Art, rejoice she requires that, she knows struggle builds endurance and determination, if you always feel you are just inches away from a break through, rejoice that is how she stretches you. If you are nagged with self doubt and fear, rejoice she wants you to overcome them and learn to go where there are no sign posts. She is always there but just out of your reach that is how she gets you out of your comfort zone and pushes you to go into new and dangerous places with your Art, the place of miracles and magic, the home of the Muse where original Art is created. .

I am always telling Artists to story telling their Art and one person’s response was, I am an Artist, not a writer. Stop putting yourself in a box and limiting your creative abilities. You are a creative person and you are an Artist, but that does not stop you from being a writer as well. Or a song writer, or a sculptor, or a poet, or photographer, or video maker as well as being a visual Artist. We are creatives and can employ our creativity abilities into every area of our life. Who said your creativity stopped at painting, you can sculpt, carve, write and create in any medium you decide. Your creative ability is only stopped by the story you tell yourself. If you say, I am an Artist, I am not a writer, you will be right. And if you say, I am a creative person who is an Artist and I can write, you will also be right. Don’t tell yourself stories that limit what you can do, yes you are an Artist and you can also employ all that creative ability and imagination into...

I often wonder why more Artists are not making videos of there Art work and practice? What are they afraid of? Arrest, exile to a desert island? That will not happen, maybe it is just the fear inside your head stopping you and telling you lies. They will laugh at me. They will criticize me. They will make me feel ashamed. They will hate me. What if they don’t? What if they welcome you and applaud you? What if they encourage and support you? What if they love your videos? What if collectors see your videos and buy your work? No one is stopping you, the stop sign you see, fear is holding it, you must do what the fear telling you not to do. Each time you do the fear retreats a little more, until it’s no longer there. The Art world is waiting for your videos.

B uilding your Art business slowly gives you the opportunity to adjust and change as you learn more and more about your business. When you are growing your business and you are building consistent sales you are constantly learning the process of selling and selling is a process and a skill that everyone can learn. You must continually produce original Art that is truly y ours and you are not striving for just good work but great work and constant improvement. You don’t become a successful Artist because you do good Art, you become a successful Artist because you so dramatically exceeded the expectations of the Art world. And they will say very clearly we didn’t see you coming, we never do. .

There is always something to learn from the past even if its only what not to do next time. Knowing what you did wrong in the past is not enough, you must apply that knowledge to your life. One of the mistakes people make is not to listen to what they say to themselves, their self talk, as most of what they say to themselves ties them to the past. Saying things like, I always do that. I knew that would happen to me. I know my paintings are not good. Statements like these and similar are confessing to ourselves that we cannot change and of course our brain obeys our statements and here we go again. Watch what you say to yourself, your careless words tie you to the past, you must say to yourself that you have changed and you do not say those words anymore, because you will get what you say. If you say, I always fail at what I do, don’t be surprised if you always fail. I am so quick to guard what I say to myself and say to myself what I want to happen. Create a ...

Beware the fear within and the critics without, both are very negative and toxic. The fear within always hits the red light to stop you when you do something exciting, challenging and new, it wants quiet, safe, mediocrity and does not want new and challenging. When the fear comes see it is a green light to go forward, ignore the fear and go forward, it will quieten down. Pity the critic, they are the tired voice of failure, they have nothing to add, they only tear down, ignore them as well. You have the ability to change your life, do not underestimate the power within you. Combine positive mindset with your imagination and powerful things will happen. You are more powerful than you think you are.

This is the most exciting times for an Artist to live, every Artist has the opportunity to put their ideas and thoughts out into the world. Once you needed to get on television, or in the newspaper or on the radio to try to get known. Today you can have your own TV station, make a video and put it up on so many platforms, you can have your own newspaper, write a blog and post it on the internet, you can have your own radio station, start a pod cast, all these are available to every Artist to use. You do not need permission you can just do it, no one can stop you, the internet has made it that we can all have a voice and we can all tell our story and share our paintings and ideas, all it takes is a laptop and an internet connection and you can put your videos and blogs out into the world and make a difference. What an exciting opportunity for every Artist to embrace and do, but don’t delay yesterday was the time to start, today is good, it’s time to start. The most amazing thing, it...

So many Artists are waiting for the next big thing to happen in the Art world. They are waiting with brushes raised, ready so they will not miss it and they can jump in as soon as it happens. But what happens if one Artist just decides not to wait and they start doing new and original work and they become the next big thing in Art? You can take your Art to the next level or you can wait for others to lead the way for you, but Art will go to the next level regardless. Start making amazing Art, don’t wait to follow, pick yourself, you just might be the next big thing in Art.

No sales, no attention and it is a struggle. Most at this point get in and push harder and paint more, looking for that right painting and finding reasons why they are not selling, often their only strategy is raise their prices on the advice of an older Artist who said that will make a difference, it doesn’t. They push harder, paint more, it’s sweat and hard work, show more and nothing. Then they quit. Except for the few who in the middle of all this hard work and frustration realize that they love painting, love creating and it becomes a passion. Slowly the struggle goes away as passion brings flow. You care about your work, it is important to you and you love it and instead of just putting a price on it or a higher price and hoping, you now passionately talk about your work because you love it and strangers respond to your passion. Strangers love it when you are passionate about your Art and you tell them how much you love it because we want to know you love it, so ...

  It really does matter what strangers think about your Art and you because they are the ones who will buy your work and strangers will make you famous. I t is important to make videos about your Art and people get to know you, your name and to recognise you, so important these two things to know your name and recognise you. Convince them to buy through story telling your Art, make it interesting and engrossing. Educate them about why you paint and who you are as a person, explain your vision for your Art and what you are trying accomplish in your Artistic journey. Win them over to you through being passionate and enthusiastic about your Art and always being friendly, approachable and smile and have something positive to say. Build relationships with strangers who like your Art and turn them into friends and life long collectors, inspire them with your vision. Believe that you can b uild these relationships , it’s having the right mindset and doing what needs t...

After years of watching and talking with people who came into the gallery I realized very early that not everyone is going to buy. Some do buy and some don’t buy and I learned not to focus on those who don’t. It is not worth the time trying to figure why they don’t buy, is it me, is it the Art, is it the gallery, is it the time of year, I learned to just accept the fact that some don’t buy and leave it at that. Concentrate on those who do buy and make sure they get the best experience possible buying your Art. Focus on the collectors and build relationships with them. Prioritise the collectors who gave you permission to contact them and tell them about your new work. Focus on the collectors who always return, your true fans who love you and your work. Appreciate the collectors who spread the word about you and refer you, they are the ones who can make a big difference to your career. Selling your Art requires that you focus on your collectors, be patiently building li...

One of the great truths I have learned in the Art business is that you can’t please everyone, once you understand that then you have the freedom to choose to please the ones who are your true fans, the ones who love your Art. The critic is a lonely soul whose desire in life is to correct all who will listen, to point out your faults, to show you where your work is wrong and if you listen you empower them and they will try and demoralize you in the name of good Art, but if you know that you can’t please everyone, they just become one of those who you can’t please, so don’t try to. The power remains with you when you can say to yourself, I can’t please everyone and this is one of them that I can’t please. Respond to them in a positive friendly way and do not listen to them and you become the empowered one and they will move on. Please those who love you and your Art. Knowing that I can’t please everyone, is the secret to being an amazing Artist.  

  The ability to think is of much greater value than the ability to remember facts, we have search engines for that for us. If you combine this ability to think with your imagination you impact on your life and the life of those around you. It is not just about a good idea, it is thinking about what you want to accomplish and then using your imagination to visualize it working in your life and acting on the thing you want to accomplish and bringing it into reality. As a person thinks in their heart, so are they. You will empower your personal life. You will empower your Art career. You combine the ability to think with your powerful imagination, visualize it and then act on that visualization and make it a reality in your life..

When selling your Art the big objective is to win the sale not the argument. Be very careful when dealing with strangers when they say something that is wrong or quote an Artist that you know to be wrong, it’s really not important, do not correct them, no one likes to be told they are wrong, especially if they are about to buy your Art piece. When I was in the Gallery I had buyers say things to me that were completely wrong about an Artist, they are just trying to show me that they were knowledgeable about the Artist, it never worried me and I never corrected them. I wanted the sale to go forward and I did not want to embarrass them but stay on good terms with them. I am sure when they found out what they said was wrong they were grateful that I didn’t embarrass them. Don’t let petty side issues that do not matter side track you away from the sale. It is not important to be always right, what is important is to win the sale not the argument. You are there to sell your A...

What if I told you that you are not going to be picked? What if I told you no one was coming to discover you? What if I told that your paintings really don’t speak for themselves? You mean if I keep doing what I am doing, that this is as good as it gets? Yes! So you are going to have to change your mindset. You will have to pick yourself, build self belief. You have to be the one to discover you, constant self promotion. You will have to be the one to sell your paintings, constant marketing and selling. You can do this, it is just fear that stops you. When you believe in yourself, strangers will believe in you also. When you discover yourself and start promoting you, strangers will watch and listen and discover you. When you believe in your Art enough to work hard selling it, strangers will buy it. Believe in yourself, your are an amazing Artist.

As Artists we have to learn to deal with the good customer and the difficult customer, the one who changes their mind, thinks your paintings are to expensive or the one who can’t find any painting that will match her curtains and on and on. Customers are part of doing business and we need them, best if we can always have good customers rather than the difficult customer, the problem is it’s hard to tell the difference until you start talking to them. We could run away and hide and use the excuse that I am an Artist and someone else should sell my Art for me, but unless you are very popular that is not going to happen, you have to sell your Art. So embrace customer service as a highlight in your life because it means people are interacting with you and your Art and you are getting their attention and getting known and out of that may come sales. Once the customer buys from you, work hard on building a relationship with them so they become a friend and collector rather than jus...

How do we explain how some Artists get successful and then just stop, stop innovating, stop experimenting and stop pushing. What happened? Often when some get successful they have to protect what they have, but that can be dangerous because their fans and collectors want them to continue to innovate, experiment and push forward with new original work. Success is wonderful and we all want it but it also can be dangerous because now you have something to lose and therefore you will try and protect it, but it could lead to you not be creating new and interesting work. The key to keeping your hard earned success and enjoying it is to work like you are still struggling to make it, always pushing yourself into new and interesting projects and being enthusiastic about what you do. Don’t stop the struggle, keep building on what you have and enjoy your success at whatever level you are at,  it’s part of your continuing journey.