There are many way to support a living artist.
As I grow my art practice, I notice I am also starting to build an art business as people are requesting some of my work. So obviously I am reflecting on how to build anart business and how to best serve the world with my art and creativity.
So I thought I’d explore some ways I might be able to grow and also put an article together to plant seeds on how important supporting living artists is to their continued success.
Supporting an artist you love can take many forms, depending on your budget, time, and influence. Here are some of the best ways:
Financial Ways To Support An Artist
We live in a capitalistic society so of course finances is a concern for artists to be able to fund and continue their art practice. We often think of purchasing their art but sometimes that isn’t possible but are there other ways? Let me share some thoughts.
Buy Their Art Work
Purchase their art, whether it’s paintings, prints, products, or digital creations. As I mentioned, this is the first place we go and it is important for artists to find ways to make purchasing their art accessible and easy to purchase.
Buying an original is the most common way to do this but a savvy artist might offer prints to make things more affordable for all buyers.
We often overlook other ways to “buy their work”. You could hire them to do a mural or negociate ways to use their art work on products you sell (think book covers for authors, or album art for musicians, maybe artwork used on community event posters. The thing is with some creativity there could be great ways to support an artist and do some fun project together so I challenge you to think outside the box on how to “buy their art”.
Support Artists on Patreon or Similar Platforms
Many artists have Patreon, Ko-fi, or other crowdfunding options.This could be donating to a project they are raising money for or it could be more of an ongoing subscription model.
If you love an artist’s work but on a budget maybe donating $5, $10, or $25 a month is a more realistic way to support an art than buying big piece of art and this might get you a more insider look at how they do what they do as well as potentially interesting benefits like custom prints not available to the public.
I have kicked around going this route for some time but haven’t done it yet. If you are reading this, is this something you think I should do? Would you be interested in supporting my creations and art in this way? Share your thoughts in the comments as I’d love to hear your thoughts on this.
Commission Custom Art Work
If they accept commissions, this is a great way to support them while getting something unique. Not all artists do this and I have not gone down this path yet but for the right project I would look into it.
Attend Their Art Shows or Art Exhibits
If they perform, display, or sell at events, showing up in person can be a huge morale boost and financial support. I have only done one small art show, but it was a blast getting art ready for a show.
Not too many of my friends and community showed up to the event and although there were multiple artists in the show only two of us were there for parts of the weekend show (partly because of other art event opportunities in the community). The community turnout was small but it was great to connect with people and show my art.
I wasn’t really ready to sell art yet so I didn’t push too heavily but I am now in a place where I would create a series of paintings focused on sales. Ages ago I helped my ex who was an artist to juried shows around the state. I see artists doing this and I know that even going up and talking to artists as they show their work is really powerful.
Of course, buying some of their work is the best way to support them at event, shows, and exhibits.
Purchase from Their Official Art Store
Buying directly from the artist ensures they get the most profit. Not all artists sell products but several do and this is a great way to support them.
I’ve been asked to create Christmas Cards with some of my art and I might do that in the future but their are all kinds of products artists might sell beyond their actual art work.
Some artists I know have written books and sell them on their site as well as through book stores. Some sell cards (greeting cards and/or oracle cards), maybe calendars, or t-shirts.
Non-Financial Ways To Support An Artist
Supporting a living artist doesn’t have to mean specifically buying their work! Here are some great ways to help them thrive without spending money (or spending very little):
Engage and Follow the Artist on Social Media Sites
Social media is a great way to first off connect and follow an artist you really like. Then there are the basic power moves within the platforms – like, comment, and share their posts to help them reach a wider audience and rank better by the social media algorithms.
This is a great way to help out and validate an artists work. Did you know on the Dale’s Bio page there are a lot of my social media links to follow in many different capacities depending upon your areas of interest and the platfroms you are on? Check it out!
Leave Artist or Artwork Reviews
If they sell books, music, or other products, leaving positive reviews can boost their visibility on 3rd-party sites like Amazon or on their website. You can offer a testimonial if you’ve bought a painting. This work especially well if they have an area showcasing some of their sold work as I do on my Sold Paintings page. If you’d like to give me a review you can do so by submiting it on my Contact Page.
Create Artist Related Fan Content (articles, videos, podcasts, etc)
Writing about their work, making fan art (if they’re comfortable with it), or sharing interpretations can expand their reach. So around 2010 I used to run an online music blog.
I had about 5 people that used to write articles with me about some of our favorite artists. Some times we would interview the artist or other times we’d just write our thoughts on how great or moving we found their music or live shows. The same could be done for fine artists if you enjoy creating articles, videos, podcasts, or interviewing artists that I’d guess this would be well received by most artists.
Offer Help or Resources to the Artist
If you have skills like photography, marketing, or website building, offer assistance if they need it. In the right situations this could be really great in others the artist might not be interested as sometimes artists enjoy doing all the things.
I do all the things more out of budget but would be happy to delegate support if I had the right connections and we were able to find a win-win.
Long-Term Artist Support
Subscribe to Newsletters
Staying informed means you can continue to support them over time. If you know a certain style work or theme they are working right now it might be relevant to others with an interest in that space.
Out of sight out of mind – sometimes not seeing an artist pop up in life might mean they have changed styles or maybe they are seeking connections to other artists or community spaces that might serve them if they could get their art hung at a space you have connections. Or maybe a new art piece or series really strikes a chord with a friend, gallery owner, of business that might be in love with this theme/topic.
Engage in The Artist's Crowdfunding Projects
If they launch a Kickstarter or similar campaign, backing them early can be crucial.I am no expert in the crowdfunding space but I have dabbled by helping an author to start getting his book launch off the ground. I believe those early people truly help
Support The Artist's Collaborations
If they collaborate with brands or other artists, engaging with those projects helps both parties. So stay up to date on the projects they have going on and the people or brands the are partnering with.
Funny, as I write this I am gearing up for a paint party collaboration where I am helping out another artist friend I really like. This is a one time party so it is too late to help now, but in this capacity you could attend the event and have fun and both artists would win from you attending.
Defend Their Work
If they face criticism or negativity, standing up for them in online discussions can be helpful. So for example maybe as we mentioned above someone decides to review a peice or body of our work and then gives us a bad review, you could offer positive thoughts on the piece or body of work if you disagree with the reviewer.
Respect Their Boundaries
Support them in a way that aligns with their preferences and comfort level. So sometime I am not going to want to do certain commissions and so if an artists tells you there isn’t a good fit or that now is a bad time – trust them and back off or maybe ask if there is another artist that might be available.
Thank you for reading this article and seeking to understand better ways to support artists. Any of these tips when applied could really help an artist.
You might be surprised at how even commenting on social posts can help an artist. So do whatever you can and I will tell you the artist and art community will benefit from any and all support. Thank you, friends!
