Art Biz 101

Goals - Strategy - Execution - Staying True

We're on the cusp of something great yet we're miles away from reaching it!  How is that possible? 

When Brent and I decided to join forces as a married couple and business partners, we knew it would challenge us. There are obstacles and opportunities around every corner.   

In the summer of 2015, I left the corporate workforce to focus on our growing family and to also understand Brent's goals as a professional artist.  Two simple things to state, but both are huge undertakings in real-life.  After the party was over, and the leaves started to fall the next season, we took a hard look at where we were with the studio business versus where we wanted to grow.  ​

Welcome to the art business series of Studio Holland Art! 

Studio Holland Art already had a website, a gallery, a busy studio, strong university assets, and most importantly, Brent had an abundance of high-quality artwork. But we didn't have formal structure, a business plan, for the future. To use a visual term, we needed a composition.

That's when we started to give the studio form. We had to ask and answer some uncomfortable questions, especially when it boils down to selling art.

Artists tend to reside in several different camps on the subject of sales.

1. One camp believing that to self-promote means you're selling-out and not being true to Art.
2. Another camp feeling they need to go commercial at all costs regardless of the quality of the artwork.
3. Studio Holland Art falls in a third category who believes in letting go of our egos (a bit) and sharing our process to allow for the possibility of others to better connect with the Art.  Actually, Brent is trusting me with making this decision for us. 

Creating a plan is a good investment of time. Our composition included four key elements: Defining Us, Setting Goals, Strategizing, & Execution

Our composition, looked something like this:

1. What is Studio Holland Art?  In the simplest terms, Studio Holland Art is the creative business of Brent Holland.  Brent's studio makes complex-imagery Art.
2. What are the long term goals?  One main objective is to increase local name recognition for Brent Holland as a premier visual artist who is vested in his community of Greater Des Moines.  He had been working as a studio artist in the community since 2005, but with a primary focus on his associate professorship at the university, he was mostly known for a former body of work as a portrait painter.  Brent also set very specific financial goals over a specific time span.  He also set a goal for regional, national and international art exhibitions.  
3. Who are potential audiences? We wanted to grow the studio through several general audiences such as private collections, corporate clients, commissionable projects, gallery partnerships, and grant funding. 
4. How about strategy? We developed specific strategies for reaching each of these goals.  We already felt a strong partnership with the best local gallery, Olson-Larsen Galleries, so he started making connections in other markets.  He collaborates deeply with his teaching institution, Iowa State University College of Design to find opportunities to increase art education outreach in the community.  We also devised a plan to harness Brent's invaluable knowledge of the art industry.  This informative blog is part of that strategy's implementation.  Lastly, but not least...network, network, network!
5. What tactics are we comfortable with using? Overhauling www.studiohollandart.com was a top-priority so that we could gain insights and create online sales channels.  We now have a storefront here for original artwork and a print shop here for reproductions.  We joined our chamber of commerce, and art-focused salon groups such as The Des Moines Art Center's Salon 4700 and Art Noir, and of course, we started attending events.  Additional resources are planned for the near future.  One example is Patreon which provides an opportunity to have a better relationship with his fans and get recurring revenue for his work as an art educator when he launches his free online videos on a variety of painting and drawing techniques.  We've also considered Kickstarter for an upcoming body of work in 2019.  Presently, content from the blog will connect our audiences in new ways through newsletters and social media.  

We got a lot of this plan on paper and started implementing.  And guess what happened next?  We had Baby Naomi!  Ever heard of ground zero?  So here we are a couple years later than planned, finally starting to put the strategies and tactics into play.  We still have Brent's integrity for the arts, a house full of children, and a good dose of optimism!

I hope you enjoyed this article and gleaned some helpful ideas from it!  This is not an exact science, so trial and error is expected. As much as Studio Holland Art wants to expand audience reach, we're excited to share specific details of our experience with hopes it will help another creative small business get to the next step in their dream.  Please feel welcome to comment to add to that forum.  Where are you in your journey?  What's working?  What's not?  ​

ERICA ABELL-HOLLAND

MARKETING PARTNER
STUDIO HOLLAND ART