As a full time artist, I rely on the sales of my work to live my life. That means I need to be both an artist and a business owner even though at times those duties seem to conflict. As an artist I want to be true to my vision and create the work that I want to create. As a business owner, I have to at least consider whether any particular work is going to do well in the market place. I also need to be careful not to let the business side of my life pull be down or lift me too high. The art really needs to be my paramount concern if my business is going to continue to sustain me.
Smart business practices do not have to conflict with making the art I want to make. If I market my work in the right places and am conscious of the fact that I am not making work for everyone, I can both stay true to myself and find the collectors who match my style. I think that the artists who are able to find their niche while being flexible enough to accommodate the desires of patrons, can achieve both their artistic and financial goals. If I offer a new print for sale, it means that it is also a work that has satisfied me creatively. I think it is important that collectors understand that the artwork they buy represents something honest and fulfilling to the artist. My subject matter has always dealt with nature as the object of my images. My images have always been somewhat biographical in that they speak to a personal feeling, mood, or fascination. If they didn’t fulfill that aspect of who I am, I think I would have stayed in the corporate position I left 12 years ago.
The image below was made on a lovely summer morning in Acadia National Park. A telephoto zoom lens with attached polarizing filter was used to isolate a section of water lilies and keep the water a rich blue. The light hitting just the area around the water lily made me stop and go to work.
To see more of my images and to order prints directly, please visit my website at http://www.paulgrecianphoto.com.
Paul Grecian - Photography 