The Conversion of Bob part 3

 

A conversation about Picasso and Millionaires

Recently I was working with two other artists at a company event and in the time we had before work started, we were talking amongst ourselves and one of them said of himself “a man of my talent should be a millionaire by now.”  

He also said, “if Pablo Picasso made a fortune with the junk he put out then why can't I?”

Overlooking his negativity he actually presented a good question because I’m not a big fan of Picasso, either. Most of the modern artists who are successful really don't produce any particularly beautiful works of art that I would consider masterpieces, worthy of the price tags.

The not-so-secret truth about failing 

Well, my fellow artist and I agreed as far as Picasso is concerned but that leads to another question; why do some artists succeed and others do not? Then, while in that conversation (I’m reluctant to call it a “conversation” because he was doing all of the talking) it occurred to me how negative he was being, and I slowly began to realize something else. Most of the artists with whom I associate at such events are unmistakably pessimistic. Granted, there is always healthy amounts of sarcasm among creative people by nature, but those with whom I work are downright negative.

The not-so secret truth about success

At the same event, after work began, there was a gentleman I was drawing, and he was genuinely captivated in what I was doing and was asking uncommonly intelligent questions about my trade. Not the usual rote, elementary inquiries such as, “do you like what you’re doing?” and “how long have you been drawing?” As it turned out he too liked to draw and was indisputably interested in my experience. He asked me, “do you see something that most people don't look for?” and “do you have a predisposition to noticing hidden values?”

I could’ve told him that there is a distinctive, esoteric quality that separates an artist from normal people but to me that would be exceptionally presuming. Not being a naturally pretentious person, I simply said “it just takes practice like with anything else.”

Of course, the question invariably came up about how I discovered caricature drawing to be a profitable venture which led to my brief story about how for most of my adult life I was unaware of the possibility that I could earn money by doing it and how my upbringing was such that I was told I needed to get a job because I couldn't make a living as an artist.

Don't interrupt me while I'm ignoring you

Before I made my point with the man, another artist with who was working alongside me, overheard our conversation and interrupted. He was supporting the idea that a caricature artist cannot earn a living (a decent one anyway). Not only did I find his comments a little undermining to the experience I was trying to convey to my customer, but as a fellow artist I would expect a little more respect for his own profession.

I, on the other hand, when allowed to complete my thought (my constituent’s unsought input notwithstanding) told the gentleman they were wrong; one certainly can make a living as an artist.

They set the bar

So why the negativity? Why are my contemporaries sold on the idea that they will not succeed? Why do they think that this is not an industry by which one can’t make a decent living? I cannot say with any authority why they believe it, but I know everything originates with one’s belief system, does it not? If one believes he can't succeed he's right. Of course, it isn't necessary to reach the same level of success attained by Disney or Schultz or even by Tom Richmond for one to be considered successful. (If you don't know who Tom Richmond is look him up) In the context of the conversation I was having yesterday, success can be defined as earning a decent living and one doesn’t have to be the richest artist in the country to do that.

Lampooning hall of fame

Granted if one relies 100% on being hired for "gigs" just to sustain themselves, of course their means will always fall short of their vision, way short. I know this from my own experience. I am certain this is what they have come to rely on and hope for, but I’m sure Tom Richmond, a very successful caricature artist, doesn't think that way. Disney and Schultz didn't either and neither do Matt Groenig, Seth McFarland, George Williams, and Adam Brown. But one thing is certain. Scale is what sends a person from a meager income to better income. Not just that but diversification and several applications of their skill. Also, targeted application. Negative thinking is poison to these possibilities.

Hall of shame

Which group do I belong to? What do I want to do? Certainly, taking lessons from my constituents, I don't want to be negative or pessimistic, and it isn't just the two artists I worked with that particular weekend. Others with whom I work also do much complaining and negative assessing. Another artist I’m familiar with likes to gripe about customers and the agencies that hire him. Another is averse to different ways of doing things. He is critical his fellow artists and has a negative opinion of the latest technology that makes the job more interesting, easier and more in demand.

The theme among these brands of artists seems to be one of extreme conservatism; keep things the way they are without change and in a way that is most familiar to them because that's how they’ve done it for a long time and they've become complacent in their comfort.

Another day another dollar

Do I also do that? To them, success is simply paying the bills, and I understand how important that is but if I were to open my mind about it, especially being self-employed for so long, I know success isn't simply paying the bills unless that is all that is important to me.

Have a plan

My solution, as I see it, is to diversify my talent by not only working at events, but ones I book independently and not through an agency and teaching the art of caricature to others. For now, those are my two primary objectives.

Also, in addition to the above, once those two objectives are satisfactorily completed by obtaining events and classes with relative ease, then I will focus on publishing and selling books and merchandise that support those endeavors.

Here's a match. Now burn those bridges!

These ambitions do not get realized by grouping myself with my fellow glum artists whose only hope is to pay their bills while waiting for the next gig. In fact, how wonderful it would have been at the event I mentioned, in my conversation with the customer who showed interest, to offer him a book, written by me, explaining everything he wanted to know. It would have been like Kevin O'Leary says, “throwing gasoline on the fire”. That's another reason for urgently wanting to complete my workbook because it will contain plenty of stories and experiences about my life as an artist and how those experiences can help other aspiring artists learn to be successful by becoming a tad familiar with the landscape.

The possibilities of moving on from my friends’ insistence that he should be a millionaire because Picasso was, and how one cannot earn a decent living as an artist and success is in simply paying the bills is in all those explanations I just mentioned. I just want to remove myself from their kinship.