I didn't sell any paintings | Dealing with failure as a full-time artist

There is a broader slowdown in the art world and luxury items in general (art is a luxury good). It isn’t just you…even art auctions for famous artists are taking a huge dive with items either selling under asking or just not selling at all. Just keep painting.

I think it's really brave of you to post this, and really useful for others. It takes enormous courage to make a living from your art and creativity! With inflation/cost of living the way it's been there was bound to be a downturn in art purchases I imagine. Has nothing to do with the quality of your work, though that doesn't make it any less stressful of course. Congrats on your solo show!

This is why I am expanding into a different business that allows me to combine my artistic expression with selling something that is more in-demand. Paintings and prints are so hard to sell right now :( thank you for sharing, it's so important that people know this does happen, quite often. All the best for the future!

A lot of the reason is probably inflation. If people are struggling with paying bills and buying food, then art will be a low priority for their purchases. This is affecting all of us artists.

So so so relatable! I had a whole slew of courses this month without enrollment and things got scary for a minute! But it’s finally starting to level out! All the strategies you share for how to reframe failure are super helpful!

And CONGRATS ON THE SOLO SHOW, that is huge!

You're showing a tremendous amount of bravery by sharing your feelings of failure with others this way. That is to be commended. Note that I said "feelings of failure" and not "failure". A lot of things have to go right for a piece to sell. Chief among them are dependent on the state of the buyer. 1. Recognition of value of the piece. 2. Willingness to part with money for the work. 3. State of the buyer and their context. Some of that can be mitigated/controlled, but not all of it. You said a lot of great things in your video, and most of them were those that showed your understanding that these were emotions that needed to be handled/understood so you could get back to work. I think a lot of the time, we get hung up on what we need to be if we want our dreams to come true, so we look around for ways to adjust ourselves to fit what the world asks of us. Here's the controversial part. Buckle in. Adjusting to the world is a kind of death. If we orient ourselves to the world to please it, we will produce work and represent ourselves in a way that is commensurate with their expectations. Nothing controversial there, right? Think clearly about what that means. If the world fully expects to see the silverware laid out in a specific way, they will notice and react when the silverware is not laid out in accordance with expectations. The negativity bias you recognized in yourself is also present in the audience. Now, you may think: "Ah! Then I will set the table carefully next time, and this will ensure a sale, for I have found the error and fixed it!" This is "dying the death". Your loyalty is to the idea. The idea is prime, and must be adhered to, loved and cared for, regardless of how the world may view it. Love it the way you would love yourself, born into the world, vulnerable, screaming, and crying, begging for nourishment. Do you see the reversal here? The world will say: "Your idea is nice, but chop off its legs so that it will fit in my parlor." The mother that chops off their child's legs so that it can sit in a rich person's parlor unattended to is not taking care of their child. They are taking care of their wallet. You are an artist. This is obvious to me. I wouldn't spend this time otherwise. You have ideas. Your IDEAS make you rich, just as a mother's children make her rich. Nourish them and give them the capacity to go out into the world and do the work they need to do. Money may come into the picture at some point, but if this the ultimate goal, you will die the death at the canvas, and die the death again at the sale. The world will grind you down and force you to lay the silverware in the "proper" way, satisfied in its victory, but completely unaware of the foundation of its dedication to adherence to protocols that have very little to do with an understanding of what the heck we're doing here or what any of this is all about. Now I have revealed my bias, which you may reject. If so, okay. Maybe we are just different kinds of artists. I wish you all the best.

Welcome to full-time artist reality. 5 years in and no sales for periods is normal. The only thing I can say is to get comfortable with the uncomfortable. If you are looking for comfort in this game, it is best to pack it up now. Just paint, fear comes up, paint, bank account goes down get a side job and paint, avoid the epic and just paint.

I can relate so much. I feel like I’m doing my best work, but the sales have been excruciatingly slow for the past few months. I used to sell so much better when my work was a lot crappier. Go figure. I can see i am getting better at painting, I’m much happier with the work, my prices are the same as ever (=affordable), so I can’t make sense of this change! Your work is very very competent! 🙌

Some nice work! well done Christina !

Thank you for being so vulnerable about this topic! I feel it matters in all different parts of life too, to appreciate what got you to where you are and not focusing on what you haven't reached yet. I am still a amateur artist, but I am a lot farther in my skills than I was when I first took an interest in drawing and painting. It's good to change perspective to appreciate the good things.

Thank you for your transparency and believe me, all artists can relate! Keep at it! I am counting on you to fulfill your dream!

You are on the right track. I really like your videos, as they are very honest and authentic. I'm roughly in the same boat as you, having switched full time to working as an artist early this year. I haven't sold anything, which is frustrating, but I do have a fresh body of work that is ready when buyers and collectors come knocking. I "retired" from a 30 year career as a web developer last December. I was beyond burned out. As a freelancer of 20 years, it was becoming more and more impossible to find clients or agency work. I have a BFA in Painting / Sculpture, which I got in the lat 1980s. I never pursued art (became a librarian), although web design is a very creative profession. So I decided to make the switch, focusing on painting, Twitch/Youtube streaming, and my food journalism project. I wouldn't bother worrying about the economy. The economy is doing very well right now and any inflation (corporate price gouging) is insignificant for any person who is buying/collecting art. There are millions of people out there who buy art, or want to buy art, and plenty of walls. Good luck!

Hang in there. Your work is incredible. And your videos are very helpful to other artists. Thanks so much!

Happy that things picked up! I couldn’t stop looking at the sweater you’re wearing, I love the floral pattern and the color combination, does it also have hoodie?

I absolutely love your work, Christina. I'm sure I'm not the only one. I think SF is a bit far from my home in Aus, otherwise I'd be coming to your solo exhibition! Keep up your brave choice to be a full time artist, because you are quite awesome! x Nell

I’m surprised- your work is so beautiful. Don’t give up, it’s yay a learning curve, also the economy isn’t the best.

Hey, Christina. You're an amazing and inspiring artist with a unique style. One variable with how you feel is that you come from a very structured and technical career in economics. Even your analysis of what you're going through is structured and technical. You know all the variable and ups/downs and have prepared adequately. You'll get more comfortable in this new life and I know you'll succeed.

I wish you all the best...you'll be fine❤

Thank you for this video really helpful because sometimes we feel so alone and thinking everyone else is doing better at selling their work.