Advice from the Artists: A Focus on Photography Exhibition

We asked the talented artists from the A Focus on Photography Exhibition at The Charles H. Taylor Arts Center what advice they would give to an aspiring artist. Their response was phenomenal!

You need to believe in yourself.  Never give up, and learn more from your mistakes than successes.  Inspire yourself every day, have fun with creating. Set a schedule to make that commitment of work. Inspiration only comes to those that work for it daily.  Being an artist is a job like any other.  You cannot wait for inspiration to hit you, you need to be there working at it daily and it will eventually find you. – Ali Rogan

Do what you love and practice, practice. – Maria Freire Haga

Experiment and create a lot of work, and do it consistently all the time! Make it fun, not a test of perfection. You will create many pieces you will throw away but who cares. Enjoy the process and do it for yourself. – Karen Freidt

Work at it 24/7. - Mary Carr Roberts

^{Photo: David Duncan Sorensen}

First make your art for yourself and those close to you that love it, regardless of financial reward.  The creative expression of your art should be something you treasure and do throughout your life, independent of pursuing it as a career.  Find or develop other skills that enable you to have an income independent of art so you don't completely corrupt your creativity with economic and market pressures.  Regardless, learn the business of art any way you can and treat it seriously and professionally.  Pump your experienced peers and mentors for as much advice in this area as you can get.  Develop a thick skin for criticism, rejection, and financial hardships with respect to your art, while surrounding yourself with artists, friends, and collectors who appreciate it.  Expect to run across teachers who make you hate the learning process, and avoid them as much as you can.  You are better off teaching yourself than being demotivated by the art educational process. - David Duncan Sorensen

^{Photo: Karen Freidt}

Allow yourself to explore the mediums and train your eye to recognize great design and how value plays a key role.  More importantly paint what you love! - Linda C. Miller

Go for it! - Elizabeth Shumate

^{Photo: Paul Belote}

I like what Warhol said. Paraphrasing here: Just make art. Let other people decide if it's good or bad, worth anything or not. And while they're deciding, make more art. - Paul Belote

Never give up! Work hard and then work more. Do what you love but make sure you are pulling in income to pay the bills. Constantly evolve in your work. Take time to recharge but always jump back into the art even when you feel that the wheels may be spinning and you are not moving forward. You will move forward. Explore new media but master at least one fully. Work with your hands. Get them dirty. Try to organize your space. It's hard when you have all the stuff that is needed to create your art. Be kind. Be open. Love your work and the world even when you have to create art that exposes the pain and suffering that creeps into life. Try not to isolate yourself too much but some time in solitude is a great way to see what it is you really are as an artist and person. Put your work into shows but know that sometimes you may be rejected. Pick up your stuff and keep on getting it out there. If you believe in the work it will find the light of day and you may even connect with an audience. Art is to be seen. Don’t hide it under a basket or leave it in the closet. Always have some work being shown or working toward being shown. Work hard. Art is long and time is fleeting. Get enough sleep. If you are an artist at some point you will realize that you cannot survive without creating art and you will succeed. - Robert Oppecker

Make art. Studying it is fine, reading about it is fine, going to museums is fine. None of that is a substitute for just making art. - Walt Taylor

Keep your eyes open. - Katie Stodghill

Check out the thought-provoking artwork from the A Focus on Photography Exhibition at The Charles H. Taylor Arts Center through August 13!