What Are Your Greatest Needs as an Artist?

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Daniel Burke on September 29, 2009 at 6:24am

I echo RIch's four V's with a strong nod towards validation and empathize strongly with Denise. Artists who are Christians walk a difficult road. Often secular artists struggle, "duh - starving artist mentality". Art isn't important enough to the masses to finance it. Usually the patrons do the financial support. The church isn't particularly a patron anymore and pewmeisters rank it low in their priorities. As artists we need to create, and often will sacrifice much to create and rarely see any payback. That's why at least validation means so much to me. If at least somebody notices I am highly encouraged. If one connect's a purposeful spiritual dedication to one's art it means at lot for someone to notice. Surprisingly I've found that a given venue generally includes the other three or at least provides an opportunity for vision(intent of venue), value(influence), validation(exposure,encouragement, critique).

cool site.

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Permalink Reply by Stan Smith on September 29, 2009 at 7:43am

The title calls for needs and the text calls for the ONE THING that would make a difference, so I have to say the one thing is a walk with God. If I can get the walk with God right, He will meet the other needs:

Family. Psalm 68:6 says He sets the solitary in families. As a writer and musician, the family I need includes an agent, a producer/publisher, a publicist, etc. Today's world is extraordinarily complex, but it affords opportunities no other generation has ever known. Increasingly, I'm sensing that a team is better equipped to meet these challenges than an individual ever can be.

Inspiration. Only grace can direct us to our audience. We may be counting chickens before they hatch, but my wife JoAnn seems to be experiencing a breakthrough with her graphics as God has led her to a manager who is assembling a team. JoAnn has made several attempts to get her graphics into the marketplace, but so far nothing has worked out. Her last project, producing two children's books for the general market, proved useful in an unexpected way: crisis counselors started using her books in ministry to traumatized children.

Her manager has gotten her to work on a project designed to help at-risk children learn to read. He is assembling the team of educators, psychologists, etc. to shape the overall vision for the book; JoAnn is providing the graphics; I have done the writing; he is guiding the publicity, which will sometimes mean that he will call on me for a short article.

But as I have read some of the other comments, I have wondered if many of us are looking for the church to be our audience when God may be sending us to the needy. Why should our art be another sermon? Preachers provide those, but God may have given us a different kind of voice so we can go to those who can't or won't listen to a preacher.

Endurance. In the Bible, anybody who was anybody went through a season of injustice, rejection, humiliation. Joseph had his slavery and imprisonment; Moses had his comedown when he fled the upper strata of Egyptian society to become a nobody in the desert; David lived as a fugitive in the final years of King Saul; Jesus was subject to His parents as He worked in the carpenter's shop; Saul took his apostolic calling to Tarsus.

Talent alone can't pave the way to our being God's man or woman in the arts. If God has called us to be missionaries, we too must make our calling and election sure. Many are called, but only those who press through the misunderstandings and impossibilities will be chosen.

A God-given plan. Only God can mix the right blend of encouragement and hardship for each of us, and each of us needs a unique mix. Over the years, I have been led repeatedly to a Bible principle: "What is that in your hand?" God has often put a tool, a resource, a relationship, or an opportunity in my life, and without His guidance I have been all too likely to minimize it. But the miracle stories in scripture almost always began with something at hand: Moses' rod, the jawbone of an ass for Samson, the widow's pot of oil in Elisha's day, the loaves and fishes on two occasions.

What has God given you to work with? Ask Him to help you see, and then look around. He is faithful to put something in our lives that will empower us to win our next victory. For me right now it's JoAnn's manager; I've got to get to work on a bio he wants to post on a webpage.

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Permalink Reply by Joey O'Connor on September 29, 2009 at 8:28am

Sharon,

These are great and encouraging words. I just heard a message on Sunday that spoke of "joy regardless" of circumstances. I read Philippians 2 this morning...Christ completely humbled himself to the will of his Father. Our focus is on Christ and loving him, not on others loving us or our art. Yes, as Phil. 2 says, we are to be like-minded, one in spirit and purpose, but where there is misunderstanding and a lack of oneness, we are reminded that Christ was frequently misunderstand and his joy was not conditional upon the acceptance of others. Thanks for the reminder and encouragement.

Sharon Smith said:

My answer to that one... To be BOLD and have a heart like Paul in Philippians 1. Completely having hope (Phil 1:6) "that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the end day in Christ Jesus." (Phil 1:15-18) Preaching Christ, regardless of motive, Paul rejoiced for Christ was being proclaimed. We've been given a beautiful gift to create and express; proclaim the love, mercy, grace, and blessings that The Lord has bestowed upon us.

I completely relate with all your comments... Pray and ask the Lord to grant you the BOLDNESS to go out and share the gospel through your gift. Even if only one person view's your piece through music or canvas, the story behind it is where the Lord may tug at their heart and cause the change. We are but mere vessels, we are but a vapor...It is the Lord who will work in us and through us. Don't let the enemy rob you of your JOY and talent. Serve others by sharing your beautiful gift. God said "ask and you shall receive (as long as it is lined up with His will) your gift is from Him! (Romans8:31)"If God be for us , who is against us?" Make the time because YOU matter!

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Permalink Reply by Joey O'Connor on September 30, 2009 at 2:45pm

Denise, these are very helpful comments. The questions we are now asking at The Grove are, "What is our primary compelling cause and what is one thing we can do that would add tremendous value to the artists we serve?" Big questions I know and in some ways, offer simple answers (depending on the art form). How can we bring buyers who both appreciate the art and support the artist is a tough question, but definitely worth pursuing. I'm going to think and pray about what you've written...good thoughts! (Did you get the images I sent via gmail?) Blessings to you!

Denise Weyhrich said:

Financial support. (obvious answer but needs discussion.) The financial support for Christian visual fine artists to continue doing what we are called to do without compromising their mission is the hurdle that I am constantly witnessing. In the fine visual arts people seems to enjoy our gifts, yet rarely, if ever, do they return it with purchases or donations. I do realize that supporting contemporary fine artists difficult, but the good financial years were equally difficult for most individual contemporary christian artists. Neither the church knew what to do with these non-traditional arts for unless they were "performed" in front of the church service or created traditional worship liturgical items, they have few places to exist. Both as an artist and curator, we arts missionaries spend every cent we can afford, yet do not have any income. The choice is often give up and go back to the paying job, or compromise our art to an acceptable marketable art in mass production. There should be a place in between that can support the fine arts as a mission and truly treat them as missionaries. -that is my take, not whining just stating the facts. thanks for asking!

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Permalink Reply by Lori Bonas on October 12, 2009 at 2:14pm

4 me -fellowship with other christian artists. pray together,get to know each other. maybe collaborate on projects.just see where god would take it.let him have the reigns. But again 4 me fellowship. I'm dieing out here.

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Permalink Reply by Edward van Vliet on October 12, 2009 at 9:58pm

a long time ago, at a church i used to attend, ron dicianni came and visited our church and met the creative arts group i was overseeing. he said something that i thought was quite interesting (and i paraphrase). essentially, he said that "the church doesn't owe any artist a living". and i agree. i think the church should provide mentorship (or spiritual directorship) and discipling (or disciplining) -- financial support should be reserved for those who are excellent and serve (either the local body or as arts missionaries). training and skill, i think, are important considerations. that being said, i'd certainly love some financial support. having worked [mostly] outside the confines of the local church, i'm not truly convinced there is really that much more "support" outside the church than inside it. that greater support is also yearned for by far more artists there too...

Denise Weyhrich said:

Financial support. (obvious answer but needs discussion.) The financial support for Christian visual fine artists to continue doing what we are called to do without compromising their mission is the hurdle that I am constantly witnessing. ...Both as an artist and curator, we arts missionaries spend every cent we can afford, yet do not have any income. The choice is often give up and go back to the paying job, or compromise our art to an acceptable marketable art in mass production. There should be a place in between that can support the fine arts as a mission and truly treat them as missionaries. -that is my take, not whining just stating the facts. thanks for asking!

beyond that - time and community are important. time to actually make (since most of us probably spend a lot of time dreaming, stealing ideas and looking at the world (whether art or not) without other pressures would be amazing (and not needing to rely on grants would be great).

i miss being part of a community of artists who are serious, and well-informed about art (whether art history, contemporary ideas, processes or materials), and open to exploring and being challenged. and that simply doesn't happen virtually. i miss the frission. and the collaboration.

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Permalink Reply by Lori Bonas on October 14, 2009 at 12:35am

Hi Edward
I agree with what your saying. For me just to be able to communicate like this is a great help.
There are no art groups that I have ever been part of.This group is the first and it opened my eyes because I really thought i was the only one feeling and thinking the way I was about my personnel struggles of being a christian and having a artistic gift. I wasn't sure weather I wanted to chalk it up as a blessing or a curse.
I'm thankful that this forum is here.

Edward van Vliet said:

a long time ago, at a church i used to attend, ron dicianni came and visited our church and met the creative arts group i was overseeing. he said something that i thought was quite interesting (and i paraphrase). essentially, he said that "the church doesn't owe any artist a living". and i agree. i think the church should provide mentorship (or spiritual directorship) and discipling (or disciplining) -- financial support should be reserved for those who are excellent and serve (either the local body or as arts missionaries). training and skill, i think, are important considerations. that being said, i'd certainly love some financial support. having worked [mostly] outside the confines of the local church, i'm not truly convinced there is really that much more "support" outside the church than inside it. that greater support is also yearned for by far more artists there too...

Denise Weyhrich said:

Financial support. (obvious answer but needs discussion.) The financial support for Christian visual fine artists to continue doing what we are called to do without compromising their mission is the hurdle that I am constantly witnessing. ...Both as an artist and curator, we arts missionaries spend every cent we can afford, yet do not have any income. The choice is often give up and go back to the paying job, or compromise our art to an acceptable marketable art in mass production. There should be a place in between that can support the fine arts as a mission and truly treat them as missionaries. -that is my take, not whining just stating the facts. thanks for asking!

beyond that - time and community are important. time to actually make (since most of us probably spend a lot of time dreaming, stealing ideas and looking at the world (whether art or not) without other pressures would be amazing (and not needing to rely on grants would be great).

i miss being part of a community of artists who are serious, and well-informed about art (whether art history, contemporary ideas, processes or materials), and open to exploring and being challenged. and that simply doesn't happen virtually. i miss the frission. and the collaboration.

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Permalink Reply by Renee on October 17, 2009 at 12:54pm

My greatest need is to be loved and I can only recieve that complete love from God.
My greatest struggle is fear and "perfect love cast out all fear"
My greatest temptation is idolatry and the emptiness that I experience from that is death.
So for today I choose life and life more abundantly in Jesus Christ my Lord.
I am HIs child and He is my provider.
I love and appreciate all of you.

"Work to become, not to acquire." (Elbert Hubbard)

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Permalink Reply by Lori Bonas on October 18, 2009 at 2:47am

Renee
Hi I think everyone here whole heatedly agrees with you and knows what are father says about us.
At the same time we need each other.No one is supposed to be a island to them self. That's why we are all here at this group to have fellowship with each other.
Your words are uplifting and a blessing and the truth, but at the same time I personally have found over the years that God is into relationships and people and that I need people in my life to be a blessing and to bless and that's how the whole Christianity thing works.
I guess that I'm tired of quick bible quotes and am more interested in not the words so much but the fruits they produce. Love in Jesus Lori






Renee said:

My greatest need is to be loved and I can only recieve that complete love from God.
My greatest struggle is fear and "perfect love cast out all fear"
My greatest temptation is idolatry and the emptiness that I experience from that is death.
So for today I choose life and life more abundantly in Jesus Christ my Lord.
I am HIs child and He is my provider.
I love and appreciate all of you.

"Work to become, not to acquire." (Elbert Hubbard)

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Permalink Reply by Tony Snipes on October 21, 2009 at 10:20am

Stan, this is good, practical insight.

I like!

Stan Smith said:

The title calls for needs and the text calls for the ONE THING that would make a difference, so I have to say the one thing is a walk with God. If I can get the walk with God right, He will meet the other needs:

Family. Psalm 68:6 says He sets the solitary in families. As a writer and musician, the family I need includes an agent, a producer/publisher, a publicist, etc. Today's world is extraordinarily complex, but it affords opportunities no other generation has ever known. Increasingly, I'm sensing that a team is better equipped to meet these challenges than an individual ever can be.

Inspiration. Only grace can direct us to our audience. We may be counting chickens before they hatch, but my wife JoAnn seems to be experiencing a breakthrough with her graphics as God has led her to a manager who is assembling a team. JoAnn has made several attempts to get her graphics into the marketplace, but so far nothing has worked out. Her last project, producing two children's books for the general market, proved useful in an unexpected way: crisis counselors started using her books in ministry to traumatized children.

Her manager has gotten her to work on a project designed to help at-risk children learn to read. He is assembling the team of educators, psychologists, etc. to shape the overall vision for the book; JoAnn is providing the graphics; I have done the writing; he is guiding the publicity, which will sometimes mean that he will call on me for a short article.

But as I have read some of the other comments, I have wondered if many of us are looking for the church to be our audience when God may be sending us to the needy. Why should our art be another sermon? Preachers provide those, but God may have given us a different kind of voice so we can go to those who can't or won't listen to a preacher.

Endurance. In the Bible, anybody who was anybody went through a season of injustice, rejection, humiliation. Joseph had his slavery and imprisonment; Moses had his comedown when he fled the upper strata of Egyptian society to become a nobody in the desert; David lived as a fugitive in the final years of King Saul; Jesus was subject to His parents as He worked in the carpenter's shop; Saul took his apostolic calling to Tarsus.

Talent alone can't pave the way to our being God's man or woman in the arts. If God has called us to be missionaries, we too must make our calling and election sure. Many are called, but only those who press through the misunderstandings and impossibilities will be chosen.

A God-given plan. Only God can mix the right blend of encouragement and hardship for each of us, and each of us needs a unique mix. Over the years, I have been led repeatedly to a Bible principle: "What is that in your hand?" God has often put a tool, a resource, a relationship, or an opportunity in my life, and without His guidance I have been all too likely to minimize it. But the miracle stories in scripture almost always began with something at hand: Moses' rod, the jawbone of an ass for Samson, the widow's pot of oil in Elisha's day, the loaves and fishes on two occasions.

What has God given you to work with? Ask Him to help you see, and then look around. He is faithful to put something in our lives that will empower us to win our next victory. For me right now it's JoAnn's manager; I've got to get to work on a bio he wants to post on a webpage.

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Permalink Reply by Sherilyn Rivera on October 29, 2009 at 8:27pm

Joey and Friends,
One thing that comes to mind is assistance with marketing and promotion. Some visual artists are blessed with great marketing skills and have no difficulty promoting themselves but many of us struggle in that area. And when our funds are very limited, effective marketing becomes even more of a challenge. Using our art in ministry and for God's glory, is a wonderful thing, but we need some sort of support base to provide greater stability. I suspect that most of us are not at our most creative when we're stressed and overwhelmed by bills. It's also hard when the day job and daily responsibilities leave little time for art.
Having a website can be helpful, but I discovered that having a website in and of itself isn't usually enough. It needs the expertise of someone who can increase the number of hits and visibility and usually that involves a significant additional investment. I couldn't afford to maintain a website that wasn't productive, so I let mine go. I still maintain a blog which is free but provides an attractive presence. I can also use it on business cards or when applying for freelance work.
It's wonderful to know that there are fellow artists out there who want to serve the Lord with their talents and help other artists to do the same! God bless you.

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Permalink Reply by Ann Boyer LePere on November 5, 2009 at 6:48am

Marketing and promotion are essential but difficult. It's much easier for me to go on and on about another artist's work than my own. But just like the discipline of painting when you don't feel like it and maintaining records and accounts, marketing matters. Exposure can be gained by entering competitions. Also, donating artwork to select causes is a good way to be seen. Consider local historical sites/buildings, etc. and approach their societies about doing artwork that would promote them and you. As a portrait painter I began asking folks to model for me for a series of theme paintings. Sometimes they would eventually purchase the painting or request a formal portrait. It can take several years of "shameless marketing" to gain a local reputation! Read marketing books or articles on line for ideas. And, don't forget to paint!

Sherilyn Rivera said:

Joey and Friends,
One thing that comes to mind is assistance with marketing and promotion. Some visual artists are blessed with great marketing skills and have no difficulty promoting themselves but many of us struggle in that area. And when our funds are very limited, effective marketing becomes even more of a challenge. Using our art in ministry and for God's glory, is a wonderful thing, but we need some sort of support base to provide greater stability. I suspect that most of us are not at our most creative when we're stressed and overwhelmed by bills. It's also hard when the day job and daily responsibilities leave little time for art.
Having a website can be helpful, but I discovered that having a website in and of itself isn't usually enough. It needs the expertise of someone who can increase the number of hits and visibility and usually that involves a significant additional investment. I couldn't afford to maintain a website that wasn't productive, so I let mine go. I still maintain a blog which is free but provides an attractive presence. I can also use it on business cards or when applying for freelance work.
It's wonderful to know that there are fellow artists out there who want to serve the Lord with their talents and help other artists to do the same! God bless you.

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