Alternate Consumerverse
A while back my good friend and creative comrade Tzaddi sent me a link to Kevin Kelly’s 1,000 True Fans. This is a must read for all creative folk trying to eke out an alternative living outside the conservative whirlpool.
Kelly’s theory is based on 1,000 fans spending $100 bucks each per year on an artist’s work, allowing said artist to achieve an annual income of $100,000.00. To continue my current lifestyle, I would only require 223 true fans willing to spend $100.00 per year on whatever creative notion I was producing. After reading this article, I yoinked myself out of the little box I keep myself in and began looking at my financial situation with slightly less jaded eyes. Twenty-some G’s can be found in a multitude of disguises:
| 2230 | items @ | $10.00 | (puppets, dog toys, ‘zines, postcards) | |
| 895 | items @ | $25.00 | (editioned repro’s of 2-D work – small) | |
| 373 | items @ | $60.00 | (editioned repro’s of 2-D work – larger) | |
| 112 | items @ | $200.00 | (original 2-D work) | |
| 60 | items @ | $400.00 | (teaching gig, sculptures) | |
| 15 | items @ | $1,500.00 | (Carfac fees / solo show) | |
| 3 | items @ | $8,000.00 | (Canada Council Creation Grant) | |
Kelly’s article is inspiring. Broken down into smaller chunks, creative survival doesn’t seem insurmountable. This article encourages the belief that with a little marketing savvy, making a living off one’s art is entirely possible.
So…what are you doing still reading this post? Go read Kelly’s article and start making fans!
The idea of making some of it off of reproductions is all the more feasible these days, with sites like cafepress.com, moo.com, lulu.com…
I try to tag these publishing type of sites when I think of it, in my bookmarks:
http://ma.gnolia.com/people/Tzaddi/tags/publishing
P.S. You go girl! Glad you were inspired by that!