How to Get More Exposure as an Artist

For a long time I was a "closet artist". That's the term I dubbed myself because I was really shy about showing my art to the public. Over time I started receiving feedback from friends and acquaintances. They would tell me, "You are really good! You should start a business!" Me, good? I thought. After all, I was just teaching myself how to paint. I wasn't taking classes at the time. However, after awhile I thought I'd take a class just for fun. It was the best thing I ever did because it gave me more confidence as an artist. After taking that class I felt it was time for me to make my debut! I was finally ready to expose myself and let the world know about my art. Here I will share how you can turn your passion into income and get more exposure as an artist. It's much easier than you think!

One of the first things you can do is build a website. Fortunately, I took a Business class in college where we were required to learn the basics of building a website. However, building your own website is actually quite easy. I used Yahoo! Webhosting that comes with Sitebuilder which is basically a click and paste way of building a website - no HTML knowledge needed.

Another way to market yourself is to sell art pieces on Ebay or the Yahoo! Auction marketplace. Surprisingly I did pretty well on Yahoo! versus Ebay, but results are different for every artist. The Yahoo! Auctions aren't as saturated as Ebay and it's free to sell there. I recommend it as a great place for starters.

One way to get your art in front of thousands of people is to participate in art fairs. The first art fair I participated in was ArtWalk here in San Diego. ArtWalk is an annual street art fair in Little Italy, a little community of downtown San Diego. It's a great two-day event that attracts thousands of art lovers! Check with your local art groups to find art fairs in your area.

If you don't have the budget to sell online or pay for a booth at an art fair, there are many coffee shops, doctor's offices, or even beauty shops that can display your art for a set amount of time. You can negotiate with the owner of the establishment regarding the commission for every piece that sells.

These are just a few ways to gain more exposure as an artist. Once you do these things, you'll start to meet more people and eventually more opportunities will begin to present themselves!