Hey David,
Welcome,I'm sort of new here too.
I've been doing a mix of commissioned,public and private metal sculpture and site specific decorative metal art for 25 years. In my experience there are no set formats that allow you to wriggle your way into the market. I suggest that there are no "rules" . I have more often than not ,listened to my intuition on how to proceed. Word of mouth and creating a large DOCUMENTED body of work has been the way in which potential clients have found me. Fully half my work has been on "speculation",that is,without a buyer. Andy mentioned some of the pitfalls and traps that exist. Artists are the easiest people in the world to take advantage of financially it seems,(I'm no exception).
The public sector is very competitive and very frustrating most of the time because you are usually having to satisfy a COMMITTEE which is infinitly harder than dealing with one individual,like a private commission. Sometimes to satisfy the varied aesthetic orientations of a public art committee it requires a "dumbing down" of your original vital idea,so as to not ruffle any feathers and accomplish a consensus.This is one of the downsides,but of course if you can actually secure a commission for a public work it is great publicity...
Needless to say the first step would be a professional portfolio (documentation of past work),website,references etc. And using the net to look for "call for artists" in the public domain is relatively easy.
It is by no means easy to make a living as a metal artist,but,all things being equal,if it the creative experience you are addicted to,the PROCESS,not the OUTCOME,then it can be a very rewarding life...
No rules
Stephen Fitz-Gerald
Hey David,
Welcome,I'm sort of new here too.
I've been doing a mix of commissioned,public and private metal sculpture and site specific decorative metal art for 25 years. In my experience there are no set formats that allow you to wriggle your way into the market. I suggest that there are no "rules" . I have more often than not ,listened to my intuition on how to proceed. Word of mouth and creating a large DOCUMENTED body of work has been the way in which potential clients have found me. Fully half my work has been on "speculation",that is,without a buyer. Andy mentioned some of the pitfalls and traps that exist. Artists are the easiest people in the world to take advantage of financially it seems,(I'm no exception).
The public sector is very competitive and very frustrating most of the time because you are usually having to satisfy a COMMITTEE which is infinitly harder than dealing with one individual,like a private commission. Sometimes to satisfy the varied aesthetic orientations of a public art committee it requires a "dumbing down" of your original vital idea,so as to not ruffle any feathers and accomplish a consensus.This is one of the downsides,but of course if you can actually secure a commission for a public work it is great publicity...
Needless to say the first step would be a professional portfolio (documentation of past work),website,references etc. And using the net to look for "call for artists" in the public domain is relatively easy.
It is by no means easy to make a living as a metal artist,but,all things being equal,if it the creative experience you are addicted to,the PROCESS,not the OUTCOME,then it can be a very rewarding life...