By Taiza Luna
The internet has been a real game-changer for artists. Can you imagine if Vincent Van Gogh would have had access to Etsy? Would he have understood the “Art of Money”? He certainly would have sold more than one painting before his death. It’s tragic now to think his paintings, on average, go for over $30 million a pop, and Starry Night could easily sell for $100 million. That’s a lot of money, and money he never saw in his lifetime. Instead, he was the quintessential starving artist, falling in love with all the wrong people, supported by a brother, and driven by a passion no one at his time appreciated.
He really was a visionary painter who broke a lot of rules. Art at the time had some serious gatekeepers. Art may still have gatekeepers, but they’re easier to bypass with the internet. Artists can build their own independent following, launch their own brand, and get commissions simply by someone seeing their website portfolio. Actors can make a living with comedic sketches that are less than a minute on TikTok. Photographers can sell prints of their work directly to consumers through social media. Visual artists can sell tee shirts, hoodies, mugs, stickers, and decals of their work all over the internet.
With creative ideas and a little creative company, any “right-brained” person with an internet connection can create their own livelihood. There’s a lot of work to do, and a learning curve, but it is possible. Gone are the days when a starving artist was the pinnacle of artistic devotion. If Van Goh were alive today, his brother could have set him up online, and somewhere in the world, he could have connected to artistic appreciators who were as visionary as he was.
Prosperity can present another challenge for artists. Money needs to be accounted for. How would Van Gogh have handled having millions for his paintings? After being bereft and desperate, all that money may have caused a new kind of misery. Of course, that’s all speculation; we’ll never know. His story is already written. But what about those visionary artists who are creating now, in the time of the internet? Let’s be honest. Keeping track of money is a lot more difficult when there’s something in front of all the zeroes. And right-brained creators are a gift to the world, but tracking numbers is not a gift to them. If you’re an artist and you have money, you need to keep track of it, or you risk becoming a starving artist for another reason, bad bookkeeping.
But that doesn’t have to happen. The internet creates opportunity, and those opportunities demand mastering–or at least passably managing–a lot of different roles and hats in the business. The good news is, online business owners don’t have to wear ALL the hats. They can dole out the most dreaded ones. If balancing your bank account makes you cringe, simply don’t do it. Outsourcing your bookkeeping is a great way to save you the headaches and get back to your art! For The Bottom Line Bookkeeping, bookkeeping is an art we love. I know. It’s hard to comprehend. But it’s true. We are the “left-brain” to your “right-brain”, keeping you on track financially, so you can do what you love. Art!
