Being a Self Taught Artist

A gallery owner asked to see a portfolio of my work and enthusiastically agreed to hang several in an upcoming show. She presented me with a contract stating her percentage. The contract asked for my academic experience - you know, my art school, my instructors, etc. When I told her I was self-taught, she withdrew the contract and thanked me for my time!

The same goes for some online galleries. They didn’t agree to display the paintings, when they found I wasn't trained as an artist.It was then I decided, a gallery that is only interested in my degree or lack of one is probably not the right gallery for my work anyway. Working with galleries should be a mutual relationship, not an unbalanced power relationship.

I don't have an art degree - so I had to build up my resume with local shows (Beauty parlors, restaurants, small local art groups, cafes, etc) and some exhibitions in the buildings where I lived.

My question is, is a self-trained artist really considered an artist in the real art world? Or a college degree is necessary for success?

The truth of the matter is most self-taught successful people have no college degree; they’re simply driven and have no aversion to finding their way through whatever it takes to reach their goals. According to me, an artist's work should speak for itself and not what kind of formal art training he or she has had.

At the same time however, people who likes art, would own it if they found something nice that they could afford and feel comfortable about buying. This is where the self taught artists come in.

In other words, I am a normal everyday person just like those who might be interested in buying my art. I know how to paint, I can relate to everyday people in language they can understand, and some of them even like my art enough to buy it. And I know, I can't ask for much more than that. So far, I've made a modest amount of sales, and that's even better.

To all my self taught Artist friends out there, your best ally is the Internet. At no time in history has it ever been easier for an artist to establish a profile and attract a fan base with absolutely zero involvement in either the gallery system or "established" art world regardless of their education, experience or qualifications. All they have to be is GOOD.

You don’t have to have a great idea, all that is required is that you’re passionate about what you do, and dedicated to making it work – and sometimes the learning process and work involved leave you drained and downright exhausted, but in the end it’s definitely worth it.

People who buy art could care less about where you went to art school or how many diplomas you have. They're looking for one thing and one thing only,good art. As far as I am concerned, creating art brings joy to my life and selling it brings joy to the lives of others. That's called success and it's everything being an artist is about.