Author: Lironyan

Don’t Listen to ANYONE but Yourself! Advice for Ambitious Artists | Liron’s Podcast Episode 77

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In today’s episode we talked about ignoring the noise, and learning who to listen to.

Here’s a summary of the episode, as well as the links mentioned.

What Selling at Fairs Taught Me

First I talk about how I came to think of this topic.

When I just started selling my art at the local fair, several artists made discouraging remarks about selling paintings there.

I then came to realize this happened all throughout my career. People seem to wonder whether there’s money in art, and be quite cynical towards the topic.

The Underlying Limiting Belief

These people basically communicate their own shortcomings and limiting beliefs (unless done maliciously).

They feel insecure about selling their art.

I have a lot of empathy for artists, but I have a strong aversion to the forcing of your own limiting beliefs upon others.

I think it’s important NOT to do that.

Which is why I also don’t think there are many people you should listen to.

Who Should Your Listen To?

I would say two things:

1. People who are actually succeeding at what you want to do.

These are great, and also perhaps more generally people who are positive and have a clear aim and vision for their future.

2. The market.

By the market I mean the whole sum of your potential customers. The average of all of them. Could be millions of people.

The market’s response to you will always speak the truth. If you aren’t successful as many paintings as you’d like – the market is telling you something.

Maybe your art isn’t good enough. Maybe it’s too expensive. Maybe it’s too CHEAP. Maybe it doesn’t fit the venue in which you try and sell it.

The good thing about the “market” is that it really is the average. It may be contentious, but I do believe this is one of the cleanest feedbacks you can get.

If a product fails, there’s a reason for it.

And that feedback is actually very valuable! It will help you sell more works, if you choose to listen to it.

Conclusion

So this is it for this one!

It takes time to learn who to listen to, so be open but stay on your path and believe in your own vision (another topic I have to cover in an upcoming episode.

And now, let us move into the Artist Corner!

Artist Corner – Alex Ross

Today I talked about Alex Ross, an American comic book writer and artist.

He worked with both Marvel and DC, and what really attracted me to his work is the one done in watercolor!

It’s fascinating for me to see watercolor used in a way I’m less used to. You can watch a REALLY AWESOME video of his here: Alex Ross Video

And check out his website here: Alex Ross’s Website

And Here’s where you can find me

Check out my YouTube Channel – Liron Yanconsky

Or ask me questions on Instagram – @LironYanIL or Snapchat – @LironYan3

I hope you enjoyed this one. Take care, and we’ll talk again really soon,

— Liron

Should You Mix Watercolor Paint Brands? Painting Advice!

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In today’s episode (76) of my podcast, I want to answer a question I received several times – Should you mix multiple watercolor paint brands?

The Importance of Watercolor Brands

The question at hand may be tactical, but my answer is also an indication of my general approach to painting and art.

I always try focusing on the 20% that matters. I do that in my art, business and hopefully in life.

There’s always a lot of noise and clutter around what’s really important.

Watercolor painting is already complex as it is – so I’m always trying to simplify the process as much as possible. This is also why I’m a huge fan of using a minimal palette.

Paint > Brand

The quick answer is that I care FAR MORE about the specific paint and its usefulness to me, rather than the brand.

I personally find most (ARTIST GRADE) paints mix well, regardless of brand.

There are certain things you want to be aware of (that I further elaborate on in the episode), such as:

  • Producing a large variety of values
  • Artist grade VS student grade
  • Single pigment / multiple pigments
  • Granulation
  • Lightfastness

I hope you find the explanation in the episode helpful, and that it allows you to change your focus from specific brands and into specific paints.

And by the way, if you want to watch the video from which I grabbed the audio for this episode, be sure to check it out here:

And with that, it is time for the Artist Corner

Artist Corner – Jennifer Branch

Today I showcase Jennifer Branch, a watercolor painter from Georgia, US.

I love her simplistic impressionistic painting style, as well as focus on happy colors.She has a way of simplifying a scene in a skilled way that preserves its original essence.

Some of her work reminds me of Shari Blaukopf’s work, although the latter’s work has more of an “urban sketching” vibe to it.

Be sure to check out Jennifer’s work here: Jennifer Branch’s Website

And Here’s where you can find me

Check out my YouTube Channel – Liron Yanconsky

Or ask me questions on Instagram – @LironYanIL or Snapchat – @LironYan3

I hope you enjoyed this one. Take care, and we’ll talk again really soon,

— Liron

How Long to Get Good in Art? Liron’s Podcast Episode 75

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In today’s episode I talk about how long it takes to get good at art, drawing, painting and so on.

You Get Back What You Put in

The gist of it is this – the more time, focus and attention you put on a skill, the faster you’ll grow and improve in it.

The rule of 10,000 hours (I forgot who’s the person who originally came to this conclusion), suggested that that’s the number of hours of practice it takes to achieve mastery in any give skill.

This “rule” was later disputed, but on a basis that makes a lot of sense. Aside from time, it’s also a matter of the QUALITY of how you practice.

A lot of it is about being deliberate in how you practice. It’s about actively challenging yourself, trying new things and striving for new heights.

Then, the 10,000 hours rule becomes more relevant.

My Calculation

I currently put about 1-2 hours a day into painting. Sometimes it’s even a little less than that.

That means a max of 10 hours a week (assuming I paint 5 days a week). This amounts to 40 hours a month, or 480 a year.

This means it will take me a total of 20 years to get to mastery. I already spent the last couple of 4-5 years painting, so perhaps 15 more? (:

(In the audio I mistakingly say 10 years, and then 5 left, that’s a calculation error).

Every Skill is Different

Regardless of time, some aspects are easier to improve than others.

I find that anything that has to do with technical, motor skill based technique is easier to improve at.

Brush work, pencil technique etc.

The harder aspects are learning to see through optical illusions, see colors and values accurately, as well as some of the basics – composition, color theory, mood and atmosphere, telling a story etc.

These are the REAL challenge!

And to wrap this up, my question to you is – how many hours a day / week do you practice your skill, whatever that may be?

And now – artist corner!

Artist Corner – Ken Karlic 

Today I featured Ken Karlic, a contemporary watercolor painter who also works in mixed media.

What I find the most fascinating about his work is the large sizes he’s working.

You can check out his artworks here: Ken Karlic Website

And his painting process in these videos: Ken Karlic Videos

 

And Here’s where you can find me

Check out my YouTube Channel – Liron Yanconsky

Or ask me questions on Instagram – @LironYanIL or Snapchat – @LironYan3

I hope you enjoyed this one. Take care, and we’ll talk again really soon,

— Liron

How to Sell Your Artwork | Liron’s Podcast 74

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Want to learn how to sell artwork?

I’m starting to sell mine at a local art fair here in Tel Aviv, in the Nachalat Binyamin street.

This is an art fair for hand-crafted art only, so no prints or machine made items. It’s backed by the city’s municipality and has been active for more than 30 years, if I’m not mistaken.

My first time there will be this Friday (17/05/2019), and I’m very excited to get started!

Why I Joined The Fair

I submitted my work for the fair for two main reasons.

1. I wanted to experience selling my artwork, face to face.
2. I wanted to start “getting” rid of the tons of paintings I have here (;

Selling Artwork Mistakes

Today I want to the fair (active every Tuesday and Friday) to do my homework and perhaps gain some insights.

I got to see many of the cliches of artists who aren’t good salespeople. I noticed two main issues:

1. Too pushy – Some booths I simply stopped by and started taking a look. The artist would immediately start talking about their art. This is nice to hear, had I asked a question. But I didn’t.

I’d much rather the salesperson to ask ME how my day is, or just do light chit chat.

I didn’t ask about the type of wood used in the artworks, and frankly didn’t care haha. Not to be mean – but I’m honestly less interested in the particular type of crafts this salesperson had. I’m sure there are many others who would though.

2. Too laid back – this was probably the most common theme of the fair. I’ve seen so many artists simply sitting behind their table, waiting for a client to drop by and make the sale for them.

I don’t think you should jump people who pass by, but some presence needs to be made. I’ve seen several booths (that actually had beautiful artworks in them) that no one stopped by, simply because the salesperson was very passive.

Selling Artwork – What I Hope to Get

What I hope to get out of this is to improve my sales skills. I want to become a better salesperson, especially face to face.

I will definitely keep you updated on how it goes.

Artist Corner – Daniel Marshall 

Today I talked about Daniel Marshall, an American watercolor painter and tattoo artist!

I became familiar with his work thanks to one of my followers on YouTube, directing me to check it out.

If you love the same artists as me, you’ll probably immediately notice how Dan’s work very closely-resembles the work of Joseph Zbukvic.

I may be wrong about this, but I believe he also studied under him, at some point.

I recommend you check out his website and artworks here: Daniel Marshall

And Here’s where you can find me

Check out my YouTube Channel – Liron Yanconsky

Or ask me questions on Instagram – @LironYanIL or Snapchat – @LironYan3

I hope you enjoyed this one. Take care, and we’ll talk again really soon,

— Liron

Art, Self-Development & Life Lessons from Painting | Liron’s Podcast Episode 73

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In today’s episode I want to present you with a new topic I want to introduce into my content and products, and that is… Self-development!

Art & Self-Development

For the longest time self-development, growth and actualization have been a part of my life.

It’s one of my core values to push myself to improve, both as an artist and as a person.

And now, I believe it’s time to introduce more of that into my videos, posts, podcast episodes and courses.

How I Got the Idea

My good friend Alex – A conversation with him made me realize how important this is for me.

I basically complained to him about something, and his reply was something like this: “Why do you insist on becoming a watercolor teacher? What interests you even more is self-development in art.

Hearing that hit me hard, because it’s so darn obvious!!

I ALREADY make this kind of content – Alex also pointed that out for me. Doh! I’m already making so much content revolving around the process, how to become better, habits to help you improve, creating with courage and passion etc.

So I already do this. Now I want to pour more of that into the content I create, as well as the products / courses I sell.

YouTube & Instagram comments – this is another thing that helped me realize this. I started paying attention to what comments I really vibe with.

I noticed something interesting. While I love comments about me helping someone improve their watercolor skills, what I REALLY enjoy is people talking about how I helped motivate them, give them courage to try, or encourage them to try harder.

That’s what REALLY makes me feel good. And producing content that will help people more and more with THAT, is something I’m very curious about trying more of.

Life Lessons Learned from Watercolor Painting

I recently posted a vid on this topic on YouTube, as a first dip into this new territory. For this podcast episode I cut out the audio and added it here.

If you want to watch the actual video, you can do that too.

In the video I cover the four major insights I gained in the last couple of years, from painting. Those are (1) Letting Go (2) Trusting the Process (3) Patience (4) Speed & Spontaneity.

I hope you enjoy this very first attempt, as well as future ones to come.

And I also hope to create some courses around my experience in this area too.

And with that being said, time for today’s Artist Corner!

Artist Corner

Today we’re looking at Harold B Herbert. He was an Australian painter who lived from 1892-1945.

His life story is fascinating, and his watercolor skills are VERY impressive.

I highly recommend you check out his:

Work – Harold B Herbert Paintings & Sketches
Quick Bios – 1 – Quicker / 2 – More Details

I will also review him in the upcoming episode of Painting Masters (31), that’ll be out on Thursday, May 9th, 17:00 EST.

And Here’s where you can find me

Check out my YouTube Channel – Liron Yanconsky

Or ask me questions on Instagram – @LironYanIL or Snapchat – @LironYan3

I hope you enjoyed this one. Take care, and we’ll talk again really soon,

— Liron