Extraordinary Creatives Ceri Hand

In this episode, Ceri speaks to writer, critic, artist coach Paddy Johnson, founder of Netvvrk, a membership that enables artists to broaden their professional opportunities. Paddy shares her journey from rural Canada to the heart of the New York art world, offering invaluable insights on navigating the creative industry, building communities, and defining success on one's own terms. This episode is a must-listen for anyone seeking inspiration and practical advice for their creative journey.

KEY TAKEAWAYS


Building genuine friendships and a supportive creative community is crucial for navigating the challenges of the art world and finding your way through periods of feeling creatively lost.
Tough feedback and provocations from mentors can help artists identify what they don't want and make choices that are right for them.
Quitting projects or styles can be necessary for growth, even when your own identity is entangled with them.
Understanding your audience and where you fit within the art industry is key to effective communication and decision-making.
Clear communication and asking for what you need, are essential professional skills that demonstrate professionalism rather than weakness.
Success is ultimately about having agency over your own time and the ability to choose when to experience stress and when to rest.
Writing helps artists think and learn, even though the process can be challenging.
Having a viable business structure allows for the sustainability and continuity of creative efforts.

BEST MOMENTS 

"I always consider the blog commenters to be the editors of the blog because when I started, I didn't have an editor."

"Writing helps us think. It helps us learn, and that's why writing sucks so badly. It's really, really hard to do."

"Quitting allows you to do the things that you're meant to do when you're meant to do them."

"The fact that you don't know something and are asking about it gives you more information and shows you to be a professional. It does not reveal you to be not professional."

"A successful life is really being able to choose when you experience that stress."

"It's possible to not find your way. I've seen that happen."

"Artists are not fundamentally bad at writing. They just need support."

"If I was writing about something that already existed, it was not that hard to have an idea about it."

EPISODE RESOURCES

PODCAST HOST BIO

Meet Ceri Hand, the driving force behind countless creative success stories. A creative coach, entrepreneur, and dynamic speaker, she's committed to empowering creatives to realise their dreams and make a meaningful impact through her creative coaching, mentoring and training company. With three decades in the arts under her belt, Ceri has ridden the highs, the lows, and everything in between. Now, she's here to help you achieve your goals, your way.

****

Book Your Personal Consultation or Explore Group Coaching Options To schedule a personalised 1-2-1 session with Ceri or explore our group coaching options, simply email us at hello@cerihand.com.

Join "Unlock Your Artworld Network" Embark on your journey to success in the artworld! Enrol in our 5-step self-study video course, "Unlock Your Artworld Network," and gain the tools and confidence to build a powerful network that opens doors for you. https://cerihand.com/courses/unlock_your_artworld_network/

Discover How We Empower Creative Excellence Unlock your full creative potential with our tailored support. Visit www.cerihand.com to learn more about how we can help you become an extraordinary creative.

PODCAST GUEST LINKS

www.vvrkshop.art

@vvrkshop.art 

 

Join Ceri as she speaks to visionary entrepreneurs Louise Chignac, co-founder of Canopy Collections, and Will Jarvis, CEO of Gertrude. Together, they share their innovative approaches to revolutionising the art world, making it more transparent and accessible. Discover the secrets behind their successful collaboration and gain valuable insights for artists, collectors, and entrepreneurs alike in this must-listen episode.

KEY TAKEAWAYS


Embrace the unknown and treat building a business as a living, creative process that evolves based on feedback and growth opportunities.
Collaborate with individuals who genuinely understand and believe in your work, and foster a support network within the art world.
Prioritise creating authentic, high-quality content and resist generic social media trends that may not align with your unique artistic identity.
Understand the hierarchies within the art world and focus on finding the right context or gallery to showcase your work effectively.
Adapt your language and approach to cater to both established art world figures and new, eager audiences.
Recognise that investment conversations typically arise later in the art world journey, and focus on connecting with buyers who genuinely appreciate and resonate with the artwork.
Embrace your unique identity and lean into being a "weirdo" if that's who you are, as the best artists are often strange and interesting people.
Cultivate a professional practice that reflects your authentic self, rather than adhering to perceived notions of success or projecting a false image.

BEST MOMENTS 

"If you know what is ahead of you, you're not going to do it because you'll know it's going to be awful, like a big swing and it's going to be really hard. And you won't do it. So you need to be a bit of a fool to like get stuck in."

"If you're a weirdo, lean into being a weirdo. It's fucking brilliant. We love it. Some of the best artists are strange, interesting people."

"Always work with people who understand and like your work to start with. Cause I hear a lot of artists out there working with gallerists or agents that don't actually believe in the work."

"It's innate. It's so in us. It's always been in us. I don't know why there's so few people actually engaging with it. I think something's been allowed to happen. But, like, we can open those doors and, like, tons more people can engage with art and can have it enrich their lives, increase their mental wellbeing, you know, and in turn support a broader range of artist views in the world."

"If you adapt to every shift or every desire...you lose self, you lose identity. So you still have to mediate and know like, what's my bigger agenda."

"Find the people around you that, that will nurture you and look after you and help you and just believe in you."

 

PODCAST HOST BIO

Meet Ceri Hand, the driving force behind countless creative success stories. A creative coach, entrepreneur, and dynamic speaker, she's committed to empowering creatives to realise their dreams and make a meaningful impact through her creative coaching, mentoring and training company. With three decades in the arts under her belt, Ceri has ridden the highs, the lows, and everything in between. Now, she's here to help you achieve your goals, your way.

****

Book Your Personal Consultation or Explore Group Coaching Options To schedule a personalised 1-2-1 session with Ceri or explore our group coaching options, simply email us at hello@cerihand.com.

Join "Unlock Your Artworld Network" Embark on your journey to success in the artworld! Enrol in our 5-step self-study video course, "Unlock Your Artworld Network," and gain the tools and confidence to build a powerful network that opens doors for you. https://cerihand.com/courses/unlock_your_artworld_network/

Discover How We Empower Creative Excellence Unlock your full creative potential with our tailored support. Visit www.cerihand.com to learn more about how we can help you become an extr

Ceri is joined by Sorcha Dallas, custodian of the Alasdair Gray Archive in Glasgow, Scotland in this episode. Sorcha shares her path from artist to commercial gallerist and the invaluable lessons learned along the way. Discover how Sorcha’s resilience, honesty, and collaboration have shaped her creative career and her current role in preserving Alasdair Gray's legacy.

KEY TAKEAWAYS


Sorcha’s creative journey was influenced by her supportive art teacher, access to free cultural spaces in Glasgow, and her time at the Glasgow School of Art.
Running Switchspace, a peripatetic gallery in domestic and semi-derelict spaces, taught Sorcha the importance of community, peer support, and taking risks.
Sorcha’s experience as a commercial gallerist highlighted the challenges of the art market and the need for authenticity and direct impact on people's lives.
Meeting Alasdair Gray and working with him on various projects, including his retrospective, inspired Sorcha to focus on non-hierarchical models, community work, and being hopeful.
Sorcha’s role as custodian of the Alasdair Gray Archive involves fundraising, setting up as a charity, and creating a non-hierarchical organisation that embeds Alasdair's ethics and approach to making.
The archive focuses on public engagement, education, and creative commissioning to keep Alasdair's work generative and prove its value to different people.
Sorcha's new learnings include the importance of facilitative leadership, relinquishing control, and allowing others to support and grow the archive.
Alasdair Gray's legacy of hopefulness, despite life's challenges, is a central message Sorcha wants to pass on.

BEST MOMENTS 

"I'd lost a lot of hope, I think, in the commercial art world, and that kind of dovetailed with me leaving it and starting my own family. And I think children are really hopeful and people would talk about Alistair being kind of childlike, and I think that's what they mean."

"I think the older you get, the more jaded you get with life and what's going on more widely in the world, but to remain hopeful about people, about the next encounter, about the next situation is really the best that you can do."

"I feel hugely privileged to kind of hold this space for others and I'm learning kind of every day from the many different people that I work alongside, and through the archive too."

"If you create a kind of horizontal model, the kind of personal growth for you and for others is huge. But that's about relinquishing control and about genuinely allowing others to help support and grow that."

"I think it's about being a good teacher, it's about noticing people, it's about people feeling that they can contribute and bring their own lived experience into that. And that's a really central thing to what we create here."

EPISODE RESOURCES

https://thealasdairgrayarchive.org

PODCAST HOST BIO

Meet Ceri Hand, the driving force behind countless creative success stories. A creative coach, entrepreneur, and dynamic speaker, she's committed to empowering creatives to realise their dreams and make a meaningful impact through her creative coaching, mentoring and training company. With three decades in the arts under her belt, Ceri has ridden the highs, the lows, and everything in between. Now, she's here to help you achieve your goals, your way.

****

Join Unlock Your Artworld Network our 5 step, self-study video course that will give you the tools and confidence you need to make a network in the artworld that will open doors for you https://cerihand.com/courses/unlock_your_artworld_network/

Book a coaching consultation call with Ceri hello@cerihand.com 

Discover how we can support you being an extraordinary creative here: www.cerihand.com 

In this special short episode, Ceri dives into the challenges and triumphs of being a creative individual. If you've ever felt the strain of trying to make amazing work, earn a living, and be seen and heard, this episode is for you. She explores the courage and grit it takes to be a creative, and why embracing your uniqueness is the key to unlocking your potential. Get ready to be inspired and motivated to let your creativity shine!

KEY TAKEAWAYS


Embrace your uniqueness and stop trying to hide or fit in, as your difference is what makes you special and valuable to the world.
Use your creative gift every day, without relying on others for validation or approval.
Focus on the creative process rather than the outcome, as the process itself is the point.
Recognise the courage, commitment, and sacrifices you make to pursue your passion, despite the challenges you encounter.
Shine your light into the world, as the world needs your creativity.
Remember that you are brilliant, doing your best, and are enough just as you are.
Acknowledge the emotional turmoil that creative people often face, such as feeling different, undervalued, or misunderstood by others.

BEST MOMENTS

"Being creative takes commitment, it takes courage, grit, graft, gumption, gusto."

"You carry it around like a lead balloon in your gut"

"As outliers, it's our job to throw light into the shade, to show people what's really possible, how to make the most of our thoughts, of each other, of the world we inhabit."

"You are bursting with potential. So stop hiding in plain sight and show yourself."

PODCAST HOST BIO

Meet Ceri Hand, the driving force behind countless creative success stories. A creative coach, entrepreneur, and dynamic speaker, she's committed to empowering creatives to realise their dreams and make a meaningful impact through her creative coaching, mentoring and training company. With three decades in the arts under her belt, Ceri has ridden the highs, the lows, and everything in between. Now, she's here to help you achieve your goals, your way.

****

Join Unlock Your Artworld Network our 5 step, self-study video course that will give you the tools and confidence you need to make a network in the artworld that will open doors for you https://cerihand.com/courses/unlock_your_artworld_network/

Book a coaching consultation call with Ceri hello@cerihand.com 

Join Ceri as she speaks to Ivan Michael Blackstock, a South London-born creative powerhouse. From early adversity to ground-breaking productions and collaborations with icons, Ivan shares insights on creative risk taking, letting go of ego, and the transformative power of resilience and self-belief. Listen in and learn how he ignites creativity, pushes boundaries, and pursues excellence.

KEY TAKEAWAYS


Embrace your unique vision and develop a creative language that's truly your own, drawing from personal experiences and influences.
Hold space for others' lightness and darkness, fostering trust and vulnerability to help them channel their best selves.
Reframe creativity as an abundant force in all aspects of life, not just a career path or measure of success.
Learn to let go of good for great, editing ideas and backing what truly resonates in the moment.
Understand the importance of research and development in the creative industry, and the need for funders and programmers to invest in diverse, impactful works.
Recognise when an opportunity isn't right for you, despite external validation, and trust your instincts.
Find restoration and balance through practices like breathwork, meditation, and stepping away when needed.
Cultivate a strong inner compass and warrior spirit to navigate challenges and setbacks on your creative journey.

BEST MOMENTS 

"I have to believe I'm the best. And I think that like, sometimes it dips, but like, there's this thing that like, I'm the best”

"I'm still figuring it out. It's like, no, man, let's be real. We're all figuring it out, you know?"

"It's not always just about numbers. It's not about numbers, sometimes it's about impact."

"I think we need to reframe creativity is because I think we sometimes put it into this career idea and this success. And, you know, I feel like I've achieved some things and it's not what I thought was going to be like, if I'm being honest."

PODCAST HOST BIO

Meet Ceri Hand, the driving force behind countless creative success stories. A creative coach, entrepreneur, and dynamic speaker, she's committed to empowering creatives to realise their dreams and make a meaningful impact through her creative coaching, mentoring and training company. With three decades in the arts under her belt, Ceri has ridden the highs, the lows, and everything in between. Now, she's here to help you achieve your goals, your way.

****

Join Unlock Your Artworld Network our 5 step, self-study video course that will give you the tools and confidence you need to make a network in the artworld that will open doors for you https://cerihand.com/courses/unlock_your_artworld_network/

Book a strategy call with Ceri hello@cerihand.com 

Welcome to this special episode with Ceri. Ceri tackles the questions inundating her inbox daily from artists and creatives. She will be dishing out insights gleaned from the results she has facilitated in coaching sessions, talks, and workshops. Brace yourselves—it's time to confront that dreaded word we all love to hate: networking!

KEY TAKEAWAYS

5 Essential Tips to Unlock Your Art World Network


Define clear relationship goals


Reflect on your objectives before connecting to focus your efforts and approach networking authentically
Identify the types of relationships you want to build (e.g., mentorship, collaborative partnerships)
Use journal prompts to gain clarity on your goals and how connections can contribute to your artistic journey

2. Research your ideal connections thoroughly


Assess your own work, track record, champions, and consistency of achievements
Identify commercial galleries whose programs resonate with you and engage with their work
Attend previews, art fairs, and events hosted by these galleries to familiarise yourself with their artists and practices
Invite artists represented by the gallery for studio visits or engage with gallery team members for valuable insights

3. Overcome shyness or anxiety when networking using self-coaching strategies


Practice self-reflection by journaling about challenging networking situations and identifying areas for improvement
Engage in inner dialogue to become aware of limiting beliefs and their impact on your behavior
Ask yourself open-ended "what" or "how" questions to focus on actionable steps and problem-solving strategies
Explore models, exercises, and strategies to get comfortable with trying new things related to networking

4. Connect with people authentically by adding value and tailoring communication


Focus on adding value to others rather than pitching or convincing them
Tailor your communication to each individual, highlighting why you admire their achievements and what resonates with you about their work
Be genuine and communicate without any expectation of a return, letting go of the outcome
Commit to speaking to 3 new people at each event to expand your network
Use open-ended questions, active listening, and find common ground to initiate conversations

5. Follow up after an initial connection to maintain relationships


Maintain relationships through consistent communication and personalised interactions
Attend art events, engage on social media, and offer assistance or collaborate to stay engaged
Send follow-up emails expressing gratitude for previous encounters and reiterating your interest in further engagement
Demonstrate genuine interest and commitment to building meaningful connections through thoughtful and personalised follow-up communication

PODCAST HOST BIO

Meet Ceri Hand, the driving force behind countless creative success stories. A creative coach, entrepreneur, and dynamic speaker, she's committed to empowering creatives to realise their dreams and make a meaningful impact through her creative coaching, mentoring and training company. With three decades in the arts under her belt, Ceri has ridden the highs, the lows, and everything in between. Now, she's here to help you achieve your goals, your way.

**** NEW COURSE AVAILABLE - UNLOCK YOUR ARTWORLD NETWORK ****

Are you an artist or creative professional longing to take your career to the next level?

Relationships are the key to success in the art world, and it only takes 10 to 15 of the right connections to build a thriving career. You just need to know how to find them. 

Join Ceri Hand as she guides you through her proven 5-step approach to nurturing impactful relationships with gallerists, curators, commissioners and producers in a brand new self-study video course, Unlock Your Artworld Network. 

From crafting the perfect email to attending events with confidence, this course will give you invaluable insights and simple, practical strategies to forge and maintain meani