Aphorisms for Artists by Walter Darby Bannard

Aphorism #51

Live to paint, don’t paint to live.

Of course if you can make a living from your painting that’s wonderful, but there may be a price to pay.

Branding is important in the market. Collectors get used to a “look” and they don’t want it to change. You can watch your audience evaporate as your art gets better. Then you have a tough choice to make.

True art making is making art as good as you can make it. Don’t let anything mess with that.

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