How did you get discovered? Was it social media or from showing in galleries?
I don’t think for most people there’s “a thing”. It’s a combination of all the things you do.
First and foremost is always your art. If your art is shit there’s no amount of promotion in the world that’ll make people like it. Focus on making art that excites you, and experiment as much as possible; it will make your art more unique in the long run.
As your art improves, dedicate time to ‘getting yourself out there’. There are a number of different ways you can do that. Apply to local shows, go to life drawing events, meet other artists, go to their shows and celebrate their accomplishments, and of course, social media.
When it comes to social media people seem to often think that there’s a 'trick’ to it, but there isn’t. Make art that you love, either people will connect to it or they won’t, and there isn’t much you can do about it. Posting regularly and interacting with your followers helps, but God knows I’ve slacked off on both of those things at various points in time. But if you’re making art that you love then who gives a fuck if other people do? Followers unfortunately do not generally equal people who will buy your art. The majority of my followers are young people who love my work but will never be able to buy it. And I’m fine with that, I share my work online because I love it and want to put it out in the world, anything else is a bonus.
I always go off on long rants and lose my point and Tumblr won’t let me see the question, so hopefully that sums it all up. Put yourself out there in as many ways as possible, but don’t forget what it’s really all about: making art you love and supporting others in a community. People can sense (even through the Internet) when someone is all about self promotion, and there’s no bigger turn off. Be a genuine human being and make decisions you can stand behind, success generally follows that.
