Sculpting a Digital Identity
A crucial part of being a digital artist is forming a digital identity. I’m not going to ever say this is how become a successful artist, everyone’s road to success is different but from my observations the most successful artists have a solid identity.
Marketing gurus will sell this to you as a brand. A lot of us artists hiss violently at this as if it were sunlight on a vampire and run screaming from this word. Why? Brand = commodity. We are more than a commodity. We are a living, breathing, feeling human with a lot of soul we put in our work, even digitally.
Brand also has a sense of rigidity, it’s set color pallets and fonts, it’s the same logo always. Digital Identity on the other hand gives a sense of personal ownership. Identity as a human and artist is ever changing and growing.
It takes trial and error and experimentation as an artist to uncover and actualize this identity. It could be thought of as a persona also, depending on how deep you want to go with it.
I think this is why a lot of us artists (not all) shy away from fully diving into a 10k PFP identity because it’s someone else work. Even for me taking on a DOS punk, I still had to remix it to make it my own. Until I did that, it didn’t feel like me. I could write an entire paper of why 10k collections are successful but I’m here to write about being an artist.
I personally experimented a lot over the course of the last year and a half as a crypto artist with my identity. Previous to that I experimented for years - decades - in and out of school and navigating underground art communities in Oakland and only here in Tumblr, Insta and FB to form Empress Trash.
No one can really tell you the right or wrong way to do this process. In fact, a large portion of the process is learning to stop listening to others and start listening to yourself. What is important is to have a safe space to explore and create without the influence of people who don’t maybe have an artists best interest in mind.
This doesn’t mean don’t have people who inspire you and guide you as mentors, teachers, hero’s or inspiration ~ more don’t listen to people trying to control your creative energy. For some this is easy, for others due to trauma or poor conditions to self actualize, it’s a harder road. I can say my road was a pretty tough one.
It’s important to keep going though. Not for anyone but you and your soul. Something drove you to create in the first place, it’s always there waiting for it’s moment to come out. Don’t let the world take that precious flame away from you.
Keep experimenting, finding who you are, forming that persona. Make multiple ones even, kill some of them for fun. In the end, though there has to be a main one to focus on to grow depending on your goals, ambitions or dreams.
Even once you land on an identity, keep experimenting. One thing I’ve noticed is some artists grow stale after they actualize. This is because even though they have gotten to a level, they lose the flame of play, having fun, and trying new things. They fear too much they will lose what they got with a mistake or wrong turn so keep trying to do the same thing over and over that happened when success hit.
It’s like they are stuck on repeat and sink.
They don’t seem to remember though the success came from them taking risks, helping others, building bridges. Always keep that, no matter how successful you become.
To some of you who barely make sales right now, the thought of even being successful is almost laughable. I get there myself, daily. It’s also important to break that thought. We will manifest what we focus on ~ good or bad.
Take some time daily no matter how hard it seems to focus on what you truly want and dream. Your identity is only your sculpture to make. No one else can do this for you.
My soul sees yours and I believe in you. 🖤
tangentwithtanner
ellievsbear
snowghoul