Is it selfish to ask for money in a pandemic?

Published: Thu, 01/21/21


I know it feels insensitive to ask patrons for money right now. 

The second wave is here, economies across the world are closing again, thousands of people are losing loved ones every day…

So I understand if you feel guilty about asking for funds for your art practice in a pandemic. 

But I want you to remember this:

You are doing crucial work, people are looking to art, to artists, to you, to recharge and find the resilience to go on, to find little spots of brightness, of respite, among the unending deluge of bad news. You are a cultural producer as well as a beacon light.

To prove this to you, I want to show you an exchange that happened between an artist and a patron during the height of the first wave (March - April). 

The following extract is from one of my students in the Praxis Center; her post is reproduced verbatim for your perusal: 

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Bela F. - Facebook Post - April 30, 2020.

“A couple of weeks ago I sent a snail mail notecard to my major collectors just to say Hi and ask how they were doing under the circumstances. I did not expect to hear back as they usually do not respond. One of the recipients is a collector who has two originals of mine. She liked the painting on the card and inquired if I still had it and, if so, what the cost would be. I no longer had the painting but we talked on the phone and I offered to re-create an original for her. I got a sale! Go figure where and how a nice surprise comes our way!

Another occurrence: When I sell an original for upwards of $1,000 I send a SendOut Card to the buyer(s), with my reiterated thanks. On the card is a photo of what they purchased or a photo of them by the painting. (There was a time when I would send a box of good chocolates). Collectors never respond, which I find frustrating but I plough on. Last year, when I was having my yearly league-sponsored studio tour, one of these collectors showed up with my card in her hands, inquiring about another painting. That she had my card with her and had had it for a whole year really surprised me. I often feel frustrated when there is no reaction, but here and there there is a small ray of light that tells me that perhaps they do appreciate (and/or find it nice enough to keep) my small attentions. My goal is to remain in their lives, albeit in a small way, and keep up tenuous relationships.”

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To an artist, nothing says “It’s going to be OK” during a pandemic (and all the uncertainties that come with that) like people believing in your work and agreeing to fund it, or purchase it. 

Your people need art to lift themselves up during these dark days. Your people need you.

And the reality is… you need supplies to make that art. You need to pay the rent. You need funding for your practice.

That’s why I want to teach you how to ask for (and secure) funding during this pandemic without being insensitive.

Next week, I am going to show you the techniques Bela and other Praxis students used to get sponsorships:

On Monday, from 1:00 pm to 2:00 pm EST, I am teaching a live workshop on how to secure funding for your art from project-specific patrons (even if you can’t write and the thought of asking money makes you want to puke).

PLUS I’ll take you behind the scenes of sponsorships your fellow artists on this email list have secured, so you can see what works in the real world today (and what doesn’t). 

This is what we are covering:
  1. How to frame the dream you have, be it a painting or a film, so that it gets funded (This old-school fundraising technique used by Ilya and Emilia Kabakov practically guarantees that your letters will be read with pleasure and responded to generously)
     
  2. Finding patrons and corporate sponsors who would be interested in funding that dream (Use the tip I show you on slide 51 to identify your first 20 potential patrons)
     
  3. Approaching patrons for funding PLUS why you need to add this phrase about your work to your correspondence in a pandemic (When you do this you get ongoing support that continues year after year as opposed to a one-time donation because you are seen as a CAUSE as opposed to an artist that needs something)

>>> You can sign up here (just click the link, no opt in required) <<<

Best,

Brainard

PS: There will be a replay, but only for subscribers who register. So I recommend clicking that link even if you can’t make it to the live session.