
It is hard to understand the amount of discipline to both sell and produce your art in a commercial surroundings and whether the constant flip-flop between sales and client following can inhibit the concentration levels in your work. I am finding that in my first month of residency in a quieter studio , something that I now miss, it was easier to create and concentrate on my creative process and production of my work, in the second month of my residency, in a studio with more foot traffic and more sales I suffer with having to have a more disciplined level of concentration when working on my creative production. With a series of continuous interruptions stop and go btw customer’s questions and feeling like a monkey in a circus and perform for the visiting audience. stricter discipline in concentration has helped me to overcome when to focus and when to stop and follow sales. I think that this a problem of many artists as the come to grips with selling our work in a work/sell environment. multi-tasking has become the norm for many creative people who work in this style of environment and even though it is a challenge and quite different to a space with less foot traffic, it is important to discipline one self to pick and choose when to turn on or off the creative juices, in order to make a sale. The decision depends on the individual. There are times to close your studio door to deter you from distractions and customers who are really determined and attracted to your work will enter your space nonetheless. this has been my experience so far during my second month of my residency. Creative focus is something that has to be learned slowly, learning to zone out all around you, in order to concentrate on your creative process and learn to zone in when necessary. Eventually, you will learn that there are various grade of concentration and not only one level. Those who like to observe the artist at work will understand the nature of your work and will either observe and admire or admire then buy…..
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