The Professional Artist Podcast: Art Business Transformations

Are art festivals a gamble… or a reliable way to build income as an artist?
In this episode of The Professional Artist Podcast, fine art photographer Marisa White is featured by the Professional Artist Association (https://professionalartist.com/join), the world’s fastest-growing global community for committed fine artists.
Marisa has built a thriving career through a strategic approach to the art festival circuit, turning what many artists see as unpredictable into a consistent and scalable income stream. By refining her booth, presentation, and show selection, she’s learned how to maximize both visibility and sales in high-traffic environments.
In this deep dive, Marisa breaks down how to turn festivals into real income -not just exposure - what makes people stop, engage, and buy, and how to choose the right shows so you don’t waste time or money.
“I can safely say that, in one weekend, I sold as much as I had in my entire art career up to that point.”
— Marisa White
Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction
02:58 Artwork “Number Nine” and Flow State in Creation
03:13 Self-Portrait Photography Process
05:03 Skills and Turning Points in Marissa’s Photography Practice
07:30 From Hobby to Business: Exhibitions, Galleries, Full-Time Work
08:49 Relocation Story
12:04 How a Specific Festival Opportunity Changed Everything
14:00 Selecting Shows: Applying, Waitlists, and Last-Minute Booth Solutions
16:43 Sales Results and Scaling Up Shows
18:15 Art Festival Costs Breakdown and Strategic Budgeting
21:29 Pricing Strategy
23:20 “Most Favorite Piece” Inspiration
25:47 Sustainable Career: Coaching and Business Guidance
27:34 Coaching Takeaways
Connect with Marisa
Website: https://www.marisaswhite.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marisa_whitesparks/
Learn more about The Professional Artist Association:
Mentoring:
Apply to join 99 artists for unlimited 1:1 Coaching & Mentoring to grow your art income:
https://professionalartist.com/apply
Membership:
Join 1,000+ committed artists around the world for less than $1, £ or € a day: https://professionalartist.com/join
Free Letter:
Join 50,000+ artists getting Free advice & inspiration every week:
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Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/professionalartistaccelerator
Ready to take the next step in your art career?
We are hosting a free 4-Day Challenge online to help artists like you get back on track.
Whether that’s making your next art show your best ever, designing a paid art workshop that is uniquely yours, or getting your artwork into the next right-fit gallery…
…this live, virtual, and interactive challenge will help get you get unstuck.
Register to get a free pass here: https://professionalartist.com/free
If you enjoyed this episode, please like and subscribe, share it with another artist and leave us a review/comment. We read every single one.

Is selling art on Instagram really about followers… or is it a skill you can learn?
In this episode of The Professional Artist Podcast, painter Maggi McDonald is featured by the Professional Artist Association (https://professionalartist.com/join), the world’s fastest-growing global community for committed fine artists.
Maggi is a Sydney-based artist who has built a full-time career through vibrant paintings and a highly intentional approach to social media.
Instead of relying on luck or viral moments, she treats Instagram as a system: one that consistently attracts collectors from around the world.
In this conversation, Maggi breaks down what’s actually working right now when it comes to selling art on Instagram, how she built a global audience through consistent and strategic posting, and how she converts attention into sales without feeling pushy or inauthentic.
This episode offers a practical look at using Instagram as a tool and how artists can turn visibility into a sustainable income stream.
“ If you are wanting to reach a global audience, and sell your art all over the world, then you need to use Instagram to your advantage”
— Maggi McDonald
Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction
01:59 Midnight Garden Creative Process (Intuition vs Thinking)
04:42 Color as Therapy (Mental Health + Mood Lift)
05:34 Art as a Survival Skill Through Grief and Trauma
06:41 Turning Creativity into a Full-Time Profession
08:35 Building a Global Instagram Audience
12:15 Planning Content with Strategy
12:26 Research, Insights, and Tracking Performance Metrics
13:50 Calls to Action and Non-Salesy Selling on Instagram
14:49 Sales Tracking and Website Landing Strategy
16:55 Finding Your Unique Style and Maintaining a Posting Mindset
20:35 Boundaries, Burnout Prevention, and Time Management on Instagram
22:23 Marketing Funnels and Turning Followers into Collectors
Connect with Maggi
Website: https://www.maggimcdonald.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/maggimcdonaldart/
Learn more about The Professional Artist Association:
Mentoring:
Apply to join 99 artists for unlimited 1:1 Coaching & Mentoring to grow your art income:
https://professionalartist.com/apply
Membership:
Join 1,000+ committed artists around the world for less than $1, £ or € a day: https://professionalartist.com/join
Free Letter:
Join 50,000+ artists getting Free advice & inspiration every week:
https://professionalartist.com/podcast/#join-free-artist-letter

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/professionalartistaccelerator
If you enjoyed this episode, please like and subscribe, share it with another artist and leave us a review. We read every single one.

What if you didn’t need galleries or perfect timing to build a successful art career?
In this episode of The Professional Artist Podcast, mixed media artist Dayo Johnson is featured by the Professional Artist Association (https://professionalartist.com/join), the world’s fastest-growing global community for committed fine artists.
For over 30 years, Dayo has built a sustainable career outside the traditional gallery system… through festivals, commissions, and direct relationships with collectors.
Starting with $50 booths and small local shows, she steadily grew her audience, income, and opportunities through consistency.
Rather than waiting for recognition, Dayo focused on showing up turning each sale into momentum for the next opportunity.
In this episode, Dayo breaks down how she turned small art shows into a full-time income, how commissions became a reliable part of her business, and the unconventional way she funds future shows through her collectors.
“ Even during times, when it feels like it's not working, continue on, keep going because there's going to be something that breaks through that allows you to do what you want to do.”
— Dayo Johnson
Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction 
02:16 Wild Child with Sunflowers: Story and Origin of a Piece 
05:47 Before Painting: Career Transition from Vocal Performance to Visual Art 
08:39 Turning Art into Livelihood: $50 Shows and Keeping Going 
10:10 Translating Music into Visual Art (Venus de Milo) 
12:13 Vulnerability in Selling Art and Advice to Artists 
13:49 Building the Business Over Time: Festivals First, Galleries Later 
15:10 What Sustains an Art Career: Shows vs. Commissions Timing 
16:29 Commission Approach, Volume, and Managing Big Assignments 
18:26 Unconventional Funding: Collectives Program for Show Season 
24:08 Commission Freedom and Creative Direction in a Door Piece 
25:40 Staying Grounded and Avoiding Burnout Through Love of the Craft
Connect with Dayo
Website: https://www.dayoart.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dayoart
Learn more about The Professional Artist Association:
Mentoring:
Apply to join 99 artists for unlimited 1:1 Coaching & Mentoring to grow your art income:
https://professionalartist.com/apply
Membership:
Join 1,000+ committed artists around the world for less than $1, £ or € a day: https://professionalartist.com/join
Free Letter:
Join 50,000+ artists getting Free advice & inspiration every week:
https://professionalartist.com/podcast/#join-free-artist-letter
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/professionalartistaccelerator
If you enjoyed this episode, please like and subscribe, share it with another artist and leave us a review. We read every single one.

What does success actually mean for an artist?
In this episode of The Professional Artist Podcast, contemporary figurative painter Alyssa Monks is featured by the Professional Artist Association (https://professionalartist.com/join), the world’s fastest-growing global community for committed fine artists.
Alyssa is internationally known for her emotionally charged paintings that push the boundaries of traditional realism while exploring the psychological complexity of being human.
Alyssa shares why she resists the pressure to manufacture a perfectly cohesive body of work, how intuition guides her studio decisions, and how her definition of success evolved away from external validation and toward a practice built around honesty in the work.
This episode offers a candid look at what it means to build a career that protects your artistic integrit… and why redefining success may be the most important decision an artist makes.
“If that's what you're doing it for, for the recognition the metrics that are outside of our control, It can be something that could hold you back“— Alyssa Monks
Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction 
02:04 Exploring Vulnerability in Art
04:50 The Journey of a Self-Portrait 
08:29 The Impact of Grieving on Artistic Practice 
10:57 Intuitive vs. Structured Creation 
13:45 Redefining Success in Art 
16:58 The Role of Community in Artistry 
20:35 Finding Inspiration from Friends and Peers 
23:18 Coping with Creative Blocks 
26:01 Hope as a Fundamental Ingredient in Art 
28:22 The Importance of Personal Connection to Work
Connect with Alyssa
Website: https://www.alyssamonks.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alyssamonks/
Learn more about The Professional Artist Association:
Mentoring:
Apply to join 99 artists for unlimited 1:1 Coaching & Mentoring to grow your art income:
https://professionalartist.com/apply
Membership:
Join 1,000+ committed artists around the world for less than $1, £ or € a day: https://professionalartist.com/join
Free Letter:
Join 50,000+ artists getting Free advice & inspiration every week:
https://professionalartist.com/podcast/#join-free-artist-letter
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/professionalartistaccelerator
If you enjoyed this episode, please like and subscribe, share it with another artist and leave us a review. We read every single one.

What does it take to turn deeply personal artwork into major professional opportunities?
In this episode of The Professional Artist Podcast, artist Charles Clary is featured by the Professional Artist Association (https://professionalartist.com/join), the world’s fastest-growing global community for committed fine artists.
Charles is known for his intricate paper installations built from layered paper, drywall, and found materials.
His work transforms themes of grief and healing into immersive sculptural environments. 
Over time, that distinctive visual language led to commissions from organizations including Google, Amazon, and the Cosmopolitan Hotel in Las Vegas.
These opportunities didn’t appear overnight. They grew from years of refining his craft, building professional relationships, and learning how to present his work clearly when large-scale opportunities arose.
In this episode, Charles shares how personal expression became the foundation for major commissions, how he approaches  corporate collaborations, and why professionalism  matters when institutions come calling.
"Be ready for it, don't jump into the deep end until you're ready to swim. It took a good development of the work to get to those commissions” — Charles Clary
Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction
02:12 Transformation of Personal Trauma into Art
05:04 The Role of Childhood Experiences
08:18 The Shift from Music to Art
10:51 Discovering the Use of Paper in Art
13:21 The Evolution of Artistic Style
16:46 Corporate Commissions: Insights and Experiences
20:44 How to Maximize Opportunities
23:33 The Importance of Professionalism
25:28 Navigating Rejection and Acceptance
28:09 The Memento Morididdle Series
30:54 Key Takeaways for Aspiring Artists
Connect with Charles
Website: https://charlesclary.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/charlesclary
Learn more about The Professional Artist Association:
Mentoring:
Apply to join 99 artists for unlimited 1:1 Coaching & Mentoring to grow your art income:
https://professionalartist.com/apply
Membership:
Join 1,000+ committed artists around the world for less than $1, £ or € a day: https://professionalartist.com/join
Free Letter:
Join 50,000+ artists getting Free advice & inspiration every week:
https://professionalartist.com/podcast/#join-free-artist-letter
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/professionalartistaccelerator
If you enjoyed this episode, please like and subscribe, share it with another artist and leave us a review. We read every single one.