If you're going to paint portraits....where is the best place to live?

Michael Georges · 06-21-2002, 11:21 AM

So, you've decided to be a portrait artist.

Where in the country do you think portraits sell the best and where is the best place to feed not only your wallet, but your soul?

I believe that fine art portraiture does its best in the "Deep South", with New York as a second, and Washington, DC as a third.

But this is only from things that I have been told.

What do you think is the best place in the country to live and paint portraits? How does where you live rank?

Mari DeRuntz · 06-21-2002, 02:27 PM

If the deep south is the best place to set up shop as a portrait painter, then I would think more educational opportunities would exist in the deep south, masters opening their studios to train apprentices....or perhaps south Florida is too deep?

American classical realism seems to be centered in NYC, Minneapolis, DC, Atlanta...all towns woven of rich cultural fabric.

Chris Saper · 06-21-2002, 03:24 PM

It is my guess that Arizona is not one of the places you'd want to be. Other than a few cosmopolitan pockets this side of the Mississippi, such as San Francisco, LA or Denver, traditional portraiture still seems to be an old Southern, and old Eastern tradition.

Marta Prime · 06-21-2002, 08:06 PM

I think there is a lot of potential as long as you live in a populated area, no matter what state it is. There is something about our species that loves things that are personalized, and portraiture is one of them. And although us Westerners don't have the portraiture tradition on our side, there are an awful lot of people from the south, New York, etc that move out here and bring their traditions with them. So, I say, circle the wagons! Go west young man, go west!

Cynthia Daniel · 06-22-2002, 06:11 AM

Michael,

My marketing experience supports your statements.

Mari,

Florida is geographically south, but not steeped in the tradition of the Old South. I'm sure you know that many Floridians are transplanted from other parts of the country...but, mostly northern states rather than the Old South states.

However, I'm sure you also know that within Florida, your city of Sarasota is particularly known for the arts...lucky you! I don't know for sure, but I would think Naples is also. There's a lot of money in Naples.

Thinking out loud to anyone reading,

...wonder if this thread should go under the Business section of the forum?

Karin Wells · 06-22-2002, 08:11 AM

I live in the North East, 2 hours from Boston in Peterborough, New Hampshire. Portraits do NOT sell like "hotcakes" here.

It is a tradition for "Old Yankees" with money to have many ancestral portraits hanging in their homes....but they seldom think to have the current generation painted.

I am convinced that because the southern culture is "portrait minded," the ideal place for a portrait artist to live and paint would be in the deep south. And Montgomery, Alabama might be the best place for a portrait artist (who has a southern accent) to make a living. I'm not sure that as a "northerner," I would be accepted even if I chose to live there.

Because of its size and mixture of people, Atlanta, Georgia and Washington, DC might be places where someone with a northern accent would "fit in" better.

However, despite my obscure northern rural location, I have enough work from all over the country thanks to Cynthia Daniel's "Stroke of Genius." Whew!

Lon Haverly · 06-22-2002, 12:09 PM

Seattle is a fantastic place to live, and my uncle was a very successful portrait artist there, who also is retired.

Renee Price · 06-23-2002, 08:45 PM

I would have to say the South. I'm a Southern girl who is new to portraiture and I stay busy. Not complaining about my geography!

Renee Price

Cynthia Daniel · 06-23-2002, 10:45 PM

Sometimes a portrait artist will be successful in an unexpected location because they get connected with and admired by just the right person (usually wealthy and well-connected) who becomes a strong supporter and word-of-mouth promoter. These are good to have. If you get in with the right person, you can be passed around amongst the social group and stay busy for years.

Meredith Wagenknecht · 06-25-2002, 10:35 AM

Although Russellville, KY is not a surprising location to be (it's referred to as mid-south, about 45 min - 1 hour north of Nashville), the "word-of-mouth" type of publicity happened to me while living there for almost 9 years. In such a tight-knit and SMALL community, it's easy for word to get out about a newcomer from the (dreaded?) north possessing the unique talents of an artist. And, as luck would have it, I had no competition within town. As a result, my commissions gradually increased through the years (actually, I got my start there in portraiture, having been a freelance fashion illustrator in my home state of NJ). I even wound up with a few commissions from Nashville, Bowling Green KY, St. Louis, Charlotte, and Florida.

However, as Karin alluded to, I, as a northerner, dreaded or otherwise, never felt COMPLETELY accepted by the locals. I was accepted due to my uniqueness, but only on THAT level....in THEIR minds, once a northerner, always a northerner, I guess. Despite all that, I must say that I would indeed love to return to the south one day (after the kids graduate from High School?), but nearer the coast.

The situation I was in after a divorce in '97 prompted me to move back to my hometown in NJ in late '99. Since then, VERY little has happened for me in the art world (except a rejection from my very first attempt to enter a juried show)...resulting in having to take a part-time job. This state in particular is extremely populated, so trying to find just the right niche in which to get that word-of-mouth spreading has been very difficult. And, it doesn't help when I hear people (even my boss at work!) tell me such discouraging things as "it's more of a southern thing", and "people won't pay your price" (I don't think $400 for a head and shoulders in pastel is too high).

I tried a 1/4 page ad in a new "exclusive" publication, but to no avail. I realize that advertising needs to occur repeatedly and consistently in order to get noticed, but at $600 a "pop", it's out of my budget. So, in the meantime, I'm in a dry spell, trying to figure out what to do next. I'm at this site all the time and try to soak up all of the advice from "y'all"...keep it coming! In the end, I guess I could say that KY has (so far) proven to be a better location from which to work as a portrait artist than NJ. Hopefully, I can prove that wrong...wish me luck!

P. S. The BEST thing did happen to me, though, after moving back to NJ....I married the love of my life...and you can't BEAT that!!