Questions to Use in Your Artist Interviews

The questions are below. For next class, please bring a printed out page, which you'll hand in to me, with your full list of questions. Also include the names of the three artists you are contacting. Please add your own questions, or make alterations to the questions below (some of these questions might not be appropriate for your particular artists). You should try to contact your artists ASAP, since it can take time to work out schedules. Again, you may conduct your interviews via email, but I would prefer either a face-to-face or a voice-to-voice conversation. Ideally, you will record the interview (you can probably use your laptop or your phone as a recording device). Please refer to the below blog post for more information about the interview, some text you may use for your initial contact email, etc.

THE QUESTIONS

How much of your annual income comes from your art, and how much comes from other sources?

What percentage of your time do you actually spend working in your studio? And what do you spend the rest of your life doing to support that time?

Do you belong to any professional associations? If so, why? What are the advantages that membership provides you?

Do you belong to a wider artist's community, beyond any professional associations? What is that community, and why do you participate in it?

Who is your audience? Who buys your work? Does your audience consist of one consistent demographic, or different demographics? How have you expanded your audience over time? How do you market your work?

What sort of education and/or training have you pursued in your career as an artist? Was it worth it? What were the most valuable things you've taken away from your education or training?

Does your art practice have an impact on the way you do your taxes? If so, how?

What sorts of legal issues, if any, have you had to deal with in making or selling your art?