IT DOESN’T PAY TO PLAY IT SAFE. The person who straddles both sides of an issue in an attempt to please everyone is quickly forgotten in this world. We tend to remember the outspoken, opinionated rebels who make our blood boil and the mavericks who risk drawing a line in the sand to take a strong stand. History books are filled with people who weren’t afraid to introduce a new idea, despite the opposition of their peers.
It’s a risk to just be yourself and expose your true being to the world. What if people don’t like you? What if you won’t fit in? These concerns shouldn’t matter enough to make you change direction. You simply cannot please everyone. And eventually, most people will come around to respect you for who you are.
A young and very successful Australian pop artist, Hazel Dooney, has perfected the art of throwing her feisty self out there, unapologetically. She doesn’t pull back if she offends, and she is quick to publicly criticize any former acquaintance that has done her wrong.
She’s over the top honest, aggressively baring her soul to the world on her famous blog called Self vs. Self. And this attitude has worked in her favor. She has gained a large following of fans and collectors by just being herself.
Hazel Dooney decided some time ago that she wanted a direct relationship with her art collectors, and the gallery system didn’t support that. There were other problems, too, with having art in a gallery. The gallery managers acted as though she should be so lucky to have her art represented by them, and this felt like a lack of respect for her. She also complained that gallery systems are outdated, ignoring the importance of having an online presence.
It was a huge risk pulling her artwork out of the Melbourne gallery system a few years ago. She could have been blacklisted from the entire system for life. Many warned that her career was over. Wrong!
Hazel Dooney is selling more art than ever before while representing herself. She’s developed a system that works for her, which involves online social networking as well as direct, personal contact with her collectors. And now that Hazel has developed a rather large following as well as large price tags for her work, the outdated gallery system is once again seeking her out.
For some people, it can be painful to feel like you’re different from everyone else.
Drew Brophy has always felt misunderstood by his peers. As a teenager, Drew devised a new way to paint surfboards. Until then, surfboards were airbrushed. Drew developed painting techniques using water based paint pens, which gave him the ability to paint more detail and blend colors. He was excited about painting this way, despite the fact that most of his peers laughed at him and he had trouble convincing the surf shops to let him paint with these techniques.
But he wasn’t discouraged. He continued painting his own surfboards this way. Over time, other surfers asked for him to paint their boards, too. That interest eventually led to Drew painting thousands of surfboards with his technique, and then teaching others how to do it, too. The tipping point was in the late 1990’s, when most surfboards now were painted using Drew’s techniques, rather than by airbrush.
For most of Drew’s life, he felt pained that he didn’t fit into cliques or groups. Now that he’s older, he has come to accept that he’s just not meant to follow others. Instead, he’s focused on sharing his painting techniques with others, and he’s been credited as being the artist who changed the way surfboards were painted.
Do you feel like you are different from everyone else? Recognize that you may be a leader rather than a follower. Embrace this about yourself. Being different is a special gift, in that you can bring new ideas, techniques, and insights to the world. Assuming, of course, that you are willing to risk criticism to get your ideas out there.
By default, Hazel Dooney and Drew Brophy have both become leaders in their niche by showing artists a new approach. The world needs more leaders, and you just may be one of them.
Thanks for reading – Maria
4 Responses
Maria, Thank you so much for this article. I have been struggling to get my work into a co-op gallery for a little over a month and it seems as though they are more interested in playing games and dragging it out rather than actually telling me if they want my work or not. I was thinking about emailing them tonight with a decision to back out….this post just confirms my thinking.
Over the course of my career I have learned to trust my instincts because the people in charge do not always know what is best. Especially now, when the world is changing so fast. I beat to my own drum. Sometimes it is hard to do, people or companies usually do not understand what I am trying to do until after I have done it and have moved on to the next thing.
I think the key is to find people you relate to–or help them find you! I don’t really fit into the popular street art or skateboarder art scene in my local area so I am still struggling to find the community who understands my style. Though I am still searching, I am confident that there are folks out there who will “get it”!
Glad to know about smart, strong woman Hazel Dooney.
My paintings are a bit unusual and I shipped two to an art exhibit at the Hotel des Arts in San Francisco. The curator hung them and said
that my work was *powerful in person*. He’d only seen photos of them!
Sometimes you find people who appreciate what you do! That seems out of the usual. There are so many who don’t understand for the single individual who does get it. So keep searching…