The Vision Statement: One of My Favorite Studio Tools

Artists all have their go-to brushes, palette knives, and studio equipment but many of us forget, or put off, assembling key pieces when it comes to the business side of things. Maybe it’s the marketing design side of me speaking, but having developed my own vision statement some 15 years ago has helped keep my art business on track and evolving exactly as I picture it.

Individual artists can benefit from creating and posting vision and mission statements in their studios just as much as large corporations do. In this post, I will break down and share my own personal vision statement. This will hopefully help you understand me better as an artist and inspire those of you without a vision statement to put one together for yourselves.

MY VISION

I soulfully contribute to my family, the world and myself by creating things that inspire others and myself. I craft timeless works of art in the form of paintings, books & photography.

I stay closely connected to my family, friends and the art world. I stay spiritually connected and grateful of God’s power, beauty and desire to co-create through me.

I continue with my freedom to experience travel and enjoy life, which feeds my inspiration to create beauty.

I live in good health and stay physically active and mentally motivated to learn new things, therefore, staying interesting and interested in my life experience.

I artfully expand how I earn money, so I am financially free to live, love and create.

– The Beginning –

SO WHAT IS IT?

A good vision statement should give the “why” and “how” of a business. As a business grows and goals are met or changed over time, a vision statement should be revised to reflect the new objectives as they crystalize in your mind. Don’t worry vision statements don’t have to be long, in fact, the more concise, the better. Mine is longer than most, but I’m an artist, it’s just for me, and I couldn’t get it all out in the recommended 30 words or less by-the-book version.

WHAT’S IT FOR?

The best way to use a tool like this is to post it on the wall of your studio. I have my statement posted in three places around my office and studio space where I can randomly run into it. Only one of them is framed, and the other two are printed out and taped to the wall. When I see it, I sometimes read it in full, and sometimes I just read a line or two.

When I read it I think to myself, “Are the galleries, mentors, art groups, clients, art, etc., I’m working with right now aligned with what I said my vision is for myself?” If not, it’s either time to update my vision to include them or eliminate the thing that is not pushing me toward the future I envision. The fact is, if something is not aligned with your vision, it is actually blocking you from your goals… so get rid of it!

WORDSMITH YOUR VISION

If writing comes easy for you, creating your own vision statement will still take time, but you are one of the lucky ones that can do this for yourself. I enlisted the help of an outstanding business coach (my sister) that had resources to help me think through each portion of things I wanted to cover. With her help, I was able to boil down my vision statement into something that has worked for my art business for 15 years with minimal changes.

If a business coach is not in the cards (or the family) for you, I would recommend contacting a service in your city similar to our Kansas Small Business Development Center at Johnson County Community College. They can provide business development services for free or for nominal fees.

Trust me, I know it’s much more fun to spend money on art supplies, but spending on the business side of things gives you a better shot at being able to continue doing what you love to do as an artist.

Have you thought about a vision statement for your art business? If you have one, is it out in your studio where you can see it? If it doesn’t have a little paint on it, you might not have it in the right place. Pull it out and allow it to start working for you! Share your thoughts below!