Long Post! WIP and a Rebranding Talk

I recently got to listen to Aki Huang speak about artist shops and brand building, good habits to keep and tips on how to even find “your brand.” Literally the same night I was up making a Pinterest board of all the things that I just really enjoy, and it’s a very whacky board of Tim Burton, polaroid/analog photos, vintage Halloween things, a wHOLE bunch of orange/fall colors, some memes, and some good Christian vibes as well. I had written down this list first, but once I took it to Pinterest it was pretty much just a little stream of consciousness board making session.

I also noticed how far it is from what my shop currently is. Sure there is a couple of fall wallpapers, and cute things, but it’s nothing quite as “analog” or nostalgic or straight up grainy as the pin board that I made.

I do hope that this shift sees good progress going forward. I haven’t been completely satisfied with my shop ever since I started doing artist alleys in 2019. They were fun experiences without a doubt, and I hope to do more, but I could tell something was missing that I couldn’t get to click until I applied Aki’s tips. I wasn’t really making a shop based around what I liked. I liked the things I was making, sure, but I based those first few investments on attendees I don’t even know. I looked at what was popular with my tablemate’s audience, and barely what my followers were looking at. I looked at recent shows/movies that were buzzing, all things that I liked at the time, but nothing actually sold. I still have most of the prints I made for those cons, and looking back at them now I think it’s because they’re actually not very different from every other artist alley print you might find.

So this “rebranding” isn’t new to me, but it may be new to my followers anywhere. It’s definitely slated to get started by 2021, pandemic or not, and I honestly haven’t been so excited about fan art in a long time. Let’s see where it goes