Tell us a bit
about yourself and what you do.
Hello, I'm
Suzanne Woolcott, I'm also better known as the creator of 'gorjuss', adorable
little mouthless girls.. I'm an full time pro artist, born and living in
Glasgow, Scotland.. I paint girls and I couldnt wish for a better career than
to be able to paint cute girls all day ! .. It's just as good as it sounds.. :D
My lovely Husband Grant now works with me full time ( he quit his day job over a year ago now) he now handles all the practical side for me since I had a back injury last summer that I'm still trying to recover from! ... I'm actually missing dealing with customers orders and the satisfaction seeing them get packed and shipped off to them, but he does a wonderful job and he really enjoys doing it! .. So I paint, he packages.. it works out well!
We run an Etsy
shop ( gorjuss.etsy.com) and our own main shop (www.gorjussArt.com) .. as well
as supplying Brick & Mortar retail stores/ galleries around the world.. I
also exhibit Originals in galleries too and license gorjuss girls to
manufacturers of all sorts of lovely products ! Gorjuss is now
represented by Santoro. I blog nearly
daily at gorjuss.co.uk/blog and my full portfolio is gorjuss.co.uk with
galleries to browse through, future/past exhibition details, stockist details
etc .. it's just packed full of gorjuss goodness!
Walk us
through your average day as an artist This is a really
complicated question because, I think most days are different, because I work
for myself, there's no real rules and/or deadlines.. it really depends on what
the project is that I'm working on.. and of course how my Back is and what it
lets me accomplish for the day ! But as a rule I dont get out of my bed
before 10, and I dont get to call it a night and go to sleep til after
midnight.. I start late but I work late, I think i'm on a diff timezone
to everyone else in my household! If I have a day when I have to spend it
lying down with ice-packs on etc.. then thats what I do.. and it's great
to not have to phone a 'boss' and plead for a day off, as your own boss, you
know exactly what needs catching up with the next day! As I mentioned
before the (better) half handles all print ( and other goodies) packing and
shipping, and it really leaves me a lot of time to recuperate and just paint,
it's much appreciated and he does a terrific job looking after us all and still
smiles thoughout! He takes the kids to school in the morning and then
gets the orders made and ready to ship the same day.. and drops them at the
post office as he picks the kids up again.. I deal with the websites,
updating listings, communications and oh yeh, painting ! What's your
best business tip for those who are just starting out? 1. Research
research research.. 2. Creating your
brand and keeping a cohesive feel with everything you create is important, not
only with your artwork but with your products too. .. just becuase another
artist is having success with their art on a certain product, doesnt mean it
will have the same success for you! 3. Also, take
things slowly, dont spend your time (and money!) advertising, spend your time
creating, the world wide web is really, a very small place, and if your stuff
is good, then it will get noticed ! and my number one
tip.. is always BE POLITE, we've always tried to have our Customer Service to
be absolutely unbeatable ! ( I think
we've managed it !) What inspires
you and how do you maintain your creative flow? How do you handle not feeling
inspired? I find everything
inspiring, the clouds in the sky, the weather, the people I meet, little
sayings people say, colours, you name it.. I'm like a big sponge who just soaks
everything up, and for my own sanity I have to paint it to 'release' some of it
!!! Of course when I paint it comes out
with my own interpretation, I'm just trying to show everyone how I see the
world in a way! I keep sketchbooks, millions of them!.. full of
ideas.. sometimes words, sometimes doodles.. I can always be found with my head
in a sketchbook even at parties, If I'm
not feeling very inspired then some moody music goes on, and if it still doesnt
work, then I dont stress, pressure is the worst thing for creativity.. Inspiration should come naturally and
shouldnt be forced too much, you'll only break it if you shove too hard! For more Gorjuss art, you can vist her Etsy shop, check out her blog or keep up with her daily doings via Twitter! Thanks so much for sharing, Suzanne!
I absolutely love the little toppers and decoupage. you're really good, they're so cute. great advice for the best business tips for starters. Thank you
Posted by: Megan | December 09, 2010 at 02:05 PM