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Does talent get you opportunities as an artist… or does something else drive a career forward?
In this episode of The Professional Artist Podcast, paper artist Eric Standley is featured by the Professional Artist Association (
https://professionalartist.com/join), the world's fastest-growing global community for committed fine artists.
Eric is a professor of Studio Art at Virginia Tech whose multi-layered paper works have been exhibited in galleries and museums around the world.
His process is extraordinarily time-intensive and that relationship with time turns out to be central to everything he has built professionally.
Rather than spreading his attention across every possible avenue, Eric has developed a sharp sense of where his effort belongs and which opportunities are actually worth pursuing.
In this deep dive, Eric breaks down how international gallery and museum relationships are built and sustained over time, why opportunities rarely come from talent alone, and how the discipline of protecting your attention shapes the trajectory of a career.
This episode is a candid look at how professional artists navigate the gap between making meaningful work and building the relationships and structures that bring that work to the world.
“I try to think as big as possible, and I also try to think as big as possible in choosing those goals.”
— Eric Standley
Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction
01:40 Committing to a Single Idea Over Time
01:53 Rule-Based Practice and Creative Constraints
03:18 Paper as a Medium
04:10 Accidental Discovery of Layered Paper
05:57 Building Depth Across Layers
08:22 International Gallery Relationships
11:21 The Omnia Commission
13:09 Working Outside the Frame
16:13 Balancing Commissions with Other Work
17:25 Working with Museums
19:14 The Irreducible Installation
21:17 Consciousness, Quantum Thought, and the Work
23:33 Urgency, Time, and Artistic Focus
25:01 Working from the Heart
Resources
Connect with Eric
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What is The Professional Artist Podcast: Art Business Transformations?
If you want to make it in the art world, talent is key - but so is mastering the business side. The Professional Artist Podcast is where fine artists and commerce meet.
Co-hosts Miguel L. Mayher and Cristina Demiany guide visual artists through an audio gallery, exploring how to show and sell your art, land commissions, apply for artist grants, license your art, and much more.
This is where your art career begins to grow.
Miguel L. Mayher is the Director of Education at the Professional Artist Association. Previously, he worked with Google Arts & Culture, striking partnerships with national museums. He is also a Global Economic Symposium Young Fellow and a One Young World Ambassador.
Cristina Demiany is a Senior Art Business Coach at the Professional Artist Association. She formerly served as Senior Program Manager at Sotheby’s Institute of Art and as Executive Director of the National Children’s Chorus.
The Professional Artist Association is a global organization dedicated to providing real-world education for visual artists, including painters, sculptors, and fine art photographers.