Cultivating Your Legacy: 5 Vital Actions to Sustain Your Success as an Artist
The idea is not to live forever, but to create something that will.
-Andy Warhol
Art can transcend time and leave a lasting impact on generations to come. Artists are great visionaries—they inspire and transform how we see the world from their unique perspectives through their imaginations and technical skills. Their story, life, and artwork will inspire others beyond their lifetime.
One way to extend their influence beyond their lifetime is by creating a lasting legacy. As artists, it's essential to ensure that your artistic journey continues to inspire and captivate audiences in the future.
Most artists dream about leaving their legacy someday. Yet, they don't take any actions towards building one during their lifetime and leave it up to someone else to take care of it after they pass away and sadly become forgotten from history.
Contrary to common belief, legacy is beyond financial inheritance, gifts, donations, or endowments—it's about honoring, memorializing, and celebrating a person's life, achievements, and contributions to our culture and society. Legacy is not definitive nor complete—it evolves through the subsequent generations as they revitalize and expand their predecessors' contributions.
A legendary artist requires unwavering commitment, dedication, belief (especially self-worth), courage, tenacity, and leadership. Few artists take the most vital steps in their careers and decisive actions that authentically align with their purpose and mission in life. The legendary artists we know are proactive in their lives, where they decide what to do rather than waiting or wishing to be discovered. As a result, they have created enriching life as artists and became immortalized in history.
Legacy does not have to be morbid or elusive. It is not about mythological figures and creatures (hello unicorns!), saints, or people with "supernatural" powers. Instead, it's honoring and celebrating ordinary people who dared to do extraordinary things.
What does legacy planning entail? What does that look like? Here 5 ways to strengthen your legacy as an artist.
1. Document and Create Digital Assets of Your Work Early on and Often in Your Career
Legacy planning does not need to be a monumental task when you incorporate and implement this practice consistently throughout your life. However, it will be an overwhelming task if you procrastinate and wait for that "someday."
We live in the digital age, so there's no excuse for not documenting your work when the technology is at your fingertips (and with you at all times). You can even do your bookkeeping and taxes by taking photos of your receipts.
The records are not just limited to the physical work itself but also relevant data—installation, exhibition records, press coverages, publications, sales records (for bookkeeping), interviews, creative processes, and specific instructions to care for your work for conservation.
Assets that predate the digital era, such as photo prints, 35mm negatives, cassette tapes, and CDs, require special devices to convert them to the current format. For instance, functional 35 mm slide scanners, carousels, VCRs, and CD players are rare to find these days.
Why it matters: The longer you put it off, the current technology will become obsolete tomorrow, and preserving the assets will be more challenging. Keeping track of your work does not need to be elaborate and does not require a fancy database. You can even start adding relevant info to an Excel spreadsheet. Remember, these records are your most precious assets that validate your work's authenticity and create assurance from unexpected life events. In addition, the catalogue raisonné production will be much easier 10-20 years from now when you have the data in one place. Here's the previous article on the basics and getting started on catalogue raisonnés.
2. Be Authentic: Keep It Real
Authenticity is such a heavy word in the art world. According to the American philosopher of art, web entrepreneur (founder of Arts and Letters Daily), and media activist Denis Dutton defines, authenticity in two ways: nominal and expressive. Little authenticity is the tangible form where it serves as the currency that uses provenance to validate whether the artwork is "real" or "fake" in the secondary market. Thus, authenticity, in this context, and the market trends, the artist's reputation in art history, and credentials determine the value of art.
The second form, expressive authenticity, focus on the intentions and inherent authority of and about the subject of the artwork. This idea extends existential philosophy, where one leads an authentic life through independent sovereignty. Their actions and choices are congruent with their values and desires, despite the cultural and social conventions. An example of expressive authenticity is when a musician expresses their personality and interpretation of a song rather than singing the note by note as written.
Why it matters: Becoming an artist is also a choice and a state of being. So be yourself and trust yourself! Nominal authenticity applies to the art market. Focus on expanding your expressive authenticity as an artist. Ask yourself what your intentions are when you are creating your work. In what ways are you staying true to yourself and your work? What values are expressed and aligned in your career?
3. Use the Power of Storytelling
Storytelling is the most powerful and probably the oldest method of transmutation of legacies. Most stories (legends, fairytales, fables, folktales, mythology, The Bible, and other religious texts) have been passed down by word of mouth from generation to generation. Fast forward to today, storytelling has evolved into new ways for people to record, express, and consume stories beyond songs, chants, poetry, and dances.
Stories make us more human and unique—they connect us emotionally and are far more memorable than a list of facts and professional experiences. Credentials are essential as long as they are relevant to your story. As professionals, we often shy away from sharing our personal stories/journeys and put on a more professional façade to shield ourselves from judgments from others. When we don't honor, share, or celebrate our stories and journeys that got us here, we become less authentic and are a disservice to others. Stories reinforce our mission and messages—they inspire us and others to change, evolve, and step into a different paradigm for the present and future generations.
Why it matters: It takes courage to show the human side behind the canvas or your studio practice. People value and appreciate honest people (as long as they are respectful and constructive). As noted above, no one wants to be duped into paying a high price forgeries. The same applies to people— would you want to be around someone disingenuous to themselves and others?
What is your story? What do you want to be known for? How can you sustain to remain the artist you want to be?
4. Think about Conservation of Your Work in the Long Haul
For artists, their artwork secures their legacy and immortality. However, no art is immune to deterioration over time. Even technologies have become obsolete. For instance, specific lightbulbs with certain dimensions need to be replaced to restore Dan Flavin's fluorescent light bulb sculptures. The conservators play a vital role in preserving the work as close as possible to maintain the artists' intentionality and integrity (authenticity). Sometimes we discover an "Easter egg" during the conservation that sheds light on the artist's creative process, intention, and history (see the recent restoration of Johannes Vermeer's Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window, 1657-59). Unfortunately, there are some mishaps with the restoration (see 17 art restorations gone horribly).
Why it matters: It takes a village to preserve the artwork and legacy of an artist. Conservators and collectors have a lot of responsibility for caring for their work. To prolong the lifespan of your artwork, keep meticulous records of your creative process and materials so that they can be replicated, repaired, and preserved properly in the future.
5. Master the Art of Time
Time is the most precious, non-renewable asset. But, unfortunately, most people undervalue time and sadly squander away their time, focusing on low-value tasks and things that are not aligned with their values and mission. When looking back on one's life, one of the biggest regrets in life is not having enough time to pursue or not taking action on what they truly wanted to do.
Why it matters: To maximize time, we must determine what's essential and clarify what we want. Once you decide what you want to do, it's much easier to commit and focus on what impacts your goals more than tackling an endless list of low-value tasks. Focus more on the vital functions and delegate, delay, or delete low-value tasks. Wise man Leonardo da Vinci once said, "Time stays long enough for anyone who will use it [wisely]."
Conclusion
Creating a lasting legacy requires planning, persistence, and a deep commitment to one's artistic vision.
Remember, a lasting legacy is not only about artistic achievements but also about the positive influence and inspiration you impart to future generations of artists and art enthusiasts.
Regularly reflect on your artistic journey, reassess your goals, and adapt your strategies as necessary. Embrace personal and creative growth opportunities, embracing new techniques, styles, or subject matters. You can maintain relevance and build a dynamic and enduring legacy by continually evolving and pushing artistic boundaries.
Let's work together to ensure that the beauty and significance of art transcend time, creating a vibrant artistic legacy for generations to come. Join us in leaving a lasting imprint on the world of art!