How do I promote my art?

An artist-reader writes in with a very real question

Yesterday morning we woke up to an email from a creator we’d supported on Metalabel: Lavisha Jain, who recently released a series of ​​digital marks and prints. Their email read:

This email is a form of thanking you for buying my art pieces. This keeps me motivated to create more and better.

I realised that you are the cofounder at Metalabel. I want to tell you that it is great to have such a platform to be able to present my art and have people buy it. I do have one question though I don't know if you will be able to help me with this but how do I promote my art?

As much as I understand that it takes time to create an audience but I also want the world to know and reach out to a greater market.

Hoping to hear from you soon!

Lavisha Jain

We were struck by both the honesty and truth of their question. We quickly wrote back:

Hi Lavisha —

Thank you for your note. First, I'm really glad you're finding Metalabel a good home for your work. That's exactly what we built it for.

On promotion — you've hit on something every artist struggles with. Making the work is, emotionally, the easy part. Fulfilling that need we all feel for our work to be seen, appreciated, and validated is the more difficult step.

One way I've personally approached this is by thinking about my work as "releases" that are building a bigger catalogue of work rather than individual posts that each need to get attention to be considered "successful."

Some ways I try to do that:

1. Release my work as a limited edition. Creating a more limited object (even digital) is a way of stating my own intentions and goals. Not trying to get as many people as possible, but what's a number of people that feels meaningful to be a part of? It could be 5, 25, or 150 depending on who you are. Putting a cap on the total amount available is a way of removing that thirst for attention and putting the focus more on appreciating the people who choose to support. If something exceeds expectations, you can always release a second edition if you want.

2. Think of each piece as part of a larger series. You don't always have to be fully aware of what that series is or be too strategic about it, but see each thing you make as part of a larger story of you — a grand story, a cosmic one — rather than some little node that's out there floating in a giant ocean of content begging for attention. Ground your intentions in your own practice rather than an external reception.

3. Make work with other people. This is easier for some forms of expression (music) than others, but one of the surest ways to put yourself in front of new audiences is to do things with other people. This can mean collaborating in a traditional way, or it can mean something more like co-releasing in a Metalabel way, where everyone contributes a piece to something larger and mutually shares in the benefits.

4. Talk to the people who support you. Collectors are an essential part of the creative process, supporting and sharing the work of others. It's critical to the entire ecosystem. Show your appreciation by reaching out, just as you're reaching out to me.

5. I personally don't find much success with posting on social media anymore. I still sometimes do it just because I think it's a mass broadcast channel so why not put my commercial on it, but I rarely see much return and I find myself doing it less each week. Instead most of my energy goes into writing on my blog, sending newsletters, making projects with friends, and following and supporting the work of peers and people I like. Those are all ways to stay connected and strengthen my network without relying on social media.

These steps don’t solve everything. The desire for attention never gets truly solved by more attention. Even when you're on top, there's always someone or something higher.

But we all have the power to change our frame of mind and decide to let our creative passions drive us rather than desire for the approval of others. When we do that, the right people seem to magically show up to find us. That’s the most reliable way I’ve found to build the audience, relationships, and catalogue that reflects who I am as a creative person.

Hope this helps,
Yancey

Thanks to Lavisha for the honest question and for giving permission to share this exchange. Check out her catalogue on Metalabel here.

---

FEATURED RELEASES

Aligning an Open Source Ethos
By Roopa Vasudevan
Strategic Transparency Press

This week we’re especially excited by two new releases from media artist, programmer, and scholar Roopa Vasudevan and her new label Strategic Transparency Press. Across two mini-zines, Vasudevan combines original research and explorative thinking to examine the challenges and motivations of the open source community ($15) as well as the opportunities and pitfalls of working as a creative person ($3) in eye-catching, small-run physical zines. The thoughtful framing, personal voice, and honest presentation are all so Metalabel-core it hurts. Limited numbers available.

---

Little Letter of Nonsense – Feb 2025
By The Independent Variable

This is the second in a series of super-specific, monthly personal mini-zines by Kevin Humdrum (who also runs Foofaraw Press, which releases on Metalabel) that document what’s going on in the world of news, pop culture, and online culture on a monthly basis. The tone is on-point and the style is intentionally no-fuss in a way that feels honest. Available for just $1.25 in physical or digital form.

(The latest in a series of hyper-personal, digital-physical mini-zines we’ve been seeing lately — *trend report alert*)

---

The Fair: A Future in Love drop
By RADAR

Step into a post-capitalist fever dream where love isn't sold in heart-shaped boxes! For the RADAR virtual LoveFest experiment, strangers were brought together for an exquisite corpse writing exercise — write a single collaborative story beyond narrow commodified conceptions of love. One of the results is this collaborative gem about time, care, and magical gardens. Very happy to see this release from our longtime creative friends at RADAR.

---

Photographs, 1st selection
By Jeffrey Saldinger

Jeffrey Saldinger is a New York City-based artist and photographer who is releasing a collection of archival pigment prints that freeze-frame subtle slices of NYC’s streets. This release is celebration of his 15-plus year expansion from painting to photography, and we have the inside scoop that these extremely limited prints are made at home with personal care. Love the story and work.

---

Lavisha_01
Catalogue spotlight

Finally we can’t end this without a look at the work of Lavisha, who wrote in for the start of this week’s newsletter. Her Metalabel catalogue includes four releases, each a carefully curated collage of images, videos, and poetic questions that feel both ephemeral and relatable. We’ve loved everything we’ve collected, and will be loyal Lavisha supporters from here on out. Explore for yourself.

---

NEW CREATIVE ERA: Why collaboration should feel like a fun conspiracy

This week in New Creative Era, Josh and Yancey dive into the topic of collaboration. What have we learned about collaboration? How have we become part of collaborative projects? What went well? What didn’t? Why do the best ones feel like a conspiracy?

Listen here, Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get podcasts.

---

FROM THE CRATES

We asked Lena Imamura, artist and head of creative and operational things at Metalabel, what she’s digging these days. Lena, what are you finding on Metalabel right now?

Cat meme meets pokemon card in this super niche art print — one of the few singular items that embodies everything that makes me smile.

‘90s grunge media junkie fantasy come true — the iconic “choose life” trainspotting monologue on a T-shirt.

Love a collectible card and really anything that makes me fantasize like I’m in high school again. Imagine getting a cryptic love letter printed on a Yu-gi-oh card from an arty internet-gamer nerd you’ve had a secret crush on — the one that doesn’t say much but expresses their feelings through their art — sigh ˏˋ°•*⁀➷

If you like the Esoteric, Mysticism, AI and Zines — this ones for you! Super into the proposition of thinking about Ai as an oracle, possibly the gods of the future yesterday?! 😅

Ancient Kabbalistic wisdom translated in English through a contemporary framework with sprinkles of AI and interdimensional references. Narrated by an Indian Jewish man who jumps from autobiography to quoting God to personal philosophy without skipping a beat, confusing all sense of time and space. A genuinely unusual release that would pique the interest of any budding theosopher.

---

Peace and love y’all,
Metalabel