I ALSO HARDLY SIGN MY WORK lol and it's mostly because i'm so tired/relieved to be done that i can hardly muster doing one more thing...but also it's kinda like, why am i going to sign someone's logo? i suppose it's different when it's, say, a big gold leaf piece that you designed yourself, but idk...i need a smaller little signature I think to squeeze in there, lol. as you can see i'm also back and forth on it
Oh I FEEL YOU on the tired and relieved part - I just want it OUT of the studio and DONE and I never want to see it again! (And then once I sleep on it and have a week away from the project I remember how much I like it lol.) I think that I'm going to try and develop some sort of cute monogram and incorporate that plus a date in my favorite signs moving forward... unless I forget because I'm tired... hah the neverending cycle!
No shade to those who do sign commissioned arts, but I feel you regarding some types of commission work feeling weird to “sign.” Of course with tattooing one doesn’t sign someone’s body* but even if that were the case I never felt true ownership over the pieces I did, even if I spent hours drawing, then hours tattooing. Perhaps the process and resulting piece never felt “for me” (ie, the client is both the initiator and initiative) whereas a 5 min sketchbook drawing feels absolutely ok to sign, annotate, date, destroy or what have you because it’s all me. (Sometimes I even forget to “count” the huge binder primarily of custom sketches and final drawings as well as the process and finished photo records I’ve kept from my 8 years tattooing as work I created at all!)
Similarly, these days I tend to date or make notes on sketches so I can orient myself as to when and under what circumstances, BUT sometimes I turn the page to do so because preserving the layout (such as an interesting use of negative space) seems key. With your sign work, clean shapes / space is way important. Maybe there is a way to discretely sign or stamp a small area or on the back that wouldn’t conflict with egos or design. How interesting would it be if 30 years from now someone is going through an old garage and finds an “early” or “original” KB and can trace its roots!?** In this way I see signing or marking a work as touching future history. Is that something to consider or is that too, a form of ego? Or both?
Love your thoughts and happy new year!
*I have seen select tattoo artists have various forms of “signature” but it’s part of what the client is aware of going into it.
**I think it would be very interesting, and not because of ‘fame’ or collectibility reasons. I love an old pen and ink watercolor I bought at an antique shop signed simply: “Ms. Peters.” It’s a mark of a life lived, as much as the art is… A different but related conversation is about adding the human touch in an increasingly digital world.
Thank you Paula! Yes I feel you on the "not feeling true ownership" part of it, since it's not my business! I think that's at the heart of the conflict for me - it's not fully mine to sign off on. But I think after mulling it over and reading responses, I'd like to create a simple monogram and date that orients the pieces in time and space, at least for my own records!
Hello miss! I have always assumed the sign painter waitlist thing was due to being a one-person business. At least that's how I end up in that predicament: there's only so much time in a day, and I'm the only person emailing, getting supplies, quoting out projects, chasing invoices, paying bills and finally.....hopefully painting something! I hate telling people they have to wait, it feels like I'm walking away from work I desperately need! But I don't have the budget to pay an assistant or shop manager (and secretly I don't know if I can delegate such intimate tasks).
Hi Shelby!! Thank you so much for your response! And YES I totally agree with this - and often find myself in this situation too. It's hard out there as a solo-business owner (I also would probably never be able to delegate.) And I think what the conversation triggered for me was a question about the attitude around this - whether we foster transparency around our business to work with clients, or if it's more of a cultural "you get what I give you when I'm available" attitude - if that makes sense? But also, I'm a softie and I probably do too much emotional labor / people pleasing when working with clients...
Totally! I’d rather contort my body into an over- apologetic cashew than give a brief “I’ll get to it when I can” reply. Could be a byproduct of us being cultured as women, or our own anxieties, or a delightful mix of that plus some other brain junk!
You hit the nail right on the head! I hadn't yet considered it being a product of my conditioning, DUH... But also yes, a delightful mix of it all! Here's to being a little less of an overly-apologetic anxious cashew in the new year while also maintaining good client relationships!
I ALSO HARDLY SIGN MY WORK lol and it's mostly because i'm so tired/relieved to be done that i can hardly muster doing one more thing...but also it's kinda like, why am i going to sign someone's logo? i suppose it's different when it's, say, a big gold leaf piece that you designed yourself, but idk...i need a smaller little signature I think to squeeze in there, lol. as you can see i'm also back and forth on it
Oh I FEEL YOU on the tired and relieved part - I just want it OUT of the studio and DONE and I never want to see it again! (And then once I sleep on it and have a week away from the project I remember how much I like it lol.) I think that I'm going to try and develop some sort of cute monogram and incorporate that plus a date in my favorite signs moving forward... unless I forget because I'm tired... hah the neverending cycle!
No shade to those who do sign commissioned arts, but I feel you regarding some types of commission work feeling weird to “sign.” Of course with tattooing one doesn’t sign someone’s body* but even if that were the case I never felt true ownership over the pieces I did, even if I spent hours drawing, then hours tattooing. Perhaps the process and resulting piece never felt “for me” (ie, the client is both the initiator and initiative) whereas a 5 min sketchbook drawing feels absolutely ok to sign, annotate, date, destroy or what have you because it’s all me. (Sometimes I even forget to “count” the huge binder primarily of custom sketches and final drawings as well as the process and finished photo records I’ve kept from my 8 years tattooing as work I created at all!)
Similarly, these days I tend to date or make notes on sketches so I can orient myself as to when and under what circumstances, BUT sometimes I turn the page to do so because preserving the layout (such as an interesting use of negative space) seems key. With your sign work, clean shapes / space is way important. Maybe there is a way to discretely sign or stamp a small area or on the back that wouldn’t conflict with egos or design. How interesting would it be if 30 years from now someone is going through an old garage and finds an “early” or “original” KB and can trace its roots!?** In this way I see signing or marking a work as touching future history. Is that something to consider or is that too, a form of ego? Or both?
Love your thoughts and happy new year!
*I have seen select tattoo artists have various forms of “signature” but it’s part of what the client is aware of going into it.
**I think it would be very interesting, and not because of ‘fame’ or collectibility reasons. I love an old pen and ink watercolor I bought at an antique shop signed simply: “Ms. Peters.” It’s a mark of a life lived, as much as the art is… A different but related conversation is about adding the human touch in an increasingly digital world.
Thank you Paula! Yes I feel you on the "not feeling true ownership" part of it, since it's not my business! I think that's at the heart of the conflict for me - it's not fully mine to sign off on. But I think after mulling it over and reading responses, I'd like to create a simple monogram and date that orients the pieces in time and space, at least for my own records!
Hello miss! I have always assumed the sign painter waitlist thing was due to being a one-person business. At least that's how I end up in that predicament: there's only so much time in a day, and I'm the only person emailing, getting supplies, quoting out projects, chasing invoices, paying bills and finally.....hopefully painting something! I hate telling people they have to wait, it feels like I'm walking away from work I desperately need! But I don't have the budget to pay an assistant or shop manager (and secretly I don't know if I can delegate such intimate tasks).
My fantasy career pivot is landscaper btw :)
Hi Shelby!! Thank you so much for your response! And YES I totally agree with this - and often find myself in this situation too. It's hard out there as a solo-business owner (I also would probably never be able to delegate.) And I think what the conversation triggered for me was a question about the attitude around this - whether we foster transparency around our business to work with clients, or if it's more of a cultural "you get what I give you when I'm available" attitude - if that makes sense? But also, I'm a softie and I probably do too much emotional labor / people pleasing when working with clients...
Landscaper is a GOOD one. Adding to list :)
Totally! I’d rather contort my body into an over- apologetic cashew than give a brief “I’ll get to it when I can” reply. Could be a byproduct of us being cultured as women, or our own anxieties, or a delightful mix of that plus some other brain junk!
You hit the nail right on the head! I hadn't yet considered it being a product of my conditioning, DUH... But also yes, a delightful mix of it all! Here's to being a little less of an overly-apologetic anxious cashew in the new year while also maintaining good client relationships!
“Contort…into an Over-apologetic cashew”… love that!!!