Making art videos - why filming my process is important as an artist
If you're selling work online it's a great way to show buyers how you make things, and the amount of love and care that goes into them. Many people want to buy handmade because it's special, and they also like to see the story behind pieces and know a bit about the artist too.
It's also a great way for buyers to have confidence in you as a maker. I've been in art for many years and there's various things that go on - from people using other people's designs and not saying so, buying things in from elsewhere and claiming they've made them, and now there are people using AI to create items for sale and not being transparent about their process. I can only imagine how it feels as a buyer when you've paid a premium for something only to find you've been duped. It erodes confidence in all of us who sell handmade.
We also need to claim ownership of our work. I'm greatly saddened that the biggest traffic to this website is from places known to steal photos and counterfeit work. This is a huge issue as an Etsy seller because people have their shops shut down mistakenly due to this stuff. Having a catalogue of your work on video being made by yourself, is one way of having a bit of insurance that you can prove it's yours.
I certainly don't wish to be a content creator, just making a few videos (and many disasters), has given me an appreciation of the time and skill that goes into creating them. I am starting to enjoy it as a learning exercise of it's own though, so hopefully they will improve as I go on. Making videos doesn't have to be about potential monetisation or marketing, it can be about sharing your passion, and I think the internet needs much more of that from artist and makers.
