The FASO Podcast

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https://artists.boldbrush.com/p/the-faso-show

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For our season 14 finale, we sat down with artist and veteran art-marketing writer, Lori Woodward. Lori shares how she went from burnout after art school to rebuilding her skills through workshops, portrait commissions, and writing for major magazines and art organizations. She explains how learning directly from successful peers, mentors, and collectors shaped her understanding of how the art market really works, which is very different from generic marketing advice. Lori breaks down the impact of the 2008 recession, why so many galleries and careers collapsed, and why today’s market, despite economic anxiety, is fundamentally healthier and full of new, younger collectors. Throughout the conversation, she emphasizes that no amount of marketing can replace a cohesive, competitive body of work, consistent production, and a recognizable voice that develops only through years of painting, experimenting, and failing forward. She gives practical guidance on pricing, working with galleries, outdoor shows, email lists, and social media, stressing that real relationships and in‑person experiences now matter more than chasing algorithms. Ultimately, Lori encourages artists to build a realistic vision, move slowly but steadily, and design a career that fits their personality—whether that means becoming a local favorite, a gallery regular, or a small‑scale, part‑time professional who still sells meaningful work.
Sign up for Lori's Newsletter:
loriwoodward.com/email-newsletter
Lori's FASO Site:
loriwoodward.com/
Lori's Social Media:
instagram.com/woodwardartist/
Lori's Article about Pricing:
https://www.artworkarchive.com/blog/how-to-price-consistently-for-art-sales-success
Lori's Blog:
loriwoodward.com/blog

Join our next FASO Show Live!
https://artists.boldbrush.com/p/the-faso-show

Learn the magic of marketing  with us here at BoldBrush!
boldbrushshow.com
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For today's episode, we sat down with Ned Mueller, an American artist and longtime illustrator-turned-fine-painter, known for his strong drawing, expressive plein air and figurative work, and decades of teaching and mentoring artists around the world. He shares his lifelong journey in art, from drawing as a child and training as an illustrator at Art Center School of Design to eventually transitioning into a fine artist with a distinct voice of his own. He talks candidly about facing serious health challenges, chronic pain, and burnout risks, and how having something meaningful to get up for—his painting practice and the support of his wife Karen—has kept him going. Drawing on decades of experience, Ned emphasizes the “four P’s”: patience, perseverance, practice, and passion, urging artists to find subjects they truly love so their excitement shows in the work. He underscores the importance of strong fundamentals—especially drawing and values—explaining that you must first learn to paint what you know, then what you see, and ultimately what you feel. Ned also advises artists to simplify by thinking in big shapes, values, and edges, to do lots of small studies (in plein air and the studio), and to keep sharpening their skills through critique groups, workshops, and consistent practice. Throughout the conversation, he offers grounded yet hopeful insight into building a sustainable art life: do the work, keep learning, accept the hard realities of the art market, and let your love for painting carry you through the long haul. Finally, Ned tells us about his online classes!
Ned's FASO site:
www.nedmueller.com/
Sign up for Ned's workshops!
www.nedmueller.com/workshops
Sign up for Ned's Newsletter!
www.nedmueller.com/email-newsletter
Ned's Social Media:
www.instagram.com/nedmueller06/
www.facebook.com/NedMuellerFineArt/

Join our next FASO Show Live!
https://artists.boldbrush.com/p/the-faso-show

Learn the magic of marketing  with us here at BoldBrush!
boldbrushshow.com
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For today's episode we sat down with Jennifer Balkan, a contemporary representational oil painter and art instructor based in Austin, with an academic background in behavioral neuroscience and sociology. She describes how a lifelong love of drawing crystallized into a serious painting practice after a transformative, self-gifted trip to Paris, which led her to take her first painting class in Austin in 2001. Despite completing a PhD and following a more “rational” career path, she felt an irresistible pull toward painting, ultimately choosing to pursue art full time even amid concern and confusion from friends and family. Jennifer explains that her scientific and sociological studies deeply inform her figurative work, especially her focus on the emotional, cerebral life beneath a subject’s expression and her love of optical color mixing and visible mark-making. She discusses how her inspiration has evolved from narrative series into a stronger emphasis on shapes, light, and color relationships, and how experimenting with different media during the pandemic revitalized her practice and fed back into her oil painting. Jennifer also highlights the central role of Atelier Dojo in her life—as both a co-created figurative hub and an atelier program that nurtures students’ individual voices. Jennifer also shares practical, grounded advice for aspiring full-time artists about embracing multiple income streams, loving the process, and committing to sustained, disciplined practice. Finally, she tells us all about her upcoming shows and workshops!
Jennifer's FASO site:
jenniferbalkan.com/
Jennifer's Social Media:
instagram.com/jenniferbalkan/
Atelier Dojo!
atelierdojo.com/

Join our next FASO Show Live!
https://artists.boldbrush.com/p/the-faso-show

Learn the magic of marketing  with us here at BoldBrush!
boldbrushshow.com
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On today's episode we sat down with Sarkis Antikajian. Born in 1933 in Amman, Jordan, Sarkis discovered French Impressionism and Van Gogh as a teenager — a spark that never left him. He immigrated to the United States at 25, spent 35 years as a pharmacist building the financial independence to paint full-time, and retired in 1994 at 62 to finally live his dream. He is now 93, and still paints every day. Deeply shaped by Van Gogh's persistence, Sarkis believes in loving the process over the outcome, staying curious at every stage of a career, and painting freely without chasing validation or market trends. He has worked across watercolor, acrylic, oil, figurative, landscape, and abstraction — always seeking new ways to see.His advice to artists: find another source of income so financial fear doesn't limit your creativity, paint often and on inexpensive materials, and stop waiting for anyone else's approval to make the work that's truly yours.
Sarkis' FASO site:
sarkisantikajianfineart.com/
Sarkis' PBS Oregon Art Beat Video:
https://www.pbs.org/video/oregon-art-beat-painter-sarkis-antikajian/

Join our next FASO Show Live!
https://artists.boldbrush.com/p/the-faso-show

Learn the magic of marketing  with us here at BoldBrush!
boldbrushshow.com

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What does it actually mean to make it as an artist? Not the Instagram version — the real version. The one that looks different at 25 than it does at 50. The one that shifts quietly under your feet while you're busy just trying to keep painting.
I've had the privilege of sitting down with some of the most seasoned working artists I know, and when I ask them about success, the answers always surprise me. So today, I've pulled together some of the most honest, hard-won perspectives from past guests — on what success actually requires, what it costs, and what it turns into over time.
Episodes Mentioned:
100 Kevin MacPherson
101 Joseph Gyurcsak
105 SC Mummert
130 Scott Ruthven
140 Donald Yatomi