How has social media changed the opportunities for artists compared to 20-30 years ago?

Twenty to thirty years ago, you were geographically fixed—you could only market and sell to people in your physical location. To reach beyond that required spending money on ads, PR, or having galleries and art world entities advertise on your behalf. Now with social media, you can start with zero followers and, just by being interesting and consistent, gain significant attention all over the world in a relatively short time. This was never possible before. It doesn’t mean it’s easy—it requires consistency and keeping your ‘shop open’—but the opportunity to build a global audience without geographic limitations or large advertising budgets is unprecedented. This is one of the two major reasons (along with print-on-demand) why there’s never been a better time to be an artist.

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Asked by synthesized from teaching · Answered by Patrick · Art Business Webinar · 2026-06-08