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For today's episode we sat down with Emma Kalff, a painter living in a tiny rural town in southwestern Colorado, where she now earns 90–95% of her income from her art after years of gradual building, side jobs, and business education. She began in sociology at Boston University, realized social work wasn’t for her, and followed her heart down to the art world in New Orleans through figure modeling, eventually receiving a rigorous classical training at the Academy of Fine Arts. Her work evolved from plein air landscapes into layered, dreamlike paintings that combine candid photographs of people with Colorado’s dramatic landscapes, allowing compositions to unfold organically rather than from strict pre-planning. Emma is currently working on a series of five large 30x40 inch linen paintings—“who, what, when, where, why”—that explore existential questions about living and making art in a socially, politically, and technologically volatile era, partly through reinterpreting historical symbols in a contemporary context. She emphasizes that a sustainable art career requires treating art as both craft and business: balancing studio time with marketing and education, diversifying income streams, engaging with local communities, and not waiting passively to be “discovered.” Throughout the conversation, she is honest about the psychological challenges—discipline, burnout, distraction from social media—while still affirming that this open-ended, uncertain time offers artists unprecedented freedom and direct access to their own audiences. Finally, Emma encourages us to sign up for her newsletter and Patreon to stay updated on her work!

Emma's FASO site:

emmakalff.com/

Sign up for Emma's Newsletter!

emmakalff.com/page/49408/newsletter-signup

Emma's Patreon:

patreon.com/cw/EmmaKalff

Emma's Social Media:

instagram.com/emmakalff/

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register.boldbrush.com/live-guest

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

Get over 50% off your first year on your artist website with FASO:
FASO.com/podcast

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To end off season 13, we sat down with Matthew James Collins, a figurative painter, portrait painter, and sculptor living and working in Florence, Italy. Matthew traces his path from a creative childhood in Oak Park and frustration with contemporary-focused art school to then find classical, atelier-based training in Florence. Matthew explains how Old Masters like Titian, Van Dyck, Rembrandt, and Velázquez shaped his devotion to painting from life, Baroque optical effects, and the idea of following their principles—especially observation of nature—rather than copying their style. Matthew also explains how cameras and screens distort our sense of seeing, why young painters should “go cold turkey” from photographic reference when possible, and how experiencing art in person and in context is radically different from viewing it in what Matthew calls “art zoos” (museums stripped of original context). Matthew shares concrete insights on portraiture—sight-size work from life, historical palettes, thoughtful posing and lighting, and the slow, conversational sittings needed to reveal character—as well as his teaching method of painting alongside one or two students and correcting in real time. Underneath it all, the conversation keeps returning to bigger themes: the likeness of artistic voice to a lifelong "Odyssey", the role of culture and curiosity, the practical and emotional difficulty of being an artist today, and the enduring importance of making ambitious, sincere, beautifully crafted work that lives with people in everyday spaces.

Matthew's FASO site:

matthewjamescollins.com/

Matthew's Social Media:

instagram.com/matthewjamescollinsartist/

facebook.com/matthewjamescollinsartist/

Matthew's Articles:

Historical Approaches for Contemporary Portrait Practice

Dancing Faun of Pompeii: Removed From Habitat, Out of Context

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FASO.com/podcast

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In this compilation episode, we are focusing on tips about one of the most important parts of an artistic career: collectors. Our past guests emphasize that fine art is sustained by strong, long-term relationships with collectors, not just technical skill or gallery placement. They describe collectors as people who often want a personal connection and ongoing dialogue—through conversations at shows, home salon events, and gallery openings. Many of our guests highlight using newsletters, social media, and even texting to stay in touch, share new work, and make collectors feel appreciated and involved. Several artists stress the importance of gratitude and reciprocity, from handwritten thank-you notes to remembering birthdays and asking how collectors discovered their work. Overall, collectors are not only buyers but possible friends, supporters, and “connectors” whose loyalty and enthusiasm can sustain an artist’s career over many years.

Episodes mentioned in order of appearance:

• 81 Steve Atkinson
• 87 Johanna Spinks
• 94 Karen Blackwood
• 61 Nanci France-Vaz
• 99 Heather Arenas
• 101 Joseph Gyurcsak
• 120 Kim Casebeer
• 130 Scott Ruthven
• 162 David Griffin
• 166 Miriam Schulman
• 170 Kim Lordier