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Creative coaching for Artists and Galleries
One-on-One Coaching: Your Path to Professional Growth
Serious Play’s one-on-one creative coaching for artists , a highly personalized approach, develops both the artistic and business sides of an artist’s career. In this format, an artist works closely with the mentorship of Ivan Barnett. He provides dedicated, one-on-one guidance tailored to your unique vision, challenges, and goals. The aim of Serious Play’s creative coaching is not only to help artists improve their creative skills. It also builds a sustainable career, develops business disciplines, and fosters personal growth.
“Where people aren’t having any fun, they seldom produce great work.”
— David Ogilvy
Benefits of One-on-One Creative Coaching for Artists
Serious Play’s one-on-one creative coaching for artists provides a holistic approach. Ivan Barnett’s relationship with you is rooted in empathy, support, and a shared goal for your success. Barnett works to create a safe space for honest conversations and genuine growth.
Gallery Representation & Portfolio Reviews
Artists will develop out-of-the-box professional strategies to distinguish themselves in a crowded market. By refining their unique artistic voice and professional presence, they become more memorable to galleries and collectors.
Story Meaning & Concept Ideation
Artists seeking representation or exhibition opportunities can leverage their unique story to make a lasting impression. A compelling narrative can set them apart from hundreds of other artists vying for attention.
Branding & Identity Development
Instead of forcing a self-conscious “brand,” this approach helps artists uncover their authentic self and how to communicate it naturally. By exploring personal history and influences, artists can articulate a genuine narrative that resonates with collectors and galleries.
Curation & Innovative Exhibitions
Beyond prestige, these exhibitions can significantly improve an artist’s or gallery’s bottom line. When an event captures the imagination of collectors and art lovers, demand for the work increases.
Pricing Strategy & Market Analysis
Artists often struggle with pricing because it involves both emotional and logical considerations. This service helps navigate both aspects, ensuring prices reflect value while remaining attractive to buyers.
Mentoring & Professional Practices
Every artist has a unique journey, and this service ensures that guidance is customized to their specific needs, aspirations, and challenges. Artists receive individualized support that helps them stay true to their vision while also making informed career decisions.
Creative Coaching Services with serious Play
At Serious Play, the focus is on professional tools and practices to help artists succeed commercially. While some may find these topics less relevant, they are still essential for those aiming to balance creativity and financial success. Many artists with day jobs, navigate the complexities of pursuing art while generating income. Ivan Barnett focuses on the fine arts and the craft world—painting, sculpture, photography, and more. However, he values all artistic disciplines. He is here to guide, support, offer insights, and, if asked, provide qualified feedback to elevate your artistic journey.
Gallery Representation & Portfolio Reviews
This is a critical skill of how to approach a new gallery to solicit representation, and help create high-impact connections to stay close to your existing gallery.
Story Meaning & Concept Ideation
This is core to my approach to help artists place more of their artwork in the hands of collectors and patrons. Use your creative life’s journey to unlock deeper meaning behind your process.
Branding & Identity Development
By listening carefully to you and your story, we dive deep to unearth your world to touch your clients at levels that will give you the competitive edge.
Curation & Innovative Exhibitions
Expand upon the “identity” development area as you prepare an exhibition. Set it light years apart to intrigue the public.
Pricing Strategy & Market Analysis
Don’t overlook the art “marketplace” by being out of touch with unfolding trends.
Mentoring & Professional Practices
How to operate a studio and how to communicate with the outside world can be overlooked. We take a walk together and ferret out areas that may be overlooked or even neglected.
Creative Coaching Case Studies
Ivan Barnett produced this case study with an artist. It is a breakout of objectives and challenges undertaken. Barnett wanted to achieve solutions and results that showed a significant change in the artist. The conclusions are specific to the case study here at Serious Play. They show his working ability to collaborate, motivate and transform an individual or an organization looking to improve.
Claire Kahn: A Carefully Curated Discovery
The incredible value of having a world exclusive of an artist’s works for a gallery shows how the artist’s pieces were leveraged for selling through multiple exhibitions. In this study, Ivan took an educated risk on Claire Kahn and promoted her as the second most profitable artist at Patina, driving people to come to the destination to only collect Kahn’s artworks from there.
Creative Coaching Testimonials
Ivan became a friend because of the depths of conversation we could go to, based on beauty, art, design, and aesthetics. Seeing things in context is important. I became a trusted friend. Ivan would run certain things by me. He has an impeccable sense of the importance of beauty and design, a beautiful friendship when it comes to art and adornment, the things that we now call neuroaesthetics.
Ivy Ross, USA President of & Head of Design for Products at Google
We feel incredibly lucky to know extraordinary people like you. To celebrate our anniversary and show our gratitude, Peter and the Atelier Zobel team made a special pin just for you. Without your support, we couldn’t do what we love. Thank you Ivan for over 21 years of partnership, friendship, and inspiration. We are deeply grateful for the memories, special moments, and continued encouragement you’ve given us.
Peter Schmid, Goldsmith
Ivan is a dot-connector, making events truly exceptional. We had one of the important jewelry artists, Peter Schmid, create a whole themes collection inspired by a particular opera that we chose. That’s what I mean by a dot connector, to make an event really something, as opposed to just another gallery opening. These were big events, every single season. Always out of the box ideas. Whatever he’s doing is something worth noticing. He has serious talent. I’m going to use a funny word, but Ivan has the ability to create cool.
Linda Milanesi, CEO/President, Assistance Dogs of the West
Ivan Barnett, former director of Patina Gallery, located in the competitive art scene of Santa Fe, New Mexico, found a way to stand out by creating unique experiences that go beyond traditional art openings. In collaboration with the Santa Fe Opera, he organized an event that blended art and opera, shifting the focus from selling art to engaging the community.
Pam Danziger, Speaker, Forbes Journalist, Market Researcher
Creative Coaching Muse-letters
