How I started my art career (and why going viral kind of sucks)

Hi everyone 👋🏻
I hope your summer has been great! I have a few videos in the works that take a bit longer to film, so in the meantime I thought it would be fun to sit down and look at how I started out and what happened when I had a viral moment last year.

I also hope you enjoy checking out my new Patreon! If you’re interested to join the postcard club, you have until August 12th to get this month’s postcard & sticker design 💌

See you very soon,
Carmen

My gear 🎥

Introduction 0:00
Patreon! 0:29
Choosing my career path 0:48
Art school 1:15
Freelancing in Canada 2:48
Cosplay 3:03
Trying a ceramics class 3:27
Full time at a local bakery 4:00
Focusing on my small business 5:29
Going viral 7:25
Growing on social media 9:36
The aftermath 10:52
Imposter syndrome 11:18
Slow and steady wins the race 13:09

Amazon links are affiliated 💫

[moths.for.valentine]

yep, i used to post my digital art on instagram. i had a few viral reels, one reached half a million views. it's crazy to think about, because going 'viral' like this was my dream. i gained about 8000 followers over a month. It's insanely overwhelming but also "addictive"? i kept obsessively checking if i had grown, and whenever the first wave stopped and new posts gained less traction it felt bad. Like i as a person was doing something wrong. I stopped enjoying what i did and posted only with the goal of appeasing to people. I quit a few months ago

[kmarrsart]

More people need to talk about this. I had a video go viral on TikTok and went from 260 followers to 20k in 3 days and it was great for my business, but I feel like those people were only there for that one video and nothing else. There’s so many emotions and sometimes painful truths to going viral

[nicolehyc]

I discovered your work when you went viral with the cloud watering bell, but I'm so happy to have stuck around, especially because you now create longform videos and do so well at it too! I've not been able to buy any pieces from you yet, but keep it up Carmen. Rooting for you!!

[bysamreen]

it fees scary but good scary. i get the cons but they're better than struggling to find an audience, not sell anything at all and putting out so much content and art without it getting noticed. i've been trying so hard to make it big as an artist since 2016 and would die for viral moments. 🥺

[crookedgarden]

Holy shit what a good video! It actually sounds terrifying what you’re describing in regards to going viral. As an artist you want to develop and create what feels good, but with so much pressure from so many eyes on you, it makes a lot of sense if that gets overwhelming very fast. Love this vid. Dankjewel, je hebt me echt een nieuw perspectief gegeven! High five van een mede ceramiste

[klappaucius]

Thank you for sharing : )) Excited to see what you’ll make in the future. I love people like you; calming, genuine, creative. All the love < 3

[_lei_c_]

I believe hat going viral is not strictly what everyone wants, but having a community that’s willing to stay and enjoy what you make. Going viral once is in many people’s minds heaps better than not being seen by anyone for so long that you give up, and I agree, as I’ve been trying to be successful for years by now and even though I just started my business, I already feel burnt out. It’s so hard, and the big corpos are not helping, so, sadly, going viral seems like the only way :’c

[katarinakidd]

I'm a relatively new follower, and definitely fit into the category of loving your long form content and wanting to stick around for the long haul! I can't wait to see what future collections look like and how your art practice evolves. ❤

[MintyMido]

Thank you for making this video!! I experienced something similar (though on a much smaller scale) recently and it’s been really overwhelming and scary, and it’s been hard for me to admit that to myself. I’ve been desperate to find another artist speaking about this feeling bc it feels really isolating - yes going viral/getting lots of views is something ppl strive for, but there are downsides to that much visibility and not enough ppl talk about it, esp among artists bc most of us want that visibility so bad in the first place. This video made me feel less alone in those feelings, esp in regards to being introverted and getting imposter syndrome - so thank you again!!

[somegreenlife]

I can understand that so well. I have a small candle business and have started pottery to make my own candle jars. To practice, I made all kinds of things and filmed them from time to time and uploaded them to social media. Last August, a video suddenly went viral. I was completely overwhelmed. I was also ill at the time and had to finish my Master's degree. In the end, I hardly posted or sold anything at all because the high demand overwhelmed me. Now I'm working on my first candle ceramic collection and if something goes viral again, I feel a bit better prepared for it.

[annamarialanger]

Loving the way you tell your story! Thank you for sharing :)

[magnificloud]

So wild watching the context behind this watering bell 😭💖 as someone with a cloud oriented aesthetic I remember seeing it, trying (and failing miserably) to make one of my own. Not finished the video yet but I do want to say that I'm in love with your art and I wish you success and comfort.

Edit: finished the video. As an artist (nervously preparing for 4 years of college in fine arts), thank you. :)

[ellstration]

Thank you for sharing your story Carmen! 🌸

[leenabowman]

I think I found you from your Japan vlog and then I saw that your other content was also right up my alley! I've really enjoyed your art vlogs and your art. I realized I didn't follow your other media accounts but I did that now. I will be sticking around!!!

[AriannaAnda]

So beautiful, thank you for sharing your story.

[eurikaileidoscope]

Heyo! So glad to have your story shared with someone like me. I’m an artist in the Philippines who’s studying Multimedia Arts (videography, graphic design, some illustration techniques) and also after having gone in my first two terms I’ve also had a constant, thunderous battle between choosing to do digital art (which I still love doing, but I don’t actually have any experience or interest in doing logos or doing brand designs… I like making my own characters – I actually studied Animation in another school before I shifted to Multimedia Arts). I still haven’t graduated, but I can’t wait for the time that I do so that I can allot my time to learning about pottery and ceramics and also making my own polymer clay figurines of my characters. ❤ As of now, I’ve been taking the time to practice my crochet skills which is a hobby I’ve decided to pursue just at around the start of this year. I think it’s really a joy to work with something tangible in my hands, and it’s really beginning to color the way I view art and my own specific lifestyle! To add to that, I try to make my own homecooked meals because it’s pretty satisfying to work on something you want to consume and digest! Also, you’ve found yourself a new subscriber! I hope to make a YouTube channel of my own too, and I’m not at all discouraged that I’m not viral! I’m so glad I found an artist on the Internet that I can relate to. Hehehe

[itswonky]

love your honesty!! such great insight here! thanks for sharing ✨

[insertdisc]

i love your work and love your videos!!! thank you for speaking about your experience!!!

[viola.artstudio]

absolutely this video! I am so happy I found you, you have such a calming aura 🥰 and I absolutely relate to this!

[Luanabackart]

Wow! I'm about to start my art account here and instagram.. and this video definitely helped me to understand a little more about social media. Thank you! Also, what a beautiful place! and you are very stylish, I loved it!