After seeing other artists gain a following on Patreon and hearing their positive feedback about the platform - I took the plunge and set up a creator page about 6 years ago.
Very simply put, it's a platform whereby people can become patrons of your work and they can support you by paying a monthly subscription (or opting for a free membership tier). I regularly post news and updates on my Patreon page including details of my work, insider information about how the gallery, studio and workshop that I run operates, I offer special discounts and VIP invites to events for paid members and I ask for help or input for certain projects. Membership is in tiers - I offer 3 tiers from about £4 to £35 per month. For my higher tiers I send 'rewards' or thank you gifts in the post plus I offer them reductions on workshops and hires. Some artists offer classes, exclusive video access and artwork as rewards. Each creator does it differently.
Some artists appear to earn a very good income from this model - I know this because creators can opt to publicly share their membership numbers and subscription income on their profile. My income from the platform is very modest - but during lean times it is a very important source of income. It's not all about money though. Over time I have come to feel that a real sense of a community exists within the group of people/supporters who have come together on my page. It's taken years to build a community and subscribers do come and go. It's an evolving space and requires a commitment from the creator to connect in meaningful ways with their audience.
It feels like there is a pressure to always post positive news on platforms - even when things are not going so well. For me Patreon feels like a place where you can post honestly because those you are posting to are actually interested in your work and support you. It feels a safe space to share what it's really like to be an artist. I should say that I'm not being paid by Patreon to say that! I am by no means an expert on the platform. The platform is not perfect and it's not free. I'm not using all the features and benefits that it offers and not everyone who supports my work wants to subscribe to this type of model. It is what you make it and I make it work for me to help me to feel less isolated and to be more honest about the business of being an artist.
It's a great place to find other creators and enjoy and support their work too. I follow some really inspiring artists on there and as I said they inspired me to try the platform for myself. I am not on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter (although I do post gallery news
for the WORKERS on Instagram & Bluesky).
Link to my page: artgayle
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