We recently connected with Alex Radin and have shared our conversation below.
Alex, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about the things you feel your parents did right and how those things have impacted your career and life.
Growing up my parents always made me feel like I could accomplish great things and they were very supportive of anything I showed interest in. They also taught me to put everything I had into whatever I was doing and not to cut corners.
I remember as a kid wanting to go surfing with my friends but having yard work to finish. I was cutting some hedges lining our driveway and ready to run off but my dad asked me if I raked off the tops of the hedges. When I did the tops would stick up and then need to be cut again. This process of doing detailed work translated into everything. If I was doing a job I was taught that it was only worth doing if it was done right. Of course as a kid that meant how my dad wanted it done but over time I grew in my critical thinking and developed my own set of standards that were very much influenced by my parents who always pursued excellence.
The encouragement and support they always gave me was very foundational in forming the confidence in me to take risks and try new things. Artists need that ability and confidence to take risks. I was not afraid to fail because failing simply meant I was learning and growing. It was that … great job … try again … you got this … type of encouragement that led me to not only become an artist but also an entrepreneur which resulted in the launching of many businesses over the years.
To illustrate the extent of their encouragement I am reminded of a conversation I had with my dad the year before he died. He was looking at one of my paintings and he said to me, “You know son, when you told me you wanted to go to art school I didn’t think you were going to last at that school one semester.” He was sharing that with me in the context of looking at a painting of mine that he loved and was genuinely impressed with. So this conversation was taking place over 20 years later and I had absolutely no idea he ever was thinking that. All I remember at the time I decided to change schools to study art was him saying go for it!
Alex, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I grew up on Long Island and always loved creating which came out in different ways which included drawing, painting, writing, film and sports. I loved to surf, snowboard and play lacrosse. I went to college to play division 1 lacrosse but realized half way through that what I really wanted to do was pursue a career in the arts. When I transferred to art school I wanted to take every class I could so I have a wide foundation which included design, color theory, advertising, marketing, photography, web design, graphic design, and Illustration along with fine art classes in painting, welding, figure drawing etc. I was all over the place soaking up everything I could.
After graduating from the Columbus College of Art and Design (CCAD) I started doing illustration work for books and magazines, painting portraits and murals. Really I was doing anything artistically I could to make a buck. At the same time I was working on my fine art career being a part of fine art exhibits, and even planning my own shows. I didn’t have an agent or a gallery at that time so I was marketing myself.
Early on I had a real love/hate relationship with the business of art. By nature I can find interest in almost anything but like most artists I wanted to spend my time creating, not thinking about making a living and figuring out how to make money connect with inspiration and dreams.
During those early years I would sell a painting and then months would go by where nothing sold. As I marketed my art work people who saw my website and marketing materials would reach out and ask if I could help them build a website and market their business. Doing that kind of work seemed to fall in my lap. When I wasn’t planning a show and selling my paintings I was able to bring in income through other creative outlets. I loved the aspect of solving problems for my clients and helping them grow their brands. What started out as a side hustle developed into the agency I own and operate today called FDG which stands for Further Design Group.
Apart from my personal art and my marketing agency, my wife and I co-founded an arts organization called Artist on Fire where we produced larger group shows and themed events for Spoleto international arts festival as well as some smaller exhibits throughout the year.
By far the art that I am most proud of is my family. My wife Sara and four kids are all amazing souls. All of them artists in their own right. Creating family and crafting community is an art form that goes back to the dawn of time. Most people don’t traditionally think of it when talking about creating but there is definitely an intentional crafting and design that results in an experience. It all really blends together for me so life becomes art and art becomes life. Inspiration is everywhere. Everything influences everything. So when I create a painting or produce some form of art it is usually carrying on a discussion I was already having with someone that led to a thought that for me required more of a response.
All that to say when it comes to creating art I am more interested in the idea behind the work than sticking to a specific medium or technique. I have created installation art, film, poetry, stories, mixed media works, digital art, but the primary art form that most people would identify me with is painting.
Surrealism and metaphor have increasingly become a standard in my work. While ideas are the driving force behind my art, I place a high value on technique and love to get lost in the design and breakup of space. I am intensely interested in the conversation that colors have with one another as well as communication between strokes and other strokes, shapes, and colors. Even though I get lost in all this, I always return to my subject matter in the end. My desire is to help people see the world in ways they may not have seen it before. I want to draw people’s attention to the beauty and the mystery that surrounds us every day.
Have you ever had to pivot?
Having a fine art career and owning a marketing agency has been challenging to balance. Over the years I had to be intentional to not allow one take over the other or vice versa. I get to be creative in very different ways so I actually really enjoy both art forms. Fine art for me is more like having a deep conversation with close friends. Marketing is an art form that involves communication, problem solving, strategy, competition, and creative disruption.
In recent years my marketing agency has grown a lot which resulted in needing to give it more attention to make sure it grew in a way where the quality of work and service did not suffer as the company scaled. It left me with a difficult choice. Would I spend much less time creating fine art for a season and give more in depth attention to other aspects of running a successful agency in order to allow the agency to grow or would I keep it where it was so I could balance both more evenly?
This was a big pivot for me and my family. We opted to commit to a season of greater investment in the agency to see increase that would allow for greater investment in the fine art side of things in the future. So for the past few years I have produced less paintings and we have not done the larger scale art exhibits as we have been building the marketing agency. Creating standard systems and processes, building a stronger team, getting the right people in place, and clearly defining goals, are all steps that needed to happen to further free up my time to invest back into fine art. This was a major pivot since for over 15 years the primary focus of my time and energy leaned towards fine art. Certain art projects that I started before this shift have been on hold for years now. I still continue to create paintings and work on developing concepts for larger shows in the future but it is not the kind of focus needed for producing a full exhibit. Staying involved in the process of creating fine art and not letting that side of things totally stop has been important during this season which will be wrapping up soon so we are excited to see what lies on the horizon.
Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
Earlier on in my art career I wish I knew and understood more about business in general and how to generate wealth. Understanding taxes and how to operate a successful business were not things I focused on in college. It really never came up early on. As you build friendships with other entrepreneurs in different fields you learn more and more about all kinds of things. A friend and entrepreneur recommended the books Tax-Free Wealth by Tom Wheelwright and Becoming Your Own Banker by R. Nelson Nash which have both been valuable resources.
Also the things I learned over the years about marketing, particularly how to show up for specific searches on page one of google, as well as brand messaging and the importance of story through the book Story Brand by Donald Miller have been invaluable. Understanding these things early on would have made a world of difference.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://alexradin.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alexradin/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alexradinfineart
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/furtherdesigngroup/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/AlexRadin111
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/AlexradinArtLoversTV
- Other: Aside from my fine art website listed above the link to my marketing agency is https://furtherdesigngroup.com/
Image Credits
Alex Radin