We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jane Burton a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Jane, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

In the twenty-five years after art school, I worked in the corporate world as a Graphic Designer, and later as a Marketing Director.

My daughter, Caitlin, was eight, I had a full-time job and I volunteered at Caitlin’s school when I started working in clay again. I was passionate about it; somewhat obsessive. I built a small studio in the lower level of our home and would start throwing and hand-building pots and sculptures at 8pm every night. In the wee hours of the night, I’d force myself to bed, knowing there were lunches to pack, carpools to drive and work to get to on time.

I did this for almost five years. Finally, I decided I would go out on a limb and quit my secure, insurance-paying corporate job to hang up my shingle as an Artist.

It worked! Took me a few years before I was able to come close to my prior income, but I was thrilled and elated to be on my own, working in something that was exciting and that I was passionate about.

Jane, 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 feel authentic as an artistic; I feel connected to myself.

Currently I am focused on large-scale, energetic, nonrepresentational painting.
Past lives have included creating life-sized figurative sculptures, art director and graphic designer.

Graduating from UC Davis in fine arts, I was privileged to study under some amazing professors, Wayne Theibaud, Roy deForest and Robert Arneson. Yet when I graduated, I decided I wanted a career in graphic design. I wasn’t quite ready to put myself out there and be vulnerable as a fine artist.

Twenty years later vacationing in New Mexico, I took a class in Native American pottery and fell in love with the process. Once home I delved headfirst into classes and creating pottery which evolved into life sized figurative sculptures. I continued to work in marketing, was a mom, and now added “artist” to my title. While developing my skills I entered many call for entries, and submitted work to publications, which landed me a solo show, and three galleries representing my work, an article in an international trade publication, and self-published book within four years.

Time to quit the corporate world and get serious.

Painting was my first love. I returned to it while attending one of my artist residencies in Canada. The first painting I did was 8’ x 8’; I was in heaven! The immediacy of painting was so different than working in clay. When you put down red paint you immediately have something to respond to. It becomes a conversation, a dance, with the work.

I painted for three years, first, figuratively, then abstractly. I continued creating and selling my sculptures until I developed a large body of paintings.

Since I was already represented by several galleries, it was easier than it otherwise would have been to get my paintings into that world. There are many abstract painters out there, but not many that paint at the scale I do.

It is important as an artist, first and foremost, to create the work that moves you, the work that feeds your soul, the work that comes from within.

I paint energy, energy in the form of movement and connectivity. While painting, I listen to music, I dance, I sing, I paint with my hands. Most importantly I tap into my gut. I do whatever I can to stay out of my analytical, judging left brain for most of the physical process.

Life is energy, and energy connects everything in life.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

We are born into this world as unique creative beings and slowly learn how to conform and see things through the eyes of others. So yes, there are many lessons I’ve had to unlearn. Here are a few that have helped me in the type of expressionist painting I do:

1. BE AUTHENTIC. Search for what moves you. Find your voice through searching internally, not from external approval (sometimes harder done than said when you are making a living from your art). Keep moving forward. Keep pushing yourself, and don’t get into “production mode”.

2. Your art is not precious. Get rid of perfectionism, eliminate expectations and live for the surprises.

3. Don’t compare yourself with others. Listen with “one deaf ear” to both positive and negative input from other.

4. If something excites you in your work, do more of it. This is your voice, develop it.

5. Be a kid. Go back to your essence, play, dance, have fun, be crazy… experiment all the time. Keep judgement at bay. Journal, meditate and listen to your guides.

6. Paint, paint, paint! Expect to love one out of every ten paintings you paint. Showing up is more important than results.

7. SHARE! You are not in competition with other artists. You are part of an amazing community. Share your stories, share your techniques, and share your favorite products. Listen to their concerns, offer suggestions, offer introductions to gallerists, suppliers, other artists. Help them with their social media and marketing. You uplift your community, and you uplift yourself. We are all connected!

How did you build your audience on social media?

During Covid, five of the six galleries representing my work closed. Nobody knew if this was going to be an ongoing trend. Artists, including myself, were scrambling to find new ways to sell their work.

At that point I had 650 followers on Instagram. I struggled over the next three months, even buying Instagram ads, to increase the number to 800.

I figured I needed some advice and to delve into some of the features. I contacted a couple of artist friends whose accounts I admired and listened to a ton of YouTubes and tutorials.

I never liked speaking in public, let alone filming myself. But realized it was important for followers to get to know me, as well as my art, and that I would reach more people if I started posting reels. It did get easier and more relaxing the more I did it.

Within the first 8 months I reached 10k followers and two new galleries.
My followers are a mix of collectors, galleries, consultants, interior designers, and other artists.
I started teaching “Fearless Abstraction” painting workshops and quickly filled them through IG announcements.

These are the things I feel helped grow my account.
1. Be authentic
2. Share useful and informative information – teach them something
3. Post consistently (I post 5 times a week)
4. Show your face, let your audience get to know you, to hopefully like and trust you
5. Reels and videos are great
6. Reply to all comments and messages
7. Create a consistent, clean look (only use a couple colors and 2 to 3 fonts repeatedly)
8. Engage in conversation and write appropriate comments on other feeds

I’ve focused on Instagram here, but other social media is also important. Depending on your target audience age group, Facebook is still valid. Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube are all great platforms.

All these platforms will point to your website which you’ll want to be sure is clean, up to date, and match the style you set up for your social media. Additionally collecting emails on your website and social media is paramount for long-term relationship building.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.janeburtonart.com
• Instagram: @janeburtonart

Image Credits
I photographed all of them except the picture where I am finger painting. that was taken by Krista Harris.