Tumblr for Artists
Welcome to Tumblr. Artists on Tumblr have joined this bustling social media platform to mingle yet another distinct group of social media users. As an artist you will create posts of photos, videos, music and text or reblog interesting posts from other Tumblogs. I started really regularly using Tumblr last year and so far I am enjoying it and I like following other artists this way as well. I love Tumblr because there is a real focus on sharing images with people and I'd say that there is a similarilty to Instagram in this way...but it is still very much it's own thing! Here's what I learned that would be helpful for you to get a head start and be a savvy Tumblr user.
What is Tumblr Open Arts ? Following Tumlbr Open Arts is a great way for artists on tumblr to launch themselves into being a savvy user. Follow them on Tumblr and you can be updated on calls for art submissions and other resources for artists. Follow Tumblr Open Arts here: http://tumblropenarts.tumblr.com/post/45998966609/how-to-sell-your-work-on-tumblr
What are Tumblr themes? The look of your Tumblr page can be customized either with free themes or with themes that you can buy. If you buy a theme then chances are that your Tumblr page can be better customized in a style that you prefer to showcase your artwork. Here's a place where you can find some lovely themes for your Tumblog: http://www.tumblr.com/themes/
What is Tumblr Radar? All artists on Tumblr want to get their art featured on the Tumblr Radar! Its currently located on the bottom of the menu on the right side of your Tumblr home page. There is a great deal of discussion about what might get your work featured on Tumblr Radar. Some say that you need to be a consistent user, posting images everyday, others say that you need to use the right hash tags. If you do manage to get featured your work will get great exposure and your "Tumblog" will get followed by tonnes of new people.
I have had my work featured on there once and here is what the post looked like:
It received 3,159 notes! Incredible - and I gained a tonne of followers from the exposure. All I did was make sure that I used a few hashtags so that my work could be discovered by people searching for those terms...and the work is unique which may have helped me to get featured. The hashtags I used were #art #artist and #vancouver . So that if anyone was searching for those words they might come across this post.
The finer points: If you want a little guidance in setting up your Tumblog or just want to get the scoop on how to finesse your Tumblr you can then check out and follow the Best Practices for Artists Tumblog. Here you will find great examples of gorgeous Tumblr themes, a list of great art Tumblogs to follow and much more.
Wanna get started with your own Tumblr? This is a good guide to do so:
http://bestpracticesforartists.tumblr.com/start
Wanna sell your work via Tumblr? Here's a way: