Art Problems

Osad

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  EP 121: A Tale of Two Emails 21.07.2026 34min

  Mike Ryczek flew to New Orleans to see his work hanging in the kind of gallery he'd always aspired to. Dinner with the other artists went fine. Then came the gallery crawl the next day, and he froze: four galleries deep without talking to anyone, thirty minutes standing beside his own paintings waiting for someone to approach, and finally the Irish goodbye and some consolation fried chicken.  In this episode, the two of us talk about the moments an art career makes you feel like an imposter, and I share my own recent version of his story, because these feelings don't retire with experience. What changes is how you recover. Mike is a painter in Dedham, Massachusetts who has held gallery representation for over a decade, won a $15,000 Mass Cultural Council grant, and still interrogates every achievement for the trick behind it. Our conversation stays close to what an art career feels like: from the whiplash of rejection and reward arriving back to back to the self-belief it takes to keep assigning yourself work few people see. There’s no strategy in this episode, just the facts of the profession.  Relevant Links:  Mike Ryczek Creative Capital Mass Cultural Council
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  EP 120: Jennifer Sharpe on Shifting Ground 20.07.2026 45min

  Have you ever struggled to figure out exactly where your art fits? Or maybe you’ve tried to write an artist statement only to find it one of the hardest tasks you’ve ever had to do. Today’s guest, Jennifer Sharpe, a multimedia artist and experimental filmmaker, has a way of making those problems vivid and infinitely relatable.  In this episode, we talk about how a continuously shifting cultural landscape affects artistic practice. Over the last twenty years, we’ve seen multiple online communities collapse and rebuild. Jennifer came away convinced that while platforms vanish and institutions wobble, the relationships you build are the only durable asset an artist has.  This conversation wanders in the best way. Racehorses, vagabonds, cave paintings, jobs, and a whole bunch of other ideas you wouldn’t think have anything to do with artists, but really do. RELATED LINKS Free Info Session, How to Get on a Museum’s Radar, Tuesday, July 21, 7:00 PM ESTJennifer Sharpe
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  EP 119: 20 Rejections Later with Gin Stone 17.07.2026 20min

  The art world tells artists that if you just keep going, eventually something will break for you. But persistence can also keep you stuck. If you don’t know something’s broken so you keep doing the same thing, you won’t grow. That's what happened to Gin Stone. Gin is a Cape Cod artist who did what she was supposed to do. She kept going. And she stayed stuck because she didn't have the right help. In this episode, she talks about the gallery show that made her realize she had nothing to say about her own work, the overhaul that followed, and the grant she landed just last week for a sonification project built on 2,000 years of geological data.   RELEVANT LINKS: Free Info Session, How to Get on a Museum’s Radar, Tuesday July 21, 7:00 PM ESTGin Stone
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  EP 118: Patience Pays off with Peter Walsh 16.07.2026 26min

  After years of producing social practice art, Peter Walsh wanted to get back in the studio. So he rented a space and started painting. But when he started reaching out to his old painting friends, he found most had moved on to other things. He needed community.  He joined Netvvrk, along with many of the artists in his Brooklyn studio building. Then he practiced patience: he went to other people’s shows, built relationships, and let the work lead. That led to his first solo show in New York.  In this episode, we talk about restarting a practice mid-career, the self-doubt that shows up even with a long CV, and why the artwork always has to come first. Peter lost a painting the day before we recorded. He painted over it and kept working. As he puts it, he's not done.RELEVANT LINKS Free Info Session, How to Get on a Museum’s Radar, Tuesday July 21, 7:00 PM ESTPeter Walsh
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  EP 117: Building an Art Career Without Art School 15.07.2026 26min

  Guest: Mark Witzling, abstract painter In this episode of Art Problems, I speak with Mark Witzling about his career path as a painter. Witzling continues our series on artists who are building careers regionally, and his story takes on a second challenge that artists ask me about all the time. Witzling doesn’t have an MFA or a BFA in art.    And he works full time on his art. Want to know how he got his studio paid for and work placed without institutional bona fides, while living in St Louis, MO? Tune into this episode and find out!    RELEVANT LINKS    How to Get on a Museum’s Radar, (Free info session) Tuesday July 21, 2026 Mark Witzling Craft Alliance (St. Louis)  Southern Vermont Art Center — site of his solo show last year
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  EP 116: From Open Calls to Gallery Representation with Meg Lagodzki 14.07.2026 32min

  Meg Lagodzki paints from a studio in the woods just outside Bloomington, Indiana, five hours from the nearest major art center. In this conversation, part of an ongoing series on artists building careers outside NYC and LA, she talks with Paddy about what it took to grow beyond her local market: the critique group that pushed her work in a new direction, the cold DM from a gallery that turned into a five-year relationship, and the shift from applying to open calls alone to finding opportunities through other artists.Meg also talks candidly about what changed once she started applying to harder, more selective opportunities instead of easier ones, and why the collectives inside Netvvrk, the smaller groups built around a shared thread like medium or geography, became one of the most valuable parts of her membership.Meg Lagodzki is a painter based in Bloomington, Indiana, and a member of Netvvrk's Woods and Forest Collective.Relevant links:Join the Free Live Webinar: How to Get on a Museum's Radar, July 21, 7:00 PM ESTMeg Lagodzkihttps://www.meglagodzki.com/ Momentum Galleryhttps://momentumgallery.com/  
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  EP 115: Three Mistakes to Avoid when Applying for a Guggenheim Fellowship [Re-air] 07.07.2026 11min

  In this episode, Paddy gives you the skinny on the Guggenheim Fellowship, one of the most prestigious awards for mid-career artists. The talk contains tips and strategies you won't find on their website, including knowing when to apply and how often. You won't find this information anywhere else, so have a listen. Even if you're not planning to apply, this episode will give you strategies for ALL grant applications.Relevant links:https://www.gf.org/  
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  EP 114: Katie Hargrave on Building a Career from Chattanooga 22.06.2026 27min

  Katie Hargrave is a visual artist and associate professor at the University of Tennessee Chattanooga, where she's lived and worked for twelve years. This is the second episode in a series on artists building careers outside city centers.Katie talks about what that has required: virtual studio visits that now feel more natural to her than in-person ones, a social media presence built on sharing other people's work without an obvious ask, and getting really good at logistics. She and her longtime collaborator Meredith Laura Lynn work six hours apart by car, and Katie explains how that distance has shaped their partnership for the better. She also talks about why being direct early in a relationship makes everything that follows easier.Katie Hargrave is represented in exhibitions across the Southeast and beyond, including recent shows at the Hunter Museum of American Art, the Knoxville Museum of Art, and Granary Arts. She often collaborates with artist Meredith Laura Lynn.Relevant links:Katie Hargrave: katiehargrave.comMeredith Laura Lynn: meredithlauralynn.com
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  EP 113: How to Build a Thriving Art Career from Outside a Major City Center 08.06.2026 33min

  Ever wondered how to build a growing art career without moving to New York or L.A? Today, I speak with Jodi Hays, an artist who has done just that.  In this episode, Jodi talks about deciding early on not to bend to the art world’s preference for artists located in major cities, and to build something sustainable on her own terms. This meant investing in Nashville as her home and part of her practice, taking the long view on relationship-building, and using follow-up, not just outreach, to open doors. She also gets into the financial realities of working outside the major markets, and what it looks like to finally have gallery representation she trusts. About Jodi Hays: Jodi is a visual artist based in Nashville, Tennessee. Her work is held in public and private collections, and she is represented by David Lusk Gallery.  Relevant Links  Jodi HaysDavid Lusk Gallery
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  EPS 112: Four Years In, Two Years Out: How Three Artists Built an Art Space 22.05.2026 17min

  with Constance McBride, figurative ceramic sculptor, curator, and co-founder of The Hook ExperimentConstance McBride came back to art at 47 after 25 years in the corporate world, eventually joining Netvvrk in 2021. Four years later, health reasons pulled her away from the membership. What happened next is the kind of story Paddy doesn't always get to tell: a former member building something real. Now based in Chester County, Pennsylvania, Constance is co-running The Hook Experiment, a nonprofit gallery and performance space in Oxford, PA, where artists can show large-scale installation and experimental work free from commercial pressure. The space hosts group shows and open calls, rents to outside organizations, and recently completed its first international juried exhibition. It's a 501(c)(3) now, with a board, an executive director, and a calendar that includes performance, sound events, and more. In this conversation, Constance and Paddy talk about how the skills she built inside Netvvrk showed up when she wasn't even looking for them, how artist-run organizations can be structured to protect studio time, and what it looks like to build infrastructure for your own community when the existing options don't fit. Constance McBride is a figurative ceramic sculptor and installation artist based in Chester County, Pennsylvania. She is a co-founder and board member of The Hook Experiment. Find Constance's work at constancemcbride.com or follow her on Instagram at @constancemcbride_art. Find The Hook Experiment at thehookexperiment.org or on Instagram at @hookexperiment. Questions? Email support@netvvrk.com. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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  EPS 111: Your brain is listening. Holly Wong on Imposter Syndrome 08.05.2026 56min

  Do you feel like an imposter? Most artists do, at least sometimes. But artist anxiety can take on a life of its own -- the voice that says your work doesn't matter, that you don't belong, that it's only a matter of time before everyone figures it out. This week's guest, Holly Wong, has thought hard about why the art world breeds this so reliably. When even objective markers of success can be questioned, the goalposts never stop moving. In this episode, we talk about how negative self-talk shapes outcomes, why grant writing can be a path to self-acceptance, and how to stay generous without losing yourself in the process. Resources:  https://hollywongart.com/ BiographyHolly Wong creates fiber and drawing-based installations and collaged paintings that explore healing and resilience. She was educated at the San Francisco Art Institute where she graduated with a Master of Fine Arts. Holly has participated in over 100 exhibitions including group shows at the de Young Museum, the Marin Museum of Contemporary Art, and the Contemporary Jewish Museum. A Presidential Scholar in the Arts, she has received grants from the California Arts Council (Established Artist category), the Puffin Foundation, the George Sugarman Foundation, and the Barbara Deming Memorial Fund. She is represented by SLATE Contemporary Gallery in Oakland, CA, Bridgette Mayer Gallery, Philadelphia, PA, ELLIO Fine Art in Houston, TX, and Walker Fine Art in Denver, CO. Holly lives and works in San Francisco.
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  EP 110: Building a Practice Around Your Values with Crystal Hartman 23.04.2026 28min

  Crystal Hartman has been a Netvvrk member since we launched in 2021 — long enough to know exactly how she uses it, and what it's actually done for her practice. She joins me today to talk about what it looks like to run a studio with your values front and center: finding community after relocating to a new city, using Netvvrk as a resource library rather than a fixed routine, and how learning to articulate what she needed led directly to getting the keys to an experimental exhibition space in her town.Crystal Hartman (b. 1983, Durango, Colorado, USA) is a multimedia artist based in Urbana, Illinois. Her work has been exhibited at the CCCB, Barcelona; National Palace of Culture, Sofia; BMOCA, Boulder; Arvada Center for the Arts; and Denver International Airport. Her work appears globally in arts and literary publications, as album art through independent labels, and on book covers published by Oxford University Press and A5 Publishing, Madrid. In addition to her studio and curatorial practices, she teaches workshops on Light and Alternative Photographic Processes each spring through the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign at The Farms: An Allerton Folk School.Free Info Session: How to Get on a Museum's Radar - Tuesday, April 28th at 7pm EST. Register here.Website: https://www.crystalhartman.com/
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  EP109: Less Human: Reviewing the New Museum’s Inaugural Show 16.04.2026 37min

  Artists Tommy Riefe and Lexa Walsh join me to discuss the New Museum expansion and show, New Humans: Memories of the Future curated by Massimiliano Gioni and Gary Carrion-Murayari. We discuss the success of the building itself and then move onto the show’s major themes—the history of the human body as mediated by technology.    Additional Resources:  Tommy RiefeLexa Walsh  The New Museum, New Humans: Memories of the Future Jeffrey Deitch, Post Human, 1992   Boris Groys, Art Power, 2008 Jason Farago, The New Museum Reopens Asking: “What is Human?”, 2026, The New York Times   Artist guests:  Tommy Riefe  Riefe earned his BFA in Art History and Sculpture from the University of Northern Iowa in 2014, and later received his MFA from the Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis in 2017. He has been in numerous group exhibitions and has public sculptures in the collections of Howard Hughes Medical Institute in Ashburn, VA (2022) Fort Dodge, IA (2021) Lakewood, MN (2019), Iowa State University (2018), Minnesota State University (2018), Laneken, Belgium (2018), Cedar Falls, IA (2017) Rock Island, IL (2016), and Sioux City, IA (2016).   Lexa Walsh Lexa Walsh is an artist, cultural worker and experience maker.  With a background in both sculpture and social practice, Walsh makes site specific projects, exhibitions, publications and objects, using an array of materials including ceramics and textiles, employing social engagement, institutional critique, and radical hospitality to question hierarchies, power and value.   Walsh founded the experimental music and performance venue the Heinz Afterworld Lounge, and co-founded and conceived of the all women, all toy instrument ensemble Toychestra.  Walsh worked for many years as a curator and administrator at CESTA, an international art center in Czech republic, whose team created radical curatorial projects to foster cross-cultural understanding. She founded Oakland Stock & Soup for Social & Racial Justice, and the Bay Area Contemporary Art Archive. She is a graduate of Portland State Universitys Art & Social Practice MFA program and was Social Practice Artist in Residence in Portland Art Museums Education department. She was a recipient of Southern Exposures Alternative Exposure Award, the CEC Artslink Award, the Gunk Grant and was a de Young Artist Fellow. Walsh has participated in projects, exhibitions and performances at Apexart, di Rosa Center for Contemporary Art, FOR-SITE, Grand Central Art Center, Kala Art Institute, Marin Museum of Contemporary Art, NIAD, Oakland Museum of California, SFMOMA, Smack Mellon, Walker Art Center, Williams College Museum of Art, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, and has done several international artist residencies, tours and projects in Europe and Asia.
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  EP 108: Will the A Corp Change the World? 03.04.2026 47min

  The art world has no HR department. There's no employer to set up health insurance, no emergency fund, no retirement plan. If you’re a freelance artist, that means you’re on your own. Today's guest, Yancey Strickler, co-founder of Kickstarter and founder of Metalabel, thinks that can change with a new business designation called the A-Corp. The A-Corp is Strickler’s answer to that problem: a new business structure built specifically for artists that comes with legal protection, fair ways to share ownership with collaborators, and eventually, a path to group health insurance. It’s currently a bill before the Colorado Senate — and if it passes, Colorado becomes the template for the rest of the country. Strickler walks me through how it works and makes the case that we’re only at the very beginning of something much bigger.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​   RELATED LINKS Artist Corporations Metalabel The Creative Independent TED Talk: Forget Hustle Culture. Behold the Artist Corporation New Creative Era podcast — Yancey's podcast with Joshua Citarella Artist Corporations: New Podcast and Early Traction — the episode where Yancey first laid out the A-Corp in detail
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  EP 107: The 2026 Whitney Biennial—What Can Art Do Now 20.03.2026 1t 7min

  Artist William Powhida and Netvvrk Operations Director Penny Retica join me to discuss the 2026 Whitney Biennial, curated by Marcela Guerrero and Drew Sawyer. We walk through the show's major themes—human-animal relationships, infrastructure, economic critique, and the handmade.   Our conversation explores the possibilities brought forward by the biennial. Does it represent a search for art’s utility in a moment of uncertainty? Is its focus on feeling over confrontation, a curatorial choice or a broader retreat? What are the consequences of omitting collaborative work and art showcasing decentralized resistance?  Like all good conversations, this one doesn't offer easy answers. We examine what the biennial reveals about the current moment, and in a time that feels directionless, that critical work can feel grounding. Guests: William Powhida, artist Penny Retica, Netvvrk operations director Additional Reading: Ben Davis, The Whitney Biennial Just Wants you to Feel Something, Artnet, 2026  Aruna D’Souza, The Polycrisis Sublime of the Whitney Biennial, Hyperallergic, 2026 Jenny Wu, Whitney Biennial 2026 Review: The Revolution Will Be Cute, Art Review, 2026 Anna Kornbluh, Immediacy, or The Style of Too Late Capitalism Art Problems Podcast, Episode 85: What is Killing the New York Art Fairs, Part 2 We want to hear from you. Email us at support@vvrkshop.art Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.
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  Bonus Episode: From Treading Water to Landing Commissions in One Year with Yuko Oda 23.02.2026 38min

  What does it feel like to work professionally as an artist for 23 years but still feel like you're treading water? In this episode of Art Problems, I speak with Boston-based artist Yuko Oda about joining Netvvrk just over a year ago after graduating from RISD in 2002 and spending two decades feeling confused about her trajectory. She was saying yes to everything, spreading herself too thin, and missing opportunities she should have seized—like a group show in Tokyo where she wasn't happy with the work she submitted. In just over a year, Yuko sold her first major piece directly to a collector, secured a three-piece commission for a downtown Boston high-rise, exhibited work in Rome that she calls her best art experience ever, and learned to set boundaries that protect her momentum. We talk about overcoming hesitation to invest in yourself, how accountability groups helped navigate everything from invoices to artist-consultant contract splits, and what it feels like to finally know where you are on your career path instead of floating like a bubble. Free Info Session: How to Become a Biennial Artist - Wednesday, February 25th at 7pm EST Register here.  Yuko Oda: Website: https://www.yukooda.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yukooda75 Education: Rhode Island School of Design (RISD): https://www.risd.edu Institutions Mentioned: UMass Lowell: https://www.uml.edu Harvard Entomology Club: https://hmnh.harvard.edu New York Institute of Technology: https://www.nyit.edu Grants & Programs: Guggenheim Fellowship: https://www.gf.org Artists Mentioned (Commission Advice): Laura Fayer: https://www.laurafayer.com/ Adria Arch: https://www.adriaarch.com/ John Laustsen: https://www.jonlaustsen.com/ Mary Lynn Burke: https://www.marylynnburke.com/ Kristin Cronic: https://www.kristinraecronic.com/ Kristi Kun https://www.kristykun.com/
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  Bonus Episode: How to Transform Your Grant Applications with Kimberlee Koym-Murteira 22.02.2026 20min

  What does it take to level up your documentation and grant applications when you're deeply insecure about your writing?   In this episode of Art Problems, I speak with Bay Area artist Kimberlee Koym-Murteira about joining Netvvrk three years ago, knowing she needed support to win more grants. She'd seen firsthand that when she had help, she was successful—but she didn't know how to get that consistently. Through constant feedback, mentorship from members, and building relationships in accountability groups, Kimberlee transformed her applications so dramatically that she won many and went from avoiding certain opportunities to applying for the Guggenheim.   This conversation breaks down what it looks like to use a creative community—getting feedback within hours when you need it, why AI tools help but can't replace human editors, and how focusing on your own path instead of competing locally creates sustained hopefulness even when six major galleries in your region close. If you've ever wondered what the practical day-to-day of career growth looks like, the details are all in this podcast.   LINKS AND RESOURCES Free Info Session: How to Become a Biennial Artist - Wednesday, February 25th at 7pm EST. Register here. Kimberlee Koym-Murteira: Website: https://www.kimberleekm.com/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kimberleekm/ Tools & Resources Mentioned: Grammarly: https://www.grammarly.com ChatGPT: https://chat.openai.com Bay Area Context: California College of the Arts (CCA): https://www.cca.edu
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  Bonus Episode: How to Re-Enter the Art World After 25 Years 20.02.2026 50min

  What does it feel like to return to your art practice after a 25-year break? In this episode of Art Problems, I speak with visual artist Shae Nadine about navigating an art world that had completely transformed in her absence. When Shae joined Netvvrk two years ago, she was figuring out basics like digital documentation and artist statements. But through accountability groups and community support, she went from feeling lost to landing a NYSCA grant, a SuCasa residency, and curating a four-month public art exhibition in Chicago. This conversation gets into the unglamorous parts of building an art career—like why Shae's accountability group toasts their rejections, how to know when you're actually ready to apply for major grants, and why sometimes the best thing you can do for your relationship is stop asking your partner to read your artist statement. If you've ever felt like an outsider in the art world, I recommend listening to Shae’s story.   Links: Free Info Session: How to Become a Biennial Artist - Wednesday, February 25th at 7pm EST Register here. Shae Nadine || SubtleFlux: Website, Instagram Grants & Programs Mentioned: NYSCA (New York State Council on the Arts): https://arts.ny.gov Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (LMCC): https://lmcc.net Sukasa Grant: https://www.skowhegan.org/sukasa Manhattan Graphics Center: https://www.manhattangraphicscenter.org Pollack-Krasner Foundation: https://pkf.org Guggenheim Fellowship: https://www.gf.org Resources: Powerhouse Arts (mentioned in episode): https://powerhousearts.org Westbeth Artists Housing: https://westbeth.org
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  EP 106: Going from “I Can’t Do This” to “I Can Do This” with Artist Maggie Hinders 06.02.2026 19min

  Have you ever felt overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information out there to help artists? In this episode of Art Problems Netvvrk member Maggie Hinders shares how the Netvvrk Navigator assessment transformed her artistic experience of this reality from "I can't do this" to "I can do this." Maggie talks about moving from using Netvvrk primarily for community connection to finally tackling the curriculum with clarity. We discuss how the assessment organizes information into a clear path forward, why understanding what different career levels actually look like matters, and how developing an artistic narrative helps you communicate about abstract work. If you've ever felt like your brain works like a web and you need help pulling out that first thread, this conversation is for you.
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  EP 105: How to Do Fewer Things 26.01.2026 12min

  80% of artists struggle with the same problem: getting seen by curators, gallerists, and collectors. And solving this problem is like slaying a multiheaded Hydra—the tasks are endless.In this episode, we talk about how to conquer the Hydra. I break down the reasons artists get stuck, even when they're working hard. You'll learn why the order you tackle things matters more than the tasks themselves, and how one overwhelmed member went from "30 things to do, doing none of them" to making real progress in six months.I'm also announcing the Netvvrk Navigator—a new assessment tool I built with artist William Powhida that shows you exactly where you are in your career and what to work on next. Plus, a special offer for the first 10 annual members that's only available once.If you've been working hard without seeing results, this episode will show you exactly what to do next.