Being an artist means being creative, but it doesn’t stop there. There are ways to upscale, be recognized, and be impactful toward audiences looking for collections that fit directly within your profession. Introducing you to the wonders of Etsy. Etsy is a globally recognized online marketplace known for selling varieties of art-related products.
Known for its nature, some would call it an “online oasis” specifically made for artists to upscale their craftsmanship and earn revenue for doing something they love. The idea of being able to support your needs by doing something that interests you – Etsy had already thought of it, Making artists connect through other fellow artists and audiences to boost revenue while also improving their field of specialties.
From Visions Turned Reality: How It All Started
Founded by Rob Kalin in 2005, Etsy started as a small platform for artists to sell their crafts and supplies and share ideas with fellow artists. The first steps taken by the company were more challenging than it is. Taking high-probability risks with careful calculations and long-term planning is why this company became dominant today. The earliest version of Etsy took at least 2 months to build, with nearly 450,000+ active sellers on their earlier versions. Starting off as a small e-commerce marketplace for artists to becoming one of the giants that continue to dominate the fields today, Etsy made its way to the top with compelling, unique ideas and opportunities for new-generation artists.
Now you keep on wondering, how does it actually work? Well Etsy is just like any other marketplace platform like Amazon, Ebay, or Ali express. You register your account, post items, and you find ways to amplify its recognition. What makes it different is that you can only sell your own product, authentic, hand-made products specifically made by you as an artist. It’s a customer-to-customer e-commerce in a general sense where customers and artists communicate with each other.
Empowering through Popularity And Ease Of Access
But how does Etsy actually empower artists? Well, one of the vital factors that the platform possesses is the ease of access which is complementary to its nature of popularity. Often, stand-alone artists find it challenging to find customers interested in their artisanal products, especially if the type of art they’ve poured themselves into only has a small market. Etsy had already thought of an idea to eliminate these barriers allowing artists to reach audiences worldwide within the comfort of their homes.
Recognition Through Illustration
Illustrations are artists’ creative medium when expressing or creating visuals that seem fitting to them, whether commission-based, emotion-based, or just creating art itself. Without the practices of illustration, one could never fully express their emotion to its full extent. Etsy focuses on marketing these unrecognized illustrations and connecting them to individuals who take an interest in countless selections of art, allowing artists to let their expressiveness strike and create their own definition of “creativity” that would allow the audience to look at art from angles that they might not have seen before.
A Platform For Creative Minds
Etsy gives artists opportunities to showcase their works in different fields, from digital prints, hand-made artworks, accessories, jewelry, wall-decorations, to collectibles. Etsy is responsible for bridging customers and artists into a single platform. Creating multiple avenues for artists not only expresses their creativity and showcases them to audiences. Hence, it can also connect them to audiences with unique tastes and preferences. It’s not only a trading channel for artists, but featured artists are also profoundly encouraged by Etsy to inspire them to do greater heights in the context of creativity. Etsy features notable crafts that seem appealing to audiences. Being featured in the top 5 would mean taking your creativity to the next level through grit, discipline, and hard work. A Dabawenya Artist in the Philippines was the first Filipino artist featured on Etsy, gaining recognition from her elegant craft of embroidered jewelry, mixing the elegance of shiny metals and exquisite embroideries, she was recognized by an editor of Esty. Making her the first Filipina artist who was featured for her captivating crafts.
Etsy Wonders in the Philippines
Etsy was later introduced in the Philippines, emerging as an instrument for Filipino artists to showcase their crafts, express, tell stories, and create an impact on social relations. At first glance, you’ll see different artworks by different artists with one phrase that surely will speak in your mind “This is Filipino Art” ranging from iconic historical events manifested into art such as Kalesa, Traditional Jeepneys, Baybayin, Bladeworks, and many other Filipino culture based designs, all can be seen in Etsy Philippines. Showing how Filipinos are deeply connected within their roots by sustaining traditional designs into the modern ages.
Although art in today’s time may come in many forms, the cultural relations of Filipino artists in Etsy are still wildly incorporated to its origin. Examples such as 3d Printed or Printed paper craft Kalesas & jeepneys, Filipino-inspired Graphic designs, accessories, Filipino dresses to authentic filipino household items like walis tambo, wooden utensils, beads and traditional bladeworks like Balisong, cane sword, ginunting and itak.
CONCLUSION
Started as a small company with fast-phasing growth Etsy without a doubt, helped artists become more in touch with their creative side and stopped the unsung struggles that most artists stumble upon. Etsy encourages artists to commit to their passion by helping them create revenue, become more in touch with their creative sides, and help them connect to people globally.
