Meredith Bergmann is an American Sculptor who both creates public monuments & sculpts on a private scale. She lives in NYC, and has created the Boston Women’s Memorial (2003), is currently working on the FDR Hope Memorial for Roosevelt Island, and has also created the 9/11 Memorial at Cathedral of St John the Divine. In this episode of the Thriving Artist Podcast, Meredith helps us understand what goes into managing large scale art projects. Topics include:
- The trials and tribulations of doing commissions, especially large public art ones
- Managing project scope, objectives, and expectations
- Dependency on 3rd parties (e.g. foundries)
- Contracts and payment by project milestones (not time)
- The financial side – getting paid in chunks without knowing how long each check is supposed to last
- Why do your best work even when the money isn’t there?
- “The biggest skill is not to panic.”
- Special issues sculptors face vs. other visual artist.
- Not being limited by genre biases
- The influence of motherhood
- Marketing strategy – then and now
Meredith Bergmann is an insightful guest, and anyone doing large, commissioned projects can’t afford to miss this 30-minute episode. Listen now, or download and take it with you on your phone or mobile device. Meredith Bergmann may be reached at meredithbergmann.com
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