Alesandro Ljubicic on how a day job keeps you grounded

Words by Madeleine Dore
&
Photography by Mitch Lui

“Even if I accumulate everything I need, I’d still keep working at the shop. It’s the thing that grounds me.”
– Alesandro Ljubicic

Artists have long upheld day jobs to support themselves as they inch towards success, only to typically abandon the burdensome distraction once they can support themselves through their practice.

Australian painter Alesandro Ljubicic is an exception. Despite several sell out shows in recent years and his work fetching $24,000, he continues to toil six days a week at his art supply store, The Sydney Art Store.

From the beginning, opening the art supply shop has been a strategic way to allow him to paint without comprises.

“I always loved painting and I loved using a lot of paint. I knew I didn’t want to compromise. So with the help of my parents, we opened an art supply store that would predominantly fund or support my art practice without skimping on material.”

Despite now being able to live off his art, his success acts as a “turbo charge” for his art career, rather than a replacement for his work running the store.

After all, the art world can be so fickle he explains: “I don’t know if my paintings are going to sell next year or the year after that. It’s just one of those things you can't rely on, so it's important not to have that pressure and to just keep pushing your practice as much as you can. That should be the main focus.”

Eliminating the stress of being a starving artist

Having a set nine-to-five routine is both grounding and freeing. Having limited time means that when Alesandro does head upstairs to his studio after the shop closes, he has to make the most of it.

“Even if I accumulate everything I need, I’d still keep working at the shop. It’s the thing that grounds me.”

But a day job also allows him the freedom to create the work he wants, not work he thinks will have an audience.

“For me personally, having a day job means when I get into the studio, I don’t feel the pressure to paint what people want or what is going to sell. I don’t care because I have a day job that pays my bills. For me it is expressing myself, feeding the soul, and if it sells, my goodness, even better.”

This “bonus” has allowed Alesandro to pour more resources into his art – he can use more paint, source better support frames and cedar stretcher bars, and even experiment with using dibond to support his canvases.

A day job also helps keep his focus clear. “There are a lot of artists who say they are making work for passion or purpose, but then they always complain about not selling. You have to figure out what you want to do and how you want to do it and then I think things will fall into place. That’s my view.”

The impossibility of being creative all day

While many of us may fantasise about being productive all day long, the reality is creative work has natural ebbs and flows.

“I hear artists complaining all the time about how they wish they could paint all day, but I feel like it’s almost impossible to paint all day.”

“I hear artists complaining all the time about how they wish they could paint all day, but I feel like it’s almost impossible to paint all day.”

Not only is his practice physically exhausting, but creating is mentally taxing. “Execution isn’t necessarily the difficult part. The difficulty is putting everything together mentally,” he says.

Having a day job allows for the mental space to think about the work, without feeling the stifling pressure of feeling like you’re not doing enough.

For Alesandro, this means when he finally enters the studio after the shop closes, he is mentally prepared ready to dive right in.

“Having a day job makes you appreciate the process and when you do get in the studio, you make the most of the time.”

Working in solitude in the evening also means he is typically free from distraction.

This approach mirrors Cal Newport's Deep Work theory that suggests our best work happens in short intensive and concentrated spurts, typically lasting between 1-3 hours in duration.

“I’ve had other artists come into the studio who are used to working from big shared spaces and they just want to talk all day about whatever the art world gossip it is. But I don’t really care, I just want to paint and do my work.”

“Having a day job makes you appreciate the process and when you do get in the studio, you make the most of the time.”

“It's amazing how much you can get done if close your doors for two to three hours.”

Can everybody keep their day job?

While Alesandro appears to have mastered juggling a demanding day job with a robust daily art practice, for many such a schedule would be exhausting.

Not to mention additional responsibilities such as parenting, caring, the strains of ageing, managing health and relationships.

“My routine at the moment is very full-on and I can do it because I’m still young, and my partner Monika and I don't yet have a family. But when we do, my routine will change because there needs to be a balance with those responsibilities.”

In the meantime, he wards off burnout by finding balance in the everyday – quiet evenings and weekends, and time to do nothing on a Sunday afternoon.

“Everyone needs a break. Everyone needs downtime. When you get away from the studio, you begin to appreciate the studio. That is the same thing with work, when you have one day off or you go away somewhere, you realise how fortunate you are that you have that.”

Read Alesandro Ljubicic's daily routine