When your name doesn't quite fit your art brand

I understand and I am empathetic with respect to your surname. I recall at one point during a rash of anti-Semitic attacks I considered changing my surname to avoid being blackballed. My surname means Jew and is pronounced as "Jude" in several different languages; it also is the tenth letter in the Hebrew alphabet. (At one point it was Yudeluvich = Son of a Jew.) I eventually chose to stay with my surname as it represents a long history to be proud of and most people just think it is a strange sounding last name: a last name that people should remember. And to be perfectly honest, their are members within my own family who can not agree how Yood should be pronounced: the New York Yoods pronounce it like food with a "y" and the New England Yoods pronounce it like hood but with a "y." It eventually occurred to me that I should be happy with my surname and stop over thinking the problem and let my work speak for itself. If my work is bad it really doesen't matter what my surname means and if my work is good and my surname creates a little controversy then all the better -- my work is getting noticed!

Honestly, the unusual surname is probably working for you more than against you. When I first started sharing my flower close ups online, I worried my German name would be a barrier, but it turned out people remembered it precisely because it wasn't generic. A forgettable name blends into the scroll. Something distinct sticks. If you already have one account with traction, I'd lean toward keeping it simple and staying with your real name there. The work is what people come back for, and a name that's slightly unfamiliar just gives them one more reason to remember whose work it was.

Using your real name matters more than people think. When someone connects with a photograph, they want to know who made it. A brand name or descriptive handle puts a wall between you and the person on the other side of the screen. That relationship is the thing that turns a casual viewer into someone who follows your work over years. And unusual surnames tend to stick once someone's seen the work. I wouldn't overthink the spelling friction. People remember what they care about.

I have a French last name too (my husband is Acadian French from Canada, but the name Mercure is quite widely known in Europe for the hotels... dang I wish we were related!). And because I was also reviewing books, and briefly writing a book before art became my focus, I used KatPaintsWatercolour. I am in the process of changing my website to my actual. name, Kathy Mercure (I don't use my legal last name because it's double the unusual names).

Anyway, I realized almost immediately that it is better for me for people to see me and know me, not the cute brand. I used to use my name and still have the domain, so right now I have kathymercure.com also connected to katpaintswatercolour.com and I will leave it that way for a while for people to get used to it, but will change over everything on the site eventually..

On a side note, I'm toying with the idea of using a different web host because the interface on ASF is so difficult to learn unless you use it all the time... not user friendly. Apparently, I can indeed use ASF to sell prints and/or originals through another platform, by using a link to the ASF selling site, which makes me happy if I decide I can't get what I need here. I don't want to make any rash decisions, so I'm waiting and living in hope that there is something new in the works.

Just my experience...

Hey! The fact that you're weighing this so carefully instead of just grabbing a handle tells me you already sense the right answer.

Use your real name. Here's why:

- Collectors buy from people, not logos. A real name on a purchase feels like owning a piece of someone's story. A descriptive handle feels like buying from a stock photo site. That emotional weight is your edge.

- A French surname that's hard to spell is actually a feature, not a bug. Unusual names stick. People remember the name they had to look up once. "Warm Light Vintage Photos" competes with ten thousand similar handles. Your name competes with nobody.

- You can have both without choosing. Use your legal name as the artist name, then pair it with a short descriptive tagline underneath: "[Your Name] | Warm Light & Collected Objects" (or whatever phrase captures your world). That tagline does the signaling work without replacing your identity.

- Practically: your name is your SEO moat. When a collector Googles your descriptive handle, they find competitors. When they Google your name, they find you. Every gallery submission, every publication credit, every print sold under your real name compounds into one searchable body of work that follows you for decades.

The honesty instinct you mentioned is the right one. Lean into it.

Want help nailing down the tagline that sits next to your name? I can draft a few options based on your work

Arty is our artist super-assistant. Trained on all things related to art business & marketing. use @arty in a post or comment to ask Arty directly. upvote & downvote to provide feedback.

I'm a firm believer in using your own name, or a nom de plume that is an actual name. I think people connect with, especially in photography. As a fellow owner of a foreign, difficult to grok name, I feel it though. I use it as a chance to extend conversations though, and actually a little bit of friction with a name can make it a little more memorable. I think your name fits in that sweet spot. A little unusual, but easy once you know it.

For me I always have to have this big pause between the "W" and "U". It's awkward, but people tend to remember that when then notice what I'm doing.

I say run with it!

(The artist / maker Simone Giertz talks about this a lot. You pronounce her last name "Yesh". She has to say that all the time. But once fans know it, it's a shibboleth)

Rebrandt? Monet? Cezanne? Picasso? Klimt? Renoir? Degas? All 'difficult' or foreign to the English language, all of them.

Your name is part of your identity as an artist. If you choose to use a pseudonym, abbreviation, nickname, or anything of the sort, know that it will be how people address your work when you are not in the room.

My personal take: go with your real name. It's unique, and it has a nice ring

You could go with something like "Photographic Art by Shannon". It describes your practice and uses part of your name to give that human quality. I'm thinking of changing my domain to "Lilly's Artwork.com" because my Instagram account is "Lilly's Artwork". When I first set up my ASF website, I didn't think Lilly's Artwork was fancy enough for a serious artist, but I'm rethinking that decision.

Hi Shannon, I think you have a fine name! It sounds easy and approachable to me. I went through these same thoughts years ago since I wasn't comfortable with my last name--thought it was too harsh, not really "me". And then I realized everyone else was just fine with it. There it was, my name listed in a gallery exhibition, on a gallery label, signed on a photo. I started getting used to it. I was the only one that felt it was a problem, everyone else just saw it as me. However, I believe we should each find what makes us comfortable in this weird "art world". So, be true to what's true for you.

Shannon most suggestions are to use your name but I drew on my Military background for Orange Diamond Photography. I do very well but there could be some cons with name recognition. Overall I feel the story of the name counts. If you watch "Saving Private Ryan" you will see orange diamonds on the back of the helmets and the number 2 which signifies 2nd Ranger Battalion. My first unit was the 2nd Ranger Bn and I jumped into Panama with them during Operation Just Cause as well as a couple of other minor engagements. The Ranger community uses the orange diamond on trailer hitch covers, hats, shirts and stickers to identify service in the unit to others who know. That is why I called myself Orange Diamond Photography. I also do a lot of underwater photography and added a white (dive flag) stripe to the diamond to signify that as well. Worked for me so far! : ). BLUF if you have a good reason to not use your name go for it!

@Shannon Cremin

Hello Shannon, I know the problem well.

My answer: each case is different.

As far as I’m concerned, my surname is so common and there are many artists who bear my name. So I’ve often received requests like: are you related to so-and-so? So I opted for my first name and middle name (which can also be a surname here). But for the site I chose an easy-to-remember brand name.