Comments on: Is your art business prepared for flood? Fire?

By: Clean Up, Wrap Up, Gear Up — Art Biz Blog

Thu, 27 Dec 2012 22:35:37 +0000

[…] Back up your computer files, and delete or archive those you no longer need. […]

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By: Alyson Stanfield

Tue, 01 May 2012 14:18:02 +0000

Ann: I’m sorry to hear about your studio loss.
What if your computer had been in the studio? Would you have had backups off-site?

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By: Ann Brauer

Tue, 01 May 2012 12:43:01 +0000

Having lost my studio to Hurricane Irene, I can say that the risk of flood is serious. But I don’t think there was anything I could have done. Flood insurance is quite expensive and there were a number of examples of flood insurance failing to pay claiming that the damage was from a hurricane not a flood–seriously. A weather radio would not have helped. There was not sufficient notice of the flood for my husband to do anything to help–luckily I was at a craft show.
Yes, do keep all your records separate from the studio. I lost some but many were on my computer which I had with me.
The other advice I would give is to take full advantage of the resources offered by social media. You are going to need help dealing with this. Many were willing to help if I could tell them what to do. As a friend told me, take it one day at a time–you can’t do everything at once. Stay focused. Learn to ask for and accept help. And remember that this too is a process that takes time.

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By: Brad Blackman

Sun, 16 May 2010 22:10:47 +0000

You know, I haven’t talked to him, but I have talked to his wife a little. She said he had to throw out a bunch of drawings, but was able to keep a bunch of preparatory drawing material that is now wrinkly. So I’m not sure what he would’ve done differently. Probably store stuff higher!

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By: Alyson Stanfield

Sun, 16 May 2010 14:31:36 +0000

Brad: Yes, I didn’t realize that until much later because I was kind of out of pocket and the post had been in the works for weeks. I’m so sorry for your friend. I hope everything is okay with you. Has your friend thought about what he would have done differently?

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By: Brad Blackman

Fri, 14 May 2010 22:34:32 +0000

I just now saw this today. Ironically you posted this on the day that Nashville, Tennessee (and most of the rest of the mid-state area as well as some of Kentucky) experienced the worst flood in recorded history. I have a friend whose basement studio was flooded, and he lost all his paper art (drawings and the like) and had to scrap a lot of wood and plywood he used in the studio. I feel really badly for him; he had finally gotten his own studio area and was really starting to build up a new body of work.
What started out as #MayDayDeluge quickly became #NashvilleFlood. So sad.

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By: Alyson Stanfield

Wed, 05 May 2010 04:56:20 +0000

Tina: I love me.com–especially for syncing to my iphone. I love that I don’t have to hook my iphone up to the computer to sync the calendar or email.
Dian: Yes, the floods! And then the oil slick! I’m from Tornado Alley, but now it’s wildfires I fear more.
Ron: I’ll be interested to see how you integrate disaster preparedness into Working Artist.
Mark: Holy cow. Never thought about divorce as a disaster, but if it isn’t, nothing is. I hope this wasn’t something you had to experience first hand. Regardless, I’m grateful that you shared your advice here. We can all learn from it.

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By: Mark Levin

Wed, 05 May 2010 00:17:14 +0000

Several things regarding insurance that I’ve learned the hard way and most people will never think of regarding business insurance.
1. CASUALTIY LOSS & DIVORCE: If you’re married and have a business policy though your house policy and it’s in both your names, in many states your significant other is entitled to half of the proceeds from a causality loss in case of a divorce, even if it’s your exclusive business. You want your business insurance policy to be completely separate and only in your name. It will cost you more. If you’re about to get married, make sure you have a prenuptial that addresses this situation. Regardless, see a lawyer to explain this in more depth, even if you’re currently in wedded bliss.
2. CASUALITY LOSS & CAPITAL GAINS: Not all accountants are well versed in insurance and causality loss. By relying on an accountant early on when the insurance company paid out, I made some purchasing decisions that I wouldn’t have made if I had a better understanding. It was my fault-should have had a tax attorney from the get go. I’m not going to attempt to explain depreciated value and capital gains but you need to have your tax attorney inform you what will happen if for example the depreciated value of your studio and equipment is $200,000 and the insurance payout is $300,000.
Other issues to have a tax attorney and a good BUSINESS insurance rep explain to you are “replacement value” and “content”. Replacement value isn’t what it implies, but you’ll want it in your policy and it’ll cost extra. What the insurance company considers to be “content” isn’t necessarily what the IRS will consider to be “content”. It could all be a George Carlin routine.
Here’s the link for the IRS Publication 547, Casualties Disasters and Theft http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p547.pdf. It’s an eye opener.

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By: Ron Gafron

Mon, 03 May 2010 16:17:31 +0000

Mayday must be the day for thinking about this, I guess; I posted a similar line of thought on our website (which is just getting started with blogging). 🙂
I’m working on an idea for my artists that are part of the WorkingArtist community. Disaster planning, with the added measure that we can integrate some of WorkingArtist right into it, eliminating some of the work.
The main thing is, as artists, or as any businessperson, you need to think not only about how to prevent disaster, but how to respond after the disaster if/when it happens. A catalog of your work, contacts, and suppliers are all critical. You also need to know what to do with it after the disaster. I’ve spent a lot of time over the years working on business continuity planning, and what most folks will tell you is that the last thing you want to do immediately following a disaster is have to think about “now what?”. A well formed business continuity plan can really take some of the worry out of it.

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By: Dian McCray

Mon, 03 May 2010 11:00:48 +0000

Severe weather in the south is not uncommon. However, this year has brought several rounds of extreme weather. Some record-breaking outbreaks have even been given storm of the century status. The floods in Nashville over the weekend have given me even more reason to make the issue of protecting my art and my art business in case of a weather disaster.
Your blog is always inspiring AND pertinent to the success and well-being of artists everywhere. I am getting my Studio Protector today!

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