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A recent  conversation with my student revolved around names artists use.  He said he was thinking about adopting a more English-sounding name.  This talented young man recently came from Europe and he thinks his name is rather long and not easy for Americans to remember and pronounce.  I said having a unique name was to his advantage.  I'm not sure if he was completely convinced but I said it wouldn't be an issue and even going by initials might be just enough for him if he became well established.

He then asked whether I ever thought about changing my name in America.  I'm proud of the name my parents gave me so I said the thought never crossed my mind… but a problem for me is that my name is fairly common in Japan. 

I share the same name with other artists, a university professor, a pianist, a researcher in science, to name just a few.  Strangely enough, there's another watercolor artist (illustrator) who came from the same prefecture in Japan and now lives in Los Angeles.  Although, in Japanese, each of us may use different kanji characters to write our name, in English or Roman alphabet, it's all the same: Keiko Tanabe.

The internet has opened up a world of new opportunities, so much so that I am generally glad to see other Keiko Tanabe's doing good work in their chosen fields.  However, this also means we are competing for a place in the world wide web where most people search our name using Roman alphabet.  For a professional who relies heavily on the internet, this can be a problem.  What to do to establish a strong internet identity if your name is too common?  This can be even worse if you share a name with someone you'd rather not be associated with, or a criminal?

I admit I don't usually spend time thinking about things like SEO.  But it is a cold hard fact that we must do our best to improve our online visibility - first by monitoring what other people might be finding online associated with our name (read more on the topic for practical tips).  Have you googled your name lately?

Los Angeles I

Media: Original watercolor on paper
Image Size: 21.5 x 14.25 inches (54.5 x 36 cm)

Frame/Mat: No

Purchase: Sold

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