May 6, 2208

In the post of May 5th I wrote a bit about creating art without consideration of the people who will eventually view my pieces. I want to continue this thread but thought it best to use today's post to give a brief rundown of what is involved with getting a piece of art shown in a public forum. Please remember this is how I do this process, it certainly won't hold true or everyone as we all have different goals, assets, and strengths.

About a day or so after my piece feels completed I move it off the easel and towards the front door where it will stay until the next time I drive into State College where I will drop off my piece to be professionally photographed. I had tried in the early days to do this on my own but found not only was the quality inferior but it cost more in the long run. , I have the photography studio, whom I have been working with for many years make me 20 slides and 2 tiff files which they put on disc. One disc goes to my webmaster to update my website and the second I keep at home as a safety in case the first one is mislaid. I try to update my website as often as feasible adding new shows and new pieces as often as available.
My ultimate goal as far as showing of art is concerned is to have a few pieces of mine in a permanent collection in a number of museums. To date I have not succeeded this goal but do come closer and closer all the time. Generally I enter indoor juried shows. I look for shows with interesting jurors, artists I like (such as Faith Ringhold), curators of museums that I would like my work in (Whitney, MOMA, Carnegie, Warhol) and show that have worked for me in the past. To enter a show you need to fill out an application form, repeat most of the information on your tiny slide, send a resume or cv, SASE, slides and fees. Some shows even charge extra for the artist's reception. Once a piece of mine has been accepted into a show I take it to the frame shop I use and chose a frame (from gazillions). Once all of that is done the piece is either driven to or shipped .If shipped I make my own wooded crate to ship in, with send with return postage.Occasionally I will attend the reception if it is either close or a place I would like to visit but it is usually cost in efficient to attend many receptions.

May 5, 2008

Today I received an email from a writer who is writing an article about me for a local newspaper. She asked a good question and I thought I would use this post to discuss it. The question posed was : "how do approach a subject ... without fear of offending the viewer? In other words, have you ever altered a piece to be less intimidating because the audience might confuse the meaning or intention?"
I found this to be an interesting question because it gives me an opportunity to explain creation of artwork versus showing of the same artwork. When I design a painting or sculpture it is based on a personal experience either an issue that I want to work out on the canvas or an observation I make from the lives that surround me. There is no thought as to the potential viewer-it is purely a solitary personal process. I will from time to time omit something that I feel will disrupt a loved one's life such as sharing a personal story my daughter has told me or a personal issue that is upsetting to a a friend but as far as my own stories I try not to censor myself. While I'm working on a piece I do realize that someone may either misinterpret my intention, be offended or not get my point at all but since I am not painting with an audience in mind this is not an issue during the creation of the piece.

One example, a piece I did several years ago called "The Nativity" was a portrayal of the actual birthing process of Jesus. I had only seen renderings of the "cleaned up" version of the birth with Mary loving holding her swaddled cleaned up baby and decided to do a more realistic version where Mary is writhing in pain as Jesus leaves her womb. On on side of the painting are the 3 visitors In my mind I wondered if the visitors brought Mary and Joseph appropriate gifts such as good food for Mary to help her nurse, cloth for Jesus' diapers, a sling to hold the baby in when they traveled back home. I know for some viewer this vision seems irreverent but as a pragmatic I tend to simplify things and see the day-to day details.

May 3, 2008

Today being the beginning of spring coincides with the beginning of garage sale season. Now for the past two years or so I have been avoiding this annual ritual as I never seemed to have the money, time or storage for everything I purchased. This morning however, the lilacs were just about to bloom, it was overcast with temperate weather and I felt the urge to join the masses and hunt bargins. The first sale me and my garage salad compadre hit was at a church where we found wonderful bargins and much needed household items. I got Smokey the Bear coffee mug, 2 clear drinking glasses, a solid towel rack (the old kind with 3 bars that was actually solid and won't bend when a wet dish or face cloth is put on it, hand carved and painted tramp art type tulips (about 20) two yellow plastic chicks, a cabinet from the 40s, children's curtains, an Abercrombie long sleeve shirt, 12 wooden hangers, cabbage starts, a handcrafted art nouveau needlepoint tie holder, a heavy frying pan, a cotton summer dress, a scarf and a McCoy planter. But the thing that really caught my eye was something my friend picked up and I had looked at for a while. Someone's carefully crafted clay art piece. I could tell by turning it over that it had been in a Bellefonte, PA show sometime in either 1991 or 1998 but there was no signature to be found. What interested me most was how this piece ended up in a church garage sale. Was it from a deceased artist who left it to someone who didn't want to keep it, Had someone once purchased it, received it as a gift, was it from the artist's own inventory I also wondered if someday one of my pieces would have a similar journey, after all Jackson Pollack's paintings have been found at garage sales all over the US why not mine. It was a bit disturbing to think that someday an art work that I have created and stressed over could end up with a red 25 cent sticker on it but I suppose that is the true definition to the statement "life goes on".

May 2, 2008

The other day I received notification that I had three pieces accepted into a local show. This is a show that is short and sweet (one weekend) and only about 30 minutes away, At this show I usually either sell a piece or win a small award and get to see some "artist" friends at the opening reception or during drop off and pick up times. Juried shows are probably the bane of many artist's experience as you never get any merit points for being in "good" shows with "good" curators and "good" locations. Every time you enter a piece it's a crap shoot as to whether or not you'll be in. I am chosen more often to be in a show if the juror is an artist or in education. Curators of museums both small and large generally skip over my work. Because there is no feedback as to the reason for your rejection one can only guess as to the reasons. In addition jurors with liberal tastes will be more likely to jury my piece in a show than a conservative judge. One time I drove to Providence, Rhode Island from central Pennsylvania to enter a small show that was co-sponsored by Yoko Ono. Being a major John Lennon fan I couldn't pass this opportunity up and drove the seven and 1/2 hours to the coast, dropped off my painting and hunkered down in a hotel for three days until it was time to pick up the piece if it did not make the show. I loved the piece I made which was to commemorate the 100 year anniversary of a Russian-Japanese treaty. Even though the show was in a small tourist type gallery I knew there would be lots of applicants because of the connection with Yoko Ono so I chose to paint a bold graphic with strong colors that could stand out in a room of contenders. When I returned three days later to pick up my work I saw the show and was struck by the lack of color of all the artwork in the room. Oh wells.

May 1, 2008

It would be wrong not to mention the inspiration that spring brings to the artist. Over time artists have used nature as inspiration. Think Monet, Kahlo or O'Keeffe and you won't have any doubt of that statement having validity. Today though I did not paint, I was full of inspirational ideas. A doggie playdate with a friend got me designing a t-shirt, a walk in the woods inspired a children's book and a beautiful though chilly and cloudy day gave me opportunity to grab my camera and record some of my day. As an artist it is important not to be an artist just when I'm in my studio in front of my easel. As the spring unfolds I wonder how many wonderful art will be created.

April 30, 2008

Because I was not formally trained as a painter, I used my training as a graphic designer to teach myself to paint. One of my favorite classes was with Jane Sterrit who had us spend hours drawing negative space and pasting colored paper in the negative spaces. This was an important lesson and one that I have used in painting extensively. Once the gesture is drawn (painted) on the canvas I then fill in the negative spaces. This is when I begin to formulate the color palette for the painting. I will work on filling in these negative spaces layer upon layer until I feel the color is correct and can then move on to painting positive spaces and then finally adding details and type. While painting in this manner is unusual it gives my painting a more "Graphic-stylized" look which suits my painting style better.