Monday, May 29, 2006

Healing Doll

My mom has had some serious health issues recently. So, I decided to create a healing doll for her. I don't know what she thinks of it, but it was helpful for me to do something concrete, especially after I left her in Florida and came back home to Arizona.

I made the doll of polymer clay and painted her lavendar (my mom's favorite color). I covered her with glitter because I am into glitter these days and how could something as lovely as glitter have anything but healing!

Then I used some milagros to decorate her body (arm, leg, heart and head). I topped her off with some wingnut hair, some silver paint and a purple bead necklace. She is 1.5" wide and 4" tall. There is a hanger on the back, so she can be hung on the wall. If you would like to see more of my dolls: ART DOLLS


Monday, May 22, 2006

In a Slump

A few weeks ago, I was in an artistic slump. I am sure we all have those from time to time. Self-doubt, frustration, inability to see the bigger picture.

I shared my frustration with people in a couple of the online groups I am in, and got lots of helpful advice and suggestions. Some of it I took. Some of it I didn't. But the moment passed.

One of the suggestions I got was to check out artbizcoach.com, which I am very glad I did. I am a huge fan of coaching anyway. I have worked with a life coach for several years both individually and in groups and have found that it has been tremendously helpful to me. (I am also quite a fan of the life coaching reality tv show: Starting Over.)

There are some wonderful things available on the artbizcoach site including a newsletter and the "6 Habits of Highly Successful Artists". I highly recommend it to people who are in the art biz!

One of the first things Alyson B. Stanfield (the coach) asks is:
When is the last time you . . .
Worked on a promotions or marketing plan
Updated your Web site or résumé
Followed up with patrons or your gallery
Balanced your books
Rewrote your artist statement
Added to your mailing list
Distributed a press release
Sent a thank-you note

So next time I am in a slump...I have a few other things to keep me busy! This list of questions was a good reminder that the business of art, is not just about creating art, but it is also about creating a business!

Happy Creating!

Friday, May 05, 2006

The Business of ART

I have been learning about ART for some time now. I attended a graphic design program and received my AA last summer. Since January of this year I have been learning about creating other kinds of ART. Every day I learn something about ART. I belong to yahoo groups that teach me so much, and I read books and magazines and websites and blogs. I experiment and play in my studio. I hope that learning about ART will be an ongoing process for the rest of my life.

One of the things that they talked about rarely in school, was about the BUSINESS OF ART. They did talk about it, but not often. And when they did talk about it, I found my mind wandering, wondering what any of that had to do with me. (I get the job, I do what they ask, I get the money...sounds easy enough.)

Well, I have found out in graphic design, that 1) clients are not growing on trees and 2) most potential clients want web work. Okay, I knew that clients did not grow on trees, especially since I moved to Bisbee, population 6,700, where I know very few people. The web work was something of a surprise to me. I expected to be creating brochures and logos and business cards. Perhaps and ad now and then. I did not expect that when you say "graphic design" people hear "web work".

The past few weeks I have been exploring THE BUSINESS OF ART. There was the Earth Day festival in Bisbee, which I mentioned in an earlier post. Windy weather and poor location added up to poor sales for nearly everyone it appears. Last weekend I had a table at the Unitarian Universalist Pacific Southwest District Assembly in Las Vegas. There we poor vendors suffered from lower attendance and once again, a not particularly conducive location.

Today with one of my yahoo groups, we are starting an experiment in eBay selling. People in the group have been challenged to post as much as possible to eBay this week. If you would like to see what our group is selling, go to eBay and search for ARTFRENZY. We will be adding new things all week, so it might be worth it to check back a time or two.