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Well, another open studio come and gone.  As we lugged tables, totes and panels back into the house after the show, I thought about all the great people that stopped by to look at my work with warm genuine praise for what I was doing.  ( How often at work to folks come by, look over your shoulder and exclaim " I love what you do!" )  
I sold two paintings to a really sweet lady from Underhill.   A fair number of prints, cards and a scarf went home with visitors. My good friend was in the space beside me and we had a chance to visit and we also manged to go out to dinner on Saturday evening. 
It's interesting to listen to questions from browsers about painting styles and mediums.  Forming a response sometimes depends on my impression of the person asking a question.  Sometime folks seem puzzled by the questions I ask them in response before I answer.  Another artist may be gathering information about methods or materials.  Some shoppers are looking for specific types of painting for a gift.  Questions about frames and the inspiration for a painting are frequently offered up along with a smile and the chance to make a new friend.  Once a conversation begins it can be as much fun as painting.  The exchange between two people is a creative process.  An artist sees and paints something that they want to share.  Inspiration, the reason, can be very much like a conversation, that need to communicate, to share, but communicated in one glance, rather than in words.  A chance to show rather than tell.  So it can be like a moment of clear revelation when a patron discovers the subject or inspiration for a painting struck a chord with them and neither of us is too surprised to find we understand exactly how and why it was worth sharing.

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Getting ready for shows always takes more time than I can ever plan.  Being an artist is as much about running a business as it is painting and drawing.   Having prints made, cutting mats, working on the computer and pulling    together a fairly priced, cohesive body of work for shows takes a lot of time.  Like many things, to make this work,  it takes striking a balance.  On one side of the teater-toter is the business and the other is the creative side.  The best laid plans, as they say....a day that has been set aside for business plans can start with the desire to just go and paint.  Since "the muse" doesn't grace everyday, it's very easy to set aside those buisness plans and "just go paint".  Taking a deep breath and letting things just happen as they sometimes do, can lead to a great day.   There's always another day to work on business....    Read More

As an Artist I'm always looking for different and new ways to show my art work.  A few months ago a newspaper article boasted options for turning works of art into fabric designs.  The article was a definite clip and save.  When I first looked at this  it seemed like a good idea.  I visited all of the web sites listed in the article and picked my favorite.  With no shows pending, it dropped off my radar.  Time marches on and with Open Studio a few weeks away and a nagging newspaper clipping acting as a nudge, I once again visited fabricondemand.com.  With an open e-folder of possible prints and attempts to visualize how it would look I stepped through some very easy to follow instructions on their web site.  Soon my image was off to be turned into fabric that I will cut into wide strips and sew into fashion accessories.  What woman doesn't love art that she can wear!  Today arrived an e-mail from Adam at faricondemand (a real person, imagine !!!)  and included a fabric proof for my approval.  WOW!  this was amazing.  A large orange and black spider looking "X" is surrounded by a criss cross of blue batik that upon a closer inspection shows swimming fish.  I can't wait for my fabric to arrive.  Read More