First Dibs

First Dibs
Original 30" x 40" x 0.75" painting
Golden, Liquitex, and Atelier acrylics on gallery-wrapped canvas

Today's painting is a new abstract composition in my decorative line of paintings. I've begun to venture into the realm of more abstract paintings as a challenge to myself, and to broaden the selection of my work for my patrons. Abstracts are among the most difficult compositions to paint, despite their seemingly apparent simplicity. The challenge for me is to create abstract compositions that are cohesive and fluid. They are a reminder of the joy I find in challenging myself, as well as the sheer joy of painting.

Tip of the Day
Tax day is on the horizon. It's an important reminder for artists selling their work to remember the business side of what they're doing. As much as we love the creative side of what we do, the practical matters of being in business for yourself require some of your time and attention. All of your materials you purchase to create, sell, and ship your work come right off the top of your taxable income. It's important to maintain good records of what you spend on things like art supplies, shipping supplies, postage and delivery charges, fees paid to sell and promote your work, etc. for preparing your tax return.

Quote of the Day
"Art doesn't begin with a brush and a palette, but with the artist's ability to perceive life. You have to learn how to live before you can learn how to paint." --Dean Mitchell

Prairie Creek and Sky VI

Prairie Creek and Sky VI
Original 72" x 36" x 0.75" painting
Golden, Liquitex, and Atelier acrylics on gallery-wrapped canvas

Today's work included the latest in the Prairie Creek and Sky series on three 24" x 36" canvases. This painting's big sister, which I listed on my sales venues two days ago, sold this morning to a patron in New Hampshire who's bought reproductions of my work from artistrising.com. He also expressed interest in a commission (new original) of one of my compositions Red Cows, en route to Rollins Pass, which may be viewed in my online portfolio.

Tip of the Day
One of the issues with shipping your art to patrons is protecting your product during shipping. Let's face it--with shippers using automated equipment to move things along there is some risk involved shipping fragile items whether or not they're marked as "Fragile." I ship my paintings with extra cardboard cut to size against the canvas. Many people use bubble wrap or styrofoam peanuts (a.k.a. "ghost poop"), but those types of packing materials are a cost center too. I use newspaper for packing material. It's inexpensive, and a green alternative to plastic.

Quote of the Day
"Where you stumble, there lies your treasure." --Joseph Campbell

Today's Paintings 4/9/09

Daffodils II
Original 24" x 36" x 0.75" painting
Golden, Liquitex, and Atelier acrylics on gallery-wrapped canvas

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Abstract Floral
Original 24" x 36" x 0.75" painting
Golden, Liquitex, and Atelier acrylics on gallery-wrapped canvas

Today's paintings are a celebration of the season. Daffodils are in bloom around town, and I felt compelled to paint some. I also have a patron who asked for a commission of my original Daffodils piece, so I decided to have fun with it and paint another to list on my sales venues.

The second painting I did today, Abstract Floral, is a new composition, and I hope that this style of painting proves to be popular among my patrons. This painting is somewhat of a departure from my usual style, but it was fun to try something new, too.

Tip of the Day
Shipping your work to your patrons is a cost center. No way around that. However, there are ways to reduce your expenses. Given that I ship paintings, I have found that I need boxes that I can combine in order to ship anything larger than a 18" x 24" canvas. For larger canvases--30" x 40" or larger--I use mirror boxes that I purchase from a storage company.

Quote of the Day
"Nothing worthwhile ever happens quickly and easily. You achieve only as you are determined to achieve..." --Robert H. Lauer

Prairie Creek and Sky V

Prairie Creek and Sky V
Original 88" x 28" x 0.75" painting
Four 22" x 28" canvases
Golden, Liquitex, and Atelier acrylics on gallery-wrapped canvas

I decided to go large on today's work--a four-canvas edition of my Prairie Creek and Sky series. The series is inspired by wide open spaces found in many parts of the country. Here in Colorado we have so many different kinds of ecosystems in one state: mountains, prairie, desert, and variations in the transitional areas between.

Tip of the Day
Photographing your work can be a time-consuming process, and depending on what you intend to use your photos for the choices you make in processing your photos make a big difference. If you're shooting photos for the web, keep in mind that many people don't have their monitors set for high resolution--so the size of your photos should be taken into consideration. Photos larger than 600 pixels high may require your viewers to do a lot of scrolling to see the entire image.

Also, color depth varies on monitors too, so your images may look great on your monitor and not so great on someone else's. My photos for the web are all 72 dpi. Brightness and contrast make a difference in what the viewer sees too, and since color rendering varies from monitor to monitor it's important that your images are crisp and clear. Since monitors vary so much it's necessary to find a middle ground for images that will work well for most viewers.

Quote of the Day
"There is an art to living life fully and paying attention to the details." --Anne Copeland

Creek in Autumn

Creek in Autumn
Original 22" x 28" x 0.75" painting
Golden, Liquitex, and Atelier acrylics on gallery-wrapped canvas

Today's painting was inspired by photos I took last fall. While I'm anxious for warmer weather, spring and autumn are my favorite seasons to paint. This is a new composition for me, which I hope my patrons enjoy. The soft touch of the clouds and red leaves, and the illusion of space are the challenges I enjoy when creating a painting like this one.

Tip of the Day
One of the first things we discuss in our workshop on selling your art online is defining your goals. Why are you putting your art online? Are you establishing an online presence for your work? Hoping to sell your work online? Do you want to put your portfolio online? Increase your exposure to galleries, publishers, and patrons? It's important that you define your goals for putting your work online, so that you have a clear direction on what it is you hope to achieve, and so you can take the necessary next steps to realize your goals.

Quote of the Day
"Be winged arrows aiming at fulfillment and goal." --Paul Klee

Rocky Mountain Sunburst

Rocky Mountain Sunburst
Original 24" x 36" x 0.75" painting
Golden, Liquitex, and Atelier acrylics on gallery-wrapped canvas

I've been working on commissions all weekend of paintings from series I've posted here recently, so I thought I'd post one from the archives. This painting is one of my landscapes I painted last summer featuring the Rocky Mountains of my adoptive home state Colorado. I've lived here for nearly 20 years and never tire of the natural beauty that is all around me here. My family and I love to hike in landscapes just like this one, and hope to have lots of good trail time this summer.

Tip of the Day
It's easy to find low or no cost venues to display your online portfolio and increase exposure--such as blogger.com. Be sure to include links to your blog in your email signature line and on your web site if you have one--and vice versa. Also, if you network with other artists, discuss sharing links with them to help them promote their web site and/or blog in exchange for promoting yours. According to Google the more places with links to your web site or blog the greater your chances of improving your ranking in search engine results.

Quote of the Day
"... that is what learning is. You suddenly understand something you've understood all your life, but in a new way." --Doris Lessing

Blustery Day

Blustery Day
Original 24" x 36" x 0.75" painting
Golden, Liquitex, and Atelier acrylics on gallery-wrapped canvas

We've had some really windy days this winter and spring, which were the main inspiration for this painting. I also liked the motion that this painting conveys. I borrowed the tree shape from my Twisted Apple Tree series, which I normally depict as a springtime painting with pink blossoms--and which my patrons thoroughly enjoy.

My husband and I presented a workshop today on selling artwork online at our local Jerry's Artarama in Englewood, CO. We presented 90 minutes of a 6-hour workshop that we'll be giving at Colorado Free University on April 25 from 9:00-4:00. We had a tremendous turnout at Jerry's today--60 people! I want to personally thank everyone who attended today, as well as the staff at Jerry's for their assistance and professionalism. We are hoping to offer our full workshop at Jerry's in the coming months, so stay tuned!

Quote of the day: "Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." --Dalai Lama

Today's Paintings 4/3/09

Sunrise Poppies VI
Original 18" x 24" x 0.75" painting
Golden, Liquitex, and Atelier acrylics on gallery-wrapped canvas

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Prairie Creek and Blue Sky
Original 30" x 40" x 0.75" painting
Golden, Liquitex, and Atelier acrylics on gallery-wrapped canvas

Today's work features the latest in my Sunrise Poppies and Prairie series. The prairie landscapes feature large expanses of blue or red skies, sometimes with or without the creek. My patrons from all over the US have expressed their interest in the paintings from this series, and I enjoy painting them too.

My husband and I are starting a series of classes on selling your artwork online. There are numerous venues, strategies, and opportunities for artists and craftspersons to sell their work and quit their day jobs, depending on how much time, effort, and diligence you can bring to the table.

Starting next week I'll be featuring a Tip of the Day for how to sell your work online, so stay tuned.

Quote of the day: "Technical skills can be learned by almost anyone who has the determination to pursue it, but innovative ideas and the ability to express them come from some place beyond the material world." --Carole Ann Borges

Today's Paintings 4/2/09

Still Life with Roses and Peach
Original 16" x 20" x 0.75" painting
Golden, Liquitex, and Atelier acrylics on gallery-wrapped canvas

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Red Poppies on Blue Sky XI
Original 48" x 20" x 0.75" painting
Three 16" x 20" canvases
Golden, Liquitex, and Atelier acrylics on gallery-wrapped canvas

Today's work features a new still life, and the newest edition in the Red Poppies on Blue Sky series, which is one of my signature series of paintings. One of my patrons has purchased two in this series--one for her home, the other for her office--because, as she says, "I only have to look at your paintings and no matter what I'm feeling at the moment it always brings a smile to my face."

Quote of the day: "A human being is a part of a whole, called by us 'universe,' a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest - a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty." --Albert Einstein

Young America Road Commission

Young American Road Commission
Original 34" x 40" painting
Golden, Liquitex, and Atelier acrylics

Today's work includes a commission from my Young American Road series. Young America Road is where my brother used to live in Germantown, New York, by the Hudson River. I spent the latter years of my adolescence in the Hudson River Valley, and often draw upon my memories and family photos as inspiration for paintings of that area.

Quote of the day: "Peace begins with me." --Thich Nhat Hanh