Blog

A slight case of insomnia tonight. The good news is that I'm taking the waking hour to wrap up everything needed for the new web page. I'll double check in the morning after I've had a chance to sleep. For the moment, have all the photos and write-ups, links and tabs. I still need to figure out what program I'm going to use when I eventually want to go digging around the HTML. Back a decade ago, I used a program called Taco and it worked extremely well for my need at the time.

Keeping this entry short, my brain is a little fried. Starting April 1st, I'll be doing a thirty paintings in thirty days challenge. The painting presented here is a practice sample of what is to come. I'll be doing this image again on the 1st and continue with twenty-nine other 8"x10" artworks on gessoed bristol paper until I collapse in painting bliss at the end of the month. All new works will be traveling with me to festivals and be offered for less than fifty dollars.

This seemed like a highly appropriate image for me today. I'm currently taking medication for a neck problem, one of the side effects is being more easily distracted. The bulge in my spine, C4C5, is likely a lifetime of hunching over desks, tables, and in front of computer screens. Mom had good advice, sit up straight. With or without medications, distraction has always been a problem.

This painting started out by pondering what "flighty" would look like. Usually, crows have an ominous meaning in art, symbolizing death or a bad omen. When I attended UC Davis, during the spring months, the crows sometimes attacked the students off the morning buses, grabbing bits of hair or fabric. For me, crows are incredibly clever problem solvers and one of my favorite bird species. This painting certainly has bits and pieces of those meanings and memories, it is also about not being able to hang onto thoughts and ideas.

Spent, what seems like, two full days sitting at the computer. A few months ago my clunker laptop let out the magic smoke and died. Fortunately, I had backups of everything. Now that I'm putting a new web page together and searching out new shops and locations to post my artwork, I've had to dig up my saved files, make sure images are sized right, and do a lot of internet futzing. While keeping Fine Art America as my main home, I'm now Zazzled, Rebelled, and a little more social.

The Shops: Zazzle for the win.
I've discovered that CafePress is good for quickly looking at a piece of artwork on hundreds of products. As I have multiple images, most of which do not translate well to T-shirts and caps, not a site that is going to work for me. Zazzle is good for taking several pieces and making custom products. The tools are a little more involved but will work better if I want to put something on a coffee mug or a magnet. I continue to search for ways I can order custom items for art fairs without having to charge hefty prices to my fans. When it comes to merchandise, the biggest thing I need to answer is, "where will people want to display my art?" I'm fairly sure a woman wrapped in barbed wire is not going to make a good bathmat.

The Culture: I'm a little Rebel.
RebelsMarket, Etsy, and Zunati provide excellent locations to list original work, prints, and crafted items. Of course, inventory is essential to be able to do this. My particular content fits better on RebelsMarket, however, not everything I do is punk, metal, or goth flavored. Zunati is still developing its personality so, for those not-so-rebellious images, I have a small shop. Thus far, I have not entered the Etsy market.

Also, I've taken time to explore DeviantArt. I like this corner of the web because it has a little bit of everything. It is as if Fine Art America had a hyper younger sibling.

Getting Social: Introvert overload
Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+, to name a few. Is MySpace still around? Trying to find the right social site for my style of artwork started driving me batty. For the time being, my main haunt is facebook.

Last week, managed to pinch a nerve in my neck. Howling pain doesn't begin to describe it. Luckily, been able to calm my shoulder and neck enough to finish up a painting. My lady in blue is the third of four.

Beginning to gather up bios, statements, and photos to be placed in the new web pages. I'll be doing that in between physical therapy.

If all goes well, I'll have the fourth painting done by the end of March, a new web page to brag about, and be able to get to CrossFit again.

In the first stages of redesigning my web page. This amounts to answering questions about how I want it to look, what I want it to contain, and doing a crash review on html. Ten years ago, I had a pretty basic web page that I put together to show pictures of friends and family. Then, facebook and snapfish ended my futzing with html and layouts.

My eldest son has asked to have some space on my FAA account to put up his drawings. He wont be eligible for his own email and FAA accounts for another two years so I decided it would be okay for him to have his own little gallery spot. The first few submissions will be typical kid stuff. He starts art lessons very soon and will likely improve dramatically in the next few months. Between waiting on birthdays and taking art lessons, no reason he can't start learning about e-commerce and marketing. Besides, if he does manage to sell anything, I've promised him 100% of the income (after FAA takes their cut).

After much penny pinching and internal debate, I'm finally getting a new web page put together. Back a year ago, I tried blogging here but just did not like the layout. Maybe I was making excuses, regardless the new blog/art sight will be rolling out soon and I'm very excited about it. I'll be posting updates on progress and will be indulging in a large glass of home brew when it is done.