Show at Blue Skies Gallery Jan 15-Feb 15

A New Year. So much to do!
I plan on moving this spring and want to get through all of the artwork I have scattered in various places and sell as much of it as I can before I depart. I have a spread sheet that I use to keep track of where my work is; Blue Skies, Charles Taylor Art Center, The Chapman Gallery, or in  Richmond at the General Assembly, etc. Keeping the inventory up to date as well and knowing when I have to pick it up, what sold, where it might be going next is a huge pain for me. As I have whined before, all of this admin and paper stuff only takes away from the the time that I have to paint...but it's a necessary evil.
Marking and tagging all of my work, making sure that it is checked off on the inventory, REDUCING the price (note: yes, my paintings are going to be reduced!!!) and gathering it all together to go to the gallery is what my new year has been.  Parting with some of these paintings is going to be painful. Quite honestly, I am not the only artist I know that puts a fairly high price on artwork because I simply am not that interested in seeing it be adopted by someone new. But no longer! The reality is that I cannot take it all with me. Now it feels like this whole body of work that I have been working on while here in Tidewater has somehow "graduated" and needs to move on to the next place.
If you are interested in coming by Blue Skies and checking out my paintings, please do so...not only is my stuff there, but it is time for the famous Red Heart Sale and many of the other artists there have reduced and marked their items down as well. If you see something here in my blog, and are from far away, email me and I will tell you a bit about it and the price. UPS does a great job of shipping artwork.
So, my New Year's Resolution...work smarter, work harder and move on!

Daily Press Article about Miniature Show

I was thrilled to wake up this morning and see a picture of one of my paintings in today's Daily Press. The article is about the Miniature Art Show at the Charles Taylor Art Center in Hampton written by Mark St.John Erickson. So many lovely, little paintings there...remarkable might be a better word. This is also a show that will delight young children as well because of how small some of the artwork is in comparison to what is normally found in galleries. The Charles Taylor Art Center, affectionately known as CHTAC, is free and open to the public. A fun day for everyone would be to drop by Blue Skies Gallery and check out all the  charming Christmas stuff, stroll across the street and see the restored carousel, see an IMAX flick at the Air and Space Museum, and then finish with the CHTAC, just a 2 minute drive around the corner. You can read the full article by clicking the link below. Just sayin....

Daily Press Article 

Validating the Artist

What is it about selling a painting, receiving an award, winning a prize that is important for so many artists? If one creates from the need to create, then these things shouldn't matter. For some, they don't, but for a majority of artists, awards are nice and sales are even nicer. I have never met an artist that didn't talk about a recent sale without a big grin on their face.
Accolades help to validate sometimes, but certainly not always. Look at all the rejections from the French Salons the Impressionists endured. Lots of rejection and ridicule. So, validation or lack thereof, can be a powerful motivator. But artists, like anyone else, sometimes have doubts. Doubts about the direction they are going in, doubts about the quality of their work, doubts about, "is it worth it all?", doubts, doubts, doubts. So when a prize of any kind is obtained, it is a stamp of someone's approval. Often this can be the needed push to continue on and to go further into their work.
One of the things that a gentleman at the Charles Taylor Art Center said before announcing the juror, was that artists shouldn't be discouraged because they didn't get into the show or didn't receive an award. Each juror has their own particular slant and affinity for certain work. Caroline Cobb Wright, the juror for the Virginia Artist Exhibition, made her justification for the prizes awarded based on her preference for artists who used new and innovative materials in interesting and creative ways. I spoke with her for a short while and she was very encouraging about my work and said that I should continue exploring the direction I was headed. Validation.
I was happy for those who won awards and it is always so great to see artists receive recognition for their work.  I don't expect to win at every show I enter. It is discouraging  for artists to bash certain shows when they don't get in, yet rave about how great they are when they win or are juried in. Each show has its own slant and is not for every artist. You win some and you lose some. Keeping one's perspective and looking at the whole picture is a better way to look critically at your work. Validation from within.
People will tell you often, "Oh, I love your work..." yet NEVER ever think of buying a single piece. I'm not sure I understand that one. The only thing I can figure is that they often feel compelled to say something and this is what inevitably falls from their tongues. I don't think that you can take too much stock in what close friends have to say unless they buy. Sort of like your mom liking everything you ever created from the time you were born. That's your mom, they always say stuff like that. If you want to believe everything you hear from close friends, beware. Sort of like believing all of your OERs in the military. It only means trouble for your ego.
Better to get validation from within, validation from being included alongside other artists whose work you admire, validation from sales and being able to increase your prices, and validation from strangers that have not reason to blow smoke up your skirt.

Virginia Artists 2012 Juried Exhibition

On Sunday, July 15th, from 1:30-3:30, the Virginia Artists 2012 Juried Exhibition opens at the Charles Taylor Art Center, in Hampton. This exhibition was juried by Caroline Cobb Webb, Director of Exhibition Programming of the The Visual Arts Center of Virginia, with awards being presented at 2:00. If you are looking for a lovely place to meet some artists, get out of the heat, and look at artwork from artists all over the area, I think you will enjoy this show. The exhibit run through August 26th. I have two paintings in the show and the one above entitled "Marshland Calm" will be on exhibit along with another painting, "A Peace of Land."

Paintings by 100 Hampton Roads Artists Show at Charles Taylor Art Center

At the Charles Taylor Art Center in downtown Hampton, the current show," Paintings By 100 Hampton Roads Artists" is running until July 8.  The center, which is a little gem in downtown Hampton, is curated by James Warwick Jones, also a proficient and talented artist. I must say that having an artist run an organization  like this as opposed to someone who does not create art, gives the center a huge advantage. The center has several rooms that the art is displayed in and is perfect for wandering and enjoying the wide variety of paintings. The openings are lively, with many of the artists themselves available for a chat and identified by name tags graciously provided by the center.
Artists from all over the area, to include Williamsburg, were juried into the show and represent oil and acrylic painters, watercolorists, and mixed media. The challenges of hanging the work of such a diverse group is evident in the wonderful arrangement and allows the viewer to be drawn in and to follow a path in seeing some of the recurring themes that resonate throughout Tidewater. Water and boating scenes, landscapes, still life and city scenes from areas we are all familiar with felt like home to those of us who live and work here.
I encourage you to check out the center and sign up for the newsletter as well, which will keep you  in the loop as to upcoming shows and events.
My painting, "Huge Lemons" is currently in the show. It is an oil on a gallery wrapped canvas and is 36x36.