Abstract Art Blog

A Year of Making Art, Day 350: BOR-ING

April 4, 2008  Day 350

Sixteen more days to go in this "Year of Making Art."

Today I am depressed and lethargic.  It took me all day to get around to my drawing:

   Drawing #357  14" x 11"

In the morning I prepared two giclee prints on canvas for shipping:

  123456

  Placating Your Friends

It's unclear what else I accomplished.  I helped Adrian with the dressing for his infected leg, and putting on his boot cast.  I cleaned up odds and ends.  I did some laundry.

BOR-ING!

(Note: There is a gap between the dates I'm writing and posting in order to give me time to get ahead.)

A Year of Making Art, Day 349: Shipping Two Prints

April 3, 2008  Day 349

Today was Owen's last day with us, so I made a special brunch and hung around to see him off.  Before that, I had to get two prints off to Pak-Mail for packing and shipping to clients:

  Adam Three

  Talk To me Now 

By the time Owen left, I was exhausted.  Too many houseguests and doctor's visits lately.  Adrian requires a lot more assistance now, and he is also unable to do all the things he used to do for me to help with the business, like running errands.  It looks like the food shopping will be my job now, too, since he's wearing a boot cast and is supposed to take it easy.  I'm sure that he will want to use any extra energy he has to take Roxy out.

I did my drawing late today:

  Drawing #356  11" x 14"

(Note: There is a gap between the dates I'm writing and posting in order to give me time to get ahead.)

A Year of Making Art, Day 343: Drawing for Fun

March 28, 2008  Day 343

This morning's drawing is a whimsical piece that I had fun making:

  Drawing #350  11" x 14"

After the contractor finished caulking the edges of the studio, we moved all the furniture back where it belongs.  After that, we put some new flat files together and I filled them with drawings and paintings on paper.  then I moved all the finished paintings and blank canvases back in, and then reorganized all my stuff--paints and other supplies.  It is now 6 p.m. and it is all finally finished.  Hurrah!

Stepson Owen was due today, but has not started out yet from Virginia, so he'll probably get here at dawn or wait a day.

I am ready to crash.

(Note: There is a gap between the dates I'm writing and posting in order to give me time to get ahead.)

A Year of Making Art, Day 334: Painting vs. Drawing

March 19, 2008  Day 334

I struggled with today's drawing, but I've gone about as far as I can with it:

  Drawing #341  14" x 11"

I think it is easier to "fix" a painting on canvas than a drawing on paper.  Eventually, the paper you draw on can't take any more, and you can't really cover up your mistakes completely the way you can with paint.  You can't scrape it or wash it off, either.  So what you have to do is turn the drawing into something else, but while utilizing what you already have.  That's a greater challenge, I think, although it could be that I'm simply more used to painting than drawing.

I got another call from an artist looking for advice on marketing her art.  There seems to be much more concensus on how to succeed in the other arts than in visual art.  Not that it's any easier to accomplish a successful career in music, dance, or literature, but the paths seem to be clearer.  If you get an MFA in fine art and become an academic, then I think things might be more straightforward.  You present yourself in terms of what the academic curator wants to see, and try to build a reputation through exhibitions and gallery representation.

That, at least, is what I imagine an academic artist does.  I am not one of them.  For the rest of us, it is not clear how to proceed.  Or perhaps there are so many options, and so little time, that it becomes confusing.

So what is my advice to young artists?  Follow your strengths.  Try several paths.  Go with what seems to be working.  Take opportunities that come along.  Learn from what you see others doing.  Be persistent.

Every city must have at least one artists' organization.  Join it and talk to people.  Join online artists' organizations and talk to people.  I've gotten a lot of good advice over the years from artists I've met through the internet.  By sharing, we don't diminish ourselves.

(Note: There is a gap between the dates I'm writing and posting in order to give me time to get ahead.)

A Year of Making Art, Day 333: The Idea of a Pastoral

March 18, 2008  Day 333

In this morning's drawing, I started with the idea of a pastoral in greens and pale blue, but soon had something much more colorful.  At one point it seemed it would not come together and I might have to scrap it, but some strong lines with a chocolate brown saved the day:

  Drawing #340   14" x 11"

After that I worked on cleaning up my website, but the new Dreamweaver I have for the Imac works differently from my old program, and I was frustrated.  An experienced Imac user gave me some advice, however, and I'll try again tomorrow.

New doors are installed in my new wall, and soon that part of the construction will be finished.  Then the rest of the floors have to be finished, and when that's done, I should be able to paint again.

(Note: There is a gap between the dates I'm writing and posting in order to give me time to get ahead.)

A Year of Making Art, Day 332: Quicken is Quicker

March 17, 2008  Day 332

I am still without the use of my studio to paint in--the construction work has taken a lot longer than originally planned.  Isn't that always the case?

But I still have my drawing table set up, and worked this morning in browns and yellows to produce this:

  Drawing #339  14" x 11"

In the afternoon Laura came over.  After we took a walk, she showed me how to use Quicken to enter transactions and reconcile my bank statement.  It is definitely easier than doing it the old way.

(Note: There is a gap between the dates I'm writing and posting in order to give me time to get ahead.)

A Year of Making Art, Day 330: Mark Dion at Bertram's Garden

March 15, 2008  Day 330

For this morning's drawing I made a black-and-white minimalist sketch:

  Drawing #337  14" x 11"

Recently I received a notice about installation artist Mark Dion's project for Bartram's Garden--America's oldest botanical research garden.  I was offered "promotional materials that would be useful to you and/or your staff of writers interested in this project."  Wow, it must be great to have a staff on board to help you promote your art.

Unfortunately, I have no staff whatsoever and have to make the art, photograph it, write about it, update my website, and do all the marketing/promotional/bookkeeping work myself.  That's the case for most artists today.  The lucky few have a staff.

However, I don't mind putting in a little plug for Mark: you can check out his project at MarkDionsBartramsTravels.com.

(Note: There is a gap between the dates I'm writing and posting in order to give me time to get ahead.)

A Year of Making Art, Day 329: No Peace of Mind

March 14, 2008  Day 329

The dinner party (see previous post) went swimmingly, and I was fairly relaxed instead of worrying if everyone was having a good time or getting nervous if there was a lull in the conversation.  The food was great, but that's a given when I make a dinner party.

I didn't sleep well that night, though, because I was worried about shipping another large painting.  The owner of our local Pak-Mail promised to come at 9 a.m. with a trailer to pick up the box (63" x 63" x 5") from me and the print (55" x 55") from my printmaker.  But our little private road is next to impossible to find, and access at my printmaker's offers no place for a trailer to turn around in.  After a few glitches, everything eventually turned out fine, but I can't seem to get through these things without losing a night's sleep first.

With this chaotic beginning to the day, and having to pick up Mike and Rachel after school, I didn't have the peace of mind I needed for today's drawing.  I kept returning to work on it some more, and finally gave up:

Drawing #336  14" x 11"

(Note: There is a gap between the dates I'm writing and posting in order to give me time to get ahead.)

A Year of Making Art, Day 328: Packing and Shipping Pains

March 13, 2008  Day 328

Instead of a nap yesterday afternoon (see previous post), I went on a great hike with my neighbor.  The trail we go on is hilly, and it was covered with a mixture of snow, crusted ice, and mud.  In a few weeks it will be total mud and swampy water.

This morning I tried to get a 51" x 51" box inside my Honda Element, and it wouldn't fit.  I remembered getting this size in before, so I don't know what went wrong.  We finally took a seat out and eventually had success.  The worst thing about my art business is the packing and shipping, especially with the larger paintings.

I finally got around to my drawing for the day, and as it took shape, I thought of dunes:

Drawing #335  14" x 11"

Tonight we are having company for dinner, and that always makes me anxious.  But Laura is coming over to help, and that will ease my nerves.

(Note: There is a gap between the dates I'm writing and posting in order to give me time to get ahead.)

A Year of Making Art, Day 327: Keyed Up After Meeting

March 12, 2008  Day 327

We had a good bipolar support group meeting last night, except that I was the facilitator and worried that I didn't rein people in soon enough when they tended to take more than their allotted time.  We had a new person come, and I worry about making them feel welcome and wanting to come back.

I am always keyed up after meetings, so I stayed up drinking wine and eating nuts and chocolate--enough to give me indigestion that lasted through breakfast.  I woke up at 5 a.m. and couldn't get back to sleep.  Now I am ready for a nap.

In today's drawing I let loose with reds, oranges and yellows, gradually finding a loose shape within this free form:

  Drawing #334  14" x 11"

Then I packed the five paintings I have to ship to a Boston gallery:

  123456  48" x 48"

  MADCAP LIGHT  24" x 24

  GHOST BLOCK  18" x 24"

  WINTER BLOCKS  18" x 24"

  WHIRLPOOL BLOCK  18" x 24"

(Note: There is a gap between the dates I'm writing and posting in order to give me time to get ahead.)