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Wednesday, July 16, 2008 at 08:25PM
Recipe: How to Make Artists Extinct
- Take competent artists and have them enter an art fair.
- Ask artists to donate their paintings.
- Ask artists to hang their artwork in restaurants and businesses without compensation.
- Make artists pay to have their artwork judged, hang art in a booth, and pay an entry fee.
- Promote anything but the art at the fair.
It's enough to make any artist lose interest. Artists work long and hard, but are expected to give their art away and pay extravagant fees to show their artwork and have it “judged”. Even art fairs ignore the basic needs of the artist.
Here's an example of a recent art fair I entered. Promoters paid musicians $6,000 to play during this one day event. Meanwhile, the artists only had a $25 first prize to fight over. Not to mention, artists had to pay for their own booth. When very few people showed up to the event, it was the artists who were short changed. The bands got paid no matter what. Talk about being on the bottom of the food chain!
One senator came into a St. Louis gallery and selected two paintings to “borrow” for her personal Washington D.C. office for a year. Yes, it looks great on an artist’s resume. But consider this: Senators get stipends to decorate their offices. Why is art work less of a value than the rug on the floor?
Restaurants and businesses are some of the worst. They talk about how they are letting artists display art on their walls. What is it really? Free decorating. Why won't these businesses buy or just rent artwork? Why must they decorate at artists expense?
Yet artists-- including myself-- continue to fall into this trap. The few times I've hung my art in restaurants, it's come back greasy. Not to mention, ignored by the patrons. Artists simply lose the ability to show that artwork or sell it during the duration.
We all like to help causes. We want to help non-profits, but there is a problem with donating a painting to some organizations for an auction. Auctions usually bring in only pennies on the dollar for what artists have worked on for months. One of the medium sized pieces I donated would have sold for $450 dollars. It sold for only $30. I would have rather donated cash.
Do people understand what original art is? Do they know how many years we've practiced? How many classes we've completed? The workshops we've took? The time we spend alone in our studios, pouring ourselves into our passion? Why aren't we respected as our own business?
We work extremely hard to share our work. It seems we are too willing to give our art away. What is the solution?
I belong to an artist owned gallery. It gives me the opportunity to show my work respectably. Plus, we set our own prices and do our own promotions. When people come to our openings, we try to educate them on what went into a work of art. Those who purchase our work understand they are making an investment. There has to be a change made by artists and the way they conduct business. If artists continue to give away their work, they cannot expect compensation. If businesses continue to use our art for cheap decoration, our art will continue to sell low or not sell at all. What would it take to get artists to change? At this rate, artists will cease to make a living and only the hobbyist will be able to survive.
I want to know your experiences. Tell me your stories. E-mail me at . Include your name and city. I may share your experiences in this column.
Sky in the West, 12" x 24". Pastel
Tuesday, June 3, 2008 at 10:50AM
An Artist Is Born
I was looking for that one magical piece of information I felt my paintings desperately needed, so I took another workshop. After spending most of the weekend watching the teacher’s demonstrations, I did learn a thing or two. But I did not find that stroke of genius that would elevate my paintings to the level of a Klimt or Degas.
In college, I was told it takes hundreds of paintings to become good. One of my assignments was to paint 25 paintings in one week. Sometime later I was at a conference where a professional critiqued my work. I waltzed in hoping he would say I was ready for the art market. “Yes, he said, you have talent and potential but come back after you do 300 more paintings.” Three hundred more. That was a lot of painting. Again in the book “Fill Your Oil Paintings with Light & Color,” says, “Pledge to do one hundred starts-simple, flat shapes studies with no detail…The more starts you do, the better you’ll become at them.” A few years later, I was invited to a Master Class in Cloudcroft, New Mexico with instructor William Herring. What an impacted he had on my art career!
His theory was; there are 7 steps to mastery just like other disciplines such as tie kwon doe, dancing or being a musician. After 350 works, you are in step 3. I felt this was an achievable goal. However, Step 4 was 1000 works. That was a big jump.. Step 5 required 2000 works. After 3000 works you have achieved the “Big Kahuna”….Mastery.
He broke it down into easy mathematical equations. Doing three works (works include painting, sketching, sculpting and etc.) a week would equal only a measly 156 works a year. It would take you 6.4 years to get to 1000 works or step 4. Finally, after 3000 works at three works a week and nineteen years later, via-la you would arrive at the Taj mahal. But, I wanted to win awards, sell my artwork and develop a name sometime in the near future or at least before my teeth started to fall out.
I barricaded myself in my studio for two years. (I did come out for classes, workshops and food). Finally, I started seeing results. Slowly but surely, I was making progress. It finally sunk in; it takes that much practice get good.
Think of the hours, weeks, months and years a musician, dancer or martial arts person practices before they attempt to perform. That is what a painting is…your performance.
I feel, artists are afraid to practice because it is down on paper. They feel it is permanent. Music floats through the air. No one knows how horrible it sounded at the beginning. Same with a dancer. All their workouts are not recorded to see their leg only raised up to their waist instead of their chest until continual practice. But an artist, their practice is there for everyone to see unless the artist or someone destroys it.
The numbers aren’t really important but they do get the big picture across. It is the principle of performing the work that counts
So get the lead out. Like Jilllian Michaels coaches on the “Biggest Loser,” Artist- GET UP – Artist – GET UP and workout until you are exhausted. You will make progress one painting instead of one pound at a time.
 
The paintings of
Left: "Canadian Rockies", oil, 10 x 12.
Right: "Winter Brook", oil, 22 x 28.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008 at 08:25PM
Beyond Bugs
I grabbed my backpack equipped with my plein air necessities, left a note for my husband and headed for the destiny I had scouted out the day before. It was a beautiful morning. The mist was rising from the lake and a briskness to the air. Everything was quiet except for a squirrel scouring for acorns. Just minutes later, the easel was set up and all was ready.
I used my viewfinder to isolate the part of this vast scene I would capture. Spending a few minutes on a thumbnail sketch to get the values and composition right, I started with that first stroke that is so intimidating to make. Soon, I let the painting unfold quickly capturing all the elements with only sixty to ninety minutes to finish before the sun would cause the scene to change.
Plein air painting has benefits too numerous to count. Two dimensional photos flatten out an image and reduce the contrasts of the values. “When you paint plein air, you can see the subject better, the objects’ shapes, depth and the true color. Sitting in the studio, you get complacent,” observes Kelly Martin, founder of Plein Air Painters of Mid America. Of course, there are those times when it’s rainy, cold, windy, or buggy that keep things challenging.
Having the right equipment makes this outdoor art experience more enjoyable. There are many reputable companies that carry equipment for painting outdoors. (See Below) The idea is for your equipment to be as light as possible in case you decide to hike to that perfect spot and to have everything close at hand so you can paint quickly to capture the moment. (Equipment listed below.)
Three of the many wonderful plein air organizations are and . Their sites list local groups for your convenience. Multi-day “Paint Outs” are held in scenic parts of the country by many groups often concluding with an art sale. “Quick Paints” are 2 to 4 hour plein air events with awards given at the end. Plein Air Painters of Mid America, located in St. Louis, was founded in 2005. They travel to many beautiful parts of the country to participate in plein air events including New Harmony, Indiana, Victor, Colorado and Door County in Wisconsin.
There are wonderful “how to” books about plein air paint including Kevin Mac Pherson’s book, Fill Your Oil Painting with Light and Color and Richard Schmid’s, Alla Prima- Everything I Know About Painting
If you’re ready to give the adventure of plein air painting a try, don’t worry about getting all the equipment in the beginning. I started with a lightweight easel, a TV tray and a box of pastels. I enjoyed it so much, I decided to gradually invest in the equipment. Just be ready for the unexpected. Once when I was painting outdoors, I took a break leaving my supplies set up. I returned just in time to see a crow flying off with my orange pastel in his beak. I wonder how many pastels I lost before I learned to cover them up with a towel. Happy painting - just don’t forget the bug spray!
Plein Air Equipment and Supplies:
Backpack, Paintbox, Tripod or Easel, Paints or pastels, Palette Brushes, Turpenoid Paper towels, Rubber Gloves, Hat, Bug Spray, Bottle of drinking water, View finder, Small sketch pad and pencil, Small sheet to stand on so you don’t get chiggers, Umbrella (Optional- can clip to easel or stick in ground)
Web sites for Purchasing Plein Air Equipment:
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