Art Plunge

Detail from "The Path of Diligence" Throughout the year a couple of people, a handful... have asked me questions about "making it in the art world". I will say this: I have yet to "make it" in the art world. I am however perfectly HAPPY making art in my world. Being a freelance artist is hard and getting more complicated I am realizing. You see- if you have a goal AS  I DO....which is to create your own personal body of work to show in a gallery when it is all said and done then what your most valuable asset is- is TIME. You need time to create, you need supplies to create with. You also must remember that really minor detail- paying your rent, bills and eating. So herein lies the conundrum. You must drum up business constantly to make the money to fund not just your art projects but your basic existence. Oh if we lived in an age of art patrons! Wishful thinking, but I digress. Here is some advice I had to dish out this year and maybe it will serve y...

I love you. It's true, it's true... I posted this on Facebook but in case you didn't get the memo...I was feeling all full of gratitude. I try to feel that way every day. Somethings bring it to the front of your mind- like thinking you have a health problem and then finding out you're gonna be ok. Gratitude. That feeling of a second chance. For me it has also been sparked by seeing a picture of a dear friend of mine, who left us this year- on the front of my facebook page every time I log in. He is a constant reminder for me that I have LIFE and forever we will be friends even though I can't see him anymore. All the things he can't do here, all the things he enjoyed- I can do those things. I am so grateful. So even though his passing is a very dark spot in my life -it is also brightened by the amazing person he was and he left that flame in me. And gratitude for everyone here now, who can read this: What a year it has been! Losses and wins, people I w...

crappy cell phone pics of my latest piece: "Nature Graff 1" There was NO work in my studio at all and I wasn't going out of 2012 with a bare studio. I had been asked for a few pieces in this style for a local shop so I decided to get moving. The end result was this, it was an idea I had been toying around with before I went bright and rainbow ballistic- tame and elegant but still using my organic Nature shapes. It reminded me a little of the crazy flourishes taggers are so great at- that I suck at. I've always loved graffitti but I wouldn't even know where to begin with that. In any case this is a bit like graff if Nature put it's stamp on something.  My goal is to make these affordable so in order to do that I can't spend 100 hours on them (as Ive been known to do). So I clocked in when I would start painting and clock out when I stopped. When all was said and done this is about 8 hours worth of painting (not counting the priming). So if I want...

This photo has nothing to do with anything other than it was a beautiful picture I am inspired by For the remainder of the year I'm going to be looking back via blog at what an extraordinary year it was for me. It was Year of the Dragon and even from the get go I staked my claim on it as MY YEAR and from the very start this year delivered. I started January with a steady gig at a mural company where I was making money doing what I love- painting! My first mural for DB Green Murals I painted quite a few large scale murals that can be seen by Cedars Station This lasted a good 5 months, money was great, place I worked for was great...it is what I look back on as the "high life times". It was all eat, drink and be merry...fun work and I was able to catch up on things I couldn't afford. Just as the job neared it's end an abcessed tooth caused me some dental procedures and a big bite of my saved up money was handed over to Mr. Dentist. OOF! Blo...

My finished MUNNY: King Roly Finished my Munny the day before Christmas and good timing too as something really weird happened. It SNOWED! And it got SUPER FREAKIN COLD! Like 19 degrees! Right now only the oven is heating the front part of the house and my studio so it's a bit too chilly for me to really work, maybe when the temp rises up a little today. Regardless, today is DROP day for this little guy. Here are the photos I shot of him before Snowmageddon hit I made a little staff and some roly poly bugs out of Sculpey- then I epoxied the bugs to their proper places after baking them and painting them. He is my little Nature themed boy, so cute! Details, details...I base colored him with spray paint AFTER primering him then used acrylic to paint all the details. I used a spray primer. For the sculpey parts I primered with acrylic (do not spray sculpey, sticky mess, *do not- do not spray sculpey) He was spray glossed with Clear Coat to protect all my work...

Munny...Work In Progress The deadline is quick approaching on Show Me The Munny show and I will admit....I've become OBSESSED with getting this thing done by the 26th. So much so that when I woke up at 3am my brain started thinking about what all needed to be done and how I was going to paint his back, etc. I tried to go back to sleep but it wasn't happening. I should have been a farmer, asleep by 9pm and up at 3 or 4. BAH! Painting on this thing was a lot easier yesterday. I realized I shouldn't have tried to paint him the same day I primered him. I know this too from working on vinyl records. The paint needs time to fully dry, cure and become it's new entity before you paint on it. Lesson learned. I worked for a long time doing the paint job you see here. I use a tiny 10/0 liner brush. Today I'll finish up his back and IF theres time...the special thing I wanted to add to him will be created. He's been a pain but I am starting to really be enamore...

work in progress, my first MUNNY It's been a whirlwind of cleaning, organizing and getting ready for the holidays. There are now small signs of Christmas here, a wreath on the door, the tiny tree is up and garland is flocking the doorway. I sent out some Christmas cards and bought the Christmas ham to share with my family. I guess I need to find a pie though, absolutely forgot about that. Some friends are coming over tonight so I'm making my studio presentable for whoever would like to see it....it's a dining room, don't expect some cool amazing room filled with cool amazing things. In fact almost all my art is NOT EVEN HERE. And actually the get together is being held next door at my friend and landlords place so I don't have to break my back trying to be the hostess with the mostest awesome house. I'm an artist with 3 cats and too much stuff, it's never gonna be pretty. But I digress, this blog is about that creepy looking head up there.... I need...

Angel with a red ball One thing I've found myself doing this past year was pet portraits. I never thought I'd be good at it but surprisingly enough I find it very enjoyable and I'm not too shabby at it -it turns out. Something about loving what you do opens the possibilities to master things you never thought you could. A positive attitude goes a long way in making your art excel. I didn't know this sweet doggie had passed on, I just loved his expression and character. Knowing I have captured a sweet little soul that is missed and will be remembered every time the portrait is seen makes me happy and I know the owners will be happy too. This is a thoughtful gift. Very special. It really, really makes me love my "job". I remember being stuck hauling boxes around a basement and feeling like I had more to give to the world. This is what was inside me, the ability to create SMILES from my paintbrush. No wonder my soul was hurting. Is your soul hurting? maybe...

Feeling peaceful I did a little bit of Christmas decorating yesterday. Lit a candle by my Dads picture, put up the tiny tree and hung the wreath on the door. I guess I did it to get my mind off things. My Dad used to tell me -when I would ask how he was "You don't worry mija, no matter where I go I'm ok. Ok?" So I kinda feel the same, no matter what happens I'll be ok- whatever way this coin gets flipped...I'll be ok. Waiting for the doctors office to call this morning, won't be able to focus until I hear back from them. Groan.

Samichlaus and Schmutzli-  Swiss Christmas characters Because I've been sick since the day after Thanksgiving (still coughing, seriously wtf?) and I'm behind on a few commissions (which I'm rocking out today and tomorrow)....I have neglected all signs of the season. I don't have a tree up. I don't have a wreath up. No sign of Christmas has appeared AT ALL in my house. Because my Doctor has decided this month was the month to drain my wallet... any gifts or such things are not gonna happen. I am barely going to eek out the rent and hopefully bills. I hope to have enough to buy a lone ham to share with my Mom and brothers. It's like that. Ah well, it's nothing new. I'm not into the shopping frenzy this holiday has become anyway. But I would like to send some cards out to my friends and family so I better get crackin'. I kinda want to take this time to CLEAN and PURGE my house of unwanted junk before the new year. I have decided this holiday was ...

Ouch Really? I'm on my 4th week of coughing? Just when my symptoms start to dissipate they come back. I had a horrible night of restless sleep because I kept waking up coughing. I thought I was over that part of the obstacle course. So annoyed. Is this pneumonia? Why am I dealing with this AND this other waiting game of seeing if my cells are precancerous. I want to say this is stressful but I'm resolved NOT to let it stress me out. Instead I will be proactive. I was looking at my lab results from blood work..it all looks like a foreign language to me....but next to one thing was the word LOW. Creatinine Serum Level=LOW. I googled it. Apparently it has to do with your muscle mass, kidneys and  your muscles atrophying. Its also reading as if I'm a vegetarian, which I'm not. If this is a free pass to eat lots of yummy steak I'll take it! But more realistically it means...strength training. My muscles have dissolved this year sitting at  a canvas all the time....

"Sometimes You Feel Small" I've been asked to pick out my strongest piece to turn in for a feature. This is a bit of a tough call for me as I feel a little biased. But it has made me look back at this year in my personal work (no records, commissions, etc) and remember what an amazing creative year it has been for me. It's a bit like connect the dots when I think about it and it all started with that little guy up there. I was given a blank piece of wood to create a piece for "For The Love of Kettle" show- a donated piece which would be sold for $50. From there it was all mice and mayhem... "Sometimes You Feel Small Part 2" on view at Kessler until Dec. 31st This was my next piece and one that I allowed the public to follow from start to finish. I documented the blank canvas and each days work to allow everyone a peek behind the wizards curtain. You can see my first experiment with the krylon backgrounds and super detailed little animals...

I'm a little sick chick... I know this is an art blog but as a self employed artist one of the things you will encounter...your nemesis....is getting sick. I would usually go to the doctor about 3 days in if I was ill and could because I had insurance. Now I don't and so I try to go the homeopathic route. Whatever it was I just encountered was a ninja of great skill. It came on stealthy with just a feeling of chest congestion, footswept me with bronchitis and just when I thought the ninja was gone....it threw a throwing star of tonsillitis at me. True story. Two days ago I noticed my sore throat had come back. This morning I shine a little light down my throat and sure enough....poor tonsil. So it's back to hot teas, soups, rest and lozenges. Seriously? I need to be well. I have work to do. Nothing like your body MAKING you stop and rest. Not to mention I'm trying not to think about precancerous cells and fun stuff like that. So next on my list of healthy things ...

Patience comes in handy in the waiting room grasshopper... So I'm sitting in the waiting room yesterday for an hour. Plenty of time to think. I'm about to have a biopsy and a minor procedure and about to hand over a couple hundred dollars of my very hard earned cash. This is the second week in a row I have been here and I know when I leave there will be another appointment next week on the books. More money. Down the drain. Money I don't have. So like I said, plenty of time to think. I have had an AMAZING 2012. It really has been my most creative and empowering. I have finally hit my creative stride and broken new ground on my work. I am just starting to catch the eyes of galleries and the venues where my work can be fully appreciated. I am closing out a year ...my second year....of doing this on my own. A successful year of freelancing where I didn't have to clock into a crappy office job. It was a year of learning SO MUCH and painting SO MUCH! But as smart as I ...