I have starting point - AIR & REFLECTED LIGHT

Monday: Finally some 20x20 warm-ups got the engine going. Basically by revisiting a few 2011 paintings about air, fog and indirect light..... Perhaps mood and effect will be the real object of the collection. Hard to say at this point. The smallest will be 48x44 up to 66x60 - if the occasion arises it could go larger. So, the game's on!

Wednesday: Yesterday morning by the end of the day I had a gloomy, rainy day on the river, silent and damp, rather lonely painting. Not at all what I was after when I started. Then, I didn't have a solid plan either, it was more important to get the process going. So if nothing else, mood was well established!

 962-1 48x44 oil on linen wrap (5-12-15)

The surface light reflection will be the key to any success here. It has to be liquid, intense light that glows vertically. This limited palette or lack of colour is clearly hanging around.

9:24am - Time to turn on the lights!

962-2 48x44 oil on linen wrap (5-13-15)

Thursday: It's the kind of day if you're on the river you want to go home, sit in front of a fire or watch a movie. The indirect light source here causes the landscape to be keyed down to a very early morning gray day effect. I do like that it has an interesting surface glow developing. But, where to stop this thing and how to handle the upper part of the left side trees is on the agenda today. Yesterday I worked on the lower section exclusively so my top had an extra day to dry.

962-3 48x44 oil on linen wrap (5-13-15)

I signed off after working on the trees most of the day... even removed some miss steps before calling it quits. I'm not sure this is what I had in mind doing, but time will tell. The painting at 15 feet is very finished looking but the details below tell another story of loose abstraction.

Friday: After sleeping on it, I could bulk up the tree foliage a bit by following the light down on the foliage with some strong highlights. I took some of this out towards the end yesterday because it was confusing the eye as an additional focal point which I didn't need.

 962-4 Spring Storm 48x44 oil on linen wrap (5-15-15)

Saturday: Will I ever learn? I ended up noodling with this thing for hours yesterday and then later last night removing the same thing I removed the previous day. I don't have the patience for twiggy trees! The left-side still bugs me, but, I'm moving on before I do something nasty to it!

BuyRVAart

A new ARTS platform for Richmond was launched yesterday buyRVAart
the brainchild of Jenni Kirby, owner of Crossroads Art Center and her business partner Cathy Fallin, former owner of Commonwealth Kinko's in Richmond. BuyRVAart will be the website for people living in the Richmond VA Area (RVA), to discover everything that is Art.  BuyRVAart will be the only website in Richmond that focuses on both the Visual and Performing Arts.  

 

 

Meet the Owners

Jenni Kirby

 

With a childhood start in performing arts and later developing a love for visual arts, Jenni Kirby's talents - and business acumen - have been honed to support the RVA arts community.

Her business degree from Mary Washington College coupled with her exposure to many family owned businesses prepared this mosaic artist for the pivotal moment when she realized that her artist friend's needed something: They needed an opportunity to show their work, but not be burdened with the "business details" of enterprise.   With a solid business plan, Jenni formed the Crossroads Art Center in Richmond and opened her welcoming doors to artists - they display it and she handles the business transactions. The center currently houses over 225 local RVA artists in 25,000 square feet and processes over half a million dollars in sales each year.

Possessing a creative mind that is business savvy, Jenni conceived of a way to expand the reach of local artists - beyond Richmond, and beyond Crossroads Art Center. Her vision for buyRVAart is to shine a spotlight on the artists of Richmond, Virginia and to help their sales reach a global market. Jenni has been introducing incredible RVA artists and their exceptional art to collectors and admirers since 2002.  She believes in the local arts community, and that everyone can-and should-collect local art, and that artists should have more opportunities to make a living by creating and selling their work.

Jenni's ingenuity is seldom at rest and she is exhilarated by the prospect of being THE Source for RVA art.

 

 

Meet the Owners

Cathy Fallin

Believing that the local RVA arts should be universally promoted and accessible globally, regardless of the buyer's geography, Cathy has invested in BuyRVAArt to make that belief a reality. As a successful entrepreneur and professional, Cathy recognizes that the power of a central source is a mandate for a successful arts community.

With an early background in performing arts, Cathy has always had a passion for and been an ardent supporter of the arts. Although her career ultimately led her away from a day-to-day involvement in the arts, her desire to bolster them has never waned.

Her 18 year career with Kinko's (now owned by FedEx), with the later 5 years as the President and owner of the local Commonwealth Kinko's, afforded her the opportunity to plan and grow successful businesses. With a keen talent for financial management, Cathy uses her career experiences to underpin the infrastructure of BuyRVAArt to assure artists, art lovers and buyers alike that this will be the resource they will be able to rely upon for generations to come.

THE LADIES HAVE THE DAY! CONGRATULATIONS & BEST WISHES FOR A BLOCKBUSTER IDEA AND MAKING IT HAPPEN!!!

 

The warm-up painting

Saturday: Like a prize fighter or most any activity including sex, we like a little warm-up! I'm not sure painting is any different. I absolutely love these extended breaks between collections, but suspect time off has a consequence. The little warm-up below shakes that out a bit, at least for me. I already know my first few paintings will be about working out a concept before I hit any real stride. Warm-ups generally cover something you already know and this 20x20 is no different. A limited palette of (5) colours and white.....no reason for that. I was never into being clever with a few colours.... colours are out there to be used and I do!

960 Virginia Beach - Spring Storms 20x20 oil on linen (5-8-15)

I spent yesterday looking at all my references..... we even had a spectacular spring sunrise. Not much got my attention other than the very large white canvases surrounding me meant for the "Air Collection".

Air of course is about atmosphere and that means landscapes and such. Last time it expanded into and under the water... another kind of air.  It's pretty clear my references won't be much help other than defining shapes.....making sure things feel right like the warm up painting below done at a different time for a different reason. Venice was just a setting choice. This was (1) of (4) painted using a very nondescript black and white reference pulled from commons in 2011. Just curious where it would lead.....

591 Venice Salute 20x20 oil on linen (9-8-11)

Old reference 

Sunday: The only problem, I don't want to paint Venice or London. Although if I had to choose now,  I would go with London.

8:51 Time to paint.....another seascape

 961 Spring Storms 20x20 oil on linen (5-10-15)

I'm not into seascapes right now either, but I do like the idea of indirect celestial light drifting down reflecting on a surface. Some more 2011 examples below......same view. The small one was the reference for the larger one.

 

 515 James from Belle Isle 8x10 oil on linen (5-20-11)

584 James from Belle Isle 30x30 oil on linen (8-18-2011)

So, I have a little paste-up board here to spring from. It looks like any setting above could be used to achieve my singular focus concept of AIR. I also like the idea of reflected light as opposed to seeing the source, as is often the case.

Back in the art cave

Monday:  I picked up "Singular Focus" Sunday from the Stravitz. They did a wonderful job presenting my new collection and I'm forever grateful to Dick Stravitz and his staff.

I wrote volumes of blog posts in my absence but decided not to publish any of it in favor of a condensed version. My attention was diverted towards the reproduction market and long term benefits from my original art. It's safe to say I'm on a learning curve, if nothing else learning the buzz words. The words that make you sound intelligent about a field you know zip about! I'm especially fascinated with the 3D technology entering the field of fine art canvas reproduction.

If I expect to get anywhere while learning how all this works and paint too, it has to be done in workable segments. So...I need a simple plan to start. I'll use outside services to get the ball rolling, first with "digital captures" of my paintings.

My real plan is to approach this on two fronts.... licensing my images for global distribution and producing a personal collection. I'll use my personal favorites from each collection. For now, those images won't be licensed and the originals will be retained for the long term benefit.

I already have a few professional scans like the one below by Staples Fine Art using a flat bed scanner - the "digital capture" is a whopping 70mb. A small file compared to what I'll use going forward..

669 Koi & Lilies 30x30 oil on linen (6-13-12)

This morning I came across another service a fellow artist uses, Old Town Editions  near DC. It looks like they can handle my large formats and do most of what I want....perhaps eventually 3D services too. Better yet, they are close enough to work with. 

I was able to set up a meeting Wednesday with Old Town Editions to look at eye candy and go over their services. At the same time I'll turn a group of paintings over for "digital capture". Perhaps learn some more "buzz words" too.

Wednesday: The old SUV is loaded and ready to go.......if the eye candy tastes good the game's on!

It turned out to be a good trip. Parking and access in Old Town Alexandria is a serious challenge. They can pretty much do it all so I left a dozen paintings for digital capture. Nice people to work with:=)

Thursday: Happy camper here, other than some 3D printing research there's not much to do until the digital files are ready on the 14th. I have until then to find a 3D service or go conventional. As much as I like the concept it might be smarter to use tried and true in the beginning.

There are some time constraints... my gallery space at Crossroads will be the launching pad for the reproductions. The gallery was loaned out for a benefit until the end of the month. It's a golden opportunity to make a changeover using a combination of originals and reproductions. I might do a 2nd exhibit for "Singular Focus" - Koi and Lilies mixed with a few reproductions, if I can manage it in time.

I want to get back to painting - so this is a good project stopping point. The rest can happen between painting sessions.

6-weeks off..... my 1st painting will be a small 20x20 warmup....time to do it!

Some time off and a clean slate

Sunday: Well all this time off, painting the deck and stuff gave me time to develop a revised business plan I can start fresh with. So far it fits well as a unit, a process of working efficiently, plus an organized "after" plan for marketing. In truth little has really changed other than painting "collections" based on a singular idea. Nothing new there... artists and designers have been doing it forever. It just took me a little while to get there. My last collection "Singular Focus" about Koi and Lilies was the start that led me to wipe the slate clean and start fresh. What does that mean exactly; well I think it means "the beginning years are finally over and shelved". It's actually very liberating. I know from past experience decluttering needs to happen periodically for anything to remain viable.

THE PROCESS

1. It starts with one painting at a time  - in collections - until the energy is gone. Benefit: technical and atheistic improvement and a cohesive body of work called a "collection".

2. Obtain quality image scans for the reproduction market before releasing the collection. It could be narrowed to only the speed-bump paintings. The images are the long term investment from the lucrative reproduction market....or not. It's a good option to have tho.

Before you say never happen, consider the new advances in 3-D printing technology fast becoming main stream. It supposedly can capture the feel of depth in art work.

CELEBRATE A BIT 

3. Announce the completion to the galleries with good images looking for any interest they might have. The communication also lets them know you still exist and are producing work. Besides good PR they are always interested in seeing new work from artist they represent.

4. The solo exhibit would be an ideal way to release any new collection of work. Timing could be an issue - exhibits are set well in advance...hopefully you are on the list. If not, do it other ways..... website, social media, instagram or rent a space and do it yourself........commonly done by fashion designers.

A young artist I started collecting recently actually set one up online with email RSVP invitations and a release time. Very clever thinking on his part and something to look into.  

5. National Advertizing - a must for national exposure - galleries find new talent there too. Pick the best of breed to release each collection by doing a single image full page ad. I use American Art Collector... plus they also give you side article opportunities. Collections are generally tied to seasons with a max (4) ad budget $10,000 +

Half page ads are ineffective and waste valuable resources.

6. If you get a party, hopefully with some sales, collect your work and it's over.......you get a much needed break to think about the next collection or vegetate.

The break has no time limit. It could be the end game and you never pick up a brush again, because if you complete a collection there is a beginning and end. How cool is that!

AFTER MARKET

7. I think there is one duty left, the "after market". Release the collection to the galleries or not. But do release the images into the reproduction market, which also works around our seasons. This can be done at any level your comfortable with or the market allows. First and foremost it's our long term investment with dividends that should not be ignored by any artist. 

My choice was a simple licensing agreement allowing the professionals to do it for me. My real interest lies in making art, not selling it! That's a job for galleries and the after market reproduction guys. I'll gladly do my part and leave the rest to them.

THINK OF YOUR ART AS A LONG TERM INVESTMENT AND HOW TO CAPITALIZE ON IT. 

Decorating mode - showing scale

Monday: One of the nice things about our Virginia cave, it has good walls to display art on. Our last cave had more windows than walls.....67 if I remember right. I've never been one to hang my own work, but if I did, this cave would work well....even for some larger scale works.

I often clatter on about the "best walls" and about preferring to paint for those than any other. Generally, size is important when it comes to those walls. Art also needs to be good neighbors with it's surroundings. If it's a home it also needs not be offensive or violent in nature. That probably goes for most commercial installations too. I prefer more often that not, a mixture of new and old when it comes to art. I do like abstraction or strong design statements in art.... even in the most traditional setting they work well together. And, art must, especially if you want a comfortable, livable, environment, be cohesive with our lifestyle choices.

In any event, in today's world we have choices as close to us as our phones or computers. Of course a little "plastic" also makes it a painless experience to acquire anything our little hearts desire.....and without any travel or outside interference. Our whims are then delivered and if savvy shipped free and perhaps free of any sales tax too. And, of course the art world is now in it big.

Obviously all this is affecting artisans... especially how we market our work and more importantly how we'll do it in the future. As an artist we just have to visually get the message across. Most art websites do a wonderful job, but, a single image of our little creation won't tell the whole story. Thumbnails don't reveal scale. We also need reference points; how it might fit our buyers needs. Lately I've been using my website as a guinea  pig. Up till now, I used gallery settings in conjunction with my paintings images and it clearly shows scale. But, it's not "real"... it's a controlled commercial environment and not representative of the end user.

In the past we regularly received Sears and Penny "Wish Books", now it's RH (Restoration Hardware) and it's wonderful room set-ups to show us how to use their product in a collected style....our reference point to do our own thing. It seems logical this would also work for art and artists too. Cool idea but perhaps beyond our limitations because it would require some sort of staging as in the Hallsley model - perhaps a pro to set it up and take digital shots...... or maybe we could accomplish this at some level in our homes or studio.

In my last post I have a painting on one of those "best walls" at the Hallsley home.

THE PAINTING

932 Blue Skies 62x48 oil on linen gallery wrap

The painting's image has no sense of scale until the setting is exposed. I wonder if this simple presentation on the internet is not more compelling to a buyer than a bricks and mortar presentation.

THE ROOM

 

Hallsley- dining room

I'm not sure how this can be accomplished by the rank and file, but I think it's a worthy project to explore a bit further. The room above shows my intention as an artist very clearly and how I expected the painting to be used in the first place.

This painting was also part of my "AIR" collection and briefly at my Crossroads gallery. The paintings surroundings are clean and well lighted. My gallery's most important function as an artist to me is seeing it on a wall in controlled surroundings. This could also be accomplished in a studio or a home. 

Single wall presentation

Both paintings were actually used at Hallsley. The photo gives a good sense of scale.  This is a big painting at 60x82 (overall with frame) and comes across big in real life.

However when placed in a setting it could have been bigger and very deceiving with regard to scale in this photo.

A bit better but still looks small.

Better if it were raised 6" to 8" 

These are all good examples of scale and settings or no settings and how it looks on our screens to a potential client. BTW this is not a particularly large room and that's a 5 foot x 7 foot painting. As a designer I'm also not concerned lamps are intersecting the painting and neither is the table width bothersome. Art becomes monolithic with the setting and part of the family life.

The abstract 8x5 canvas by Curtis Strange is intersecting with a 7 foot grand. A very effective  way of unifying two major statement pieces. 

 

One simple vertical painting is perhaps the important finishing touch and helps set the pace for this room. In my mind this is how art is intended to be used. I call these "best walls", the only walls I care to paint for because I care where my work ends up and how it's presented. The "quicksand", we only control it's creation not the end use. However we can show how it might work and perhaps our website or blogs is the place to do it.

Hallsley - Artful Spaces

Friday: Yesterday I went to visit Hallsley, a local upscale residential development to see one of the ten models filled with art, antiques, jewelery, pottery, furniture and accessories all by local businesses, artists and craftsmen. Crossroads, Antiques Mall and Project One were responsible for all the interior magic seen in this one. Many Crossroads artists works were selected for the event including my own.

The "Artful Spaces" homes will be featured throughout this weekend.

EYE CANDY

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Most models are dressed to the nines using basically "off the shelf" reproductions..... after all they do have a budget. This home had a more "real" feel about it than most models I've ever experienced. The use of antiques in combination with the "off the shelf" and original art made this a "collected home".  Something we are familiar with, comfortable with, and more possible to achieve on our own than the dressed to the nines designer creations even this home will be in the next few weeks.

From an artist standpoint, I enjoyed seeing how all the wonderful art was displayed amongst all the treasures in this wonderful "collected setting".

Sunday: Well all this got me in the mood to work on our own cave.....Brenda don't get too excited, it only means today I'm going to paint the deck outside the studio. However, Spring madness could extend inside too...:=)

Now what!

Monday: The parties are over - the tax man is banging on the door and the deck needs painting. Perhaps a good thing, after all, it is spring and cleaning, painting and gardening seems right for the season. It's also a good time to be lazy and ignore it all, including the barbarian at the gate! Spring also brings peonies and water lilies which I enjoy painting.

NEW LILY PADS

I like water lilies in the spring because the pads are red, at least for awhile. Last year produced a lot of photos but not many top views like this. Typically I shoot them at different times of the day until the pond is totally consumed with lilies. Like I said before, a very aggressive variety.....actually need a bigger pond.

PEONIES

This batch of garden peonies was from 2013. The Stravitz Gallery has the two top ones and the bottom is in my own collection. Last year I didn't do any. I was more interested in change than flowers. The peony is a flower I understand tho and can paint. The lily however is a work in progress. I'll study them more next time around.

Tuesday: You know how some things gets mentioned more than once and you pay attention to the last one. That happened to me last week. Sometimes even an obvious title is missed. In this case it was and a sales associates reason for returning it.

AIR

This was the first painting and the bench mark for the "Air project"

I didn't mind the returning, just the reason! "The painting doesn't have anything going on and it's hard to make out if those are trees or not". The first time it was on another painting I ignored it, the second time it got my attention because it was almost the same reason. It made me realize neither understand the visual message in the painting or are able to counter positively if the remark was made by a client or customer........it also meant they would not be able to sell my work. It goes without saying it was on my mind and still is. I guess this is why art is moved around a bit before it finds the right wall.

A good sales staff  knows what any artist they represent is trying to convey, be quick on their feet, positively respond to inquires about any painting....regardless of their own personal taste.

The QUICKSAND here, sales, is an art form, because it's difficult to sell anything you don't believe in or love. In truth, it would be a difficult sale for most....people sense it and walk. I'm no different. I may not want to be bothered, but when I'm ready, the sales person is key to a sale. 

I'm sure it will all work itself out - oddly this got me thinking about "AIR" again, an unfinished project I never really concluded. In fact it ended up with me taking 2-months off.

Last year my painting focus was about "AIR", exploring more abstraction, possibilities and mood. "AIR" is an interesting subject because it has range. I paint Venice, London, rivers and the sea, sometimes with horses, the obvious, but that's not what those paintings were about or why I painted them. They only give a reference point to the real intent, "AIR". The other component to air is light and when added to a reflective surface, creates visual magic at its best! I would not bother painting if it were otherwise.

Even the peony paintings above are driven by the feel of "AIR".  Because of those comments it never occurred to me others would not see it too, or at least separate it out. In truth, most do..... they may not realize it, but they do. I know because they talk more about that than the obvious subject. The obvious perhaps reminds them of a time in their lives that made them happy. But, the heart-thump, the speed-bump or the jump-factor, whatever you want to call it, is the "LIGHT and AIR" quality of a painting....in my mind the obvious!

The concept "SINGULAR FOCUS" was developed from my "AIR" paintings. It was really a simplification to one obvious subject. Most of the air paintings were based off the sunrise on a rivers edge, then gravitated to the reflection on the waters surface and below. It also had an additional component, "SIZE & ABSTRACTION", which complicated it........lost energy ended it!

This was one of the many paintings in the collection and a speed-bump favorite...also large at 66x72

THE LAST AIR PAINTING

 A quick 20x20 study cleaning off my palette before turning the lights off

AND THEN THIS!

A month later, in a weak moment.........it could have easily been my last painting.

MORE TIME OFF!

Progress, we got to here and a party....

I think "AIR" needs another go....... besides, it never did get the party.....the only question left, will it have "the obvious subject"?