In the past few months, in addition to expanding my art by exploring new painting mediums and techniques, I have been working very hard to try to build my network of collectors. The last year has been difficult on a lot of people, and the cancelling of art shows or exhibitions have meant that there are very few ways of getting artworks and collectors together in the same room. Some things are easily marketed and purchased online, but in my opinion, fine art is not one of them! Art is, quite understandably, not on the priority list when so many are stressed by job losses or business closures, not knowing when or if children will be in school, and of course the constant worry about the threat of illness or death of loved ones. I have always enjoyed learning new things, so in that respect it has been an incredibly interesting year. I thankfully am not worried about job loss, close family is doing alright, and I have my appointment for my first vaccine next week! I can see the day when we will be back to in-person art shows and exhibitions. In the meantime, I continue to try to learn more about marketing, especially art marketing. One of the big questions I have been trying to answer is “Why do people buy art?”. The most common reason I have found in my readings is “Because they like it”. Art is a uniquely human activity in that it serves no practical purpose, other than perhaps to cover a hole or blemish on a wall. So if it has no useful purpose, why do we surround ourselves with it? Art, and here I include fine art, music, film, poetry, literature, etc., touches our soul like nothing else can. Not everyone likes the same art, because we don’t all come to this art with the same experiences. Some art will remind us of a happy time or place, while other art will stir up emotions about social issues that must not be forgotten, and although the art itself doesn't resolve these issues, it makes us think. So why do YOU need art? Perhaps being surrounded by beautiful things makes you happy. Perhaps it reminds you of someone you love or of some place or time when you were happy. Emotions are usually what motivates most purchases, and art is no exception. This week I was lucky to see this in action. A local group of painters I belong to is having an exhibition and it was my turn to “mind the store”. A couple of young women came in and one of them was obviously taken by one of the paintings. She asked for permission to take a photo of it to show her husband. She came back about an hour later and bought the painting. She said it reminded her of a painting she had seen a few years ago and that she had always regretted not buying. She said that even though her husband didn’t really like the painting, she did not want the same thing to happen again. She knew exactly where she would hang it. It was definitely her heart that made the purchase. She walked away a very happy customer, and I am sure she will love it every time she looks at it. Remember your first apartment or home? How long did it take for you to hang or display something that meant you were “home”, that you had taken possession of the space? Even if it was only a picture calendar because that was all you could afford at the time. We want to surround ourselves with art, with beauty. Art that we love allows us to escape momentarily, to mentally travel to a different place. For some it is like meditating or even praying when they get lost in a piece of art. The art you choose says a lot about you. It is a way of communicating some of this to others who may visit your home. It can stir up emotions and be a way of starting engaging discussions about the art itself or the way different people interpret it. Except for rare exceptions, it was probably created by a human being, and it is a way of connecting with that other human. Some people enjoy the fact that, in the case of original art, they own something no one else can own. It gives their ego a boost. Some people buy art because it matches their decor. I am always saddened to see how much of this type of art winds up for sale on Kijiji or Facebook Marketplace, sometimes for as little as $5 or $10. Throwaway art. Besides the very rich, who are often doing it for prestige, few people buy art as an investment, and unless you know a lot about art, are very lucky, and aren’t afraid to lose your money, you probably shouldn’t either! But good quality art is long lasting. Unlike mass produced art that might look like it was hand painted, original art from a conscientious artist will be made using archival materials and methods, and if properly cared for, will still be around long after you and even your children’s children are gone. And it will still be beautiful, and it will make your descendants happy as it did you. And who knows, it might also be very valuable! So why do you need art? I would love to read your comments!
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Today I would like to talk to you about my three favorite artists and why I chose them. They are quite different in style and medium, but they all bring me great joy, which is what I believe art is all about. Some artists use their art to give expression to their angst or suffering, or to draw attention to societal problems, but so far I have not felt that need. I think there is enough ugliness and suffering in the world. I create art because I find it beautiful. Number 1 on my list is Andrew Wyeth. He was an American artist, born in 1917 in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania. He worked mainly in watercolor and tempera. One of his most famous works is no doubt “Christina’s World”, which shows his neighbor Christina Olsen on the grass near her farm. She was the subject of many of his paintings. He had a long and prolific career, splitting his time between Chadds Ford and Maine until his death in 2009. Why do I like his work? I love how he can find beauty in the mundane. A lace curtain dancing on the breeze in an otherwise plain room. An angle where two buildings meet. A wicker basket propped up against a wall. A weathered face. He uses strong light and shadow, or unusual points of view to transform these into fascinating stories. I have yet to find such inspiration in my surroundings as he did in his, but I continue to hope. I have been lucky enough to see some of his paintings exhibited and to be able to observe them close up to see how he uses incredibly dark watercolor in seemingly easy and immediate strokes, something I haven’t managed to achieve yet either.. You can find out more about Andrew Wyeth at https://andrewwyeth.com/ Second on my list is Alex Colville. He was born in 1920 in Toronto, but moved to Nova Scotia where, along with New Brunswick, he lived a good part of his life. He died in 2013. His most famous painting is probably “Horse and Train”, which depicts the unlikely and unsettling black horse running along a train track with a train coming in the distance. I like his work because it is beautiful first, then unsettling. At first glance you see a lovely image of an animal or a person or a boat, but after a few seconds you notice the train or the storm clouds in the distance or the odd thing that leads you to believe you aren’t getting the whole story, there is literally more happening than meets the eye. His images are of real things, but they are not done from reality. They are meticulously composed. I was fortunate enough to see an exhibit of his work in New Brunswick 2 years ago, where some of his numerous studies were displayed alongside the finished piece. He was a geometry “geek”, in that he calculated and positioned every item in his composition to follow certain lines. This revelation led me to investigate and further study geometrical composition, including things like the golden mean which I had heard of, but also the 14 line armature which I hadn’t. The unfinished painting you see on this page is a result of this experimenting. I am not 100% happy with it, and maybe I will go back to finish it some day. I have since backed away from using a strict armature, but still keep it in mind when designing a painting. You can learn more about Alex Colville at http://alexcolville.ca/ You have probably never heard of my third favorite artist. I hadn’t until I saw a painting of his at a big art show in Palm Beach a few winters ago. He is John A. Grimshaw, and he was born in 1836 in Leeds, England. He was, like me, self-taught. The first painting of his that I saw was of a Victorian street, with a woman, no doubt a servant, walking away down the sidewalk, surrounded by the mist and the dawning light. What attracted me was how he had captured such a fleeting moment, not only the quickly changing light, but also the feelings of cold and damp, the beginning of the warmth, to a point where you could not only feel these, but almost smell them. I have been lucky to see a few of his paintings. They are spellbinding. You can find out more about J. A. Grimshaw at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Atkinson_Grimshaw. I hope you enjoyed this quick introduction to my three favorite painters. I continue to be inspired by their work as I progress on my own journey. Who are your favorite painters? Let me know in the comments! Today I want to talk about my art studio. After some debate with my neat self (who rarely wins), I decided to post a photo of my main watercolor painting area. I could have spent the day tidying up for a nice picture instead of writing about it, but I decided to let you see exactly where "the sausage is made" . I am a “I have to see it” kind of person, and my office was the same when I was teaching… everything in plain view…. just under everything else!! I agree with those who say that “a clean desk is the sign of a sick mind” and that a messy desk is actually a sign of genius! I am very lucky to have a studio for my art. This allows me to have everything in one space, and to be able to leave things out so I can paint when I feel like it, and for as long or as little time as I have. Watercolor is a great medium for that, because even if it dries in the palette or on the brushes, it just needs water to revive or clean it. I often stop in the middle of a painting, feeling that I would be better off taking a break than pushing on and possibly ruining it. Watercolor is perfect for that, unless of course you are going for certain effects, in which case you have to work quickly or without stopping until you are done. My studio is on the small side, only about 8 x 11 feet. It is on the second floor of my house, in a mezzanine with a sloping ceiling and lots of natural light. The biggest windows face south, so the light isn’t perfect for art, and it does get very warm up there in the hottest days of summer. When I started using the space, it housed a single bed which was used for occasional visitors. I have my main painting area, which is nothing more than a 6 foot plastic folding table whose main function used to be to set out extra food at big family gatherings. I yearn for a real drawing table, with a tilting top and t-square ruler, but I don’t have the space for it, and I would lose a lot of flat storage space that I really need. In watercolor, I normally work flat or at a very slight incline, in which case I use a little wooden ‘bridge’ to prop up the top of my piece. When I started using oils and pastels, I needed an easel, which I ‘commissioned’ from my friendly “handyman”. The space for working standing up isn’t ideal, as I can’t back up very far to get a better look at my work, but it will have to do! My handyman also made me a small pan fr the easel to catch pastel dust, another shelf to add some flat storage space, some knock down table easels for displaying at art shows, and he is currently working on some floating frames for my oil paintings. It is great when your handyman is your very supportive and very handy husband! Except for an IKEA office drawer unit which I bought to store matting boards and some art (mostly studies), all of the storage units I use have been “borrowed” from other rooms around the house. I have a bookcase containing art books, my supply of oil paints, canvas boards, drying oil paints, a few framed paintings, and small empty frames waiting for their turn to be called in to action, a small drawer unit with framing materials and art show supplies, a tall plastic drawer tower with my extra painting and drawing supplies, and a big tall wardrobe unit with shelves laboring under the weight of supplies including watercolor paper pads, blank cards, sketchbooks, as well as supplies from other crafts or techniques I have tried in the past (jewelry making, scrapbooking, zentangling, Christmas ornaments, etc). Every now and then I try to go through and thin some of it out, but it goes too much against my “that might come in handy some day” nature. In one corner I have quite a number of watercolor frames, some new, some recycled, that are patiently waiting to display their own masterpiece! I have a very handy adjustable table on casters that can serve multiple purposes. I also have an old office chair on which I can easily wheel around from one side of the room to the other, which is one advantage of having a small room! I love my studio and affectionately call it my “garret”. It isn’t perfect, but it works. It is crowded, but everything is within easy reach. I have nice windows from which I can look at the woods, and I have a display speaker if I want to listen to music. I have a “natural daylight” lamp to paint by, as well as some more recent acquisitions, a “ring light” to make it easier to photograph my work, and a sturdy tablet stand to display photo references while I paint at the easel. The little wall space I have is adorned with color charts and a favorite thrift store find, a framed trio of prints by my idol Andrew Wyeth. Hopefully soon we will be back to a stage when we can visit other people’s homes, and I would love to have you visit my studio! Just one person at a time!! As an artist, it's important for me to be able to reach collectors to inform them about new work completed, or events or promotions that may be coming up. Some day, we will be back to holding exhibitions, and I want to be able to let people know when and where they are. So part of my time is spent collecting the names and emails of people who like my art. Most businesses offer some kind of “reward” in exchange for your email. This might be a “Top 10 secrets to…..” or a “Free gift with purchase” or a “XX% off” coupon. Most of these “gifts” don’t really apply to what I offer, so I spent quite a bit of time coming up with something that would fit and also give potential collectors something of real value to them. This is how I came up with my “Buyback Guarantee”, which is only available to my email list subscribers. I realize that a lot of people are hesitant about spending money on art, especially now when art shows are non-existent and people may not really have had the opportunity to see the artwork properly. I want my art to make my collectors happy. The buyback guarantee seemed to me the perfect solution all around, as it takes out any risk on your part as the buyer, and it assures me that you will only be keeping the art if you really like it. Now I am pretty confident that you will like my art and won’t have to use the guarantee, but it is reassuring to know the option is there if you need to, because above all I want you to be happy with your selection!! And this is a great way to reward you for being an email subscriber! So how does it work? If you are one of my email subscribers and you buy any of my framed, non-commissioned paintings worth more than $100, I will give you a full year to live with it in your home or office to make sure you like it. If, before the year is up, you decide that you don’t, or you’re tired of it, etc., just contact me and we will arrange to get the painting back to me (at your cost if applicable) and I will refund you your purchase price. It’s almost that simple. The only condition I have is that the painting and its frame must be in the same condition as when you bought it. That means you have to have taken care of it (no direct sunlight, no excessive moisture, smoke or other dirt). Basically I have to be able to put it back on the market as is. This applies only to framed paintings because these are properly protected when I hand them over to you, and I can’t guarantee that one you buy unframed and then frame yourself will be. Also, I can’t buy back commissioned or custom work, because that painting was made to order just for that collector, and probably wouldn’t be meaningful to someone else. So do subscribe to my email list so you too can enjoy acquiring one of my paintings risk free! As a subscriber, you will also receive one email every Sunday letting you know what’s going on in the studio and any news of coming events. I promise I never will spam you or sell your information. And of course you can unsubscribe at any time, and although you would then lose the privilege of my buyback guarantee for future purchases, you would still be covered for qualifying purchases made while you were still a subscriber. |
AuthorMy name is Claire Bureau. Archives
March 2023
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