The old in with the new

In my worry about having enough art to look professional for my upcoming show at the Lafayette Lancer Marketplace, I browsed the halls of my own home, looking for possibilities. My walls, in addition to being painted a multitude of colors, are also dotted with my favorite works - mostly from my days in art school. Most also have particular sentimental value to me as they are created with or about objects that I love, were important to me in some way, or describe a particularly hard time in my life. The above painting is all of that. I created it as a student and it pays homage to my late mother as the objects in the painting were all some of her prized possessions.

It has become THE favorite of most who visit my home. I don't want to part with it even though I want to share it with the world. Well, now the good folks at Fine Art America have made it possible for me to do both, keep my original painting and share it with the world. After a mini photo shoot, some color correction and some warp transformation, I uploaded a high resolution image file to the FAA website, and voila, now anyone can order a high quality high resolution print of Butterfly and Watch!

I'm going to have a smaller size than the original made up to hang for sale at the marketplace. As well, I'm having my 3 lilac paintings printed on canvas to hang in the show as well. I think they will show nicely as a set.

In addition to preparing cards for the show and having prints made, I've also dedicated myself (and committed to my gf and my bff) that I will create at least 2 new works for the show as well. The greatest news about that is, it is a lot of pressure but it feels like the best kind of pressure. I can't wait to get started!!!

Lancer Marketplace, here I come

I'm super excited to say that after a bit of deliberation I have decided to enter into Lafayette High School's Lancer Marketplace, Dec. 5th and 6th, after all. Here is some information on it in PDF form as they do not have a good website for it. It's in Rockwood School District so the possibility is good that there will be art collectors there that know and appreciate the value of original art. I also plan on making about 300 blank greeting cards with my images on them, most of them being on black square cards. In addition to individual cards, I will have about 25 sets of 5 cards in a nice clear gift box that includes a pen and possibly custom postage. They really do look sharp and hopefully they will stand out from other vendors.

Here is a photo of some of the cards I make and sell. To the left are 3 sets that I previously had in sleeves and next to that are pictures of what is included in the set. To the right are other images on individual cards. This represents a total of 25 cards. I now have to multiply that effort by 12, wish me luck!

 

A close up of one of the sets.

Also want to mention that my very good friend Elisia Press Dunn, of Brentwood High School, will be exhibiting and selling prints of her beautiful photography at the Lindbergh High School Craft Fair this weekend, November 21st & 22nd. This is her debut and she's super excited (and a lil nervous - this is huge). The amazing prints she will have for sale still astound me since she has been keeping her talent a secret all these years.

In other news, I have chosen not to speak about my son online much at all and trust me, it's not because I don't want to. It's just that I'm fairly protective of his privacy and he doesn't have a profile page anywhere so I don't generally post many pictures of him. Especially as he is still a minor (for one more week anyway), I don't like to put his pictures out into the world wide web for safety reason. But this, I just can't resist. Nicki paid for him to go up in a single engine open cockpit plane (think Joe Cool or Red Baron) a week and a half ago as his birthday present. He was really stoked because he wants to be a pilot and who wouldn't love that?

  Here he is before the flight, trying to remain cool and collected and not show any emotion. Most parents of teenagers will recognize this pose as the "WTH, stop taking my picture and trying to capture me looking happy" face.

Now getting strapped in, the face is beginning to crack and a smile is forming despite his effort otherwise.

 

Post flight and he has accepted his fate that this is a happy and joyous moment, expressed only to Nicki, of course. I, the perpetually annoying mother, am not allowed to speak lest it ruin the moment. It was a great afternoon and I'm glad he got to experience it, Thank you Nicki!

Recovering

I had a few days of rather tumultuous emotion last weekend but I'm feeling much better now. My circumstances really haven't changed. The bathroom is not finished yet, but not for lack of effort, just waiting for that pesky tile adhesive to cure before we can move forward with the grout and toilet reinstall. I still don't have a source of steady income, otherwise known as a job. I'm still waiting to be paid for 3 veteran interview events. So why is my outlook better? Simple matter of perspective. I am trusting that the world will bring me to the path I'm supposed to follow when it is time. Until then, all I can do is try to be prepared for a number of things. I'm still struggling with that darn resumé but it will come together eventually. I am actively looking for a job although I'm still a little unsure about what kind to search for. As a coordinator or administrative assistant, I stand to make more money but I would likely have to contribute more energy and time to not only the job search but then learning whatever industry I wind up in. Nicki's advice (and I have thought the same thing, doubtfully, many times) that I should just get a job to keep the lights on but that is not necessarily a "career" kind of job, like a coordinator would be. That would be easy enough unless you are trying to earn an actual living wage. minimum wage or anything less than double that is not really enough to sustain. It's like getting paid part time wages for full time hours. Wish me luck!

In other news, I have successfully launched my very own website at aswope.net. I think it's looking pretty good if I do say so myself. I'm happy with the new template I chose. The colors are nice and subdued, the window seems to be of good size, and it's pleasing to the eye. I'm really learning a lot about it and it's coming along nicely. I can't wait for the day when I can design my own page from scratch.

I've decided that I still really want to be a part of the Lancer Marketplace at Lafayette High School next month so I should be fairly busy with that. It's a huge risk but one that I think will pay off. I mean, if I can even sell half of the cards I plan on making, I will more than make my investment money back and will hopefully gather a few fans along the way. Just wish I had more time to dedicate to making more original art. I'm not allowing myself to create anything new until I have a stronger lead on a job. It's rather daunting to think about displaying in front of that many people and the potential for buyers. My fear is that I will look like a novice. It's one thing to be crafty, it's another to elevate your description to fine art. It's not that I doubt my talent or ability, I don't. I know I have both. I just hope that my body of work is large enough and reflective enough of my style to draw people in.

Congratulations to my friend Bridgette who is gaining more and more recognition for her art and her handmade journals in particular. The Tyra Banks show has approached her about using her books in gift bags for specially selected guests on a show they call Luxe Living. Go Bridgette! You can read more about her latest announcement on her blog page or her website.

Now, back to that resumé...

Contemplating the Moon: some exciting news!

Contemplating the Moon: some exciting news!

I finally did it.

I had no idea it was going to be such a long time before I got around to doing another blog post, but, as they say, better late than never, right? I was just so busy during the entire month of October. I had the Missouri Veteran Stories project that I am still involved with. I went out of town 3 weeks in a row for that and one other time in September. And I did a helluva job given the time and resources I was *ahem* handed. Whole 'nother story that one.

Then there was the Riff Raff show that I had two paintings accepted into. That was really exciting and flattering. But that also meant, framing, matting, delivering, picking up, attending the party, making a costume to attend the party, etc., etc. It's all good though since my costume turned out fabulously with the help of my partner Nicki, I must say! Here's a couple pictures of my custom created wings (that matched my painting, hee hee).

This small one I swiped from the Metromix website who had photogs there. I am in pic #23 and my "entourage" is all together in pic #81.
Also, friends Tim and Anne got their very own spotlight in pic #5! nice!

 
Here's a nice high-res one that we took at the party:

So, now, I thought I would be hell-on focused to be preparing to enter a high school craft show. It's one in an affluent neighborhood and there is great potential. However, due to budget constraints, I don't think I can risk the initial up-front investment it would take to do such a show. Not knowing how any of it will sell and having to create a lot of things and pay for things, well, I just don't know if I can risk it. Not having any other income right now has me super cautious about the little money I have left. So yesterday, I did a fair bit of grieving about having to come to the decision of re-directing my focus to finding that awful "office" job. I just know that it takes such a great amount of energy first to try and sell yourself to the few companies out there who are hiring, and second, to learn whatever new industry I would go into. It left me feeling pretty defeated. I know that I can't divide my full energy into these two things. So I have to make a choice. And, well, I guess I'm just going to have to put the art away for a time. I don't know how long. Hopefully, not years like it has been before. That makes me so sad to even read it.

I just felt so happy, and right, and important when my energies were focused on an art career. Preparing for markets and art shows, building websites, photographing works, and not the least of all - creating art, it all made me feel important, even a little glamorous. That's the life of the successful artist that I dream about. I have made the decision, hesitantly, but still can't seem to let go of the whole thing. My mind, my heart, they keep going back to it. Thinking about new creations, ways to market existing ones, things that I "should" be doing to prepare for the Lafayette craft fair, they all keep popping up in my head. *Sigh

Bills are bills and I gotta pay 'em. So, with a heavy heart I stare and stare at the half completed resumé. I'm confused by the format that was suggested to me and I'm having such difficult time with it. I really need help but can't afford to pay anyone. I know someone who is good at it but she is having a pretty difficult life right now and I daren't seek her time during this tumultuous period of hers (and almost a year after it was offered I might add). I just have to be at peace with this but it's going to take some time. All I really want to do is grab my pencils and color away the day.

But then, there's that awful problem going on in the bathroom also....Ugh! Rotting floor under the apparently leaky toilet and now we are in day two of unexpected renovation. Matching tiles were not at the store where they were supposedly purchased. The previous owner left none here. He thought he had a box of them at his house and I became elated thinking that was one less problem I was going to have to deal with. But in true "Ron" fashion, he realized he only had a couple sitting on top of a box of different ones. The four that he gave me are all whole. I have to be grateful for that. However, 2 of them have paint all over them. That should be a fun new chore!

I must note that I am being much less positive on this post than I truly try to be in life. I suppose that's because writing a journal used to be my therapy and putting words in black and white, free flow style, just lends itself to emotive purging. At this time, I will re-think that first sentence. It's less about being positive and negative and more about shining a big 'ole light on the unpleasantness. I try to be grateful and appreciative every single day. I have been to the bottom and know that things could be so much worse. Keeping focused on what's good in life, every day, will keep your head above water and will keep you from drowning in sorrow and self-pity. Still, a good purging of emotion will make me feel better, I think. I'm just sorry that you, the reader, have to be subject to it.

Before I forget, I wanted to mention that I finally got some of my work onto a website available with print on demand. That means, if you like my work but can't afford the originals, you can purchase high quality prints here: audi-swope.finartamerica.com. And, right now, they are having their first ever sale. 15% off for another 2 days!

Well, off to the hole-y bathroom! Pictures of that to come....

In like broken glass

Yippee! Two of the pieces I submitted for the Riff Raff art show and Halloween party were accepted into the show. Nice. That almost made up for not selling anything at the market Saturday morning. Almost. I mean, I'm elated that I'll be in the show and I definitely have to kick things up into high gear to prepare, BUT, damn, I wish I would have at  least sold a couple of cards. It's difficult to keep trudging along when you are putting so much effort into it and the pay-off is not there. I mean, at least in the short term. I know that setting up and displaying at the Farmer's market is not going to be a money maker. That's not the point of it for me. I'm trying to get my name and my work out there and it's a start. I have to keep that in mind. The payoff will come. But, damn. One card people, that's all I wanted. I made a bunch of new ones, on black paper, and they looked sharp I tell you. I hoped they would sell like hotcakes. The other part of that is that now I have no idea which ones I should produce for the Fall Festival in Byrnes Mill next weekend. I feel like that is what I will be able to sell, if anything, so I should have them at the ready. I just don't have a clue as to which ones will be popular sellers or not.

Okay, enough whining. The two pieces that made it into the show are the Portrait of a Butterfly and Broken, both shown in the last post. Now, I have to get them matted & framed. Fortunately, I had already put some time into the choosing of mats on Thursday in preparation for trying to throw them in a display for the St. Charles Farmer's market. And, my wonderful girlfriend Nicki came with me to Art Mart yesterday and we finalized the mat choices (my original choices stood as the best options, yay) and picked up a really inexpensive but quality frame. I wish I could afford to get a custom size that would be a little bigger so that the mat would show a little better but it's still nice looking. And we decided that  Broken need not have a frame. So, I only need to throw a wire hanger on the back and be done!

I need to have a website up and running before the show in 2 weeks. Those things alone are pretty good chunks of time. However, in that timeframe, I also have to coordinate and recruit for 2 out of town trips for the veterans project, prepare and attend the farmer's markets and fall festival, drop off the work, get a haircut and about 500 other things surrounding all these different projects. Whoa, that sounds like whining again. Whew, don't know how I'm going to get it all done but I'm gonna do my damnest. In the meantime, I'll be in Gladstone, Missourah!

P.S. - I tried to upload an image or two but it failed. Damn, seems about right for the day I'm having. Hrmpf! Good night people.

What's "bugging" me...

Well, I did it. I submitted 3 pieces for consideration into Riff Raff's Halloween art show and party at Koken Art Factory. Now I wait for the next 5 days to find out if any or all will be accepted. I submitted the 2 paintings from my previous post, "Broken" and "Who is making THAT baby?" as well as the one shown below. I'm really proud of myself for not only entering the show but also for busting butt all weekend to prepare. I started a new painting on Friday and had it almost completed that day. I finished it Sunday morning. That's what's "bugging" me...

my "Portrait of a Butterfly", shown here, colored pencil on Mi-Tientes paper, 16x12.
I like the idea of how pretty things can be creepy and how things that creep us out can actually be beautiful. With a few simple lines or angle of viewing, along with color choice, we can affect how the subject is viewed and even how the viewer is affected emotionally. Because I chose to make the head and eyes particularly prominent in the painting, it became a creepy painting of a bug. Additionally, with the lime green glow around him, and the hint of red in the background and accents all over him, he becomes seemingly more nefarious. Had I chosen to put more accent on the traditionally pretty colors and parts of him, he would be just another pretty butterfly.

This leads to a question I have for anyone out there so inclined to help answer-does it lack in content? I mean, is it enough to be a portrait of a butterfly, or does it need to have a more developed setting, an implied context from which the viewer can answer the question of why paint a portrait of a butterfly? Does it need more of a story?

I have another piece that I wish I had been able to finish before the deadline. It's something I started many months ago and have set aside because I'm unsure of how to finish it. The working title is Left vs. Right and it is about the brain's hemisphere dominance and how it controls and influences our choices. I've been reluctant to post any pictures of it because it is unfinished and I don't want to taint how people view it by seeing it in that state. Sometimes I tempted though. Okay, just a sample...

colored pencil on Mi-Tientes, 18x24. This small section is finished I think. The different colors are waves spiraling outward, interweaving with each other. It is the waves outside of the brain (not shown) that need development and where I'm stuck. I have a couple of ideas but I'm simply scared to act at this point, I suppose. I've put so much work into it already and it has huge potential and I just don't want to screw it up. Feel me on this?

I think I need to join a drawing or painting group so that I can have other opinions more readily available. Maybe I should try to host an online critique session. Hmmm... there's an idea

Riff Raff, Broken, and Babies

Riff Raff at the Koken

I want to enter some art shows this year. It's been one of my goals for the year and I've yet to enter one. Some of it is strictly ignorance of the calls for entry and some of it is not having a very big body of work. I'm working diligently on both of those. There is one coming up however that I'm considering but sometimes I just don't know what the heck to enter. Do I just blindly throw things out there? I'm trying to have some consideration as to what the show is about and yet, I don't want to create art specifically to fit into a particular show. Or, do I?

I have so many thoughts going on right now, it's actually hard to articulate the exact problem I'm struggling with. On one hand, we have to consider the sell-ability of what we create. Art is too expensive a hobby not to, well, for most. So, as an artist, you try to dig down and discover your passions and still try to make it fit into a retail world. For me, I find my passions somewhat dichotomous. I love to draw and paint flowers. Being a florist's kid, it's only natural that I would appreciate the natural world around us. But then i think, florals? Is that what I want to tell people when they ask what kind of work I do? It sounds rather stodgy and maybe even crafty. But I love them just the same, and I think they are more marketable. Maybe I just need a good way to describe the kind of florals I do.

I also have a darker and more abstract side. And I have no idea what to call this "style" or how to explain what kind of work it is. It's also varied in medium and content so I really don't have a good short answer for that. I'm gonna need help on that people.

The particular art show that I'm considering entering calls for the more dark and "weird" kind of stuff. It is for the Riff Raff Halloween Art Show and Party at Koken Art Factory. I have a couple of pieces already and I think i could do a couple more before the deadline but I need some advice. From other artists who enter shows would be nice but I'll consider anyone's opinion.

Please forgive the watermarks.

This is called Who is making that baby? Colored Pencil on Black Mi Tientes paper. 4x4

I think this would be perfect for the show, the only drawback is that it is quite small. I'm thinking of doing another one like it but larger, like maybe 16x20 and maybe I'll put something in the background indicating a heart rate.

This is titled Broken. Spray paint on canvas, 24x12. I did a piece similar to this years ago that was inspired by the gratefulness of not getting my foot sliced right open. You see, I had very stupidly stood on top of a glass top table while trying to run an extension cord all the way from my neighbor's house through the stained glass window (talk about your starving artist student, yikes!). My foot broke through the glass but I sustained not a single scratch. I was very lucky, blessed some might say. So, I took the pieces of glass and arranged them on the outside edges of paper and started layering spray paint starting with light colors and slowly moving the pieces inward, using darker and darker colors. I also had an angel layered in there to represent the angel that saved my foot and maybe my life that day. Maybe one of these days, I'll get a picture of that one up here. I digress. That's where the inspiration for this type of work was born. I plan on doing a series of them.

 I think this is edgy and unusual, but is it dark enough for a show called Riff Raff?

It just is what it is

"Tension is who you think you should be. Relaxation is who you are". Quite often I quote this Chinese proverb because, not only is it apropos for me, I think most people can relate to it and truly need to hear it. This one little saying explains so much. Of all the times in life when we are tempted to compare ourselves to others and inevitably fall short, it is this proverb we should remember. It clarifies instantly what we should know about ourselves: to not let anyone else define who we are or what we should be, to not let our inner dialog cast a negative light on anything we have or have not accomplished. Follow your heart. Find something you love to do and you will never work a day in your life.

There is something so satisfying about aging and taking control of yourself and who you are. I have let go of a lot of my “issues” in the last 5 or 6 years, one of them being perfectionism. So, with this in practice, I go forth in the world of blogging without having to consider the long-term implications of this debut and all the possible ramifications it could have. It just is what it is.

I also want to share one of my inspirations for this blog and continuing in my art career. After having left a decent but confining office job, I decided to take on a part-time job at Michael’s arts and crafts in the framing department. I knew that learning how to frame would not only come in handy but would be (hopefully) necessary one day. My first day I met this small Latina girl named Bridgette. We hit it off immediately as we discovered we were both displaced artists. She was contemplating a new career in graphics, and I had just left one. Upon hearing that, she said to me, that’s why we met. I was so impressed because that is something I say all the time, mostly to myself. To hear someone else say it to me, was like hearing my own soul being poured out, an undeniable truth.

We were both circling the idea of art but not committing to it because we have been taught that art is not a career you pursue. It’s a hobby, and an expensive one at that. Everyone has an idea of what you can do with your creative talents and to hear them say it, it is all easy and profitable. Frequently though, that’s not where your passion lies. Her brother was trying to convince her to decoratively paint furniture. That just wasn’t her thing.

 Well, she is now a full-time artist. She started out making handmade journals and is currently transitioning into encaustic painting. You can see some of her fantastic work and her blog at http://www.bgmartjournal.blogspot.com/

Check it out!