Rough Economy

A rough economy should make an artist improve their skill set. Just like rejection , it should be a ingredient to get stronger. Rough economies create tough artists. No whining, just don't be trying to get ten thousand dollars for a postage stamp
size work of art.
If you got bread and shelter and a way to make your work, that's all that matters. This ain't the last time we will see a rough economy, we just will have to deal with it.

GateKeepers Part Two

I just spoke with a jewelry maker on the sidewalk in the Cherry Creek area. The jewelry maker and me were having a converstion and the lady whose shop was letting the artist use the space came out and got in the way. I have passed the place often and went in a couple times to look at some wood sculpture displayed there. Be cause of the owners gatekeeper attitude , I won't be going in again. New artists have to put up with some very harsh people in the world. Me I have very thick skin, new artists, not so much. I love the blog, I get to vent!!!!!!

New Subjects

Fall is in the air in Colorado, I am pleased to see the foalage taking on new colors. My art vision is very strong at this time. I seem to see new possibilities for paintings everywhere I turn. My senses are so sharp, I am going to have to get to work painting. The cool part about being an artist is the fact that I get to make a record of he passing seasons. I have a decent foto file to use as reference for future work. I have been taking pictures of my neighborhood for many years , my problem was , I didn't always have the knowledge or skills to use the reference properly. I have since gained the skills to use the fotos, so now I will be a painting machine. It's very gratifying to be at this stage of my art life. Now to get busy.

Living Prudently

With all of the economic turmoil in the USA, I am thinking about all of those CEO's with the big money they make. I can't help but wonder, after one makes 500k-1 million dollars a year, what else could a reasonable person want? One day I am going to make up a list of things I would do with five hundred thousand dollars. I continue to hear about golden parachutes, heck all I want is a green one. I am glad that I don't spend more that I make. This assures me less financial stress. I am fortunate to have been raised in a practical family that taught my siblings and me how to live sensibly money wise. We used to hunt down pop bottles to make money to go swimming at the community swimming pool. We also picked scrap metal to turn in to the junkman. To this day I still pick up scrap metal to make metal sculpture, which I sell to make some dough. Prudent living is my way of life.

Discipline

Continue making your art, follow your interest.
Don't listen to negative people.
Deal with rejection by persisting.
Making art is a discipline, if one can't be disciplined, they should give up and go get a boss.

Art Snobs

Being an art snob is a total waste of time in my opinion. I recently attended an opening of work by a colleague of mine. The artist is very skilled and sells extremely well. His name is Dan Sprick. An art dealer I know attended the event and was very much the art snob about the goings on. I try not be a an snob about art, I try to have an open mind about all idioms when it comes to art, be it representational or modern. I like the work of Motherwell to Wyeth. I've trained myself to be open to art, period. I just had to blog this thought. Close minded people are so negative.

Duh?

I accidently ended up making two blogs. I note this because ,I am just getting acquainted with this blog stuff. I just wanted to mention this. Check both blogs. I 'll run them both.

The Last Lecture

The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch is very important to me , because as I get older I feel urgent to do all that I can as an artist. I have many art projects in the works and I don't act as though, I have all the time in the world to get them done. I have always been a disciplined artist. I am driven to get my work made, I don't stint on my time. I don't give up everything life wise to make art , I just use my time wisely. I do like having an end product to show for the time spent. I have mentioned the use of time before in this blog. It won't be the last time either.

Art Collecting Tips

Tell others please.
Visit art galleries and museums.
Buy what you like.
Avoid trends.
Buy art on the payment plan.
Get to know an artist.
Ask for sketches and small works to start collecting
Establish an art budget each year.
Make art a life long study.