It’s so hard to believe we’re already standing here in the midst of September. This morning I walked under a row of sycamore trees and could distinctly smell that… leaf scent that’s distinctly fall, as if the color changing of the leaves can be detected by smell before you can see it. The smells of fall are among my favorites.

I’ve experimented with watercolor the last several weeks and i’m enjoying the variety and looseness it’s offering me! It’s also really nice to add further details with colored pencil once the paint dries. It’s occurred to me recently that I have two pretty different styles. One is clearly my fine art/painting style and the other is more my character creating drawing style. Every so often I create something that sort of merges the two. I hear pretty often that it’s important to have one very clear and distinct style, do people always know what they’re getting from you. However, I do think it’s okay to have more than one, distinct style. Your hand is always yours, but, it’s nice to be able to offer options to a client. It’s also nice to feel like you have room to explore and evolve over time, as you discover more techniques, materials or viewpoints. Creative exploration keeps it interesting and builds skills, so you can continue to put what you’ve learn into the work. I’ll put some pictures below so you can see what I mean.

NEWS NOTES: The first Saturday of October, the 4th I’ll be participating in FArmington Valley arts Fall Market, so if you’re local please come by and say hello! It’s indoor in the studios and gallery space, so weather won’t get in the way! It’s from 10am till 4pm. I’ll have artwork, tea towels, stickers and cards.

Fall is fleeting, enjoy the smells, sounds and sights as it passed through!

Thank you,

Amy

As part of my efforts to establish this routine, I’m keeping my small travel tote available in my studio, in my line of sight, to encourage me to grow some materials in it and get out of the studio. Sitting in the fresh air and taking in a whole environment, picking out what I want to focus on capturing and just jumping in. what i’m finding, over time is, I can build up a reference library to use in conjunction with my photo references later, when I am back in the studio producing finished work. I hope to establish a weekly habit of doing this. If you’d like to join me please share your habits and progress, even pictures as you go. I would love to see!

Thank you!

“Be yourself, everyone else is already taken” Oscar

Amy

Thanks for following along!

Amy

“Be yourself, everyone is already taken.” - Oscar Wilde

It is the ongoing debate we all engage in, if you’re doing it on your own anyway. How do you calculate pricing? How do you explain it to potential clients and buyers if they ask? I recently had the opportunity to explain my pricing to a curious potential customer who, at first did know I was the creator of the piece she was contemplating. It was actually refreshingly honest of her to ask “can you tell me why this piece is so expensive?” as much as for me to reply honestly, “yes”. In this case I was able to explain there are multiple factors that go into setting a price for art. Time and skill applied to creating it is at the top. I explained to her that this particular painting took quite a long time to complete, I took my time with it and in the end I’m very happy with its outcome. That time is value plus is completely original. Then there is the physical cost to me in creating it as I use professional quality materials that will stand the test of time. Third, this painting is being sold in a shop, where a percentage of the sale is given to the shop. Although she didn’t end up buying the painting, she did understand and I appreciated the opportunity. What I did not go into, in this case, is, I am a small business, working every day and I also have costs related to that. So, as such, work must be price to keep the business going and make a profit.

I think there is a romantic misconception that creating art for a living is…easy? Like the work just organically flows from us to the page/canvas or what have you as if by another force. But, it has taken schooling, training, skill building and years of developing to get to this place where we stand as a professional. Right?

I know this is a constant issue all artists deal with and it ,may feel uncomfortable to have to discuss with potential buyers/clients. But it’s worth it for both sides.

In other news, this is the last week for the spring show at Kalaveshi Arts in Avon CT if you’re local. I was happy to be a part of this exhibit!

NOTE: This will be a monthly or bimonthly news letter. I won’t jam up your email. I will also NOT paywall my content, I will add a small subscription/donation option if you feel like supporting, it’s much appreciated. But, as I add content and tutorial videos, periodic downloads, I want everyone to have access to what I offer here. times are weird and tough and we’re in it together.

Thank you!

“Be yourself, everyone else is already taken.” -oscar wilde

So where do you find yours? Does it shift over time? Evolve with you? Is it always the same? A continual well you can go back to and draw from? Do you need a brief or commission to give your work structure? Can it be certain types of objects that you might just love? These are all questions I enjoy hearing about from other people who create on a daily basis and have to find ways to keep it going and draw from a place that feels real.

For myself, I find it in the everyday mostly. The garden, whether it’s bursting with blooms and bees or completely dormant. I find it in small quiet places and the musings of my own internal space. I sometimes draw from some idea that keeps rolling around in my head till I do something with it, which at times can take a long while for something tangible to materialize. Do you need a vision in your head first to get going on a project? Or can you just jump in and know it will evolve organically as you work? I think for me, when I start a new project I need a vision, I have to see something in my head before I start composing. However, I love to spend time sketching and allowing myself not to get hung up on a vision and just start somewhere and let it unfold. your never know what my further inspire from a sketch.

Please feel free to share here what inspires you and how you get rolling on an idea.

Thank you!

Amy

Here is a little snapshot of something I found very inspiring this week! It’s a praying mantis egg case full of tiny little mantis babies waiting to emerge and be a new generation. Amazing and weirdly beautiful.

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check out my websiteI was listening to a podcast this week on science and the Scientist speaking made a proclamation speaking to the overall purpose of being a Scientist. What he said was…something like,(not a direct quote) “The purpose of science and being a Scientist is to bring what we discover, what we find to be true based on research, to the people.” His feeling was there is a social obligation to give the knowledge of the world around us to everyone. That the understanding we can gain through science is for all to know and experience. “ It’s our job” he said.

Hearing this made me realize that, it’s my feeling anyway, Art has quite the same job. We creat art to communicate to our fellow humans. To deliver information, perspective and reflections of the human experience through the senses. It is the job of an Artist to connect people to each other and the wider world. So, I wonder when we step into the studio to do our work, are we thinking of that? In whatever way it might apply to the work you’re creating that day?

On the news front I have a new card coming out to retail shops produced by Artists to Watch and Fun Folks. Keep an eye out.

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Thank you! Amy