Update on About My Art - March 2009
March 2009 Update on "About My Art:"
My art has progressed over the past year. I am using the digital and watercolour brushes almost exclusively, which gives my technique a more unified and sure look. My sketching has improved, as has my eye for composition. Right now my biggest focus is on light and shadow. I have a great deal to learn, and at times lose my courage about it. Since I am posting so much of what I am doing publically here and on my blog it is really tempting to stick to tried and true things. I think in some senses it may appear that I am, by my subject matter alone, which is fairly traditional. The contemporary realism genre of painting is what appeals to me most. (It's hard for me to colour outside the lines still!)
I am really drawn to the simplicities of form and composition in still life painting. The best ones are imbued with the essence of what the object is and tell a story. They evoke intense feelings of recognition and appreciation on an elemental level. These are the things I intend to achieve to my satisfaction in my digital painting. This new medium brings a freshness and intensity to these traditional subjects painted in a very untraditional way.
It has been a great learning experience to maintain my website and learn how to blog. It's such a good feeling when you conquer your fears of it all, and start to master some of skills needed to make it a rewarding experience (as opposed to total frustration and stress). This is the first month I have had over 1,300 hits between my website and my blog. It becomes a kind of contest with yourself! Then you realize that 1,300 people looked at your art, and only a tiny fraction of them indicated a response to you. Just the numbers of people viewing is staggering, if you really think about it. I guess that's part of the attraction to blogging and social network tools like Facebook and Twitter. The part I like the best is reading what search terms people used to find your blog again. You can tell by the tags that they have been there before, or that they are mostly looking for what you have to offer. Since I started blogging I make a point of blog surfing and leaving comments.
I finally managed to get some PayPal stuff going on the website. It looks like a complicated process and it does maybe put people off a bit, so I am also working on a new website and database (with my husband). Meanwhile, I’ve done my best to make it as easy a process as possible. Sorry for the inconvenience. I'm starting to learn some of the basics of html and how these things hang together. (I lost a 3 hour demo on painting glass on my blog yesterday, and had a little ah ah! afterwards, so it won't happen again... I hope!) I have reached another goal this year and that was to get my art in a gallery and show (however small) and get it out there. The show is in May and I don't think the gallery is getting a lot of traffic and may pick up in the spring/summer.
I believe my art has a place in these tougher economic times because it is original, scaled down, and reflects the optimism we all need to feel in a pared down realistic way. More than ever we need little bright spots in our daily lives, and art can put them there. Not just mine!
Posted in Personal on May 8th, 2009. 3 comments so far.
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Rita Gouett said:
Your art does have a place in our current world. When I see your simple, but beautiful, and at times, glowing artwork, I do feel lighter and happier for having viewed this in my day.