Overwhelmed by successes. Part 2.

Saturday night - last weekend - we had a big "donor appreciation party" here. Invited were Musica Viva donors of at least $75. plus a couple of collectors that had purchased at least $500 worth of art from me.
We are not talking big bucks here. This is a grass roots operation - Marilyn Banner's art, Carl Banner's music, both of our visions and teamwork working to build an art life here and an artist friendly community. I often describe us as "under recognized sophisticates."

So why the overwhelm? Well....... as I did at my open studio last year, I put up on the music room walls (which now have track lighting to make the setting a real gallery) a few of my new marsh paintings. Two images had already gone out as Musica Viva publicity pieces via constant contact. I intend to show the best of the marsh paintings with the best of the 2009 VCCA paintings, all encaustic, at my Ceres show opening late April. The last thing I'm doing is "pushing" the marsh pieces.
Well, to my partial surprise - THREE of the marsh paintings were sold that night. THREE.

Writing this has already decreased the overwhelm feeling. Why NOT have what I want, a nice circle of my work doing its work for others and the others giving back to me in the form of money. The way it should be for artists all the time....

Open Studio

Last Saturday May 8 three neighborhood artists - Joan Samworth, Ann Riley, and myself - hosted open art studios. We had a nice card made, emailed our lists, spiffed up our houses, and psyched ourselves up for these unusual and very homey events. I wanted to meet new neighbors, and welcome old friends to see the new work. I gave two demonstrations of encaustic painting. (A great idea).

I had had some trouble getting my head around a Constant Contact invitation. It seems that my education, development as an artist, expensive medium, and prices of recent work - have priced me right out of being affordable to people who should be able to own my art work. What to do!?

Well, we finally figured it out, and found ways to make a huge amount of older work and reproductions of recent work totally affordable by just about anyone.
And what happened? Unbelievable, but the RECENT work was purchased by several people who fell in love with it, and much of the other work, ranging from $1.00 to $125.00 was purchased too.
There was much good energy, good will on all sides, and a feeling that the work that I do, actually gets to "do its right work" in the world.
A perfect circle. I am still working on fully accepting this into my heart and mind.

Taffy

This painting is 5.5x5.5". That is all. Small but potent, encaustic on wood, looking like watercolor. You can tell that I was interacting with the cows out there in the country!

This cow was named by its collector, VCCA chef Rhonda. She named the cow "Taffy." Rhonda is an incredible world class chef - am I giving away a VCCA secret here? We don't go there for the food, but with Rhonda Scovill as the chef, we are fed like kings and queens. She is as serious and creative with her cooking as any VCCA artist, writer, or composer has ever been with his or her work.

When I have the focus I will post some other paintings that were purchased by VCCA Fellows. Poets (especially) responded to the work.

Catching Up

It is December 5, 2009. I have not written since September!!! cannot even recall the order of things and I guess/hope/assume it doesn't matter.
What is in my mind to write? Feeling like I have to "report" on my progress. How odd, just having a blog can have that thought attached.

So much art biz to do - here sits my guestbook from the show at Delaplaine, with a bunch of nice comments and email addresses to add to my lists. Here is one: "they are filled with sunlight, beauty, and spirit."

I still cannot quite believe/accept that someone just popped into that show, fell in love with a piece of work, and paid $2000 for it. What is interesting is that when I look at much of my work - and really see it - it looks priceless. How can you put a price on something that moves you at a deep level and is soul nourishing. There is no price.

There is "the marketplace." More on that later, or when I figure that out. Hah!

During that show I left town to spend 3 weeks at the Virginia Center for Creative Arts, my favorite place on earth beyond my home in Takoma Park. I think a lot of artists feel that way about art colonies, because they give you the time, space, protection, and nourishment to just flow your creativity full out. Full out, a phrase Betsy Damon used years ago, saying that women often have a hard time being full out with their art. (Sexisim sucks).

I had a new and different experience at VCCA this time. Nancy Manter asked to see my work before she left, and she advised me then to have some others come in to see it, as well as to see the reproductions of my older work - the visceral and ethereal stuff. Something life changing happened there - as other serious arts people gave my work full attention and then gave me feedback. Each responded to different work!! And I welcomed this!

By the time I left, and mostly in connection to my open studio, I had sold 8 encaustic paintings and traded a ninth for some writing about my work. One was even sold to a (!!) western European white male visual artist!

I have still not integrated this and "recovered" from the shower of love, respect, and actual money that came my way. And even more came after that.
Whew. So overwhelming to write that I'll end the post here.