10 days of painting: day 6
here is number 6 out of 10 studio warm up paintings. its designy, not painterly. but i can't help it design is where my mind is now. when i can't think it's always about birds.
*little photochoppin' on the original*
a preview of the new business should clear up why. what i am developing is a line of christmas stuff, which includes ornaments like this bug, and one-sheet wrapping papers, boxes, gift tags and cards. i hope i will be ready for the international gift market in January 2009. i am having a mini-showroom opening this june with a few invited retailers to test market the line.
having been an illustrator that did mostly assigned work, meaning, other people's concepts, it is fun to create my own products. but then again, its not a sure thing as before (on the money front) and i never know whether or not others will like the stuff as much as i do. or like it enough to buy it. the ornaments are all hand made which means (relatively) expensive. however if they can sell as collectibles then i should be able to get some capital investment to manufacture...although more and more i am wondering how that would work.
i have settled on 8 out of 14 ornaments to start with. they are: the bug, a husky like dog, a flop earred hound-like dog, a cat, a mouse, an otter, a monkey, and a bear. i couldnt photograph the others it is too windy outside right now.
im a little scared. okay, a lot scared. i don't know if this will fly. by the time i take it live i will have invested almost a solid 9 months on the project. all my savings are in this. every chip i have has been pushed to the middle pile; betting everything on it.
last week i had a panic attack and started looking at craig's list for a job. im not qualified to do anything. im not joking. entrepreneurship is my only option. i recognize fear is what makes me look backwards; fear of failure, fear of loss, of ridicule, of disappointing others, of embarrassment, and all the usual interior threats. i have to press forward however it turns out. if theres one thing i really believe its that the best possible road to take is to think up your on gig and do it.
also mr. she announced to me a few weeks ago he would like to move to Chile, where he was born. so added to my day is 30 minutes of rosetta stone spanish class. which will come in quite handy whether we ever immigrate to south america or not. i love rosetta stone. its really really fun. and we are going to soon go to a spanish only policy in our household. won't that be fun?
obviously blogging is becoming a luxury of time i don't have. and, i think sparringk9 has about run it's course. im sure to reinvent myself again, but the next blog will be in service of the studio; an extension of the soon to finally be launched website. so that's my story for now. but there are still four more painting exercises to come.
* i will be at chickory for a while so no new paintings this week - no scanner in the woods*
Labels: art, birds, illustration, my new bidness, ornament, painting, preparing to exit
posted by sparringK9 at 11:32 AM
40 Comments:
Woo! Sounds like you got a lot going on. And I got a few things to say:
1. The painting is fabulous. With a capital Fab.
2. I hear ya on unqualified. Every time I think of getting out of the self employment biz, I realize: I can only type and sling burgers. Oh, and serve 'em. So I surge ever forward. Sometimes the steps are very, very small.
3. I'd buy an ornament in every animal. Two in Otter. Gorgemous.
4. Chile, huh? They let Trouts and Anarchists in?
5. If you leave, I will miss you.
she,
you will
be ok whatever
you do, wherever you go
and when time comes, you have lots of blog friends who will do whatever we can to give you some airplay, and maybe more
i noticed your restricted color palette before i read about 'design' -- i like it -- very 'natural'
looking forward now (as always) to your next post :)
¤ ¤ ¤
/t.
Wonderful as always.
Saved to the hard drive.
Chile? Souncs way too far from chicory....
I love that you are on the cusp of some amazing adventures. I have utter faith in you, and I will follow you wherever you go. ;)
1) Blog that supports the bidness idea. Sound and good.
2) Immersing yourself in Spanish. Sound and good.
3) Moving to Chile.
Unsound and not good.
4) Buying a place in Chile and stocking large amounts of ammo there just in case.
Sound and good.
moi: you are so good. thank you. i will show more of the animal balls soon. the otters are so cute. it's all super cute...sugary sweet glittery cute.
thank you for #2. so you know! ive had almost every art job/career you can name but i burned my bridges so i wouldnt be tempted to be back across them. i did a good job of it. grrrherhahaha
very small steps. i understand.
chile: well, i will fully believe it when big changes happen in mr shes career, but for now im open to the adventure and will go ahead with the spanish classes as if it were absolutely going to happen.
#5: no you wont cause i will come see you. i will be a comment pest.
/t: ever the gentleman and good friend. ive always cherished your observations and comments.your offer means the world to me, and i thank you.
yeah, that limited palette works well. the freedom of limitation.
i printed out the mirror image composite and its really nice. i think its good to just do some kind of art routinely that isnt about the product line so i don't forget how to do it! i know you know what i mean.
iamnot: thank you! i realize the 10 dont look great together but thats the breaks of random painting.
yes chickory. chickory is my big love in life. i wouldnt sell it.
i told mr she the smart thing to do would be to rent a place in chile for a season and see how it goes. but like i said if hes for real im good to go. it might be a midlife crisis. we'll see. i like the idea. the prospect of adventure. prolly not the kind of adventure troll means: socialist land grab + execute the dirty gringa etc etc grrherhahahaha
thursday next: well when the season of stomach butterflies and love induced starvations are over one must find excitement where she can. grrrrrherhahahaha. im happy for you. and i so appreciate your sweet words.
troll: i know. i know. we'll see if theres any follow through. but you know spanish will be critical in the years to come regardless. for some reason, rosetta stone doesnt teach the cuss words! s'okay. i already learned those. grrrrherhahahahaha
Cohones, that's all you need to know for Spanish cusswords.
Chile? maybe. Spanish better employed at O'Cebriero.
I don't know what to say. I learned so much more about you today in this post than ever before....it felt....really honest. And now it sounds like you're saying goodbye....crap.
I loved those paintings and I wish you all the good luck you could possibly want or need in your new venture. I've got a feeling you will be very successful.
I used to speak fluent Spanish as I studied it for 4 years at High School. Adios is about all I remember now but I refused to say it just yet.
I'll keep checking in.
anon: o' cebriero. what a day. hiked to the mountain top, alone and feeling close to God, feeling invincible full and alive. im glad you reminded me. this is a good meditation for the ambassadors of doubt that cackle in my mind. thanks. and no, cojones wont be nearly enough.
its fun to overhear someone talking about me thinking i dont understand; then to say
se habla espanol, pendejo.
grrrherhahaha oh i cant wait to really get it.
gypsy: i appreciate that! yes terror has a way of cutting through bullshit dont it? grrrerhahaha. i still plan to visit blogs, just not to post. it will be hard. i meant to quit a year ago but i couldnt let go....
You know I'm in your corner as you start this new journey...... having had the honor of displaying your ornaments on my tree at Christmas, I can say they are NOT going to be hard for you to make into a very successful new company. They are each beautiful works of art.
You better be a comment 'ho and as I sadly take down Painting Number Six (FABULOUS BTW) and walk away, I'll always be grateful to Iamnot for bringing you and your wonderful art into my life.
But this isn't goodbye... it's WELCOME Entrepreneur. If it makes you feel any better, I go through panic attacks about every 3 months and start looking at jobs, then realize I am ruined and will never be able to work again unless it's for myself.
Good luck on the website and xxoo - you know where to find me.
beautiful art...always on top
bravo! how exciting ... write me sometime. love your paintings ... and the ornament.
please keep in touch ...
oh yeah, i think i may be getting a dog soon ~ a black lab. neat, huh?
anonymous boxer: no no its not goodbye its reinvention coming. and thank you...welcome entrepreneur! i like that!! once you go for yourself its next to impossible to return to a job job isnt it?
thank you for saying that about the ornaments. i dont think the photograph does it justice....you really dont see how sparkly it is.
and the tubes! the tubes have been kri-ti-cal!
im so glad we met as well but like i say i will haunt ya space like a ghost. xoxoxoxox!!!!
ruela: thank you. always on top,,,,not a bad motto!
hey ME!!! i am so glad to see you. im worried something i sent you is lost. i hope not there was a little fox watercolor in that package. i have the freya and stag painting i did id like you to have -its big though -
mr she said i had a letter from england so i think i have something from you waiting for me when i get home (im at chickory)
neat? yes it is. you can't go wrong with a black lab they are such great dogs. good luck!
you sound so happy and good. makes me smile!!! yay yay yay!
those are fantastic paintings. I'd like one similar to that, only with fish instead of birds - is there a way I could get you to do something like that for me? I am willing to pay, of course - as long as the cost isn't too prohibitive. Contact me at nerveagen@cox.net if you'd like.
Well, phew. So long as you're still commenting and will keep us abreast of your work with a Web site, I guess I won't have to purchase a hissy fit outfit for the occasion.
'Cause my anarchism is evolving and I need support, ya know?
And I really, really need me some of those ornaments. You had Moi at "otter" and "sparkly".
I'm very curious about the otters too. Love those little guys.
Have you finished the painting we discussed yet?
I came by to see if that Chicken that's been running rampant through blogs had stopped by here... hmmm.. funny no chicken.
I was merely saying "bye-bye" to your blog, because I do plan follow your progress on the new bidness.
And Moi? We can still find some fabulous outfits for your new anarchism?
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She - please don't stop bloggin'
This is a great market for you to start off the xmas business.
Like /t said - we will give you lots of airplay and I'd like to buy!
I love this bird painting. It reminds me of some African Tikatika paintings from Tanzania (i think thats what they're called). They're amazing! I have several now.
I love this one.
xx
pinks
PS - Ted might be able to give you some tips with his website...and the Lone Beader has set up a website and is selling her stuff online. Maybe you can get in touch with her - very different stuff but she's a few steps ahead in this online art sales gig and might have some tips. By the way - her website is all about the beadwork art that she creates.
Hang in there - scared is just EXCITED but lacking a positive spin.
Lone Beader:
http://blog.thelonebeader.com/
Go SHE!
two different places...
well, ok, but as for your "painterly" comment, this bone ain't buying it.
Design is essential to any painting or illustration.
(I used to get in the following argument with the dean of commercial art, IPFW ALL the time)
If painterly is done correctly, it has to have good design, and anything that has good design, whether painterly or not, can be considered good commercial art, and following that concept also means that commercial art, if it evokes emotion of some sort, can also be considered fine art!
'Course, it DID take me four years of art school to get my two year degree, so, in this case, maybe don't put too much into the statement.
But, on a personal side, I LIKE day six. Birds ARE cool, and I have a few friends of them here. Boattails, sparrows (lil red caps), saveral rock doves, starlings, a couple of kestrals, at least one red tail friend and a red tail not-so-friendly (one I fed rats to for a while, he likes me, one I spooked out of our arbor vidae because it was hunting down boattails for snax!) and I always mean to toss a bird into m'paintings. But, most times, I'm in a rush t'get it done with because i already have the idea for the next one.
Y'know, there ain't nothing that sez painterlt can't have clean lines, anyway.
I only buy super ugly tacky ornaments for crappy family members and people I hate, just so they know how much I can't stand them. And your ornament is so damned cute!
Anyway, don't you believe in the law of attraction woman? If you do then.....no worries. If you don't then....I guess I have to twinkle my nose and make it happen for ya. Can't wait to peek at the new blog. I like #6. I swear my BF has a shirt that's similar. He's secretly gay I think.
She wrote: "alone and feeling close to God, feeling invincible full and alive."
think that is where this new gig is headed. same recipe. but first you gotta climb up that mountain.
I think Chili sounds like a real adventure... a chance to grow, learn and be inspired by a new culture and new people! I envy you!
As for the work... you are sooooo talented. You certainly could get a regular job just to make some income if you wanted. But your real talent, and passion is in art. I know you know that, but sometimes we doubt ourselves (I am in a huge doubting phase right now myself)
Its funny, but I dont doubt for one moment that you will make this work for you... and if not in the retail arena then this project is sure to lead you to another! I sold my art on Ebay when I first started... it was easy and I didnt have to hear if someone didnt like it! lol The fees for ebay and paypal stunk though!
Good luck and keep me in the loop!
xoxoH
are you ok?
is everything ok after that storm last night?
Spring
After all the moral support and encouragement you have blessed me with, thinking of you having any kind of doubts just knocks me for a loop!
You and your work are amazing. Always.
Add me to the list of those who would spread the word about your website.
You will succeed. I know it.
Your paintings are great; and I'm a painting snob...I only like what I like and I really don't like that much.
Work is overrated. Being an entrepreneur; now that's exciting. If something isn't original or fun; why bother.
Rottie-She,
you have friends in high places. Worry not, Pup.
I think I know why you didn't get my text tonight- I was sitting at an oyster bar in Morehead city- chatting it up with the waitress...(and not a dang Marine is sight either! lol)- watching the news and wondering how the weather was affecting you.
I'm in the middle of one hell of a rock and roll storm at them moment.
Better turn off the computer! LOL :)
Keep breathing...
I have as much faith in you, as you have in me. I have earnestly begun a book I know I was destined to write. I don't want to say too much about it- but there is a force behind it like none other I've experienced. It's raw. And there's more to come- if I can just get this one out of me.
BTW-
I'm practicing Spanish with Juli-Anna :)
love you friend :)
Well, whatever guise you're in, I hope you're still around the blogosphere. I'd really miss you were you to go away.
I think that you are remarkably talented. I know only a little about contemporary art. But you have a gift of expression, of whimsy, of composition, of motion. I know that business nowadays doesn't always favor those who can build the better mousetrap. But at least you have that going for you. It can't hurt.
BTW, it's okay to speak spanish here. I'll just e-mil it to my old man, and he'll translate.
Interesting move. But I can see you in Chile. Were you to move to Canada, I could also see you being chilly.
PhoKid: thank you...and i'll see what i can do. whatre we gonna do about your wife though. she doesnt like bright colors! nice email name. grrrherhahahaha!
moi: hissy fit? hadnt heard that in a while. no just go ahead and get the anarchy outfit. and the lip gloss too. sounds like an urban decay item: anarchy lip gloss. sparkly otter. mmmmmmmm
troll: no. not yet. yet implies it might still happen.
pinks! what a sweet pink thing you are. you are TOO kind. i think i will just be a blog commenter for a while. i will still follow you on your travels..speaking of which..i would love to see one of the paintings you bought in tanzania.
i went over to see the lone beaders site - thanks for sending me. i am less scared this monday now that i see my website WILL get finished and i can turn my attention back to getting the showroom open.
thank you. youve got a lot going on and you came over to pump me up. thank you! xoxox
boney: i know what youre saying. when i make the distinction between designy and painterly i am talking about hard edges and solid color fields and slightly gimmicky composition. painterly is more like the bluesmen below...straightforward,literal, washy and rough. i agree about painterly doesnt mean not having clean lines.
im glad we had this talk because the hardest part of the website is commenting on the work. maybe i wont say anything at all. when i had shows i wouldnt make an artist statement. if i wanted to be a writer, i wouldve written. grrrrrherhahhaa
seriously though i have read some of the most bulls*it statements trying to puff up art. "ah my work speaks to the fragility of birds and by extension, mankind, our interconectedness in a damaged ecosystem. their flight is a metaphor for my desire to escape this hideous earth which has been damaged irrevocably by neo cons and oil companies......"
its a painting. about birds. end of story. grrrehrhaha
upset waitress: can you elaborate on the law of attration thing? if its like visualization - ive been trying!! im not great at this kind of stuff.
thanks for the its not tacky seal of approval. grrrerhahaha i am trying to imagine the trees with the tacky you gave. grrrherhahaha. im going to make an all my ornament tree in the festival of trees in ATL. some of the animal heads are basketball sized! i love those. thanks for stoppin by grrrrrrrrrrrrl.
anon: yes it is. if i can remember....one thing that made that work was the combination of physcial exhaustion and single-minded purpose.
anon: im getting what youre saying - ive realized i have to move forward with something and as it evolves other avenues may open up. thanks for your kind words. i miss your blog and you!!! i hope youre doing well. xoxoxo
spring: im fine. saturday i had no power (im on a membership grid so its a private utility and therefore sort of slow to restore) the wind was scary amazing. i started to shoot some video and then the battery exhausted light came on. damn!
the creek was way high, rushing and hail loud on the tin. i loved it. thanks for checkin on me.
jean: thank you so much. youre a sweetheart. how is your own adventure coming along? i think what has me worried is that even if you have solid work it doesnt always translate into cold hard cash. know what i mean? but i feel more confident ...and all these comments have bolstered me considerably.
ve: well said. like pink said scared is just excited ..and i am actually. like i said, whatever happens this is the way im gonna go. and thank you.
uriel! where have you been? i havent been called rottie in so long. thank you ...youre an angel! grrrrherhahaha
mayden: no marines to spark? dag i hate when that happens. grrrrerhahahaha. yeah. i talked the talk all over you and now ive got to do the same. well, back then i still had work comin' in to offset anxiety. i havent done any jobs in nine months (cept that one last client in ATL)
while you were out at the oyster bar i was batting down the hatches. no phone, computer or lights. where is a panera bread when you need it???
youre right -dont talk about the book. it'll mess up the magic ju ju. grrrherhahaha (i am so proud of you)
i love ya grrrrrrrrrl thanks for your sweet words.
xdell: hola! thank you so much. i will come and see you in a different guise alright. maybe many guises. you hit on where the source of worry lives: even if you bring it - it doesnt mean you'll fly. but i am going to give it my best shot. im too far gone now to do anything else. thanks for coming by! (when i get better at writing spanish i will come yak at ya)
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Chile?...Oooooh'.....that is so romantic! But..but...you will surely write about everything no?..Please..This is soooo exciting!
I've always read you with a certain amount of awe. To me you're this vibrant woman who can just paint and draw with such amazing confidence and beauty...When I see your creations it's like you made them so effortlessly...like just rainbow somethings jutting out from your center and swirling themselves in forms across your canvass. Certainly, there is no doubt that you will achieve even more fulfillment in this new coming out venture of yours. There's no way it won't be a bang.
and the learning of a new language...
ah'....your life is full!
good, I am glad you are OK.
I was worried about you and V.
Well, I been out trying to save the world and learning about how people can make themselves into victims for attention.
will notify when blogrant is up.
S
lost? i hope not ... let's keep our fingers crossed ... the painting ... would love it. hope you're ok after the storm/hurricane there. while we were on the coast of the english channel, there was a hurricane - whew! 80 mi/hr winds ... and we were in a caravan/trailer! very high waves ... but after a week or so, the weather subsided.
love to you ...
You are very brave. I would miss you if you stopped blogging.
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