NEWS

Time for a change

9/19/2018

I didn't ask if I'm supposed to give back my "badge." I hope not, because I really want to keep it as a souvenir. So, sorry Jill, but you can just order new ones for the new members.

Last night I attended my last meeting as a member of the Board of Directors for the Center for the Arts of Greater Lapeer. My term had expired and I did not seek reappointment.

It was time. Change is good, especially with an organization like this one. I believe they will benefit from an infusion of new blood.

But I'll still be around. I'm still doing classes, will still attend events, and still available if they need me for whatever. So the only thing that's changed is that I won't be going to board meetings anymore.

The board gave me a lovely parting gift, a beautiful Anni Crouter giclee print titled "Chick Magnet." I love it.

Moving on ....

Is it really September already?

9/14/2018

Wow this summer has flown by. Other than a few Imagination Uncorked classes, I haven't arted much lately. Busy with gardening, yardwork (including digging out stumps - fun times!), battling with unwanted critters, and other such summer tasks. But a few things are starting to get my art mojo stirring again.

I had new art-related experience last weekend: I was one of six jurors at this year's Art & Apples festival in Rochester MI! The festival is put on by the Paint Creek Center for the Arts (PCCA). There were 276 artists, it took me over 5 hours to go through them all, and I was completely awed by all the wonderful creations I got to see. A few days later I learned that some of my top picks ended up winning awards, so I must not have done too bad a job at this jurying thing.

Today I got PCCA's September newsletter, featuring me as their Art Market artist of the month. I am so honored and grateful to have my work showcased by this organization.

Later this month, I'll be participating in Imlay City's Art in the Rough again. I don't know my location yet, but based on last year's event, I know it will be a fun time. Details to come.

Then in October, we'll be painting a haunted house.
Booo!

In the mean time, I'm crocheting pumpkins.

6-month recap

6/27/2018

I've been woefully negligent in updating this website. There have been enough artsy things going on in my life to warrant writing about, but I haven't been focusing on art all that much and therefore writing about it has fallen off my priority list. 2018 is already half over and I feel like I should at least attempt to recap:

I led 3 Imagination Uncorked classes at Gallery 194 this spring - a peacock, a birch trees scene, and mandala painting.
I participated in the Lapeer Art Association's Spring show as a guest artist, with 5 paintings on display during April and May.
Once again I donated a painting for the Art on Nepessing St. art walk and auction, had a booth during the art fair the first weekend in June, and helped assemble the community art project. (A bit more on the art fair below.)
Participation in the Paint Creek Center for the Arts Art Market continues - I switched out my work, they now have 5 different paintings of mine on display and for sale (pictured below.)
I was a first-time vendor at the Shiawassee River Fest in Linden. The vendor mix tended a bit more toward crafts rather than art, so I only brought mandalas and a few other small framed abstract pieces, along with purses and crochet critters. I did well enough to make it worth my while and to consider doing it again next year.

Art on Nepessing 2018 donation

Work currently at Paint Creek Center for the Arts, Rochester MI

Now that I type it all out it may seem disingenuous to say I haven't been focusing on art. I am trying to stay involved, but I unfortunately have been vary lax in creating new art - only managed to finish one new painting in time for the LAA spring show (which is now among the 5 at the PCCA Art Market.) I'm still struggling with art storage space and organization, and have just not been keen on adding to the already overwhelming volume of stuff inhabiting my house. Plus I've been on a crochet tangent lately, but I'm done now, really I am - today I finally put the yarn away.

The good news is, I did make some progress in unloading a few older pieces - one gift, one donation, and several sales. I had my best Art on Nepessing results yet - 4 small framed & 1 unframed mixed media pieces sold! Along with a purse and 16 little crochet characters. Most importantly, I sold art! And then I sold 3 (and more crochet critters) at Shiawassee River Fest. A total of 10 art pieces gone! Even though they were all smaller work, it all helps.

Now I'm preparing for another new experience: teaching a 4-session acrylic painting class for kids. It starts July 12 and runs for 4 consecutive Thursdays, 2 hours each session. I will be doing another Imagination Uncorked in August (subject yet to be determined), and plan to participate in Imlay City's Art in the Rough again in September.

That's all for now. Thanks for reading :)

Taking an art nap

11/7/2017

It's official, I'm putting art-making to bed for the winter. My fall class offerings at Gallery 194 have concluded (look at those happy mandala painters from the last Mandala Painting class!). I hope to be doing them again sometime in the spring, but for now art supplies have been put away to clear space for sewing, crafting, and clearing space.

That's not a mistake, I needed to clear space in order to clear space. Let me explain.

I am still not fully recovered from the overwhelmitude of acquiring all my mother's sewing and craft supplies last year and trying to merge them with mine. I gave away and sold quite a bit, and am sewing things up as fast as I can (which is actually, unfortunately, quite slow) but still have too much. I am starting to list some things on etsy, but in order to do so I need to be able to take photographs, measure large fabric pieces, etc. I need space to be able to do that! I'd love to include some photos of my studio in my etsy "about" section, but not until my workspace is considerable less cluttered. And someday I'd like to be able to have people over for crafting sessions and/or art classes. I do have a set-in-stone goal: I am in line to host the Jackman family Quilt Day next year. By December 2018 I need to be able to fit about 15-20 people and their sewing machines in that space, with room to spread their projects out a bit. Eek! The piano is finally gone, that's a big step!

So clearing space really needs to be my focus over the winter. By sewing things up, selling, giving them away, whatever means necessary. I am up to 21 etsy listings so far: 10 bags, the rest are fabric and vintage home dec items. No sales yet, but complete strangers are starting to fave my shop, so that's a start! Come check it out!

Time to get to work. Later!

Ups & Downs, and off to the side

10/13/2017

Reflecting on some art happenings of the past few weeks ...

- Art in the Rough - Imlay City, 3rd annual. Very nice, unique event. The VIP reception was lovely - great food and music, wonderful ambiance. The art displays in the businesses all looked terrific. (Thank you LAA for including pics of my display on your website! 6th, 7th & 9th rows on this page.) I enjoyed wandering around and mingling with the other artists, I was not familiar with many of them. The outdoor setup and offerings were all very nice. Familiar main issue though - sparse attendance. How the heck do you get people to come out to these arty events in Lapeer County? *sigh* The people that were there seemed to be enjoying themselves, as did I. I would do it again. Overall, more ups than downs.

- Classes - 3 down, 1 to go for me this fall. Acrylic painting went well, although only 2 participants. Mandala drawing had 4 signed up, one didn't show so we had 3. Portraits - cancelled, again. *sigh* (again.) Mandala painting is coming up Oct. 22, then I'm done til spring. So far, a mix of ups and downs.

- Illustration exhibit - I still had most of the prints and bios from a Feb. 2016 Gallery 194 illustration exhibit (don't judge me), couldn't bring myself to throw them out, and finally found a home a home for them. The owner of Arts Iliana Gallery in Terre Haute Indiana expressed an interest, I boxed it all up and mailed it, he received it today. I can hardly wait to see what he does with it. Bonus: I have a new connection with an out of state gallery. Bonus #2: I cleared some more stuff out of my basement. Definitely an up - or is that 3?

- Fiber Art Junkies - Last month I finally attended a meeting! It's more of a gathering/creative session actually. What a wonderful, welcoming, incredibly talented group. I wasn't able to go to the October meeting but I will definitely go again. I can already feel the wheels spinning in new directions after one meeting - no pun intended (fiber arts, spinning wheels ... oh never mind.) Another up, although it may be considered off to the side?

- Sewl Art Studio - After a brief foray into painting, trying to finish some new work for Art in the Rough and not succeeding, I'm back to sewing again. One new bag has just been added to the shop and another is in progress. I'm still working on figuring out etsy - things like shop policies, custom vs. calculated shipping, shop page layout (can I sort my listings into categories? And how do I get that darn banner pic to show up? etc.) But the pre-etsy bag delivery to Russia has been completed! And Fay loves her bag. One more up/off to the side.

Final tally for the past few weeks: pretty balanced. Much like life.

some of my work at Art in the Rough (photo courtesy of Rhonda Porzadek)

happy Mandala-makers

array of illustration prints

bags for sale on etsy

Purses & Paint

9/19/2017

After a small amount of frustration, I got an etsy shop started, under the name Sewl Art Studio. Coming up with a name that adequately reflects my ideas about products and image, that isn't already taken, and that I actually like, was harder than I thought it would be. But I'm happy with what I ended up with. Then I created a logo that features a swirly "L" of a different style than my "LJ" art logo, which was much more fun than picking the name.

So far I have only a few listings there, but already managed to sell 2 purses without etsy:

The first was a black purse with tapestry-look insets, sent to mosaic artist extraordinaire Gila Rayberg in Florida (you should definitely check out her work! - Gila Mosaics Studio), who seems very happy with her purchase. I included a bonus bag that I didn't think was good enough to sell but Glia liked it.

The second is a sale-in-progress - an international sale! - to Fay in Moscow via Nora in CA as a private courier. We know each other from vk.com, a Russian facebook-type site, and are also in touch thru regular American facebook. Since the cost of postage to Moscow and unreliable Russian mail service would have made the purchase impractical for Fay, Nora who is traveling to Moscow in early October offered to take it along. So I mailed the purse to Nora, she will meet up with Fay to deliver it and receive payment, and will send me a check in US$ after she comes home. It seems a little convoluted but it should work.

Now I'm taking a break from sewing to do a bit of painting. Imlay City's Art in the Rough event is coming up in just a couple weeks and I'd like to have a few new pieces to add into the mix of artwork that I'll be displaying. Being in the middle of teaching an Acrylic Painting class (2 sessions down one to go!) is helping to get me back into the painting mood, which to be honest has been a bit of a struggle lately. Sometimes, you just don't feel it, ya know? I'm making myself do it anyway. One is nearly done, the second is about halfway there, and I may or may not have time and drive for a third. In any case, it should be a fun event. Don't know yet which building I'll be set up in, hopefully that info will come soon.

Logo for Sewl Art Studio etsy shop

Happy customer Gila showing off her purchase, with some of her mosaic creations in the background

This one is one its way to Moscow, via California

September begins

9/1/2017

As summer winds down (already?!), I’m bracing myself for a busy September. I’ll be teaching 2 art classes, participating in Art in the Rough, attending an out-of-town wedding, and recently started a part-time job - 3 days a week at Off the Wall antiques in Lapeer. I took the job after the other things were scheduled, and they hired me anyway; it will be a bit of a juggling act but I think it will all work out.

Next week starts the new Introduction to Acrylic Painting class, a 3-week class on Thursday evenings. It will be my first time teaching this class, and the first time it's being offered at Gallery 194 in Lapeer, so of course I’m a little nervous. The class starts at 6 pm, and I work til 6, but it’s right across the street. I’ll have to get everything set up in the gallery’s classroom area up the night before or morning of. So if anyone sees a crazy lady running across Nepessing Street at 6 on Thursdays, it’s just me. Please don’t run me over.

On Saturday the 23rd I’ll be teaching the Mandala Drawing class again. No nerves for this one, it’s a fun class and I have tweaks in mind to make it even better than last time. But again I’ll have to set up ahead of time, and only work a couple hours that day and run across the street for the class.

Then on Saturday the 30th is Art in the Rough in Imlay City. It’s my first time doing this event so I’m not entirely sure how it will go, but I’ve heard good things about it and have no reason to expect anything less than a fun evening.

Oh, and I’m starting an etsy shop. I’ve been continuing to make purses, and after recently sharing pics on my personal facebook page and getting very encouraging feedback from friends and family (and unexpectedly sold 2!), I’m going to give etsy a try. I’ll share the link as soon as it’s up and running.

In summary, here’s where I’ll be – please join me in a class or visit me at the store:

Introduction to Acrylic Painting – 6-8pm Thursday Sept 7, 14 & 21 at Gallery 194, $85
Mandala Drawing – 2-5 pm Saturday Sept 24 at Gallery 194, $25
Art in the Rough – 5-9pm, downtown Imlay City, $15 in advance/$20 at the event. VIP pre-event 4-5pm, $50 advance only.
Off the Wall – Thursdays & Fridays 11am – 6pm, Saturdays 11-4
Etsy link coming soon
2 more classes in October! Portrait Drawing and Painting, and Mandala Painting - details to follow

June review: what a difference a year makes

7/1/2017

June was a busy month for me, and all in a good way! It started with the Annual Art on Nepessing St event in downtown Lapeer. In addition to having a booth in the art fair, I was part of the event planning committee for several months prior. It was my most positive art fair experience to date (I shared my thoughts on that event in more detail my last post.)

I taught 3 classes at Gallery 194 throughout the month: one night each of Mandala Drawing and Mandala Painting, and a 3-week course in Portrait Drawing and Painting. It was my second time doing the mandala painting but the other two were new. All went well! Especially the portrait class - I got very positive feedback from the group. And one of the participants in the mandala drawing class sent me an incredibly lovely message the next day thanking me for helping her catch on, which absolutely made my day. The mandala painting class, while seemingly fun for the participants, had only 3 attending once again. We will try it again in the fall to see if it catches on, then reassess.

A Strategic Planning Committee I participated in completed a draft plan to help guide the direction of the Center for the Arts of Greater Lapeer for next ten years or so, which was approved by the full board and will be shared with the public for input before finalizing.

I also got accepted to participate in this year’s Art in the Rough event in Imlay City on Saturday September 30th. It’s a one-night pop-up art event. I understand I will be assigned a location (indoors) to set up a display … and beyond that I really don’t have much more information yet.

Right now I am regrouping, putting artwork and supplies away and figuring out where to direct my attention next. There won’t be any more classes at Gallery 194 til fall (but I am available for private parties any time – will travel within reason!) One well-known local artist who stopped by my booth at Art on Nepessing St. suggested I apply to the art gallery at the Flint Farmers Market. There are a few other possibilities with other venues that I want to look into as well.

In the mean time, eight of my paintings continue to be on display at Milnes Ford in Lapeer through September, and four others are at the Paint Creek Center for the Arts in Rochester in the Art Market.

When I look back to where I was a year ago, June 2016 - dealing with a newly discovered heart condition, unexpected surgery, the sudden death of my mother, trying to pack and move 2 households, not even knowing at the time where we’d be ending up – my head was spinning with so many changes at once and I was uncertain and anxious about what the coming months may hold – and compare it to this June, it’s like night and day. A complete 180-degree change. I don’t want to get TOO excited because as I know all too well, things can change in a heartbeat (haha, pun unintended, but it fits) …. but for now, it’s all good. I feel blessed and grateful. To all who read this and care, THANK YOU so much for your support.

Mandala Drawing class

Portrait Drawing and Painting class

Strategic Plan Draft - cover & contents

my paintings at Milnes Ford, Lapeer MI

my paintings at Paint Creek Center for the Arts, Rochester MI

Art on Nepessing St. afterthoughts

6/4/2017

The 4th annual Art on Nepessing St. art fair has just wrapped up. Another one is in the books; another year to reflect on what went well and what didn’t, and what we/I can do differently next year.

What went well for me personally:

I sold work! More pieces sold and more money made than last year. Clearly, lower prices work best in this town, which I already knew and did cater to somewhat this year, but I have to think about how to do so even more next year without compromising the value of my work too much.
I had a lot more people stop in my booth and chat, and really look at the art. Which makes it a more enjoyable experience for me overall. I especially enjoyed talking with young aspiring artists, from the small kids who admired my painted rocks and sought tips on how to paint their own, to the high school and college age young adults heading into art majors with hopes of careers in the arts.
A lot of people seemed genuinely interested in my upcoming classes. The promo cards were being snatched up so fast that more had to be printed. One person went into the gallery and signed up for the portrait class right away. I am optimistic that all three classes will get enough registrants to make them worthwhile for both me and the students.

What went well in general:

We had more vendors again this year, which means the event is taking root and growing. But, see the first item under “Not so well.” So there’s that.
Attendance seemed to increase a bit this year overall, again pointing to the event finally taking root. But, there is still much room for improvement in this area – see the last item under “Not so well.”
The volunteers seemed to really work out great, from my perspective. There seemed to be enough, and everyone was very helpful.
I don’t think we had any major blunders – at least I didn’t notice any. From an organizational standpoint, everything seemed to flow quite well and all the important details were covered.
The weather was perfect! Totally out of our control of course, but after the imperfections of prior years, definitely worth noting and being happy about.

Not so well:

Two vendors cancelled a few days prior, and several were no-shows. So what we initially thought of as very positive growth over last year ended up as very modest growth. What gives with the no-shows? Why do people say they will be there and then bail? The two that cancelled ahead of time, I can understand, but the no-shows really irked me (except for the fact that they really weren’t “artist” vendors in the traditional sense – see Food for thought below.) By the time we realized they weren’t coming, everyone else was pretty well set up so there was not an opportunity to spread out a bit to fill the gaps, and we ended up with noticeable gaps.
We need more food vendors! After initially planning to host a chili cook-off, which we had to cancel due to lack of participation (can the Health Department rules possibly be any more cumbersome?), we thought we’d at least have a few food vendors. We ended up with one. It felt misleading to use the term “Music, food and beverage area” on promotional material when the only food was cold pizza. I think that was the most disappointing thing for me overall.
The hard rock band that was the final music act for Friday night may not have been the best choice (IMHO.) I didn’t mind it, but I’m not sure the art fair attendees agreed. At 6 pm there were still plenty of families and older people out milling about, but once that band got going it thinned out very quickly. Maybe it was just a coincidence, or maybe the loud music (like Man in the Box) chased them off.
In spite of several stretches with a steady flow of people, and an apparent overall increase in attendance over last year, there were still some really slow boring lulls. There are still not enough people coming.

Somewhat interesting, and indicative of Lapeer:

The people who thought my matted original doodle art pieces were 25 cents each, not 25 dollars. (This is an art fair, not a flea market!) And then insisted my sign was misleading. Hmm, no it says “$25 ea.” That’s a dollar sign. So I need to spell out the word dollars? I have sold several at that price in previous years, but none this year. Maybe all the “good” ones are gone and should price the rest down to $20 or $15 next year. But not 25 cents.
As evidenced by the names on the silent auction bid sheets, most of the people interested in and appreciative of art in this town are the other artists. Being a small town, we eventually all get to know each other. And we end up buying each other’s art. Which is fine in a way - because the event is essentially a fundraiser, and so long as the donated art gets bid on, funds are raised. But at the same time, it’s not so fine, because some really wonderful art is being under-appreciated by the masses and particularly by those with deeper pockets, who are not coming, not bidding and buying, and therefore we are not raising even more funds.

Food for thought/not quite sure what to think:

I think we have to be careful to not let the art fair go too far into a crafty and/or flea market-y direction. Yes we are trying to grow, and with that primary goal in mind, when a vendor whose work did not really fit the fine art definition expressed interest in participating, we were pretty lenient this year. And maybe we will have to be for another year or few years while we’re trying to grow. But at some point we’ll need to get serious about being a juried fine art festival, so I think it’s important to be mindful of what effect satisfying an immediate goal will have on the long-term goal. It’s going to be a tricky balancing act.

So overall, a lot of positives but still plenty of room for improvement. Plenty to talk about and brainstorm ways to make it better next year, and hopefully a little better every year.

Art on Nepessing St. time!

6/1/2017

The 4th annual Art on Nepessing St. art fair opens tomorrow! Friday June 2 from noon-8pm and Saturday June 3 from 10am-6pm I will be parked in my booth doing my part to promote the arts in Lapeer. I'll be peddling my classes, showing off the JKPP book, and will have mixed-media Mandalas, some random paintings (including a clearance sale section), and painted rocks for sale.

Today Cliff and I are assembling this year's Community Art Project, which will be revealed in the main art tent Friday. Stop by and take a look! While you're there, check out all the donated art that was featured in this year's art walk. You can bid on your favorite pieces in the silent auction throughout the art fair, up until Saturday at 4:30.

Saturday, please bring your kids! The kids' art activity tent is open Saturday from 11am - 4pm. And once again, they will be able to paint on an actual car (and possibly, a van too?) This was a really popular activity last year, adults wanted to get in on the act too.

New this year - we have a map listing all the vendors, along with the entertainment line-up. It will be available in the main gallery tent. Please note that the previously advertised chili cook-off has been cancelled. But there will still be food and beer and other beverages available in the Court Street entertainment area.

The weather forecast looks good (so far) ... no rain predicted until late Saturday night ... keeping fingers crossed it holds off until after clean-up. It should be a fun sun-and-art-filled weekend in downtown Lapeer!