prints

The B Word... Business

The past month has been busy, although I haven’t been painting as much as I’d like. Instead, I’ve been learning more about the business side of art, which I’ve largely ignored up until now.

In the past couple of weeks, I’ve been learning how to photograph and make reproductions of my work. I’ll be making prints available for sale soon. Thankfully I didn’t have to figure this out on my own. Tim Packer has put out a helpful YouTube video on the topic.

I’ve enrolled in a TSA class called Professional Studio, and I attended my first class last week. Maria-Saroja Ponnambalam is the instructor and she’s really enthusiastic and supportive! My classmates are a diverse and talented group and I’m hopeful that we’ll learn a lot from each other. The class delves into many of the practical aspects of being an artist (e.g. approaching galleries, how to network and market yourself, how to join the artistic community through collectives, how to make funding proposals, etc). I’m really looking forward to learning more in the weeks to come.

Another first: I submitted my paintings for jurying a couple of weeks ago, and I had my first art show this past weekend. The eve of the show was somewhat hair raising because I had a health incident at the same time. Fortunately, MacKenzie was there to nurse me and hang my paintings for the show (I couldn’t ask for a more supportive partner)!

As for the show itself, it was exciting to put my work up for public viewing and sale at long last. As it turns out, the Three Wise Tamarins sold and they’ve found a new home! I didn’t expect to sell anything this weekend, but when I showed up on Sunday night and saw the tamarins gone from their spot on the wall, I felt a mixture of feelings: mainly happiness that they’ve gone out into the world and that they’re providing someone with enjoyment, but also a hint of sadness that I wouldn’t see them again. I guess this is the cycle that every artist hopes to go through!

In a week-and-a-half, I’ll be entering my second show with the Don Valley Art Club at Todmorden Mills which runs from Nov 14-25. Come check it out if you can. After that show wraps up, I’ll be done with the current zoo series of paintings (I currently have the 10th and final painting on my easel which just needs a few finishing touches).

Heading into 2019, I’ll be looking to start a new series that will incorporate some different ideas and techniques (it will still be animal-based). I’m looking forward to exploring and sharing this new direction in the months to come.