Another Monday

So today was just an ok day that has ended pretty badly with two people's tempers flaring because of a bad situation. I did a phone interview for a part time position and feel pretty down for having to jump through hoops for a part time temporary position, which I am way over educated for this job and was told this repeatedly on the interview. Anyways, I think this depresses me more because I feel I am wasting my energy trying to find jobs that will not have any future and I wouldn't ever want them if I was employed elsewhere. I should be wasting my time figuring out how to write a business plan, making drawings and prints, applying to fast track programs to get my teaching certificate, and making my girl dinner while walking my poor dog. Ever feel like your legs are spinning and you are not moving, I feel like it has been this way since I entered New York state.



Anyways, I listed the first drawing of a series on Etsy today as a reproduction with my super high end archival Epson Printer. The series as I said in an earlier writing is based on the evolution of birds to head back to the superior hunter status they started as the dinosaur. I hope to have at least thirty of these drawings done and create an illustrated book from them. However, I am also going to sell them individually as reproductions in a edition of twenty-five, and have not decided if the book will be open or a limited edition. Check out the details and full image by clicking on it.

I also listed an older lithograph I had made that was a digital and stone drawing made together and coll'e in the printing process on another sheet of western paper. It was made for my first portfolio exchange I believe titled "Cliche". The idea being that you pick a cliche out of a hat (get it) and whichever one you get you make a response to it. Well my pick was "What Goes Around...Comes Around" and my thought came from middle school(junior high) and high school biology classes. The notion that one day you will die and might end up just like that frog or worm, on a table being studied by young people who don't respect you. I had to add some humor to the print because your dead so it doesn't really matter does it, and that humor is from dancing skeletons.



Just also wanted to mention that Ali Loewenstein also put a couple of new pieces up for sale that you should check out.

New Works on Etsy.com

I just put this etching onto Etsy for a excellent price. Just click on the image and you can view it and its price. While you are there sign up for an account to purchase items, and than you can shop at my whole site. So, I haven't accomplished much this weekend in the sense of making art but as you may notice I did turn my website into an active blog site now, you no longer have to visit Google Blog to read my words. Than again no one did read my blog because no one can ever find anyone inside there. I did finish a drawing on Friday though and that will be the first of a series on fictional birds of the future and their mutations back towards extreme hunters. They will be done mainly in graphite, but some will be watercolors. I am also planning a series of woodcuts because I do like doing woodcuts, but I also returned the piece of junk etching press I bought from Jerry's. I recommend not buying their presses because they do not work very well.

Also check out Ali's new drawing she just released onto Etsy too. Her shop will be getting more items very soon, but in the meantime take a look at the pieces and buy them all now while you can.

Marketing yourself as an artist

As a person who was recently laid off in these times of economic uncertainty I can say that this might or might not be a blessing. The blessing is that it made me wake up and say I am tired of doing these not so great art positions. I have been working as a fitter in fancy frame shops, I am good at it but I was constantly angry about my job and never knowing if it will lead to anywhere career wise. People would ask me about my job and I would tell them what I did and they would exclaim "that must be so interesting" and I said "Not Really". The blessing is I know what I want to do, and have known deep down for a long time that yes I want to be an artist, but I really want to open my own educational print shop. There since I have said it to myself I have been giddy and actually able to sleep at night, but I shouldn't be because I live in the New York area and our rent is crazy just like everyone around us, and I don't have any income at the moment.

Now I do sell drawings and prints on etsy, but I have only sold about ten things on there. I think there is a strong possibility for me to be able to at least pay half my rent or more by selling my drawings. I find these artists who consistently get four hundred views by buyers, and I am lucky to get fifty. I was excited about my fifty until I now need to make money from my art and I should need to make it after how many years of art school and making my whole life about drawing to not make a living at it seems, well, dumb. I am now on a quest to question, ask, beg people to teach me how to market myself on etsy and the web better because I love my art and I think others would enjoy it on their walls too.