Just Do It!

 "No Whining!" poster from my classroom

 Last week, while I was on Spring Break, I spent at least two entire mornings working on art exhibition submissions.  I really didn't want to, but I figured it had to be done, and since I was off, I couldn't think of any good excuses not to.  For additional motivation, I gave myself a little pep talk.  "JUST DO IT!" I yelled at myself.  "SUCK IT UP!" (Yep, that's my pep talk- told you it was little.)  I was more than a bit frustrated, because usually I procrastinate and procrastinate, until I've managed to miss the deadline.  Then, I curse, but I still do the same thing the next time.  Sheesh!  In the past year or more, in fact, I had missed nearly all of them.  Of course, I want to be in the shows, I just don't want to do the actual entering.  I hate the entire process; to me, it's like torture.

It's not the rejections that bother me; I got over that a long time ago.  I wish I had kept all the rejection letters I've received over the years, because I'm pretty sure I'd have enough by now to wallpaper my studio.  What better reminder of the power of persistence than that?  Or, I could use them to make the world's biggest collage!  Sure, years ago, when I started doing this, I'd get all depressed when I got a rejection.  I haven't really come all that far in the self-confidence department; I've just done this long enough that it doesn't faze me any more.  (Sticks and stones... )

Art Exhibition Applications

What does bother me is that it's just a boring, time-consuming pain in the butt.  Here's what I mean.  First, you have to figure out which shows to enter.  I should clarify here.  Finding them isn't hard; it's deciding which ones are worthwhile that can be tricky. There are so many factors to consider.  For example, is your art a good match for the theme, or for the venue?  What does "Healing Art" really mean?  What type of work do they usually show?  You have to do some research, so you're not just wasting your time and money.  And speaking of money, some are pretty expensive to enter; if the fee is over 30 dollars or so, I usually mark it off the list.  Shipping is quite expensive, so is it best to limit your entries to shows within driving distance?

Then there's the submission process itself.  Emailing images is easiest, but most want them on CD, which you have to put in the proper padded envelope with the proper paperwork, take to the post office and weigh, etc.  What's worse is that each show has stipulations for how the images should be sized and labeled, and it's different for every single show!  For example, one wants them at 300 dpi, with the shortest side at least 1200 pixels.  The next one will be 72 dpi with no side longer than 450 pixels.  I've never been able to re-use a CD, ever.  The labeling instructions are also incredibly specific.  First name.last name_first 2 words of title. jpg.  Or, first initial last name_entry number_title.  Or anything else you can think of, as long as it's not like the labeling for any other show.  I've even seen one that stipulated that you must use "inches" when giving the size, not " or in.  Are you starting to get the picture?

A mess of CD's and crap.

If you're applying for a solo show, they're going to want various other documents as well, such as your statement, bio, resume, exhibition proposal, and possibly even invitations from past shows.

Seriously?  Could some of this stuff not be standardized somehow?  Maybe it's just me, but this makes my head spin around until I want to spit pea soup.  Did I mention that I hate this?

But, the good part is that every once in a while you get something like this:

And then your piece goes on a little journey- if you get it framed and sent out on time.

World Dharma Mandala by Sharmon Davidson

What I wouldn't give for a full time secretary!  Any takers?

Business Questions/ Issues

Okay, maybe I'm crazy- never mind, the jury's pretty much in on that one- but do these images look the same to you? (not counting the business card part, of course) The top one is the original artwork, and the pic on the business card should be the same. They look alike in the folder on my computer, but when I post it- well, the colors are sort of - different, to say the least. I've tried it 3 times. Also, the background of the card is black, not gray. I sent this to a printer, and now I'm wondering if this is what it will look like when it's printed. Yikes! Does anyone understand what happened?



Mystery solved. My son explained that it looked that way because the printing company wanted it in CMYK color mode, instead of RGB, which is used on the internet. Who knew? Apparently not me. So this is what my business card will finally look like.

Now I move on to issue #2: Shipping artwork. It's not really the HOW to ship that I'm wondering about, it's the WHETHER to ship at all. Or maybe it's HOW to afford to ship. To put it more simply, is it even worthwhile to enter shows that aren't close enough to enable you to deliver the work yourself? The price of shipping seems to be rising dramatically. I recently shipped a piece to an exhibit in Jasper, Indiana, near Evansville, which is probably about 4 hours from where I live. It cost me almost $80.00 to ship it there and back! Is there a cheaper way to ship than UPS? What it comes down to is that unless I make a sale or win an award, I'm out a lot of money. So, do I stop entering shows altogether, only enter the few close to home, or win the lottery?

Good News(s)

Upstream People Gallery has informed me that "Dimensional Shift”, “Moon Shadows”, “Rise”, “Transformation 10” and “Transformation 29” have been selected from approximately 700 entries from various parts of the world for the “8th Annual Summer All Media International Online Juried Exhibition”.
The summer exhibition will debut worldwide on August 1, 2009 at www.UpstreamPeopleGallery.com and be on view through July 31,2010. If you can, please take the time to view the show; there is some really excellent and interesting work on display.

Dimensional Shift; this piece received Special Recognition, and will be placed in the gallery's permanent archive.

Moon Shadows

Rise

Transformation 10

Transformation 29


Also, "Kalachakra Matrix" was juried into the 16th Annual JCAC Juried Exhibit in Jasper, Indiana.

I feel very honored to have my work chosen and recognized by other artists, and am grateful for the opportunity to share my work.

Good News

Well, I've been busy and I wanted to update everyone on what I've been up to. I have some good news to share.

Exciting news! My work has been selected to be featured in the book "Art Buzz: The 2009 Collection." An annual, full color, hardback, 'coffee table' type book, this publication showcases the work of professional artists from around the world. I'm honored to be included in the 2009 Collection, which will be available for purchase directly from the publisher later this winter.

In October, my work was juried into the Artist Guild of Northwest Georgia 1st Annual Open Online Art Competition. "Moonshadows" was awarded 1st place for mixed media. You can view the show at their website.

I was fortunate to be accepted into the organization "Artists Who Teach", a group of fine artists who are also teachers. Membership is juried, and there is some very nice work on this site. You can see my profile here, at the bottom of the page. Also, if you have a chance, look for my work in their ad in the December issue of American Style Magazine.

While I sometimes get frustrated with the lack of sales (which is understandable in this economy), I guess this just goes to show that if you just keep pluggin' away, eventually something will happen. I am definitely the tortoise rather than the hare. I'm developing kind of a zen attitude about all this- enjoy the process and don't worry about the outcome, or something like that. Maybe it should be "Ride with the tide, and go with the flow" as James Taylor and Carly Simon sang so long ago. Well anyway, I'm trying.

1st Place Award

Some very nice things have happened in the past couple of days, one of them being that I found out I won a first place award for this mixed media piece, MOON SHADOWS, at the AGNWG 1st Annual Online Art Competition. There is some very nice work in this show, and you can still vote for the PEOPLE'S CHOICE AWARD until the end of the month. (Shameless plug: Vote for me! Vote for me!)

Another nice thing is that I was juried onto the Artists Who Teach site; you can find my profile here.

And, last but certainly not least, I finally got my electricity back after 6 days. Even though I'm in Kentucky, Hurricane Ike was able to reach out its long arms and knock down countless trees and power lines, leaving 90% of Duke Energy's customers in the dark. You have no idea how wonderful hot water can feel- and my computer still works, too!!

NKU Alumni Exhibition Invitation

I was honored to be accepted into the juried alumni exhibit at Northern Kentucky University, where I received my Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1993. The reception was Thursday night, and it was sort of strange, but nice, to be in the gallery again. If you're in the neighborhood before September 25, stop by and check it out. I'm sorry this invitation didn't upload very well; I think it had to be shrunk so much that most of the text does not show up.