Determination

 Artists must be determined, flexible, and faithful to succeed. Financial success can be a very  long journey.  There are many marketing gurus in the art world and they all have advice that can be used to further one’s career. Just be careful about who you choose. 

 

There are times when all of the right moves are ineffective.  No matter how much you market, how much social media, post cards, ads, etc. you get, the sales simply dry up. This can be due to the economy ups and downs, perceived or real. It can be due to political unease, polarization, election years. It can be due to subject matter being in or out of fashion. There are many reasons why your work stops selling for periods of time. Having been in this business for many years, I have learned to live through difficult periods without fear or dismay. Sales always come back eventually. 

 

In the mean time, you must tighten your belt, live without dinner out, shopping sprees, indulgences.  When sales are down, I do more marketing and more art. I want to improve my work, so I must work every day, do the best work I am capable of and get it out in front of people. I must ask for help from friends to promote my work to their acquaintances. Everybody knows someone who can afford to buy art. I rely on friends and collectors to help me succeed, because I love and support them. They want me to be successful, so they are happy to help.  

 

Flexibility helps. Reading the coming market, political period, and mood is important. I often do small series of works in a limited number, changing up mediums, sizes and subjects to attract collectors of smallworks. I will change venues and add or let go of markets that aren’t producing.

 

When all else fails, sheer determination helps me to stay focused and motivated, happy to be a full time artist. There is no job I would be more qualified for and I always survive in the topsy- turvy world of art.

 

Country painters keep trying…….

The Bird Feeder

 Many of you know that I love birds. I often draw and paint them and make collages inspired by birds. 

I have a nice little bird feeder attached to the front window of my studio. I use safflower seeds in the feeder because squirrels don't eat them. The Cardinals love them. I can sit on the back porch of my house and watch the birds come and go. Yesterday I saw about 6 Cardinal pairs dive in for snacks, politely taking turns at the feeder. That pop of color on a dreary winter day was a pleasure. I often see woodpeckers, crows, and hawks as I walk the nature trails on my land.  Country painters have a wonderful life….

Good and Bad Years

 There are some years that don’t go well. Some years bring tragic losses, financial difficulty, health loss, a decline in one’s popularity as an artist. There are lots of reasons one can look back and claim a bad year. The pandemic has become a constant in our lives as well as polarization of our citizens, left and right with little moderation. 

 I think December becomes a thinking month, near the end of one year and anticipation of the next. I used to make all kinds of goals and business improvement plans every December. I worried about what events I had lined up, publicity, juried exhibits, etc. etc. I carefully planned my activities for the next year.

 It only took me 25 years or so to realize that none of that made any difference in my livelihood. Good and bad years come with little warning. Last year was my best financial year ever! No kidding! Who knew? I didn’t do any extra activity, plans or marketing. It was just great! I felt great too! 

 This year not so great, but survivable. There was no difference in activity, except that poor health forced me to my design table instead of my easel, doing small drawings and collages and making paper instead of large paintings. The large paintings are still in my studio, but everyone was more interested in small works. I don’t mind. They still support me. 

 It would be easy to become despairing of a bad year. Poor health, poor sales, pandemics can be very depressing. Instead, I walk forward with hope for a great 2022. Bad times don’t last. It is great to know good times are just around the corner. I am determined to begin painting again, if only for one session a week in January. It’s going to be a better year.

 

Country painters have a good life…..

Winter Beauty

 This is the wonderful Florida season we natives live for. It lasts but a few months but it is worth the wait. The tall sedges turn coppery brown and feathery tufts grow on the tops. They are like large bird feathers, appearing at the first cold snap. Other weeds produce silvery and lavender bunches mixed into the sedges. The distant trees turn smoky blue gray and purple behind the deep green live oaks and pines.The Spanish moss is a pale gray lace, gently swaying with breezes.

 

This is the Florida of my life time. The memories grow deep of a carefree childhood with horses, dogs, the beginning of understanding the natural world and my long career as an artist. The woods are my soul mate, the wild creatures share it with me. I never tire of observing this small slice of the upland magic of what was. 

 

Country Painters are privileged…..

Red Tailed Hawk

Original hand made collage

Mounted to mixed media paper

6x4

20.00

https://www.lindablondheim.com/collections/168465

Small Beauty

 Yesterday my dear friend sent me an Autumn leaf in a marvelous, impressive card. The card was a quilled bouquet, original art, mounted to fine paper.  

I have seen examples of quilling now and then before. Now, after working as a collage artist for some months, I see the quilling with new and profound respect. This was so expertly made, that I can’t imagine learning such a refined technique. 

Each flower and leaf was exquisite! Each one had repeated patterns and shapes that were separate and perfectly done. I was truly in awe. My ADD personality would go bonkers trying to do this work. I am so glad there are artisans in the world with the skill to make beautiful art that so many of us take for granted.  

My time with PMR has blessed me with the opportunity to love and respect art forms that are not painting. Art is art! Whatever the medium one chooses. We should respect lesser glorified mediums and gifted artists, not just painters. I have learned humility and respect for many art forms this year, thankfully. 

 

Country painters can learn……

Pen Fun

 Now and then I like to do some drawing at my design table. This is a pen and ink drawing of a Belted Kingfisher. I was a drawing major in art school long ago. A couple of years ago I bought myself a nice drawing table. I would love to make a living drawing, but alas, drawing is on the very bottom of the food chain of the art world. To make money, you must be a painter. 

in my view, drawing is the most important medium of art. It is the skeleton of all skills in art. Even the most famous abstract painters knew how to draw. My collage work has helped to improve my drawing. I don’t use other templates or patterns. I don’t cut out pictures for my collages.  I draw every collage myself first. Drawing is crucial to all mediums and basic design skill. I keep working at it. 

Country artists practice drawing…..

Wholesale Attitudes

 Some artists have what I call a wholesale attitude about their work. These are painters who sell their work substantially below market value. 

 Their work tends to be formulaic in style. They have found a style which is easy to do quickly and is marketable to the pop culture we now live in. Often, they will line up canvases, painting all the sky, then trees, then grasses, with slight variations.

 They use tried and true palette colors, brushwork they are used to, and subjects they are sure will sell. This sounds like good business and financially it probably is. They sell lots of paintings with their production line assembly. They borrow it from Ford’s original idea. It is the same for artists who sell reproductions. To each his or her own. This is probably jealousy on my part.

 That is an easier way to make a living than for those of us who struggle with new and difficult processes we are unsure of. I am always pleasantly surprised when finishing a painting in good form. Many of my experiments are failures, but I learn from all of them. Constant study, changing brushwork, palettes, subjects, and mediums are risky. The rewards are vast!

 

Life is process and experimentation for country painters....

Early Walk

 This morning when I hiked around my Deer Woods Trail, I was led by Mr Moon. It was just dawn and the sun was still sleeping in the east. This is my week to get up before dawn and let my French Bulldog out for his break from his crate. The almost full moon threw off just enough light in the west to guide me along the path. When it is near dark, I am more aware of the sounds rather than sight along the trail.

I could clearly hear the song birds waking up to talk back and forth. Blackie the crow and his pals were not awake yet. They usually start cawing and flying about 7:30, looking for a diner for breakfast. It was even too early for the owls to clock out for sleep. They must have been off getting in that last quick hunt before bed time.

Strolling along in moon light is a really lovely way to start my day as a painter. I observe large shapes and think about the atmosphere as it gradually lights along the way. The soft cool moonlight over the tall pines in. the west is lovely to see.

I think about my projects for the day and listen to small animals rustle along the edge of the path in the woods. The tortoises are asleep, but I call them by name as I pass their dens. Having a life in rural north Florida is extraordinary for a landscape and nature painter. As I age, I have become happiest out here in the woods and farm land my parents thoughtfully purchased 60 years ago. 

Life is wonderful for a country painter….

Muscle Memory

 I am a science buff and I've been reading  about muscle memory. I read up on muscle memory and found this paragraph in a Popular Science article.

 "Neurons inside your muscles play a strong role too, of course, but [the pattern of activity](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16290273?dopt=Abstract) that helps you perform the same action over and over happens inside your brain. It only feels like something your muscles are doing on their own." I am grateful for this muscle memory that my brain tells my hands that they can still be steady enough to do some art. 

 That is the great thing about being an artist. There are no real limitations except the ones we place on ourselves in our own minds. Over the years we evolve with physical changes and our taste changes in color and design. As a young painter my color saturation was intense in my work. As I mature as a painter, I have subdued my palette quite a bit and am more interested in value and contrast, moving closer to a Notan approach of values transition.

 I was a long time Plein Air addict, but have become most comfortable in the studio, due to health restrictions. No matter, anytime I can paint in or outdoors, I am grateful and lucky! I still get out in cool weather to do a few paintings. 

 

I hope to paint and draw the rest of my life, however long that is. The gift of creativity is precious and should be honored and cared for, not taken lightly by artists or society. Think about the fact that a painting is done once in a lifetime. Owning it, the only one of its kind is very special. That is why I don't make reproductions of my work. There should only be one.

 

Life and science are wonderful for country painters…

Issues

 I’ve had some health issues this year. One thing it has taught me is to be flexible. I was able to paint about ten real paintings this year and I am grateful for that. I have a lot of muscle pain in my arms legs and hands right now, so I have switched to making paper and making hand made paper collages.

 

Moving to different art mediums gives me a fresh outlook on my work, until my hand dexterity improves again. I know it will. I am confident that I will get back to painting again. I have always found a way to be an artist. Reinventing my art every now and then keeps me learning and growing. The collages have improved my drawing and design skills greatly. 

 

All art is good and fun for country painters….