Life Gets Busy

I've been doing a lot since the last post. I am curating a show for the Skagitonians to Preserve Farmland at the Seaside Gallery in La Conner. This is an annual show that features a wide variety of artists from around the Skagit Valley. The show title is, "Celebrate Skagit Art" and is the 14th time such a celebration has been held. The opening is July 17 and there will be a reception the evening of July 18. The show closes July 26.

I am also in another show opening August 7 at the Blue Horse Gallery, in Bellingham. "The Creative Edge" is the collection of artists I attended class with in November. We're a eclectic group of painters, a sculptor, photographers, an installation artist and a jeweler. Although not everyone is showing it is going to be great show and I'm really happy to be involved with this group.

Also, in August I will be painting pleine aire for a benefit gathering and Juntenun Gardens. This should be fun although, I don't really like being the side show and painting as a performance but, hey there should be an influential audience.

And lastly, I am in a show at the Skagit County History Museum in September. My piece will be used for the postcard. I don't have all of the details yet so, I'll post something more as it get closer.

Geez, I'm busy. I gotta go make some art to fill all these shows.

Art in a Time of Recession

"Art is not about money", at least that what my friend Clayton says. "Are you making paintings to earn money?" This was a few years ago and he is certainly the walking embodiment of a hard working, life long artist and I was listening when he was challenging my motives but, with economy allegedly teetering on the brink of disaster I'm thinking about money and art and pressing ahead with an art career in an economic bad time.

What does it mean to art and an artist when the art-buying public is dwindling, when discretionary income is being clutched, when an art purchase seems frivolous? What I feel is discouraged. I picked the wrong time to launch a new career is what seeps into my thinking. So how am I going to proceed? ...Go back to school. That's what I am doing. I have been taking an class on artistic professionalism sponsored by The Artists Trust. We've been poring over our portfolios, looking for new sources for funding grants, retreats, fellowships, curating our own shows, finding off-the-path venues and alternative ways to further our careers. We're learning about networking. We're talking about book keeping and tax deductions. And, we're supporting each other. It's been good. It's raising the bar and that's what's happening when I go back into the studio and look at the work I've accumulated.

I realize it is not a time to put less than the very best that I can make out there. That's what the real lesson of this recession time is about. Honing my work to best it can be. Making it shine.

The Show is Over

The opening that now seems so long ago was well attended by friends and patrons all of whom had something other than buying art on their mind but, were full of encouraging words. Things got worse from there. I'm sure that hanging this show was directly responsible for a number of bank failures, most notably WaMu. Anne assured me that it wasn't the art or the prices which, were ridiculously low but, that the mood in general this year has not been about art. Gee, I wonder why?
Oh well, I press ahead as if making art is the only thing that will correct climate change, fix the economy, elect Obama and instill moral fiber into the hearts and minds of Wall St. ana. My next showing will be in La Conner in November at the Arts Alive weekend. My guess is that they will rename the show, "Arts Dead" after this year. Actually, that sounds like a good name for a theme show. I'm sure I can find a number of artists who could make art that fit that theme.

Big Show, Tonight

I've been frantically framing and preparing for the opening tonight. There will be 20 paintings at Anne Martin McCool Gallery, although I just noticed that she has not updated her website. Oh, well. I am using three different framing techniques. One is a molding I designed and my brother cut in walnut. It's kind of a fab 60's design that I thought looked good with my more abstract work. I also have a traditional linen matt with a plain dark red frame and a gold filigree, I put that around my more traditional impressionist works and finally a plain dark frame with a poplar wood insert that I really like. Framing is such a chore. I've noticed that a lot of my artist cohorts have pretty much given it up. They hang plain unadorned canvas or paint around the corner of the canvas. As I have been painting on panels, that won't work. I don't think I would sell anything that was just a plain panel. So, I am a framer. Hope something sells.

Welcome

Here we go. I am now using a blog to keep folks updated of my activities. First things first, shows. I am currently involved in two. I have a single painting hanging at the La Conner Seaside Gallery as part of their invitational show "Le Nu Air". It is a small piece. The bigger news is that I am having a show at Ann Martin McCool's gallery in Anacortes. This will be a show of recent paintings and will include some of my travel paintings. It should be a lot of fun. The opening will be Friday, September, 5, 6:00-9:00pm. The gallery address is:

Anne Martin McCool's Gallery
711 Commercial Ave.
Anacortes, Wa 98221
360 293 3577

Hope you can come. Many of the painting I am now displaying at www.THPickett.com will be available at the show.