I have 2 artworks on display here. I'll be part of 2 further exhibitions before Christmas. Details will be posted when I have more info.
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Opening up your private sanctuary to the public can be a daunting task. This was my 3rd Open Studio event as part of Northants Open Studio. Every year I learn something new and every year I wished I had done something differently. Today I'll share my experience with you so that it might help you if you to decide to open to the public. Step 1 ResearchFind out about Open Studios in your area. You can usually find details about them in local galleries and museums. Visit some artists in a home studio, a group show , a hall and other locations. Decide what the benefits to each location would be. Keep notes about what you liked and what you didn't like about the location. If it's a group show ask if you can have more information about joining them next time. When visiting look at how they display the work and how they draw attention to the location, do they have signs displayed and bunting, do they have refreshments and is it welcoming? Step 2 What and where you want to show?Do you want the public to see your studio, warts and all ? Or would you prefer your work to be displayed along side other people's in a space that is already suitable for the public, such as a hall or gallery? If it's a public space you will need to decide what to take, how to display it and whether or not you will be there with the work all the time. Think about the pros and cons of each setting and make a list before you decide on a location. Think about the logistics and the costs involved. Will you be displaying all your work , which can be very exciting for the public but sometimes confusing, or will you display your most recent or best work? Again lists of pros and cons are good for clearing the mind! Step 3 How to display your workOnce you have decided what to show you then need to think about pricing and display. Does your work need framing? What will the costs be? Do you want to hang your work in collections, if you do using the same frame will create a neat display. Do you want the public to see everything you do including all the messy parts of creating the work ( for me this is the most exciting aspect of Open Studios). Once you have decided what you would like the public to see, then you can find a location to display it. Contact the location to find out details,costs,availability ,hanging restrictions make notes and save them. next time I'll be blogging about step 4 Step 4 Working alone or with othersIf you've not visited and artist studio before you might not know what to expect. Here is what you can expect when you visit my studio.
A nice cup of tea for starters . Once you have that, you can browse through my sketch books, look at the materials I use, and see the process I go through to make my art. Don't be afraid to ask questions or to touch things. I spend such a lot of time alone in my studio, that visitors are welcomed with open arms!! There will be work for sale, however not everyone who visits will buy art, it's nice if someone wants to take something home but it's just as lovely to see people appreciate the work. There is certainly no pressure from me to buy anything so don't worry about visiting and walking away with just memories! I will have a range of materials laid out so if you fancy creating something yourself or simply having a play with materials, you can have a go! Most of all, visiting an artist's studio can be an insight into the world of the artist. Each studio is unique and it's like walking into someone's brain!! Usually a private space, visiting a studio is a special exchange between artist and viewer. I really hope you'll accept the invitation to come and take a step into my world. I look forward to seeing you. Just a quick note, my studio is up a flight of stairs and I might bring Spike, my dog , into the studio on some days, he's not very friendly with other dogs so if you are thinking of bringing yours please phone first so I can pop him in his crate. ( rescue dogs come with rescue issues!!) tel 07793 649 662 As you are probably aware ,because I've been sharing my good news everywhere, my work has been selected by judges to go through to the second stage of the National Open Art Competition.
This means I have a chance to have my work exhibited in London and seen by many people. For me sharing my art and getting it seen is the best thing ever! So I'm asking you all to help me get there by voting for me. The judges decide who gets through but the public vote also counts. So all you have to do is vote for my painting 'The Sick Day' and here is the link !! Fingers crossed and a huge thank you!! Please share with your friends xx http://www.nationalopenart.org/gallery2.php?as=1&The-Sick-Day-18213 Vote for me in The World Vote. See if you can get my painting to London!!! Have your say! Click on the link to vote 😀 http://www.nationalopenart.org/gallery2.php?as=1&The-Sick-Day-18213 Confidence has prevented me from entering art competitions. That self doubt that speaks to me like a little person in my head, 'you're not ready to enter a competition, it needs to be bigger, smaller,neater, less neat, more colourful , less colourful, better composition,stronger,more professional, more naive....' Well this time I told self doubt to get stuffed! I decided that if I was to enter it needed to be something close to my heart, something sincere and a subject that challenged me. My daughter and dog were unwell on the day I had decided to start work on my entry. Just typical, I thought, I was both annoyed and frustrated that I now I was not going to have time to develop a piece to enter !! Silly me, my subject was staring me in the face. They both modelled for me in the studio for sketches and photographs and I completed the work over several days. I finally entered the NOA competition, filling in the online form and parting with £20, I even considered entering 2 works but decided in the end on just the one. Well this this morning I got the email to say I had been shortlisted and selected to go through to the second round! I was thrilled and somewhat shocked. What's the saying? Oh yes, feel the fear and do it anyway. So I did and it has paid off. Even if I don't get any further , that first step to enter has definitely been a step in the right direction for me. So 'The Sick Day' will now be packaged up and sent by courier to Chichester to be viewed by the judges. NOA have collection points around the country, so it's a drive to Swindon to deliver it to the courier, then I will find out by September if I've got through! Even getting shortlisted brings benefits, as my work will go online for a public vote tomorrow, and if successful , even without the judges decision , my work could be exhibited in the final show in London. What do you talk yourself out of? Perhaps you should step out of your comfort zone and take a risk. What do you have to lose?!
Throw back Thursday. This was a little pastel drawing created for my Grandad when I was 12. I believed then I needed to be an artist but art in everyone's eyes was a hobby not a career, so I got my first job as a shop assistant in a Pharmacy.
The pharmacist had a son, I drew him , I saw the pharmacist a couple of years ago, he still has the portrait on his wall nearly 30 years later. Nostalgia can be bitter sweet , I often wonder where I could be now if I'd have followed my dream 30 years ago but I'm here now, doing it. Don't dream it, do it ❤️ You may have read my blog about #drawingaugust, a month long daily draw, at the end of that entry I promised to tell you about 'The Virtual Art Studio'. The Virtual Art Studio is the brainchild of artists, Michelle Lloyd and Sharon Griffin. It is an online closed group that you can join via the Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/UnitedArtSpace/ I found out about it recently through a friend who shared a Facebook post about a 14 day drawing challenge. I was nosy so I had a look but initially thought, I'm too busy for this but I signed up anyway! To sign up all I needed to do was send a request to join The Virtual Art Studio closed group. As soon as I joined I knew this was a different type of challenge! Michelle posted a video of herself explaining how the challenge works. She made it sound worthwhile and accessible to every one. Each day we were given a theme, for example 'tone' and then provided with 2 images to choose from as a starting point. The themes were explained so we knew exactly what we were meant to be exploring, we could either copy the photos or choose our own source material to explore the theme. The themes I can remember were, line,tone,texture,colour,shadow and pattern, there were more but those are the ones that spring to mind. My quick scribble of a bike was used to explore shadow. The tasks were given a 10 minute limit (although this didn't have to be adhered to). I think having a time limit meant I was far more likely to attempt the challenge as most people can find 10 minutes to spare! The bear was to explore texture and I completed this one on the train in about 5 minutes! I was encouraged to share the drawings on the Facebook page, this is why it's a closed group so that only the people who are doing the challenge can see and comment on the work. Because of the fact it was a closed group, it was very supportive and welcoming. There is no fear of people who are unsupportive seeing your work, so no need to feel shy embarrassed. The challenge is a challenge for anyone, experienced or novice, I found that I could find my strengths and weaknesses in the tasks, so it made me think about what areas of my art needed more time invested in. I felt the challenge was very worthwhile ( not to mention it didn't cost a penny) and I missed it when it ended. Sharon and Michelle do other supportive work and lessons online, so it's worth popping over to https://www.facebook.com/UnitedArtSpace/ to see what they are doing! I did cheat sometimes by incorporating the theme into work that I was already doing but I'm sure that's allowed really 😉 August is fast approaching and with it brings the excitement of the online art community. Why? Because Twitter will be full of inspirational posts in response to #drawingaugust. For this challenge you don't need to be an artist or even class yourself as someone who draws, just commit to posting a drawing each day online during August , via Social media using the #drawingaugust. I've done it for the past 3 years ! I don't always get chance to post something everyday but find myself doodling on napkins, cups, tissues, envelopes and more, just so I can try to make sure I've got something to show. I've even drawn into sand when I found myself without a pen or pencil. Anything goes, really anything at all. Why you should try it? Motivation to draw can be hard if you lack time, confidence or ideas. With #drawingaugust it is the repetition of daily drawing that creates the desire to draw more often , kind of 'Pringles' effect! (Once you pop you can't stop). So if you are scared, lacking in imagination or creative drive, this is a great way to start playing. Start simple by drawing what is under your nose first, then branch out as the ideas start emerging. With it being August ,there are usually quite a few holiday sketches. They can be something that takes just 2 minutes or more ambitious pieces, it really doesn't matter. It doesn't have to be representational either, exploring marks, patterns,textures can be very freeing and exciting. You can set rules for yourself ,for example just draw yellow things or just draw your dinner everyday! By following the hashtag #drawingaugust you'll be able to see work by other people that you can be inspired by and I'd definitely encourage retweeting,liking and commenting on other people's work , it helps make the whole event feel friendly. If you would like to be added to the Twitter list of #drawingaugust participants then contact cofounders of the event @jeanstevens4 and @olderThanEvil Send either of them a tweet saying you're joining #drawingaugust then your tweets will be seen easier by the community. Go on, what have you got to lose? Tomorrow I'll be blogging about the Virtual Art Studio and the 14 day challenge I've just completed.
Sometimes I feel a little bit crazy as an artist, the reason being I've always been fascinated by dead animals. There is a great history of artists learning from carcasses, bones and cadavers. You may feel it's morbid ,however, I feel that there is so much to be gained from studying from life. When I create pet portraits, I use photography to capture the animal, often using less than perfect images. As a vet nurse I have had the opportunity to see animals lying still during anaesthesia , and anatomy from the inside during surgery. For me, combining the knowledge is essential to creating a portrait. Last week I attended a drawing class at the Royal Vet College, it was in their museum. I was totally blown away! Inside the museum there were the most amazing specimens, ranging from an elephant skeleton to a baby snake emerging from an egg. Most surprisingly there were a variety skulls from different dog breeds and a full skeleton of a chihuahua,which had been donated to the museum by the dogs owner. I chose to draw a tawny owl. As I drew it, I was amazed by the delicacy of the bones of the skull, yet the legs bones seemed a lot more substantial. I spent about 45 minutes looking and drawing and the more I looked the more I saw. It made me respect this bird much more for it's amazing structure and how it is so perfect for catching small animals. When I see a tawny owl in future I'll be more aware of the whole bird rather than just its eyes and feathers! A while ago I visited the Childwickbury Art Fair. I met an amazing artist called Camilla Clutterbuck. What attracted me to her stall was the fact that she was drawing a real birds nest and had a collection of tiny skulls that she encouraged people to examine. Camilla practises the art of scrimshaw, which is engraving into bone, I believe the practice was first started by whalers in the 1700's, alongside her other work of exquisite natural history paintings. She gave me some good advice about my love of natural history, bones and bodies ' Be true to yourself ' she said when I said I was concerned that people visiting my studio may be put off by any bones or taxidermy I might have on display. I feel natural history is the most natural thing to be interested in and there has always been a link between science and art. So when it comes time for my Open Studio, don't be surprised when you see skulls next to my paint brushes! You can find Camilla's work here http://camillaclutterbuck.co.uk/
In between St Albans and Harpenden is the Childwickbury Estate. I understand it's owned by the Kubrick's (The family of the late Stanley Kubrick). It is a magical place with many little cobbled paths, lawns and a variety of buildings, barns and archways, that transform into the location for a beautiful art fair. It isn't a huge affair, like Art in Action or Patchings, however this means that it has a charming, friendly atmosphere. The food stalls were varied and high quality and the standard of the art on show was fabulous, with artists demonstrating and available to talk about their work. There was also live music throughout the day. There were a few areas where you could buy (Rosemary &Co.) brushes, handmade paper and easels, I picked up a Loxely easel at a great price and the seller delivered it to my car at the end of the day. I'd definitely recommend this festival as it has a very homely feel and I can imagine if you attended regularly you'd make some great friends. Daily Painter Penny German Dogs are very welcome too! Demonstrations where you can get your hands dirty! |
AuthorMinnie Teckman, I'm a fine artist that loves oil painting, drawing, portraiture, animals and urban sketching. Archives
September 2020
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