Mosaics again!

My little vacation from mosaics was wonderful! I love painting and linocuts, and so many other things. I need to make other art forms part of my regular routine. It helps me grow and stretch as an artist, and it made me even more excited to come back to mosaics!

I actually completed a large mosaic just before my "vacation" that I can't post because it is a gift. After the holidays I'll share it with you. But right now I'm working on a very large pig! This one is 48"h x 36"w. I really need to mount a mirror above my table because it is hard to stand back from this and see it well since it's so big. Taking pics helps - seeing the image on the camera screen or the computer screen helps the mistakes jump right out. In this pic, lots of the pieces are just laying there, not glued down. Usually I glue as I go, but with so many colors, I need to see how they are working together, and then change things around to get the right mix. So it's taking me longer than normal to put this one together. But I'm loving it! Feels good to be back!

Answer... Not for me

My last post was titled, "Selling on Ebay - Does it work?" My answer is "No, not for me!" I listed four pieces, none of which sold. Maybe not enough of a bargain, even though they were marked much lower than their original prices. There were only about 20 views a piece. Oh, well. I'm out 60 cents...

Selling on Ebay - Does it work?

I've listed four of my mosaics on Ebay. I put them on for very low prices in the hopes of clearing out some of my older work (above from L to R: Lily, Joy, Reaction, and Belle). This is a bit of an experiment. I'm not sure how successful Ebay is for selling artwork. Have any of you tried it? Did it work for you?

Innocence found!

I heard an author talk about "losing your innocence" when you attain proficiency at something. You know how when you go to a new place you are amazed by every bird and tree, and you can't believe all these people aren't gazing adoringly at all the sights just like you are? They have lived there, gotten used to it, and "lost their innocence" about the place.

So I'm on a little vacation from mosaics, much as I love them, to try some new things! It's been an exciting couple of weeks with the new terrazzo job, making some linocuts, and now painting. I can feel my engines recharging, like a glass filling up with water. I'm loving this! I've regained my innocence!

I Got the Job!

A little over a month ago I was selected as a finalist for a large public art project - a terrazzo floor design for a large event center. Last week I presented my proposal to the committee and I just found out that it has been selected! I'm so excited about it! Here is some background:

What is terrazzo? You have probably seen terrazzo many times and just not known the name. It's an epoxy floor with stone, granite, quartz, glass, or other aggregate like this:
By changing the color of the filler, and the color of the aggregate, you can create different looks and colors. The different colors are divided by aluminum strips.

The event center will host ballrooms, a conference center, and more, but the main attraction is a hockey arena. My floor design will wrap around the bowl of the arena. You can see the construction beginning over my shoulder on the left side of the photo. More info about the event center is at: http://bemidjievents.com/

They were looking for a north woods feeling for this floor design. My design has three sections: earth, water, and sky. (I'm holding my design above.) You will see leaves of autumn in the earth section, like on a forest floor in fall. In the water area, you might spy a fish, a loon, or a beaver. The sky area shows Canadian Geese migrating south. It will incorporate brass inserts for the animals. More about that as it happens.

I will post updates of this project as it unfolds. I'm so excited!!!!

Marketing Yourself

This image is from a recent mosaic called "When One Door Closes, Another Opens". It's all about opportunities. I'm going to be talking about opportunities for marketing ourselves at our next Minnesota Mosaic Guild meeting. We are so lucky to have a great group of mosaicists that get together monthly to share ideas. Since my blog will be one of our sites to visit, I'm going to post the list of good websites and other ideas here. Some of these sites and books are suggested by Christine Brallier. If any of you has any other info to share, leave a comment. Thanks!

Marketing Yourself

Online:
http://www.flickr.com (share pics, learn from others, make friends, MMG group – highly recommended)
http://www.mosaicsandceramics.ning.com (learn a lot here)
http://www.mnartists.org (Minnesota only, all forms of art)
http://www.etsy.com (sell some things)
http://www.americanmosaics.org/ (SAMA)
http://www.barbarakeithdesigns.com (get yourself a website)
http://www.barbarakeithdesigns.blogspot.com (get yourself a blog)
http://www.minnesotamosaicguild.org
http://www.artofmosaic.com
http://www.0ddlyenoughmosaics.com
http://www.mosaic-tile-guide.com
http://www.fineartamerica.com
http://www.facebook.com (meet other mosaicists, list your website)
http://www.myartspace.com
http://www.artbizblog.com (good marketing advice)
http://www.cafepress.com (sell your designs on mugs, shirts, etc…)
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mosaic_addicts/ (forum – ask questions, get answers!)
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mosaicartistsorg/ (forum – ask questions, get answers!)
http://mosaicyearbook.com/ (get published guaranteed)
http://www.mosaicandstainedglass.org/ (forum)
http://www.vistaprint.com (cheap business cards, postcards, etc…)

•Google “Public art opportunities” or “call for artists” and find websites listing offerings
•Email signature (market yourself with every email you send)
•Crosslinking with friends and mosaic websites (you get found in google and on their sites)
(by the way, if you want to cross link with me, leave me your link in the comments area and I'll list your site here on my blog. You can link back to me at www.barbarakeithdesigns.com Thanks!)

Other ways to market yourself:
Galleries/shows (go to galleries and get on their mailing list)
Art Fairs
Private Commissions
Newsletters/brochures/business cards/placing ads/portfolios/notecards of your work
Mailing lists
Ask newspapers or magazines to write an article about you
Tax ID number, MN and Federal (you’ll need this for art fairs and some other opportunities)

Books:
Art Marketing 101
I’d Rather be in the Studio

Class Quilt

Here is the beautiful result from our class! I took the photo outside on a cloudy day, so the iridescence really shows up well. Several students worked on most of the squares. There were only a few squares that weren't used because they were less than half done. I finished up a few squares that were nearly complete. These were all students that didn't know how to cut glass, and look what they did! You can tell they are artistic people.

The quilt will be donated to the Edina Art Center in Edina, Minnesota, where the conference was held.