Artsy Business

Artsy Business: Tell Me What You Want, What You Really Really Want

It’s been awhile since I checked in and caught you up on what’s happening with the business side of Artsy Forager, and I’m also long overdue for taking a look at how I’d like to see Artsy Forager evolve over the coming months and years and for that I need your help!  If you wouldn’t mind taking the survey at the end of this post, I hope to be able to truly take your input into account according to how you use the blog and why you read Artsy Forager.

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But onto what’s happening these days with Forager Services— oh so very much!  I’m continuing to do curation and art research for my main healthcare art consultant.  Lots of photography being placed in facilities in Florida and Tennessee!  It’s really interesting to see how art programs in healthcare facilities are evolving.  With advances in technology, we’re able to print affordably on so many different substrates at affordable price points, the old days of simple matted & framed open editions adorning patient rooms and halls are quickly coming to an end.

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I’ve had the privilege of working with several artists over the past few months on various aspects of their branding and marketing.  For Nashville area artist Deann Hebert, I not only helped her tell the story of her work and life verbally, but also created a beautiful press kit she can send to her dream retailers and collaborators!

In addition to working with Deann, I’ve helped a very busy and in demand artist write statements for two upcoming solo exhibitions as well as reworking her artist statement and bio.  And I’ve been working one on one giving art direction/critique to an artist whose work I greatly admire but who was feeling like she needed a second set of eyes and a little push to keep the work moving along!  Will begin working soon to start expanding her gallery representation.  Exciting stuff!!  If you’re interested in working with me, please check out the Forager Services page to see the type of services I offer and feel free to shoot me an email with any questions.

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Then there’s another little project I’ve been working on.. Since the end of last year, I’ve been working with Mantle Art, an awesome framing app based in Seattle, to bring together a collection of small scale limited edition prints to be offered through their site.  The collection is looking amazing and will be launching very soon!!  You can see a sneak peek of a few of the prints below.  The quality is superb!!

AB_MA prints

And of course, there is my own fledgling studio practice.  And a newly released feature in Professional Artist Magazine on the Thriving Artist Summit!  Oh and I’m also trying to put together my first curatorial proposal.  And maybe apply for a grant if I can get my app together in time.  So to say I’m feeling pulled in a million different directions and perhaps a bit scattered is the understatement of the year!  Which is why I need your help, dear Artsies.  I want this blog to be not just a source of delight and inspiration, but of actual use to you.  I would like to be able to refresh and renew the site with a clear and present focus!  I hope you’ll take a few moments to complete the survey below, so that I can get a handle on what really matters to the artsy folks who visit here day after day!

Survey graphic

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Abstract Art Daily Artsy Paintings

In Essence: Emily Crabtree

I’m finding so much to inspire and aspire to in the work of other artists lately, especially in the way abstract artists approach composition and color.  How some artists choose to include graphic or narrative elements eluding to a certain subject or influence, while others, like Emily Crabtree, simply let color and form do the talking.

Emily Crabtree | artsy forager #art #artists #painting #abstractart Emily Crabtree | artsy forager #art #artists #painting #abstractart Emily Crabtree | artsy forager #art #artists #painting #abstractart Emily Crabtree | artsy forager #art #artists #painting #abstractart Emily Crabtree | artsy forager #art #artists #painting #abstractart

I love the way her work twirls and drips in cottony bundles of color.  In these paper pieces, the forms isolated against a clean white background, almost seem to pulsate and dare to flit about the surface.  Peeking in from this side or that, the cropped compositions feel like a fleeting glimpse of clouds of color floating in and out of view.

To see more of Emily Crabtree‘s work, please visit her website.

All images via the artist’s website.  Artist found via Fresh Paint Magazine.

Daily Artsy Paintings Still Life

May Featured Artist: Holly Farrell

This year is zipping by like a lightning bug, isn’t it?  We’ve rounded the corner to a new month, which means there is a new Featured Artist to enjoy and obsess over all May long!  Toronto artist Holly Farrell is this month’s darling and I’m so excited to feature her work here again.
May Featured Artist Holly Farrell | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings #stilllife #retro

May Featured Artist Holly Farrell | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings #stilllife #retro

May Featured Artist Holly Farrell | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings #stilllife #retro

May Featured Artist Holly Farrell | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings #stilllife #retro

May Featured Artist Holly Farrell | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings #stilllife #retro

Holly is an amazingly self-taught painter whose work she lovingly describes as “still life as portraiture”.  The things we surround ourselves with, especially as children, hold so many memories and associations.  Like Holly’s association with pulp paperbacks such as “All the Way” above involve sneaking peeks at the forbidden books as a youngster.  The way she portrays each object, worn with use and love, usually on a stark background, helps us connect to our own associations.  We see the objects not just through the artist’s filter, but through our own memories.

To see more of Holly Farrell‘s work, please visit her website.  If you’re in the NYC area, Holly will be showing at the Outsider Art Fair this weekend, May 8th-May11th!  And you can see Holly’s work featured here on the blog & all over AF social media all throughout the merry month of May!

All images via the artist’s website.

Daily Artsy Paintings

The Future Past: Esther Pearl Watson

Lately, I’ve been rediscovered the joy of finger painting.  Sometimes a brush just won’t do the trick and your digits are the best way to get it done.  And for me, it makes me feel even more connected to what I’m creating– I’m physically in the work, no middle man.  It got me thinking about how I made art as a child and I hate to say that what I really remember is feeling frustration when what I created didn’t turn out as perfect as the vision in my head.  But what I’ve come to understand and what so many artists do, is that it is in the naiveté and imperfection that the heart of an artist is revealed.  In her folk style paintings, Los Angeles based artist Esther Pearl Watson  tells her own unique stories through childlike eyes.

Esther Pearl Watson | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings Esther Pearl Watson | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings Esther Pearl Watson | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings Esther Pearl Watson | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings Esther Pearl Watson | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings

Growing up in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area, Watson’s father was a bit of an eccentric, an inventor who would spend hours working on what he believed to be the future of transportation– hover vehicles.  Her folkloric inspired paintings are a sweetly odd mix of nostalgia, present reality, and idealistic dreams of a futuristic world.

To see more of the work of Esther Pearl Watson, please visit her website.  Her work can be seen in the current exhibition, Sky, at the Bedford Gallery in Walnut Creek, CA through May 25th.

All images via the artist’s website.

Abstract Art Finding My Own Artsy Paintings

Finding My Own Artsy: Feminine Wiles, Painting Nine

Perhaps this is sacriledgious type talk, but I’ve never been a fan of the Wizard of Oz.  I just never really connected with it.  But I do love me some Judy Garland.  Meet Me in St. Louis?  Easter Parade?  I’ll take those over flying monkeys any day!  When it came time to think about an iconic Garland role to do a color study of for the Feminine Wiles series, A Star is Born‘s Vicki Lester seemed the quintessential choice.

Finding My Own Artsy: Feminine Wiles, Painting Nine | artsy forager #art #artists #judygarland #abstractart #colorstudy

found here here and here

In Lester’s rise to fame and the effects of her success on her marriage, we see a story of drive, devotion, self-sacrifice, and desolation.  A sweeping melodrama filled with mountainous highs and the deepest of lows, it made sense for costume designers Jean Louis and Mary Ann Nyberg to dress Garland’s Vicki in moody lavenders, blues, and greys.

Finding My Own Artsy: Feminine Wiles, Painting Nine | artsy forager #art #artists #judygarland #abstractart #colorstudy

found here

Finding My Own Artsy: Feminine Wiles, Painting Nine | artsy forager #art #artists #judygarland #abstractart #colorstudy

Judy Garland as Vicki Lester in A Star is Born, acrylic on canvas panel, 6×6

If you’d like to see more in the Feminine Wiles series, check out the archives!  Gathering up inspiration for some more to come!  Do you have a favorite you’d like to see me tackle?  Let me know in the comments below!

All film image sources linked above.  Art by Lesley Frenz aka Artsy Forager.

Daily Artsy Mixed Media Paintings

In Shatters: Jessica McCambly

Some of my art experiences here in Eureka have been of the “iceberg tip” kind.  I discover artists by seeing work in person that is a bit interesting, then upon further online investigation, discover that there is so much more.  San Diego artist Jessica McCambly, whose work I saw recently at the Morris Graves Museum of Art, works in the very nature of a first glance drawn into an intimate viewing.

Jessica McCambly | artsy forager #art #artists #painting #mixedmedia #abstract Jessica McCambly | artsy forager #art #artists #painting #mixedmedia #abstract Jessica McCambly | artsy forager #art #artists #painting #mixedmedia #abstract Jessica McCambly | artsy forager #art #artists #painting #mixedmedia #abstract Jessica McCambly | artsy forager #art #artists #painting #mixedmedia #abstract

 

McCambly creates these tiny paintings ( the larger pieces pictured above are zoomed in details, most work is on 7×7 or 10×10 paper ) using a unique mixture of acrylic and glass fragments.  The resulting paintings are these beautiful little jeweled microcosms.  They could be geodes or macro images of crystals, or aerial views of geothermal pools.  There is a quality of a world to be discovered in each minute piece, drawing us in for a closer view.

To see more of Jessica McCambly‘s work, please visit her website.

All images are via the artist’s website.

Collage Insert the [ Artsy ] Interiors Photography

Insert the Artsy: Black and White Art, 3 Rooms 3 Styles

Choosing artwork for your home can be an intimidating process.  Sometimes we fall in love with a piece of work but wonder how in the world we would ever incorporate it with our current style?!  You know that old adage, buy what you love and somehow it will work?  I’m here to prove it’s true.  Let’s say you fall for this bold black and white art pair by this month’s Featured Artist, Alexandra Bellissimo.

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 the antagonist | the guardian

They’re strong.  They’re daring.  They’re a little weird but totally fabulous.  Now where can you put them?  The best thing about graphic black and white art like these is that they can add a sense of the unexpected to anywhere they hang.

1 | fierce romance This fantastical pair are like creatures from a dark fairy tale.  Hung off to the side above the antique sofa in a romantic bohemian living room, The Antagonist and The Guardian would add just the right amount of sass to counteract the sweet.

ITA_bandw_fierce romance collage

art by alexandra bellissimo | interior image found here

2 | sleek soak In the bath is often the very last place we consider for artwork, but these guys are just screaming to add a little of the unexpected to your personal spa.  They’re graphic so maybe placement in a contemporary bath seems like a no-brainer, but their organic sci-fi feel compliments the space in a fresh way.

ITA_bandw_sleek soak collage

art by alexandra bellissimo | interior image found here

3 | rustic edge Maybe you love rustic decor but don’t want to completely live the cowboy life?  The his and her pairing is perfect for a bedroom and this black and white art would provide a fantastic juxtaposition against a wood feature wall.  Want to edge it up even more?  Add an extra wide white mat and simple contemporary frames in a bold color like yellow or bright green.  Boom.  You’ve turned up the sophistication to 11.

ITA_bandw_rustic edge collage

art by alexandra bellissimo | interior image found here

Have a room you need some artsy help with?  Or art you love but not sure how to style in your room?  I can help with that!  Check out my Forager Services page for details.  Love this pair by Alexandra Bellissimo?  Check out her site AND stay tuned for some news here and on the Mantle Art site for affordable, limited editions prints coming soon!

All image sources linked above.

Abstract Art Daily Artsy Mixed Media Paintings

Stratified Spaces: Pam Saturday

When you think about it, our entire world, every organism, every object is composed of a system of layers.  Artwork included, especially the work of process driven artist Pam Saturday.  Employing layer upon layer of paint and other media, the artist creates a universe in which we see only a fraction of reality.

Pam Saturday | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings #mixedmedia #abstract Pam Saturday | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings #mixedmedia #abstract Pam Saturday | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings #mixedmedia #abstract Pam Saturday | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings #mixedmedia #abstract Pam Saturday | artsy forager #art #artists #paintings #mixedmedia #abstract

Bold stripes and other forms may dominate, but for the close observer, there are small glimpses and surprises waiting to be discovered.  Colors peek and peer from beneath their blankets of paint and we have no idea how much there is to be unearthed.

To see more of Pam Saturday‘s work, please visit her website.

All images are via the artist’s website.

Artsy on Film

Artsy on Film: Beauty is Embarrassing

Mr. Forager’s tastes are a bit unpredictable.  I never know which artist’s work he’s going to connect with and I’m often surprised by the ones he choses as favorites.  But when we were looking for something to watch after an afternoon of imbibing at a local home-brew festival, I knew we couldn’t go wrong with Wayne White.  Neil Berkeley’s Beauty is Embarrassing takes a look at the highs and lows in the career of this Southern boy turned media and art world darling.

Artsy on Film: Beauty is Embarrassing | artsy forager #art #artists #documentary

There are a lot of ways in which Mr. F & I identify with White and his journey.  Growing up in rural Tennessee, White knew the struggle of loving home yet finding it suffocating.  Knowing that to stay might mean to give up on who you truly are, to forfeit a dream.  Leaving Tennessee was a turning point for White, just as leaving Florida was for both Mr. F and myself.  Sometimes, it is only upon leaving the familiar to realize our dreams and our authentic selves.

Artsy on Film: Beauty is Embarrassing | artsy forager #art #artists #documentary

We’ve both at times found ourselves not quite buying into the expectations that were set before us.  That in order to belong, we had to conform to the commonality around us.  Traveling has opened our eyes to different ways of thinking, different ways of living and being.  We’ve learned that there is no right or wrong way, there is only the way that is right for you.

Artsy on Film: Beauty is Embarrassing | artsy forager #art #artists #documentary

For White, art-making does not mean being a serious artiste.  His self-proclaimed goal is to “bring humor into fine art. Not art world funny but real world funny.”  Mr. F has a wicked sense of humor and we are both huge believers in the insight and ease humor brings to complicated  subjects and feelings.  Just because White’s work makes us laugh, doesn’t mean it doesn’t have something important to say.

Artsy on Film: Beauty is Embarrassing | artsy forager #art #artists #documentary

As an artist, White also allows himself and his work to evolve, yet retain his own genuine artistic voice.  Whether he is illustrating a cartoon, designing sets or gigantic Lyndon Johnson heads, what comes out is authentically White– irreverent, playful, but filled with dark truths.  It seems that for White, the finding happens along the way, different paths of creativity lead over, around and into one another.  His artistic journey mimics the connectedness of the way our own pathways evolve and intersect.  But he does it while playing the banjo.  Match point to Mr. White.

Artsy on Film: Beauty is Embarrassing | artsy forager #art #artists #documentary

If you’re looking for a few hours of inspiration and truth veiled in lots of Southern humor and explicit language ( the “F” word is White’s fave, he & Mr. F have that in common.. ), check out Beauty is Embarrassing.  Wayne White wants you to persevere in whatever your creative path and after you watch, you’ll believe you can.

See more of Wayne White‘s artwork on his website and check out interviews, film stills, etc. on the Beauty is Embarrassing site.  And guess who I’m now following on Instagram..

Top photo found here.   All others via the film’s website.

Daily Artsy Photography

Proper Arrangements: Anna Church

In these days of drive-thru’s and fast everything, there exists a ready convenience to life that is intoxicating.  Most would say we don’t miss the days of corsets and class rule ( though there’s definitely an argument that both still exist, just in different forms ).  But for all the rigidity and rules, there was perhaps a meticulousness to life then that we’ve lost touch with.  Toronto artist Anna Church in her carefully assembled creations honors these symbols of our past.

Anna Church | #art #assemblage #photography Anna Church | #art #assemblage #photography Anna Church | #art #assemblage #photography Anna Church | #art #assemblage #photography Anna Church | #art #assemblage #photography

Church comes flea markets and other sources to find just the right pieces to craft her symbolic assemblages.  Whether her Insignia or At Your Service series, arrangements of objects and ephemera are pieced together with exacting precision and aesthetic romanticism.  The resulting imagery, available as limited edition prints, are at once recognizable and enigmatic.  For all of these objects were once treasures of other people, a part of the history of many, emblematic of one.

To see more of Anna Church‘s work, please visit her website and be sure to follow her on all the usual social media suspects!  To catch a glimpse into her process, enjoy the video below, shot by videographer Vuk Dragojevic.