With a number of art shows coming up soon, the question of pricing one's art comes up. There have been a number of good art blog articles, particularly by Lori Woodward (see below), that have helped clarify and explain this complex business. 

When I first began painting, and then to begin selling some of my paintings I really had no idea how to calculate what would be a reasonable price, particularly when I was just beginning. I have now been painting steadily for about 9 years now, and am feel that during that time I have studied and learned a great deal, which has helped me improve my work. But pricing is still something to ruminate about when show time comes.

 In Lori Woodward's first article about pricing,  she talks about covering input costs, such as materials (paint, canvas), advertising etc. In the second article, she actually gives an example of her breakdown of costs and calculates how much it costs to make a painting. This includes frames as well. In the third article she talks about various pricing strategies. These articles are worth reading, plus the comments others have made on the posts, to get some sense of this issue.

 I have taken a leap of faith and am trying some new frames for paintings from a place called King of Frames in California. It has been recommended on a number of art blogs. The prices are certainly good, and with the dollar almost at par, I thought - what the heck. So I've ordered a couple of sizes in two different models, and will see what they are like. Frames are such an expensive undertaking. I don't think that people, when they are looking at paintings, realize just how costly the frames are. Personally, I am not a fan of unframed pieces, even if they are done on the thicker, gallery style canvases which are commonly used. That is a personal preference though; many people don't mind it. 

Also, if when looking at art in a gallery, people may not be aware that the gallery takes a significant percentage of the sale price, in the range of 40-50%. So the artist will receive the sale price minus the commission and sometimes the cost of the frame too. So in the end, the artist actually receives half or less than the gallery price. That is why many artists are looking at alternative ways of marketing their work, to improve their income. 

Making a living as a professional artist is a challenge, because the success that person has rests, for the most part on that individual. Unless the artist is one of the few to be represented in a good, reliable gallery, and can command the prices required of gallery representation, then s/he ends up being a one person show - purchasing agent, creative director, producer, marketing manager. And they do it because they love to paint, or sculpt, or write, or compose, or take photographs and want to share it with others. So we keep on regardless because it is so much fun.

Now that we are well into March, the sun is higher in the sky, the snow is starting to melt, and thoughts turn to spring. For me, spring means art shows, particularly ones in which I will be participating. 

In about two weeks, the first one will be here, which is the art show at Gardenscape, March 26-28. This is such a fun weekend, both because I get to volunteer planting the demonstration gardens during the days prior to the show, and I participate in the art show as well. I have been working on some new paintings for the show, and have put up a few of the small ones that I have completed on the Gallery of New Works page.

Then, in about five weeks, we will be having our 8th annual Prairie River Artists' group show, April 17 and 18.  I am in the process of making new calendars for this show. I made some for our Escape Artists' show last fall and was very pleased with them so I am going to make new ones for 2011 to have at this show. Once I have the calendars printed, I will put up some photos of them.

I hope that the weather will be delightful, not frightful, for both shows. It has been both in the past as this time of year is very much transitional and unpredictable. I am really looking forward to seeing everybody as we emerge again from winter into spring!

Michael Innis's blog 'Underpaintings' is another one that I enjoy following. He talks about art and the art scene, particularly in the northeastern US as he is based in New Jersey. He has recently talked about favourite art books, one of which I have (which will be the topic of another blog), and shows lots of pictures of other artist's work and upcoming shows.

Too bad the shows are so far away, but most galleries now are online so you can visit the galleries virtually. It is a good opportunity to sit down with a cup of tea and take a mini art tour. For instance, in a recent post, he talked about artist Casey Baugh, who does wonderful portraits, and who has a show currently at the Wendt Gallery in New York. The Wendt Gallery also has branches in California, Vienna and Singapore, so you can also see current exhibitions in all these locations. So, a world art tour from the comfort of your own home!

Of course there is nothing like seeing the real thing, so that you can see the size, proportions, textures, brush strokes etc. But it might make you aware of places to visit on your travels. There is no end to imagination. So pull up a blog (or better, subscribe to the RSS feed so you get the regular updates in your reader), and see what is happening out there in the world of art. 

Sue Smith's art blog, Ancient Artist, is a blog about developing an art career after the age of 50. Sue writes interesting and thoughtful pieces about her journey as an older artist. She also has some useful resources, such as a business plan, available on her blog site.

 You will also find a link to her art site (look on the right side of the blog page). I particularly like her still life paintings. I must admit to being partial to still lifes though, and hers are very appealing. I like her use of colours and shapes to create simple yet effective works. I will have to study them more closely. I need to learn to use more paint!

I have been working on a large painting of one of my succulents. I must find out the name of it one of these days. I am planning to use it for our Escape Artist show at the Muttart Conservatory in Edmonton this summer. It has been great fun to work on such a large scale (30 x 30 inches), much bigger than anything I've worked on before. I am looking forward to doing some more of these larger paintings. 

For the Muttart show, we need larger works as the space is quite large and little ones would just disappear. I am hoping to go to Edmonton in March and will definitely go by the Conservatory and check out the space. I haven't been there is years, so it will be interesting to see what it is like again.

I am going to do a second painting for the show as well, but haven't quite decided what I will do yet. It will be somewhat smaller, and maybe floral. We need to keep to a 'nature' type theme in keeping with the Conservatory.

You can see the work in progress, which I think I am going to call 'Sun Seeker' on my flickr site, under 'Works in Progress'.

I really do enjoy painting succulents. They have such great colour and structure. I will be doing some more soon.

Now that this one is almost done - time to sit in what I call the contemplation stage - I am going to start on some small pieces for Gardenscape that is coming up at the end of March (see Upcoming Events on the side). I also like doing the little 4 x 4 inch pieces too. They are quick and I learn lots from doing them. So now to go and prime a group of little canvases. 

Right now I have a painting at the Federation of Canadian Artists' student show at their gallery on Granville Island. A friend of mine also has a painting in the show and she took a photo for me, so I can show it here.

I really appreciate the FCA providing this opportunity for those of us who take classes and workshops from them, to show our work. Someday, I'd like to be out there for the show!

Here is the photo of my painting in the gallery.

Fine Art Views is a blog written and overseen by Clint Watson. He is a self-described "software craftsman and art fanatic" who has been on the net with his artist web site for almost 10 years. He writes for the blog and has others write as well, mostly about the artist life and art marketing. 

His main site is Fine Art Studios Online, which he operates as a business, hosting artists' web sites and helping them.  I can't vouch for them as I don't use this hosting site myself, but I have seen some of the web sites here and there seem to be well set up.

My main linkage is with the blog which comes out several times a week. There has been useful information as well as general ideas and discussion around the business of art. You might find it useful too.

I have just begun working on a large painting of a succulent. I had done a small, 6x6 inch painting previously. This one is 30x30 inches, so a much larger scale. For our upcoming show this summer at the Muttart Conservatory in Edmonton, I thought that something bright and plant oriented would work. So far, I am quite happy with how it is going. The photo shows the finished underpainting. I am now putting the final layers on. 

Working on such a large (for me) scale is quite interesting. The biggest change is making sure I put out enough paint! Working of small paintings doesn't take large amounts, and I still find that I am having to put out and mix up much more that I think I will need.  So this is a learning process too.

I am starting to get some other ideas for new paintings on this bigger scale. Well, I must finish this one first.

One of my favourite art blogs is that done by Stapleton Kearns. He is a landscape painter who lives in the New England area. I came across this blog when he wrote a guest piece on the FineArtViews blog (I'll talk about this one later. Over the past year, he was doing a daily blog about art related topics. When I found it, he was just beginning a series of blogs about American painters from the past. It was very well, done, with lots of illustrations. Because I don't have an arts background, I am interested in finding out about art history, and this is one blog that has provided some good information.

 Stapleton (if I can be that informal) also has lots of information about design and composition. Right now, he is doing an interesting series of blogs about how trees grow, so that you can better paint convincing trees in your landscape.

 He also has a wicked sense of humour and does some fun, 'Ask Stape' pieces. So check out his blog site. If you click on the blue square in the URL bar, or to the very bottom of the page, where it says 'subscribe' you can get a feed to your reader or gmail. 

He also has a good web site too, with lots of his paintings. He certainly does capture the essence of the New England landscape. I lived in Massachussetts for a year back in the 1970s and it is a beautiful place. So check out his blog - I think you'll enjoy it.

Looking forward to the coming year, there are some regularly anticipated events coming up, as well as a new one.

I will be sending a painting to the Student Show, with the Federation of Canadian Artists. It starts in a couple of weeks. Anyone who takes a class or workshop with the FCA can submit a painting to their annual Student Show. 

I continue to paint with the two groups, Prairie River Artists and Escape Artists, both of which will be having group shows this year.  The Prairie River Artists will have their annual show and sale at the Albert Community Centre as always. This will be the 8th year for this group.

This year, the Escape Artists have been invited to have a group show at the Muttart Convervatory in Edmonton.  We are very excited about this opportunity to show our work in a new venue. The show will be up for most of the summer, and will be in the newly renovated foyer of the main building. 

This year, Gardenscape 2010 is changing its format for their art show and sale. Artists must submit their work, and if selected, will be provided with their own display board on which to show their work. I am planning to submit an application for this show as I have participated for a few years now, and it is a very enjoyable show. Having all the gardens around makes for a great environment. 

Also, this year, I plan to make this blog a weekly happening, writing about art as I think and feel about it. So if you like, subscribe to the blog using the RSS link on the home page. You can receive it in any of the reader web sites. I like Google reader; this link will take you to the 'tour' page which shows you how it works.  I like it because it gathers all the web sites I like to follow and puts them all in one place. It updates constantly, so you can see which ones have new material in them. I have several art sites that I like to follow, and will write about them in the next blog. So stay tuned.

And Happy 2010!