Just in time to coincide with the nation’s State of the Union, it’s time for a wrap up of things that came and things to come with my art.
Well it’s been an interesting 2014 for Art! I completed 17 pieces of artwork. All of them were the 4×12 “Celebrity” portraits except for one that I never liked from the past, “Behold Your Son”, and repainted over a majority of it. It was much easier the second time around. I guess it does get easier the more you do, not to mention quicker to complete.
I ‘almost’ had two commissions for portraits! Neither of them followed through on my emails though. Actually, one was from the Fall of 2013 that went into this past year. I was in the studio audience of “The View” and was coerced by my friends and family to take my painting of Whoopie. It was shown to all the hosts (Whoopie Goldberg, Sherri Shepherd, Barbara Walters, and Jenny McCarthy) during one of the commercial breaks. It was a success and Sherri wanted it for her “Whoopie Collection”! I handed out my business cards and contacted Sherri after the show. She was interested in a commission and wanted me to contact her through her secretary. Unfortunately getting a hold of her through her secretary was difficult at that time, probably due to her going through a divorce (which I found out later). I haven’t been able to reach her since. But at least it was a huge ego boost to have someone that popular like and want my art! I will contact her again this year, through her secretary again to see if she remembers and if she is still interested in a commission.
Not only have I completed a lot of Celebrity paintings, I also had the idea to push commissions for paintings of individuals (couples) in the same format. I did one of my partner and myself and of my parents. More on that in a later post.
It seems the most popular are the Celebrity groupings as in my most recent ones of “The Wizard of Oz” and “The Beatles.” So in 2015, stay tuned for more of these types of groupings. Of course, one of the first would have to be the cast from “I Love Lucy”. I am also thinking of doing cartoon characters, i.e., Bugs and Taz or Sylvester and Tweetie Bird. We’ll see how that goes and if it is popular.
I am also going to do more of my Historical or Religious portraiture paintings. I love paintings that I can tell a story and put in my thoughts through symbolism. In fact, the first two paintings for this year on my easel right now are portraits in this same vein. More portraiture paintings this year will also extend to more conventional themes, but still tell a story.
This is the year to focus on my Art and getting into a gallery for representation. I expect rejection but somewhere out there is a place for my paintings and clients as well as commissions. I’m looking forward to it and I hope you will as well.
