Fur In The Paint

So I just had to tell you about a new magazine I subscribed to called Art Horse Magazine. Whats the magazine about you ask? The name says it all.

I wanted to post a picture of one of their covers in this blog but they didn’t have one available for use. And I am not the type to just take an image off their site, even if it is to promote their mag. So no beautiful horse picture today.

It was one of those things where it kept coming up in conversations, and an artist friend of mine is designing their award medals for the art show they hold and had called me to brainstorm ideas, and Carol Eilers the editor/publisher of Apples ‘N Oats magazine, actually sent me a link to their site. I’m not one to ignore all these not so subtle hints and went to their website. I not only subscribed but purchased all the back issues they had available, (which was like 5.)

It is a lovely magazine with gorgeous art photos (the kind that make me say “Damn, I wish I had painted that!”) In general per issue there appears to be an article on a breed, an equine artist, on 3-dimensional work, equine history and some misc. My only complaint is they are too small (issues need to be bigger as in more pages,) and there’s not near enough issues per year. (only 2 a year) By the time I’ll get the next one, I’ll have forgotten I ordered it.

Well I am back to working on my lambs. They are coming along well enough. The photo here is (as usual) not so great. It is missing all the subtle soft color changes that I worked so hard on, and is making the colors transitions look harsh.

They are just a little too cute for my taste. I don’t really do cute. Yet somehow I am struggling to keep them from becoming even more cute. They are just about Easter card material as it is. Not sure what my problem is, other than doing baby animals lends itself to cute. (Sigh) I suppose the good news is, that by being cute they will pretty much be sure to be popular.

Once again this post is for those who wish to sell their art. Those who are creating for the sole purpose of self expression and pleasure need not give this much thought.

Finding Your Voice
One of the great challenges any new artist can face is to find their own voice. What that means is to develop a style, subject matter and usually medium that allows the viewer to automatically know who the artist is just by viewing the art. Monet, Van Gogh and Remington have a unique voice. Or to be more contemporary Terry Redlin, Bev Doolittle or Thomas Kinkade. You hear their names and most of you can picture the art in your minds eye. That is Voice.

Finding your own Voice (style) can be laborious. My best advice is paint (or sculpt, photograph etc.) what you know and love. Trying to create whats “IN” is impossible as it changes every few years. Also, buyers are a savvy group. They will know it if your hearts not in it. Generally this means trying all sorts of subjects and mediums until you hit on that Aha! moment. Once you find your joy, throw yourself into it and leave much of the rest behind you.

Big Bluff - Oil Pastel 7.5 x 27.5
Copyright by Mona Majorowicz

Deviant Behavior
Anyone casually looking over my website, gallery, blog or artfair booth, can pretty well conclude that I am a critter artist. I can be easily pigeon holed. This just sort of happened for me with little conscious thought on my part (as did creating my style.)

But if you look closer you can see that I really have two different subject matter (horses and exotic wildlife) and they are done in two distinct mediums (oil pastel and water soluble pencil) with distinctive styles. Still they are close enough that they fit well together when mixed.

I do (however rarely) create art that is outside of this box. Shown here is a landscape of Big Bend National Park. I have been known to do a flower or two, and on extremely rare occasion I may even do a fruit or vegetable. Whenever I am drawn to these types of subjects, it has more to do with colors or pattern than because I am feeling passionate about hot peppers. I allow myself to explore it, and then go back to what I love best.

Generally I don’t show these at the art events I do. And I definitely don’t include them in any application or jury process’s. They are done for my enjoyment and I don’t feel the need to promote them.

To Niche’ or not to Niche’
I personally think you should continue to create whatever gives you joy. But from a marketing standpoint the more predictable you are the better.

This benefits of predictability:

• Galleries & Publishers like it. If you paint a specific genre’ and it sells, they know that if you continue to paint the same stuff, it probably will also sell.
• Patrons like it. They are buying your work because they like your medium, subject matter and/or style. They expect to see more of the same so they can add to their collections.
• Art Fairs & Juried Shows like it. Their job is to provide a diversified event and if all you do is oil paintings of flowers it makes their job so much the easier.

Every time you change your subject matter, you will loose momentum. About 3 years back I “tried” oil pastels. I was so burned out on water soluble (wc) pencils I had no inclination to create anything. I needed something that was quick and fun.

Straight out of the box, oil pastels were a joy. I stared glassy eyed at all the pretty colors. I waxed poetic about them to my artist friends, (or anyone else who would listen.) I literally started one piece as soon as I had completed the last one. I needed this refreshing break from what I had been doing for the last decade. It invigorated me and kept the passion alive.

My subject matter stayed the same, but the technique changed with the medium. As a result I lost some of my patrons. Of course I gained new ones and a few didn’t seem to care or notice the difference.

Most of the time when applying for an art event, I send only the one medium (generally oil pastel since that is for the most part, my new work.) I think this helps me jury stronger because they can see the continuity of the work. It is generally a bad plan to send a variety of work believing they will think you have range. It is far more likely they will think you lack focus.

We had visited our neighbor last night, and on our way out she offered to let me take some peonies home. They had been storm battered and wouldn’t last much longer anyway, so I plucked one. (Yes only one, I had to remind myself it was not proper etiquette to scamper willy-nilly about the yard, gathering them up by the dozens.) This morning I awoke to find it had opened up into this lovely flower, and I couldn’t resist taking a few photos. The darker ones are from my garden. (In this instance the word garden is used in the loosest possible way.)

Now the number of flower paintings that I have created in my lifetime, can probably (meaning that’s all I can remember) be counted on one hand. (Yup, that many.) But for some reason I can’t quite stop myself from taking lots and lots of pictures. Hmmm. The inner workings of a critter artist’s mind. Maybe it has something to do with my complete adoration of Georgia O’keefe.

Back to the Lighting.
Anywho, good lighting can make the difference between an ordinary photograph (and thus generally an ordinary painting) and a stunning piece. Good lighting can bring much needed contrast between shadow and highlight. Most of the time when I am photographing critters, I have to take what lighting there is. But for this I get to play around a bit.

The first photo (above) is just using the overhead light as well as the natural light from the window. It offers an okay amount of contrast. It would probably give me enough information to make a passably good painting. (If I were so inclined, and if I used loads of artistic juju to bump up the contrast while in the process of painting.)

The second photo is the flower lit using a natural spectrum light bulb from my drafting table, as well as overhead and natural sunlight from the window. I placed the lamp at a 45 degree angle from the windows. It not only added contrast, but also a myriad of soft and subtle hues of pink, yellow and blue. Lovely! (Plus, it will require much less of the juju to make a great painting.)

Had I been really feeling the flower power, I would have spritzed it gently with a water bottle, to mimic dew. It’s almost enough to make a critter artist think about painting peonies. Or maybe I am just drunk on the sweet smell of flowers that is currently permeating the gallery.

Now I know what your thinking. “Geez, mona . . . this is supposed to be an art blog, and all you do is talk about the weather.” Well let me tell ya, it is hard to hold a pastel while clutching a candle, huddled around the radio and keeping an eye on the sky. Yet another wave of storms passed through last night. We were very blessed. It literally grazed by us on to the NW and SE. Tornados and straight line winds of up to 70mph. Large hail and drenching rain. We are still in a flood watch.

This first photo is the view of our hay fields from behind the farm. Don’t let all that green in the foregound fool you, there is water under there. The grasses are shoulder to chest height. No kidding. Chicory’s fence is almost completely hidden by the grasses on the otherside of the farm. Fortunately his pasture is on a hillside so it has to get really bad before he is in trouble. And if the water gets that high, we are all in trouble.

The second photo is our road which leads to town. And the last photo is our neighbors pasture. I am estimating it is at 4-5 foot deep. Those tippy tops of fence posts you see are draft horse posts. Bigger and taller than the average. Whew!

Thank goodness a friend of mine called. All she said was “Get in the basement now! There’s a tornado in Laurens (17 miles away) and heading for Plover” (6 miles away) We had no clue. We had satelite tv so no local news interuptions. We never did make it to the basement, though we had the door open, light on and an oil lamp at the ready.

The flooding is much worse farther down state. They are seeing record flooding. In one city 3900 homes were evacuated and another is evacuating as I write this. The water is expected to crest the levy sometime in the next 24hours. I am so hoping it is going to stop raining soon. It has rained everyday now it seems like for many weeks. Some lives have even been lost to these storms which is unusual for this area. How deeply saddening.

So I am going to write about two events that illustrate why I love it here despite the weather. Being the critter girl that I am they are both animal related.

The first was a flock of geese, about 30 flying overhead. Mike and I were working in the garden a couple of days back, and they flew so low you could hear the snapping of the wings and they flapped, as well as the roar of the wind flowing over them. It was soooo cool!

The second was, I was standing in our dining room looking out the window. We have a 100 year old farmhouse which has its original windows. They are approximately 3ft. x 5ft. A great view. A doe came walking up to the window and started grazing in flower bed. She was less than 2 feet away with just the glass seperating us. I was mesmerized. She would much up big mouthfuls and lift her head to look around. She was so close you could see the grass sliding down her neck. She stayed for only 3 or 4 minutes but I was thrilled to have this encounter.

I do plan to get back to blogging about art, weather permitting. We unplug the computer during every storm so if I promise to post something and don’t follow through, it is probably weather related. I am planning on writing next about the Orphan Arts Bill, and from there who know’s.

Well, we got rained out again. I can’t express how much water there is. The city we were in was already at flood stage. And then it poured. People who lived along the river were evacuated. So in comparison, my not being able to sell stuff is pretty minor troubles.

My horse safari was also a mixed experience. I did go and photograph some horses, but was unable to get to the Friesian Farm that I scheduled in the afternoon. I am very disappointed, (Heavy Sigh) because they were very nice and offered to do whatever I wanted with the horses. Like run ‘em around and such for great action shots. (Pinch me, I’m in horsey heaven!) Hopefully we can try again next time I’m in that part of the state.

I do however, have some lovely photos of a blind arab gelding named Colton. I fell in love with him and will be painting his portrait and donating it to the Iowa Equine Rescue & Awareness League. IERAL. They plan on having prints made and selling them as a fund raiser. The original will most likely be auctioned off, also to raise money. I used all 35mm film, so you gotta wait to see any pics until I get them developed. And since I live in the boonies that may be a week or two. It’s great living far from civilization, unless you actually need something.

I will tell you more about Colton and IERAL soon, but today I am draggin butt.

Well, we are all packed and ready for yet another excursion out into the world of artfairs. I am saying a little prayer that the weather will cooperate. It is pretty much been raining everyday now for a week and is supposed to continue until middle of next. (Sigh) Iowa City is only supposed to have a 30% chance both days, but who knows. Anywho expect blog silence probably until Tuesday. I am taking an extra day to go on horse safari. Whoohoo!

Catch - Water soluble pencil 15 x 18 1/2
Copyright by Mona Majorowicz

Well the latest issue is out. So, if you just can’t get enough of my writing, check out the latest issue at Applesnoats.com Or if you’d rather get your own hard copy you can always subscribe.

This issue is all about Catch and includes a lot of stuff not mentioned in the blog. Click here to go directly to my article in Applesnoats.

Overview From Previous Posts
This is just a brief collection of the factors you should consider when trying to decide how to price your artwork. If you want more detailed information, please refer to:
Pricing Your Artwork Part 1
and Pricing Your Artwork Part 2.

• Medium Consider your medium (oil, watercolor etc)
• Comparison Pricing Consider what others (that are at the same skill and experience level as you) are pricing their work for.
• Location Consider the area you are selling in. (What sells for X amount in in the Midwest would most likely sell a different amount on the east coast.)
• Your Markets Will you be selling through a third party, like a gallery? Similarly, will you be wholesaling?
• Start low. You can always raise your prices but once your established you should never cut prices. It will kill your career.

A few NEW things to think about.

• Stay in the middle Avoid being the cheapest or the most expensive artist in the gallery (artshow, artfair etc.)
• Awards and ribbon serve no value when it comes to pricing your work. They are great for the ego but have absolutely no bearing on what someone will pay for your artwork. I have only been asked once by a patron what awards her particular painting had won but that was after she purchased it.
• Price Range Variety It is always good to have a wide range of prices. Have smaller pieces that you can sell for less.
• Price Point Barriers. These are dollar amount that for some reason factor in to whether someone will buy a painting for $495 but may walk away for $505. I have always found this an odd phenomenon. But it’s been proved time and again that these barriers do exist and affect sales.

  I have found the barriers to be at:
  Under $20
  Under $50
  Under $100
  Under $200
  Under $500
  Under $1000
  Under $1500
  you get the idea.

Art is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it.
As stated in the previous post Pricing Your Artwork Part 1, art has a perceived value. Meaning it is based upon what people think it’s worth. Someone may have a painting priced at $15,000 but unless they have sold work previously for that amount or until this one sells for that amount, it’s all just speculation.

Currently the majority of my work sells for between $1000-$2000 per original painting. That is my average, some are less some are more. In the greater art universe, this is hardly big money when it comes to original paintings. However for my area, it is considered pretty good.

When I started out, my originals went for $200-$350. (Ummm . . . The picture shown here is perhaps a just a tiny little bit, before then.) Frankly, the work was probably worth only that at the time. Occasionally I run across someone who bought a piece long ago and they are thrilled the value of my work has grown.

I painted and then I sold the work. With more experience, I created better art that I was able to sell for more. It is cyclical. As I develop better skills, I get better known with more collectors and the value of what I produce increases. It (like everything) takes time to build.

Natural Grace
Oil Pastel 10 x 30
copyright by
Mona Majorowicz

Back to the Question.
So why did I raise the price of the Natural Grace painting even though the painting wasn’t selling?

Well, the prints were going well and there was serious interest in the original. I had greatly under priced it to begin with. (Mind you, it wasn’t really all that large of a piece being 10×30 it just looked like it was.) So if a serious patron was looking at it and then noticed this painting was priced lower than the rest on display of a similar size. There is a subconscious “Well what is wrong with this painting” that happens. Yes, a painting can be priced too low. So I kept raising the price until it was in line with the rest of my work and it sold quickly.

As I look back at it now, I am certain though I got a good price for it, I could have sold it for at least double than what it went for. It had that certain quality that people connected with. Horse people buy it. Young girls buy it as a symbol of the horse they want. And people who have no interest at all in horses buy it, though they usually can’t tell me why other than they like it. (I guess that is what it is all about.)

True Story: A young woman bought the print as a symbol of the horse she wanted. A little over a year later I ran into her at a warmblood trial. She bought a horse greatly resembling Natural Grace, and was excited to show me her new boy. He is a handsome dark bay Percheron cross (or perhaps he was a Friesian Sporthorse) and she loves him. She truely felt the artwork helped connect her to her new horse.

Where I’m at now
The reason I began making prints in the first place is that demand exceeded my capacity to fill it. At the time all of my work was water soluble pencil and often a painting of moderate size (around 22×30) could take 4-8 weeks to complete. If I wanted to make a living at my art I had to work faster, charge more or make prints. In the end I did all three.

As far as pricing my new originals I do factor in time spent (though it is by far the least important aspect.) Basically it comes down to how much I like the painting. How big of a check will make parting with it agreeable, within the pricing structure I currently have. Also, having the original on display usually is a boost for selling the prints. That also factors in.

When I do something completely new, like say . . . the small handmade paper paintings. I look at my usual pricing for paintings that size and begin there. If they sell quickly (which they have been) I will raise the price slowly, by $50 increments. I do this as long as they continue to sell well. When they quit selling I may back up a price break or two and let it rest there, until once again demand exceeds production.

Upcoming Posts
For my last Pricing Post I will give a very breif overview of what has already been discussed and add a few extra bits that didn’t really seem worthy of expansion. Also I will probably do something soon concerning exposure. (No I don’t mean nudity in public.) I am talking about exposure in terms of getting your art seen.