Thursday 4 April 2013

Calyx Sale and other News

The countdown is on for the Calyx sale! My art and I will be there on Sunday April 21st. If you would like to see some examples of Needle-felt pieces and slate pictographs that will be at the sale, click on these two categories under "Labels" on the right hand side of your screen (you may need to scroll down a bit).

Hope to see you there!

Other big news - after taking some courses over the past few years at ACAD (Alberta College of Art and Design), I decided that I should apply to their degree program and give the student life a second go. I was thrilled and flattered to be accepted at this very prestigious school and will be getting my lunch bucket and school bag in order for the Fall. Maybe I'm dating myself a bit - Starbucks coffee mug and laptop are perhaps more fitting.

To Blog or Not to Blog - One Year's Reflections

Well it has been just over a year since I started this blog. As you may recall, I was wondering in my first post about the wisdom and the pros and cons of jumping into the virtual world. I promised myself that I would try it for a year and reassess (an old but good habit from my other life as a program evaluator and planner). So here we are - already a year has gone by - so short in some respects and forever in others.

The short answer is that it has been a good experience and I will continue to carry on. A year ago, at the outset, I asked these questions: "Is this just another sad form of talking to myself and, if not, who the heck am I talking to? Will I fall prey to the seduction of looking at just one more art site at 1 pm? Will I avoid being sucked into the black whole of internet addiction!!??  Stay tuned."

Here are the answers ...

I have very little idea who I am talking to but am getting hits and I do get verbal feedback  - I would happily learn who is out there in the comments if you feel so inclined (please!). It has been a great vehicle to let friends, family, and customers know what I am doing and very worthwhile in that regard. Sadly but honestly, there is some talking to myself, however it has helped me to process some stuff over the year - and what a year it has been both personally and artistically.

I only rarely fall prey to the seduction of looking at just one more site at 1am or 1 pm or any time for that matter. If anything I feel a bit guilty about not being more connected, but that usually only lasts for a few moments - the benefits of having a short attention span. There are some great networks out there and I am connected to a few - who knows, maybe this year will be the year of the internet addition.

In true evaluator fashion, here are my "findings" (I still hate that particular piece of evaluator jargon but can't help but slip back).

Things that have worked and I've learned:
  • As I've said, it has been a great way to keep folks up to date and have some photos available for viewing. I often get asked for a website and this has been an easy solution so far. It seems to me that I am handing out more business cards and contact information. I am not sure why, but it seems to lend credibility to my work as a professional artist.
  • It has allowed me to share stuff with fellow workshoppers and I hope to do more of this this year. It seems to be a great way to share your own workshop content as well as sharing pics as an attendee of workshops - the big caveat here is making sure that I and anyone else photo'd on the blog is aware and okay with being there. There are very big differences in peoples' perceptions about this and it always surprises me that I cannot predict an individual's thoughts. I always ask in a way that leaves people with whatever level of out they want and err on the side of caution.
  • Personally, I like doing occasional blogs rather than writing more frequently - not sure how that works from anyone else's point of view, but it works for me.
  • I do feel like I am a little more in touch with technological changes than I would be if I hadn't started this blog, but am probably even more aware of what I don't know.
  • I like that I have been able to find a comfortable approach that works for me and can take it on my own terms.

Things to do differently:
  • I am not sure that this is the best way to have an electronic gallery per se - especially for someone like me who works in different media as well as posting musings like this one. It was a good way to start, but I think a website in addition to a blog is a logical next step, although not sure I will get to it for a while..
  • What is with the explosion of social media options and how do you connect all the stuff or pick the best one? - I am sure there is a way to connect them, but haven't got the patience to figure it out so far other that posting links.
  • I would like to be able to figure out how to balance the desire to be technologically savvy with the desire to not waste a lot of time that I could be spending more productively on art or other personal activities like actually talking to people face to face. Obviously a loaded statement which reflects my love-hate relationship with virtual reality. I need a tech-guru friend who can download their tech savvy brain to me in a matter of seconds over coffee but that ain't going to happen - will have to muddle along.
Bye for now!