The sun was glorious

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Hello, dear art lovers and readers of the Friday Studio Blog! I hope you are all doing well. 

I am thankful for you and for the print orders that have been coming in more steadily for the past three weeks. Your orders are really keeping me going just now. I now offer twenty-one different prints in my shop ranging from £15, £25, and £40 and with free UK shipping too! They make great gifts for your friends, family, and especially for yourself!

I am getting ready to be busy as next month I will be participating and helping to organise two different exhibitions in Edinburgh (and in the real world!?). One will be at the Granton Hub and one will be at Edinburgh Palette, St. Margaret's house, both in July. Next week I will give you all the details. 

My feelings have been a bit all over the place as the summer approaches and the news of the world continues to overwhelm with both hopeful and still shite news. I am walking daily and spending time appreciating flowers, my cat, and the lovely people in my life. I am still keeping things mostly quiet and am in no rush to return to normalcy whatever that is. 

I tidied up my home studio area. I had a great art talk with a fellow painter, I worked on preparation for both exhibitions, signed and titled prints, and took them to the post office. It was a pretty good week.

The wind is blowing through the open window, there are potatoes baking in the oven for dinner. The sun was glorious this morning. I will be posting out more prints next week too. I'll end as I began with gratitude for your support. 

Don't forget, I place my orders with my fabulous printer every Monday morning at 9am. So if you are looking to get a print from my shop, get your orders in by Sunday night for quickest turn around time each week. You are supporting two women-owned small idependent art businesses with every purchase and that is a good and helpful thing. Thank you - Megan 

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Original art is like fresh basil.

Christmas came a bit early for me this year. I first saw the artist, Michele Maule's work in person at the DDP Gallery Small Works show and knew I liked her paintings. I wanted something a bit bigger, so in this case I needed to buy it from Etsy. I came across a painting called Detroit Water Tower, and I decided I had to have it, so I placed the order. The piece had the right mood for me, I just felt it. A short couple of days later, the painting arrived in the mail! I was so excited, there is something a bit scary yet thrilling about ordering art online. We all know that everyone's monitor is different and that photographs of art can be wildly different as well. However, when I pulled it out of the box it was perfect!! I propped it up in its temporary home, and kept stealing glances at it all day. I looked at it from far away and up close. I studied the piece and I thought about the process involved and about the artist who created it.

Later that night a friend called, and I had to tell her about the new piece of art I had received. I was so excited, buying art is such a thrill and I mentioned to her that I felt original art is like fresh basil. Fresh basil is so alive, the smell, the texture, it is like pure energy in your hand. Dried basil is so different, it works but the energy isn't the same, it smells different, you don't feel its wet freshness in your hand, it doesn't interact with you the way fresh basil does. Fresh Basil can be transporting. Original art has this same energetic presence, it enters into your environment and has the power to change it. Simply amazing.

I never used to buy art. I made art, so I hung my own paintings around the house. I wasn't making any money selling my art back then either, so I couldn't afford to. As my pieces began to sell, I decided that I too needed to walk the walk and start buying original art. It is one of the best things I have ever done. Speaking from experience I know how that artist feels when they sell a piece of their work. I also know that selling that piece can be the difference in sticking with it and packing it in. My collection is just getting started, most of it small works, and mostly from Arkansas artists. I have the under $200 collection so far, and I have found gems for $40.00 and even under. Remember, it is not what you pay, it is how it makes you feel.

Anyway, this is another challenge if you haven't already or if you haven't in a long time, consider buying yourself or someone a small original piece of art. You are worth it, they are worth it, and that artist's work is certainly worth it. Buying art is such a profound thing to do for yourself and your environment and for the artist you are now supporting and encouraging.

Don't miss the small works show at the DDP gallery in Fayetteville. My small collection has several pieces by some of the featured artists represented there. I have several pieces of Ginny Sims' stunning decal ceramic works, several of Mark Traughber's fabulous stenciled wood panels, and some of those cool Wrecords by Monkey bracelets. Sarah Nunn's purses are the only purses I will carry (don't miss Sarah's fresh modern felt wall art as well) and now I have a Michele Maule piece too! There are many other talented artists showing their work at the DDP gallery that might be just perfect for you!

Pictured above:

Small Works 2007 postcard image ( courtesy)

Artists listed from left to right, top to bottom: Helen Phillips, Susan Freda, Nicole Sharp, Toma Miller, Mark Traughber, Lucas Taylor, Wrecords by Monkey, Ginny Sims, Joseph Maggiore, Michele Maule, Sarah Nunn, Alexander Abajian

DDP Gallery
7 East Mountain St.
Fayetteville. AR
On Display December 05, 2007 - January 19, 2008

This Holiday Season - Buy Art!

The Holidays are in full swing now, as today is black Friday. Shoppers are programmed to run out to the mega stores and malls to catch the early morning shopping deals. They will buy all sorts of gadgets, clothes, and various oddities for those on their Christmas lists. There is a frenzy to find that perfect thing, that bargain, that object that shows how much the shopper thought of the person on their list. Shoppers will usually overspend, exhaust themselves, and may not even really enjoy the process that much or be satisfied with the item they end up with. There seems to be a disconnection that happens. It doesn't have to be this way.

Imagine a shopping season where you are able to buy distinctly one of a kind items for your loved ones. An item made by human hands. An item that is the actualization of hours of thought and planning, passion and style. An item that contains a bit of mystery and perhaps some magic. Imagine giving the gift of original art to your loved ones this Christmas. Initially, that idea might sound more expensive, scary, or time consuming. However, there are many easy options for buying affordable, original art these days.

First, shop locally. Avoid the malls and chain stores and go by your local galleries. Many galleries at this time of year are having holiday sales where they have asked their stable of artists to produce smaller, more affordable pieces of work to be on display at this time. Many galleries are more than willing to help you find something within your budget. It is important for you to feel good in the gallery; if you feel any unwelcoming or uppity vibes from a gallery owner or staff, you don't need to shop there. If you have ever felt that somewhere, I apologize for them and I hope it didn't turn you off from the experience of buying art. Please try again. Many galleries will spend considerable time with you and help you really find a great piece of art that meets all of your needs. They should treat you with the same respect whether you are buying a twenty dollar object or a two thousand dollar painting. As in other retail stores, galleries accept credit cards and may even allow you to make payments over time to make the purchase more comfortable.

After you have enjoyed your local or regional galleries, look for a holiday studio sale or a design fair in your area. These are usually warm and friendly events, with a group of artists getting together to have a sale for a weekend. You can find many affordable one of kind items at these sales, and usually meet the artists, all the while having some hot cider and a fresh baked cookie.
Design fairs are popular in larger cities, and the chic craft movement is in full swing around the country; you are guaranteed to find cool stencil art, jewelry, and other modern crafts that are sure to please someone on your Christmas list.

If you are a die hard Internet shopper, then a great site to buy all things handmade is Etsy. If you have not been to this site then you are in for a real treat. Paintings, prints, letterpress items, cards, toys, jewelry... if it is an art or a craft that is hand made, then it is on Etsy. The design sense of the folks that sell their work on Etsy is top notch. The prices are hard to beat as well.

Buying art can be a fun and exhilarating experience, and it is one of the most thoughtful gifts you can give. Sweaters may fall out of fashion, housewares fade or break over time, but art keeps giving. Every time, I walk into a room in my home that has original art, I immediately think of the artist. I think of the time they spent creating the piece. I think of their vision and talent. As time passes, I find more and more that I like about the piece. The work keeps revealing more secrets to the story behind it. When you buy art, you directly impact the artist's life as well. You are encouraging that artist. You are saying, "well done." You are saying, "keep going." You are saying "I see and value what you do."

To the person on your list, you are saying "you are so special and unique that only art would do." This holiday season, try buying original art and feel the difference.

"A Glimpse"
Mixed Media on Canvas
Megan Chapman
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