Ebay is really irking me.

Firstly, I want to say thank you so much for your comments on my last blog entry.  I really appreciate hearing what other artists think about that subject.  It has been very encouraging.  Above is Bearing The Apple, either my homage or apology to Raphael depending on your taste!

Secondly, I just have to say that ebay has become such a disappointment these past couple of years.  They are so sneaky with their fee system.  When I looked up how fees are calculated, their fee schedule page states 8.75% of the first $25 and then 3.5% of the rest of your sale up to $1,000.  However, now they don't charge an insertion fee on your first five listings and charge 8.75% of the total sale at the other end.  Maybe that would be okay if it was clear from the beginning but it is hard to find where that is stated.  Now they also own paypal so they get another cut at the other end.  If you state on your listing that you are wiling to accept another form of payment they pull your listing and you lose the insertion fee money.  If you link to your blog or website they also pull your listing.  Hopefully, they won't read this post and pull my listing! They pretty much get between 20 and 25% of my total sales - hmmph.  I believe in capitalism and I hate to whine but I just feel the way they go about it is very sneaky and borders on unethical.

I have gotten so many wonderful collectors from Ebay and for that I will be forever grateful.  However, I think I am going to start to step up my efforts to move the majority of my art to Etsy.  Etsy has been fantastic - I just don't get as much exposure there.  I am going to start by stating on my Etsy page that I am willing to take offers - the price listed is suggested.  One of the nice things about the ebay format is that the market can kind of determine your paintings sale price.  Especially with the way the economy is right now.  I would always rather a sale at a reduced price than no movement.  Just thinking out loud and would love to hear ideas or other people's experiences.

Carrie

"A good artist borrows, a great artist steals." - Picasso

Yep, I am going here again! It's Saturday afternoon and I just got my new copy of The Artist's Magazine. Eagerly, I open to the first page and I see a letter from Cynthia (CJ) Rider, president of an artists' league. The letter is titled "On Competitions: What's Ethical?"* Then she goes on to say
" .....copying the masters [is] not for creating original art."
I could really offer hundreds of examples, but I am only offering one for the sake of brevity. The first painting shown here is Titian's, Venus Of Urbino c. 1538. The second painting is Manet's Olympia c. 1863. I wonder if Ms. Rider would not allow Manet to enter Olympia into one of her juried competitions due to lack of originality?

It has been a long held tradition among artists to recreate over and over the artwork of those they admire. They all did this, Michelangelo, Raphael, Manet, Picasso, Monet I could go on and on! Without this recreation we wouldn't have Icons!

I do understand that we have to be careful to respect other artist's ability to make a living and to be fresh with our creativity. However, I am really surprised that in our world of lawsuits, fear and greed that creativity hasn't been stifled all together.

Ms. Rider furthered her argument by stating that "...if I change a few or many words in a Shakespearian sonnet, it will never make it mine." [sic] Okay I have only one thing to say to that --West Side Story, baby!

We are artists and we are creative but we do need inspiration. God doesn't always talk to us directly, usually he speaks to us through other people.

Alice Cooper mentioned the other night on his radio show that he was once asked why he didn't sue the Beastie Boys for using his music. He said (to paraphrase) "...art is for everyone man. If they could use it I was happy."

I really want to hear your opinions on this. Later on I will post a painting I have been working on which really relates to this issue.....

Looking forward to your comments.

Carrie
*(The Artist's Magazine, July/August 2009 pp. 8 -10)

Friendship

The pose of these two women was inspired by the dance of the three graces in Botticelli's "La Primavera."

I will probably revisit those three again and again because they are just so beautiful and if you pick apart the composition it is just genius. Full of triangles and what they call "golden sections." Following their postures was very similar to when I paint esoteric symbols like the Celtic Knots - over and under - and it becomes quite meditative and I am tired at the end.

The harmony between the women in his painting reminded me of friendship thus the title.

As usual I had a hard time capturing the blue in the photos. The background is warmer than shown here. To me blue is so important and always so difficult to translate on the internet. Ah well.......

Hope you all are having a great week.

Warmest wishes,

Carrie

I am learning to see again........

Okay... The past couple of weeks I have been studying the masters. Following what these great artists have done really changes the way you think when you paint. I better understand color and form and also better understand my limitations! A few years ago when I was painting a lot I remember that I began to look around and see the world in brush strokes - everything looked beautiful to me; full of depth and composition. I then entered a time in my life where I just didn't have the time to paint and this seeing slowly ebbed away. When I had the time to think about it - I missed it - but usually I was too busy. I am so grateful that I am in a place now where I can develop my art.

Part of this development has been studying the masters. I am especially enamored with Botticelli's flowers. I was reading that in La Primavera (shown) "a total of five hundred species of plants have been identified in the painting, of which around a hundred and ninety bloom between March and May in the countryside and gardens of Florence." (The Great Masters of Italian Art, Elena Capretti) I realized that in order to paint that many flowers identifiably that man must have been paying attention and recognizing the beauty in his surroundings. Since studying Botticelli and many others, I have noticed that I am beginning to see the beauty around me again. Simple things. The way the leaves cast a shadow on the gas tank, the way my dog rests his head on his paw or the curve of a face. It feels good to see again!

American Sybil

Well here are this week's listings on ebay . I have to say that I have really been trying to blog more often but I sometimes find it very difficult. Especially these last few weeks. I have really been bleeding into my art lately and I feel like words pale in comparison to the emotions I am able to express in my art work. I also feel "done" by Sunday.

I know that I love reading other blogs and peeking into other artist's creative processes so I will continue to try and share.

I hope you all enjoy and thank you so much for continuing to visit through my labored process!

Carrie

My First Commissions

This week for the first time I did a painting on request. Actually I did two commissioned paintings this week.

I have gotten requests in the past to paint a particular subject or scene but I have always declined. I didn't have the confidence in myself as an artist to capture the "vision." There was added pressure for the Madonna because she is such an icon and I wanted to do her justice. I pushed myself harder than ever with these paintings because I really wanted them to be something my two new patrons would like. I am so glad I finally braved these endeavors. Firstly, it was so fulfilling because the painting became an interactive project. I didn't paint these paintings, we painted them. Secondly, it pushed me to really hone in on quality and technique. So here they are, Madonna And Child and In Flight

How do commissions work?

Hello all!

Since I have been getting so many requests lately for commissioned art work I decided to sit down and devise a system for pricing etc.

This is how it works.......

I receive a request for a particular subject, painting etc. If it is something I feel I can do I will let you know and get started. I will email you pictures of the painting - if you can not view the pictures in your email I can also post them on my blog. If you are interested you can pay me through paypal, check or money order. Checks and MOs will take a little longer to ship. If you are not interested the painting will either go up for auction or on Etsy. For those of you unfamiliar with Etsy it is a non auction art selling site. I will give you a reasonable time period to decide.

Pricing
When requesting a commissioned piece you may want to consider the size as that affects the price. I currently charge 0.65 per square inch. However since I am charging you directly and don't have to pay an eBay fee I discount the piece by 4%. Pricing is as follows for some of the standard sizes:

11 x 14 - $96
12 x 12 - $90
14 x 18 - $157
16 x 20 - $200
18 x 24 - $270

These prices include the 4% discount but do not include shipping.

Now if the piece goes to auction you very well may be able to get it for much less especially during these slow summer months. I am willing to sell some of my pieces for less on ebay because it helps to build more commissioned work and more collectors for the busier holiday season.

I hope this helps and look forward to making some great art for all of you!