Art Business 2015

I have been working hard the last couple of months concentrating on how to build up my client/follower base in order to sell more paintings on-line.  I am happy with my in-person sales but I have been researching other sites that would be a good fit for PainterPaige paintings.  ImageKind was recommended to me so I have been working furiously for the last week to upload my pieces to this site.  It is a place to go where you can purchase prints or canvas prints of your favorite art for a very reasonable price. I feel very positive that this will a new revenue stream for my business.  I'll keep you posted on how its going.  My address is painterpaige.imagekind.com.

painterpaige/imagekind.com

Ode to LA

I just got back from a week in LA.  Of course the weather is my absolute favorite part of LA but the foliage, especially their succulents amaze and impress me.  And they have some of the best street art around.  I took these pics with just my iPhone and am so happy with how they came out.

You can take absolutely gorgeous photos with an iPhone

Not sure what this is but its so fun

also took this with my iPhone... the key is to get a great angle and close-up

too bad the house across the street created this dark shadow... was better in person

as seen on a wall in Venice Beach

on a bldg in West Hollywood

the other side of that same image

I love SPRAY PAINT!

I love spray paint!  I love making collages.  I love the layering process.   It starts with 140lb mixed- media paper.  A few layers of paint.  Some spray paint.  More spray paint.  Some deli wrap and painted stamps.  Details  are next.

first layer - multiple coats of acrylic paint

Second layer- spray paint through stencils

Third layer- deli wrap and painted stamps

New Pieces

As many of you know, I have been selling my art at Eastern Market in DC on most Sundays since January.  Since Sundays are slow in the am and pick up in the afternoon, I always try to take some work with me to pass the time.  The last few weeks I have been working on new small pieces on paper.  They have been a lot of fun to create and I really like the way they have been coming out.
Some are now for sale at Gala Jewelry and Artisan's in Kensington. Check them out.
http://galaartisans.comcom.  I hope they sell.

My Kefa Cafe show

Here is a link to my Kefa Cafe show information that was just posted on their blog
http://space710atkefa.blogspot.com

Etsy, you frustrate me

I have been reading up on how to get noticed on Etsy lately since I have had my site up for about 2 years and have only sold 3 pieces and got a one commissioned piece from it. Why?  Is it my work?  Is it my photography? My keywords? My SEO?  It is super frustrating.  I constantly read up on best practices for Etsy and try to follow all of their suggestions but it really hasn't made much of a difference as far as sales.  I try to renew listings every week.  I try to even post new pieces every week since Etsy brings up searches chronologically.  I tried following all the information I have on which keywords will bring me the most visits.  I am even a member of quite a few Etsy teams.  My local, CREST (Capital Region Etsy Street Team) has been great and really helpful.

But so far, nothing.  I honestly am not really sure what to do or where to go from here.  

If anyone out there is willing to visit my page and give me their thoughts I would be forever grateful.

www.etsy.com/shop/painterpaige

My mission statement

I am currently reading Tara Gentile's ebook "52 weeks of blogging your passion" http://www.taragentile.com/tell-your-story/52-weeks/ and one of the first things she has us do is create a mission statement for our blogs.  I really hadn't thought about what my mission for the blog was.  I just blogged occasionally because everything I read about starting a successful creative business urges you to have a blog.  So I had a blog.  But every time I went to write a post, I kept thinking "who the hell cares?" and it would stop me from continuing and there would be large gaps of time between each post.  Unless I had something special to write about I backed off blogging.  But creating this mission statement has really made me see what I want my blog to be about and what I want reader's to get from it.  Here it is:
"PainterPaige is the place to go to learn how a self-taught abstract artist can build an art business that is growing and thriving.  You can learn along with Paige as she struggles to make sense out of the confusing and often difficult world of owning a successful creative business."
I think that's it.  The only thing I have to offer is myself.  My life, my business and my processes.
My successes and my failures.

The Evolution of a Painting

I thought some of you might enjoy getting a peek inside my process.  Hope you enjoy.

I am Maruca Design featured artist this week

I was excited to learn that PainterPaige would be the featured artist on Maruca Design this week.  I thought it would be a fun idea to try something new to get my name out there and when they asked for fans to submit their art for consideration, I thought what the heck.  Its a great way to expand my reach and to do something different besides Etsy and local shows.  This is the year for me to try new things, to really try to expand my business.  This is just the first new opportunity for me this year, with a few more exciting opportunities to come.  More on that later.

I honestly love Maruca Design purses and own five of them.  The designs are really fun, they last forever and for me come in the perfect sizes.  My friend Nina bought me my first one and I have been in love with them ever since.

Head over to http://marucadesign.com/something-special/to see my artist bio and some of my work.