My facebook art posts are beginning to show fruit. I've sold two paintings in 2 weeks, and yesterday, a cousin of mine has offered to create my first coffee table book replete with all my art, pictures and copy. It's an exciting time, but it also costs money. We will print no less than 30-50 copies and no more. I would give copies to close family, but I'll sell the rest.
However, another cousin of mine has offered to pick up the tab - quite a generous gesture considering that she has been demonized no less by my siblings. I have never had anything against her. In fact, if anything, I owe the world to them for supporting me here since I arrived back in 2007. They can say what they will about my cousin, but I rest my case here. She is a Godsend to me - nothing less than that.
Another cousin of mine asked to paint a piece for a blank space in their house - something I am only too willing to oblige, while another relative called to say that her mom and dad (my uncle and aunt) are interested in buying a piece for their new living room. I should have done this eons ago, but it is better late than never, and the benefits are just beginning to show.
The prospect of having a book with all my pen & ink, watercolor, and acrylic works is exciting. Many of the works are already sold, and I'm guessing that whoever bought them would only be too glad to see my work published because that means their works also get added value.
The time has come, and I believe this is my time.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Excitement
I met my web designer today and got a glimpse of what she has done so far for my site. So far, I like what I see and if the momentum is kept going and she gets all the images, and text or copy of all my work, I think we'll be set for launch in about 1-2 weeks.
Not a bad turnaround time if you consider we just started this about a week and a half ago. I never realized I had so much Artwork - something you only get to acknowledge once you get a folder full of all your pen and ink, watercolor, and acrylic pieces and you are contemplating which ones to put in the site and which ones should not, or should be placed at another time.
It is exciting to see the progress and the test balloons garner all the positive results in facebook alone. If it can generate 2 sales in 2 weeks time, and that is just facebook alone, think of what it can do once I pour the entire social media avalanche on the site itself. The prospects are good, the large 7X5 is coming along, and the XAG was established to help promote my art along with helping the site in the search engines by trading links.
The potential is great, and I can't be happier.
Not a bad turnaround time if you consider we just started this about a week and a half ago. I never realized I had so much Artwork - something you only get to acknowledge once you get a folder full of all your pen and ink, watercolor, and acrylic pieces and you are contemplating which ones to put in the site and which ones should not, or should be placed at another time.
It is exciting to see the progress and the test balloons garner all the positive results in facebook alone. If it can generate 2 sales in 2 weeks time, and that is just facebook alone, think of what it can do once I pour the entire social media avalanche on the site itself. The prospects are good, the large 7X5 is coming along, and the XAG was established to help promote my art along with helping the site in the search engines by trading links.
The potential is great, and I can't be happier.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
The Beat Goes On
Waking up knowing you have nothing to do that day except for painting is one of the most satisfying feelings one can ever have. Except, when you have chores, meetings, and places to go, you are sidetracked and you end up less productive.
I'm a third done with the pencil drawing of my 7X5 acrylic piece - pretty encouraging when you consider I have until April 29th to finish this all. However, there are 4-5 more pieces I need to finish under the same style and even if it already done 'in my mind', it is kind of daunting.
The artwork I sent abroad has reached US shores and I am glad. I could really use the finances right now, plus it meant a lot to the one receiving it. It is a mere 10K in price, but it's also 10K i didn't have, so everyone and everything is welcome right now. The more people buy my art, the more money comes in, the more I get to prove I can survive without my sibling's help.
I gotta take a break from all the mundane and insanity-inducing drawing so I will be out for a couple of hours - to drop off some cigarettes at a friend's house, and to take even more pictures of works I had already sold to other people.
That's it for the day. Later.
www.theruddude.com
I'm a third done with the pencil drawing of my 7X5 acrylic piece - pretty encouraging when you consider I have until April 29th to finish this all. However, there are 4-5 more pieces I need to finish under the same style and even if it already done 'in my mind', it is kind of daunting.
The artwork I sent abroad has reached US shores and I am glad. I could really use the finances right now, plus it meant a lot to the one receiving it. It is a mere 10K in price, but it's also 10K i didn't have, so everyone and everything is welcome right now. The more people buy my art, the more money comes in, the more I get to prove I can survive without my sibling's help.
I gotta take a break from all the mundane and insanity-inducing drawing so I will be out for a couple of hours - to drop off some cigarettes at a friend's house, and to take even more pictures of works I had already sold to other people.
That's it for the day. Later.
www.theruddude.com
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Art attack
Not much of activity planned for the day. Just delivering Art to a niece leaving tonight for the states, and even more painting at home. How simple is that? Sounds fantastically simple, but many things could go wrong in any given day and change everyday. Anyway, that's 2 pieces I've managed to sell in a span of less than a week. Great, except that those may be the only 2 pieces I sell the entire month. Still good if you consider that it's more than a month's worth of pay from the previous regime.
I need to buy more fixative, to preserve a lot of the art drawings that are painted in water color. Something you wouldn't have a problem with acrylic, or pen and ink. But such is my lot. Things get used up and run out. But I should be thankful for a simple day, and end it right there.
Whew!
I need to buy more fixative, to preserve a lot of the art drawings that are painted in water color. Something you wouldn't have a problem with acrylic, or pen and ink. But such is my lot. Things get used up and run out. But I should be thankful for a simple day, and end it right there.
Whew!
Monday, January 24, 2011
Full Speed Ahead
Ok. Now that Art Guild is up and growing, I managed to sell another pen & ink piece today to a very unlikely source: an ex-girlfriend. It may seem odd, and downright weird for many, but it's another piece I can dispose of in my inventory. What surprises me is that most people hated that piece, especially my wife, who thinks its akin to a high school work project.
The truth is, it was a piece I did in Sacramento, with a lazy day that time. My acrylics have barely moved since my last show with Simoun. In fact, none of them have been sold. So, I'm tossing the style out for April's show. It will be all old-Rudy. Or maybe old-Rudy with a "new" twist.
Still trying to find a model who can pose partially nude for me. I just want the shadows or silhouette, which I will fill in with the usual detail, and I think the results will be innovative - a nude painting from afar, but a picture of small houses, people, and vegetation when viewed closer. I also plan to make the Philippine-Spanish style an overriding theme since all my pieces of that mode are sold out. Makes sense, I think.
It's off to painting I go.
The truth is, it was a piece I did in Sacramento, with a lazy day that time. My acrylics have barely moved since my last show with Simoun. In fact, none of them have been sold. So, I'm tossing the style out for April's show. It will be all old-Rudy. Or maybe old-Rudy with a "new" twist.
Still trying to find a model who can pose partially nude for me. I just want the shadows or silhouette, which I will fill in with the usual detail, and I think the results will be innovative - a nude painting from afar, but a picture of small houses, people, and vegetation when viewed closer. I also plan to make the Philippine-Spanish style an overriding theme since all my pieces of that mode are sold out. Makes sense, I think.
It's off to painting I go.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Stoked
Did you ever wake up and get this feeing that the day is going to go your way?
This day must be it. I got reconnected to an old college friend, sold a painting, and have the satisfaction seeing the Art Guild I helped establish quickly get traction and snowball in members. It wasn't always this way, but the social media has helped me in more ways than when it all started back in 1999.
Granted, watercolor is always going to be like a favorite child to me because I'm so used to the medium so well. But acrylic is the way to go if you like your pieces to gain value. And it has started. Once I clear the hurdle of finishing this 7'X5' monstrosity with all the tedious pen & ink work, it will be the largest piece I will ever get to accomplish, and may be my last one in that size. I won't sell it, but, use it instead, as a showcase to many others who'd like a painting drawn in that style.
That style is none other than the tedious pen and ink detailed work people have begun to expect from me. It'll take time to finish, but the satisfaction from having it and making it your show head turner is such a exciting prospect that it is making me contemplate drawing even harder and longer. This is a moment in time that is far far different than where it was 10 years ago.
The internet is changing the market place in ways I thought was unthinkable just a few years ago. What is most enticing is the thought that I can stay home, paint with my creature comforts around me, and sell prints or originals to places far far away.
Once again, I need to cut this short as I need to paint.
This day must be it. I got reconnected to an old college friend, sold a painting, and have the satisfaction seeing the Art Guild I helped establish quickly get traction and snowball in members. It wasn't always this way, but the social media has helped me in more ways than when it all started back in 1999.
Granted, watercolor is always going to be like a favorite child to me because I'm so used to the medium so well. But acrylic is the way to go if you like your pieces to gain value. And it has started. Once I clear the hurdle of finishing this 7'X5' monstrosity with all the tedious pen & ink work, it will be the largest piece I will ever get to accomplish, and may be my last one in that size. I won't sell it, but, use it instead, as a showcase to many others who'd like a painting drawn in that style.
That style is none other than the tedious pen and ink detailed work people have begun to expect from me. It'll take time to finish, but the satisfaction from having it and making it your show head turner is such a exciting prospect that it is making me contemplate drawing even harder and longer. This is a moment in time that is far far different than where it was 10 years ago.
The internet is changing the market place in ways I thought was unthinkable just a few years ago. What is most enticing is the thought that I can stay home, paint with my creature comforts around me, and sell prints or originals to places far far away.
Once again, I need to cut this short as I need to paint.
Friday, January 21, 2011
More Ranting
Today finds me in a loquacious mood. It's a Saturday, a bit sunny, and generally cool weather. Work is still ongoing for the giant 7'X5' piece and it is (as I have said) tediously slow, though the rewards will very satisfying.
Working with Acrylic and Pen & ink is one of the most daunting challenges an artist faces. First, the surface is unlike that of watercolor paper - there is more resistance to the pen, and the paint itself is hard to blend with other colors. My watercolors tend to go from one color and fades into another one smoothly. You can't do that with Acrylics.
I recall the gargantuan piece I did for my wife years and years ago, and that was pretty easy because there was pretty much no theme. You could pretty much draw whatever you like. This current one now is all- Filipino, with colonial Spanish-style houses, horse drawn carriages and cobblestone roads. The challenge is to stick with the theme and architecture - A task fraught with pitfalls and potential mistakes.
More later. I have to paint.
Working with Acrylic and Pen & ink is one of the most daunting challenges an artist faces. First, the surface is unlike that of watercolor paper - there is more resistance to the pen, and the paint itself is hard to blend with other colors. My watercolors tend to go from one color and fades into another one smoothly. You can't do that with Acrylics.
I recall the gargantuan piece I did for my wife years and years ago, and that was pretty easy because there was pretty much no theme. You could pretty much draw whatever you like. This current one now is all- Filipino, with colonial Spanish-style houses, horse drawn carriages and cobblestone roads. The challenge is to stick with the theme and architecture - A task fraught with pitfalls and potential mistakes.
More later. I have to paint.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Ultimatum
Six acrylic pen and ink pieces in 3 months. You would think that is chicken feed if you churn out 1 piece a day, but that is not so, little grasshopper!
First, is a monstrous 7' X 5' piece which I have started and and is painted with my 'trademark' small and detailed style which, truth be told, takes about a week to complete 6" - so I have a lot of work ahead of me. It's also styled in the old Philippine-Spanish style houses (think Vigan, old Ilo-ilo) that is tedious and eye-straining. But that is also my strength.
The show is even more exciting considering I have four more pieces of smaller size to do to support the large piece. The Xavier Alumni Arts Guild is my birth child, so if this group gains fame, and receives funding, it would be a coup. We have even bigger plans for the guild, but we first learn how to walk before we run, so it's: 1)get the space in the Xavier website; 2)get the exhibit going; and 3)funding.
Sounds simple? On paper it is. But the logistics and the work needed is nightmarish. However, I have promised to be the driving force behind this endeavor, so it is my energy, along with the support of Seb, Bob and the others who will help get this thing attain wings and take flight.
More on the show later. I gotta go paint.
First, is a monstrous 7' X 5' piece which I have started and and is painted with my 'trademark' small and detailed style which, truth be told, takes about a week to complete 6" - so I have a lot of work ahead of me. It's also styled in the old Philippine-Spanish style houses (think Vigan, old Ilo-ilo) that is tedious and eye-straining. But that is also my strength.
The show is even more exciting considering I have four more pieces of smaller size to do to support the large piece. The Xavier Alumni Arts Guild is my birth child, so if this group gains fame, and receives funding, it would be a coup. We have even bigger plans for the guild, but we first learn how to walk before we run, so it's: 1)get the space in the Xavier website; 2)get the exhibit going; and 3)funding.
Sounds simple? On paper it is. But the logistics and the work needed is nightmarish. However, I have promised to be the driving force behind this endeavor, so it is my energy, along with the support of Seb, Bob and the others who will help get this thing attain wings and take flight.
More on the show later. I gotta go paint.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
A Short One
Given the chores in front of me today, I need to keep this entry short. 24 hours in day are not enough sometimes for me. Many people actually have that problem, but it's better to wear out than rust, so I suppose it's a good thing.
Preparations for my Art exhibit marches on. I still can't believe I actually managed to create an alumni art guild! Remarkable since I have never really created anything worthwhile in the 40+ years of my life. We have 11 members, but there's bound to be more, because there are many of us Artists just lurking around, afraid to come out until they find a common bond. For many of us, this is a welcome event.
We are Acrylic painters, watercolor, pen & ink, sculptors, even musicians. This is big. It'll help erase the notion that my alma mater produces only businessmen, and professionals. Art is going to be big, and it'll go a long way proving that the school is capable of producing talented and creative artists.
That's why this rant in short, or so I think.
Preparations for my Art exhibit marches on. I still can't believe I actually managed to create an alumni art guild! Remarkable since I have never really created anything worthwhile in the 40+ years of my life. We have 11 members, but there's bound to be more, because there are many of us Artists just lurking around, afraid to come out until they find a common bond. For many of us, this is a welcome event.
We are Acrylic painters, watercolor, pen & ink, sculptors, even musicians. This is big. It'll help erase the notion that my alma mater produces only businessmen, and professionals. Art is going to be big, and it'll go a long way proving that the school is capable of producing talented and creative artists.
That's why this rant in short, or so I think.
Birth Pains
OK. So this is the umpteenth time I've tried to start a blog. Blogging is actually therapy for me, because it relieves me of all the ills I've had over the day or so, and saying (or writing it) is just another form of channeling anger or joy into an outlet. It's like Valium in a way, without the body actually getting the drug.
The reason for all this is, of course, is the upcoming launch of my art website: theruddude.com. Notice that the "e" in rude is missing. Yeah, I missed out on securing what was once my domain name back in the days when yahoo had Geocities, and I could show my art for free.
Now, I've decided to go full throttle on this: I've hired Annah, a sweet, innocent looking, but smart programmer from one of the big name universities here, and I'm planning to hire a friend of hers to do some writing. Her friend's cute, writes well, and is conveniently graduating this coming March without a real plan to do anything as a career n the short term. I figure I can mold her into savvy web writer, which will help her career-wise, allow her to earn some bucks, and of course, help my site.
I'm going to blog about my art. And I plan to blog often. Boring is the last thing I want it to be, so if talking about Art snoozes people, I figure I better find another way to make people want to read this and read often.
After all, I'm down to the edge of the cliff, if you ask me - ever since one of my siblings closed our business (he really didn't), I've decided to run to my strengths: writing and painting. I formed my alma mater's first Alumni Art Guild, planned for a show in late April, and will religiously drawing from here on out. I hope his cutting of ties is a blessing in disguise, although I will be quick to say that he has treated out relationship like a business. It's not a complaint, just an observation. I will treat him the same way.
I have decided to stick to my style of painting, you know - detailed, something that would fill up a page, and is something very few people can do. Acrylics on their own is a challenge, and quite frankly, very uninspiring for me. The trick is to combine the pen and ink with acrylics. Now, that's dynamite.
My achilles heel here, of course, is the money needed to sustain me, which I hope to accomplish without asking for financial help form the same friends who have helped me immensely. It'll be tough, but if a cash advance is what it takes, so be it.
Let the painting (and writing) commence!
The reason for all this is, of course, is the upcoming launch of my art website: theruddude.com. Notice that the "e" in rude is missing. Yeah, I missed out on securing what was once my domain name back in the days when yahoo had Geocities, and I could show my art for free.
Now, I've decided to go full throttle on this: I've hired Annah, a sweet, innocent looking, but smart programmer from one of the big name universities here, and I'm planning to hire a friend of hers to do some writing. Her friend's cute, writes well, and is conveniently graduating this coming March without a real plan to do anything as a career n the short term. I figure I can mold her into savvy web writer, which will help her career-wise, allow her to earn some bucks, and of course, help my site.
I'm going to blog about my art. And I plan to blog often. Boring is the last thing I want it to be, so if talking about Art snoozes people, I figure I better find another way to make people want to read this and read often.
After all, I'm down to the edge of the cliff, if you ask me - ever since one of my siblings closed our business (he really didn't), I've decided to run to my strengths: writing and painting. I formed my alma mater's first Alumni Art Guild, planned for a show in late April, and will religiously drawing from here on out. I hope his cutting of ties is a blessing in disguise, although I will be quick to say that he has treated out relationship like a business. It's not a complaint, just an observation. I will treat him the same way.
I have decided to stick to my style of painting, you know - detailed, something that would fill up a page, and is something very few people can do. Acrylics on their own is a challenge, and quite frankly, very uninspiring for me. The trick is to combine the pen and ink with acrylics. Now, that's dynamite.
My achilles heel here, of course, is the money needed to sustain me, which I hope to accomplish without asking for financial help form the same friends who have helped me immensely. It'll be tough, but if a cash advance is what it takes, so be it.
Let the painting (and writing) commence!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)