A new year, and new resolutions…

…to break, or not to break.

I just wanted to let you know I am doing a little housekeeping around here. I have changed this site to more of a gallery website, as opposed to a blog where I would (in theory) post regularly, insightful and engaging content (huzzah!) because let’s face it. talking about painting is about as interesting as…um…watching paint dry.

Not that I won’t be posting at all, just that I will only write a post when I actually have something to say. (And isn’t that refreshing?) I am also splitting off my children’s book illustration work to a new website/blog, that does not yet exist. I am starting to work on some new projects post Pandamorphosis and I think it will be less confusing to various interest groups (Not to mention me) if they have their own corners of the room, so to speak.

As soon as I get the new site set up and decorated, the illustration page will disappear from here, and move over there. Trust me, I’ll let you know when that happens.  Most of the time you can find me playing with the panda kindergarten, (because…um…pandas!)

At this time, I’m not prepared to set up any sort of commerce or sales site here, but if you are interested in acquiring any of my work, I urge you to visit The Rob Schouten Gallery, where, Rob, Victory or Patricia will be more than happy to assist you in bringing art into your life and home. You can find them here.

Till next time….

Other Rooms; Oil on Linen/ (c) Anne Belov

On Ethics and Elephants

Elephant in the Room? What? Where? Oh, that Elephant

In the interest of full disclosure, I must point out that I never thought about marketing in terms of the ethics involved. When I think about marketing my books to an unsuspecting public, the thing that leaps to the front of my mind is the “ick factor.”

Writing and cartooning are recent additions to my creative work. I’ve been painting more years than I care to remember, and it’s been my “day job” for the last 25 years. Almost seven years ago, pandas knocked on the door, demanded entry, put their feet up on the coffee table, and insisted that I write stories, draw cartoons, and perpetrate blasphemous adaptations of Sargent and Whistler paintings, all starring pandas.

They were really most insistent.

Arrangement in Black, White, and Gray //Anne Belov //all rights reserved

Selling paintings is mostly, although not entirely, different than selling books.  I’d have to sell  hundreds, if not thousands of books to equal the sale of one decent painting. And so marketing raises it’s (often) not so lovely head.

A recent post by Jane Steen got me thinking about the ethics of self publishing in general and about marketing my work in particular. I am, to say the very least, a reluctant marketer. By following a number of blogs about both the art and the business side of writing, it led me to realize that I was going to have to make peace with marketing, like it or not.

My cartoons appeared on my blog, The Panda Chronicles for almost four years before I published The Panda Chronicles Book 1: Your Brain on Pandas. My method for getting the word out was intuitive and organic. When I started my blog, I finally dove in to Facebook, and sought out panda fans, to see if they thought my panda-centric humor was funny, or whether they would chase me through town with pitchforks and burning torches, tar and feathers at the ready. (They liked them! Huzzah!)

I shared my cartoons freely and my fan base grew. I got an unanticipated bonus by reaching out to people on an individual basis because fans became connections and some friendships (real ones) have grown as a result of this, with meetings and gatherings of panda fans in real life.

The panda Faithful at San Diego Zoo in 2013

To be honest, this is a rather time consuming way of selling books. But I am a glutton for connections, maybe because I spend so much of my day holed up in my studio painting and drawing. When I look at the alternatives: auto tweets, constant buy my book/services links, guest posts which are barely disguised infomercials, I realize that the ick-factor detector is a pretty good ethical guide.

I think we must continually ask ourselves how we respond to marketing appeals by others as we try to figure out how to sell our work. Everyone has different threshold levels of what is offensive or annoying, but if it offends me, why would I do it? I’m still trying to figure it all out, and if I listen to my gut and avoid doing things that make me uncomfortable in the marketing of others, I think I am on the right track.

The sands that publishing is built on are shifting. As more people publish their work independently, we have to figure out how to be ethical, not only in the actual writing, but in how we tell the world about it. We are all on our own, trying to figure out just how we going to continue paying the mortgage, but we are also in it together.

My practice of making connections has served me well, in personal satisfaction and real bridges built, if not yet in monetary terms.  My followers number in the hundreds, rather than the tens of thousands, but they are real names, some even come with faces attached. I have decided to trust that what feels like the right path both artistically and ethically.

What do you think?

hey! Buy my book!

You can see more pandas (for free!) at The Panda Chronicles. You can also…um…find out where to buy my books there.

Wait, is it summer already?

Every year I think, this summer I’ll take a little time off, I won’t plan a whole bunch of work related stuff, like art shows or Kickstarter campaigns that mean I’ll be working, working, working during the most beautiful time of the year on Whidbey Island.

Ha!

I’m busy getting ready for a exhibition of my paintings at The Rob Schouten Gallery, and feverishly gearing up for this year’s Froggwell Biennale extravaganza.

I’m very pleased to say, that I just sent the last package of rewards for my Kickstarter campaign, to fund publication of Pandamorphosis. Wow!

Pandamorphosis, my (first) wordless picture book!

Thanks to the excellent work of my editorial and production team, Beth Bacon and Kate Burkett, we finished work in record time, and produced a book I’m really proud of.  We are still working on ebook versions, which we hope to have done later this year.

Meanwhile, I’m a little…um…behind on my painting projects, so as we roll into July, (with 84 degrees and blue sunny skies today!!!) I am still tethered to my easel.  Is it worth it?

“Radiance” // Oil on Linen on shaped panel// Anne Belov (c) 2014

Yeah, I think so too.

There’s more happening over on The Panda Chronicles! Inspector Panda returns to his new adventure tomorrow with another installment (there will be an art history quiz, so get ready!)

See you soon.

Can You Stand One More Post About Kickstarter?

I am in the countdown for the last hour of my Kickstarter project to fund Pandamorphosis, my wordless picture book, which I have been working on for about four years.

Pandas are yearning to spring forth!

Being tuned in to all things “Kickstarter” I’m always interested in reading news stories about it.  In the last two days I saw a story about how film-maker Spike Lee used Kickstarter to fund a film project, and I just read the “from the editor” column in Smithsonian Magazine, about how a recent article that required travel to foreign lands, was funded with Kickstarter. Still another article came up about a publishing company that was going to use crowd-funding to fund and assess appeal for a book.

One of the questions that I see pop up is “Is it fair for people who are already famous to use something like Kickstarter to fund their project?”

My answer, after a little consideration, is a resounding yes.  The truth is that even people that we perceive to have “made it” already, still need to keep working, and the gatekeepers, whether they be publishers, movie studios, music companies, or art galleries are growing increasingly squirrelly over making a financial investment/ commitment in “the talent.”

Pandamorphosis: at 245%  with 30 minutes to go. Go team.

I think that the fact that scholars, well known film-makers, and musicians are using crowd-funding gives the process visibility and credibility that it didn’t have at its inception. It gives small fish like me the opportunity to raise money for a small-ish project.  Yes, there have been artist project grants available from various sources for more than 30 years, but for those, you have a large number of artists competing for a small number of grants, that are decided by just a few people. Crowd-funding changes the dynamic and allows artists and creatives of all varieties the chance to take their project before the people who may be interested. I think it is a wonderful thing to come into being.

Well, my project has just about 30 minutes left to run. It’s been a wonderful experience, and I’ve gathered more than twice as much funding as I originally asked for.  Most of the money will go for project expenses and reward fulfillment, but there will be a small amount “leftover” to fund more projects that come out of my studio.

Thank you to all who have participated and supported me.  And if you’ve never contributed to a crowd-funding project, I urge you to get out there and find a project you love. Sign up as a backer, even if it’s just for a dollar. You might just have some fun, while doing something good.

More Lessons From the Land of Kickstarter

Well, if you haven’t heard already, I am just over 48 hours into my third Kickstarter project. I’m ready to publish my Pandum-Opus, Pandamorphosis at long last.  This is a project I’ve been working on, off and on, for over four years, several of those years quite intensely.  At last I think it’s ready, and apparently other people do too.

I decided to take a gamble this time, after listening to webinars, reading articles, and masterminding several other projects for some of the other Whidbey Island creatives, and only run my campaign for 16 days. (Cutting out the deadly second/third week lull.)

Pandas are yearning to spring forth!

Here’s some of what I learned from all these experiences, especially regarding the “crowd” from whom you are trying to get funding:

1. Be prepared. And by that I mean, don’t just start trying to make new friends in the week before your project launches.  (This probably doesn’t apply if you have designed a seriously cool gizmo that everyone is going to want or are an experienced game designer. Your audience will find you and throw large bags of money in your path.)

2. Thank everyone…the same day that they pledged, if you are awake in your time zone. No matter how tiny their pledge is.  Someone who doesn’t know you personally, and pledges just $1, is saying that your project is so cool, that they just wanted their name attached to it.  And if you do know them and they pledge that same $1, maybe that came out of their grocery money for the week. A pledge is a pledge. Say thank you.

3. Let your friends and supporters know about it, without running them down with your cart in the supermarket. (OK, sorry, Diane…it was a blind corner, hope your foot is okay.)  Ask your good friends for their opinion on your project before it launches.

4. Blog and tweet about it without being a jerk.  Give them something fun, informative or entertaining in the post as well.

5. While I think it’s fair to contact other project creators if you have supported their past projects, to ask for a shout out, you should only do that if you had some back and forth conversations with them and they have some chance of remembering who you are, OR some affinity for the type of project you are doing.  Don’t expect it though.  And don’t be this person who sent me a message through the Kickstarter message system:
“Because you have been funded, I was wondering if you could help me fund my project on kickstarter. By sending the url to your funders.”

( I removed any identifying information about their project.  really, I should report him to Kickstarter for spamming me and probably other successful projects, but he has enough trouble already.  His project description was  full of typos and grammatical errors.)

6. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again.  If your video is just you talking, no matter how cool your idea is, the video should be 2 minutes max,  unless you’re George Clooney.

Pandamorphosis: at 116% in less than 48 hours. Go team.

Ordinary Illuminated and Tim’s Vermeer

I’m in a show that starts this Saturday in Seattle, called Ordinary Illuminated.  When June Sekaguchi, the curator suggested the theme, I was just about beside myself.  Painter of Stuff is how I sometimes refer to myself.  I love taking something ho hum, like blue painters tape, and putting it in a really realistic still life with a bunch of other blue objects. It’s the play between objects, their shapes, their colors, the way light falls on them that makes them fascinating to me, not just what they are.

40 Shades of Blue// Oil on Panel//Anne Belov //all rights reserved

So, when I was listening to the radio the other day, I heard an interview on Studio 360, about how Tim Jenison re-created Vermeer‘s painting, The Music Room.  Now, he didn’t do what most painters do, which would be to get as good a reproduction as they can find, and then to copy the drawing via a grid and then while looking at the reproduction, figure out as best they could as to just how Vermeer did it.

Oh, no.

He built a whole frigging room with the light coming in from the same direction, ground his own paint, ground the optical lenses that he used to look at the scene he re-created, and went about it very scientifically.  Then he made a movie about it. Or someone else did, and it opens later this month. I plan to see it, even though I have very mixed feelings about the whole project.

It’s not that I have any qualms about doing master copies.  I’ve done quite a few of them, including a couple of Vermeers.  John Singer Sargent is my particular specialty. I learn a lot about putting paint on a canvas every time I do one.  In the interview with Mr. Jenison, he complains about how hard it was, how long it took him to paint the patterned turkish carpet.

Well, Duh.  It is hard to paint stuff so that it looks real, really real, or mostly real. It took me over 40 years to get good at it. I feel your pain. (sort of.)

Arrangement in Black, White, and Gray //Anne Belov //all rights reserved Okay, so this is SLIGHTLY different than the original…

On the whole, I’m looking forward to the movie, no matter how mixed my feelings are about it. I think that anything that gives non-painters an appreciation for how hard painting really is, is a very good thing.  If the movie becomes popular, there is always the possibility that there will be a new wave of appreciation for realism in fine art circles again. I’m all for that!

In the meantime, I hope you’ll check out my show if you’re in Seattle, or go to the Metropolitan Museum if you’re in New York. They have five Vermeers. Yeehaw! The National Gallery in Washington DC has four.

Anne Belov and Jennifer Frohwerk at the Ida Culver House Ravenna

date and location…

More Studying from the Masters!

I’ve talked before about how much I learn from painters that I admire, both from the past and in the present.  I would gladly give up everything I owned if I had painted every one of John Singer Sargent’s paintings, or perhaps Mary Cassatt’s as well.

Last year I spent some time learning the ancient medium of egg tempera from Fred Wessel, who is an out and out master of the medium, and a nice guy to boot. I recently finished this egg tempera painting back home in my studio, and I gotta say, that I almost wrenched my shoulder patting myself on the back.  I’m pretty sure it’s good, because yesterday evening some friends came by and one of them made a beeline for the painting and was almost speechless with admiration.  I love that.

Botticelli’s Daughter //Egg tempera on panel //Anne Belov // all rights reserved

But for me, there is more than one genre of masters from whom I study, and that is, of course, the greats of cartooning.  Many of you who know me, know that recently I started drawing and writing cartoons in a serious way.  Well, the cartoons aren’t serious, (what fun is that?) but I am quite serious and committed to series, The Panda Chronicles, appearing both on my blog, as well as now two books in print.  I’ve written before about some of my cartooning idols: Garry Trudeau, Lynda Barry, Bill Watterson, and Darby Conley.  I recently discovered another cartoonist, whose books I am devouring like red velvet cuppycakes.  I quit reading the newspaper more than a decade ago (oh, their decline is all my fault!) so I wasn’t aware of Pearls Before Swine, other than to occasionally notice it when I picked up a random paper.  I really didn’t get it, and in fact, thought it was pretty badly drawn.  Like many cartoons with recurring characters, you have to read a number of strips till you get with the program and fall in love with the characters. Stephan Pastis, the creator of Pearls, recently wrote an illustrated middle grade novel called Timmy Failure, about a rather incompetent boy detective and his polar bear assistant. It has  a bear?  Well, I just had to read it and it was hilarious, and so then I had to read all of his cartoon collections. OK, I’m still not in love with his drawings, but they are perfect for his irreverent, snarky humor, which I am completely in love with.  Huzzah! Studying from the masters is so much fun!

Well, off to do some more “studying”

A riff inspired by one of the greatest.

The Power of Yes…..

Recently, I have made the acquaintance, at least a “virtual” acquaintance, of a number of   talented writers. Through a series of thises, thats, and the others, I was involved in the launch of Dana Sitar’s new book, The Writer’s Bucket List.

One of the thing that struck me during this process was the willingness among all the people  involved in the launch to endorse Dana and help to promote her work, making launch week a big success.  Huzzah! Besides the warm fuzzy feeling that comes from helping a talented, hardworking writer get a project off to a good start, I’ve gained someone who I can occasionally call on to be a sounding board and am now part of a community of writers that are a valuable resource for my fledgling writing career.

As From Above //Oil on panel // Anne Belov // all rights reserved

So now that I’m in endorsement mode, I’d like to endorse the Kickstarter project of some friends of mine, who are also members of the community of artists who have gravitated to Whidbey Island.  Robbie Lobell and Maryon Attwood formed their company Cook on Clay about two years ago, although their combined careers in art and clay total more than 50 years.  This project is in order to help fund an new kiln, which they desperately need in order to make their business sustainable. Their cookware is beautiful as well as functional, and I’m pretty sure that I will be a MUCH better cook when I use it.  Check them out here.

Because I said yes to helping Dana with her book launch, and yes to supporting Maryon and Robbie’s project, my life feels richer. A lot of people said yes to supporting my Kickstarter projects and many unexpected riches have come my way:  validation for my work, a new community of people who love panda satire and bought my book, new eyes for my paintings and printmaking, and yes, even a bit of actual money, (though not so much that I am fiscally rich or even solvent at the moment, but that is not the point here.)

It’s true that sometimes we have to say no, to avoid being sucked down into life’s undertow, but think about saying yes to some things that bring you pleasure. I think you’ll be glad you did.

Upcoming Events

Thanks to all who have checked in lately. Here are some upcoming events taking place in the next few months.

I was recently invited to be in an exhibition in Seattle, Still Life 21, which will be held at the Ida Culver House in North Seattle. Here’s the info:

Opening Thursday, March 14th, 4:30 – 6:30 p.m. A group show at Ida Culver House Broadview 

Modern day still life depicting the new detritus of life revealing the context of objects in our culture. New views, deconstructed perspectives, and alternative approaches to materials will be considered. The show continues through July 7, 2013

40 Shades of Blue// Oil on Panel//Anne Belov //all rights reserved

This is one of the five paintings that I will be exhibiting.

In April, I will teach a three day workshop at The Whibey Fine Art Studio in Langley, in the practice of egg tempera painting.  For more information on the class, or to sign up, check the WFAS website.

Limone #2 //Egg tempera and oil on linen //Anne Belov // all rights reserved

Hope to see you at one of these events.

Playing well with others….

Those who know me well, know that I am not a big fan of belonging to co-op galleries, or anything that involves going to meetings..  You could say that I’m not really a team player, and no wonder…I was always the last to be picked during any mandatory sports torture while at school, so I come by my reputation as a lone operator honestly. (Well, also the reputation as a cranky curmudgeonette, but the pandas are helping with that.)

So fast forward…um…a whole bunch of years to today, where we find our heroine agreeing to be part of a group effort to help launch a young writer’s new book on writing. Why am I doing this?  Through a process of this, that, and the other, I answered a call to take part in some mutual guest blogging here and there, and Dana Sitar was one of the people that invited me to play on her blog.  Of course I brought the panda kindergarten along.  I, in turn, invited her to come and write something for the Panda Chronicles blog, my celebration of all things panda.  

A panda point of view on the idea of bucket lists.

Some funny things have been happening in the last few years, and one of them is that I’ve been doing a lot of writing.  What once was torture is now fun. Could a group activity, like helping someone with the launch of their new book be fun? Well yes, it certainly could be.  Dana Sitar’s new book, A Writer’s Bucket List: 99 things to do for inspiration, education, and experience before your writing kicks the bucket, is kind of like having your own private creativity coach, sitting on your desk at the ready, to help you embrace your inner writer and jumpstart your creative spirit.  I’m taking part in a blog hop to launch the book.

Here’s what Dana says about her book:

A Writer’s Bucket List is a launching point for all of the possibilities of being a writer. Instead of another how-to on any kind of writing, this book is a“Why not?” for the writer’s life. The list is a combination of the unique steps that have formed the author’s career and bolstered her creativity, and the things she still plans to try. The book offers some conventional and some unconventional steps on the path through a writer’s life, why they matter, and advice for getting started.

 

A Writer’s Bucket List challenges you and strengthens your creativity, encourages you to forge your own path, find your own education, and discover the type of writing life that’s Just Right for you. 99 tasks from the life of a writer help you get started in your unique journey, and step-by-step instructions, tips, and resources guide you through the toughest steps. Inspiration and bits of advice from top writers and bloggers in the industry are thrown in there, too, to fan the flames of your creativity!

Dana is young…young-enough-to-be-my-daughter-young (I should be so lucky) but she has an impressive list of accomplishments already to the credit side of her life ledger.  Perhaps she is continuing from a previous life, so that she is way ahead of where most of us are at her age. No matter how old you are, if you are at the beginning of your creative journey (and quite frankly, this book has valuable lessons to be gained for visual artists as well as writers,) you would not go wrong by buying a copy of Dana’s book and trying some of the exercises. Even some that seem hard to you.  Especially those that seem hard to you.

Her book launch takes place this week. You can pick up a copy here

Dana Sitar is a freelance journalist and indie author. She shares resources, tips, and tools for writers in search of a path through DIY Writing. She has been writing professionally since 2010, blogging unabashedly since 2011, and traveling perpetually since she discovered that one feature article could purchase enough gas for a cross-country road-trip.

Dana has written for Writer’s Market, The Daily Cardinal, The Onion, Baystages, SF Weekly,Laughspin, and Maximum Ink; as well as dozens of writing and career blogs, including The Creative Penn, Make a Living Writing, and Brazen Life.

Anne Belov paints, writes, makes prints, and is the founder of The Institute for Contemporary Panda Satire. You can find her paintings at the Rob Schouten Gallery, her cartoons on The Panda Chronicles, and her new book here. She will be teaching beginning egg tempera at the Whidbey Island Fine Art Studio in April. for more information: contact WIFAS  She also writes regularly for The Whidbey Life Magazine, a free journal of art and culture on Whidbey island.