so i meant to promote myself better to you all who happened to read the blog and live in the LA area. like hey come on out and uh see my stuff. [not obligated to buy just praise and adore.] but i didn't. it was this last weekend. i don't know why i'm so hesitant to be taken seriously but it all seems so laughable. even the idea of making a "store banner" made me snicker and go- well that seems way too legitimate. and there's no way i'm going to be let alone look professional. fuck that. is it like an artist hang up or what? in my defense i do have business cards and a website. that smacks of wanting uh, attention or something right? it's progress.though looking at these photos i do realize my presentation was somewhat haphazard and chaotic. frankly i had no plans for so much space... and i think even if i owned a store it would look pretty eclectic, busy and possibly overwhelming so it was accurate if not the best. i'll work on it okay. i just hate static presentations and i like the idea of exploration- probably not the best "sales" attitude to have. (the jerk kitty/corner to me got an "honorable mention" for his store- which involved everything framed, hanging neatly on racks. gag. surfer art.] the guy directly across the way came over and gave me a grandpa peptalk- which i appreciated as my one living one is a complete tool and the other is dead- so when he said your stuff is unusual and good and you have to get up there and talk to people about it and be available- i knew it was true and i've said as much to myself before but still i remain resistent at compelling people to "consume" my stuff if they don't get "it" just so i can walk away with more cash~ which is clearly why i shouldn't be selling my own stuff. but in general the response is the same- i know what's "good", the most marketable, the most eye-catching- what draws people in and i won't charge less for it. i know you wanted to know that. i'm such a tool.
anyway, i invited like 45 people and 5 people came- and i term them my real friends or at least well wishers or interested parties. and i appreciate you guys so much!! thank you! it makes me possibly reluctant to include other people in my email lists of the future... bcs i find disinterest possibly more damaging than critiques... and it's just embarrassing. i like airing my dirty laundry to people i don't know- who cares if they hate or don't like my art but you? i can't take it. and don't pity purchase something. you don't have to buy what i'm selling. just sit with me and take up the dead space of people wandering by... have a water and some snacks... and tell me stories that keep me from obsessively wondering why not everyone has a developed palette enough to handle abstract art.
so all in all i had a good time. it was a glorious bluesky warm weekend. i broke even. someone bought one of my neglected oil paintings- for cheap and i'm glad it walked away loved, even at a bargain... a few friends came by and made me smile and in my future attempts to make myself noticed in the silly art world.... communities of communities- i will in future take heart and not be so jaded bywhat could be possibly termed: life.
7 comments:
Bravo to you, Mendacious, for being brave! With writing, there's not so much of an audience while your art is being considered - or if there is, it's less personal because you're up front reading to a group of people. I can't even hardly stand to watch people read a card I've written.
It takes courage to stand beside what you've done, that has a little piece of you in it, and let people be indifferent to it. Or ingenuine.
I'd have come by if I hadn't been at Mountain Day on the other side of the country. Again, hooray for your artistry. And guts.
Grandpa is right.
I like this set-up, much nicer than last year's.
Could you feel it when people were judging you?
And I'm sure some of us that were unable to attend had arguably valid reasons. Perhaps even a nasty automobile accident in which one's car was completely totaled, thus leaving them without suitable transport. :)
I had planned to write about the experience when I resumed blogging next week, but oh well, I guess I'll now have to feel that space with an essay on the burp.
i'm sorry i missed your art fair again! but on my behalf, i was not in town at the time...again!
You rock. And I love that display, I don't care what you say.
thanks guys.
xo.m.
(except you johann. the only way to redeem yourself is to blog again, but only if you want to- you're like that cheerleader chick on heros who refuses to help humanity.)
You have a more tactile setup than most of the artwork. People have to come and flip through and browse. Not bad, just different. And it looked fabulous.
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