February 4th 2008

Hi. I have been asked by the lovely and extremely dedicated Open Up Sheffield and South Yorkshire team to write the blog this year. I have never written a blog before, and I have to say, rarely read them. But clearly some people do, and I guess the format is up for grabs.

I am a ceramic artist (mainly) with a studio at Persistence Works in Sheffield. I do lots of other jobs too, mostly in education, and mostly to do with Creative Partnerships. I have a permanent battle on my hands to juggle this work where there is a direct correlation between going out and doing a job and getting paid, and my work in the studio where there is no such correlation. I also have a mostly losing battle in the studio work between making commercial stuff which I can sell more easily, and indulging my artistic meanderings to make what I want, regardless of the client group. I could also do alot more to get my work "out there". Which is partly where Open Studios comes in. Of course, it doesn't get the work out there, but it does give it exposure, and I love the contact with the public. I know not everybody does, but I have found the Sheffield audience pretty receptive to my work, and I love the comments they make about it. I make quite large, sculptural forms which are sensual and evocative without being representational - I love listening to the interpretations people put on them - and it makes me think about the work too. I like the fact that alot of the people coming round are either artists themselves, or have a keen interest in the arts.

Doing Open Studios also concentrates the mind. It is an opportunity to show your work at its best and to network. And its a deadline. I think like many artists, and others, I have a love-hate relationship with deadlines, but I couldn't do without them. They often bring out the best work - but sometimes at considerable cost to my health and well-being. On the other hand there is nothing so satisfying as working all out to get something done and then being able to sit back and appreciate what you have produced with your blood sweat and tears. And it makes you tidy up the tip that the studio has inevitably deteriorated into - in my case anyway.

I have not been in my studio much recently, having had alot of other stuff on. I am beginning to think now about what I'll be making and how to arrange the studio. I do in fact have some ideas for much more commercial work which has come out of some of the sculptural pieces I have done. And, whilst I can't, and don't wish to, wean myself off the large-scale stuff, I will be working on a range of smaller items. I also like, perhaps a bit esoterically, making buttons. My daughter has an idea for little figurative pieces which she wants to make - and it'll be fun having her there to help on the day.

Which brings me to another point - unfortunately due to staff shortages Persistence Works will only be open for one day on the 26th April. This is a real shame, and I just hope that people realise this and make the effort to come round on that day. There is always the possibility of phoning any particualr artist and making an appointment to visit, but that goes for the whole year and is not specific to Open Studios. Its so great when there is a real buzz around the building with visitors and artists.

Well, I went into my studio today and searched again for my lost/misplaced glaze recipe book. this has all the glazes in it that I have been using over the last five or six years, plus alot of names and addresses for my mailing list. I am gutted to have lost it - my only hope is that in fact I brought it home sometime before Christmas and in the holiday melee it has been misplaced. I shall sign off now and go look for it amongst my mountains of paperwork and books. Till next time...Sarah

15) Winding Down

How did Open Up go for everybody? I thoroughly enjoyed visiting a few artists on my days off and generally turn–out seems to have been good. For me, the second Sunday was much quieter than the first and those I visited on the Saturday commented that visitor numbers seemed to be down compared with the Bank Holiday weekend.
I always find it interesting to study the statistics of the event once Sharon has collated the information from the visitor and artist questionnaires. I have to confess that I didn’t push the paper- work as much this year, particularly when my visitors clumped together at the busy times. I also found that selling cards distracted me somewhat and was quite time consuming. Most of my visitors had visited other artists, or planned to before the event was over, with many seasoned campaigners visiting five or more.
Generally, the people who purchased original work tended to be people I already knew, whom I’d personally invited along. The people showing interest in either commissioning a picture or receiving tuition were people who’d been attracted by my entry in the brochure. This year I decided to advertise that I would do a demonstration at 2pm each day but this did not appear to specifically attract people. As I always have an ongoing piece of work on show I think that next year I shall just demonstrate on request.

I first started this diary in early February and it’s hard to imagine that fifteen weeks have passed and that this is the final instalment of my ramblings. There was snow on the ground as I wrote my second instalment and now the trees are in full leaf and summer is just around the corner. It’s been a very hectic period of time for me, one way and another, but I’ve enjoyed trying to do a “blog” and hope that in some small way it has attracted people to Open Up and struck one or two chords here and there.
“Thank you” to my son, Peter, who has been a great help with the posting and particular thanks to those of you who have read it and provided feed-back. I hope that the rest of 2007 will be a fruitful year, whether you are an artist creating work or someone who appreciates it and wants to learn more about the processes involved.

With Best Wishes
Anne

14) On a roll

I only got to visit two artists on the first Saturday of Open Up but visited a few more this Saturday. In each case the work was beautifully displayed and the venue well signed. It’s really helpful seeing how other people go about opening their studios and it helps you to discover for yourself what makes people feel welcome and if there’s anything you do which puts people off or makes them feel uncomfortable.
I found myself surprisingly busy last Sunday and Monday – I needed lots of help greeting people and seeing them safely up and down our tricky stairs and I lost count how many drinks we produced. So far, we’ve had a much greater turnout than the previous two years and at the busiest times I felt that I couldn’t really give the attention I wanted to each individual. Three at a time was fine, but when I got up to five or six I never really got a chance to build relationships with my visitors.
Many of the people on my mailing list came back again, which was very gratifying, and several who’d bought pictures in the past from Hallam Art Group exhibitions called in to see me. So far, I’ve had seven children accompanying their parents and they were fantastically behaved and enjoyed choosing key-rings, fridge magnets and bookmarks to buy. Their enthusiasm was lovely to see and one little boy just enjoyed making appropriate animal noises as he passed each picture.
So, a tiring but exhilarating couple of days and I look forward to this Sunday.

13) Ready, Steady, Go!

I’ve had several people comment this week on what a lovely brochure Open Up produces. It’s a real pleasure to read. It still surprises me, however, as to how many people are unaware of this annual event, despite having an interest in the arts. To several people I’ve discussed it with it came as a complete surprise.
At this point I’m always slightly nervous but I know that when I get into it I shall enjoy it, despite feeling quite tired at the end of the day. The studio has had its annual spring clean – pastel dust gets everywhere – and is presently looking incredibly tidy. The payback for that is that the spare bedroom is bursting with all the things I’ve moved out!
I’ve still to make final decisions on pricing but I have done a rough draft and then I can adjust the odd painting. This year I’ve got cards and prints to sell as well so during busy spells I shall need the help from the family for sales, drinks and answering the door. The event this year will be a fair indicator as to whether spending money on prints (albeit small runs) was a wise move.
I’ve got a good supply of tea, coffee, juice, milk and biscuits which I tuck away in a corner to keep people as safe as possible and I’ve put up all the necessary signs such as “Private”, “Toilet”, “This Way” and “Please Take Care on the Stairs”. The local shops have kindly displayed a couple of posters and I’ve laminated some to display outside the house and at either end of the road. If it does rain they should stay in reasonable condition.
So, that is about it for now. I’m going to take the opportunity to visit a couple of artists today and then its all hands on deck tomorrow. I would like to wish all artists and visitors an enjoyable and fruitful event and I look forward to meeting some of you over the next nine days.

12) This and that

It seems no time since I was writing the last blog, but a lot has happened since then.
The weekend exhibition at Hallam, whilst not very well attended, was good for me, with two sales and several serious discussions regarding possible future commissions. The demonstration seemed to go well – at least I enjoyed it – but I’d like to find a way of evaluating what the general public thought.
Monday was a hectic day and at tea-time I really didn’t feel in the mood to go to the Open Up launch party at the City Hall. However, once I got there I soon brightened up and it was a really good event. The venue was just the right size and fitted the purpose very well. Hilton Hotels kindly supplied the drink, the University Jazz Band played brilliantly (if a little loudly for easy conversation) and the event was well attended – well done Sharon for planning it all! I had some enjoyable conversations with a whole host of interesting people, some of them artists displaying their work, some friends and invited guests and others either sponsors or members of the City Council.
Wednesday was the day of my mother’s funeral and was much less traumatic than I had feared. I’m really at my happiest when I’m being creative so I decided to do the large floral tribute for the top of the coffin. My mother loved gardening and so I gathered lot of beautiful things from the garden and the florist provided the base and some special “accent” flowers. I began to wonder what I’d taken on as I created the 4ft outline with ivy and hosta leaves but it turned out better than I dared hope for and looked great.
My preoccupation with other matters has meant that I’m behind hand with distributing my Open Up material so that is my next priority. I did remember to invite the florist, so I’m proud of that! Once Monday comes round I need to shift a lot of clutter from my studio and carry out a serious spring-clean. One blink, and the event will be upon us, which is when it gets really exciting!

11) Highs & Lows

Life has been full of new experiences over the last year – most of them very positive and exciting. I’ve found new doors opening for my art, one of which has been a number of requests for tuition. I’ve often discussed my techniques informally with people at Art Group, but booking a one or two hour session and being paid for it, demands that I really come up with the goods and meet the needs and, to a certain degree, the expectations of each individual. This has proved most enjoyable and I’ve learnt a lot in a short space of time. Being part of Open Up has been worth it if only to advertise my services as a tutor and I’m keen to hone my teaching skills yet further. I was really thrilled to be asked to do a demonstration this Sunday at the Hallam Art Group Spring Exhibition. Generally I don’t do demonstrations because people like to see a completed painting at the end of it and I work too slowly for that. I tend to do talks and slide-shows instead. What I have always done for Open Up is have a piece of on-going work available, and my materials spread out, so that I can demonstrate on a small portion of the picture when required. I’m really looking forward to Hallam – to see if I can concentrate on the art whist talking it through with a larger audience.
One of the less positive experiences over the past three weeks (but no doubt character- building) has been the illness and subsequent death of my mother. She was taken ill on Easter Day and against all the odds survived for ten days, but it was a roller–coaster ride with several false alarms. I tried to plan the Hallam demonstration and my preparations for Open Up as thoroughly as possible, knowing that things would almost certainly go “belly-up” at some point. I don’t need to get any more work produced but I do need to be “bright-eyed and bushy tailed” for both the demo on Sunday and the Open Up Launch Party at the City Hall on Monday. Fortunately, I feel tons better now, after a couple of good nights’ sleep, but motivation and concentration don’t come easy at a time like this!

10) Money, Money, Money

I said that I’d look at the knotty problem of pricing this week, a subject I find many artists reluctant to discuss.
The difficult thing about pricing is that it’s not just a case of comparing one picture with another by the same artist, but also setting a price in line with other artists. If one person sets their prices very low it potentially undermines other artists who are asking a more realistic price for their time and skill. The other difficult area , I find , is when you’re in that in-between ground, no longer an amateur treating it as a fulfilling hobby, but neither having the “street-cred” of a well established artist whose work is starting to become collectable. I remember a neighbour being shocked when she saw one of my pictures in a commercial gallery with a price-tag of £200. I tried hard to suppress my anger and explain graciously how little I would receive after 30% commission, £20 frame and mount, £3 materials, £3 hanging fee and two week’s work! This is where Open Up can provide a real opportunity to educate those who visit, so that original pieces of art become valued.
I now have a sort of system to help me which fairly compares one picture with another and gives me a “ball-park” figure which can be tweaked. I keep a record of the hours spent on a picture and multiply that by the hourly rate I’d like to get ( in a real world, that is, not what I might wish I’d get!) and then add on the cost of the frame, which can vary considerably. Commission will also need to be taken into consideration. This system stops me selling things too cheaply when I’m feeling down or having a run of poor sales and stops me pricing things too high that I’m particularly fond of. This system works well for me and can be flexible too.

9) Happy Easter

Happy Easter! At last it really is starting to feel like spring- the sun was streaming in when I woke up and I’m off with some friends (plus my trusty camera) to walk up Win hill. My two sons are coming too, to give them a break from revision and get some fresh air. The garden is really starting to look good and the lawn has had its first haircut. Now I’ve got a weekly job for the next 6 or 7 months!
Once again, I don’t seem to have got more than a couple of hours painting done in the last week but I have achieved all sorts of other things. I’ve mounted and framed three pictures, visited the printer (who incidentally has done a fantastic job getting the barn owl just right), given 2 hours tuition and cut lots of mounts for prints. I’ve also been to the picture-framers to order two frames for myself and three for someone at church.
My main job, however, has been to spread out all the pictures I’ve produced over the winter and decide what to put in The Hallam Art Group Exhibition on the 21st/22nd April.
Tonight is selection night and I need to have my list done and make decisions on titles and prices. It’s always hard to anticipate what kind of work might sell best at a particular venue and it’s made slightly more difficult with Open Up just round the corner as I don’t want to find that I’ve sold my best pictures beforehand (that I should be so lucky!). Several paintings of cats and alpacas have been put on one side with a view to printing in the future and I need to make time, hopefully next week, to re-visit the Mayfield Alpaca farm to discuss options.
In next week’s blog I thought I might look at the age-old problem of pricing your work. In the meanwhile I hope that this lovely weather continues and that you all enjoy a bit of rest and relaxation. I’ve got a busy but enjoyable weekend ahead as I’m singing with a choir at several special Easter services and if Monday’s good we hope to offload years of accumulated clutter at a car boot sale!

8) We have lift-off

On Monday morning a small team of artists assembled at North End Printers to collect all the publicity material for Open Up 2007. Its quite a major task for Sharon (Project Manager), collating the numbers of each item requested by the artists – A3 & A4 posters, flyers, full colour brochures, questionnaire sheets and a hints and tips leaflet. The printers help by counting the items and packaging according to postal district. Each volunteer then takes the packages for one of the districts and sorts them into carrier bags for each of their artists. These are then taken to Crookesmoor Community Centre on Saturday for the participants to meet over a cup of coffee and collect their material.
It’s time to start thinking about my mailing list. Over the past year I’ve got more organised and now I keep a record of people who visited last year or have bought a painting during the year. I tend to find that people happily give their consent to go on my mailing list and I stress that this is not just about selling paintings but the opportunity to meet up again and for them to see how things have progressed over the year. The colour brochures are a bit heavy to send through the post but I deliver quite a few by hand and distribute a large number to The Sheffield Society for the Encouragement of Art, Hallam Art Group and the Country Market (formerly WI) at Broomhill. They really are lovely brochures and I enjoy going through it each year.
This year I noticed that two artists living close to me have dropped out, which is a shame. It will be interesting to see whether that has any bearing on the numbers who visit.
My son has wasted no time scanning the new dates and logo into the blog – “Thankyou” to Peter, so it really is full-steam ahead now.
The future’s pink, very pink – let’s hope its rosy too!

7) Danger- Photographer at large

Had a satisfying morning framing up a couple of paintings and then went on in the afternoon to plan what I’m going to do next week. I’d like to get one more picture done before the Easter holidays so I spent quite a long time printing out animal photos and then manipulating them on the computer.
Digital photography has proved invaluable for my work as you can click away, delete what you don’t want and then manipulate the image as required. I used to have to take my photos down to town to get them resized but now I can do it all at the click of a button. Nor do I have to wait until the film is finished before I can show them to a client and we can identify possible poses. I reckon that I probably need to take 30 – 50 photos to come up with two or three which are really special, and the rest are invaluable resource material. Like people, animals have characteristic poses and expressions and I’ve learned to check which photos are representative of that particular animal.
I use three different cameras for different purposes – the Fuji digital for everyday use, an old Olympus SLR for recording each painting I produce (it produces much better close-up pictures than the digital and can be operated manually so that I can compensate for poorer indoor light) and an even older camera of my father’s which I use to take slides for illustrating talks.My biggest photographic problem is obtaining wildlife pictures that are of sufficient quality for my detailed work. I would eventually love a digital SLR with x8 optical zoom, but they don’t come cheap! People at art group are very helpful in passing on material which they think I might be able to use but I have to be very careful not to infringe copyright. I’m not in the league where I can afford to pay the going rate (about £70 I believe) for a photograph from a professional wildlife photographer. I have, however, teamed up with an amateur, but very gifted, photographer from Dronfield whom I met through an “A Rocha” Members’ day – an exciting Christian Conservation Charity. He, very graciously, lets me use some of his work for a nominal charge. Thanks to him I have acquired some lovely photos of birds, particularly owls, robins and kingfishers and some animals too.

6) Concerning gardens and insurance

Beautiful Spring day today, although air still quite cool. Lots of activity in the pond and first frogspawn laid on Monday. Blue tits investigating the bird box with a view to seasonal rental. Makes me want to get out in the garden and start tidying up, but I’ve set myself the target of finishing a picture of two cats today. Open Up will be with us before we can blink and I want to get one more original painting done next week. Then I can spend the time over Easter framing work up and cutting endless mounts for the new prints. I also want to spend some time on the garden, the grass is ready for its first cut and I like the garden to be tidy enough to give pleasure when people visit for Open Up. My studio is on the first floor, which doubles as a conservatory and has a fantastic light. It also has a lovely view of the garden and I really enjoy watching the wild birds on the feeders and watching the garden change with the seasons. Its very much a spring garden, with lots of bulbs, azaleas and camellias, so it looks its best in early May, and from a distance you can’t tell the difference between grass and moss.
The big problem with our house is having an upstairs studio. Firstly, its totally inaccessible for the disabled and secondly, it adds further risks when opening up to the public. Until last year, Open Up took out public liability insurance for its participating artists/venues, but each year the premium climbed and it was limited to one claim. I contacted my household insurance company to see about cover last year but the add-on premium for the event was exorbitant. However, through the networking meeting held by Open Up this January, I had the chance to discuss the issue with other participants. It would seem that Gold Membership of the Society for all Artists (SAA), based in Newark, gives the best deal for what I’m looking for. I was already an ordinary member so for an extra £20 I am now covered for Public Liability 365 days/ year. This means that I’m not only covered for Open Up but also for when people visit to arrange commissions, choose frames or come for tuition. It pains me to have to live and work in such a litigious world but that’s how things are, and peace of mind is worth a lot!

5) Branching Out

Incredibly hectic week this week, only managed about three hours of art, but I have got the owl finished that I mentioned in a previous blog.
As a family we provide Homestay accommodation for Sheffield Hallam University and presently have a French student teacher with us for a month. Consequently, I’ve had to put a bit more effort into meals and housework. We really enjoy meeting the different people and it fits in well with working from home. The income evens out the drop in sales during the winter months. It was also my week to cook for the elderly people’s club at church so I’ve also been busy shopping and preparing a meal for 90+.
However, back to business…..
During Open Up in 2006 several visitors asked me if I had any cards or prints for sale, as they liked my work but were not in the market for original paintings. From my experiences producing charity Christmas cards for the Sheffield Branch of Riding for The Disabled, I knew that it wasn’t easy to make money on cards unless you had a good distribution network, enabling you to turn over large numbers. Not only is there the cost of the printing but also the expense of envelopes, cellophane wrappers and labelling. Because my paintings are detailed, they take quite a long time to complete and it isn’t always possible to charge as much as I would like (taking into consideration outgoings on frames, hanging fees and commission). However, I picked up a flyer on Giclee printing during “Art in the Garden” and on further enquiry discovered that they were not that expensive, especially if two pictures can be fitted side by side onto an A3 scanner.
Producing prints, therefore, seemed to be one way in which I could maximise my income from carefully chosen paintings which might appeal to a wider audience.
I took the first two paintings to the Printer in November to see how they turned out (I’d had mixed results from standard photocopying of artwork, and pastel paintings are a bit vulnerable at the best of times). I was delighted with the accuracy of the colour and the fact that they still looked like pastels. I was also very pleased to see that the original paintings were handled with due care and respect. Consequently, four more pictures followed and I’ve just delivered another two for scanning this week.
Cutting the mounts and packaging them up is time consuming but I keep a tenplate for each one that saves re-measuring every time. I’m hoping that I’ve gauged the market correctly and that the prints prove popular, not only for Open Up but also when I exhibit with The “Crosspool Artists” as an invited guest. Its all a steep learning curve!

4) Why Animals?

In the early days my career as an artist happened more by chance than any specific planning on my part. I had studied Art/ Art History as one of my “A” Levels and after leaving school continued to do the occasional architectural landscape in charcoal. In my early twenties, my parents gave me a wonderful box of 72 Faber Castell pastels, this inspired me to take my art more seriously and in 1988, whilst on maternity leave, I sold my first painting in The Great Sheffield Art Show.
I had always planned to return to my career as a State Registered Physiotherapist after having the children but bit by bit I became more involved in the art and the flexibility that working from home gave. At this time I was also very privileged to be encouraged by a friend and her husband who bought quite a number of my early paintings and made me believe that I had a saleable product. It reminded me of the essential role of “patrons” down the ages.
At this time I was continuing with architectural landscapes (have you ever noticed how many statues there are on the roof of Chatsworth House?) and also doing large flower paintings in pastel. The move into animals came about several years later when I discovered a lovely photograph of a fox in a Readers Digest publication and decided to have a go at it. It worked out incredibly well – even though I did it on such a scrap of paper that I’ve never been able to mount it up to its best advantage. If it hadn’t turned out to my satisfaction I doubt I would have ever tried another animal and certainly wouldn’t be taking part in Open Up now!
I still enjoy landscapes – in fact I’m trying a few seascapes at the moment after selling three pictures of Flamborough Head. They give me a bit of relaxation after a run of animal paintings because I can ad lib and it doesn’t have to be correct to the nearest millimetre! I still do the occasional flower painting when I feel the need to exchange my usual browns and greens for something more flamboyant.

If you would like to share something on this blog why not Email me and I will endeavour to post some of the material received and make it more interactive.