More musing on time management, the studies continue,

I've been thinking more about time management issues for mid career and older painters. It seems to me that this area is of vital importance to us. After all, realistically, I have no more than 20 years left to be a serious artist. If I can paint until I'm 80, I'll feel lucky indeed. It hardly seems fair when I think about it. Now is the time that I am just getting warmed up to doing decent paintings after years of struggle. Life is never fair; after all, we have to give it up!!

When I was a young painter, I had lots of time to waste. I tried the shotgun approach to marketing and painting. Throw enough stuff against the wall to see if any of it will stick. I did out door festivals all over Florida, even when I knew that an area was very unlikely for sales. When I started in paint outs, I did them all, even the amateur ones with no venue for sales or hope for interest. When I think back on those days I cringe at my lack of time and resource management skill.

We painters get involved in numerous wasted efforts just because we are invited to do them. I think it is because art tends to be a lonely business. We are so anxious to be part of the art scene that we waste much of our time and resources. Take the Art Walks and Gallery opening scene. How many times do we go to those things, hang around with our colleagues and accomplish nothing? I'm not talking about shows we are actually in, but rather the local art happenings where we have no involvement and no prospects for sales. I can't imagine the number of hours wasted in my career on various art happenings that proved to be useless.

The first thing I had to do when I finally woke up to the fact that I'm not 20 anymore, was to learn to decline invitations. This includes art happenings,shows with no possibility of sales and the wrong exposure, paint outs who provide no housing,food or potential client base, committees and art league positions, meetings for art leagues, etc. etc.

I have learned to think through invitations carefully before agreeing to anything. Sometimes I say yes too fast before I have thought it through and sometimes after more careful analysis, I will decline after I have initially said Yes, but only in cases where it will do no harm to renig. For example, I initially said yes to an invitation to a paint out this month in a small rural part of the state. After more careful consideration, I felt that it would not be a good use of my time and energy to do this event. I felt that since I have no market in that area and that no top end painters were going,it would not be a good fit. I wrote to the committee person several weeks ago to drop out, leaving her plenty of time to find a replacement. I'm sure it will be a lovely paint out and I hope they all have great sales there. Perhaps I have thrown away a great opportunity, but my instincts tell me that my price points are too high for that area.

Sometimes I do an event that is not a good sales venue just because I love it. For example, I would never miss the Epcot Paint Out for any reason because it is so darned much fun every year. I do sell there now and then, but not enough to warrant that as a reason to go. I consider it as a marvelous payed vacation each year.

One of the problems I see most often for painters is the idea they get that hanging around galleries, art centers, being in art leagues, hanging around museums and being involved with groups be it plein air or studio groups, is going to further their career. In fact, they are marketing to themselves, not patrons. Although artists certainly buy art, they generally buy small pieces from artists they know and respect. That is what I do. The real art patrons have little to do with hanging around those venues. They are out in the real world. That is where we must find them.

So my suggestion to all who read this blog over 40, is think before you automatically say yes to artsy events. Be sure there is tangible worth in any business related function you do. The clock is ticking away on our careers.




Stage Two in the oil painting with three compliment palette.

This is starting to come along. It has been an interesting palette and one I will make a chart for in my chart notebook. I may put this one aside for a day or two to dry a bit.

My next small study is a color notan with a light dominant value. I have used a five value structure for this one.


Sorry the image is a bit blurry. These studies work great for planning larger paintings. Since I am in the farm mode right now, the are all paintings of the Wood Farm in Evinston. I am using the photos I took and that others took of the farm for the workshop weekend. I am really enjoying a more leisurely approach to doing these paintings in my studio rather than out at the farm, though I will go out there again very soon. I also want to get back to the Paynes Prairie State Park one day next week to start another painting.

Not only do these little experiments work great for study, they will sell well in the Wood Swink Post Office in Evinston. It gets thousands of visitors every year, because of it's unique status of being the oldest working post office in Florida. Lots of exposure for my miniature and small paintings. Believe it or not, they sell a fair amount of art in the low price ranges.



Today's Recipe

This is a favorite "company's coming" recipe. It is so easy and looks very impressive. It is a first course or salad course.

For four guests

2 ripe avocados
1 small red onion, diced
12 grape tomatoes sliced in half

salt/pepper to taste
3 parts EVOO
juice of one lemon
zest of rind of the lemon
pinch oregano
pinch parsley
1 minced garlic clove
dash of honey mustard



Split avocados and carefully remove seeds. Run a small knife carefully around the rim between the fruit and the skin to loosen the fruit. Leave it in the skin as a container. Fill hole and over mound the onions and grape tomatoes mixed. Mix up the dressing and pour over the avocado half on a small plate. Serve. Delish and really beautiful. Don't make this too far ahead of the meal because the avocado will start to turn brown.