Art TV
Hello Everyone
I would like to invite you to participate in a new and unique way to promote your art on TV.
San Base Studio is the developer of a new form of presentation of art and photography on TV called the Art Player, which launched at the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show.
The idea of the application is to promote Art and Photo Galleries on home TV screens and make the works accessible for purchase by millions of households worldwide. Initially, Art Player will be available to a million viewers 24/7, in the application store of a top three network starting in April. This is a unique ground floor opportunity to promote artworks to an audience skewing to high net worth individuals.
Art Player is a virtual window to the “best” artists and galleries. It is easy to use and has many options that benefit the viewing experience. The viewer simply presses the remote and launches the Art Player on the TV screen. Images move across the screen in a virtual never ending slide show, genres can be selected, speed modified and desired images can be frozen getting a short biographical description of the artist, gallery or artwork and means to purchase the work. All of these functions work from a standard remote control.
Art Player will be launching with a marketing campaign to over a million unique viewers in the U.S, bringing you new exposure and possibly new buyers for your artworks. Registration is free and easy and all you have to do is upload as many of your best works as you want. Images should be high res and minimum 900 pixels vertical. To see more information go to http://www.sanbasestudio.com/artplayer .
Thank you and good luck
Cameron Thomas
San Base Studio
Landscape ideas
From ancient times through to contemporary works the landscape has meant a great deal for art and artists. how artists interpret the landscape is as varied as chalk and cheese from abstract concepts and emotions through to highly realistic scenes.
Many artists are inspired not just by their shapes and forms on the landscape but by colours and textures as well. For an artist starting out the chance to explore landscape ideas can seem rather daunting I hope some of the concepts I put forward might give you some great starting points.
- landscape can include many things, the urban landscape, seascapes, rural landscape and the industrial landscape. Try picking one, which is close to you and then explore it perhaps with a camera, if you took lots of photos see if you can pick out the top five, then ask yourself what makes these five more interesting than the others?
- Australia is one country where many of the artists were heavily influenced by the landscape to an Internet search on this topic and see what you can find, is there any one style from the many Australian artists working on landscape that you really like? Do some research on that particular style or artist and see which you can find.
- Take a look at the work of artists who simplify the landscape down into a very basic terms perhaps just sky and ground, maybe you can find out more about why they simplified the landscape so much, consider copying one or two of their works perhaps just on paper with coloured pencil.
- Landscape drawing does not need to be realistic, consider exploring more of the “essence” of landscape or the bare basics of it in some drawings.
- Students of Art using an art journal or a visual diary of some kind, may find it useful to jot down ideas when looking at landscape, it may be what the weather was like, temperature was like, how they felt and whether the scene was something really captivating or not, as well as doing some drawings or photographs.
- If you take mainly photographs of the landscape consider doing some drawings as well. And if you do mainly drawings of the landscape consider doing some photographs. Compare the difference.
- The way Artists tackle the landscape can vary from abstract to realistic and lots in between, consider what would be the difference between a leisure or hobby painter doing a landscape, and a contemporary artist doing the landscape and what sorts of things might be different?
Okay there’s a few ideas you might like to try to get started in landscapes, I think you may find the more you do landscapes to more engrossing it will become… enjoy!
Here are a few websites you may like to explore to learn more about the ways artists have explored the landscape as a concept or theme.
Boxed in…
I often cruise Art shops (and occasionally Craft ones too) to see what’s new, what inspires and what’s still the same old same old. In one I walked into recently I noticed they have small pine boxes with latches, and some had clear see through tops in a range of sizes.
I guess the crafty and scrapbooking types will recognise them as a way of creating some form of “Keepsake” device where precious memories are displayed and therefore it’s a way of exploring 3D collaging in an intimate setting.
In the same way I think the boxes have a lot to offer the Art Student and or Visual Artist. Firstly the boxes are plain pine so they can be varnished, stained, painted and or added to in many ways.
The boxes could be a way of exploring 3d Art without having to go big scale and deal with storage issues of large works. I think the intimacy a small work can create could be an interesting drawcard as well.
For creative starting points lets think about a few possibilities…
- Create a series of small things to place in the box along one theme.
- Try making small 3D paper objects, perhaps out of printed or painted paper… consider origami as a starting point.
- The box could contain found objects relating to one theme.
- The box could house a working model of some kind, perhaps you pull a string or press a button to make a mechanism “do something” inside the box.
- Simply use it as a frame to house a miniature painting and perhaps give the painting a fresh or different meaning.
- Consider making the contents so they could be changed by the owner to reflect a different mood or feeling.
- Jamming it full of letters cut out of magazines, and shaking it to create a different work each time it’s shaken.
- As a place to put very small written works or images which can cover the internal walls like wall paper (great if the box is deep).
- Hang a fine string like a clothes line and attach miniature objects to the line. You could add a painted scene in the background.
- Hang small things off strings set at differing depths to add depth.
- Paint an optical illusion in the box using the depth of the box for enhanced effect.
- Use a deeper box like a diorama and set up a miniature scene of some kind.
Of course the possibilities are endless, the main thing here being the price of the boxes I looked at were very cheap, and came in a range of sizes.
If you create one or three of these, send us a link to a photo in the comments for this post and show us what you have created!
The online portfolio developer…
As an Art student or even as an Artist, you probably have a lot going on, teachers and lecturers wanting you to explore this and that, themes to pursue, techniques to be tried out and so on. Well here’s a technique to use to keep lots of these forces happy.
Most of you will have a facebook page, as such you realise you can share a lot of things with the world, pictures especially and comments.
So try the daily challenge (It could be weekly but hey, a bit of a push wouldn’t hurt…) the aim is to put a picture every day online for a set period (one I know of is a 365 day photo challenge.) and therefore put up one image a day and comment on it.
Your Teachers and Peers can add comments and provide critiques. At each stage you could offer a lot of info or little info… perhaps stick to a formula of a few points, why I took this photo, how I lit the photo, why this composition works and so on…
This way you can show you are working, get feedback, see if patterns evolve, it could be the same with drawings or any other media!
The only downside is having teachers and lecturers as friends on facebook! Okay probably not a bad thing either… 
Thanks to David Gray one of my Nephews, whose 365 day facebook photo challenge gave me the idea! 
Steve Biller - Artists Representative
Steven Biller is a Southern California-based Visual Arts Consultant. I recently chatted to him to find out more about what he does and how he does it. Enjoy!
I imagine you might get a lot of artists wanting to be represented by you, or am I guessing wrongly here?
Not many. I don’t advertise. I look for artists I know I can place in strong gallery programs. I’m more of a scout, for artists and gallerists.
I focus on outstanding emerging artists and artists who have appreciable exhibition experience but need a new dealer. I like artists who confront the issues of the day — and not necessarily in representative fashion.
I do look at university graduates. MFA thesis shows reveal tons of great talent. The best part of the 2009 Los Angeles Art Show was the student show at the back of the convention center. I was disappointed that the students received only a sliver of space at the 2010 fair.
I review portfolios, select artists who warrant a studio visit, evaluate their work in person, and give an honest assessment of why I will or will not represent or market the artist. Then we work together to identify appropriate gallery programs. After that, it’s about building trust and relationships.
When you go to an artist’s studio, what sorts of things do you look for?
I’m interested in artists with a clear vision, thoughtful execution, evenness in quality, and commitment to an aesthetic. Quality is not as subjective as you might think.
I curate shows from time to time, but I mostly help them refine their rosters to sharpen their programs. And, having worked in publishing for more than 20 years, I offer full-service custom publishing (write, design, and produce exhibition catalogs and artist monographs), as well as PR and marketing services.
Artists too frequently neglect to learn about a gallery’s program before going in with their portfolios insisting their work will fit in and sell well in this space. Don’t be so presumptuous. Art is tough in the studio, and even tougher in the gallery. Dealers know what their clients want; if they say “it’s not for us,” accept that without taking it as a blow to your work. You might be a phenomenal landscape painter in the Midwest. A dealer of early California Impressionism will not give you the time of day.
I guess like many galleries you get plenty of requests to look at artists websites. What are some of the things that cause you to cringe or become elated, when you do take a look?
I generally read artists sites for biographical and exhibition information, and reserve judgment on the art until I see it in person. I’ll dismiss most derivative work and art that falls outside of my interest or aesthetic before ever considering a time-consuming studio visit.
I fell into this. I study art every day, keep up with what’s happening here and abroad, and try to see as much art as possible. Who knows if any galleries “accept” me, whatever that means, but I’m sure they appreciate the experiences I bring to our meetings.
Let’s imagine you find a great emerging artist but you find they have used a vanity gallery a few times to try and be noticed, would that put you off?
Yes, it would put me off. That’s not how to get noticed. Good dealers never look at those sites. Good artists who cannot find good dealers should seek out people like myself. We can assess the work and point artists in a direction that will not compromise the integrity of the work.
I don’t advertise at all. I put myself in the right places to meet the right people. That takes years to develop. It really is who you know — and who they know.
I’m honest. The worst thing you can do to an artist is give false hope. If it’s decorator art, so be it. Make yourself known to interior designers who’ll buy your canvases in bulk. It’s an honest living. There’s no shame in being a commercial or production artist if you enjoy the work and earn a living from it.
Yes! In fact, I work harder for those artists — and for the galleries that represent them. If they succeed, so do I.
Be ruthless when editing your work. Only allow the best pieces out of your studio. Not everything is a masterpiece. Let go of the ego and rework those mediocre and bad pieces. You know which ones I mean …
They’re great for artists to present their work chronology, their bios, their exhibition histories. But avoid selling from the site. If you sell from your site, don’t expect galleries to work with you. You’ll be competing with them. Direct inquiries to your dealers. They’ll respect your professionalism and pay you a set share. If a client want to buy from your inventory, discuss it with your dealer before sealing the deal. Relationships are everything in this business.
Is it hard to categorize art so you make sure artists understand the type of work you want and how do you go about it?
It’s immensely difficult. I don’t want to define my preferences too narrowly. I work with artists who make work that I would never hang in my own collection. If it’s good, it’s good. I’m working with a glass sculptor after promising myself I would never touch glass. But this guy stands out because of his process and the narrative of the work. He’s not a glass blower who makes pretty vessels. He’s a sculptor who uses glass. I also try to avoid digital photography, but found myself organizing a show with an important photographer who switched away from film. Never say never …
Each artist is different. My objectives might be the same for many artists, but the road we take will always look different for each of them.
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Compiled and edited by Steve Gray © 2009+
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Portraits - outside the square
This portrait by Rupert Shrive shows the idea of representing someone in a portrait does not have to be a basic square or rectangle.
So lets explore a few different ways you could do a portrait.
- Project or draw directly a photo of someone on to crumpled paper, draw the image and then smooth out the paper.
- Get a bunch of images of your subject then print them in Black and white on paper in a printer, then use coloured pencils to draw around the images and present them in a row. Try different papers like tracing paper for a different approach.
- Overlap multiple images of the person on one page, then draw more heavily, the interesting parts and see what happens.
- Get a 3D mask (often in craft shops) and project and draw or draw directly onto the mask then paint.
- Overlap a range of paper shapes, project image, draw then separate the paper, and play with various compositions. perhaps try photocopying a range of compositions and re work these to suit.
- Scan any of the above images into your computer and put text in the background of the image which relates to the person. It could be a story or poem, or even just a bunch of words which relates to the person.
- Project images on to a box and draw that, what happens when that’s flattened out?
- Do a “straight” portrait, copy it a few times, now abstract stylise, simplify or simply alter the colours with paint or pencils, how do they look in a row? What happens if you alter the order of them…
These are just starting points to work from, but once you have tried these, think about doing a straight portrait, do you think it will be easy? Perhaps it might seem too bland as a process and ask yourself which one really portrays the subject matter the best…. Enjoy!