Diane Clancy’s Art Blog

Below is the image of the ACEO (Art Cards) book that I bought a space to be in last year.  A very dedicated art teacher has been creating this book and making a blog to encourage her students to creatre and trade ACEOs/Art Cards.  You can see my painting as one that is featured on the color of last years book.  I am very glad I did it - I have a nice 2 page spread with a variety of work - and some text. If you are thinking of joining in (it costs $40), the deadline has been extended to September 11, 2008. I have copied the text from 2 posts on her blog (with permission, of course) so that you can read about it and see if perhaps you would like to join in.  All proceeds help with the students, books for the students and ACEO education.

The Fall 2008 Edition of “Create. Collect. Trade. A Collection of Artist Trading Cards Created by Artists and Students,” is in production and accepting ACEO artists at this time to fill 30 available spots.

WHAT WILL THE ARTIST RECEIVE?

For the $40, each artist will receive 2 FULL PAGES in the book. 4-8 Images from each artist will be placed on the two pages. The artist may write a short paragraph about their art, Etsy shop, experiences, or information they would like to share on their page. Artists may also post links to their shops, website, blogs, etc. for further promotion and information. Upon purchasing, the artist understands that information and images should be appropriate for elementary age students eyes.

-Each artist will be recognized on http://createcollecttrade.blogspot.com/ and gain local and national attention through distribution of the book.

-The book will also be presented in an 2-hour workshop at the AEAI Art Education Conference in November.

-7 Artists will also be selected to appear on the front cover along with 5 students.

Technorati Tags: ACEO, Art Cards, Create. Collect. Trade.

Technorati Tags: AWE Project

Each month Worldwide Women Artists Online (WWAO) have an exhibit (online of course) of members’ work based on a theme. This month is Beautiful Mother Earth. I encourage you to go on over and look at this great exhibit!

Beautiful Mother Earth, April WWAO Exhibit

I am sure regular readers have already identified my painting. Besides being in the online exhibit, this is also listed as a ACEO in my Etsy Shop. Here is my Etsy Shop.If you would prefer this in a different size, let me know and I will do one up for you!! Each of the paintings or items in the show can be purchased. Thank you for looking at my being showcased!!

WWAO on the site says “Worldwide Women Artists is an international collective of women artists showing and selling our work through the worldwide web. As women artists, we give birth to our ideas in a variety of styles and media. We embrace the diversity of each other’s work, celebrating the joy of creating our art and sharing it with the world. We welcome female visual artists from all over the world who create and sell their own original art.”

This ends the interruption in our regular programming … tomorrow will be a Fanciful Animal Image and hopefully by Thursday I will have figured out how to do Homage in bubbles!

~ Diane Clancy

Technorati Tags: WWAO, Etsy

Thank you to everyone who stopped by and looked and commented - even though I didn’t write. I did not feel well enough to do anything but share an image and it means a lot to me that you came anyway!! Thank you!

Green Moon, Digital © Diane Clancy

I am pretty excited because I got news of the results of my grant application to the Local Cultural Council. Some of you will remember I applied back in October 2007. I got the notification letter and was awarded the full amount I asked for. I have never even applied for a grant before so I am very delighted! This grant is to coordinate the AWE (Artists Window Exhibits) Project in downtown Greenfield, Franklin County, western Massachusetts, US.

I don’t just get the money … I have to do the work and then submit invoices for the particularly parts of the work. One of the big things I will need to do is make a database of all the potential places to exhibit our work (mainly store windows), contact information and any specific details. To do this, I will have to learn a new program to make it easily accessible to others. With this database in other years someone else could more easily take over.

I am now off to the board meeting of the local group, currently Create Franklin County, which works to stimulate the local creative economy, the economy that includes artists, web designers, and lots of small home-based businesses. I think it also includes building the green economy - or at least they are in conjunction with each other.

Tonight is a big step for the town. We have joined ICLEI. ICLEI is an international membership association of local governments working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. They provide programs, tools, software assistance and technical expertise towards this goal. To find out more about ICLEI and its programs go to www.iclei.org. The is for local towns and cities working to deal with climate change. Much of this paragraph is taken word for word from the promotional materials. This is sponsored by the Greening Greenfield group that I belong to and am active with.

These are 2 important meetings to go to today … and I am still only at half steam. (This is an expression that means I still do not feel very well). Thank you for coming and reading!! I will catch up your blogs soon.

~ Diane Clancy

Technorati Tags: grant application, Local Cultural Council, AWE, Create Franklin County, creative economy, ICLEI, climate change, Greening Greenfield

Last night was the sub-committee of the Public Education for Greening Greenfield - the last in too many environmental and Creative Economy meetings in a row. I am exhausted and the door lock downstairs broke and the furnace was off when I got home. As you might guess I need some rest. So this is short tonight. But I would LOVE to hear how you are!!

The Docks, Digital © Diane Clancy

~ Diane Clancy

Technorati Tags: environment, Creative Economy

Some of you have asked me to elaborate on the grant application I have been writing - so I am! We have been having AWE - Artists Window Exhibits - in our town lately. We have had shows in July, August and again in mid-Sept - mid-Oct (yes, now). I have put in a grant application requesting some money to coordinate this project in 2008. It is in the mail!!!

Joe Landry at Rooney’s, AWE, Photography © Susan Elkin

Some of us visual artists started meeting over a year ago to connect, build the local economy, and in general figure out how to further our careers as artists. We have a fantastic area full of artists … we are rural and there is a economy rich in agriculture and not money. That is, we are one of the lowest income areas of the whole state (Massachusetts, US). So we need to build the creative economy here.

When tourists come here, they can’t believe how inexpensive the art is. But many local people say the prices are way too high. So we are working to get this area to be a tourism destination to hook up art lovers and artists. By we, I mean much more than our small group of artists. It is a big initiative that is getting support from our whole county. I think we are the size of Rhode Island but with only 70,000 people. And 69,000 are artists - no, that part is a joke. But we do have thousands of artists here.

I have been coordinating this group, chairing, taking minutes, writing them up and sending them out (by email), being the point person and generally coordinating whatever we were doing. I have put tons of energy into having the AWE projects go smoothly.

The local business organization (Greenfield Business Association) has set up 2 Progressive Dinners where people have gone from restaurant to restaurant for each of 6 or 7 courses. Our artists group, Artists of Franklin County, has provided beauty and enjoyment through our work in shop windows. And I am sure you can imagine that there is a lot of work involved in coordinating all this! Which is why I would like to get some financial compensation for a little bit of the time and materials.

You asked what it would mean … that I would be able to more easily be able to take the time to up the quality and attend to the details of this project. What are you up to?

~ Diane Clancy

Technorati Tags: grant application, AWE, Artists Window Exhibit, Susan Elkin, creative economy, Greenfield Business Association, Progressive Dinner, tourism

How many of you have applied for grants? Some of you may remember that I am applying for a local grant to coordinate the AWE project - Artists Windows Exhibit. It was quite a long process putting together a resume (that I should have done years ago). I was surprised that it didn’t sound half-bad. And then writing my very first grant application.

Bryant Stewart at Opus, Photography © Susan Elkin

I have put together quite a but of supporting materials including my own Artist Statement and Artist Biography. But also other artists were generous enough to let me include their bios - thank you!. I am going to be getting a letter of support from someone who works at building the creative economy. That is the last piece I need to put together.

Luckily, I have the press release from the current AWE project. And the maps that they have given out to show stores that were involved in the downtown celebration. And, last but not least, BEAUTIFUL photographs by Susan of 8 of the stores windows!! Susan is wanting to blog again and may respond to a nudge or two.

I thought you would enjoy seeing another window from our local exhibits. I would love to hear about your experiences - whether exhibits or the rest of life!

~ Diane Clancy

Technorati Tags: grant, AWE, resume, Bryant Stewart, Artist Statement, Artist Biography, creative economy, Susan

You asked for it - you got it!! Here is the window of my work in the last AWE (Artists Window Exhibit). Susan will probably take pictures of the 2 places I am currently up at. Those are my images in the windows with lots of street reflections.

Diane AWE Window 7/07 © Susan Elkin

Luckily I had most of this written already a few days ago before the great Thoughtful Blogger Award came. Right now it is thundering and lightening and my connection is not working. But the downstairs connection is so I am doing this quick post.

Hate to post and run but .. don’t want to impose on my neighbors! Please let me know how you are!!

~ Diane Clancy

Technorati Tags: AWE, Thoughtful Blogger Award

You guys have pushed me over the edge to do different things and this is coming out … who IS this person? Although I am concerned that I may need to change my slogan and whole business plan and orientation, actually I am pretty excited about these last several digital paintings I have done. I am having mucho fun playing!  Are these uplifting at all?

Bad Day at the Office, Digital © Diane Clancy

Who knows - these may be the images that some licensing company want to produce. That would be an irony - no? Sigh … “they” say that you are supposed to choose a style and stick with it to succeed. But I like to do different things - even if it means I am not as financially successful. Maybe posthumously my daughter will get rich from my work - that’s good enough. Or maybe they will all go in the trash heap!

Needed to work today on paperwork - you know the offline kind - physical paper and pen - remember the old days? Also, trying to get things finalized for the AWE (Artist Window Exhibit) that is happening this week and formalized for the next and hopefully periodic AWE’s that will be coming up. It has all been fun - and a lot of work!

Tomorrow I am hoping to make a decision about whether to set up a pro shop at CafePress. I so prefer to keep things low-budget .. but sometimes I think one just has to spring for things. I think this might be one of those times. I will let you know.

Thank you for stopping by and/or reading … hope your summer (winter in the southern hemisphere) is going extremely well!

~ Diane Clancy

Technorati Tags: digital paintings, licensing, AWE, CafePress

I am going through my email box today to try to deal with stuff or file it away. It is boiling hot and sticky. But I am making progress. I just signed up with My Space to be able to download a file on how to effectively use My Space. I can’t figure out much yet, but here is the adress …. I know it will shock you … http://myspace.com/dianeclancy. One step at a time for learning these new things!

The Scream, Digital © Diane Clancy

I have been working the last couple of days on making the pdf file for the Studio Artist Demo. I naively thought I could just copy and paste it from the post to a pdf file. Many hours later, I know think it is not so simple.

I asked for help on the technical details from the local Hidden-Tech group and the number of responses and suggestions has been amazing! It is a local email (probably offline group too) of people working in small businesses for ourselves. I think almost (if not all) everyone is in the Creative Economy. It is so great the way people help each other. I know when a question whizzes by my eye that I think I can answer, I jump right in there to be part of the solutions. Very cool what we are all doing to help each other in this new interconnected world.

Of course, after I get this ready, then I need to figure out how to use the newsletter function at my host. All the marketing advice talks about giving away something in exchange for someone’s email address. I think I am going to have a nice product to give away.

Any thoughts would be welcome!

~ Diane Clancy

Technorati Tags: My Space, Hidden-Tech, Creative Economy, marketing advice

Looking down on London Square with all the traffic whizzing by … You can see the theaters off to one side, and all the traffic swirling around. What do you think and feel about this digital painting ~ or any of the other topics we have been discussing … or raise a new topic.

The Square from Above, Digital © Diane Clancy

I have been very busy with the local Artists Group of Franklin County as we prepare for our next AWE - Artists Window Exhibit. My window has been taken down since that business wanted only a short exhibit. Hopefully, Susan will find some more windows so I can get my work up too.

The talk around town is that even this couple of weeks with the work of some artists in a handful of store windows has picked up the mood of the town. There is a lot of evidence that building the creative economy helps build the whole economy.

Susan has posted tonight on her blog! I wonder where Soul Fish has disappeared to? I think a lot of regular commenters must be on summer vacation. I hope it is that and not that I have gotten way too boring.

~ Diane Clancy

Technorati Tags: creative economy

The colors of this digital painting look like Beyond I and Beyond II to me. But the structure of the painting reminds me of Beyond IV, which Sue called a portal. Or perhaps a double portal. I guess it looks a little like Beyond VI also. I think most of paintings deserve better names … and they will get them. Some of them anyway.

Beyond IX, Digital © Diane Clancy

Have you noticed that these digital images are listed in both the acrylic and digital sections of “Diane’s Sketch Book”? hmmm … there might be a reason for that. I don’t remember seeing that ever before we got to this Beyond series. hmmm … Studio Artist is also a category this is listed in … I see the wheels spinning in your minds already!

Right now both Susan and I have window displays in local downtown stores. The local Artists Group of Franklin County has been working with the Greenfield Business Association to get the town ready. There is a progressive dinner tonight where 60 people (in groups of 20) are going to 6 different restaurants for one course after another. It is a pretty exciting example of artists and business people working together to build the creative economy in our county.

Who knows … maybe I will … dear I say it … sell a piece!

~ Diane Clancy

Technorati Tags: digital painting, Studio Artist, Artists Group of Franklin County, creative economy

I am behind on just about everything - sorry about not reading your blogs the last few days - I will catch up!! Been mainly getting all set up with the technical changes and learning how to set up and use a discussion list.

Journey, Digital © Diane Clancy

I am a chair and also do the minutes for the local Artists Group that is working to develop ourselves as artists and also develop the Creative Economy in Franklin County in western Massachusetts, U.S. Yesterday we had a fantastic meeting with several people who *really* want to make things happen and get going! I am thrilled. So there was a lot of set-up work today.

But I am learning so much in all this - very exciting to me! I am truly enjoying having access to lots of tools from the new host I am not hosting with (DreamHost). Setting up new things always (for me anyway) takes lots of time. Then I will get the hang of it and can help others.

Today I took time to post tips that Chris O’Byrne in WordPress help forums to keep the help moving through the Blogosphere. I am going to reorganize things here to make them easier for you and me. But I need breathing space first. Good journeying to us all!!

~ Diane Clancy

Technorati Tags: discussion list, Artists Group, Chris O’Byrne, WordPress, creative economy

I am sure that all these animals are journeying somewhere important. Clearly, there is a specific place they are going - even though the path is winding … do you know where they are traveling?

Animals III, Digital © Diane Clancy

This is a digital painting that  will be very good for licensing. I think these animals are incredibly fun and fanciful. The curves of the animals follow the curves of the paths they are following. Unlike much of my work, the colors are a little muted. Again,  these designs would be great cards and wrapping paper.

I am so hopeful that this weekend I can make some progress at getting my work more widely available at Etsy and ArtFlock. I am so excited - I think this is the right timing for me - and hopefully for the market! A new, important step for me.

~ Diane Clancy

Technorati Tags: animals, digital painting, licensing, color, wrapping paper, Etsy, ArtFlock

Yesterday I told you that my fine art cards are being sold at the local Visitors Center. One local resident who saw my enhanced animal images at the Center, gave me a call to see if I would create her a unique portrait of her own animal companion. Of course, I was delighted!

Irie in Butterflies, Digital © Diane Clancy

I took an image she already had and put her Irie into a flower environment for a print for my client. She gave me written permission to also put her companion into a field of butterflies and then make cards to sell.

Being a micro-business, I need to figure out which niches are working well and which will work for me. I find that creating animal portraits is a service that there is a demand for. Then when I am able to use these images for my cards, it helps me build my business. As an artist, I need to find creative ways to expand my market.

I also offer graphic design and website design as another service. There is a lot of research now showing that every dollar invested in the local economy and the creative economy shows far greater return than most other investments into the economy. I am working to help create the creative economy in Franklin County!

~ Diane Clancy

Technorati Tags: enhanced animal images, micro-business, local economy, the creative economy, tourism, marketing