Focus for 2009

I've got baby on the brain. It's been a long winter so far. I am almost moved out of my offsite art studio. Carload by carload I've been moving everything home over the past two months. Everything is stacked on shelves or against the walls in our unfinished basement. Unfortunately the business model I created for LaBerge Art Studios won't work with a baby. I don't see myself traveling across the country either pregnant or with baby in tow. After discussing it with my husband we think it would be unfair to any child during the first decade of their life. I don't want to be doing the art show circuit at age 50. So the business model needs to change. One of the first things we plan to do is sell the trailer and booth. I'm not sure yet how the studio will evolve in the coming years. I've had a few commissions to keep me busy this winter although I am currently working on my last scheduled one.

For 2009 I am focused on having a healthy pregnancy. At age 41 I am dealing with different physical issues than I did 20 years ago.

Holiday Shows and Family News

In spite of the past couple of months I am feeling optimistic about the coming holidays. It has something to do with the astonishing news my husband Terry and I received last month: we are expecting a baby! Not such huge news for many couples however we are unique in this situation. For starters, our daughter is now 20 and attending college. We thought in 2007 that we were early empty nesters. But now we are suddenly restarting our family. We never expected this to happen. But it has. So it really feels surreal. I think the surrealness of the event has leaked over onto everything in my life. I am convinced that God has done something very special here for some wonderful purpose. Why not be optimistic?


But back to business. Last week one of the galleries that represents my work: The Byrne Gallery in Middleburg, VA, http://www.byrnegallery.com/index.htm called and said they had a client interested in a commission for an office space in Washington, D.C. So Monday this week I met Susan Byrne at the gallery and we drove into the city to meet the client and see the space where the painting will go. It is beautiful new office space near the Old Patent Office where the National Portrait Gallery is. The client is interested in a non-objective triptych similar to one I posted on the blog some weeks back.


In addition I am finishing up a commission for a couple who live in Alexandria, VA sho saw my work at Howard Alan's Art Festival in Alexandria this fall. They wanted a single panel painting that had some landscape elements. I came up with a more literal landscape painting of the ocean which they like so far.

The Art Center in Staunton, VA has an Art for Gifts boutique show Nov 21-Dec 30. http://www.saartcenter.org/


Yesterday I brought some new work and some old work to sell at the show. The images posted are a couple of the items I brought to the Art Center.

Art Mastermind You Tube Video

In October I was interviewed by Chuck DeWolfe of Art Mastermind at the Paradise City Art Festival in Northampton, MA.

Here is the link to the video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GiI40YZQOY

Watch and rate the video-- it's about three minutes long.

New England Art Show

Here I am near Binghamton, NY on my way to Northampton, MA for an artshow. As you can see weather was fair and the trees were in their peak. I've never seen trees so bright and full of intense color. Now I am a believer in the stories about the fall colors in New England.


Unfortunately the show was a bust-- I sold only four works on paper. The only artwork I saw moving with consistency was priced under $50 and my lowest priced pieces are around $80. The slow sales were to be expected after the worst week on Wall Street since the Great Depression. But it still hurt since this was, aside from my show in Chicago, the most expensive artshow of the year. The booth fees for the Paradise City artshows are steep, costing artists $750 for a basic booth. Paying for electricity is extra and something all artists do because the show is indoors. We were in a large white circus tent that had some holes in it. Some of the fabric artists complained of condensation dripping on their wares. The booths were strictly 10 x 10' with no wiggle room for storage.


All the signs I got from this show was that the show promoters were out to make as much money as they could off the artists. Because of the show's overall good reputation and steady jurying resulting in good quality of artwork the artists show up and we pay up. But based on this show's perfomance and my experiences at other shows this one is not worth the money. Artists hope for their expenses to be 10% of their sales at a given show. It's disheartening when the expenses aren't even met and you still have to pay for food, gas and lodging. Although I did enjoy the leaves and the crisp fall weather I don't think I will return to Northampton for awhile.

Artshows are interesting because of contacts that are made. Even with no immediate sales artists can still make friends, gallery contacts and take orders for commissions. I had a gallery contact and then did a brief video interview with a professional art coach. The Art Coach who interviewed me was Chuck DeWolfe from artmastermind.com.



Back in Virginia I have two commission pieces to work on for the remainder of October. Then it's on to planning for 2009. Big plans are in store.

October Local Shows--special exhibits

During the month of October I will participate in two area artshows at local galleries:

One show is an Invitational Portrait Exhibit at 150 Franklin Street Gallery in Harrisonburg, VA. The portraits I am exhibiting are of my daughter, husband and self, the earliest from 1996, the latest from 2006. My friend and mentor artist Margot Bergman (http://www.margotbergman.com/) helps manage and operate this gallery which is owned by Joann Gabbin of JMU's Furious Flower Poetry workshop.

Above are two samples of my portraits: titles: "Fifteen" and "Winter of 2005".

More info about 150 Franklin Street Gallery at http://sugarplumgabbin.com/franklinstreetgallery/

The other local show is at KRONOS Gallery in Staunton, VA. This show features artists from Harrisonburg. I am submitting two non-objective current paintings for the show shown below. Titles of works: "September Panel Group" and "Yin".

More info about KRONOS Gallery:

http://www.artisdangerous.com/Gallery/Kronos/Kronos.htm

More September Sales and Gallery info

This abstract triptych painting sold at the Byrne Gallery in September. The dimensions for this work are 40" x 72". It was purchased by a couple who live in Sweden. Gallery info for the Byrne Gallery can be found at: http://www.byrnegallery.com/index.htm

Also in September two large canvases and several of my works on paper sold at the Little Gallery on Smith Mountain Lake: http://www.thelittlegallerysml.com/ . I've exhibited with the Little Gallery for five years. The current abstract work seems to be doing well there.

Last week I donated a series of my art prints to the Wachovia Bank in Bridgewater, VA. My studio is in Bridgewater so I am working there pretty much everyday I am not on the road. Below are a few more examples of some of my regional art prints. All of the originals shown are sold. The geese painting was sold in 2004 to some business owners in Harrisonburg, VA. The mountain lake painting sold in 2005 at an artshow in Solomons, MD, and the landscape sold in 2004 to some collectors in Harrisonburg who now own seven of my paintings.

2008 September Shows and Sales

During the month of September in addition to the sales at Rittenhouse Square in Philadelphia, the abstract painting of the circle was sold at an art festival in Alexandria, VA. The weather that weekend was 100 degrees. This painting sold to a retired Ambassador who lives in Alexandria. He said it reminded him of the universe. Also at the Alexandria show were sold several works on paper not pictured here. Samples of the works on paper can be seen at http://www.labergeart.com/.

The painting below of the forest was created in 2005 and sold the same year. I was commissioned this month by a collector to paint a picture similar to this one. The collector discovered my artwork on an archive website http://www.artandjunk.com/. This collector lives in Bethesda, MD and made his first purchase of my work earlier this year.

The painting of the mountain was completed in 2003. It sold the same year. I've had limited edition prints made of this image and it has been my best-selling print. The picture features a view of Massanutten mountain from the southwest. It is the signature mountain in Harrisonburg, VA where I live. I sell my regional subject matter prints locally in some gift and frame shops. This print was purchased online at http://www.mossycreektrail.com/ by someone in CT.