Art by KSB

The first art show for “Art by KSB” was this fall at the Morada Art Walk in Islamorada, Florida. Every third Thursday, local artists show their work in booths spread throughout the art district, and I began to participate in October. I was thrilled to sell 4 of my framed 9 x 12 original acrylic paintings, followed by several more ordered by friends up north. Then, at the November show, I sold three more and received an order for a commission from a friend here in Key Largo. She asked me to paint an Octopus for her daughter and added, “she loves blue”!

Building my Art business

I am painting originals; once they’re sold, they’re gone. To create a more sustainable business, most artists create a giclee or print from the original and everything from coasters to mugs, aprons to scarves. Who doesn’t love buying original art on a selection of gift items? One of my artist friends, my inspiration and mentor, Becky Steele, told me about Zazzle, so I have been learning their system.

Zazzle

The beauty of Zazzle is that they take care of production, sales, packaging and shipping! All I have to do is figure out how to take some of my art and modify it to fit their products. I started with mugs, magnets, and some of my favorite tropical fish and other kritters. It takes time to learn to extract images, resize them, and insert them into various products. You can see how I’m doing at https://www.zazzle.com/store/artbyksb

Commissions are a Challenge

For my first commission, a friend told me she loved the two Pelicans I had shown, but could I paint them on a larger canvas? You might think, “well, that’s easy,” but remember, I am new at this. So, I purchased larger canvases and figured out how to scale them larger. We were both happy with the result, and I shipped them off to New Jersey. The size is 16 x 20; one of the pelicans, my favorite, is shown to the right.

The second commission was even more of a challenge. My friend Amy asked if I could paint her two chihuahuas, Marla and Mia. I suggested she take a photo of the two together and send it to me. After several failed attempts, I asked her to take another but focus on their faces. I also warned her that I was not a realistic painter, but I would see what I could do.

Last week, I shipped the finished product to Amy. She received them today and told me she loves the painting! I enjoyed painting Marla & Mia; maybe I will try more dogs. There are a lot of dog people here in the Florida Keys.

Painting vs. Writing

Have you noticed that painting is getting in the way of my writing? Who knew I would be so busy in retirement? As 2022 ends and we begin a new year, I hope to spend a lot more time on both while leaving mornings for pickleball and other physical activities.