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* The Most Valuable Objects on the Planet

* COLLECTOR'S DISCOVERY ZONE

   See the latest works by our artist members!

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* The Most Valuable Objects on the Planet

* COLLECTOR'S DISCOVERY ZONE

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When you think about it, good paintings are among the most valuable objects on the planet (notice I qualified the statement with by adding the word "Good").  Think I'm kidding? Van Gogh's "Irises" sold for $49 million dollars in 1987.  No doubt it would be more today.  "Au Moulin de la Galette" by Renoir has sold for as high as a whopping $78.1 million.  Now, that's a lot of green for one canvas!  However, not only are paintings valuable FINANCIALLY, but even more so EMOTIONALLY. 

Back when I was in the gallery business, I often saw people moved to TEARS by paintings.  What kind of price tag do you put on THAT?  Usually only those you love (or hate) can move you to tears, but with paintings, we're talking about a tangible object that can move a person to tears.  Paintings can affect a myriad of emotions in their viewers, from happiness and excitement, to sadness and disgust.  Visual art can "take us away" from our hectic lives and daily problems and give us an inner moment of peace, tranquility or joy. 

For these reasons, people become extremely emotionally attached to their art.  I know a lady who has been offered over a million dollars for a particular bronze sculpture that she owns (This is many times what she paid for it.)  Her reply? "The bronze means more to me than the money." I find that even with my own art collection. People often ask me, "Which piece is your favorite?" I usually respond with, "Which of your children is your favorite?" (Along with a sheepish grin.)  Even when selling paintings in the gallery, people would select a painting to purchase and I would think, "NO! I'm not quite ready to let THAT one go!"

Few people have the opportunity to create truly unique, tangible, one-of-a-kind items of high value like visual artists do.  Even other types of "artists" don't have the opportunity to relish in such wonderful physical "proof" of their creations. Think about musicians, dancers, and actors.  To see their "originals", the viewer must be present at its creation (i.e. the performance itself).  And a performance is a re-creation anyway. To reach the audience in their homes (as painters can do simply by hanging the painting on the collector's wall), all other art mediums must rely on duplication techniques:  music (CD's), dance (video), acting (video) ... even photographers must rely on film. 

Indeed, only visual artists have this tangible evidence of the original creation process.  And the value is attached to the work product itself.  Think about it.  Other forms of art have no original and tangible product to store their intrinsic value.  How do you purchase music? You can purchase a recorded copy, you can purchase a concert ticket, you can purchase the score, and you can even purchase the copyrights to music. But none of those things are truly the original. "'What about the concert?" you ask.  Good question.  The original artist may perform it, but even it is only a rehearsed copy.  It would be like watching a painter "repaint" a painting. . . without even having a finished painting at the end!

My somewhat belabored point is that only visual art provides both an ORIGINAL & TANGIBLE product.  Gold can store value, but can't move us to tears (unless you bought it at the wrong time), while music can move us to tears, but can't store value in a physical way.  Paintings can do BOTH.

This is one reason we become so addicted to paintings.  We like experiencing the emotions they provoke and we like the idea of owning the original one-of-a-kind item that nobody else in the entire world owns.  Paintings are like people: no two are exactly alike, but all are gifts from God and are to be cherished.

All of this presents the gifted artists themselves with a wonderfully awful dilemma.  Wonderful because of what they are able to contribute to humanity, but awful because for us to enjoy it, THEY HAVE TO LET THE ARTWORKS GO.  I've often seen FABULOUS paintings in an artist's studio and I ask the artist, "Can I buy THAT one?"

"I'm not quite ready to let THAT one go . . .",  He replies.

I know exactly how he feels.

Warm Regards,

Clint

PS "Every genuine work of art has as much reason for being as the earth and the sun." (Ralph Waldo Emerson)

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* Creativity Begets Creativity
   So Get Small for Erfahrung

* COLLECTOR'S DISCOVERY ZONE

   See the latest works by our artist members!

In the art production game, continuous practice and improvement is essential to growth, particularly if you’re looking for rapid growth. Along comes Robert Genn of The Painter's Keys, "We're all familiar with the problems associated with Sunday Painters. Cranking up the old machine once a week may be okay in the vintage car hobby--but it's bad news in the creativity game. The steady worker who applies his craft daily is more likely to make creative gains than an intermittent one."

If this “law” of creativity weren’t true we could all just recline by the pool for four days a week and go to work on Friday and complete our responsibilities with a great blast of productivity. But life doesn’t work that way and trying to work against the natural law of creativity would make as much sense as passing a resolution to skip winter. While we’re at it, why don’t we just make life easier for all those scientists and just round off pi to the next whole number?

Unfortunately, practicing our craft daily can be quite a challenge. Real life intervenes for so many of us. I think for those who are serious about making strides in their art (which probably includes everyone reading this newsletter), the old adage is true, “Practice makes perfect.” The good news is that a little bit of practice will go a long way. If you're currently a weekend warrior, find ways to hone your craft at least A LITTLE BIT during the week. Perhaps it's just a sketch pad during your lunch hour...perhaps just a 30 minute study. Creativity begets more creativity so it's critical to keep your mind in the “zone.”

In painting, experience can be looked upon as a function of the number of paintings an artist has created. In effect, the more paintings you’ve done, the more experienced you are. Kevin Macpherson recommends working small as a way to gain experience rapidly. He writes in his book, Fill You Oil Paintings with Light and Color, “When you step up to a small canvas to try something new every day rather than working and reworking a large painting for weeks, you see progress. You learn to master techniques such as brushwork and texture, which boosts your confidence. Painting on a small scale also forces you to ignore inconsequential details and look for larger shapes, broader color relationships and overall composition. It gives you the ability to look at a scene as a whole.” He further recommends committing to paint 100 small paintings as a means to rapid growth.

Fill You Oil Paintings with Light and Color by Kevin Macpherson:
http://www.kevinmacpherson.com

When you get in the creative “zone” more often, you strengthen the neural pathways that allow you to be creative, thus making it easier to be even MORE creative. It’s sort of like developing a habit to be creative.

Nietzsche identified two different kinds of knowledge. On the one hand you have the things you know from personal experiences and from personal observation, which he called “ erfahrung .” There are also the abstractions you think you know - the kinds of things that you read about in art books and from viewing the works of others - which he called " wissen ."

Although wissen teaches us ideas in the intellectual realm, experience based knowledge; erfahrung catapults us up the growth curve so much faster. Trying to become a better painter through wissen alone would be like spending your Sunday watching home improvement television instead of just fixing that leaking faucet.

Now that I’ve given you a bit of wissen on the subject, get out there and get some erahrung ! And don’t forget to get small.

That’s my fine art view, hit reply to send me yours.

Sincerely,

Clint Watson
Software Craftsman and Art Fanatic

PS: "No one can draw more out of things, books included, than he already knows. A man has no ears for that to which experience has given him no access." (Friedrich Nietzsche)

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* IMITATION LEARNING
   Imitation is a natural tendency, 
   but be sure to work to come into your own.

* COLLECTOR'S DISCOVERY ZONE

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Researchers at the Volen Center for Complex Systems at Brandeis University have taken a second look at "imitation learning." It seems that when natural talent is added to one's flagrant imitation of others, what results may be the dual assets needed to gain proficiency. Repeated practice and focused desire come into the equation as well. "We are trying to determine what strategies will optimize imitation learning," says study co-author Robert Sekular. "These strategies are crucial for acquiring many of the skills needed in daily life. A lot of what we do is learned by watching and imitating others." This includes tying our shoes, feeding ourselves and, apparently, creating art.

Humans have a natural tendency--in some cases a necessity--to do things in the "correct" way. Much basic learning is done in "monkey see, monkey do" methodology. This goes for sophisticated procedures as well. Novice heart surgeons, for example, learn order, technique and proficiency by watching seasoned pros. Golf swings are refined by playing Tiger's videos. Complex ballet steps are mastered by observing the legs and feet of expert ballet dancers. It's the honoured principle of the "demo." While some human activities are more formalized than others, "visual recipe gathering" is part of our psyche.

The visual arts present a problem in this area. Time-tested processes and academic principles are, of course, valuable, but when large numbers of artists begin to imitate one another a kind of rigor mortis creeps into the creative landscape. Art often expects and demands that one artist be unique from the next. Artists on a quest to find "the secret" can easily fall into the imitation pit. In art, there's no single, golden way.
Ideally, individualists need to sidestep imitation learning and instead rely on direct observation of either the physical world or the universe of the human mind. That's why self-education is so important in the visual arts. Becoming a student of your own processes and following your nose in the quietude of your workspace can be the most effective route to private bliss and public success.

Many art schools understand and exemplify this dichotomy by teaching little but attitude. This is often a mistake. Those experts at Brandeis say we grab our basics by imitation learning, but it seems it is only later that we get a decent grab at attitude.

Best regards,

Robert

PS: "All education must be, in the end, self-education."
(Robert Henri)

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* Email Everyone You Know
   Get started with marketing your art - start with who you know

* What NOT to Buy Your Wife for Her Birthday
   Never, Never, Ever Reveal her true age

* COLLECTOR'S DISCOVERY ZONE

   See the latest works by our artist members!

One Thousand Paintings:
http://www.onethousandpaintings.com/

Paint by Numbers by Daniel H. Pink:
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/14.12/posts.html?pg=3

In our humble opinion, he broke two cardinal rules of marriage and manhood.  First, a wife’s birthday demands a more thoughtful gift than a number.  And second, we all know that you never, never EVER   reveal your wife’s true age . . . perhaps he should have acquired number 29.

The most telling line of Mr. Pink’s article is the last, regarding Sala’s customs declaration, “For a work whose worth was $959 and that cost $575, Sala estimated the value of 41 at $40.” 

Sincerely,

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* THE TRUE VALUE OF AN ARTIST BLOG
   The primary value of a blog is getting traffic to your site

* COLLECTOR'S DISCOVERY ZONE

   See the latest works by our artist members!

There has been a lot of hype about blogs in the last year and, in many cases, too much hype.  In fact, last summer I wrote a piece that was fairly critical of blogs.

See Blogs and Success, Separating the Wheat from the Chaff:
http://data.fineartstudioonline.com/dataviewer.asp?page=Blog&keyvalue=126&subkeyvalue=379

A couple of thoughts about the list below.  I'm getting traffic from people who are searching for other artists.  These people found my blog because I have blog posts that discuss other artists.  This reveals an important "secret" -  you can garner traffic to your artist web site by writing about other artists whom you admire.  This might be more effective if you write about artists whose works appeal to the same clientèle as your work.  I also notice that I'm generating a fair amount of traffic due to keywords referenced in blog posts by guests - other writers whose work I "reprinted" with permission.  Another "secret" revealed - if your not a prolific writer, make a deal with a few of your friends to "share" content.  You can let them post your stuff on their blogs and you should definitely post their stuff on your blog...just make sure you exchange links in those posts too, this way you can benefit from garnering more inbound links (See A Look at Links)  Lastly, I notice that a lot of guys must be desperate to find out what to buy their wives for their birthdays since there seem to be a bunch of variations on that theme (all no doubt due to my blog post "What NOT to Get your Wife on her Birthday").

Chris Anderson, Editor of Wired magazine calls this phenomenon the "Long Tail."  You've probably heard of the 80/20 rule - 80% of your sales come from 20% of your customers...or, in our case, 80% of your traffic comes from the top 20% of your keywords.  With a traditional web site, you had to focus on getting your site to come up on a search engine in those to 20% keywords.  With MOST artists, I would argue that what you really need to focus on is your own NAME, because most people looking for an artist, search for the artist by name.   The 80/20 rule is fine, but by definition it means your ignoring the 80% (80% of your customers, 80% of your keywords, etc).

What blogging allows you to do, over time, is slowly build content that captures the "long tail" or the remaining "80%".  This analogy is not perfect since there are essentially an infinite number of keywords, but you get the idea.

One other thought - you could create a lot of the benefits of blogging that I have outlined by being sure to post new artwork often, and to write a paragraph to display with each piece...remember: search engines can only "see" text.  In fact, I recommend you do both - post paintings often with text AND blog.

OK Without further ado, here is the list:

Search Engine Keywords for ClintWatson.net 1/1/2007 - 1/26/2007:
clint watson" on Google   (We would expect this to be number one)
"paul oxborough" on Google 
"malcolm liepke nudes" on Google 
"jeff watts art" on Google 
"internet art scams" on Google 
"review liepke" on Google 
"sylvia white art advice any good" on Google 
"'miles mathis' gravity" on Google 
"van gogh, ears of wheat, blotch"  on Google 
"red frog paintings" on Google 
"developing your own style" on Google 
"san antonio spurs little general" on Google 
"artist and gallery relationships" on Google 
"art pricing guidelines" on Google 
"art variation " on Google 
"clint watson utah" on Google 
"marketing art using ebay painting
small paintings" on Google 
"'kelly crow' and 'wall street journal'" on Google 
"paul oxborough arc" on Google 
"hui han liu " on Google 
"paintings from bravo" on Google 
"'more than eight' usability" on Google 
"claudio bravo easel" on Google 
"'how to become a fine artist'" on Google 
"clint watson art" on Google 
"what to get my wife for her birthday" on Google 
"'pricing art" on Google 
"brian kliewer price" on Google 
"robert spooner" on Google 
"allusion painting" on Google 
"art evaluation worksheet" on Google 
"art christmas ghost of present" on Google 
"good names for painting jobs" on Google 
"edvard munch aspergers" on Google 
"barbara henning loomis" on Google 
"the invitation, morgan weistling" on Google 
"dreams about zebras,what do they mean?" on MSN 
"dateline nigerian internet scam cashier check" on Google 
"abstract pantings" on Google 
"glorious paintings" on Google 
"art florence syndrome" on Google 
"artists to collect" on Google 
"oxborough paintings" on Google 
"rosann munger" on Google 
"thomas mcknight, artist, lawsuit" on Google 
"drama through paintings" on Google 
"robert coombs paintings" on Google 
"fineartstudioonline.com" on Google 
"marketing complimentary idea" on Google 
"getting round the right click disabler" on Google 
"clint, modern art" on Google 
"da vinci type of perspective" on Google 
"bravo, claudio kitten" on Google 
"$140 million pollack painting picture" on Google 
"varnish technique" on Google 
"malcolm liepke decline" on Google 
"what to buy my wife for her birthday" on Google 
"quote leonardo learning skills fade away" on Google 
"bank one incoming wire transfer warren, ohio" on Google 
"kelly crow wall street journal" on Google 
"joe wojdakowski" on Google 
"artists to collect for the future" on Google 
"1920's media hype " on Google 
"steve huston nudes" on Google 
"artist gallery relationship" on Google 
"wired magazine what kind of genius are you" on Google 
"who buys art and why do they buy" on Google 
"'robert coombs' art" on Google 
"sue becque" on Google 
"the good, thebad, the ugly art gallery" on Google 
"how does kinkaid market his art>" on Google 
"aron weisenfeld" on Google 
"gallery/artist relationship" on Google 
"what to buy your wife for birthday" on Google 
"what to get you wife for her birthday" on Google 
"unused links" on Google 
"what percentage an artist agent" on Google 
"what does an artist's agent do" on Google 
"renoirs for sale" on Google 
"yahoo checking inbound links" on Google 
"framed prints of stone city by grant wood" on Google 
"we are free indeed" on Google 
"jim wodark" on Google 
"classic 'art fanatic'" on Google 
"galleries and how an artist should approach" on Google 
"stendhal artist" on Google 
"don sahli" on Google 
"arts and gallery relationships" on Google 
"etching hopper" on Google 
"anders ericcson" on Google 
"artist and gallery relationship" on Google 
"push yourself past your comfort zone" on Google 
"art variation" on Google 
"nigerian scam art test" on Google 
"critics of bill bonner" on Google 
"artists who collect" on Google 
"what to get your wife for her birthday" on Google 
"relationship artists" on Google 
"claudio bravo last sales" on Google

Hoping you found this information useful,

Clint Watson
Software Craftsman and Art Fanatic

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* WHAT NOT TO GET YOUR WIFE FOR HER BIRTHDAY
   Never, Never Buy "Art" revealing your wife's age 

* COLLECTOR'S DISCOVERY ZONE

   See the latest works by our artist members!

One Thousand Paintings:
http://www.onethousandpaintings.com/

Paint by Numbers by Daniel H. Pink:
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/14.12/posts.html?pg=3

In our humble opinion, he broke two cardinal rules of marriage and manhood.  First, a wife’s birthday demands a more thoughtful gift than a number.  And second, we all know that you never, never EVER   reveal your wife’s true age . . . perhaps he should have acquired number 29.

The most telling line of Mr. Pink’s article is the last, regarding Sala’s customs declaration, “For a work whose worth was $959 and that cost $575, Sala estimated the value of 41 at $40.” 

Sincerely,

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* THE ONLY WAY YOU'LL EVER SELL ART
   How do you make people WANT your art? 

* COLLECTOR'S DISCOVERY ZONE

   See the latest works by our artist members!

There's really only one way you'll ever sell your art:  Get someone else to WANT to buy it. 

People buy art for all kinds of reasons, but in the end, all of them boil down to wants.  If someone doesn't want to buy your art - they won't.

Wants can be created in a variety of ways. Sometimes a want is a result of wanting to avoid something else.  Let's take an extreme example: You could hold a gun to someone's head and demand he buy your art...he WOULD want to do it . . . at least at that particular moment.   

More realistically, I don't want my wife to be unhappy.  If SHE loves a particular artwork, then I WANT to get it for her because I want to avoid the unpleasant state of affairs that exists in my life when she is unhappy.  (Hint for artists - if you want to sell me a painting - get my wife to love it first).

What else makes people WANT to buy your art?

They might want to support YOU.
They want to impress their friends.
They want the feeling that a particular artwork gives them.
They want to cover a blank space on their wall.
They want to "invest" in something of value.
The feeling of having "discovered" an artist
The feeling of having your "best" artwork

If we back up further and examine the "root" wants, we can catagorize nearly all of our wants/desires in a few general categories (generally in order of importance):

1.  The desire for health/survival
2.  The desire for satisfaction/happiness
3.  The desire to be great/important

Don't underestimate people's desire to be important.  In How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie, Mr. Carnegie discusses American philosopher John Dewey.

He writes:

Dr. Dewey said that the deepest urge in human nature is "the desire to be important." Remember that phrase...it is significant.

People buy art primarily for reasons 2 and 3. 

Some people, who are deeply moved by art, who possibly "suffer" from Stendhal Syndrome (discussed in Issue #1), buy art to satisfy their soul...to fulfill their desire for satisfaction and happiness.  Other people buy art to fulfill their desire to be important...to feel like they have a good "eye", to show their art to their friends, to be "in" with the hottest new artist, etc.  And some people (most people) are a complex combination of both desires.

Clint Watson
Software Craftsman and Art Fanatic

PS:  How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie is a must read for anyone who is interested in marketing and therefore, human nature.  Although the title is a bit trite and sounds a bit manipulative, the book itself is a fascinating study into the deepest motivations and desires that are common to all of us. 

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* THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION IN MARKETING
   Make sure your marketing messages are on target.

 

* COLLECTOR'S DISCOVERY ZONE

   See the latest works by our artist members!

With every message you put in front of your prospective clients, you should carefully consider your customer's needs and wants.  The best way to do that is to put yourself into your client's shoes and ask, "What's in it for me?"

I've been in marketing a long time and although I’ve always instinctively understood that all marketing must be considered from the client's point of view, it's only within the past couple of months that I've noticed people discussing the WIIFM (What's in it for me?) question.

I like the concept, WIIFM.  I've started approaching every blank piece of paper with the question WIIFM?

People buy for their own motivations, not yours.  So, your marketing must present yourself and your art in the shadow of WIIFM.

For example, let’s say a fictional artist bio reads, "John Q. Painter grinds his own pigments."

WHO CARES?  This kind of statement does NOT tell the customer WIIFM.  It tells them a fact that John Q. is proud of.

So ask yourself WHY would this fact matter to the client?  Let's assume that grinding his own pigments results in paintings with colors that are deeper, richer and last longer.  So we might change the bio to say something like the following:

When you own one of John Q's paintings, you'll enjoy a masterpiece that exhibits color and depth far beyond the average oil painting...in addition, your new family heirloom will last for generations.  This is due to the fact that unlike most average painters, John takes the time to painstakingly grind his own pigments.

You see?  Now we've considered the fact from the point of view of the customer and asked, "What's in it for ME?"

Make this one change in all of your marketing and sales efforts and you'll be astounded at the results.

Sincerely,

Clint Watson
Software Craftsman and Art Fanatic 

PS:  OK, so I might laid it on a little thick in the sample rewrite of John Q’s bio, but you get the idea….for more ideas about art, marketing, inspiration and fine living, visit my blog at:

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* WELCOME TO FINEARTVIEWS
   Who we are and why you're on our list.

* FOR ARTISTS:
   MAKE A LIST OF EVERYONE YOUR KNOW
   A practical marketing program for artists

* FOR COLLECTORS: 
   DO YOU HAVE STENDHAL SYNDROME?  I DO!
   Why as an art lover I'm "sick" -
   but don't want to get well!

 

* COLLECTOR'S DISCOVERY ZONE

   See the latest works by our artist members!

Dear ,

Welcome to the first issue of FineArtViews!  We're excited to launch FineArtViews: a free e-newsletter about art - specifically about art marketing, inspiration and fine living.  It is for artists, collectors, galleries and anyone else who simply loves fine art.

You may not recognize the name FineArtViews as we are consolidating several services into one, so you may have signed up at WebArtsites.com, FineArtStudioOnline.com, or have requested information personally from me, Clint Watson.

This email newsletter has three editions: daily, weekly and monthly.  You are currently signed up for the following edition(s):  . 

You may select your preferred edition(s), edit your preferences, or unsubscribe by clicking the following link.  You may also let us know if you are an artist, a collector, a gallery or all three so that we may tailor our information to your needs:

Edit Your FineArtviews Preferences:
http://data.fineartstudioonline.com/aspwpadmin/profile.asp?email=

We sincerely hope that you enjoy this service and will strive daily (or at least most days) to bring you useful and interesting information about the world of fine art.

Sincerely,

For artists (and other marketers), I propose that the "lens" concept works in another way.  Think of your network as "light."  Your network is EVERYONE YOU KNOW.  The goal of your marketing is to encourage, coax, entice your network to view/purchase your art work.  YOU ARE THE LENS.  The lens provides focus.  The lens directs the "light" and focuses it upon the goal.

In the upcoming days, I will "shine some light" upon several specific ideas regarding how to focus the lens.  But like most worthwhile projects, action is required upon your part.  So here is today's action plan:  Make a list of EVERYONE you know.  What you need to record is each person's name and email address.  If you have a phone number and physical address, record that too.  If there are specific "items of interest" you need to remember regarding specific people, jot them down (ie birthday, kid's names, hobbies).

So just who do you know?  Probably a lot more people than you realize.  Here is a list to get your brainstorming started - family, friends, coworkers, neighbors, people from your church, people you know in the PTA, past clients, other artists you know and anyone else who has ever expressed interest in your artwork.

Focus the lens - Make a List of Everyone You Know.

Sincerely,

I'm replying because I sell only through galleries and shows and not from my website. Since websites began, people always think they can get a better deal if they buy from the artist. There are many artists out there who sell for really low prices which hurts us all. I do not want to spend my time on the computer or phone etc.  I want to PAINT! I'm happy to pay 30-50% of the selling price to a gallery or art show organizer, ie, art center, museum, non-profit org. Do you think this technique would work if I sent the email  with a referral to my galleries on my website and let them know if they see anything on my website they especially are interested in to let the gallery know?
If someone comes to my studio to purchase a painting, I have them make the check payable to the local gallery which represents me. I give a 10% discount which the galleries understand and agree with. The galleries also do the same if I send them a client. 
Thank you for your ongoing support,

VC

 

[Editor's Note:  We DO think the email marketing campaign would work as an assistance to the efforts of VC's gallery.  As the artist, YOU control how you wish to sell the works (ie directly or through an agent or gallery), but the other aspects of marketing all remain the same. 

 

VC is a good example of how artists and galleries can work together in a spirit of cooperation and trust.  AND they appear to have their agreement well worked out in advance.]