#hertsvisualarts

Open Studios – the onward journey…

Well, the first week is over…
I was footling about on the first day, convinced I was to receive no visitors (on due reflection, perhaps trying to hold my Private View on a Saturday night was a non-starter), and heard a knock on the door…

And there were people galore!

As it turned out, my cousin had spotted Open Studios approaching and thoughtfully prodded several family members into coming – not only said cousin but my aunt and uncle (a painter himself), plus one surprise neighbour with her own interest in art 1. They all turned up on my doorstep within half an hour of each other…

… and we held our own impromptu Private View, which made my dayPleasedAsPunch_LH 2.

 

I’m also pleased to report we all ate the shortbread and passionfruit cake threatened in the previous post… and survived!

To make it look as if I actually work in my studio, I have strategically placed unfinished paintings all around the room

The following day someone from St Albans Art Society also visited, and very flatteringly quizzed me all about my work 3.

And yesterday, which was another very pleasant surprise, the lady who produces the local Park Street newsletter came to visit… with formal interview to follow ^_o…

I’m still pretty sure my house is still too far from any pass-by traffic to get many visitors (although we’ll see if there is any increase in footfall next week when nearby artist Sarah How is also opening her studio), so I’ll probably be changing my approach next year.

However, I’m hardly one to talk… I’ve not yet even planned my visits to the other local artists myself >_<…

1

Mosaics, intriguingly… I wonder if she’s involved with the local marquetry group…

2

We discovered (when on the obligatory 3-hour tour of all artwork in the house) by dint of hey-I-recognise-that-still-life, that my uncle and I have the same occasional painting tutor, Caroline Bays…
… this also means we both paint well enough to accurately identify objects in our still lifes. A mutual win!

3

His own speciality is in maintaining very intricate and informative sketchbooks – something of a diary, something of a scientific journal, and illustrated throughout with very beautiful line-and-watercolour sketches.

Herts Open Studios Ahoy!

Yep, it’s that time of the year again… the time I realise I haven’t actually started preparing for my Herts Open Studios and it begins next week.

Cue frantic shopping for refreshments, brochure distribution (which can handily be done simultaneously… or at least some supermarkets put them up on their community noticeboards) and slathering nearby street furniture in fluorescent yellow signage.

This year there are a few other artists in the vicinity, so I’m hoping we might encourage visitors to tour us all…

Additional details, plus the online brochure with the most up-to-date info, are on the Herts Visual Arts website (my page is here), including a handy interactive map with which to plan your visits. There is also a Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/hertfordshirevisualarts

So yes! Come to Herts Open Studios, and take a look! There will be artwork! There will be tea and shortbread! There may also be passionfruit cake… unless it ends up like my last attempt at passionfruit cake, in which case, well, there will just be tea and shortbread.

Closed Studios

While a little off the beaten track, several visitors nonetheless managed to find my Open Studio and offer fresh insight into my work. Feedback ranged from the format and type of artwork that would be best to focus on, to which events and art societies I might participate in – a lot of thoughts to digest!

Belying my office-job roots, to help me sort out all the feedback I have resorted to that most mediocre of organisational tools, the homemade Powerpoint presentation – NB mediocrity was introduced by the creator, not the software:

181009 Herts Open Studios feedback img

Notably, little feedback was given on pricing, although I asked; people are unsurprisingly shy about this (it’s always a little awkward telling the artist to their face that their work is overpriced…)

Although several visitors were people I knew, some were completely new to me and making the rounds of many Open Studios, and one turned out to be a local artist only a few minutes’ walk from my house. Most heartening of all, a couple of commissions have come my way as a result.

I hope to take part next year as well, although I’m undecided about whether to opt for a more centrally-located group, or to try and enlist a few more local artists to create more of a draw to visitors in this area.

I might not bake quite so much next time though; only a few people availed themselves of the edible goods, so I had to demolish three tins of homemade shortbread, two tins of flapjacks and three loaves of focaccia bread* almost by myself… but I managed.

*ah wait no, I actually baked another loaf for a belated visitor today… and they ate some!

Open Studios

Well, Open Studios is more than halfway through, so time to share some initial impressions…

Negatives
I haven’t had many visitors. I wasn’t expecting many… but three out of the six groups of people who have turned up were either fellow artists I arm-twisted into coming, or were turning up anyway to pick up some artwork. I suspect some of the lack of footfall is down to:

  • My ongoing inability to handle social media in any form…
  • My house being a bit out-of-the-way for getting pass-by trips (though one musician called in who was on the lookout for an audio version of Open Studios – a thought for another year, perhaps!)

So, maybe next time I’ll try to participate as one of a more centrally-located group. Obviously this means I won’t be able to do any demos in my studio, but it also means I won’t have to do any special baking or house-cleaning (always a plus to one as lazy as I).

Also… yes I know, I know… I should get an Instagram account. Perforce, also a tablet / iPad of some sort.

Positives
From the visitors who have visited, I’ve had some interesting feedback – both for specific pieces of work and in general (leading to the rough-draft print pricing here).

Although I’ve been in my studio (nominally) producing artwork during most of Open Studios, I’ve managed to visit a few of the other artists participating in St Albans, with a couple more scheduled. So – lovely work on view at:

  • Marks & Tilt (artists Jonathan Emmerson, Jane Bottery and Gail Robins)
  • Angela Mellen’s printwork and beautifully decorated house
  • Trestle Arts Base cafe (artists Flea Cooke, Jo Stapleton and Linda Brown, plus more specific info on their Open Studios exhibition ‘Glimpses’ here)
  • and Hatty De Barnard’s gorgeous Nude Tin Can gallery (artists Dorienne Carmel, Liz Rogers, Emma Boote, Matthew McLeish, Stephanie Littlechild and Hatty herself).

Looking forward to seeing more of the OS artists next week!