Susie Tenzer, artist : artist

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Monday, April 2, 2012

Best Free Art Exhibit Spaces You Haven't Thought Of

I just installed ten of my colored pencil art paintings at a local library, the St. Louis county library Daniel Boone Branch. for the month of April. They were super nice and I love how my art looks among the book shelves! The Greater St. Louis Artist Association has many opportunities for juried members to display their work in a variety of venues.

Call your local library to find out whether or not you can display your art - sometimes there is a waiting list, but they're very happy to have your work.

Last year I had an exhibit of my work at a local nursing home, Brooking Park. This was also for one month. The residents enjoyed seeing original art. Many visitors came through the show as well as staff members - all potential buyers! I was able to leave business cards and information about my custom house portraits.

I displayed my paintings in a local coffee shop for a month. Unfortunately this one wasn't satisfactory for me - the owner took my paintings off the walls to put up another artist's work without telling me. My paintings were sitting on a back shelf with the coffee for two weeks. Ugh. I still think this is a great idea, though. I'm looking for a little restaurant or cafe next time.

I just heard an idea about showing art in a home - creating a private exhibit - on the Artists Helping Artists radio show with Leslie Saeta. Sounds like fun, maybe wine and cheese?

So...think outside your art exhibit box...

Sold!

ACEO "Two Cherries" Susie Tenzer on Etsy

Monday, March 26, 2012

Underpainting: Get Your Glow On

I love using an underpainting. Sometimes I use a yellow wash of colored pencil before layering other colors. Here's an example of a recent painting of green apples which I began with yellow:

Apple Juice, 11 x 12

See how the yellow shines through the layers of color to create a glow? I've used this method with other colors as well. If I'm not sure whether or not it will work (or look good after a lot of layers) I use a scrap piece of paper to work out the order of the colors. I write down the names of each color so I'll remember what I did in case I stop and come back to it the next day. Give it a try, I think you'll like this technique.

I want to thank the folks at the Greater St. Louis Art Association for having me present a workshop this past week. It was a pleasure to speak to his talented group of artists. I gave them my top tips for selling online as well as some of my favorite colored pencil techniques. If you're in the St. Louis area check out their juried Art Fair at Queeny Park, March 30 - April 1

Monday, March 5, 2012

Selling Art Online Is An Art

I spent the whole day Saturday creating my first power point presentation. It didn't take very long to put together, but I lingered looking at the various ways I could make things flash and zoom. The fonts! The clip art! I'm giving a presentation to the Greater St. Louis Art Association later this month. I'll be talking about my colored pencil process and how I sell art online. I have an hour to fill, so I thought I'd talk for 30 minutes about colored pencil technique and use the rest of my time for art marketing.
When I think about all the internet sites I've shown my paintings this past year, I'm amazed. A year ago I didn't even know what Pinterest was (was Pinterest around a year ago?). I'm going to encourage the audience to consider, if they haven't, the importance of having a website. I have a terrific website created lovingly by my computer savvy daughter. It has the main ingredients: home page, bio, artist statement, contact and link information. She added a page for me about commissions. We tweak it from time to time.
I thought about calling my presentation, "Twelve Ways To Sell Art In 2012." I have an Etsy Shop where I sell original paintings, prints and note cards. I also have a shop on DailyPaintWorks where I can set up affordable auctions. It's sort of like Ebay except it's all original art. I'll tell them all I know (listen to me, now I'm a know-it-all) about social media, since I have a Facebook page, Twitter account, Flickr page, StumbleUpon page and - oh yeah - a Pinterest account! If anyone wants to know about my newsletter, I'll tell them I use Mad Mimi. (if you'd like to sign up for my free monthly newsletter, you can do it from this blog - upper right hand corner, just takes a minute). I'll tell them about my blog and all the nice people I've met. I think that's only nine ways I'm selling my art online, but it's still a lot.

Original mini canvas painting, 3" x 3" colored pencil by Susie Tenzer Buy it on Etsy $25

Monday, October 10, 2011

Artist Mary C. Nasser

I'd love for you to meet my friend, Mary C. Nasser. She's an artist and teacher. We met through Etsy, discovering that we both live in St. Louis! The best part - we're both exhibiting at Wood Icing Gallery in Chesterfield, MO. owned by another artist and Etsy seller Heather Haymart.

South by Mary C. Nasser
This painting layers a Hawaiian map, ink drawing of a Hawaiian petroglyph and geology, metallic tape, vintage illustration, green olivine sand (purchased on the Big Island), acrylic media and acrylic on a small stretched canvas.

Lake by Mary C. Nasser
This painting layers a Hawaiian map, ink, metal, encaustic, olivine (I purchased on the Big Island), pieces of vintage map, and acrylic on a small stretched canvas.

Mary started making art as a child, and her mother was always very supportive and encouraging of her interest in art. The painter who fascinated her the most was Vincent Van Gogh. She let herself be absorbed in the process of art and painted as much as possible. In 2010, a jury selected her sculpture proposal for Wings in the City – a project to raise funds for the Jennifer and Jim Koman Expressive Therapy Program at Wings, a local pediatric hospice and palliative care program. Her 5' X 4' fiberglass butterfly sculpture is entitled Journey. It is embellished with metallic acrylics and maps. The art project raised $1.3 million dollars for Wings. All of Mary's art is inspired by nature. In 2007 she lived in the southwest, examining desert landscapes. She studied at Red Cinder Creativity Center in 2008, located between the active volcanoes Kilauea and Mauna Loa, on the Big Island of Hawaii. She studied the various landscapes and dynamic geology of the island. The dramatic volcanic landscapes continue to inform and influence her work.