Monday, March 06, 2023

Selling Art

I have given paintings to some friends and family. Some folks have bought my work. I realize that my paintings take a lot of time because of the look and the storytelling nature of what I am trying to do. When I did my Free Art On Wall project last year, I made some nice but small paintings to give away. It was fun to do some work that didn't take over 15 hours to paint. And I really enjoyed giving these small pieces away. 

 I like having my art up in people's homes. I don't need to make a living by painting. So, the temptation is just to give it all away. But, then how much worth does the painting hold to the person receiving it? In some cases, where I have strong ties to that person, I know there's a better chance that the painting is a real gift and  I like that. I have had friends who I have gifted paintings and then they also bought paintings, too.   

So, this is a new venture for me - to create pieces for sale that: 1. Are cool but not too weird (the stuff that I really like), 2. Are affordable, 3. Are sized nicely for a normal home. 

It would be neat to make a little $ to supplement my retirement income and to help me buy art supplies. Maybe I can get a small studio and gallery downtown eventually. Sarah is retiring soon and sometimes I think about traveling around with her,  making art on the road and then selling it to fund the adventure. 

On another note, I have all the video to make the final installment of Throwing Back Nemo 3. I just need to put it together. 

Here is my first foray into making art that fits the three above criteria. "What!?!" It is 11x14. Acrylic on canvas. I am asking $125 for it. You can message me or email me at Spokanarama@Comcast.net, if you are interested.

Cheerio! Maeve 





Monday, February 13, 2023

Throwing Back Nemo #2 - Making Beauty and Honoring a Hero with 19-year-old cereal..

 It's an oft told tale but maybe it's time to look into your heart and make something out of your old food. 




Wednesday, February 08, 2023

Throwing Back Nemo #1

As promised! And yes, I will eventually tell you what 19 year-old cereal tastes like. 


 


Monday, February 06, 2023

Throwing Back Nemo

 



As referenced here in this blog, almost 20 years ago, I have a cereal collection. Not a cereal box collection, but a collection of cereal boxes with the cereal settled inside, still nestling prizes and other gewgaws within. How did this sickness all start? How will it finish?

I will get into that a little, but mostly I want to say that this pursuit has become a crunchy albatross around my neck, a mocking Toucan Sam noose.  Sarah and I are both working to have a very tidy, very small amount of stuff for our sons to deal with when we pass on. If I were them, upon reception of crates of ancient cereal, I would not waste a precious second before it all went in the dumpster. 


I believe the first cereal that I collected was Urkelos. I saw the box and I thought to myself about what an odd thing it is to have a cereal dedicate to this very temporal character and how 10 years from its inception, no one would even know who Steve Urkel was, yet they were eating this junk. So, something seemed right about purchasing it. This was before “ironic” was a thing. Now it’s 30 years later and when I namedrop Urkelos, indeed, no one remembers poor Steve Urkel, nor the deliciousness he inspired. 


I think deep down I was thinking that some collector would want to buy some of these boxes, maybe some prop master or mistress would want one for a movie they were making. And then it became a thing, a joke, taking up space, haunting my fairly simple life with visions of my children pausing in their parental loss and grief just to curse me.


A month ago, I thought “Why not put one of these up for sale on FB Marketplace?” I started with the newest box  2004’s Finding Nemo cereal. $20, OBO. According to the box, there may be a pass to The Incredibles movie lurking within. No takers! Gee that’s a surprise. There is only one recourse to this situation,  I am going to make a video about opening it, making something out of the cereal, eat a little bit of it, etc. I figure I would do this with each box until they are gone. This could take years. 


So, please stay tuned. Production commences today! Oh and by the way, THE BLOG IS BACK!!!!


Friday, February 03, 2023

Gonna blog!!!!

Yes! I need to be blogging again! I have big plans to start destroying and documenting my cereal collection. It will be lovely. I will start filming that soon. But, in the meantime, retirement is great. My day is pretty much a routine. Wake up. Sit with my cup of coffee. Read the paper with Sarah. Run. Stretch. Meditate. PAINT! write. Prep food. Read. Watch a couple hours of TV and go to bed. And of course all of the other responsibilities of the day get thrown in there. I may be learning my lines, working on my radio show, doing Haiku Friday, building stuff, playing Surviving Mars, putting together videos, etc. 

Yes, my life is a lot less exciting than it used to be, but I am enjoying it very much, thank you!!! 

Here's today's Haiku Friday from my YouTube channel to kickstart this thing.