Plan your wins for 2008

Following on from my post yesterday 2007 Highlights and Accomplishments, here are some of my plans for 2008.

Firstly let me start with a prelude to my 2008 plan. Up until this point in my life I have pretty much left most things to chance and have always assumed that things would come my way eventually.
I have believed that if you are a good person that good things will come your way, events of this past year personally and art wise have shown me that this is true but I really HAVE to plan my life from this point onwards. I am getting older, my family life and time is getting shorter and more complicated (as the kids get older) and I have to speak up and chase after what I want or i will be left behind!

In saying that though I also recognise that I have to careful that I do not overplan and put such high expectations on myself and my family that I / we forget to just go with the wind sometimes and HAVE FUN. The past few years I have been all about just getting through the day / week / this or that job or project and not HAVING FUN along the way and that is not healthy and no way to live.

So, my ultimate goal for 2008 and is to more proactive in life but also to ensure that I always enjoy and make time for the positive things this applys to my art as well as my personal and family life.

My ULTIMATE art goal for this year is to by the end of the year to be supporting myself and my family with my art so that I can be a stay at home artist mum. In the first quarter of the year I hope to be earning / selling enough so as to be earning some type of income. I.e. At least selling something!!! Otherwise my hubby is sending me off to get a job :(

Some of the actions I am going to take to achieve my goals are this:

- Enter Competitions and Exhibitions - basically to get myself out there!
I already have taken steps towards this and researched some local options. I am currently preparing entries and paperwork for a few local competitions which are commencing for the new year. One of my goals is to continue doing this throughout the year at every opportunity.

- Continue and improve posts on my blog
My blog is such a valuable tool, I have plans for a bit of an design update soon. I have also realised that I really do need to put a bit more effort in effective titles and regular tweaks for my blog and squidoo if i am going to utilise them effectively. I am going to schedule on the calendar a review once a month at least.

- Website
I also have plans for a website design update, as well as some backend updates hopefully soon (as soon as hubby can do it for me). I will be adding modules for tracking and consignment of artwork( it will help me keep control of things when I start getting busier). I am also going to also change my gallery etc to be a bit more inline with my original idea for the site and hopefully I will also be adding comments and integrating more selling on the pages as well as a media release area.

- Making the most of self promotion and selling opportunities
I really haven't yet pursued my local avenues much at all. Specifically - I have the form for the local art society which I will send off in the next few days, I will also in the new year upgrade my listings on another online art directory I am getting lots of traffic from my other listing on artsconnect so this i think is a valuable tool :) I will also put together some type of marketing materials / flyers in the new year. I have tried Ebay a few times but I am always scared of calculating shipping but I think I might try again with some of my smaller works and have a "shop" and/Or I will add paypal options to my website to try to sell more.

- Greeting Cards
My greeting cards were a big success in 2007, I don’t make any money off them but they are good opportunity for self promotion I am going to do some more for calendar events such as mothers day etc. So these will continue in 2008

- Classes
For both my own mental stability and for my art progression I hope to regularly attend life drawing classes in the new year. Or sometype of workshop on a regular basis. Ideally i would like a group i can join regularlly with hopefully this will eventuate throughout the year.

- Mailing List
This is something I need to start to build on and pay some attention to.

- CPA
I am hoping as I start to have a bit income behind me I can afford to do things like become a member of the CPA, i hope that an australian option opens up for this at sometime in the future but responses on my squidoo and other forums indicate that there isnt a huge number of Australian CP artists.

- Directory
I am thinking of perhaps starting a local directory of artists, suppliers, galleries etc as I find it difficult to find out information in my area. Any information that I can find out is outdated and poorly managed. So this might be a project I do hopefully generating other work / income.

On the art side
Improve studio habits
I am wasting money on not storing materials properly (papers are getting creased not washing brushes properly), keeping inventory correctly and not utilising the stock I already have ( I have a lot of papers etc I should use this up first) so I will endeavor to change this habit in the new year.

Style
For my CP work I think I can describe my style as realism, but I would like the pieces to tell more of a story and have a bit more emotion for this year and perhaps less realism. The problem I am having with the CP pieces (as well as every other CP artist in the world) is that everyone thinks they are fabulous but the time it takes to create them is way out of most people's price range and I am selling myself short. Prints are good but cost me a lot of money upfront especially if I get them shipped. Also the framing of them adds to the overall cost of the pieces so in the end I barely would cover materials, so I hope to do some more "quicker" and loser pieces in this medium this year and save the big time consuming pieces for an exhibition or a particular special piece.

For my paintings I need to cement my style a bit more, its emerging with my recent pieces but i need to develop it a little further. I am really getting into the thick paint with a contrast of smoother backgrounds. I am really enjoying the contemporary and abstract pieces I have been doing and from talking with other artists this is more what people are interested in buying anyway. I am hoping that this might be where I generate some income in 2008.
In saying all of that though, I really need to do more of them. I need to have a lot more works available.

Make sketching a daily habit
This is going to be a tough one for me as two small kids makes for busy days but I am going to make a big effort to do this as I know it has a great deal of value and merit.

Illustration - IF
I really do enjoy illustration, my design background helps me with "client" related issues, but i do actually enjoy being given a brief. I think if I can sketch everyday this will improve my confidence and ability and hopefully I can generate a bit more work / style with this avenue. At the least it allows for totally freedom and a bit of fun.

So yes there is a lot there !!! And I can hear you saying these are all well and good intentions but will it happen? YES ! It HAS to.... or at least most of them will .... going back to what I started with at the beginning of this post I realise that I can no longer afford to leave my life to chance and this year I am going to be more organised all round.
To MAKE SURE I bought the 2008 Scribbletalk calendar and shortly I will be scheduling things on the calendar on a weekly and monthly basis to remind me to do these things. It will be displayed on my pantry door so I have to look at it everyday this is hopefully going to be my kick in the bum when lazy Belinda ventures back into my life and she will come back at some point i know she will but she can only hang around for a little while then she has to move out!!

2007 Highlights and Accomplishments

This year is finally coming to an end, i gotta tell you I am really looking forward to a fresh new start for next year! Bring it on!
I have already re-organised and de-cluttered the office, taken down old bits of paper etc on my cork board, I am dying to get onto all those Christmas decorations and get them down and I have sat down worked out some goals for 2008. Woot!
But before I move onto those I am taking inspiration from the ArtBizBlog and acknowledging just what I did achieve this year in 2007.

Ok, I admit it, I was pretty lazy in my goal for 2007, it was pretty much just to make art a regular part of my life and one specific goal was to make my artwork "simpler" i.e. not as cumbersome and detailed. These broad goals I did achieve (yay to me) and here are some other accomplishments I completed during the year.

• Progressed to using different mediums and techniques (moved to oils for painting and neocolours for cp artworks making the whole process quicker)

• Progressed to honing in on my own "style" probably this was already established with my CP works but for my paintings I think now I am grounding my style and techniques

• Got myself "out there" I entered my first exhibition and exhibited at markets. I printed off multiple greeting cards which I sold. I also was featured in FMP - ann Kullberg's magazine for CP artists for my "Pear" artwork. Contacted other magazines for articles which I am working on now hopefully to feature in the new year.

• Took every opportunity to go to art galleries and exhibitions where it fitted in with other commitments, talked to other artists and spent some time there.

• Took an ALL day life drawing workshop, which i loved
  

• Sketched (not as much as I would have liked but more often than I did previously)

• Got my website up and running

• Regularly posted on my blog

• Committed to (yes actually paid money) to be on an artists' directory. http://www.artsconnect.com.au

• Created with some other artists friends the Fine Art Friends which is private blog of artists who are there to support each other in their art.

It's funny as I started to write this list I thought, I haven't done that much and couldn't think of anything but as I thought back all these things started popping into my head, I actually didn't do too badly this year at all.

As for my goals for next year, they will come tomorrow! :)

More Bubbles - Coloured Pencil on Drafting film

Another update on the Bubbles pic, please excuse the bits of electric eraser which i forgot to wipe off when i took the photograph (i cant believe i didn't see that). My drafting film is actually starting to look a bit crinkled, and having just bought a new supply of drafting film the other day i realized that what i am working on for this pic isn't the same quality. :( So i am not too happy i am on too short a deadline to turn back now so i just have to make do with what i have, this piece is for my personal collection and exhibition anyway so it should be ok.
I still haven't made up my mind on the background i think i might just leave that off for a bit and make my decision later.



Meanwhile, i thought i would share with you the latest art attempts of my two little monkeys. Santa bought them some bath crayons for christmas which seems to make bath time actually a bit more messy but oh so much fun. Checkout the fabulous drawings they have come up with! My oldest boy's drawing is of a whale while my youngest was just happy to draw and say "Taada!" when he was finished.

Allan's Tree

"allan's tree" By Belinda Lindhardt,
oils on gallery wrapped canvas 91.4cm X 91.4cm, 36" X 36"

Well, Christmas in our house if officially over and done with, mind you we still have a fridge full of food to show for it. I didn't go all out this year over Christmas and i didn't obsess about it like i have the other years and it was great. I felt like i hadn't prepared much and felt bad about not sending so many Christmas cards etc but at the same time i gave myself the small luxury of not having to worry about it all which was a relief.

Nows its over and done with and presents are delivered i can now show you the present i made for my brother. He moved to a new apartment this year and needed something for his walls :)

So here is his Christmas present i think he liked it ;)

I am also going to put this one in for IF seeing as the topic for this week is "Horizon" i figured it would be very appropriate.

More bubbles

Here is another bubbles update. So now i am in a bit of a dilemma, i was experimenting with making some of the bubbles quite dark and vibrant but obviously this means that the background has to be dark at least... so i am in a bit of a dilemma as i was hoping not to put a background in... with no background these bubbles looked like marbles ...

so its either background or make the bubbles lighter ... hmmmmmm

Bubbles Update

Here is another update for my bubbles. :) Its coming along we have had a flea infestation in my house (yay us) so i have been preoccupied with spraying and wot not in order to get rid of them. at the moment they are winning :(

anywho i really need to get cracking on this *crack the whip*

Bubbles Update

I am managing to get a bit more done on this one today. I have really forced myself to do it to be honest :) I am really feeling blurgh ... and just not that creative.. but isnt what this whole art business thing is all about .. pushing through it even when you dont feel like it !!! :)

Bubbles Take 2

"Bubbles" WIP - By Belinda Lindhardt CP on drafting film A3 42X29.7cm

So here i am again,

I think i mentioned in a previous post that my bubbles pic had hit the trash can :)
The main reason for this was the skin texture i just couldn't get a smooth clean feel to it i think the main reason for that was the black stonehenge, i think if i didn't have to have as many layers to get the colour i wanted it would have been right. (so next time try a different coloured paper)
Anyway, so here i go again, and here is my second attempt of this one this time on drafting film. Its going much better so far i haven't done any colour on the back so once i do that i think i will get it really to pop... i just want to cover all of the area first before i start on that :) Again i dont think i will do the background but on the i am not confident on how it will look if i leave it. I have an idea for covering most of the area, i will just have to see how that pans out.

Anyway, this pic has a deadline so as you can see i am churning through it and i have to finish this it in the next few weeks - why well i would tell you but its top secret ! :)

Fields Finished

"Summer Fields" by Belinda Lindhardt - Oils on gallery wrapped canvas 60.5 X 30.5 cm

These fields i think are now finished :)

I really really like how these ones turned out ... it looks great on my wall .. even tho they are not hanging evenly :)... its bright and cheery. I was going to add a kite on there but i think i will just leave them as they are ... :) I really like this style as well .. this is something that has evolved for me and i really enjoy it :) hopefully i can get a better pic to you soon. These will be for sale from my website not sure how i would ship them though so i think it will just be local sales for now.

More stuff to come :) I have been working on a present today for someone so i cant post anything on that just yet it in case they see ... :) ... but will post more from that soon :)

Fields Update Wip

I finally managed to get some art in today :) woot !

So i worked against myself on this one and got it to this :) I always like to do a contrast between elements with both smooth flowing textures and rough / very tactile areas. This hardly ever happens for me tho as it seems i work against myself. But once i progress through it .. it just seems to evolve and i forced myself to do it this time :)

Still not finished as yet .. i cant quite get the colours etc right as its still very wet and i had to crop it a fair bit as they dont hang straight on my wall .. better pic to follow i promise :)

EDM 15 - Draw a tree or trees, leaves or branches

Every day Matters - 15 - Draw a tree or trees, leaves or branches

I have been a member of the Everday Matters group for sometime now, its been on my list of "i gotta do that", but keeps getting postponed and i just keep lurking. I have been super busy and haven't had much time lately for the actual drawing or painting of anything as things keep getting in the way and i have been concentrating on the business side of things, but i know that i really have to keep at it as i start to lose my eye, so i have been spending at least 10-15mins everyday sketching something mainly its been the boys and they never sit still so the sketches just look like weird aliens. I am putting it on my list as something i have to do just like brushing my teeth or taking a shower and i have been doing it for a few days this week and can see the benefits already. I have to keep telling myself the key is just to use that part of your brain don't worry about what it is your sketching or the outcome. The everyday matters group is a group that helps you to do that if you get stuck, their list of items to sketch is so long and i get inspired by reading it.

Last night i attempted to sketch my cute little swirly pots which actually have these really wonderful little plants in them with motttely leaves. The pots were a disaster but i decided to take the leaves further and had a wonderful little time with it. I used dots for the majority of the leaves and switched to lines for the last leaf i actually really like the lined leaf i think it has more character. I found this really small 005 pen, i love it .. have to get me some more of those :)

So here is my first entry for the EDM group and one of many more sketches of the day :)

ScribbleTalk 2008 Calendar

For those of you who dont know of it ScribbleTalk is a online community forum primarily for those artists who are using coloured pencils. I have been a member since it began and gotten to know alot of the members over the years even tho we are all a world apart. Some of the members' work are those to which i can attribute my initial first love of coloured pencils and all the artists there are my constant ongoing support and inspiration.

Last year my work featured in the Scribbletalk 2007 calendar which was by submission, but this year they decided to take it another level and got members to vote on submitted work as to which artworks made it onto this year's calendar. I am very pleased to announce that my Horse's Eye has been chosen to appear on the month of May.
I feel very honored that my piece was voted to be amongst such a fabulous group of artworks and I have to say that i have thoroughly enjoyed my 2007 calendar it has been wonderful to look at everyday, so i am definately purchasing this one for myself this year.

If you would like a calendar for yourself can buy your scribbletalk 2008 calendar from cafepress here. http://www.cafepress.com/scribbletalk.32185159
My only gripe is that i cant buy one for all my family and friends, believe me i would if i could.

Working Update - Small Fields

Things have been busy around here, we have had work and family staying and Christmas preparations and events etc all sorts of things going on. I keep trying to hide away and hope that Christmas passes us by but i know thats not going to happen. I am excited about it all , but we just have so much stuff going on its hard to concentrate on something that is still a few weeks away when i have so much to do now. Oh well never mind i guess what ever happens happens i am going to try to have Christmas with at less stress and worry as possible and just try to have simple things without all the concern and worry. The boys are the most important thing and as long as they get to open a present or two and have their parents around them i think that is all that really matters.

On the art side i have lots of business to take care of, i have these fields paintings (the above is just a miniature small one) plus my tree painting, plus a portrait plus i have some promotional things going on which i am excited about but i wont post about those until its more solid and i actually do the work for it. Slot all of this in with other design work and Christmas an somedays it feels like a bit much.

I have noted of late i spend alot of my time playing catchup just to keep up with all the things i have to do, and my list keeps growing and growing once one thing is done another has taken its place so i feel like i never achieve anything. I have also noted that as i have so many things going on i rarely give myself the fun time with the family and the boys and that is what life is all about it cant be all work and chores (tho it often is with young children). So i have decided next year my weeks are going to be split up so that i ensure that i have a few fun activities and specials times for them during the week which are just as if not more important than all the other stuff. I am also going to do that for the family as well so that we have some special fun times where we don't have chores or work to do and just enjoy life a bit more. Anyway like i said we will get there in the end its just something i have been thinking of lately i really have to pay more attention to.

On Friday i had the chance to have a quick swing by visit of the Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney. I got to have a brief look at the current exhibition there which is of the artist Shahzia Skiander. The work i did see was amazing. I cant see any of the smaller pieces which i saw on any websites but i saw some fabulous miniature works and some works with such detail i could have been there for hours (i only got there close to closing time). Anyway if your a sydney sider i definately reccommend popping in there for a visit its well worth it :)

Oh and just so you know i wrecked my bubble pic :( i couldnt get the skin tones smooth and bright enough for my liking so as a consequence i have to start again. I tried a few experiments on pastelboard but i think that for this type of work i really want it all to be smooth. So i am going to try it again with the smoothest surface i know, Drafting film !! Let see how i go :) the only problem will be that then i have to put a background on it which i was trying to avoid .... hmmmmmm

Fields WIP

Working title -" Fields" by Belinda lindhardt, oils on gallery wrapped canvas

Apologies for the bad photo again, thats one thing about doing large canvases i just cant get a good photo, my cp pieces i usually scan. :(

Anywho, here is a couple i have been working on .. i have done a much smaller version as well just on the one canvas. It will have something else on it .. i just have to see what that is .. i had an idea of a red ballon floating across both of them but i am not sure about that concept now...

anywho, for your perusing pleasure :)

Sketches 24_11_07

Here are just some little guys i was sketching yesterday. :) Not sure what they are but i think they are cute... :)

Add my button to your website

I have two buttons available for you to add to your website.

To add my smaller button copy and paste this code to where you want the button displayed.

<a href="http://www.belindalindhardt.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.belindalindhardt.com/80X15_belinda.jpg" width="80" height="15" border="0"></a>


And for the larger button:


<a href="http://belindalindhardt.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.belindalindhardt.com/145X25_belinda.jpg" width="145" height="25" border="0"></a>

Button Xchanges Free Graphics for My Artist Friends

Last night, while uncluttering my favourites i was revisiting this post - Living the creative Dream
This inspiring story is about a woman who decided she wanted to become an illustrator and it details her steps she took in order to reach her goal ( i have blogged about this before). In this article she talks about self promotion and some of the steps she took to trying to get work, one of the things which she talks highly about is link exchanges.

Recently I have been increasingly aware of just how people are getting to my blog and my website, and I am often curious enough to be logging into the stat counter just to see where all of my readers are coming from. I have been pleasantly surprised to discover that many of my new readers arrive here from many of the links that my generous fellow bloggers have on their blogs.

I have also become more aware that:
- other artists are also interested in having their own links on my site and this is a good thing as what goes around come around
- some people like to spruce up their blog a bit and have pretty graphics :)
- normal text links tend to get lost on pages where there are many many many links on a page
- i probably should be doing a bit more for self promotion for myself if i expect to sell any artwork

So i decided to:
1. Create my own button Xchange area which is purely for the purpose of xchanging links with other sites with the aim that other artists will put me on their page if they are on mine. :) You can see it on the on the right under "Button Xchange", i know i already have a links area but this tends to be more about artists i read regularly rather than an xchange type scenario
2. Create my own "button" for artists to add my button to their blog or site if they so wish, cause they look attractive and ppl will click on them :)
3. Seeing as i am a web designer creating buttons is pretty easy for me, but i totally understand that its not for everyone so i am going to offer:
FREE Button Graphics for my artist friends
(with a couple of conditions)

So, if you are one of my regular readers and you would like your own button to put on your own website for others to link for you i will make one for you with a couple of conditions.

Conditions:
1. You have to be either an artist or illustrator or designer
2. You must have a link to either my blog or website on your blog or website (doesn't have to be my button at a minimum has to be a text link)
3. You have to put your button on your own website or holding area like flickr i am not hosting it as well :)
4. So far i am doing two sizes 80X15 pixels and a 145 X 25 pixels graphics, i will consider doing a different size if a few people are after them but these two seem to be the default sizes i can find. Obviously these are only small so if you have a long name like mine be aware that its going to look squashed but i will do everything i can to make it as legible as possible.
5. I will look at your website / blog to tailor the colours or graphics to best suit your style if you have a particular colour or icon or graphic that you would like to use (that you own the copyright on) then i am happy to do it, BUT you have to tell me before i do it not after i don't like doing lots of piddly changes :)
6. I will do my utmost to do it ASAP for you but i have a small business, lots of cleaning, art and two small children to look after so please be patient with me :)
Thats it :)

So, if you are interested add my link to your site then email me with your url, your name, the text you want to have on the button, as well as any preference for colours or icons or graphics and i will email you a button back for you to do with as you wish. I will also give you the code to edit which you can put on your website for others to link to you. Sounds too easy doesn't it.

More on uncluttering

Some more on uncluttering, i am gradually making my way through things. See the first post here.

4. Sorting out my/the kids recorded shows

This kinda sound like a bit of a silly one but it costs me time!! We regularly record shows off the tv, in particular for the kids and whenever they want to watch a certain show i often spend a long time searching through a long list of shows trying to see where the one they want is (more often than not its at the bottom of the list) . I had been putting off sorting through this for ages, simply because i just couldnt work out how to use the functions of the remote. Last week i sat down figured it out (it really wasnt that hard), persisted with the kids pleas of "i wanna watch that one" and went through them all, deleted some and renamed others so it was easier to find .... now it takes half the amount of time to find the show they want i am so happy everytime they want to watch something now its easy :)

5. Sorting out the boy's toys.

My boys have lots and lots of toys, it results from having a father who is quite into toys himself but also grandparents who basically spoil them rotten. (we appreciate it tho grandma). We have actually kulled through alot of their toys already on a number of times, but we have been at the stage for a little while where my youngest was playing with baby toys and the elder the older toys. My youngest is now approaching 2 we have finished all of that, and this coupled with the fact that:
- there is too many they dont know what to play with
- they dont appreciate anything as they just have too much
- really just makes for one big mess.
- christmas and birthday are coming up just around the corner (which will no doubt bring more)

so I got ruthless and i have put a whole lot of toys into the shed.. where they will be saved for future children (not mine but i assume my younger brother will start spawning sometime in the 10-years) or sold in our garage sale or given away to charity :)

The good thing about all of this means that the house isnt so messy, the kids are able to pickup their own toys as its not such a big job, and its less work for me so mum is a bit happier and can concentrate on the more important things :) And the silly thing about it all is that i dont think they even miss them.

Bubbles WIP

Here is my latest one. its of my son Max quite some time ago, i loved the photo but on the photo the bubbles are just covering his face, so i wanted to create a version getting rid of those bubbles. I have to admit i have been a bit scared to attempt this one but now i think its time :)

I would like to enter this one in a portrait show i know is coming up if it all goes to plan :)

Anywho so here are a few pics so you can see how my process begins, its a large one A3 (11.7 X 16.5") so i think because i plan on not doing too much with the background and letting the paper do the work for me hopefully it wont take as long a normal piece at this size would.







Also, while i am here, i thought i would show off my latest purchase, its my new fancy light OTT-LITE. Well it doesn't look too fancy but its the globe that is the fancy bit. !! This light allows you to see your work at "true to life" colours that looks and is as close to daylight as you can get. I don't get much time for art during the day so during the night is where it is for me, i have struggled in the past with lighting as the next day my work just looks completely different from the night before, the colours are just completely off. I thought these were only available in the US but i inquired recently at my local scrapbooking store - The Craft Store and found out that they carried them i was so pleased. So if you struggle with lighting i can definitely recommend one of these lights :)

Untitled

Here is what i spent my art time on today.

I havent thought of a title and i dont think its finished. It had a face on it at one point and also a naked figure at the bottom but its just kinda evolved hopefully it will evolve again into something better :)

Its another big one tho 36 X 36"

i wanted to make it light colours but i have an urge to go dark, so that might be my addition tomorrow :) lol

lets see what it brings us, i am having fun tho :)

meanwhile apologies i haven't posted much of late i have a terrible terrible cold, on Friday i lost my voice and couldn't talk at all, and the past few days it hasn't been much better. I also have two little munchkins who have colds so its not fun at my house. I am starting to feel a little better i hope tomorrow i will be back up to 70% ok :) rather than 30%

Unclutter your life!

Recently i decided that i needed to unclutter my life !

It started with my recent "awakening" to life in general and how it feels like another year has slipped by, without much to show for it. In addition to this my eldest will be at school the year after next, they are growing up so fast i need to start taking action and it will start by taking away things that cost me time or are just basically in the way of what i really want to do as life is just too short and i need to enjoy it while i can.

In thinking about this I decided that the "uncluttering" was needing to take place in many areas of my life and many different ways. Each week i am going to try to do at least 1 uncluttering activity in an effort to improve my life. The "clutter" for me, can come in many forms, its typically a "task" that needs doing that i keep putting off, but is also sometimes an action or behavior that needs to be changed or looked at in order to avoid the "clutter" and messing things up.

This post has been coming for a while so here are some of the things i have started to do already:

1. Consolidate my tupperware / plastic container cupboard.

we have so many things in this cupboard that every time we open the cupboard everything falls out.. it was driving me NUTS! Taking the time in the middle of cooking dinner to sort it out is usually not on my agenda so it never gets done. My youngest is now well past the purred food, and bottles stage but these containers were taking up lots of room and i was hanging onto them because they might come in handy .. So i decided enough is enough and got to it, out all the baby stuff goes, anything which didn't have lids, closed properly ... or was cracked was also in the bin. Some i kept for a garage sale that i may have (eventually). i neatly stacked the rest of the containers i actually use and i can find things easily now and everything doesn't fall out !!! woot

2. sort out my favourites

I am actually still in the process of this one, but i have been doing a bit of a time. Like everyone over the years i have accumulated many links ... some of which i am glad i have kept, others no longer work, but most of them i wouldnt really know where to find what, they all got muddled when i switched over to firefox and i just havent had the time to go through them all ... so off i go ... i am sorting out all my links, i have created a "new" folder where i am keeping all of the links i want to keep, then once all the old ones are gone i will rename it so they are neatly organised :)

3. only worry about the big stuff

This is a big one for me, and falls under the category of a behavior that i need to change.... Ever since having kids i find this time of year particularly hard when there is all the pressure of Christmas and gift giving and food preparation and for me trying to organize myself and the kids with other friends and family for get togethers of where we are going on what day, distance makes it a problem and overall i tend to get worried about trying fit it all in and get good presents etc. In addition to this there is the usual everyday stuff, as well as money issue etc ... so for this and other things i have decided not to worry so much about fitting it all in, and just dealing with it as it comes and only worry about the big important things, if its not high on my list i am not going to worry about it. I am not going to worry about getting great gifts for people because its just too hard, and if anyone doesn't like it tough! ..

More to come on what i have been uncluttering in my life !! stay tuned :) p.s. i was going to illustrate cute little icons for these items but then i would just be making more work for myself :)

Mist Final

"Mist" By Belinda Lindhardt, Oils on Gallery wrapped canvas, 16X20", 40.6 X 50.8cm

As promised here is a better photo of "mist" :)

036 Star

This one is named "star" because my 18month old insistently kept pointing at it and saying "star" as 18month olds tend to do.. by about the 108th time i decided ok its called star!

I am finding it really hard to photo graph this one well, the colours in RL are quite subtle and while the room is quite light it looks dark on the photo. I tried taking a couple outside of my mist one, but all it did was look blue. So hmm have to experiment a bit more with taking the photos :)

Anyway, so i wont say where this one is coming from just yet, as i will leave it up to you, but one day if they continue coming i will tell you :)

I think i might have a few slight finishing touches once the paints dry a little, but i want you all to be standing behind me telling me when to stop cause i dont want to wreck it :)

"Star", by Belinda Lindhardt, oils on gallery wrapped canvas 36"X36", 91.4cm X 91.4cm

Oh and did i mention it was big ? Well it is, well big for me, i think this is about the largest one i have ever tackled :)

Working on the Wall?

Have you ever put one of your pictures on your wall and thought .. hmmm it looks different than i thought?
Thats exactly what has happened recently with quite a few of my artworks particularly when i was getting ready for the market as well as my recent "storm" and "morning mist" paintings.

Typically, whenever i research, begin and as well as when i finish an artwork i think about ... would i or someone want to have that on their wall ? As essentially that is the goal for these things isnt it? Whether that be my house, a friends house or a buyers house, is it as good on the wall as it is on my easel? More often than not i have felt that "no" has been the answer.

I had been "playing" with my "morning mist" (for lack of a better name) painting for a few days, i thought at one point that had I really something nice .. then i stood way back to take a photo thought... hang on a minute that looks all wrong. Thats waaaay to busy and just does look right. I did a few more alterations and it still wasnt working for me soooooo.

Yesterday, i decided that i would put some screws in the wall to hang my work on as i work this means its on a plain background and i can get quite a bit of distance to see how it hangs :)
It is also vertical as opposed to an incline which i think makes a difference also. I had been getting some distance previously but it appears on the easel its just not the same.

Retitled to: "Mist" by Belinda Lindhardt oils on gallery wrapped canvas

One of my recent conclusions has been that if i want to sell artwork i need to work larger! My "storm" painting on the wall just doesn't have much presence, i think it would have if it was larger. Having visited many artshows as well as just looking at my art on the wall i realise that unless someone is a collector of miniatures then they usually want an artwork to take up a space on their wall. Obviously this could mean using a larger frame or matt with some CP works as they take sooo long to do as well as coming up with other time saving techniques, but in essence what i am getting to here is all about how it looks on the wall.

So as my journey progresses off i go to finish up so old artworks and move onto some larger ones!!! :)

n.b. Apologies for the bad photo its been raining all week here, i will post a better one once i get some more light :)

Illustration Friday - Hats

"Hat for Willy" by Belinda Lindhardt, 5X7" watercolour

Here is my entry for illustration friday this week. I usually go with one of the first visions thats pops in my head when i hear the topic. The first thing i thought of was little kids trying on big floppy and oversized hats :) So i decided to take a pic of my 18mo with a hat on and draw him so here he is in dad's hat :)

weekly smudge 7-11-07

"uhoh"

As you can see this week's weekly smudge isnt quite art, in fact i am quite embarrassed about showing my torn lounge to the whole world (it usually has a cover over it but it was in the wash) but as you can see i just couldn't resist posting this image of our dog "uhoh".
Uhoh who has been appropriately named has been away on holidays for a few weeks, resulting from when we took our holiday and he decided to stay an extra couple of weeks with the Grandparents. We missed him when we got back and he actually has been pining for their two dogs so we have been considering of getting another dog to keep him company. (i am crazy i know) but i think uhoh would really like it. i really would like a Daschund as i had these growing up, but they arent that common and not sure if it will be too small for his pal, but i know if i see one i just wont be able to resist.

Anywho, my week has been used primarily on maintenance and enjoying a bit of down time. Even tho we have had holidays and wot not, i have also had a bunch of other work hanging over my head for the past few months (i am constantly saying to myself i gotta get to that) and any spare time i had was trying to get that done. Last week i finished it, and its a tremendous relief not to have that pressure and i get on with bits and pieces i have been meaning to do for ages. Things like tidying up my website and fixing up profiles and listings etc.

So my weekly smudge, well does my smudge on the lounge count from uhoh's muddy footprints?

Look at all my lovely greeting cards

Here are my lovely new greeting cards i just received :) Don't they look great?

I got a bunch of these done when i did my first market a couple of months ago, and my lovely MIL has continued doing the market for me in my absence and these have been selling both at the market and after. So here is a bunch more i decided to get printed. They are a great quality card quite thick :) and come with envelopes.

Redbubble print them for me and do a fantastic job, you can buy them directly from Redbubble . I sell them at the market for $4- each this month we are going to do a deal where you can buy 3 for $11-. If buy them directly from me, i can do a bit cheaper shipping if you are only buying 1 or 2 or if you are a friend and i see you in RL obviously i wont charge you for shipping :) So, if you are in the market for some cards let me know i have limited stocks so let me know what your interested in and i can order some in my next batch :)

These cards and my artworks will be at the Scone markets this weekend for those of you in that area. I will also have some postcards that are available for $3- each.

Just as a side note for other artists: I dont make much $ off any of these cards I basically just cover the cost, and i think if i charged more they wouldnt sell, but i think they are a fantastic way to get my art out there and i even suggest that customers can frame them allow them to have a cheap copy of artwork, if they so like. I know if i saw some at a market i would buy some some, so think about it for your artwork :)

034 Driving Tree

"034 Driving Tree" by Belinda Lindhardt, CP on pastelboard, 5X7"

This is called driving tree because the reference for this one was taken while we were driving, the reference is quite striking i don't feel that i captured the drama that was in the photo but its nice enough little pic, and i think i am knowing when to call ones like this done :)

This was my first piece on pastelboard. What is pastelboard? WELL, :) (lots of colouredpencil artists will know about it), its board which you can use your pencils on and then varnish to save the need for framing with glass. It's made by Ampersand and the link for buying (DickBlick) and more information is here > Nicole Caulfield uses it alot in here work, click here to check out some of her recent pastelbord works on her blog.

Unfortunately, it is unavailable here in australia, there are similar panels that you can buy but this is actual woodboard its not quite the same :) I purchased a few sheets and it with shipping and taxes it actually ended up costing a forutune (much more than i anticipated) which is why if i sell this i am going to be lucky to cover the materials, but sigh such is life atm.....

How did like it ? Well i did like it alot, to be honest i thought it might have been a little bit smoother than it was but thats not to say i didn't like it. It's definitely a different surface than paper to work on. It chews the pencils, but the style for this one didn't call for precise details so it worked in well. I think i almost used a whole white pencil though. I have another small one coming which i was working on at the same time. Will post that one soon.

Treez 01 Completed

"Treez 01" - by Belinda Lindhardt, Oils on gallery wrapped canvas, 10X8" 20X25.5cm

So looks like i have finished this one, i have been waiting for the black to dry so i could put the dress on the figure. This one was fun, i am not sure about the red hair but for some reason i really wanted to add that in :) I cant seem to get a good photo of this one but once dry i should be able to scan it in. So i will do that.

I think i might do more of these i think they would sell ? something different and fun to do :)

I have stared a couple of cp pieces on my ampersand pastelboard, this stuff is great, i wish they stocked it in australia i bought mine from overseas and cost a small fortune... will post pics soon :)

weekly smudge 1-11-07

Its been a while since my weekly smudge has come around, apologies for that, my simple excuse is .. i am a mum, a cleaner, a partner, a designer, a web developer, a family member, a gardener, a friend an artist and a self representing one at that so with all those roles sometimes things get pushed aside and this has been one of them.
So without further ado, one of the things that has been a highlight this week is this book:

Anatomy for the Artist by Jeno Barcsay - link here


I picked this one up a couple of weeks ago at Angus and Robertson for those australian readers for only $20-. Its one of those things that i thought if i dont buy this now i will regret it later.
I used it this week for the first time as i was working on a painting and it was fantastic!
I have recently been coming up with my own ideas and paintings out of my head rather than coping a reference so doing a few sketches of some of the figures in here really helped get proportions right etc.
The book contains sketches of skeletons and muscles of all sorts of things like hands feet etc. as well as the full figure. So i would recommend everyone have some type of reference book like this it was invaluable.

Momentum
This week i also wanted to highlight a couple of artists i met on the australian art forum
Daniel Sanger and Michelle Giacobello who have an exhibition opening tonight in melbourne. The two met on the aaforum and discovered that they only lived a couple of blocks from one another, so they decided to get together and have an exhibition. They are both very talented and have unique styles and i wish them the best of luck with the opening night tonight. Please visit their blogs and checkout their fabulous work.

Halloween
Halloween isn't really celebrated overly much over here, but in recent years i have noticed more and more items available this time of year so i think this will change as time moves on. I dont really know the story behind it but i figure its always great to have a bit of fun, so when i saw whole pumpkin at the shops i had to give it a go.

We bought a pumpkin, carved it up and last night put it outside the front door. The house accross the street had graveyards and a large skeleton out the front which was good fun and attracted all the goulies.
We didnt actually go trickatreating but Max did dress up in a dressup to talk to all the witches, aliens and monsters that came to the door. We surprisingly actually ended up getting quite a few. So next year the boys will be older and will be able to tolerate a few more sweets so we will definitely give it a go.

Here is a pic of max with our first pumpkin, Will was just fascinated with the face and wanted to sit in front of it and stare. Max was actually a bit worried about the whole thing and i think was a bit scared of the badies... so i told him that the pumpkin was to scare the monsters away when they try to come to the door. LOL that seemed to make it fun :)

Storm / Figure / Morning Mist ??

"Storm" - By Belinda Lindhardt, Oils on gallery wrapped canvas

I can decide on the title for this one. Originally the darker area was supposed to resemble a figure or shadow, but it kinda looks a bit like a storm cloud ? Then again it could just be mist.
Thats what i like about these ones i will leave it up to you :)

There is a major storm about to hit my house so ... i will settle with storm for now :)

Contemplation

"Contemplation" - Oil on Gallerywrapped canvas by Belinda Lindhardt

I am not really sure why but i just seemed to get the feeling that this girl was contemplating something or longing for something.

I am not entirely sure this one is "finished" by i think it might be done for the time being :)

I would be interested to hear everyone's feedback on this style ? Do you like it ? Or do you feel the realism pieces have more commercial value? I feel like these ones seem to have alot of emotion and allows the view to have their own interpretation in comparison to the realism pieces. I actually enjoy doing both. These ones flow much faster tho as they come from within i am not checking a reference :)

Best Buddies

"Best Buddies" WIP, oils on gallery wrapped canvas

Here is the WIP for another one i started yesterday. I took the reference a while ago myself and it features lemons and rosemary (hence the best buddies as they cook so lovely together :) i had a couple of shots with garlic in there as well but decided against those shots.

I am using a bit of my cp knowledge on this one and started with a complementary coloured purple background as you can see once the brown goes on it really makes the background look fantastic. Also did this a bit on the lemons not sure how thats going to turn out.

So off i go lets see how this one works out :)

Painting Frenzy and MIA

Firstly i have to apologise i have been MIA. Late last week i decided that we all needed a family holiday in addition to work i needed to finish up, so in the effort of researching where to go, getting us all packed and finishing up the work i realised that i forgotten to blog about going away. So sorry about that.
We had a lovely time away, it was the first time in about 4 years with just us and we went to Port Macquarie which is up the coast about 4 hours from here (for all you overseas readers) its a lovely location with lots of beaches. It was a great break away before the madness of christmas is upon us as well as a large design / development job i hopefully we have beginning soon which will go for the next few months.

Anywho, so i its been a while since i have done something new and started today with a painting frenzy. (my sunset pic which i was going to finish got ripped this morning and hasnt made it back onto the easel which is sad but alas is there is a price that has to be paid with progress).
So i did some preliminary work on a figure for my trees pic plus i added more to the background. I ended up painting over a figure i created but i have worked out what i am doing there with quite a few sketches. So once it dries i will be back to finish up this one. I wish i could get a good photo of this one for you it does look alot better in RL.

Next up are these two i started. They are quite different to what i usually do, they just came out of no where really, i like the way they are progressing. Again waiting for the paint to dry a bit.

Morning Mist 12"x16"




Contemplation 18" X 18"

I also started another one which i have done a WIP for i will post this one tomorrow :)

Monets Garden

Here is a better pic of Monet's Garden as promised :)

Related Posts, follow the WIP here:

Monet Update

We have had a visit from the painting fairies!

Monets Garden Update

Monet Update

Monets Garden Update

Monet's Garden