Back when the mural project began in 1996, I had no intention of learning to paint. There was a vague distant dream with no tangible plan for getting there. The dream was painting a mural in Exeter of Mineral King but much had to be learned first. So, learning to paint with oil, getting better at landscapes, then gradually increasing the sizes of my paintings became the plan. After getting comfortable with a paintbrush, I had to learn to use acrylic paint. It is not as easy for me as oil, but I’m catching on! 
Growth, part seven (The number one fear)
Did you know that public speaking is most people’s biggest fear, ahead of death? Wow! That isn’t my greatest fear; in fact, I enjoy speaking about my artwork. (Such a narcissistic person!) In the past few years I have been asked to speak for several different groups, most recently on Saturday.The Mineral King Preservation Society had its annual Picnic in the Park. A historic person, Mary Trauger, spoke first and filled us in on life during the mining days. Then a current person, me, spoke about the Mineral King Mural. Despite the bridge being closed, there was a great turnout! Look at these folks:
We dodged the rain bullet – a few drops, but nothing measurable. I forgot to say that my paintings were for sale! What a missed opportunity, but Exeter, A Festival of Arts did quite well on the mugs, mouse pads and tee-shirts! 😎 I make funny faces when I talk, but we all had a good time!
Growth, part six (Holing up at Home)
I LOVE working at my own address, but there are a certain drawbacks to having a business at one’s home. The temptation to do other things, the NEED to do other things (like laundry, watering, paying bills) is always in one’s face. There is no driving away from home and focusing on work.
Another consequence of an at-home business is the reality of “out of sight, out of mind” rather than “absence makes the heart grow fonder”. The marketing efforts need to be stepped up, because no one is going to wander into the studio by accident. About 4 years ago, it became apparent that more change needed to take place. I’ll tell you about that in Growth, Part Seven!
Growth, part five (Facing Faces)
After about 9 years and on the fourth address for cabinart, it became apparent that notecards were fading fast, and the local market for house and cabin commissioned drawings was getting saturated. The next step? Portraits! I had skirted around this subject for years, refusing commissions, terrified of not being able to capture a likeness. This was and is a reasonable fear. If someone pays you to draw Steve, they expect you to draw Steve, not his cousin! Faces are so subtly different; we all have the same components, and yet we most definitely do not look like one another. (However, I do tend to get all the cookie-cutter blondies on The O’Reilly Factor mixed up. . . )
What to do? This was a brick wall on which I had been bashing my head for years. A wise friend said, “Why don’t you pray about it?” Duh. So, I did. Within the year, the CPSA offered 2 separate workshops on colored pencil portraiture, and the principles definitely crossed over to graphite. I was on my way in portraits! However, this will always be a difficult subject for me; unless I pray through each and every portrait, I do tend to draw the guy’s cousin. The subtle differences can just divert a face from the intended person to a stranger or a distance relative with a slight mis-stroke of the pencil.
Growth, part four (Venturing into color)
Just Picked – colored pencil – 18 x 21″ – $550
Just when I thought I “had it made” and was settling in to The One Way To Do An Art Business, several of my students wanted to learn colored pencil. In high school, my friend Lisa thought watercolors were for babies, and I had the same opinion of colored pencils. First, I had to find a new attitude toward colored pencils; second I had to learn to use them correctly. This happened through books and the Colored Pencil Society of America. They offer seminars and workshops that are phenomenal in their variety and scope – this is a wonderful organization. http://www.cpsa.org/
Growth, part three (Learning to teach)
The next step in the saga of growing an art business was teaching people how to draw. It has always been a very rewarding challenge to help people learn to see, to break down the process into manageable steps and to spend time with wonderful people that I might never have gotten the chance to know. That grew, and eventually I had to move somewhere that gave me the flexibility to teach more classes. Over time, the list of people wanting to take lessons expanded to 85 people! I had as many as 50 students at one time in classes of 4-5 per hour.
Pencil drawing by S. Brown – private collection
Growth, part two (Cards & Commissions)
I used to draw pictures that fit nicely into sets of notecards, which then sold very well both retail and wholesale. I still do a few cards, but the market just isn’t as big. In fact, it is microscopic. Tell me, how many cards, thank yous and little notes do you send a year? How many do you receive? Hmmmm, really have to think about that one. Cards do sell, but not very many anymore. (Despite the handiness of communicating via computer, the truth is, no one ever cherished an email, so there.)
In addition, I drew cabins and homes on a commission basis. (still do!) That was the sum total of my abilities in the early years, and it kept me quite busy.
Growth, part one
Ever read the book Who Moved My Cheese? If I remember it correctly, it is about the necessity of changing and keeping up. Way way way back when I first started selling art, I drew a picture of the Kaweah Post Office. It was not very good, but I was too dumb to know the difference between good and not good and too excited to calm down and study it and repair the not-so-good parts. Instead, I had 100 reproductions made and began selling them. If you have one of those and would like to trade it for a better version, please let me know – it will be FREE. This offer is good for the first 9 8 people who respond and PHYSICALLY HAND ME THE OLD PRINT!! Of course, if you’d like to just buy one, you may do so here: https://www.cabinart.net/reproductions_new.shtml There are only 2 remaining prints of the Post Office, so the offer is now officially expired.
Reflection of societal values
First published in January 2009
The post “Art and the Economy” made me think about my art and if it serves the functions that were written about in Art Calendar magazine. Take the cheerful little cheap inexpensive painting of Three Peppers IV, which I am showing you again in order to lift your spirits with the state of the economy. 
1. Is this a “non liquid asset par excellence”? It is certainly non liquid, and I think it is excellent. (I might change my mind in a few months as my abilities increase.)
2. How does this “reflect societal values”? Food is good. We like to eat. Variety it good. Color sells. Peppers are affordable. Peppers are good for you. Okay, this painting qualifies in this category.
3. Have I “offered new insight”? Lots of people paint peppers in the 3 colors, sometimes even four (peppers come in orange too). But how many people paint them in a blue colander, hunh?? Okay, got that one nailed! (This is exhausting my feeble mind, but for the sake of intellectual discussion I will soldier on bravely)
4. Does this painting “offer a new perspective of reality”? How many of you look at your groceries as art? Are you inspired to view your food from the perspective of beauty in addition to nutrition? Were you aware of the dual purposes of edibles? Aha! There’s a “new perspective of reality” for you!!
Excuse me. I think I need to go lie down for awhile from all this heavy mental lifting. Better yet, perhaps I will knit a few rows on the hat I am making FOR THE FOURTH TIME (but I am not upset about it – I am economizing on yarn with the state of the economy in these economic hard times et cetera)
Art and the economy
First published January 2009
Have you noticed how often the phrase “with the state of the economy” is getting used these days? Tiresome to hear the repetition of whatever phrase the media and culture latches onto. . . sigh. Anyway, here are a few thoughts about art in “these current economic times” (another worn out phrase – sorry!)
In the current issue of Art Calendar magazine (note the correct usage of the word “issue” here), there are several articles about selling art in an economic slowdown. One speaks of art as the “non liquid asset par excellence”. It also discusses art as a “reflection of societal values”, and as a chance to “offer new insight and perspectives of reality”. Is that what I do???
If so, it just happens, because my thought pattern is rather predictable when it comes to making art. First thought: “How beautiful!” Second thought: “Can I capture that first on film and then on canvas or paper?” Third thought: “I wonder if that will sell. . . ” I have never considered my art to be a non liquid asset, only a way to bring joy and beauty and memories and peaceful happy thoughts to my customers’ lives! (what kind of a simpleton am I anyway???)
My “guru”, Jack White writes about all the people whom are not affected by the economic slowdown. These are nurses, ambulance drivers, teachers, fire fighters, law enforcers, just to name a few. He says that these folks are our customers. In my opinion, these have always been my customers. Who else lives around here? I know one or two people who do esoteric stock market type jobs, and they aren’t any bigger customers than my blue-collar buyers.
Perhaps the way to survive “the current state of the economy” (sheeesh! how else can this be phrased??) is to live in a continually semi-depressed rural economy so that “these current economic times” are hardly noticed as any different (other than the excess of those hackneyed phrases).
For example, I know a guy who has been waiting months and months for 4 different contractors to bid on building a new house for him. Last night in Costco, it was crowded and shelves were empty (Hey! can I get some mozzarella cheese over here??) My husband and I have had our new roof lying in our yard for 2-3 years waiting for our favorite carpenter to install it and even with the state of the economy (sorry) he is still too busy.
Here, let your spirits be lifted with this bright, cheerful, colorful and cheap inexpensive painting! Three Peppers IV, 6″x6″, oil on wrapped canvas, SOLD (I certainly hope so, since 2009!)