About Me

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Paramus, New Jersey, United States
No, this in not a blog about gardening in any way, but a journal of my journey to become a professional landscape painting artist. For years, I’ve given my paintings as wedding gifts without thinking of profiting in some way from it. I worked for 18 years at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC as a computer programmer. I have been a painter since 1990, coincidentally, when I started working at the Met. I watched Bob Ross do his thing on Channel 13 in New York and decided I could do this, too. I have no formal training. I incorporate Bob's wet-on-wet technique for sky and water. My subject matter is covered bridges, lighthouses, fishing village scenes, barns, etc. Maine, Nantucket, Martha’s Vineyard, Nova Scotia and Spain are some of the places I have painted. My style is detailed and sometimes people think a photo of the painting is an actual photo of the scene. I hope to continue and grow in this medium. I also like to cook & dance. I am also a committed Christian. I am taking commissions - painting your landscapes style photos or your vacation home. Prices on request. contact me - Jackmck@juno.com my website is www.artofjackmckenzie.com

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Day of ones, Ridgewood Art Institute Show, selling on-line and other stuff.

You know I just have to do a post on a day of ones 1/11/11

First, the disappointing news that I was not accepted for entry in the the RAI juried show. This was one way of gaining entry in the local art world, but there are other ways. There is still the New Milford juried show in February that I will try for.

The second thing I want to talk about is selling prints, cards, etc on-line and the entire world of art on-line. There are many sites with business and selling advice. Emptyeasel is one - http://emptyeasel.com/art-business-advice/selling-art-online/ the NJ Arts Council is another http://www.njartscouncil.org/ and www.artbusiness.com

There are lots of places to sell - www.esty.com. Ebay, and other sites where you display your art for sale, take orders and you are responsible to produce and ship the art products. That is a big hassle.
An even bigger hassle is artist unavailability!
In checking out other artist websites, I've discovered a number with banners saying they are on vacation or for some reason unavailable and will not be taking orders until they return. Really? People want your product and can't get it. In most shopping there is a huge, spontaneous "its there and I want it" moment and that moment will be lost if you are not there to do the work. You may be getting a new customer and that person will move on to the next available artist's item that strikes their fantasy.
There are some that will do all that work for you for a fee. I will be trying them out for a month or two. One of those is http://artistwebsites.com/tourartistwebsites/your-own-website.html. I will set this up and see what happens. I'll let you know when its up.

Here are the photos I'm doing paintings of. The building being built in the second one will be completed in the painting. Like Bob Ross said all the time - Its your world and you do whatever you want.



2 comments:

  1. It looks like you are having your ups and downs but are really thinking things through. I really like the photos you chose for your painting. : )

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  2. I forgot about esty, i was thiking about doing that for my photography once and never got around to doing it! Sorry about RAI, did they tell you why or they just said no? Good luck with new milford. Also like the 3 photo with the 3 sail boats, can't wait to see the painting of that!

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