"Ella in the Sun"

Oil on museum quality Ampersand Gessobord panel

6" x 8"

2015

Contact me for availability

Fellow blogger, Alice Thompson, recently opined the demise of the art blog and the exodus to other social media sites like Facebook and Instagram.  Is it any wonder?  We artists want, nay need, constant ego stroking and approval to keep the creative fires burning.  Sure, there is a place for comments on a blog but seldom do people take the time to make them. Days or weeks may go by without a single remark.  It is much easier to hit the "like" button on Facebook.    Today's artists judge the success of a painting by how many "likes" they get.   I must admit that it is nice to get immediate approval of one's work. Then there is the wider audience that popular social media enjoys.  Here on my blog I have 163 "followers."  On Facebook I have many times that and with other people "sharing" my work it goes on from there to infinity and beyond. I still use my "Daily Painters" site to reach an even broader target audience for my small works.  Thousands come to that site daily to look for little gems.  I personally think there is room for both blogging and other social media.  In the old days an artist would spend weeks or months in the studio preparing for a gallery show.  If you were lucky, two hundred or so would come to the opening and a few more would amble through during the run of the exhibition.  Thousands and thousands of people from all over the globe see my work now and I have paintings in Greece, Germany, France, England and many other countries.  Why, there are workshops in China stealing my work and selling copies at this very moment...but that tale is for another day.

This is one of my studio cats - Ella.  She came in as a feral kitten 6 years ago and has made the jump to indoor life quite well.  She is top cat and keeps the other three - her mother, sister and a recent addition from the shelter, in line with a hiss and a firm paw.