There are a plethora of fantastic opportunities out there to get one’s designs onto things. For me one of the most amazing is spoonflower.com where I can design fabric using drawings I’ve made with markers and enhanced in Illustrator. Oh. Em. Gee.
Suddenly the goofball carrtoon strip – Alfie & io – I’m doing for equine advocacy that features my own miniature horse and his best friend — a flake of hay can be commercialized as fabric! I just ordered some to make into a nutty flounce skirt to wear to the art shows I’m applying to. I just can’t believe I get to be a fabric designer! I always wanted to be – and now I can be. Oh I know the price is about double or even more than what you might normally pay for nice quality full color cotton ($18) but it’s MY cartoons!And there’s poop on it! You can never find fun colorful cotton fabric with poop on it! Until now. I’ll post links when they go live for the public.
As many of you know – I am big on compassion towards animals. I mean, ok, people too – but animals are sometimes – often – way more forgotten. So it should come as no surprise that I try to do good things when I can for people who help animals.
In this case it’s the Catskills Animal Sanctuary in New York. They have created an imaginative fundraiser that combines art and animals. Uh oh, totally up my alley! They call it their “Foolsgold Art Benefit”.
What we’re supposed to do is select an item we’re willing to send over and let them decide if they want to include it in their fundraiser. It has to be pretty small – so I was limited in my choices. Anyway, here’s the 3 that fit the bill. Which one should I offer to send them? Just comment below OR on my Facebook wall.
I like creating work that no one has considered before. I love adding new ideas onto the globe; into the realm of consciousness. I am limited to certain abilities, but not to any lack of passion.
Thus I am always pleased when I work with new media and allow it to flow through what’s been called the “Marti Filter”. That’s what’s happening with the FiberART I’m creating. Now you will see a whole lot of fiber craft, and it is awesome stuff. But FiberART is more rare.
FiberART
FiberART felted purse detail
FiberART explores boundaries, pushes envelopes and takes a medium into new territory. So, for example, I don’t think there’s ever been a whole lot of cartoon felting done before now. It’s possible I’m inventing something quite new. Mind you, I could be wrong, but based on the reactions I’ve had so far, I think I’m up to something fresh, challenging and out of chartered waters.
I always know when I’m speaking with a clear voice artistically, because my work becomes immediately recognizable. I do not take this gift for granted. I steward it carefully even though I know full well doing so is going to cost me sales as I begin to educate others about what I’m up to.
Here’s how:
I have to help viewers identify the craft
then accept this new application of that craft
and finish up with being a worthy representation of both the craft and the vision in an appealing (read: commercially viable) way!
The same thing was true in the early nineties when I was hand painting cartoon t-shirts. I heard a lot of “my kid could do that’ comments. But I kept up with it because I also heard a ton of comments from people absolutely delighted with the work for what I considered all the right reasons!
Craft vs. Art
I know what it is to be a good craftsman and I likewise understand what it takes to be an artist. What I work for is to be an excellent version of both with every piece I create. Not many good craftspeople have a strong artistic vision and a lot of artists don’t pay enough attention to the quality of their craft. For me it is important to pay special attention to both aspects of art creation; the craft and the vision – so that what gets made is a finely made, unique piece – even if it is kooky! In fact I think especially so because the way I practice it being kooky carries with it the burden of having to be both lighter and demonstrate more aptitude.
Welcome Back to the World of Outdoor Shows, Marti!
Sunday morning and ready to go!
The week leading up to the Kentucky Fiber Fest had been dreary and rainy but the weekend opened up with gorgeous blue skies! Setting up my brand new tent for the first time at a show was a breeze and I could see the the company of fellow exhibitors was inspirational and filled with smiling beautiful and talented people, not to mention their enticing array of offerings.
New Friends
Otto Strauch of StrauchFiber.com Fiber Equipment with a drum carder I long to purchase.
I got to meet and chat with Otto Strauch of Strauch Fiber Equipment (strauchfiber.com) who is as personable as can be and has a deeply dedicated following of happy customers who speak incredibly highly of the integrity of the machines he makes.
Unicorn Fiber made on a drum carder
His hand built drum carders help organize assorted fibers into perfectly workable ‘batts’ (that spinners and we felters then use to create yarn or other fiber pieces with). I hope to get one so I can make my own “unicorn fiber’ batts.
I bumped into Marlene Williams who was there selling her sheep fibers as well as spinning and talking and chewing gum all at the same time! She keeps a fun blog at woolridgefarm.com.
Marlene Williams of Woolridge Farm in Waco, KY
She and I have a mutual friend in Lindy Huber of Seldom Scene Farm who got me started with the felting in the first place. Lindy was there selling her luxe fibers, yarns and pieces made from much some of the fine alpaca and sheep fibers she and her family raise in Versailles, Kentucky.
$12 in Total Sales?
I met spinners, weavers, knitters and all manner of fiber afficienadoes who were there to explore materials and developments in fiberarts. The feedback on my new felt-painting work from knowledgeable and seasoned fiber pros was positively uplifting! Ok, so my own sales were abysmal; the simple truth is I probably am going to need to focus on sticking with up fine-art shows with this work and go about the business of educating art appreciators to my new application of this very ancient art form. But what a fun way to motivate me to create a body of work and build a booth full of it for my next steps with it!
Hello, Mary? We found your lamb!
Bleating + Spitting
So, despite disappointing sales I had super fun with my booth neighbors and all the other vendors I got to meet that I’ll be connecting up with on the network just for fiber arts (www.ravelry.com). Besides how much fun is a show where there is a parade of cutie pies being lead by Future Farmers of America members past my own space. What a hoot! I’ve attended shows in the past where I was surrounded by much bleating and spitting – but this time the bleaters and spitters weren’t bellyaching they were lambs and llamas!
Speaking of Belly Aching…
My poor brand new - it's first show ever tent frame in a sad unsalvageable heap after the Big Bad Wolf blew it down
Sooner or later everyone who sets up a 10 x 10 festival tent outside is going to run into ‘some weather’. We did at this show too. On Saturday night a big storm blew in and tried to Big Bad Wolf everyone’s tents after we had gone home for the evening, but all survived. Then during the final stages of disassembly on Sunday another storm blew in and blew my house made of sticks and fiber down into a mangled heap. That was a new experience for me. Luckily the art was packed up and I wasn’t stupid enough to try to hang on to the thing so art and artist were fine. I will say this – there may have been some colorful grumbling as I salvaged what I could from this miniature disaster. But I think I came by it honestly – after all it is fitting to swear like a sailor when one is dealing with wind-blown objects in a driving sou-easter.
Postscript to disaster:
I posted a sad little movie I shot with my iphone on my Facebook wall and my friends have been cheering me up. My absolute 2 favorite reactions were from Marco and Jo Bunny. Marco suggested next show I have a pre-disaster sale.Jo Bunny posted this insane version of “Whip it Good” that even has a unicorn in it! Both made me laugh out loud! Oh, and my hubby left me a little disaster relief check in the kitchen to replace the frame which I already did. So you see? I am one lucky artist.
The Unicorn Design Won in a Landslide - though the pooch got respect too.
I posted the choices on Facebook too and the comments there were overwhelmingly in favor of the Unicorn. But you know, I’ve been talking about this being the Decade of the Unicorn for over a year and a half so it only makes sense. Besides HappyArt is pretty much based in being unique!
The Kentucky FiberFest (http://www.kentuckysheepandfiber.com) is this coming weekend and I have been super lucky enough to have gotten a last minute space for my booth!
As some of you already know, I only decided last month – about six weeks ago – to get back into the world with my art, so the deadlines to apply for most every spring and summer show this year have already passed. Being included in this venue is a real boon for me!
This introduction with my new felted work could not have been better situated on the calendar to light the fire in me to get a booth of it made and ready to go. The feedback I’ve gotten from Facebook friends (http://www.facebook.com/HappyArtGallery) and Esty sales (http://www.etsy.com/shop/SongPony) has been motivating and encouraging.
It’s always a risk for an artist to plunge into a new medium like this, you may lose some of your original clients and followers who are uncomfortable with change and you have to start rebuilding a reputation sort of from the ground up – but it turns out that felting with soft colorful fibers is like painting to me and I know how to do that! Let me show you what I mean. Below are two pieces I did one in acrylic on canvas and the other with alpaca and sheep fibers…
Rainbow Horse as Painting
Rainbow Horse in Fiber
If you’re in the Lexington area this weekend, Saturday or Sunday – stop by Masterson Station Park, 3051 Leestown Rd, Lexington, KY 40511, where the festival will be going on. Critique the new work, the booth, and the signage! I’m open to your input and would love to benefit from your frank assessment. You’ll be helping me see this new work and its presentation through your fresh point of view.
Oh and by the way, to get advance notice of special fans-only sales I have every now and then be sure to sign up in the upper right corner of this page to get these posts in your inbox or ‘like’ the HappyArt Gallery page on Facebook where I’ll be running specials fans-only contests!
The second major wholesale show I ever did was a Rosen Show (Buyer’s Market of American Craft) in Anaheim California. It was located fabulously close to Disneyland as was my seedy motel (no kidding, DL is surrounded by a rather run down neighborhood). I started asking my booth neighbors at the show who was interested in going to the mouse house with me. Being that most of them were well seasoned Californians, wise to the ways of the happy empire none were. None were until I got to the coolest person there: ellen edith.
We went but almost didn’t get in because ellen was wearing an art pin that featured a nude by Modigliani that was rendered obscene by the ticket taker. No kidding? Man! ellen persevered (ellen always persevered) and kept the pin ON. She advised the woman that as a classic work of art the piece was above such pedantic repercussions. Later on that evening it proved to look quite nice with her Minnie Mouse ears. (I got a Goofy cap – more my style).
I should mention that ellen too was a native Californian but unlike the others was always open for a colorful adventure with a nutcase (that would be me). From this blossomed a lifelong friendship. We attended all the major shows – she from Santa Cruz, me from Chicago home bases but always near each other in the shows. We took care of each other during those long grueling days of the typical wholesale show, watching and taking orders for each other when necessary. Bolstering our spirits up when a show was weak, celebrating when sales were good. We did this for years.
If wasn’t for ellen, I wouldn’t have met Mike, my husband, the way I did, meaning at all. Back in the day finding a soul mate via wanted ad was considered quite daring (we’re talking pre-internet here kiddos) but ellen encouraged me. We figured it was a reasonable form of direct marketing. I still think that. Anyway, she was experienced with it and kept after me until I ventured forth. Boy did that turn out good!
Some time in the late 1990′s ellen was diagnosed with breast cancer. She tried the organic non-evasive treatments and finally had to go with hardcore treatment. She beat it, and attended some shows during treatment wearing a purple wig!
Over time we both became involved in other aspects of our work that made attending those shows unnecessary. So we drifted a bit apart. You know how it is. But we’d have a chat by phone now and then and catch right back up. She got into quilting and fabric design and enjoyed great success with that! Here have a look at one of her “Story Quilts“:
"Violet Practices Her Catch and Release Program"
The years continued to pass and ellen’s cancer flared up 2 more times. This last time it took her. But I was given a chance to hop on a plane and see her while she was still able to function pretty well. The treatment she received in hospice gave her this wonderful boost early last winter. While I was there we had a little party and did some projects together. We also had a chance to reminisce with another mutual friend, Sierra Mohr, of ours who attended the same shows we did and together we were quite the nutty crew! What an amazing gift I got – this chance to tell ellen how much she meant to me, how pissed I
Welcome back, ellen!
was at her mean disease and how much she has contributed to this world.
A couple of evenings ago she died. Funny thing, that day there was a rainbow over here in Kentucky where I now live. I like to think it was the muses who hover around here who were making a welcome for her spirit.
Below is a video I did of ellen and her studio and home during that final visit. She loved it!
Years ago – like, maybe, twenty – when the internet was new I wanted to snag my business name as a dot com. Luckily it had already been taken by a cartoonist named Martin in New York (http://www.martoons.com).
There was a show coming up and I needed to coordinate my sales materials with a web site pronto so I gave my brain cells a little exercise and came up with a new name for my work and – lo petunias – it was available as a domain name! I couldn’t believe it! No one else had claimed HappyArt yet.
Fitting, no? I thought so. In fact I liked it so much I registered it as a proper trademark. I couldn’t believe it was available that way too. The last owner of it had been Walt Lantz, which I thought was rockin’ awesome because he had created Woody Woodpecker!
Here he is in his first cartoon:
So I built my first web site using code that today would probably look like cave paintings to a new age code monkey — but nested tables were all we had at the time children…
The web site techniques I learned working on my own site eventually grew into a business for me largely replacing my art creation. I became www.StudioMudio.com but always kept www.happyart.com (hello you’re here already I ain’t gonna link it!) on my personal roster for a ‘rainy day’. Well thanks to a crazy economy that day has come and I’m refocusing back on HappyArt!
I don’t own the trademark any more – it lapsed after 10 years and the paperwork never caught up with me which is fine because mostly it’s all about who owns the dot com these days unless you’re one of The Bigs like Coke or Pepsi or some such.
Help Me!
I’m getting ready for my first retail show after a fifteen year hiatus and am designing a new logo. I want your help choosing! Please pick one, Dog or Unicorn!
HappyArt Logo - Dog
HappyArt Logo - Unicorn
Feel free to add your comments too. Thank you!!
(Say like WW): Ha-ha-ha-HA-ha! Ha-ha-ha-HA-ha!
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!
This week EquineConnection.org the network I run for equine advocacy and rescue got the most amazing gifts from two uber-dedicated animal lovers.
Jo Bunny in her hoho-mobile
The first was a HUGE box filled with garbage bags stuffed with the super soft fibers from a herd of alpacas. It was sent by Jo Bunny an equine message therapist who lives and practices in Massachusetts. The other came from the exact opposite side of the country, from Sabrina in Washington state, and was filled with the fiber of her formerly hot cashmere goats!
What makes these donations so awesomely excellent is when I’m not championing equine advocacy issues I’m an artist. What’s more, I’m an artist who recently discovered the absolute joys of felting!
There were tons of these in the box!
The magic of this medium is when you add water and elbow grease motion to animal fibers the tiny tiny barbs on each strand of hair start to get catch and get entangled with each other.
If you’ve ever had to deal with the ‘dreadlocks’ in the mane or tail of a horse, or found big globby blobs of shedding fur all bunched up within a dog’s fur – then you’ve experienced seeing results from the natural felting process.
The massive amounts of raw materials from Jo and Sabrina – gals I’ve only ever met on Facebook, by the way, I have what I need to make a whole bunch of felted creations to sell to raise funds to keep EquineConnection.org going and maybe even look at some upgrades depending on sales.
Here’s the first piece made from Jo Bunny’s donation:
Gray Pony Pink Bunny JOY!
It’s available in my etsy shop! I will be adding more pieces for you to choose from as they’re completed.
I can’t thank everyone involved in this project, from every angle, enough including:
Jo Bunny and Sabrina
The users of the site
the advocates and rescuers of horses everywhere
the people who support our efforts
and people who act on compassion in their every day lives.
This is hard, sometimes even disheartening, work we do helping equines but support like this that results in colorful soft optimistic art makes the hard times a lot easier to bear!
Sabrina also sent some beads and baubles – so look for these to be added to some of the scarves and purses in the near future, too.
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I just finished hand sewing this tunic and I was so excited with how it turned out I thought I would share the results! Using my new drum carder to make various art batts in all the colors of the rainbow, I was able to create a very colorful base [...]
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Please, Give ’til it Hurts Routinely I get requests from incredibly deserving, right-up-my-alley organizations for a piece of my art for a fundraising auction they’re holding. Almost without fail I love the organization, their mission and the person contacting me. Half the time we’re acquainted personally, friends, even. They know me, know [...]
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