A new cult worth investigating. Ink and watercolour on paper, 5x7 inches. This drawing is one of four I am sending to the Bear and Bird gallery in Florida for a group show.
You may have seen these before, but in case you haven't I thought I'd share them. About two years ago I posted some drawings on paper towels to Flickr and Vox, long before I had this site.
They have recently turned up on a number of blogs (and now tweeted by Ashton Kutcher, and blogged by Urban Outfitters), so I thought I'd get in on my own action and post them here.
I can't believe I have to even say this, but hater comments and cheap shots will be deleted.
(It's a bit of a dilemma for me - I have all of the content on Flickr and Vox that I'd like to bring into this site, but I don't want to reblog everything like it's new, because it's not. I need an easy way to build an archive of images, so you could see everything in one place, and every time I blog something it gets magically added to the archive).
I've been thinking about audiences, and who artists make art for. When an artist is creating, is she or he thinking about the viewer? Are they thinking about the buyer, the gallery owner? Are they thinking about what their friends and peers might think? Are they thinking abut themselves? When you create a non-commissioned work, who do you think about?
Drawing pictures inside the books I sold through my shop was an interesting experience. Although I didn't customize them for each specific recipient, I was very conscious that it was for an individual who had taken the time to order a book. I didn't photograph or scan the drawings, which meant that they weren't going to be shared online. Each drawing had an audience of one. It changed what and how I drew. I often wrote "I drew this _______ for you", which seemed like such an appropriate caption. I liked how direct it was. There seemed to be less separation between the viewer and me. It was like I was leaving notes for people. From a creative standpoint, I found it strangely liberating. I came up with all kinds of new ideas for drawings, some of which materialized into the ones you see below.
By sharing and selling my work online, I have a more intimate relationship with my audience than I would through a gallery or other third party (this does not mean I won't sell in galleries, in fact I look forward to doing so more). I acknowledge and embrace and am fascinated by this relationship, and I'm amazed by how it seems to grow and evolve, especially through the back-and-forth that occurs through twitter. I've become more conscious of it, and I'm allowing it to have an affect on my work. The medium is becoming part of the art.
Back to my book, one of the frustrations I had was my inability to ship it affordably around the world. It frequently cost over $40 to ship a $25 book anywhere other than within North America (my own country's postal system has something to do with that, as well as the book's weight). It highlighted just how global my audience is. I couldn't believe how many folks from non-English speaking countries wanted to order. And my book was essentially incompatible with sharing online.
Those are my thoughts so far. They are not fully formed, I know, but I wanted to start sharing thinking and talking about it. In the meantime, I drew these pictures for you.
Fantastic. This is Allie, with a tattoo of one of my drawings. It's from the rabbit that controls the world. He looks even more sinister in tattoo form. That is a serious drawing. Allie, thank you so much for sharing this. I am truly humbled and honoured. You rock.
Other tattoos: kite, ampersand
Terrific. Amazing. Once again, I am astounded and flattered to have my work tattooed on someone. Chiara from Italy had this artwork based on a post-it note drawing tattooed on herself recently, and her friend was kind enough to email it to me, and allow me to share it here. If you've read this blog for a while, you may remember the first photo of a tattoo I received was from Luis in Mexico.
Thank you Chiara! I am truly honoured.
