Morrison Drawn From My Life

A Guide to Becoming a Professional Fine Artist
1. Auflage 2012
ISBN: 978-0-9849866-2-0
Verlag: TechScribes, Inc.
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 217 Seiten

In this fascinating glimpse into the working world of a professional artist, Susan Morrison describes her journey to success. A gifted storyteller, she weaves advice for aspiring artists with stories of her own successes and failures. Having made a living as a professional artist for more than 40 years, Morrison is in a unique position to share her knowledge of the art business.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Morrison, Susan

Leseproben

Introduction
There I stood with two of the most powerful women in the world, First Lady Hillary Clinton and Alice Walton, future founder of the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, and listened to them talk about my work and the power of my accomplishments. Even better — all three of us were Arkansas women! It was 1993, and we were at my Solo Exhibition at the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, DC. It was one of the proudest moments of my professional life. A proud moment! Me standing with First Lady Hillary Clinton (center) and Alice Walton (left) during my Solo Exhibition at the National Museum of Women in the Arts. (1993) How did I reach that point? How did I become the artist, gallery owner, environmental activist, author, adventurer and poet whose accomplishments were lauded by these women? How did I become a successful professional artist? After forty years as a professional artist and thirty years as a gallery owner, I feel it is time to share my years of experience with artists who are starting from the beginning and looking to get further in their careers. So here it is with no frills; just a simple, straightforward how-you-do-it based on how I did it. I hope it will help you avoid some of the mistakes that held me back, or slowed me down. But, remember, there is no substitute for your willingness to strive to be the best in your field. That is the real key to success. Who Is Susan Morrison?
First, let me introduce myself. I am a wildlife artist using the media of pen and ink and Prismacolor® pencil, creating animal portraits in life size. I live and work in the Ozark Mountains, in the small town of Eureka Springs, Arkansas, where I have made a good living as a professional artist for over 30 years. I am also an author, poet, adventurer and environmentalist. My work is dedicated to the preservation of our wildlife and wilderness. I started by selling drawings and prints in regional art shows, and gradually moved into the national, and now international marketplace. I have been featured in galleries such as the Hallmark Gallery in Kansas City, the Wildlife of the World Galleries in Aspen, Colorado, and Carmel, California, the Huntsman Gallery in Aspen, the Ellis Gallery in Telluride, Colorado, the Audubon Gallery in Charleston, South Carolina, and the Capitol Rotunda in Little Rock, Arkansas. My work is in collections ranging from the White House to the Vatican. My husband and partner, Randy Woodward, and I opened our first gallery in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, in the late seventies. Over the years it grew into the largest and most highly celebrated gallery in the Ozarks. Eventually, the gallery separated into two units: one featuring a stable of regional artists and the other, Susan Morrison’s Signature Gallery, featuring exclusively my work. At various times, I have supported myself, my family, my employees and their families solely from the sale of my art. Through the recent combination of my company with that of my husband Randy, I am now in the enviable position of being able to step back to studio sales, where my collectors come to me. The seeds for my success were sown in my first book and collection of drawings, River Journeys, based on four rivers in north Arkansas. Following that, I received a commission from the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission for the best-selling Arkansas Wildlife book. I then created the Arkansas Wilderness Portfolio and Book to help save Arkansas wilderness areas, which led to my having a Solo Exhibition in the Rotunda of the Arkansas State Capitol, work placed in the Library of Congress permanent collection and the White House Collection, and my poetry read into the Congressional Record. Most importantly, my work heavily influenced the preservation of twelve wilderness sites in Arkansas. The Arkansas Wilderness Portfolio brought me to the attention of Sam Walton, founder of Walmart®, who asked me to create a national environmental education poster program to be distributed through his (then) over two thousand stores. Twenty-four million posters, two hundred thousand books and multiple awards later, I found myself standing with Hillary Clinton and Alice Walton with a Solo Exhibition at the National Museum of Women in the Arts. From that plateau I began my life’s work, the American Wildlife Expeditions; a collection of life-size drawings of America’s wildlife accompanied by books and documentaries based on my travels. Portions of this body of work were recently featured in my Solo Exhibition for the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art at the Massey. Thirty years of more work than any one person ought to do, and more successes and failures than any one person ought to endure, find me still as driven as ever. I still strive to make my voice heard, my vision seen, and my heart shared. Why? It’s simple. I’m an artist, that’s why. It’s how we think. Why I Became an Artist
The rest of the book will attempt to explain HOW I became a professional artist. Here I will give you a brief explanation of WHY. The family I grew up in was lively to say the least. We were always off on some adventure or other, led by our intrepid father. Dad had an important job in the aerospace field, and sought escape from his heavy work responsibilities. Mom was an artist; she even had her own studio. We were allowed to come in and play with her “used” materials only if we were good enough to earn the privilege. This was a very painful accomplishment for her most rebellious daughter, but it was one I was willing to attempt. I loved being in her studio, surrounded by her creativity and her warm energy. Being incorrigible and raised in California in the Fifties, I had my fair share of whippings and was often locked in the garage. I would dramatically scream for release to deaf ears until I was bored. I did not have mean parents. All of the kids I grew up with had similar punishments. We expected it, and subsequently considered the immediate consequences of our actions very carefully. But, quite frankly, nothing was worse than my father’s disdain. He instilled a deep desire in all of his children for his respect. It really meant something to us. To this day, even though he is long in his grave, I still strive to make him proud. As we were city dwellers in the suburbs of Los Angeles, family trips were usually to wild places. Easter vacations we loaded up our boat and headed to Lake Havasu, Arizona. Mom, Ellen, me and Karen having breakfast at Havasu. Wilderness camping “Douglas style.” (1949) Summers were spent either at our cabin in Crestline, California, or Grandma’s country home in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Our numerous Arkansas cousins would greet us barefooted, dirty, and ready for fun. We had sore feet for days. I never could master walking barefoot on gravel roads, although my male cousins walked the wicked sharp rocks with stoically painless expressions. These trips led to my lifelong zest for adventure and love of the wilderness. It was in Arkansas that I found my first artistic fascination, with the leaves of the trees. The hardwood forests of Arkansas in summer are thick with leaves, dripping heavy green on long, dark wood limbs. While my siblings happily painted away with their watercolor sets, I spent hours trying to find ways to draw all those leaves. It was my first artistic obsession and one I did not satisfy until I was in my mid-thirties. It was with a pen-and-ink drawing called Sager Creek that I finally successfully drew every leaf, recreating the myriad of design that had fascinated me for so long. Sager Creek (1977) When I look back at the work I did as a youngster, I see the beginnings of who I am now. Mother fed my creativity, while my father drove my ambition. Throw in my obsessive personality and it’s little wonder I am who I am. My gallery now. (Photo by Barbara Kerbox. 2010.) Why I Became a Professional Artist
I became a professional artist when I divorced my first husband and moved my three sons and myself to Eureka Springs, Arkansas. I had produced a considerable amount of work prior to that while living on our farm in Siloam Springs, Arkansas, and in New Orleans before that, and had experienced enough successes to have a good, solid client base. I had been doing Arts and Crafts Fairs and shows for private galleries, but they certainly would not support my children and me. Nearby Eureka Springs, a budding artist’s colony and resort, showed promise. I decided that if I opened my own gallery it would bring me enough income to take care of my family and succeed. A really scary proposition, but one I knew I had to try. That was when I truly made the commitment to make my living as an artist. Why did I choose this field? Easy. It’s the only thing I can do. It was honestly the only way I could think of to make a living. It was the most difficult decision I have ever made in my life and one I have regretted many times, but not once was I ever willing to change my mind. My life has been my work. Although it has supported many and given jobs to more, all those who surround me have paid the price for my obsession. And yet, if I had it to do over, I would make the same decision again. I wouldn’t have missed this ride for anything. Why I Wrote This Book
During my Solo Exhibition at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art at the Massey, Sandy Edwards, Deputy Director of Museum Relations, asked me to hold a seminar on how to be a professional...