New Items in the Shop!
2023 was….a bit of a year and I can’t say I was planning on getting Covid between surgeries BUT I’m back and making new stuff! Here’s a quick run down of what’s just popped up in my shop:
Remember, all coupons go to the newsletter peeps first! They also get first dibs on most of my new items. Sign up HERE.
As far as upcoming shows, I’m waiting to here back on a few. However, I have two out-of-Hampton-Roads fan conventions booked:
LeakyCon in Portland, OR
Literary Ink in Chattanooga, TN
I’ll have tables at both of these events. At LeakyCon, I’m also on a Steven Universe panel and will be hosting another round of Cosplayer Figure Drawing. Let me know if I’ll see you at any of these!
Original Paintings Down for Surgery
With surgery happening tomorrow, I’ve taken any of the products that I ship myself. A bilateral mastectomy will limit my mobility for a few weeks and it will be too difficult for me to ship item/, especially anything large.
In the meanwhile, all the print on demand items here and on other sites like Society6 are up and running. Thank you for your patience and support!
Shop Closed: Chelsea West Fest
The show is October 1st and the shop will reopen shortly after.
Shop Closed: April 23-24
My online shop will be closed April 23-24 for the Chesapeake Arts Festival at Chesapeake City Park, Chesapeake, VA. I’m working on getting my inventory synced up so that I don’t have to close the webshop in the future……but not in time for this one.
This Extended Furlough May Change My Life
Its an understatement to say that Covid-19 has rocked our world. Considering that my family and friends are all safe and well, I feel exceptionally lucky.
It hasn’t been easy though - My librarian job (the job that pays my bills and gives me health insurance) has put me and numerous others on a 6 month furlough. All of the part-time folks were simply, unceremoniously laid off. I can’t recall another time in my managerial history where I’ve cried so much in between phone calls.
Fortunately, I was able to secure a temporary gig to make up some pay from home and I’ve started this art business as well. However, it’s becoming increasingly doubtful that the library job will exist once the furlough ends. And so, change I must.
I can’t say that I have any hard and fast answers here. Between the rising cases locally, the budget cuts, hiring freezes, and the simple fact that I’m in the frequently mentioned “high-risk” category, job hunting in libraries is dubious. Being fatalistic isn’t in my nature and, having career-switched before, I’m prepared to do it again…and I’m taking you all along for the ride.
Some of my reasoning is that I don’t want other people to feel alone in this. Some of it is that I don’t want to feel alone. My hope is that, as a community, we can support each other through this and maybe learn from each other’s experiences.
So, what am I doing at this point? Where do you even start?
You just start.
After a conversation with my father about all this (thanks, Dad!), we came up with 3 daily focuses. Focusi. Whatever, there’s 3 of them:
Work the temp job the best I can and keep an ear out for other opportunities there. You never know how one job, even temporary, could lead to another.
Spend some time each day on the hunt: send resumes to recruiters, search postings, and look for new career tangents. One tangent that I’ve seen some librarians go into is UX (user experience). Considering that a love of information architecture is key (and was my favorite class in grad school), this is definitely going to get more research from me.
Build La Prima Nerda. I would love to make this gig my full-time one but businesses tend to grow gradually. Stepping up my game here with a financial runway provided elsewhere will ensure I maintain my physical and mental health (and home).
Juggling all this won’t be easy but it certainly won’t be boring and I can’t say I’m sure where I’ll end up. Let’s find out, shall we?
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Reworking a Piece from High School (18 years ago!)
Most of us prefer to hide away art from our younger years. I'm right there with you with some cringe-worthy pieces created from a class assignment that I'm not sure I even cared much for. Other times, I tried really hard and didn't quite make it there.
The later might be worth revisiting as our skills increase. There was something that drew us, inspired us about that work and, if it still pulls at us, then why not give it another go?
Mountains at Dawn was one of those pieces for me. I remember the class assignment required oil pastels and a landscape - two things that we certainly not in my comfort zone. Oil pastels still aren't, if I'm being completely honest with myself.
But the color palette I used on the misty mountains was something that I couldn't toss out. I saved that piece, although it was definitely pushed aside.
There are so many places where the tan paper shows through that you would think I had been working with wax crayons. Shading and highlighting is drastic and harsh and not in that creative, contemporary art way. The colors are muddy in a few areas. My personal favorite are the ghosts climbing the side of the purple mountains. Mist doesn't behave like that? Why would high school me think mist behaves like that?
When taking on a reworking project, it's incredibly helpful to have what you like and what you want to change written out, almost like those pro/con lists folks do for decision-making. While it seems silly, taking the time for this step gave me clear goals and notes for where I needed to improve my skills.
As far as the skill improvement, I did what many of us do nowadays and hit YouTube hard. I watched many tutorials on blending, layering colors, and edging. I got to work and kept going back to generous wealth of information that more experienced artists had put out each time I got frustrated.
In this picture, you can see partway through the rework. I used a blending stump and sometimes my fingers to get better pastel coverage. Using shades slightly off from the main color to layer helped the appearance of grass and the mist. The ghost duck is still there though.
Layers, layers, and more layers. One thing I did quite differently from the original image was to add more highlights to more objects. Since the coloring is a bit surreal, these extra marks make it clear which direction the sunlight is coming from and how directly its striking different objects. The sky is still quite rough and the shadowed mountains need attention.
But after significantly more hours than I intended to spend (isn't that how most of these things go?), I was happy with the end result. The ghost has crossed over, too.
Have any of you undertaken projects like this?
Commission a Work
Onwards Together
Ever want to have a painting created personally for you or a loved one? You can!
Commissions are a way to get just the work of art you want for your space. Just email me at laprimanerda@gmail.com and we can get planning.
There are some things to keep in mind whenever you start the commission process:
Artists retain the copyright of their works. This means that I will not reproduce someone else's work without permission. This also means that I retain the rights to the work you've purchased. If you want to reprint the painting in any way, that needs to be discussed before the commission begins.
I work full time and therefore, pieces could take 6-8 weeks to complete.
Once we decide to go forward, half of the total price of the piece will be due with the contract. This helps cover the supplies used to create the painting.
Full payment will be due before the completed painting is mailed or picked up locally.
I want to create something that you love and brightens your home or office. Let's make something together!
Adventures in Pet-Sitting #2: A Poem on a Dog’s Hearing Loss
I cannot hear that obnoxious car horn
Or the blender that you have to use with earplugs.
I cannot even hear you when you call my name,
But, miraculously, I can hear you open a bag of shredded cheese.
Adventures in Pet-Sitting #1: The Indoor Dog Grass Stand-Off
Considering the shenanigans that Sonya the Shiba Inu and I get up to, I figured that I needed to start chronicling our days together. This is going to a loose series, featuring dialogue scripts, poems, doodles, and whatever else seems (vaguely) appropriate.
-It Begins-
Sarah: *brings in package*
Sonya: What is it?! What is it?!
Sarah: It’s for you. *opens box*
Sonya: …
Sonya: It’s grass. Why did you bring grass inside?
Sarah: *sprays grass with pheromone spray*
Sonya: Ok, now it just smells like another dog just…
Sonya: …oh, oh god, no.
Sarah: You can pee here.
Sonya: Nope. No. How DARE you suggest such a thing?
Sarah: Look, it’s a backup option. We’ll still take long walks, but if I’m not home and you need to go…
Sonya: I’m mostly deaf, but I know you well enough to know that you’re trying to rationalize this atrocity right now.
Sarah: Just wait a while and think about it.
Sonya: You are the alpha but I must challenge your authority. Somehow, you’ve been mentally compromised.
Sarah: This seems dramatic.
Sonya: I will not pee until we go outside.
Sarah: I can wait. Let’s see if you change your mind in a little…
Sonya: I will not pee ever again if necessary.
Sarah: Ok, that’s a bit far. This isn’t that big of a deal.
Sonya: *sniffs* Wait. You have a treat in your pocket.
Sonya: Give it to me.
Sarah: Pee on the grass first.
Sonya: NEVER
Sonya: I shall have my treat and my dignity!
Sarah: …
Sonya: Let the Battle of Wills
Sarah: Sonya, this isn’t a battle. It’s an option for your comfort.
Sonya: COMMENCE!!!
Sarah: *sigh*
-Several Hours Later-
Sarah: You definitely have to pee now. Just try the grass pad.
Sonya: *blatantly ignores*
Sarah: *grabs leash* This isn’t worth you making yourself sick to prove a point. I’m not having you die from a ruptured bladder on my watch.
Sarah: Plus, you’re here for a whole week more…
Sonya: I WIN. I SHALL PEE OUTSIDE.
Sarah: This wasn’t a…whatever. It’s late, I’m tired, and you clearly have self-destructive tendencies.
-After The Walk-
Sonya: VICTORY IS MINE. As is the treat.
Sarah: Um, no.
Sonya: WHAT?!?!
Sarah: You clearly, obviously avoided doing the thing I requested.
Sonya: I PEED.
Sarah: …outside. Not on the indoor grass.
Sonya: *glares intensely*
Sarah: Glare all you want. *takes treat from pocket and puts it away*
Sonya: *puppy eyes* But I love you…and Pupperoni.
Sarah: No. It’s late. I’m going to bed.
Sonya: FINE. I HATE YOU. I’LL SLEEP IN ANOTHER ROOM TONIGHT AND YOU’LL BE LONELY AND SORRY AND….*huffs away*
-Next morning-
Sarah: *blinks awake*
Sonya: Hi. I missed you.