Our final blog for 2011 celebrated a remarkable artist who was inspired to bring art back into a school in her community. Her project centered around Martin Luther King’s call to all of us to serve our communities. Our hope with every blog is that you will be inspired to reach out in your own communities and carry the torch that your fellow artists keep lit each time they go beyond themselves and use their art for a greater good.

Jim Lepage ended 2011 with an incredible feat that we hope will spark a fire of change in all of you. He participated in a capital campaign called “Making Space.” The campaign was organized by Woodland Hills Church in St. Paul, MN. The goal was to raise money to expand their food shelf and make building renovations that would continue to help serve as an overnight shelter for people without homes. Jim saw this as a great opportunity to become directly involved in his community – and what better way to do this than to offer 100% of proceeds from your art sales to the cause?

At the end of November, my church launched a fundraiser to help low-income and homeless folks in St. Paul, MN, where I live. At the same time, I’d been gearing up for print sales in December since that’s when the Christmas rush happens. The second I had the thought about donating my December proceeds, I knew I had to do it. Honestly, I was a little afraid it might bomb and I’d look like an idiot, but fortunately, folks seemed to get excited about it and I was able to surpass my goal. My goal was to raise $600; I raised $1000. Woodland Hill’s goal was to raise $26,000; they raised over $100,000! The whole experience was very encouraging and inspiring. – Jim LePage

Homelessness is not something we spend a lot of time thinking about as we go about our daily lives, unless we have to. If you have never experienced financial turmoil in your own life, chances are you know someone who has. The truth is, it can happen to any one of us in the blink of an eye. It is humbling to imagine how one actually becomes homeless. Incredible, heartbreaking stories exist behind each person that we walk or drive past on our streets. When we consider these stories, it makes the success of Jim’s campaign even more heartwarming.

We are proud of Jim’s success and commend him on his selfless and admirable determination to seek out ways his art can help others. We know that many of you are already using your art to make a difference in your communities and we encourage you to continue.

It is fitting that January is the month we celebrate MLK Day and watch organizations all over the country honor his memory by participating in this National Day of Service. In his reflection, Jim makes an excellent and honest statement about his fear that his project would not succeed. I think we can all agree that it is the courage to overcome that fear that makes serving our communities so rewarding. As Martin Luther King said, “Everybody can be great…because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.” Happy MLK month and Happy New Year! Let this be a Year of Service for all of us!

“Art is a communication informing man of his own dignity, and of the value of his life, whether in joy or grief, whether in laughter or indignation, beauty or terror… Man needs the comfort of his own dignity…And that’s what the artist is for. To give him that comfort.” — Robert Nathan

If asked to describe a period of time in which art has brought us healing or comfort, I am sure it wouldn’t take long for a few good, cathartic stories to unfold. We often create art in times of suffering or loss to help us become more in tune with ourselves and our emotions. This is also a wonderful way to honor those individuals who have helped us get to where we are today. Donna Corless is an Imagekind artist that has chosen to do just that. We were comforted by her story and moved by her mission to raise money for cancer research. We hope you will be too.

I have been creative since childhood but felt compelled to explore a creative outlet in photography. I feel that if I can possibly make some sort of difference through my artwork, I will also have made some contribution to this world.

In 1986 I lost my Mother to Ovarian Cancer and since then, I have made it my mission to support the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund to honor her life and to try to help save the lives of those currently fighting this battle. I believe that I am here to share the beauty of the world to help people have joy, like the joy my mother brought to me.

I recently added an Affirmations Gallery to my Imagekind Collection, which I created to provide positive affirmations through my photography. I give 10% of all of my art sales through Imagekind to this the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund. I also created a tribute page for her on the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund website for people who wish to make a donation directly to that organization in her memory. – Donna Corless

We are sure you will agree that Donna is succeeding in her goal of sharing the beauty of the world through her photography. We are happy to feature her artwork as part of the Imagekind for Humankind series. The holidays are just around the corner! If you would like to support Ovarian Cancer Research by purchasing Donna’s amazing photography, check out and help give a great gift!

Ever looked at a piece of abstract art and asked yourself, “what the heck is that?” Abstract art is possibly one of the most difficult forms to judge because it is, well, abstract. I have always gone with my gut instinct when choosing an abstract to add to my collection. In fact, one of my favorite pieces was an unsigned original I picked up in a thrift store for $10. The thing is, art has to speak to you otherwise it is just taking up wall space.

The history of abstract art can be traced back to the avant-garde movements of the late 19th century. The three distinct styles were Impressionism, neo-impressionism and post-impressionism. This movement towards creating original works rather than emphasis on a subject was liberating and innovative as it shunned the perceived realism of Western and Renaissance art. Some of the trailblazers of this movement away from the verisimilitude of the past were Wassily Kandinsky, Georges Braque and most notably Pablo Picasso. Each of the three artists broke new ground and created some of the most influential work of the 20th century.

Violin and Guitar by Pablo Picasso

Although not locked into the nom de plume of abstract artist, even Pol Ledent’s perceived realism work has an abstract slant. The Belgium-based artist’s abstract paintings rival the pioneers of this genre as he perceptibly exudes little energy to create his modern masterpieces.

Abstract 660160

Crediting God for his talent, most of the work in Mark Lawrence’s many collections reflects religious gratitude. A true abstract impressionist, Lawrence creates paintings that aren’t afraid to be noticed while his bold use of color and use of various techniques makes him truly original.

Genesis 1:1

Canadian Artist Ruth Palmer is not limited to abstract work, but also is proficient in contemporary geometric and digital traditional. Her work with acrylic and oils can vary from perceived reality to exceedingly transcendental.

Invitation To Dance

Ricki Mountain is another artist who refuses to be pigeonholed as an abstract impressionist, yet her work in the genre is unique and recognizable. Mountain perceivably favors a blue hue in her work, but this is not reflective of the mood of her paintings.

View From Space

Showcasing one awesome art print each week.

I love Jerry LoFaro’s artwork. His portfolio is expansive and includes several illustrations featured on everything from product packages to book covers. So, this week’s art of the week goes to Jerry’s newest print on Imagekind, Beast, which is subsequently the book cover art for Peter Benchley’s thriller of the same name.

Beast by Jerry LoFaro

This is a guest post by Imagekind artist Warren Keating who is an award-winning artist whose paintings reflect the culmination of 25 years in both figures and landscapes. He has had numerous solo shows of his paintings in the U.S. and Mexico, as well as having sold directly to a variety of collectors around the world. He has been featured on CNN, and has had several articles written about him in Los Angeles area newspapers. Currently, Keating is represented by several galleries in San Francisco and Los Angeles. His latest series, “Overview” was selected as an LA Times Calendar pick; it is currently exhibiting at M.J. Higgins Fine Art in Downtown L.A.

If I were talking to a particular artist, I could assess in more detail how that painter should go about finding a gallery to show his or her work, but I will attempt to give you a quick guide to how I found (and tips for how I continually find) representation.

To start, please don’t set out with the notion that you are searching for the Holy Grail of artists’ accomplishments, that a show in a renowned gallery is a silver bullet that will cure all of your art career difficulties. While I wouldn’t rule out that possibility, it is not a useful goal for the emerging artist. Rather, your goal should be to become aware of and involved in your art community, cultivate relationships with collectors, dealers, and, hopefully, museums, and become a salesman of your own work. You will need to learn to think like an art dealer. In my 20 years’ experience, when I’m busy with self-generated exhibits and don’t have time for much else, that’s when the galleries finally start calling.

1. Get The Picture

Good photography is a must when submitting, publicizing or selling your work. An inexpensive ($100) light kit with 2 fixtures containing 500 watt, color-balanced bulbs is the best light source for photographing paintings, and now you can get a really decent digital SLR camera for under a thousand dollars. If you are on a bare bones budget or in a hurry, you can use sunlight, but there will be more image-deteriorating reflection on paintings that have any sheen whatsoever. A polarizing lens is a must, to help minimize any glare from your light kit, and is absolutely necessary if you try to photography your work outside.

After I have color-adjusted and sharpened the images of my paintings, I upload them to my Imagekind account to keep copies of hi-res files of my larger paintings ready to make a large print a for a presentation or exhibit.

But, it’s also crucial to get the picture in a more allegorical sense. It’s important to make your best impression with the most appealing and accurate images of your work, a resume that says that you are a committed artist and an attitude that lets the dealer know that working with you will be a pleasurable and lucrative experience.

2. Research the Gallery

Before the rise in popularity of the Internet, the emerging artist had to drive around his or her city, or state, to visit galleries to see what kind of work was displayed within before considering whether to approach that dealer or not. Now, it’s easy to get a good feel for the dozens of galleries in an urban area within an hour without leaving your home office.

The more educated you are about the art world around you, the more quickly you can navigate it to find the venues where you fit in. Often, while an established gallery has as stable of artists, the emerging artist can find exhibit opportunities from within the up-and-coming venues. It behooves the artist to keep track of the local art scene to become aware of these new exhibit opportunities as they come into being.
When submitting, I use my very best work, and, while my paintings are all basically depicting people from overhead, I also show a variety of sizes, colors, crops, etc. and include that I have limited editions prints available of my work, high-quality giclees from Imagekind.

3. While You’re Waiting, Find Other Ways To Exhibit

Emerging artists that hit a brick wall and complain that, after approaching all of the galleries in the area, there is simply no way for them to get an exhibit. Harnessing some of that frustration, the successful artist will find a juried exhibition, country club, art fair, co-operative gallery, etc. Be wary of vanity galleries that charge hundreds or thousands for a show. Personally, I don’t think that’s the way to go, but I may opt to do that as an investment at a future date.

This year, in addition to gallery shows, I’ve participated in two major charity events in the Los Angeles area, an internationally-juried competition in Dallas, several online competitions and exhibits in Second Life, The Ventura Art Festival and I’m painting a mural at my daughter’s elementary school. Hey, many of my neighbors are a lot richer than I am and can easily afford my work.

As life often goes, once you’re busy with all of these other exhibits and are feeling overwhelmed with alternative exhibit opportunities to which you’ve said, “yes”, the galleries will start to return your calls. So, my advice to the artist that is having difficulty getting into galleries is to sell and exhibit so much that you don’t need them, and then they’ll come calling.

4. You Had Better Be Ready

Right after you read this, spend some time, hopefully in your studio, thinking about your art, where you want to be and what your next step is. Don’t be in a rush in this moment to enact your marketing plan or crank out even more alluring work in your studio. Take some time to think about why your art is important, why someone should buy it, why it should be in a museum or history book, if that is your goal, and write it all down. You can edit it later, but, after reviewing what you come up with, update your Artist’s Statement and Bio. I’m pretty much going to sell a couple of paintings on Ebay and a print or two on Imagekind no matter what I do, so it’s easy to stay busy, but I make it a point to take time out, sit in my studio, look at my paintings, analyze where I’m at and imagine where I can go.

Be honest about yourself and your art and seriously commit to whatever plan you come up with. If after you do all this, you’re in a meeting with a gallery, and something about you, or your work kills the deal and you don’t get the gig, then, consider this: A relationship with a gallery is a big, time and energy-consuming commitment. Often the dealer is saving the artist a lot of time, headache and heartache, because the dealer knows that the work will not sell to her audience.

5. Create a Brand with Social Media Networking

Instead of sitting in your studio and waiting for that big opportunity, create a following without enlisting the P.R. machine of the biggest galleries. As you create work, post it into a half dozen Social Network outlets. I take video of myself painting, and have a YouTube following. You’ll quickly find that the prolific artist that creates interesting art has more posts to share with a better audience, so you’ll become more prolific and your work, more interesting. There are experts that can explain viral marketing much better than I can, but I can tell you that a good idea (creative vision or process), wrapped in media (images, video) properly disseminated (blog post, video/image upload, link, email, comment) will most likely go viral to some degree. People can’t help share what is cool, and there’s something cool about every artist. One just has to figure out what it is, how to capture it and how to disseminate it.

Well, for those of you that are sitting around, frustrated with the rejection that you’ve received from galleries, now you have plenty of things that you can do to advance your career as an artist while you’re waiting for that big break. Good luck.

Warren Keating is an artist in Los Angeles. For more information, go to http://www.WarrenKeating.com. His original work is sold at KeatingArt.com and prints of his most popular paintings can be purchased from http://KeatingArt.imagekind.com.