Updates from Terri on Her Art Journey
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My final painting of the year is “Tuscany Farmhouse,” an assignment for my MCI training program. This was a pleasure to paint and reminded me of my trip to Italy three years ago. I wish I had been painting back then!
During the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day, I’m doing a 2021 yearend personal review and I’m making it public so I’m accountable to whomever reads my blog. Despite the challenges of the past year, particularly with regard to the continuing pandemic wrought by the COVID-19 virus, I was able to achieve nearly all of my goals for the year, and my art journey appears to be on track. Long before I started my art journey, I began a spiritual journey to draw closer to God in order to be filled with His Holy Spirit. In that respect, my biggest accomplishment for the first quarter of 2021 was to complete Matt Tommey’s “Created to Thrive” mentoring program and to attend his “Thriving Christian Artists” conference (online, of course). While I can’t measure my success in these pursuits with numbers, I can tell you that by the end of March, I felt the Lord’s love and presence like never before. In my prayers, I asked for God’s guidance, to direct my steps and to make divine appointments. When I asked Him whether I should or could be an artist or how I could do it and why, I heard His answer: “Just open your eyes, look and see; be an influencer.” Once I came into agreement with God’s assignment for my life, I began to CO-CREATE with the Lord. And that’s when I began to transition from a hobbyist painter to an emerging artist. Transitioning from a hobbyist to an emerging artist with influence required me to focus on learning some new skills (LIKE HOW TO PAINT and how to spread the word about my newfound love), and that’s how I spent the next three months. I can’t even count the number of online classes and courses I took, including Eric Rhoades’ “Watercolor Live” three-day conference, Olga Furman’s “Paint Your Heart and Soul” projects, Joan Iaconetti’s zoom watercolor classes, and, of course, Rod Moore’s “Learn To Paint Academy.” In order to establish an online presence, one of the top priorities on my agenda for the year was to work on my social media skills. It seems everyone is online these days! So by early April, I had set up a Facebook business page, created a website (thanks to my daughter!), and started writing this blog. I now post regularly on Facebook (and sometimes on Instagram), and every week I’ve written an update on my blog and usually share it on my social media accounts. So far, I haven’t missed a week (this is blog post #43); so, so far, so good. Establishing an online presence was one thing, but perhaps more challenging during the second year of COVID-19 was getting involved IN PERSON in a local art community. Nonetheless, that was one of my goals for 2021, and by the spring of this year, I had joined two local art galleries (Las Vegas Artists Guild at the Galleria Mall and City Lights Art Gallery in Henderson, NV). I also joined a number of art associations, including Nevada Watercolor Society and Laguna Plein Air Painters Association (LAPAPA), but they’ve only been meeting virtually for the past couple of years. I’m looking forward to the time when these groups meet IRL and I can make some new arty friends. By mid-year, encouraged by my instructors and Facebook friends, I started selling some of my paintings. My first customer was a former journalism student of mine, Peter Kibiriti, who now lives in Africa and commissioned me to paint two small (8” x 8”) acrylic paintings. The shipping costs outweighed the value of the paintings, but what a thrill to make my first sale! By the end of the year, I produced five commissioned pieces. I also started selling my artwork on an online marketplace called Fine Art America (FAA). If you and I are friends on Facebook or you read my blog, you’ve undoubtedly seen my posts about my art store at www.fineartamerica.com/profiles/7-terri-thompson and FAA’s “print-on-demand” service. During the second half of the year, I split my time between Las Vegas, Connecticut and New York City, but I tried to keep producing. I organized my little loft studio in Connecticut and continued to build inventory. By the end of the year, I had 50 pieces of my artwork, including watercolors, acrylic paintings and photographs, listed on Fine Art America, just as holiday sales picked up. So encouraged am I by the enthusiastic response to my artwork, I now embrace the idea that I AM A VISUAL ARTIST. Indeed, by the end of this year, I decided that not only do I want to pursue a viable art business (be it ever so humble), but I’d like to teach beginners how to paint. To that end, I’ve joined Rod Moore’s “Artist Business Academy” to learn how to set up my own business. And, best of all, I applied to become a certified instructor of the Moore Method of Painting, and I was accepted into the training program this month. So, by this time next year, I hope to be teaching! Of course, that means it’s time to set some ambitious goals for 2022. Come back next week to hear what I’m planning for the coming year. In the meantime, perhaps you can be thinking about what you’d like to accomplish in the New Year, too. Cheers!
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During this past year, I’ve been studying under Rod Moore, a wonderful Australian artist who runs the Learn To Paint Academy (LTPA). Rod uses a very simple method of painting, which he calls the “Moore Method of Painting” (MMOP), to teach people how to paint. Without giving away his secrets, let me tell you his method is extremely easy. He employs just three brushes, three colors of paint and three steps so that even beginners (like me) can create beautiful paintings.
A year ago, I became a lifetime member of LTPA. I was so impressed with Rod’s enthusiasm, energy and optimism that I soon became convinced that I, too, could become a viable artist and sell some of my paintings. So, a few months ago, I joined Rod’s Artist Business Academy (ABA) to learn how to set up an art business. My ambitions are rather modest; I’ll feel fortunate if I can make $500 a month by selling my artwork. But wait . . . there’s more. Less than a month ago, Rod gave me the opportunity to be certified to TEACH the Moore Method of Painting. As a Moore Certified Instructor (MCI), I’ll be able to use the MMOP to teach others how to paint. The MCI training program involves plenty of study, including painting projects, written assignments, conducting workshops, and a final exam. But I feel like up to the task. God willing, by this time next year, not only will I be making great art and selling it, but teaching folks how to paint, as well! These four painting projects are the initial assignments for the MCI training program. I’ll keep posting future assignments and let you know my progress. Let me know if you’d eventually like to be one of my students. It’s fun and easy to paint . . . really. This is my latest commissioned work, which is being delivered to its owner in Nairobi next week, God willing. It is taken from a reference photo supplied by a former student of mine, and I painted it in acrylic on a 12” x 16” canvas panel. I was especially delighted to paint it because it will be a wedding gift for my dear student’s son. (Wish I could be in Kenya for the wedding!)
These are the kind of assignments I love to paint because they are usually of subjects I’d never have chosen for myself. This one in particular had shades of purple and violet which I rarely use (except in flowers, of course). For years I’ve had a desire to visit Africa, and working on this piece made me long for it even more. While the original will be living in Africa, copies of this painting will be available from my store on Fine Art America as print-on-demand reproductions. www.fineartamerica.com/profiles/7-terri-thompson Completing this painting, which I call “Sunrise in Kenya,” fulfilled another of my goals for the year. My goal was to finish five commissioned paintings by the end of December; this was my fifth. I also have a goal to have 50 pieces of art in my store by the end of the year. Check back later to see if I’m on track with that one. Assuming I reach my production goals for this year, my plan is to double my output next year. That means that during 2022 I’ll have to add 100 pieces to my art inventory of which at least ten should be commissioned paintings. If you know anyone who’d like me to paint something, please send them my way. At this point, I paint only in acrylic or watercolor and nothing bigger than 12” x 16.” But I love a challenge and will attempt just about any subject—a landscape, seascape, flowers, pet portraits (no humans, please). Just send me a reference photo and I’ll let you know if and when I can do it. One of the greatest pleasures on my art journey is collecting reference photos from everywhere I visit. My latest trip this past weekend took me to Washington state where my sister showed me some of the prettiest country I’ve ever seen.
These photos were taken on the way to Snoqualmie Falls, and I can’t wait to get back into my studio to paint some of these landscapes. They’re so different from anything I’ve ever attempted. |
AuthorTerri Thompson is a journalist-turned-visual artist, who is on an "art journey" and exploring how to tell her stories through her watercolor and acrylic paintings and photographs. Categories |