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  • #462338
    Hynesite
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        Joined many years ago, but never said hello before!

        #698416
        ArtsyLynda
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            Welcome!! And what a cool sculpture!! I love it!

            #698451
            Hynesite
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                Thanks ArtsyLynda. Figured I would start sharing some of my work for a change. Especially after years of being inspired by so many people here.

                #698417
                ArtsyLynda
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                    I LOVE that!! Your work reminds me of John Jagger’s. Have you ever seen his work? We have a bronze cat John made that’s so cool. I’ll look for his website and share it with you. Please share some more, and tell me about your method. I’m fascinated!

                    #698418
                    ArtsyLynda
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                        Here’s one Jagged bronzehttps://www.borsini-burr.com/artists/john-jagger . He’s American but a cousin of Mick Jagger. This winery is his “swan song” so he says. I think he must be in his late 70s now. Here’s the winery link. He did the sculptures, gates, other metal stuffhttp://sculpterra.com/john-jagger/

                        #698439

                        Not only cool looking but beautiful. Looks like on the inside of the first fish there is a motor. :) Love the color palette too with shimmery golds and then blue eyes to highlight. Would love to hear more about your technique as well.

                        [FONT=Arial Narrow]~Sculpturedolls
                        [FONT=Arial Narrow][FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]Keep your heart free from hate, your mind from worry, live simply, expect little, give much, fill your life with love,scatter sunshine, forget self, think of others. -Norman Vincent Peale

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                        #698446
                        jonc50
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                            Two excellent pieces of work…you’re at the right place.

                            #698452
                            Hynesite
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                                Thanks so much guys! I love seeing all of your work as well. Truly inspiring!
                                My technique is pretty straight forward. I rummage through junk yards/scrap yards and find things that look interesting. I recently found an old intake manifold off of an old Chrysler and turned it into a barracuda. I use a propane torch and solder everything together. The “exo-skeletons” are reclaimed copper wire, and even the granite bases are form scraps of broken slabs that were headed to the junkyard.

                                #698419
                                ArtsyLynda
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                                    Very cool! I love the eyes – are they just glass blobs glued together, or what’s under them that gives them that textured look?

                                    #698453
                                    Hynesite
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                                        The eyes are different for every sculpture. The material I use are from pieces of old projectors, lenses, and colored glass. The barracuda below uses chrome hubcap centers with blue glass and a glass lense. (This one is my biggest measuring about five and a half feet long.)

                                        #698450
                                        Hynesite
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                                            Question to the people out there who have had success selling sculptures.
                                            Can you give me advice on how to get into a gallery?

                                            Briefly what my background is: Attended Ringling School of Art and Design in Sarasota, FL (Only 2 years there before I had to drop out $$) This was waaaaaaay back in 1996-97

                                            I live in a small State in the US that is landlocked and I feel there would be little interest in these sculptures locally.

                                            I have sold a landscape painting here and there, won “peoples choice award” in a local art contest back in 2012. (Its the only show I’ve ever entered because…the above geographical reason.

                                            Any tips or feedback would be greatly appreciated!

                                            #698449
                                            Hynesite
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                                                John Dory

                                                #698420
                                                ArtsyLynda
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                                                    Your work would sell best in a gallery by a seacoast, perhaps. It would be a good idea to do some online research of galleries, especially in resort areas, to see what kind of work they sell. Be sure your work is insured against theft, fire, damage, etc., because all of those things can happen in galleries (I’ve had two pieces stolen from galleries and one stolen while in transit via UPS). Don’t trust the gallery to insure your work, but if they have insurance for their artists’ work, that’s a big plus. I got paid back for one of my stolen bronzes by the gallery where it was on display. The other was stolen by the gallery owner himself, given to a mafioso to pay a debt, so the police told me. I never got paid, but he landed in jail eventually. I did finally find the one stolen through UPS on ebay and demanded it back – I had to repay UPS the insurance they’d paid me. Anyway, those are some of my “war stories” – every experienced artist has some, I’m sure.

                                                    In your case, I’d look especially in Florida and California for galleries that carry contemporary work. And you should enter them in art shows too – find shows that are contemporary or steam-punk and your fish will feel right at home.

                                                    The way to approach galleries is to find out when they consider new artists – some do it all the time, some have a particular month or season when they review portfolios. Your photos are excellent. Put them in a binder with a page telling about them on the side facing the photo. You should have all of your own information (don’t worry about where you went to school and that you didn’t finish. My degree is in music – go figure). I’m in Ohio and got into a few galleries here locally – didn’t sell a thing. Did some advertising in magazines and sold a lot of stuff. You’ll need to figure a price that you can live with, that will still be a “reasonable” cost when it’s doubled to cover the gallery costs. I usually build in a 30% commission to my prices, and I’ve managed to talk a lot of galleries down on the commission price – but when you’re just starting, you don’t have “dicker room.” You need to have a “name” first.

                                                    Anyway, find out HOW they review art (whether from real portfolios, from CDs or online) and WHEN they review art, and follow their guidelines to the letter. Then the ball’s in their court.

                                                    If you can afford to travel, it’s best if you visit the gallery of your choice before sending your work there to make sure it is what they say it is – in a safe neighborhood with good foot traffic, good sales people and well-displayed art. Check out the lighting of the sculptures – do they have moveable lights they can use to highlight your work? If they only use ceiling fixtures, it isn’t as good a gallery and won’t show your work as well, but it could be a nice place to start if everything else suits you.

                                                    Get a WRITTEN CONTRACT stating how much you’re paid for each piece (probably expressed as a percentage) and WHEN you’ll be paid. If you look online and see your piece marked as “Sold”, mark your calendar for the end of the month and make sure you get paid for it.

                                                    You get a “name” by winning awards that are mentioned in magazines, by advertising in magazines, by being featured in magazines – seriously. The nice thing is, once you’ve advertised in a magazine, if they like your work, they may offer you a chance to have some nice advertising AND an article about you. It’s a win-win for them – they get more advertising AND a feature or filler article, and as long as they spell your name and contact info correctly, you’re getting a lot more advertising than a simple ad will do.

                                                    A lot of artists never advertise – they just depend on galleries to move their work. This is very true of painters. I’ve always been a “do-it-yourselfer”.

                                                    There are two huge sculpture shows in Loveland CO every August across the street from each other – Sculpture in the Park, which you have to be juried into, and Art in the Park, where you pay to have a booth selling your work. Your work will get a LOT of attention there because it isn’t brown bronze. I had my bright-colored bronzes and some cold-cast porcelains in my booth when I showed there, and people always stopped to rest their eyes after seeing SO MUCH brown bronze – and they bought! I don’t know which landlocked state you’re in, but it’s worth the cost to go if you can afford it. Art in the Park used to be 4 days long – I just went to this website: http://www.cityofloveland.org/departments/cultural-services/art-in-public-places/sculpture-shows and see it’s been cut to 2 days. I know the original organizers quit doing it, so that’s probably why it’s shorter. There are every kind of sculpture you can thing of there, from miniatures to life-size and monumental. One time during set-up, the crane operator got silly with a monumental eagle with spread wings, and just sailed it around a little as if it really were flying. He was careful, but that was a cool sight!

                                                    I stopped doing the Loveland shows because of the time it took – 10 days total, with travel time from Ohio to CO and back again, setup and then show time, and I needed someone to go with me. My hubby went with me for years, and a couple of friends joined me various years, but the cost in time, energy and fuel just got to be too much, so I stopped doing the show.

                                                    There are steampunk conventions you might check into. I don’t know what price you want for your work, but if it’s below $1000, they should sell decently.

                                                    There are books on this topic – one I used when I was starting out (over 20 years ago) is called “How to Survive and Prosper as an Artist.” A more modern book might be a better help since the Internet has become such a powerful force in marketing in the last 20+ years. Look for some that sound like they’d be useful to you and study them. They were a great help to me.

                                                    Sculpture Dolls should have a lot to add to this – she’s been much more of a gallery artist than I have and she’s in some prestigious galleries.

                                                    Hope this helps!

                                                    #698454
                                                    Hynesite
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                                                        Wow Lynda! This should be a sticky for all sculptors to read! Tons of great information to digest here. I have started to keep track of upcoming shows through artshow.com

                                                        Being that I used to live in South West Florida, I will be doing some research on the galleries in the area along with California as well.

                                                        On a side note, I love your work! The life size bronze is amazing! I have always wanted to explore the lost wax process. There is only one foundry in my state, and they charge an arm and a leg, so maybe someday.

                                                        Thank you so much for the advice, and I hope others out there with any tips will speak up!
                                                        -Chris

                                                        #698421
                                                        ArtsyLynda
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                                                            You are not limited to foundries in your state. What state are you in? I might know of some not too far away. I ship my raw clay pieces from Ohio to Oregon to be cast because they do great work, I love their patinas and they cost about 1/3 less than foundries in the East and Midwest. It’s best if you visit foundries in person, get a tour, learn the language, and definitely study their finished castings. Look for runs or pinholes in the bronze. If those haven’t bbeen fixed and they think it’s ddone, that foundry doesn’t do the high quality work you need.

                                                            The open places in your fish won’t cast, they will have to be hand built, which raises the cost. The more “holes” in a piece, the more labor is involved in every step of the process.

                                                            You can show them drawings and measurements and get an estimate on the mold, casting and how long it will take. If you order 10 or so at a time, you may get a volume discount.

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