The Story Behind an Artist

Nowadays it seems like a huge part of being an artist is "telling your story", which is an excellent idea in concept, but it tends to mean you see a lot of highly staged photos, hipster-style videos and lots of instagram pictures as artists try to convey to you just how exactly inspiration comes about and then is used to create art.

I feel artists sharing their inspiration is a lot more complicated then it even comes across. I admit I have my own business facebook, twitter and instagram pages (and of course this blog!) but I sometimes find it hard to convey all the backstory to how my pieces are created. I could take a picture of a twig and say that nature inspired a piece or a building and say that architecture did, but there is so much more involved than merely that.(Not that we don't find inspiration everywhere, as most jewelers are always on the lookout for something to spark creativity)

One of the toughest parts of being an artist is balancing the need to create my own individual style, with the desire to achieve things at a higher technical level than the masses are capable of, yet still balance that with styles customers can wrap their heads around so they are interested in purchasing.  Combine that with the need to make things affordable to the right person and there are a lot of variables.

My current display alone took hours of research and planning.  We took years of outdoor art show experience to try and determine how to make a display withstand a lot of weather variables yet still be something that could pack up quickly and be relatively compact and light.  Then I needed to figure out a look that represented me, or at least something that would give my work a little "pop" and stand out.

My jewelry creation involves an equal amount, if not even more thought and planning.  There have been some many ideas that were on the drawing board that never made it to fruition.  Some artists make things simply because they like to exercise their technical skill, others like to make what's trendy or popular to turn a profit, while other still have a greater artistic vision and like to create a cohesive collection.

I have to admit I struggle all the time with wanting to find a balance between all that.  I have no desire to be a starving artist who only creates things to stretch the boundaries of my skill level or to astound others, to create pieces all the time so abstract, or pricey that they're tough to sell. At the same time, I don't just want to supply meaningless "popular" pieces simply because they are the years hottest trend.

Add to that, most artists don't work with a huge team of people to brainstorm and bounce ideas off of.  So often I'm throwing ideas at my husband whose responses typically border on "it's jewelry" or "meh."  (Before I make him sound like a scrooge though, I must explain that he helps me at every show, and his carpentry skills have been beyond helpful!  He just has no interest in the art of jewelry design) That being said, an artists life can be a relatively solitary one for the most part so we do miss the benefits of frequent teamwork and brainstorming.  Of course, that also means on the flipside we miss the struggles of office politics, which isn't a bad thing. .

I will say I still don't have everything down to a perfect science.  Each day of creation and planning is a struggle to balance my own unique identity and my vision with the desire to actually sell jewelry and please others.  Each piece I create involves a small internal battle with whether I've invested enough time and effort, if it shows enough technical finesse, with whether it still could be created profitably and will be attractive to buyers. Add to that the decisions I must make how to sell my work, where to display it and how to market it.

Artists approach each day weighing the pros and cons of every little decision, every little hammer or brush stroke, every word typed on a keyboard, and analyzing every customer interaction. Our stories do indeed have plenty of pretty pictures, highlights, drama and humor, but when we "tell or story" we hope you realize that in the interest of not bogging you down with all the details we're doing a lot of editing of that story.  Unfortunately, sometimes by trying to entertain you with our stories or just giving you pretty pictures and not telling you every last detail, you miss the value of our work.  There really are truly hours upon hours of work that go into what we do.  Most artists are always "on the job" and rarely do we ever get to clock out. Even if we manage to carve out vacation time, our minds spend half of it searching for inspiration, analyzing our environments for things to use in our work, and already planning our next steps for when vacation is over.

To those of you who love art, design and craft for it's very essence and love the thought of handmade, I thank you profusely!  While the story of an artist can be complicated and detailed, a story can't exist without an audience. So thank you for listening, learning,watching, buying and appreciating.

If you yourself are an artist, what's your story?  Feel free to share in the comments. 

Pinterest Ethics and Legality

 I LOVE pinterest.  As an incredibly visual person, the ability to search through photos in my categories of interest is delightful.  As a hyper organized person to see such photos in neatly, curated boards is even better. However, I'm becoming increasingly aware of ethical issues surrounding the use of the site.  It is important to remember that most pictures that are posted on the internet are not usually just there to be pretty pictures to entertain or inspire you.  They are there to to create business for someone so they can make a living! Pinterest needs to be used ethically and responsibly to ensure the owners of the photos or the work in the photos posted are not losing the ability to make a living.    Two incidents I've personally noticed come to mind.  Since I work as an artist, these incidents relate to my world, but similar incidents are happening in many different areas of creation and business.

The first incident was where one of my own photos was pinned to a board titles "Things I Can Make" which got my blood to boil a bit.  First of all, I didn't give this person permission to use my photo in the first place, secondly I certainly didn't give permission for my work to be copied. (The best part, is this is one of those pieces that would have involved a heck of a lot of skill to re-create and was pretty much a one of a kind. Good luck with that!)  Do I mind usually if people re-pin my work?  Not if they do so respectfully, but to pin it on a "things to make board" is disrespectful and harmful to my brand. It implies that my work is somehow a simple, DIY project. So I dropped a note on the girls board saying "Actually this piece was copyrighted and sold."  You would think that the poster would recognize their mistake and either apologize or remove the pin.  Instead this is the comment I received in return. "It was just for ideas for my high school jewelry class. My teacher asked me to pin different pieces for inspiration"

Does anyone else see the problem here?  First of all, a teacher of art should in NO WAY  be encouraging their students to create boards of work to COPY.  Inspiration boards...maybe, but even there students should first and foremost be taught about copyright law and artists rights before they even pick up tools to create something.

The second incident is when I saw the work of an artist I respect. I noticed one of her photos pop up but realized the pinner didn't correctly attribute the photo to her but assigned credit to another artist.  While both artists are fantastic, I'm sure neither would want work to be incorrectly attributed.
You're going to think I'm quite the meddler here, and really I'm not but to be nice I dropped a note letting the pinner know whose work it really belonged to basically where her work could be found.  (Who knows maybe the pinner was really interested in the work and would love to know the original source in case she wanted to aquire a piece) Giant headsmack however....her response:  "Thanks, I didn't name it, I just pinned it."  For crying out loud....you were the original pinner, YOU are responsible for the veracity of it. If you had taken two seconds to click through off the google page you found the photo on you would have found the correct information (first mistake----don't ever take photos off of google since they're not the original source!) Secondly, you have the ability to change the description with the photos you post, so if someone provides you with the correct information--FIX IT! The worst part is, this was another art instructor pinning!!!!


 It seems that people seem to believe that if they find something on the internet then they have every right to use it.  I've seen people use the argument as they pin works to DIY boards that making their own interpretations of someone's work isn't stealing it's art.  WRONG.  You post their photo without the permission, you just stole their work.  The photos themselves ARE someone else's property. Pinning a complete photo of someone else's work doesn't fall under the category of fair use folks. If you are going to pin you seriously, SERIOUSLY need to learn what copyright is.  Artists and creators, if you want to protect your work do check out the pinterest copyright page to find out how you can make a formal complaint if you find your work used or pinned in a way that is unacceptable to you.

Do a lot of artists, manufacturers and other creators of the content like the extra publicity?  Usually they do, but that doesn't mean you can post those photos however you like, tag them incorrectly or categorize them on boards that are detrimental to a brands image.
In addition, be aware that the pinterest terms and conditions you checked when you signed up make YOU legally responsible for the content you post. 

Meaning, if someone takes offense to something you post, whether it is their content and you were not given permission, or you incorrectly attribute work to someone other than the creator, or any other multitude of reasons don't be surprised when they can legally come after you!

Pinterest themselves has a page on pinning etiquette which specifically states: Encourage artists to create great work by linking back to their pages, and leaving polite comments when you see pins that aren't correctly credited. http://about.pinterest.com/basics/

Am I saying don't post anything at all. No, I'm not.  There are indeed a lot of benefits to pinterest for consumers, businesses, artists and creators alike.  It creates incredible brand awareness and provides wonderful marketing opportunities. However those who participate in pinterest need to respect copyright and pin ethically and responsibly. 

Some things to consider when pinning:

• Have you credited the proper source?
• Is the photo watermarked? (If so--don't pin it!!) 
• Are you linking back to where the photo originated? (Note, things like google images ARE NOT the original source)
• Is your description of the work correct?
• Are you categorizing the work on an appropriate board (e.g. not pinning artists work to DIY boards)
• More importantly, have you been given permission to use this photo? (If it is at all possible that the creator would take offense to your pinning of their work, then DON'T PIN IT!)
• If you have a DIY board, make sure the pins are truly tutorials. 
• Don't make excuses for incorrect pins---fix them!

Now, most businesses and artists probably will not pursue legal action if they do not like how you use their photos, however why not be ethical and do the right thing when pinning and either a. only use photos you have rights to or photos the creators have given permission to be used  or b.  at the VERY least properly give credit to the original source of the work by linking back to it and providing the correct description with the pin.

Keep in mind that when you take something off the internet that you did not create and you do not give the correct source or you copy the work without permission for your own use you are guilty of piracy.  You are in fact doing harm to the person who created the original work or photo.
Can you support businesses, artists and creators you love through pinterest and help people make a living...absolutely!  So be sure to pin ethically and responsibly so you do more good than harm.

That being said, you are completely free to repin the graphic of this post to share this idea with others provided you link to the original source! ;)

Handmade = Human Made

I wanted to talk a little bit today about what I do and why I do it instead of something else. To begin, I'm an independent business owner. I am 100% in charge of my business even down to the smallest details. I design, I create (with my very own hands!), I photograph each item, size and fix and list the photographs, write descriptions, answer countless messages and questions, make informational materials to go with my orders, box items, package them and ship them out. I also have to research, market, share through social media and continue to learn how to find ways to get my work out there in the world.

When you order a $20 item to even a $200 item keep in mind that all these steps had to take place for you to get that item. Your item was not simply made on a factory line, then plucked off a warehouse shelf and put into a package the same day to get to you. What may seem like such a simple piece of jewelry was created almost like a symphony composition with many subtle layers.

When you buy handmade items you are buying human made items that have been touched by human hands and presented to you with lots of human heart and soul. To be honest sometimes it is a difficult job. When you invest yourself in your work not only through the sacrifice of many hours but an emotional investment as well it can be tough when you have a customer that isn't super nice, or someone who takes advantage of you, or someone who simply doesn't recognize the value of what you do. Luckily, more often than not the benefits outweigh the negatives. I've encountered people who greatly appreciate something made just for them or people who want to share art with others. I've been able to have the satisfaction of creating something real, something tangible and sitting back and saying..."I did that. I made that." Creating is empowering.

When you buy a truly handmade item you are buying from an actual person who most likely has invested a lot of time and emotion into the item you bought. The item that will become yours was once the dream and imagination of someone else. I admit, at times I struggle with the idea of feeding into a consumerist culture where we tend to buy too much and appreciate our extensive amount of stuff too little. However, I then remind myself that "things" are not necessarily bad when they allow us to express ourselves, or allow us to share something with others. When we place value on our objects and cherish them they become more than disposable, inanimate objects. They become extensions of who we are and expressions of our individuality as well as commonality. I like to think that when I create something I instill that object with meaning right off the bat when I create with purpose, with love, with respect to the environment and an appreciation of the customers who will buy it.

 My jewelry could give someone the self confidence they desperately need, or serve as a way for someone to share their love in a gift. It could allow someone to express their personality to others, or to help someone smile.

 Handmade = Human Made = items that connect you to something more meaningful

A ring shown on the hand that made it