One Life Fine Art Blog – Page 12 – Blog of Canadian Fine Artist Debbie.lee Miszaniec, BFA

05Jan 2018 by DebbieleeMiszaniec

New Year, New Blog

Events & Announcements, Introduction, The Story Behind the Painting

Hi all. For my first post of 2018, and my first post in a while, I wanted to start with a recap of the past year, and then introduce a few changes for the next year, specifically involving this blog: I started this blog November 4th of 2016, a little over a year ago. In the past year I have learned that regularly posting articles to a blog in a journalistic fashion is really not for me. When I have the time, I am stretching for things to talk about. When I have a lot going on to talk about, I don't have much time for blogging, or for going through reams of spam searching for legit comments before I write anything. I debated scrapping the blog altogether, however I…

02Oct 2017 by DebbieleeMiszaniec

100 Rejections Update: Just Say No, or Not Quite?

100 Rejections, What's the Big Idea?

I am going to go into this topic because I think it may be something a few others out there may have issues with too: Recently with my quest to amass 100 rejections I have been faced with a quandry. Some of my rejections have been coming through as acceptances. Best possible project outcome, right? Well, yes, but... some applications are not necessarily best fits. Some projects have red flags, but as the goal is rejections I have been less concerned with the potential con side of the pro/con list. So when they are accepted I feel the pressure to jump at the acceptance. After all, I applied for this, didn't I? Obviously I want the position or project or opportunity. When the project has a number of draw backs, I…

25Sep 2017 by DebbieleeMiszaniec

Public Art

Working Artist

Why is public art such an easy target for outrage? Everyone seems to feel they have the right to sound off on it without knowing anything about the art, the artist, the selection process, budgetary considerations, or even anything about art in general. Case in point, Bowfort Towers. So here I am sounding off on it too. Well, not on the art, or its cultural associations or significance, or its author, or the budget, or the selection process. No, I am going to sound off on the uproar that went out, by those who know nothing about it as well as those who should know better (namely other artists who compete for public art contracts). First of all, If you were not interested enough to participate when the call went…

08Sep 2017 by DebbieleeMiszaniec

Reading: Extreme You – Part 4: Break Yourself to Make Yourself

Working Artist

IN Part 1 I explored drive, In Part 2 I looked at standing out, in Part 3 I looked at specialization, and finally in Part 4 I am exploring starting over. Or more accurately I am looking at Sarah Robb O'Hagan's chapter Break Yourself to Make Yourself from her book Extreme You. Essentially she talks about that point in time in your career where objectively speaking everything is going well, and will for the foreseeable future, but there is no growth. It is time to move on. It is time to try something different. I think that this can be very relevant to an artist career. There is a lot of pressure, if you have managed against the odds to find something that works in the market place, to stick…

04Sep 2017 by DebbieleeMiszaniec

Reading: Extreme You – Part 3: Play Your Specialist Game

Working Artist

In Part 1 I covered personal drive, and in Part 2 I covered my thoughts (and worries) about standing out. Today we will look at Sarah Robb O'Hagans perspective on playing your specialist game. So, I do take a little issue with this. She talks quite a bit about knowing yourself and what you bring to the table better than anyone else, and sticking to that. BUT From my experience as a visual artist and a creative entrepreneur, sometimes you have to be flexible, open to new ideas, confident in your ability to learn and adapt quickly, and embrace being a generalist in order to find your path to making your living. Amoung the many things I do or have done to retain my independence and keep my studio going:…

01Sep 2017 by DebbieleeMiszaniec

Reading: Extreme You – Part 2: Get Out Of Line

Working Artist

In my last post I shared my take a way from Sarah Robb O'Hagan's book on developing drive. You can read it here. My next take away is on stepping out of line. As part of my current 100 Rejections Project, I am sending out a lot of proposals, resumes and calls for submissions. If it were not for the aim of this project, to get over the paralyzing fear of rejection and do it as fast as possible by applying for everything I think I am capable of in the arts, I would not say that this is the best or most efficient method for me to find interesting new projects. Why? Because essentially what I am doing by responding to calls is standing in line, with everyone else…

28Aug 2017 by DebbieleeMiszaniec

Reading: Part 1: Extreme You – Step Up. Stand Out. Kick Ass. Repeat.

Working Artist

Well 20 minutes of deleting spam and I can finally settle down to writing this blog post. Part 1 of a 4 part series inspired by Sarah Robb O'Hagan's lively contribution to the swift kick in the butt genre of self-help literature. Before I begin, I will let you know that this is not my main read of the summer, even if a four part series would suggest that. In my studies on the subject of money for my currency paintings I have read some great books including: The Undercover Economist Strikes Back - Tim Harford Money: The Unauthorized Biography - Felix Martin Financial Fir$t Aid for Canadian Investors - Mike Graham Money Rules - Gail Vaz-Oxlade Smart Women Love Money - Alice Finn Rich Dad series (4) - Robert T. Kiyosaki I…

25Aug 2017 by DebbieleeMiszaniec

Coming to VASA! Mystical Magical Fantasy.

Events & Announcements, The Story Behind the Painting, What's the Big Idea?

Upcoming Show: I am happy to announce that I will have three artworks in an upcoming group show, Mystical Magical Fantasy, at the Visual Arts Studio Association in St. Albert Alberta. The show runs Tuesday October 3rd to Saturday October 28th 2017. Opening reception Thursday October 5th, 6-9pm. Visit the VASA website for address and other details as they become available. Artist Statement: The Fun Money Series of paintings are part of an exploration of the cultural significance of money and the ways that we learn in childhood to think about money through fantasy, play, and story. I incorporate coin shaped foil candy wrappers into the paintings to create fantasy worlds in which the main actors, represented by plastic figurines, interact with the coins in different ways. Much like the…

21Aug 2017 by DebbieleeMiszaniec

Final week to see I AM CANADIAN !

Events & Announcements, The Story Behind the Painting, What's the Big Idea?

Hi All! It is the final week to see I am Canadian at the Edge Gallery in Calgary's historic Inglewood neighbourhood. Make sure you check out all the fantastic work on display, and remember, it IS for sale! Gallery hours are 10 - 5:30 Tuesday through Friday and 10 - 5:00 on Saturdays. Below I am posting my artist statement with images of the pieces in the show: [caption id="attachment_222" align="aligncenter" width="241"] Finding a Dance Partner16 x 20 O/C[/caption] [caption id="attachment_223" align="aligncenter" width="240"] Salvation16 x 20 O/C[/caption] [caption id="attachment_224" align="aligncenter" width="242"] The New Homeland16 x 20 O/C[/caption] [caption id="attachment_225" align="aligncenter" width="242"] A Level Playing Field16 x 20 O/C[/caption] [caption id="attachment_226" align="aligncenter" width="241"] Spirit Wrestlers16 x 20 O/C[/caption] [caption id="attachment_227" align="aligncenter" width="236"] Land of Fairytale Abundance16 x 20 O/C[/caption] [caption id="attachment_228"…

07Aug 2017 by DebbieleeMiszaniec

Sunflower Seed Paintings 25 – 30

The Sunflower Project

These 6 sunflower seed paintings, exploring a red-violet/green-yellow palette, have been brought to you by Amanda Constable, who donated the funds for the materials for these six paintings. They are all looking for a good home! Go here to learn about the project and sign up to receive one free, or donate to ensure we keep this project going!