It's not easy being green..... :(

In my last blog post, I wrote about ordering some business cards from www.greenerprinter.com . I'm very excited about them, but it also got me thinking about what else I can "green." Especially related to art.

Sure at home, I recycle even the tiniest scraps of paper (to the point it probably drives my husband a little nuts). I compost veggie/fruit scraps, coffee grounds and filters, drier lint, and sometimes tissues- with the amount of tissues I go through, I could never compost them all as I'd end up with about 80% of the compost pile being nothing but tissues. I'm pretty sure the compost dwelling roly polies and worms would not be amused. (And we can't have a yard full of displeased roly polies and worms.)

With artwork, it's a little tougher. Until recently, it was really hard to find archival paper that had any recycled content (and I still hear artists debating, "can it REALLY be acid-free?!"). When shopping for paper, I find myself going in circles, asking:
Which is better..... To buy non-bleached/chlorine-free (is that the same thing??) paper with 100% post-consumer recycled content produced by only wind or solar power?
Or buy all new archival acid-free paper made from organic free-traded cotton or bamboo or hemp- or any of the other plants they're using now?
Which is the BEST option?
IS there a best option?

And then there is the printing.

I looked online for a company to order some greeting cards from. Ohh, look, such-and-such a company will offer solar and wind powered production and 100% post consumer recycled cardstock and use soy inks.... and you have to order at least 500 cards (of the same design) at a time.
...For only $250!
Plus artwork set up fees and shipping and handling and did we mention tax and don't forget to add extra if you want the cards cut to the proper size and if you'd like them folded too, please include your first born with payment thank-you-very-much.
(While that's a great deal and all, when you've got 20 or more designs to have printed, that just isn't practical in most cases.)

Would you like envelopes with those?
Organic free traded cottonhempbamboo blend, or 100% post consumer recycled content?




Aaarrrrrgh!

And-- why do they have to cost that much if the production is being handled by wind and sun? Huh? Huh? Aren't those FREE??

::peeks outside::

Been busy, but...

I did just order my new business cards from www.greenerprinter.com . YAY!! I have been perusing the samples they sent me for at least 6 months now, and since I've got at least few shows coming up, I figured I better hurry up and order some. I can't wait to get them!

The samples I have from greenerprinter are gorgeous- great paper and great inks, I love everything about them. The cards I ordered are 100% recycled and printed using soy inks.

Neat!

When will they make soy inks for my home ink jet? WAAAAANNNNNNT!!!!

Tentative Calendar

A lot of art shows go on in the summer and fall, huh?

So far this year, I'm doing:

The Portsmouth Seawall Art Show, August 23-24
http://www.seawallartshow.org/

Artsfest at Annmarie Garden, September 20-21
http://www.annmariegarden.org/Events/Artsfest/index.htm

and have applied to:

Art Fair on the Square, August 31st & September 1st
http://www.deerpathartleague.org/af-general.htm

Neptune Festival Art/Craft show, September 26-28
http://www.cacv.org/events/neptune.asp

Art on the Avenue, October 4
http://www.artontheavenue.org/index.htm

I'm still waiting to hear back from the other 3. So, this could prove to be a VERY busy fall... or a very relaxed one :)

I've been making changes and improvements to my booth setup since last year. Before, I wanted to be unique and stand out and all of that good stuff. Then after going to some art shows and seeing what I thought were some really great booths, I realized that there is probably a reason most artists do not have brightly colored booths. Sure, for jewelry and all it's wonderful. But most of the booths with paintings in them looked simple and organized to put all the emphasis on the artwork.... obviously.
I need some kind of a shelf or desk, and just can't bring myself to fork over $250ish for the ProDesk from Pro Panels. It's shelves covered in carpet! Surely I can find something for less that will work just as well!

Mmmm, stage 2008. Done.

Crazy that this past Thursday night at about 9:00, I was saying to my husband, "Oh, man! This time tomorrow we'll be all done setting up!" As in, I was looking forward to it- because it's always SO much work and there is just so, so much that goes into it that I end up with a ton of anxiety, worrying that something will go wrong or be forgotten......

Now it's been about 24 hours since we did finish setting up.
Once again, about 10 people and 10 straight hours of work. It is A LONGASS DAY, but well worth it in the end. But my body is still ridiculously sore- especially the fingertip parts (from ripping various types of tape all day, etc.), so I won't write too much- but I'll share pictures of the [nearly] finished product. :)

Ohh look, it looks like the kids are enjoying themselves (wearing the shirts I designed for this year in the opening number)! In this picture, the stage is about 99% done. There is a random chair and a few other things around, but for the most part, this is it. You get the idea.

"The Busy, Busy Bees!" (CCD Awareness Honeybee painting)

That's the name of my new painting!


I created it for the May Plant Parade Challenge on WetCanvas. The challenge was to create a piece using both cherries and cherry blossoms. I did a lot of thinking about what I wanted to create, and since a concern of mine has been honeybees, I worked that into the concept as it seemed so obvious. Show the flowers, show the delicious product that we get from them- thanks to honeybees. Obviously you'd never actually see flowers and cherries on a branch like this at the same time, but showing it this way seemed to be the best way I could illustrate pollination.

The painting is 12" x 9" acrylic (big surprise, right?). I haven't gotten a proper frame for it yet- I think I'll get a white linen liner with a white frame.

I've also got this as an 8"x10" print on Etsy and as with all of my 8"x10" prints, $10 from the sale of it will go to pollinator.org, part of the CoEvolution Institute, toward bee research.