My first art piece

You do have an artistic streak, but I would say the toy you made for the toy swap certainly counted as art, you old hippie you... :D :thumb:
 
I think if you had a bunch of those and you got a booth at one of those art shows, you'd sell them, for sure... :thumb:
 
Well that sure is cool man:cool::headbang:

Gotta be art.

Funny thing what Brent said i thought heck make a dozen of those send them to Vaughn and have him put them in his booth next time he does a market. Bet they sell like hotcakes.

Ken i had to chuckle when i first saw the the initial picture without seeing the rest, i thought i was at a Sangoma appointment (Sangoma is a witchdoctor in South Africa they "throw the bones" which is what the small pieces made me think of being disonnected.
 
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Ken i had to chuckle when i first saw the the initial picture without seeing the rest, i thought i was at a Sangoma appointment (Sangoma is a witchdoctor in South Africa they "throw the bones" which is what the small pieces made me think of being disonnected.

:rofl: I hope they read 'fortunes lie ahead':thumb: of course not fortunate for the chicken :rofl:
Thanks Rob, for the comments & the laugh!
 
For just funnin' around, I think you done good, Ken. I'll also echo the suggestion to consider making things like this for sale at street fairs and such. But...only if you can make them profitably. You don't what to use up $75 worth of materials (not even counting the time) on a $50 item.

...Funny thing what Brent said i thought heck make a dozen of those send them to Vaughn and have him put them in his booth next time he does a market. Bet they sell like hotcakes...

I haven't done a show yet this year. ;) The profit from last year's shows for me (in this market) was somewhere between slim and none. I've netted more in sales in the first half of this year by word-of-mouth than I did in either of the past two previous years at the show booth. I'm still planning to do one or more shows this fall, but I'm still watching the economic situation (mine and the country's) before committing to anything yet.

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Also, I'm not sure something like this would be a good mix with my stuff in a show booth. Before I go any further, I should explain my marketing viewpoint. In the "small wood pieces" market, a finished piece is seen by customers as an art piece ($75+) or a craft piece ($20 - $100). Some pieces could go either way (a turned bowl or fancy cutting board is a good example). Presented in one way, it's a $100+ piece to look at and show off to your friends. Presented in another way, it's something you buy for $20 - $50 and admire for its uniqueness or utility (and sometimes whimsy, as in the case of Ken's peace flower).

I'm in no way saying that art stuff takes any more skill (or is more difficult to make) than craft stuff. It's all about how it's marketed to the public and how they perceive it. I believe Ken's flower would be seen as a craft item, at least in my market. Especially if there were a dozen of them in the booth.

I've learned that when there is a mix of art stuff and craft stuff in a booth, neither sells well. The art customers see some craft-like pieces, and in their minds, they figure the seller is no artist, and they mentally downgrade everything else in the booth to a "craft" price range. The craft customer, on the other hand, will see a $300 hollow form, and figure the seller is high on himself and should no way be asking such high prices. Then they see a $40 pen and automatically figure it's overpriced. too.

To be fair, I'm only talking about my local market. I know other guys around the country who have a different kind of customer, so they have a different approaches to sales and do very well at it. Bernie is a good example. He's out in the middle of nowhere Kansas, selling art in a gallery and crafts at small shows, and kicking tail at both. He's got Kansas farm wives paying more for a potpourri bowl than I can get from a Malibu millionaire. :p :thumb: Of course, Goodland Kansas is quite an "art" town. ;)

From what I've seen, the guys who do the best at the outdoor fairs in my area are those who stick with either art stuff or craft stuff. I also believe that's been one of my problems in this market. I've typically had a mix of both art and craft items. I usually don't end up selling an even mix of the two. Some shows will see more art stuff sold, and at others it'll be mostly craft stuff. I think I'd do better if I'd display only one of the two. To have a profitable show around here, a seller either needs to sell a lot of craft pieces or a few art pieces. Since I don't usually enjoy repetitive, production-style turning, my preference is to make bigger, more time-consuming pieces and promote my work to the art crowd. Of course I have a lot of improving to do before that's a slam-dunk, though. :eek: I see a lot of what I'm making now as practice on my way to the types of pieces I'd like to be able to make (and sell) in the future.

And I don't mean to imply at all that either an artist or a crafter is better than the other. Sometimes they're even the same guy. Heck, I'm one of them, and it looks like Ken's on his way, too. :D

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Ken,

I like your "art." I agree that it would probably sell well at a festival or art show.

Suggestion: Change the design inside of the circle a bit and you could sell them to "Potted" Rotarians.
Sorry, I just couldn't help myself. As a humorist in the past would say, "The Devil made me buy that dress." Or in my case, The Devil made me say that.

Enjoy,

Jim
 
Thanks Vaughn, some interesting thoughts, thanks for sharing them. I too am one who's not fond of repetition in most aspects, but if it pertains to collecting $$$...I'm bendable. :thumb::D
I know that I'm far from an artist in the true sense of the word...but I sure get a kick out of creating 'one of a kinds'. My wife has been my sales-rep for sometime now. She'll take something like this and place it on the counter at her place of work, and let time run it's course. We're not going to get rich from it, but I usually get an order or two from her customers to keep us wishing & a hoping. Of course by now she knows enough to explain, that no two are ever alike, which most folks she deals with prefer anyways.
Eh, if it keeps the scrap pile from emptying, all's good in my world.:thumb:

BTW Vaughn, does this mean I shouldn't plan on you pre purchasing 2 or 3 dozen of the 'art versions' for your next show... you could enhance your sale of them by mentioning they were 'Imported from Detroit'! :p


Jim, you crack me up :rofl:...I luv your sense of humor!!!:thumb:
 
...I know that I'm far from an artist in the true sense of the word...but I sure get a kick out of creating 'one of a kinds'...

I think you're more of an artist than you might think. ;) You have a very creative and imaginative mind. And the more pieces you make, the more practice you'll get, and the better you'll get at creating what your wild and crazy mind comes up with. :D

And who says artists can't have a sense of humor? This piece is by Petteri Leppikallio.. Meet Sigmund "Shorty" Piranha:

Petteri Leppikallio Sigmind - Shorty - Piranha.jpg

Or Mrs. Flower Pitcher:

Petteri Leppikallio Mrs._Flower_Pitcher.jpg
 
I don't know what you call the upside down Y on the top, but around here, it is know as "The foot print of the American Chicken" :rofl::rofl:

I like your art work. Put about $450 tag on it and watch it go out the door.
 
I think you're more of an artist than you might think. ;) You have a very creative and imaginative mind. And the more pieces you make, the more practice you'll get, and the better you'll get at creating what your wild and crazy mind comes up with. :D

And who says artists can't have a sense of humor? This piece is by Petteri Leppikallio.....

Thanks Vaughn & those are some great pieces :D:thumb:

Really cool Ken but the "Y" inside the flower is upside down. I don't believe that no one noticed it :D:D

Thanks Bob, don't know 'Y' nobody else mentioned it :rofl:

Bob I thought that also, but was intimidated and didn't want to mention it.

"intimidated" :rofl: yeah right! :rofl::rofl:

I don't know what you call the upside down Y on the top, but around here, it is know as "The foot print of the American Chicken" :rofl::rofl:

I like your art work. Put about $450 tag on it and watch it go out the door.

:rofl: The command Sargent Major I drove for in the Army used to say the same thing about the peace symbol on my helmet liner :thumb:{though he included a few choice 'descriptive' words :rofl:}

BTW--- $4.50 <<< decimal point <<< I fixed it, & thanks for the vote of confidence :D:thumb:
 
ken you should check into the antigue market near you thatis open on sat as a veg market i think and sundays as a antigue any way it has crafty stuff there and gets alot of folks looking just a thought.. its not far from you cant tel lyou where though one real long building with a few steps up to get in..
 
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