Torso:  Ran, Norse Water Goddess, 22" t, hand and slab built, one of a kind clay/ceramic wall hanging, by Tammy Vitale, $450.00

Ran‘s name (pronounced "rawn") is done with a little ^ over the "a" but I don’t know how to do that with a qwerty keyboard, so I’ll just tell you that and that that she is a storm and weather goddess who presides over those who have died at sea.  I love looking these things up.  It will be mandatory in the future as I move into my Sacred line where each torso will have her own story and amulet.  I can’t wait to see how all that plays out.  I’m starting to think that the "story" will be an "I am" statement much like soul cards.  And the amulet started off as a necklace, changed to a bracelet, then to a stone then back to a necklace.  I still don’t know what that wants to be.  It’s part of the adventure of letting this line reveal itself to me!

The December 07 Crafts Report magazine has a great article on a part of what’s driving my current business change/plan: "Tips for 2008," by Bruce Baker.   "Change is still the most common word that comes up when I speak to an artist about business success.  When an artists tells me about a business or personal ‘win’ they have experienced in the last year, change is nearly always the catalyst for this transformation.

"The first hot tip for 2008 is to fundamentally embrace change.  Commit to making at least three major changes to your business and I think you will find this yields big rewards.  These changes should be focused on your displays, marketing methods and the design of your work."  Bingo on all three.  I love it when I anticipate trends.

More from the article (summarized):  (1) Some specific trends to watch:  Aging Boomers have too much stuff.  Add functionality to your line; (2) Simple Elegance:  move away from lace, calico and highly patterned work toward simple but elegant; (3) Stuff for non-human companions is growing; (4) Cooking and serving for the kitchen, dining room and outdoors; (5) Gardening – anything decorative or useful for the garden has a bright future; (6) Sanctuary:  "art is sanctuary it we design and create it to deliver this benefit.  Creating beautiful things that bring people peace is a wonderful way to associate meaning and benefit to the customers who want to own your work.  The more you create art that references inner peace and promotes spirituality, the more people will respond to your work.  If you learn to articulate this concept verbally as well as visually to your customers, it will be successful."   That last one?  My niche.

The article goes on to point out (in words that are almost exactly the same as I used in a conversation with an artist friend yesterday) that the middle class is completely stressed out financially, but there is and upper class that has a great deal of disposable income.  Find a way to reach that upper class and your sales will continue.  "Most of us do not make objects in the scale or materials that speak to this upscale demographic.  When I call on galleries and ask them what is selling, the answer is always, ‘the big stuff.’

"What you dwell on in your mind, you will manifest more of in your life.  Positive thinking is very powerful."  This is not woo-woo new age stuff, unless you choose not to believe in quantum physics and the new research that shows our brains filter out a ton of information every hour.  Your change of focus (or, if you haven’t really been focusing, just sort of drifting along)  will bring into view some things the brain has been filtering.  This is where attitude and choice of what you want comes into play:  neurologically.  This is scientific.  You can change your life and your world by what you choose to focus on.

So one of the things I was doing this morning was looking at the options I have to be a self-supporting artist.  Brainstorm with me:  look over the list and tell me what I missed.  The more comments the merrier!  Here’s my list:  Wholesale shows; commissioned sales people; small local shops where I pay them a percentage; trunk shows (home and office shows); studio tours; teaching classes; blog monetization; my own gallery; other galleries/shows; events (great shows); website for my independent lines (like Sacred).  What did I miss?

Here’s today’s AEM: Woman Facing Left.    If you want to color, you can get this piece uncolored in yesterday’s post.  AEM has turned into sketch and post uncolored piece, and then color in.  I’m finally getting a feel for the colors I have to work with and am aiming at cool/hot but am not quite there yet.  It’s fun though.  My inner child is quite tickled with the whole process.

thought for the day:  Writing down affirmations seems to have certain advantages.  When we write affirmations, the mind, hand and eye are all involved.  Many people resist the unsophisticated ‘simple-minded’ notion of writing down affirmations in this manner, but it is perhaps just because of this simplicity that this method often works so powerfully for so many people.

One of the most effective ways of using written affirmations is to write an affirmation such as ‘I am prosperous in everything I do,’ or ‘All of my needs are taken care of,’ on the right side of a page.  As you repeatedly write the affirmation, stop to write the negative responses that arise in your mind on the left side of the page.  Once this is done you can see what your habitual negative response to positive thoughts about money is.  Next, convert your negative responses into positive statements, making new affirmations for yourself.  Rephrasing your negative beliefs into affirmations…can transform your habitual thinking at the subconscious level.  Rick Fields, et al, Chop Wood Carry Water:  A Guide to Finding Spiritual Fulfillment in Every day Life.

[For those of you who’ve never heard this:  Before spiritual enlightenment: chop wood, carry water.  After spiritual enlightenment:  chop wood, carry water.]