question asked of me that I have never heard before!

[Marci MN]

Re: question asked of me that I have never heard before!

WOW... amazing how both of your true colors shine bright today.

You've both lost all my respect as WCI moderator and author.

Marcia.

[Tom-H]

Re: question asked of me that I have never heard before!

I too am troubled! My initial thought several posts ago was, Do you really "see" yourselves that far above the "public"?

Tom H

[Clifford_Parker]

Re: question asked of me that I have never heard before!

Sadly, I must agree with Marci and Tom.

[Sharon of the Dell]

Re: question asked of me that I have never heard before!

I wish when I was a little girl my dad would have taken me to a gallery and told the owner that I did art, instead of telling me that there was no money in being an artist.Maybe I would have believed in my God-given talents earlier in my life and have some books or a gallery under my belt by now. Just a thought or two!

[scooter]

Re: question asked of me that I have never heard before!

Thor... Take a deep breath and hold it in. Hold it... hold it...

Surely this woman didn't mean to waste your time, or insult you. And obviously she didn't have an idea how strange she sounded to you. Couldn't you have simply said (after sizing up the child) that you aren't taking any applications...end of story? Further explanation seems to have accomplished nothing but increase your ire. Yes, we (as people who peddle and show our art) get tired of answering the same questions time and time again, but the customer doesn't know that we answered the same question just moments prior. We smile and repeat our answer.

Now exhale... Feel the tension melt away...

And, if having to answer an offbeat question sends you into a raving tirade (as you indicated yourself), well, I think I'll just wait in the car while my companion(s) browse your store.

S~

[BobD (Archive)]

Re: question asked of me that I have never heard before!

LONG POST ALERT!!!

As a pacificist, I against tasers in general (better than guns, but still not a perfect solution).

I can see all sides of the controversy on this thread. Of course, since the name of Thor's gallery is the Funky Chicken Art Project, you can easily see why the mother felt Thor may be interested in her son's work.

On one hand, we have a site here were we get to know people on an familiar and conversational level that for the most part, isn't work or business related. We grow to like people and become friends with them. We want everyone to succeed and share our opinions and get along. We also want a place where we can find a sympathetic ear to vent our frustrations. We all get frustrated sometimes, and I like to think that we can all have the opportunity to vent our frustrations without being judged.

On the other hand, we have gallery owners talking shop. If you check out Thor or Susan's gallery sites, you can see that they represent hundreds of other artists. These artists depend on Susan and Thor's business experience and instincts to sell their work. Susan and Thor depend on their business experience and instincts to keep the light on.

Maybe I have a bit more insight than the average person when it comes to galleries. When I was a senior in high school, I spent most of a summer volunteering in an art gallery with my girlfriend. I saw all the work the gallery owners do to promote their gallery and the artists they represent. I was also there when people would bring in their artwork (good and bad) trying to get their work into the gallery.

The gallery I worked at was strictly fine art: paintings, pastels, charcoal, pen and ink. The gallery owners were specific in their literature about what they were interested in having in their gallery. But, 75% of the people who brought their work in didn't bother to read the literature. They felt that they knew what belonged in the gallery regardless of what the gallery owners were trying to accomplish. Obviously, if you want a gallery to represent you, you've got to have faith that they can do it better than you can. Most of the people who read the literature ended up getting their work in the gallery because they knew their work would fit in. Everyone wins because the gallery owners get to fill their space with the work they want and the artists didn't waste their time trying to fit their work into a venue not really suited for it.

I don't really see anyone seeing themselves above the public. Susan and Thor are having a frank and honest discussion about how they have made their business a success. Is it annoying when someone doesn't do their homework and wastes your time? It can be, especially when the economy is bad and you are trying to do everything in your power to support yourself and the artists that depend on you. I know how scheduled and regimented my professional life has to be so I can accomplish everything I need to in a day. For entrepreneurs, time is literally money, and in the case of gallery owners, money to keep the lights on and to help the artists depending on them keep their lights on too.


Bob

[Lynn O. Doughty]

Re: question asked of me that I have never heard before!

Yep...have to agree. Sometimes we have to stop and remind ourselves we're not as good as we might think we are. I love dealing with people no matter how boring or uneducated they might be. I'm just glad somebody, anybody, thinks I'm important enough to talk to.

[Lynn O. Doughty]

Re: question asked of me that I have never heard before!

Don't tase me Bro!! I'll listen to your story!!

[Tom-H]

Re: question asked of me that I have never heard before!

Hey Bob D! I thought your "long post alert" heading was a polite way of saying, "just a few more posts, and I'm pulling the thread". Hee Hee! I finally saw that it refered to your post.

Tom H

[Irish]

Re: question asked of me that I have never heard before!

No Marci, I have never thought myself above any one. Nor do I believe that I have ever set such a presence as such. If that is what you read I am sorry because I do not believe that is what I posted here.

As a carver, as an author, as a website owner and as a gallery owner I believe that I and my husband have shared freely what we know and what we have learned along our journey in life. We freely post our teachings on our site. I have spend weeks upon end posting free tutorials here, answering questions as best I could and giving away free patterns.

We have posted on our dog site free information on how to get started as an artist, how to go to press and even how to get help setting up your own art site ... which is competition to us. On our carving site over one half of what we post in a 600 page site is free!

No, Marci, I don't think that is what I said or what I posted nor do I believe that my track record around this forum as being someone that not only will answer a question but will go get a knife and a piece of wood and show you has proven over the years.

But, yes, as in answering Thor's rave as one gallery owner to another, I do believe that people can take what they think or assume as reality even if it has no foundation in truth.



Sincerely, Susan Irish

[Tom-H]

Re: question asked of me that I have never heard before!

I think that what was so troubling to me, after reading several of the earlier posts, was that "am I reading these posts wrong". The Susan and Thor that I have come to know (through WCI) are two of the most sharing and down to earth folks I've "met". So, if I did not read the posts wrong, I must have understood the posts wrong.

Tom H

[Lynn O. Doughty]

Re: question asked of me that I have never heard before!

Hey...don't throw water on this yet...it's just starting to smoke. This is the most excitement I've had since I broke my arm 3 weeks ago!!!

[Kenny_S]

Re: question asked of me that I have never heard before!

Remember, while one is on their SOAP box, It will melt away while being used!

High Horses are a little different, to high, one falls off!


Fence straddling only splits one in half!

When one opens the steam valve, they usually get burnt!

[wildhare]

Re: question asked of me that I have never heard before!

I have chocolate if anyone needs some.
Wanda

[Kenny_S]

Re: question asked of me that I have never heard before!

No No No, enough caffine already. Bad for me health, Well heck, breathing is also. Hmm, Maybe that is why the little bride keeps telling me to stop!