keeping track of ideas - Alice Sheridan: contemporary artist

Put your brush down – this painting is finished… and you’re done! But not so fast; even once the creative work is complete there are many other task between finishing the work and getting ready to show.

This week I have had to draw a line and stop working on certain paintings which can be frustrating if I feel I have just got into my groove as Madonna might say. But work must be ready for Reading Contemporary Art Fair at the end of April… what? But that’s ages away… Maybe, but there is the small matter of school holidays in between, so I have to be organised, as there is a lot to do in between finishing the work and being ready to show:

Selecting what is complete & what needs framing

So the first task is choosing what to show. Some pieces have remained in the studio because they don’t feel ‘right’ yet. It’s tempting to put it all out, and in the first years I did just that; showed just what I had. But now I’m trying to be more selective and show what is ready, not just what is done. Some paintings don’t make it. You may love it, but if I don’t feel happy showing it, then it won’t go out!

I have some large drawings on paper that may be the beginning of a new direction, but I haven’t had enough time yet to explore them thoroughly or to create a body of work so that I can be selective. That’s OK – it can be helpful to have something ongoing to return to after a break.

Not everything needs a frame – large canvases I tend to leave unframed so the choice is up to the buyer, but smaller works people like to have ready to hang straightaway.

Finished details

Once I’ve decided which paintings I want to show, I paint the edges of the wooden panels. These will be mainly hidden in the shadow gap of the framing style I choose, but a coloured edge gives more depth, even if it is only glimpsed. Next they are sprayed with a satin varnish which keeps the pigments in water based mediums and some of the drawing material sealed.

Photograph finished pieces

Once the varnish is dry I must photograph the work properly before it goes anywhere. That’s a step forward – in previous times I have been so last minute before a show that I never get a chance to take photographs. I believe this is known as ‘getting a system’ and it’s something I’m trying hard to get better at. Somehow though, it’s still always pretty close to deadline….

Finding names

There is always a funny discussion with my framer which goes like this:
HIM: Do we have any names yet?
ME: What, for all ten paintings? Er, no, not yet.
HIM: OK what shall I write?
ME: Put them down as Stormy-Grey-Series, or Cut-Away-Blue-Landscapes or, the best so far, …The-Golf-Course-One
HIM: OK (funny look)

It makes my invoices look quite amusing, but sometimes means I have a bit of decoding to do when I look back through my accounts! I keep a notebook of ideas for names as I’m working, it’s hard to be objective and after a while everything begins to sound the same or ridiculous but I prefer to give names than numbers or ‘Untitled’ as it’s another part of the personality of the painting.

That must be all finished, once they are framed?

Not yet… Once the framed paintings are collected I would like to take another set of photographs; of the framed work in situ or close up details. Then these all need checking in Adobe Lightroom, colour adjusting and saving in different sizes before they are ready for the website or just for my own records.

Get your paperwork in order

All work should be catalogued. I currently use a spreadsheet for this but it’s getting fairly unwiedly so I’m thinking of investing in Artwork Archive – any reviews or pointers please let me know! I must measure and take note of dimensions (unframed and framed) and record date finished, sale price, buyer etc.

Then to create labels for the reverse of each piece and for the display. Ordering packing materials so they can be transported safely, hanging… and finally they will be ready to show!

It’s taken me a while to get to this stage – I would love to know what your system is if you are an artist. Or if you are a collector hopefully this is interesting to see how much more goes into getting artwork ready for you.

Followers on my mailing list get first access to new work so I now have another step in the process before a show: set up special access so they get to see the final works first… I’m working on that right now!

I always feel slightly bereft when suddenly the studio is emptier again. OK I have two large canvases still on the go, but today I have also painted another in the Pocket Landscape series that started last spring. So that’s the final thing – much like falling off a horse – pick yourself up and get going again straightaway!

This will be the giveaway gift for one person on my email list selected at random this weekend. So that’s two good reasons to join below if you enjoy my work. No spam, not many emails, just a chance for some real art in your mailbox for as long you stay and occasional art inspiration in your email. You can unsubscribe any time you like x

Think weekly not daily

I don’t have a daily to-do list; too much writing and transferring, too many pages to keep track of! Instead my weekly (mainly domestic) tasks are in a small paperback book where I can list things I need to get done, plan meals etc.It is small enough to put in by bag if I need to and I can interperse each week with notes that are not major projects but that will pass, eg birthday party lists

Most important is a focus section for each week. Last week it was ‘planning’, this week I have a lot of family appointments and events so it is ‘use small chunks of time’. This helps me consider the week ahead and allows me to be flexible each day while still making sure I cover what I need to.

Think chunks, not months

I have broken the year down into chunks of time, dictated by school holidays. This gives me 6 working chunks and holidays. Doing this has allowed me to consider what type of work can only be done when I have time on my own (longer days in the studio), and what work I can continue to do when I also have the children around (eg sketchbook projects)

Traditional diaries encourage you to plan in monthly slots but these are articfial blocks of time that may not suit you best. What would you find easier? You may have finite deadlines that dictate your timelines; I have included dates for submissions and shows and looking at the year allowed me to work out which of these will fit with my time this year – and which I can discard from my mental ‘to do’ list.

Thinking like this has allowed me to really see where I have time, and where I don’t! I’ve written before about my tips to working out your creative week but we also need to plan out a longer term vision.

Did you do this at the start of the year? Let me know what you learnt and what you will do differently this year to make sure you take more steps towards doing more of what you enjoy.