Art is God's Voice

Pay attention to poetry.

Pay attention to music.

Pay attention to paintings and sculptures and photo exhibits and ballets and plays.

Why?

Because art is God's way of saying hello. Your world is shouting out to you, revealing something intrinsically glorious about itself.

Listen carefully.

Love art, the way art loves life.

Don't let all this go unnoticed. _Neale Donald Walsh_

I have a page on Face Book. You can find me there by typing in my username:  Lynda McKinney Lambert. I use this page to keep in touch with friends mostly. It’s a place where I can chitchat with friends and family. Lots of times, I post interesting things that I like. I share them with anyone who might visit my page that day.

You can also find another page that I have on FaceBook. It is the business page where I keep my friends and clients updated on my upcoming exhibitions and show photos of that is going on in my studio. That page is:  River Road Studio


http://www.facebook.com/pages/River-Road-Studio/175785105811956

You can visit this page and when you do PLEASE click on the LIKE button there. This way I know there are friends who like my work and like to hear about what is happening in my artistic professional life. Please visit me there soon. And, be sure to leave a comment for me!

I like to check my two FaceBook pages every morning. Often I see some gems  to  enjoy. Every now and again, I find something that makes me sit up and pay attention. Some things rise above the usually mundane. Today is one of those days. I found the quote above, posted by Neale Donald Walsh. I really love this post today!

You know, it is in the ARTS that we can LEARN what is really going on in our world.  

The evening news does not have a clue as to what is really going on. It is through the ARTS that we learn about our world. The arts give us insights into the future as well as understanding of the present. The only things is, you have to be willing to STOP and take a LOOK. Stop and LISTEN. STOP.  


The ARTS make us THINK and thinking takes TIME. The ARTS stop us in our TRACKS.

I have often heard from a philosopher friend that when he wants to know what is going on, he looks to ART to give him the SCOOP. The inside information. It is hidden. Art REVEALS. Through ART we can actually SEE OUR SELF.

Neale Donald Walsh has it right.

“Pay attention to poetry. Pay attention to music. Pay attention to paintings and sculptures and photo exhibits and ballets and plays. Why? Because art is God's way of saying hello. Your world is shouting out to you, revealing something intrinsically glorious about itself. Listen carefully. Love art, the way art loves life. Don't let all this go unnoticed."  Neale Donald Walsh

Read it again.

“Art is the WORLD saying HELLO to you!  ART is God’s way of speaking to you. Say HELLO to GOD. Go look at some art. Go listen to a musical performance. Go.  Let God have a WORD with you soon.” _Lynda Lambert_

January 2012 - a Resolution

January 2012 - Beginning the New Year 

Bob and I  hung some art on the walls in our Library.

Now the room feels just right as I sit surrounded by the beauty of ART!

There is nothing that can compare with real, original art  in your home or office. Each piece holds memories as you look from one to the other.  When you buy a work of art, you are buying a piece of the artist's  life in a very personal way.  In my own collection are works from artist friends as well as other pieces I have bought from artists I will never know personally. Each art work reminds me of the artist who made it and each holds a special place in my heart.

The lively abstract painting shown here  was painted by me. It is one of my all time favorite paintings that I did a long time ago.  I was an graduate student in painting at West Virginia University. I was passionately reading poetry by Robert Bly and William Carlos Williams. They are still my poetic mentors.  The images I recognized in their poetry cam through my brushes during those years as I painted in my stdio. There were wonderful images from nature, snow storms, rain, and the environment that we dwell in evry day.  This painting moves me every time I stop to have a deep look at it. I will never understand this painting and it still holds secrets that I find there. 

There are other paintings and photographs on my walls and they were done by friends I know personally. Other works of art on my Library walls come from Africa. A young painter in Nigeria sent me this beautiful textural painting one day. It was a very big surprise. I had no idea it was coming to me through the mail, in a tight little roll, inside of a box. This is one of my treasures, among all treasures in my home. It was a gift.

The African Painting and sculpture  hang above a collection of books on a vintage primitive table. I am very fond of primitive things that I have found over the years at yard sales, basements, and unexpected places. They are often someone else's trash and in my home they are my treasure. I have many such pieces in every room of the house. I keep them exactly as they are when I find them. I do not paint them or disturb them, but just clean them up and put them to use again.


The lamp shade was made by my husband Bob. He makes beautiful art  in Stained glass and steel.  The pottery plate was made by me,  I was inspired by a vintage advertisement plate made of clear pressed glass. African statues fill the nooks and crannies of this Library.  I am always surrounded by the spirits of the artisans who created them..

A bay window allows light to flow into this room from morning till late afternoon.

While others are making stunning and ambitious resolutions for the year, I choose to just resolve to spend time each day thinking about art and poetry and the passage of time.  

My resolution  for the New  Year is to  enjoy  making some  knitted items in the solitude of my cozy home; sweeping the wooden floor of my porch with a fiber broom to clear it of the new  snow that the western winds have blown there; watering and tending to my plants while they safely wait inside the house for their time to once again return back outside after winter has passed; pausing to admire  my little African Violet plat (I started from a leaf).  It is about a year old, and won't be ready to bloom for quite awhile yet. There is time for that. No hurry.  

I finally started writing in my journal today, too.  I wonder why I put it off, keep in on the back burner like I do. I write it on the computer, print it out, then put it in my binder that is labeled "Journal."  

The pottery bowl  was a welcome Christmas gift from our daughter Heidi.  I cherish  this piece of pottery. What I like about it is the natural color of the glaze, the kind of clay that the potter used, and the way she carved deep geometric and symmetrical patterns in the clay.  Another reminder of Heidi is on the wall. There is a set of three drawings that she made years ago. The three drawings are placed vertically in one frame. They look African, too.  Her drawings have a tribal feel to them.

I would not trade one small piece of hand made art from this room, for an entire room full of expensive commercial art made by the thousands and sold at slick department stores.  Here in my Library,  each piece is priceless to me. 

How to ENTER a JURIED ART EXHIBITION

How to Enter

a Juried Art Exhibition

Enter your art work in a JURIED EXHIBITION

contact the gallery and ask for an “Entry Form.”

     The gallery creates an “entry form” for each exhibition.  This entry form is your road map for entering an exhibition. The form will give you all the details that you need to enter the show. Be sure to look over this form very carefully before you begin to fill in the blanks. Read it over first to give yourself an overview of  the information you will need to have as you begin the process.

Each exhibition has a title. The front page of the brochure will give you the name of a particular show you will be entering.

Example: Art of the State…Pennsylvania 2012. 45^th Annual Juried Art Exhibition

Below the title of the exhibition you will find the dates that the show will be on display at the museum. In the example I have given you, the dates for that show will be June 16 – September 9, 2012.

The final thing that is on the front of the brochure is the hosting organization that is sponsoring the exhibition and the name and address of the gallery or museum where the show will be on display.

You get a lot of information about the show when you look at the front cover of the brochure. You now know the name of the show; the sponsor; the museum; the dates of display; and the address.

After you have noted this information, you are now ready to open the brochure and look over the DETAILS you will need to know about HOW you will ENTER the show.

Look for the ENTRY DEADLINE

The show will have either a “Hand Deliver Only” policy, or it will have an “Enter by MAIL policy” or BOTH!  How does the museum want to receive your entry? And, when?

Look for the final date for you to get your entry form and pictures of your work to the museum. Your entry must arrive by that date if you want to be considered for the show. Entries arriving AFTER the deadline date are NEVER considered.

What do you need to send?

Most shows want you to send them slides of your work, or a CD with photos of your work. Many venues will not return these to you so be sure you have duplicates.  If they are returned to you, then you will be instructed to send a SASE along with your entry fee. The SASE is a “Self Addressed Stamped Envelope.”

There will be an “ENTRY FEE”

The form will give you the amount that you need to send along with your completed form, and photos of your work. This fee will not be returned to you if you are not selected for the show.

The brochure will give you the information on who the juror is, and who the juror of awards will be. Often the juror of the show entries will be the same person who selects the awards, too. Sometimes it is one person, and other times it can be a group of people who will be selecting the show and the awards.

          The brochure will give you the EXACT INFORMATION DETAILS that you need to have to send in your entry. You’ll need to know the exact SIZE of your work.  For a 2-Dimensional work, you will measure the HEIGHT and the WIDTH of the art work, and then the depth of it, too. If the painting, for example, is framed, then you need to give the dimensions of the work PLUS the outside edge of the frame.

For a 3-Dimensional art work, such as a sculpture, you can usually send in three views of that work. You need to measure the Height of it, the width of it, the depth of it, AND the WEIGHT of it.

For each work

fill in the blank for each of these questions:

1.) Title of the art work

2) Medium (Painting, print, sculpture, ceramics, etc.)

3) Dimensions (the size measurements)

4) For Sale? You will be asked to fill in the PRICE you want to sell the    work for, if it will be for sale.

5) Not for Sale?

Some shows will not show a work that is NOT for SALE!  For those shows who will show a work that is NOT FOR SALE

6)  INSURANCE VALUE of the work. 

When will you know

if YOU ARE SELECTED

 for this show?

The brochure will give you the date that you will be notified.

You will be given instructions for the delivery of the work after you are notified that you are IN.  You will receive a card that you had filled out when you sent in your entry. 

There will be a little box on it and one of the boxes will be CHECKED. You will be IN; or, you will be OUT.

GOOD LUCK!

The Juried Exhibition

How to be a Professional Artist

Part 3: 

Juried Exhibitions

After you have had some success showing your art work in local “open” art exhibitions, you will want to begin to seek out some “juried” exhibitions. 

The “open” show allows all entries to be displayed in the show.  

This is an amateur type of show.  

There are no selections and all works are displayed in this show. It is a nice place to begin if you want to start getting your work out in front of the public.  I suggest you do this for a year or two to get started and get a feel for showing your work to the public.

The “juried” show will be selective and a “juror”  will choose some works, and reject some works for the show.  

This is a step forward for you, to begin to be selected for exhibitions. At this point, you have decided to become more professional about showing your art work and you will no longer be looking for the “open” art shows.

Here are some types of Juried Exhibitions for you to consider:

1.)  Regional Juried Exhibition – 

This show usually limits the scope of entries to a radius around where the show will be presented.  It may be a “Tri-State” show, or a show that sets the distance that an artist may live from the exhibition site. Typically, that will be anywhere from 50 to 150 miles away.

Art works will be selected from artists who live within a tri-state area if it is a “Tri-State” show, or within the mileage described for entries.All other artists who live outside the selected  area  cannot enter this show. 

Typically the “Juried Exhibition” is selected by one juror. It will be a successful artist who is well-known nationally or regionally.  The show will be sponsored by a museum or art center.  The exhibition will be held at that site and only works of art that have been pre-selected by the “juror” will be on display in that show.

2.)  National Juried Exhibition – 

Artists will be selected by a nationally known juror for this exhibition.  It is usually held in a museum or gallery or art center.  Since the range from which the entries may come is quite wide – the entire nation – you can imagine that the chances of getting into a National Juried Exhibition are not as good as a regional show would be. The competition will be strong for a place in this exhibition.

One nice thing about such a show is that your work is viewed alongside fellow artists  rom across the entire country.  This gives you an idea of what is going on with other artists nationally. You can see how your work stacks up next to the others. You can also attend the opening  reception for the show, and meet  the other artists who are in that same show.

3.)  Juried Exhibition sponsored by art organizations – If you are a member of an artist’s organization, 

you will most likely have the opportunity to be involved in an annual exhibition. They are always “juried” exhibitions. That means, everyone in the group can enter a specified amount of art works.  Typically, you can enter anywhere from 1 to 4 works. 

There will be a “juror” for this show, too.  The juror will come from out of the area and will be someone who is notable in the art world. It can be a working artist or an arts professional such as a professor of Fine Arts at a university, or the director of an art museum or gallery.

This kind of a show is exciting because your work is put up for the jury process against your fellow artists in the arts organization that you all belong to. This is a chance to put your work up with your peers. 

4.)  International Juried Exhibition –

 Here, your work is in competition with art works from many different countries. 

This show can be expensive for you if you are selected. You will have to ship the work to the country where the show will be held. You’ll be paying shipping to and from that show. You will have to find out what the rules are for shipping the work and it can be complicated but you have to do that. You have to do your research to find out exactly how you can ship the work.

Some Juried Exhibitions require that you send your work to an art handler instead of sending it directly to the museum or gallery where it will be in a show.  The art handler receives your  work, unpacks it, and delivers it to the show site on a specified day. This is often the case when doing shows in New York City or other large metropolitan areas.  You have to pay a fee to the art handler for this service. And, it usually has to be the art handler specified by the art gallery or museum. You cannot choose another one, there is only one permitted to do this usually.

Sometimes, when doing an exhibition in another country, the museum will pay for shipping of your work, both ways. I have been fortunate to be in a couple of shows in Japan and New Guinea and  all shipping costs were covered to the artists who were in the show.

Everything you need to know about how to enter a show is printed on a “prospectus.” 

What is the prospectus?

It is a flier on which all the rules are outlined for you. It will tell you how many works you can enter, where and when you can enter them, and the cost to enter. When you learn about a show, you may contact the gallery or museum and ask for a prospectus. It can be mailed to you, or you can often get it via e-mail.

This gives you a brief look at some aspects of putting your work in a juried exhibition. By now, you are probably wondering what the costs involved may be.  I will give you a brief overview of that here:

Jury or Entry Fee:  

This is the fee charged for you to enter the show.  You will enter the show by taking your work to the museum for the juror to look at directly. Or, you will enter slides of your work, or a CD with pictures of your work. You pay this fee and even if you are NOT juried into the show it is not refunded. This fee is your first expense when entering a juried show. All juried shows that I am aware of have a Jury or Entry Fee.

Shipping Fees:  

If the show is too far away for you to drive to it, then you will want to ship your work there. You will pay to ship the work to and from the show.

I hope this gives you an insight into how you might want to proceed to become more professional about where your work is being viewed. 

Your opportunities for selling your work at a juried show are fairly good.  It is much better  if your work is shown in a well-known gallery or museum because that is where collectors will come to buy art. The collector respects the gallery and the juror and knows that the work has been selected from many other entries just to be in this show.

Another exciting thing about a juried show is that there is always prize money awarded to a selected few winners from the show.  

The prize winners are always recognized in the show’s catalogue and they are given their awards publically at the Opening Reception for the show.

The winning works are usually depicted in the show catalogue, too.

I hope this has inspired YOU to think about what YOU might do with your work.

 What is YOUR NEXT STEP?  

Are you ready to try to get into a Juried Exhibition? I hope you do. Go ahead and get your prospectus, read it over, and follow the directions - you are off on a new phase of your career.

The Artist's Statement

Part II

The Artist's Statement

Do YOU have an Artist's Statement?

     One thing you will need to start thinking about after you begin to get your work into juried exhibitions is the Artist's Statement.

     Galleries will ask you to provide them with an Artist's Statement.  You'll need to begin right NOW to start thinking about YOURS and begin writing down your ideas on what you wan the gallery and the public to know about YOU, your WORK, and the IDEAS behind your work.

     In my next article I will go into more detail on Juried Exhibition and explain them in more detail to you. But, for now, I want you to begin thinking about your own art work, and how you can begin to TALK about it.

     Here is the Artist's Statement I completed today to send to a gallery that will be displaying my work in a few weeks. They also needed my Artist's Statement to apply for a grant for me to be an Artist in Residence at their gallery. 

 Lynda Lambert: Artist’s Statement

September  2011

The source of my pottery lies in two traditions: 

1.)    Art History - my studies of the ancient past. I taught Ancient to Medieval Art History for many years as Professor of Fine Arts and Humanitis at Geneva College. It is natural that the imagery and history I worked with daily would be abiding motifs in my own creative efforts. My love of the ancient past was aroused as a mature student working on my BFA degree at Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania in the mid 1980s. My first glimpse into this world happened the first night of my first art history class. These memorable images and ideas have remained a central part of everything I create.

2.)    Nature - My observations of the natural, organic world around me have been urges that I have held within my creative self from as far back as I can remember.  Nature has been my muse since childhood. She continues to guide my hands as I work with clay. The ancient myths hold me transfixed as I contemplate the symmetry and majesty of Nature. My work is both a celebration of Nature, and a recognition of the eternal forces that are inherent within Nature.

My artist process begins as I gather fragments of information from the art of the past, and combine those inages with the world of Nature that surrounds me every day  These fragments mingle with memories, myths, history, and become the force that guides me in my creative work.

I define and explore a sense of place as I make my pottery.  Images and motifs emerge slowly as I work in layers of clay, mark making, stains, under glazes, and glazes. My   color is influenced by nature and a sense of the passage of time. The methods I use in creating my organic sculptural vessels are very time intensive. Each piece takes form over a period of weeks or months before it becomes the final work that will be on view in the gallery.

     Each piece begins with my choice of clay.   From there, the object is created mostly by using timeless Asian hand throwing techniques.  I am influenced by ancient pottery and especially by shards of pottery that is found in an ancient ruins. I like to be sure that the mark of my hand is left in the clay to show the process and to remind the viewer that pottery is made from the earth and by a person who has left behind marks that naturally occur in the process of making the object.

     I see my pottery creations as individual works of fine art. I am not a production potter. There are no two pieces of my work that are the same. Each piece is one of a kind. 

How to Begin Your Art Career

How will YOU  Plan Your Art Career?

Part I

Juried Exhibitions and

Your  Resume’

_

By Lynda J. Lambert

Pennsylvania Artist

ASK YOURSELF THESE QUESTIONS:

What is an art career?

Do I even have an art career?

Do I want to have an art career and exhibit my art in public shows?

Am I happy just playing “artist” or do I want more?

How serious am I anyway?

What does it take for me to move from a hobby artist to an artist who is recognized as a professional?

Would I like to see my art hanging in galleries, museums, or exhibitions?

Lynda Lambert at her opening reception for _Primal Garden...la vida luminiscentes_ 

September 9th, 2011 at Merrick Art Gallery, New Brighton, PA

Lynda is shown with her daughter Heidi Lambert McClure, also an artist

Lynda has been in over 200 juried exhibitions and exhibited nationally and internationally.

STEP ONE:

This is an important FIRST STEP: 

You may be saying, “What IS a JURIED EXHIBITON?

You will  need to know about this before you can move on to the next step in your exhibition career.

The first step towards a serious commitment to your art requires that you begin to enter juried exhibitions. In this way, you get a feel for how your work stacks up when in competition with your fellow artists. 

Be prepared for some rejections.  Even artists who have been exhibiting their work for many years get rejected by a juror.  This is just part of the world of art exhibitions.  Sooner or later, you WILL get into a juried show and you will be so proud of your achievement. It will be a big step in your career when you begin to get into juried shows and even win some recognition for them.

How does it work?

A JURIED exhibition is a show that has been selected by one judge or a small panel of judges who view your work along with lots of other entries from other artists.  The juror will select the art works that he/she decides will best suit the kind of show that will be exhibited in the end.   You want to begin putting your art work out among the crowd of other art works through the jury process.

Before this, you may have entered your art in shows that are non-juried. This means that all work entered in a show will be hung or displayed.  This could be the first step for the novice, and one that is non-threatening nor intimidating.  This type of show is usually uneven, with work by seasoned artists appearing beside art works that are made by beginners.  After you have done just a few of these, you are now ready to move UP to put your work before a jury.  You will definitely want to do this and you will need to do this to gain professional experience in showing your art works.

As you begin to participate in juried exhibitions you will need to begin listing them on an artist’s resume. It is an important step and it reflects that you are a serious artist. It also reflects that an doing work that is notable in your field because experts have chosen your work for public display in their shows

Hand Beaded Jewelry on display at Merrick Art Gallery

5th Avenue and 11th Street, New Brighton, PA

Sept 9 - October 2, 2011

Bead Weaving by Lynda Lambert

Create a good Resume:

Now is the time to begin working on a good resume, or a one page Vita.

Begin doing this as soon as you begin getting into juried exhibitions.


After listing your name, address, contact information website or blog address, then you will divide you resume' into some important categories. It will be in those catagories that you will begin to list your exhhibitions and honors and awards. Do it chronologically. Begin with your latest one, and then go backwards.

Create a category titled:  “Juried Exhibitions.”

Later on, you will need to create a category for “Invitational Exhibitions.” That usually comes after you have been doing some juried exhibitions for a while. Eventually  you will be  invited to participate in a gallery, museum, or art center’s show. This is also decided by a gallery owner, a selected juror or a committee, so it is also prestigious  because you have been asked or invited  to participate in the show.

Awards and Honors on your RESUME:

On your resume, create a THIRD category listing for “Awards and Honors.” 

When you need to send your Vita' or Resume' to another show or to a gallery, they will be looking to see what shows your work has appeared in and any awards or honors you have won.  List them chronologically by placing the most recent ones at the top of your list.

Review of Step ONE:

1.)     Begin to look for “juried” art exhibition and enter them

2.)     Create your Resume' or a short one-page Vita’

Here is what you need to put on your resume’ or one-page  vita’:

Your Name

Your Address

Phone Number/ E-mail

Your Blog or Website (IF you have one)

Categories:

          1.)  Juried Exhibitions:

                        List name of show; the juror’s name;

 the place where it was on exhibit,

                        and the dates of show

            2.) Invitational Exhibitions

                        List name of show, 

the juror or group who invited you, 

place when the exhibition was on display; 

date of show

            3.) Awards and Honors:   

List any awards you received in a show, 

date of Award 

Later on, we'll be adding a couple more categories. But for a start, this is all you'll need to put on your artist's resume' or one-page vita'. Remember this: An artist's resume' is very different than a business person's resume'.


The steps are small ones, but very important ones. It is the little things that make your art career work. It is the ability to pay attention to the small details and be careful about them.

One of the biggest failures for an artist is to spend tons of time in the studio creating work, and then failing to develop a business PLAN for marketing that work.  We have to be in BALANCE.  Work + Exhibitions are important to us. Exhibitions give us an audience for our work AND  it brings us recognition and collectors who will be buying our work. We want to begin to develop our exhibition opportunities AND our clients.

To BEGIN:  

Step it UP

Find some Juried Shows

Begin your Artist  Resume'

You can begin by doing a search on-line for juried shows in your local area. I strongly suggest that you begin with a show that is very close to where you live.  You'll probably be surprised at how many juried exhibitons and opportunities you will find within a 30 mile radius of where you live.  Check out  any galleries or museums, art centers, universities, colleges, or local educational programs in the arts to find out when their next juried show will be held.

The Prospectus:
Ask the gallery  for a prospectus. The prospectus is a program flyer that gives you all the information you need to enter the juried show. They will probably email it to you. You can read the prospectus and you will know all the rules and regulations for that particular show. The prospectus will tell you exactly HOW to enter the show. It will give the dates of the show;  the juror's name and credentials;  the day to deliver your art for the jury process; the day to deliver your accepted art work; the day of the opening reception and awards ceremony; the FEE you need to send with your application, size limitations; and the kinds of art forms that are permitted  for entry in this show. Your Prospectus is your ROAD MAP for that particular exhibition. 

Autumn Reflection Vessel:  Grape Leaves, Snakes, and Sanils

by Lynda Lambert

In the solo exhibition:  Primal Garden...la vida illuminscentes

Merrick Art Gallery,  5th Avenue and 11th Street,

New Brighton, PA

Sept 9 - October 2, 2011

Our next conversation will be to explore the different kinds of JURIED EXHIBITIONS  that you will encounter once you begin your SEARCH for a show to enter.

Autumn is a GREAT TIME to begin looking for some shows to enter.  I would love to hear from you on this topic and hear about your experiences as you begin to enter some juried shows. I willbe celebrating with you when you get IN your FIRST JURIED SHOW. Be sure to let me know about it.          

The Art Opening Needs More than the Artist to be Successful

Read MORE about Lynda LambertThe Ellwood City News, Ellwood City, PA - Feature Story on Lynda LambertThe next time you go to an art gallery or attend an opening reception for the artist please think about the enormous efforts that go into such a thing as an art show.

It is a team effort. 

 Here are the players in the team:

The ARTIST:

 has to make the work for the show. This normally takes several years of concentrated efforts to creat enough work to fill a gallery.  When my show opened last night at Merrick Art Gallery in New Brighton, PA, the gallery was filled with pottery and jewelry that I had worked on to develop for four years.  And, that was four years with almost daily work in the studio.  This is certainly not a hobby type of exhibition. It is a show put on by a seasoned professional artist who can stay focused and on-target with a THEME for a very long period of time. In this case, four years, working on the theme of a PRIMAL GARDEN...la vida luminiscentes.  I decide on the them, then I begin the long process of creating the work for the exhibition with a vision towards what the final "picture" will be. I hold that picture in my mind, daily, over this period fo time as I continue working.

A GALLERY

when creating the work, you need a glalery to exhibit the work.  I had been working towards this show for three years with no idea of where it would be shown. Then, one year ago, a gallery called me with an invitation to have a solo show.  And, there it wass.  I had the vision for the show, had been working on that vision for three years, and finally a gallery invited me to host a show. After that, I had one more year to complete the work for the show. It is a long process. You begin in faith not knowing where the show will be, but you begin.

THE DELIVERY PERSON:

When the time  comes to take your work to the gallery and get it set up for the exhibition, you will need people to help you.  The work has to be carefully delivered. In my case, it took six truck loads to deliver my very fragile and large work. My husband Bob is my road manager, and he transported the truckloads of pottery, one by one, over a period of a week. When we began to unwrap, unbundle, and take out the work for installation, we were joined by a good friend who is an artist.  The three of us began the process of installing the show.  It took three entire days to get the show installed and ready for the opening.  We worked till late the night before the opening, to finish this job.

THE OPENING RECEPTION:

For the opening recweption you need lots more team members.  Here are some of the things that wyou will need to organize for opening night:

Food and drinks - you'll need a couple of people in charge of this area of your show.  You want your guests to be able to have refreshments during the reception and you need peole to be sure the table is full all night long.

SALES:

you will need people in charge of taking care of paying for their purchases.  I had four people in charge of writing up sales and putting the charges through via I-Phone. They also had to write up each sale so that we would know how much we would owe the gallery for the percentage they get from all sales.  Then, the items have to be labeled as sold on the gallery walls. Other things were sold and folks could take them home at the same time. Those things had to be wrapped and bagged.  This takes a team of at least four people to pull off smoothly.  My daughters and grand daughters were in charge of this critical part of the show opening.  They are professionals at this kind of thing and did a fabulous job keeping it all straight.

 GREETERS:

My great grand daughter is 14 years old. She came to the show and brought one of her firneds. Theyw ere outside the entrance to the gallery. It was their job to greet people, give them a program for going through the show, and be sure they signed my little guest book when they were leaving.  This gave my guests a personal greeting and welcoming feeling upon their arrival.

My husband is part of the team, too. He greets people, spends a lot of time where the food is so that he can be in conversations with people all night long.  He takes care of little things that may come up during the evening.

And, finally, YOU the artist. Once you have arrived and things are put in motion, and you have given your team instructions on how to do things you are then ready to greet the visitors who will be arriving.

Once the first people come through the door, from then on, you are engaged in greeting people, taking them around to see art works, telling them the stories about the works, and just enjoying the next three hours to the fullest.  You will be seeing people from every aspect of your life. Folks from your past community involvements, people from your daily life, people you went to school with many years ago, and you next door neighbors. It is so wonderful and everyone has such a beautiful time together.

YOUR FEET:

My final piece of advice:  wear very comfortable shoes. You will not be seated one time for at least 3 to 4 hours.  Even when I wear shoes that are flat and comfy, believe me, by the end of the night my feet ar buring and feel like they are in a vice. In the final moments of the show, I am now not wearing my shes at all - despite my fancy dress, I am in my bare feet on the cool gallery floor. Everyone laughs and my feet say "ah, thank you so much!"

If you are an artist and want to have a gallery show, begin NOW to design your show and begin working on the pieces for your show. No matter if you do not know exactly where it will be.  It WI"LL BE, once you begin to envision it and begin doing the work for it. Remember, you need a TEAM to help you get your show ready once you have done the work and are ready to have your opening night. You have many friends and family members who will join you and will be happy to do it.

THE OUTFIT:

You need to think about what you will wear. You are the STAR of the evening and you need to stand out in the drowd.  I like to select an outfit that matches the spirit of my art work.

For my opening reception I wore a beautiful top designed by MARC BOUWER.  I created a TALISMAN in my encrusted bead weaving techniques to coordinate with this beautiful fluid top.  It was a hit and people asked me all evening where I got my outfit. And, they stopped in their tracks to have a close look at the talisman I designed to match the outfit, that matched my art work. 

It is your show so be a STAR. You need your TEAM. New Castle News, New Castle, PA - Feature Story on Lynda Lambert

Making Art with Inner Vision

I was asked to write a short article for a journal recently. The editor asked me to discuss how my art changed from the time I could see to do it, and how it is done now that I cannot see to do it. I am delighted to answer this question because it means that someone has an interest in what I do and how I do it, as an artist. It also means that someone is not afraid to have an honest discussion with me about a topic that far too many people are afraid to face or discuss - sight loss.

Here is what I wrote and sent off today to the editor of the journal:

"Art and Inner Vision"

One of the most valuable lessons I learned as a mature student of the fine arts at Slippery Rock University of PA, back in the 1980s was that there was a difference between “seeing” and “looking.” My painting professor had talked with me about learning to “see.” He sent me off on a new journey when he gave me a list of artists on day. My assignment was to visit the library and find those artists. He told me to look at pictures of their work. I spent many days in the library. I back the information to him about what I was “seeing.” This assignment opened up a new way of thinking for me, a new understanding of what art is really about.

Seeing takes a long period of time. It is not a glance, or a quick look. It is about the passage of time. It happens in layers. Seeing involves the entire body, not just the eyes. I soon became aware of the inner vision that sees the art work, and time stood still. We are outside of time when we begin to “see” the world around us through all of our senses.

This belief that I embraced enabled me to continue to create after I lost most of my eyesight nearly four years ago. I learned to adapt, to find new ways of expressing an idea. I decided that this change in vision opened new doors for me and new ways of exploring in my art work. I viewed it as a new opportunity to learn new ways of working.

Instead of painting pictures and making wood cut prints, I decided to begin working in clay. It was a very quick transition for me to move from a 2 dimensional flat surface, to a 3 dimensional form. My love of painting has been transformed to working on the surface of the forms I made, using glazes, under glazes and stains to get the rich colors and depth of surface that I always had in my paintings. Now, I think of my vessels as paintings. They are paintings that you can take a walk around, and view from all sides.

Making pottery is a new adventure for me. It is one that I experience because of a life-changing challenge. Most people would think that to lose your eyesight, for an artists, would be the worst imaginable tragedy. This is not true.

Instead of feeling sorry for something I had no control over, I turned my personal challenge into a new adventure. I changed my mind and looked for positive outcomes. Every day, I look for what is positive and I think of ways to adapt things so that I can do them in my own way. It is all about finding your inner vision. It is all there inside of you, waiting for you to discover it. My art work reflects my way of Walking by Inner Vision.

River Road Studio, Wurtemburg, PA since 1976