Free Monthly Teleseminars on Art Licensing

We are so lucky to be able to listen to free information about art licensing via the telephone from two women very knowledgeable in art licensing. Both give excellent sessions and are a must listen-to for artists wishing to license their art.

1. "Ask Tara Reed" - Artist Tara Reed answers art licensing questions that have been mostly submitted before the session. Tara periodically interviews guest experts in art licensing so that listeners get different perspectives and additional information about the industry. Check out http://www.asktarareed.com/ for more information and to sign up for the next "Ask Tara Reed" teleseminar.

2. "Ask J'net Free Fridays" - Artist coach, consultant, and agent Jeanette Smith answers questions that have been mostly submitted before the session. Note: Because her expertise is in character branding and marketing, it would be appropriate to ask her questions about this as well as on art licensing. Check out http://www.jnetsmithinc.com/schedule.cfm?aId=59E7439A-C29B-57E0-8A15C03174B7EFBA for more information and to sign up for the next "Ask J'net Free Fridays" session.

What is Art Licensing ?

I'm often asked what is art licensing and my quick answer is that "I loan my art to manufacturers so that they can put it on their product(s)." Of course, it is more complicated than that and the word "loan" is very important because the manufacturer doesn't keep the art. They only use it for a certain period of time, on a certain type of product(s), and in a certain part of the world depending upon the terms of the contract. The beauty of licensing is that the artist gets a fee (either royalties on products sold or a flat fee for the loan of the art) and keeps the copyright so that she/he can license it to another manufacturer for a different type of product. Thus, it is possible to have multiple streams of income from one piece of art.

Yellowstone, Tetons & Beyond

My husband Bill and I had an amazing vacation last May/ early June to Yellowstone and Grand Tetons. Even though the weather didn't always cooperate (some rain and snow), there weren't too many visitors in the parks and we saw animals galore. The only traffic jams were caused by the bisons as they slowly lumbered down the center of the roads. The geysers and springs were both beautiful but smelly. And oh my, there was plenty of inspiration for creating future art. Thanks to a new camera I was able to take close-up pics of many of the animals that were in distant meadows and because it was digital I could take as many as I wanted (over 1300 pics). Back home I experimented with Mac's iMovie software and made a short three minute slideshow video with music and sound effects of our trip called "Art Inspiration - Yellowstone, the Tetons & Beyond." Check it out on youtube at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUjkOu_YKYk

Art Inspiration

Inspiration for art is all around us. I get inspiration from the flowers in my garden, on vacations, in the clothes that people wear, while watching TV, and especially window shopping. When I get an idea for art I write it down or take a picture of it. I try to always carry my camera with me so that I can capture images to add to my reference library. Alas, it seems that the perfect image appears when I don't have my camera. Sigh!