Saturday, November 07, 2009

HUGE MADART Moving Sale!! This weekend only 50% OFF Everything in my Etsy Shop!!

To contact me directly e-mail: meganduncanson@yahoo.com*****************************************************

As Many of you know I am moving from Alaska To Florida. We will be leaving November 21st and so I'm trying to minimize the amount of paintings I will shipping, so, my loss your gain!!

Take advantage of a RARE opportunity to own MADART at half the price! I have never had a sale this big before :) This sale only applies to my Etsy shop: http://www.madart.etsy.com/ and ONLY for this weekend!

Next week I will be removing all of the paintings from my shop and shipping them to Florida. Once we are settled in Florida I will be relisting the paintings at their regular price.

On a side note, even though we are moving to Florida we will still be keeping our serene and peaceful cabin in Meyers Chuck, AK where we will be spending our summers :)



This painting is typically $625, but with the 50% off sale you can get it at a steal for $312.50!! There are LOT's of great deals, so don't miss out!

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

What makes an Artist an Artist?

To contact me directly e-mail: meganduncanson@yahoo.com*****************************************************

There are so many different views on what makes an artist a “true” artist? Is it fame, money, acclaim, value, principles, or something else? Overwhelmingly the opinion has always seemed to be centered around principles, whereby an artist must live by a certain set of rules that put artists and their art on a pedestal.

We can look throughout history and see examples of many different artist’s and their success, for a select few the success arrived while they were still living, and for the remaining majority it came after they had passed away. My daughter semi-jokingly tells me that I won’t be a famous artist until after I die. I always reflect upon this and realize she has this idea in her head because most artists have traditionally never received the acclaim and recognition until after they die. There is also the notion of the “starving Artist” that is so prevalent in people’s mind when they think about an “artist” and “work” in the same breath. It’s considered taboo by many people to even consider making a living selling art, It’s almost considered tantamount to selling our souls!

I have had many other artists and admirers of my art tell me that making prints, licensing my art, or painting certain subjects/style, or anything that would “commercialize” my art, is “selling out”. Why is there such a prejudice against artist’s being allowed to make a decent living with their art while they are alive? Is there any other career path where someone is faced with this kind of disdain towards making a living with their career, not that I’m aware. Another common phrase I’ve often heard is “a real artist only creates art for the sake of the art”. It’s as though artists have to answer to a higher calling much more than any other profession, and I’ve never quite understood why. It’s interesting to try and understand this prejudice, and ultimately be rid of it. I believe as more artists are successful while they are alive it will help people to realize art is a legitimate profession, just like being a doctor, or a lawyer.

With the advent of technology and the internet it has opened up a whole new world and opportunities for artists to share their work and talent to the world. Before the internet artists were strictly limited to the whims of Prestigious Galleries and Juried art shows, creating a situation where only a select few people/galleries determined what art was and wasn’t seen by the public. The opportunities via the internet have allowed artists to reach out directly to collectors to share their talent with millions of people who would have never seen it under the “old Gallery” system. If you weren’t showing your art in a gallery or accepted into juried shows you were considered simply a craft person or a hobbyist and not considered a “real” artist.

One of my goals as an artist who DOES make a living selling my art commercially is to try to let other artist’s, and the general public, know that art is still art, and an artist is still an artist, even if they create art to sell. I’m a very prolific artist and have created literally thousands of paintings in just the past few years alone. I simply wouldn’t have anywhere to store all of these paintings, and feel it’s a shame to have them stuffed in a closet somewhere, maybe being taken out and shared after I’ve passed away. As an Artist I HAVE to create art, it’s a part of who I am and I would be lost without it, so I must create, and would rather sell my paintings to someone I know will enjoy and cherish the art every day, than to never share them at all. I also know there are many different budgets people have for purchasing art and luxury items, so I offer each and every one the opportunity to enjoy my art, whether it be an original, a print, a limited edition print and even everyday products that have my art featured on them. None of this makes me less of an artist, just a practical and business oriented artist, who wants to share my joy of painting with others, and keep a roof over my family’s head! There is no shame in this and I hope all Artists who want to venture into sharing their art with the world will always be proud of each and every accomplishment they may ever achieve with their art :)

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Believe in YOUR Vision as an Artist - Stay True to who YOU are!!

To contact me directly e-mail: meganduncanson@yahoo.com*****************************************************

I had another artist post a very disheartening message on my Facebook Wall Profile that got me thinking about artist's and their VISION. It's interesting to me how other artist's try to impose their views and opinions of what art should or shouldn't be onto other artists. To me there is not a wrong or right way to create your art, art is about who YOU are and what YOU want to create.

What is your vision?

My vision is inspired by LIFE, whether it be the Bush of Alaska, a Beautifully designed pair of shoes, a political/economic issue facing our country and world; anything and everything around me is MY inspiration and translates into MY vision that I want to share with other's. Ultimately my goal as an artist is to make other people smile and simply enjoy my art. On occasion I do express my opinion and feelings about certain issues that I feel strongly about, such as my "Liberty and Justice for Who???" Painting, but I mostly prefer to create fun and playful art that doesn't burden the viewer with overt messages of negativity or despair. There's too much sandess in this world as it is and I don't want to contribute to that with my art, I would rather create happiness :) I'm not a negative person and always try to see the positive in everything, and in fact the post made by the other artist on Facebook has allowed me to see the positive side of knowing that my VISION of being a POSITIVE artist is RIGHT for ME.

If other artist's feel they want to send a different message with their art, whether it be negative or positive, that is THEIR choice and I respect each and every artist's choice to represent their vision in the way they choose. With the exception of people who purposefully, physically harm other people or animals and try to claim it is ART simply for publicity purposes.

From one Artist to Other Artists: NEVER allow other people to tell you that YOUR vision as an artist is wrong. If you want to create simply for the joy it gives you, CREATE! If you want to create to draw attention to issues that are important to you, CREATE!! If you want to create to bring light and happiness into other people's lives, CREATE!!! If you want to create to pay your bills doing what you love to do, CREATE!!!!

And above all believe in what YOUR vision is :)

Friday, September 11, 2009

New Painting in Alaskan Series and Work in Progress

To contact me directly e-mail: meganduncanson@yahoo.com*****************************************************



I wanted to share a new painting I just completed, the first in my Alaskan Series. This painting won't be available for sale as it was specifically created for a fundraising event for the Ketchikan Alaska KAYHI Ladies Vollebyall team. I will be offering prints soon :)

My daughter is one of the varsity players for KAYHI and I try to help support her dream and goal of receiving a volleyball scholarship as much as possible. Living in the small city of Ketchikan there is only one high school (KAYHI), so in order for the team to compete they must travel for more than half of their games. And by travel I mean taking a jet or a ferry ride that can take as long as 48 hours!! Because the traveling is expensive the girls must do A LOT of fundraising in order to be able to compete in more games. This painting and another of my paintings will be offered in a raffle and we hope to raise lot's of moola for the girls!!
I also wanted to share a couple of pics for my current DIVA painting (another celebrity) that is in progress. I wanted a specific image for the shoes so I used myself as a model to get it just the way I wanted :) Don't Laugh!!

Thursday, September 10, 2009

Twitter Contest to win A MADART Print!

To contact me directly e-mail: meganduncanson@yahoo.com*****************************************************

I just started a new Twitter contest:
RT my post @MADARTGALLERY on Twitter:

*WIN THIS PRINT* http://tinyurl.com/m454c8 317th RT wins, max 1 RT per hour

Rules are simple, just RT the above post and help it reach up to 317, the 317th retweet wins the print! But, remember, please only RT once per hour :) The Winner will receive a signed 13"x19" print of the folowing image:


Once I have a 317th RT I will announce the winner here and on Twitter - Good Luck!

Also...if you are one of the ReTweeters, please take 20% off your next MADART Etsy purchase! Simply post "RT317" in the Notes to Seller box.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Updated Website and Licensing News for MADART

To contact me directly e-mail: meganduncanson@yahoo.com*****************************************************


Well...it seems I haven't been doing a very good job of keeping up on my blog! It always seems like there's so much to do and not enough time to do it all :(

I have been VERY busy updating my website with a new look as well as locating opportunities for collector's to purchase all kinds of new MADART products. Some directly from me, including original paintings, and also exciting new products from my licensing partners!

Here are just two of the cool items you can now buy featuring MADART! All different vinyl skins from DecalGirl:









Saturday, July 11, 2009

MADART Original Artwork Update and Print Contest

To contact me directly e-mail: meganduncanson@yahoo.com******************************************************************************************

I've SORELY neglected my blogging duties the past couple of months :( Sooooooo much going on personally and professionally, it's often hard to keep up with it all. I will be posting over the next couple of days with MADART news and information.

To start with I wanted to let everyone know about a contest I currently have through my website: www.madartgallery.net and twitter: www.twitter.com/madartgallery


I'm stumped for a title for my Newest DIVA painting!
http://madartgallery.net/workinprogressuntitleddiva.html

Please HELP!

I am having a "Name this Painting" Contest

Entry rules as follow: "Tweet " me your proposed name, as many times as you like over the duration of the painting process. Once the painting is 100% completed I will pick the winning title and the author will receive a free signed 8"x10" print of the painting!
Twitter ID: www.twitter.com/madartgallery

I look forward to reading all the creative and wonderful "Tweets" for my Painting!