Exciting News!! SNEAK PEEK!

Fellow members of ADO  (Art Dolls Only) have been working diligently to complete our first ADO E-zine with a wide variety of articles, tutorials, interviews and tons of lovely photographs. 

They are planning to launch at the end of September but a sneak peek is available! 
Click the photo below to sneak a peek at our much anticipated for e-Zine!

Trying to get a jump on Christmas

With my doll, Red up for auction, and off my work bench I thought I'd get a jump on Christmas. I took an extra day off work this weekend to play on some new ornaments. I'm using paper clay. Here's the results so far.
I've got Swine Lake, the Red Queen and a Santa finished.

And I've started working on a Birthday fairy that was inspired by a card my sister gave me for my birthday.. I think two years in a row.. same theme anyway. "The Bitch is Back"... hate birthdays... Here she is in her wet paper clay start. She has a hole to add wings and a wand.

Then I wanted to do the narrator from one of my favourite Christmas shows. The character was voiced by Burl Ives I think. He's the snowman from Rudolph.

That's it so far... time for lunch.

Red Riding Hood Completed

I finally got her cookies made and that completes my Red Riding Hood.  Just need to post her in my shop.

Look good enough to eat.

Base for Red Riding Hood Art Doll

Only enough time this weekend to do the base. I still need something to put in Red`s basket. I looked for a little wicker basket, but couldn`t find anything appropriate in scale. I decided I could make one. I crocheted it from cotton and dyed it to look like wicker. I love the way it turned out once it was all shaped up and stiffened.

 The base is wood, with a hole drilled for the leg armature. I added paperclay, gesso, painted it in several coats of paint. Then I added the moss and rocks. Once it has all dried I will add a matte varnish and a felt bottom with my signature tag.

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Work on Red continues

We're in the midst of a heat wave, like much of the U.S. I guess, so I haven't been working on Red much. She's got some hands and feet, her armature has been added and her pose set with apoxie. I found a wood base and drilled a hole for the armature support. A brass rod runs through her left leg and out the bottom of her foot. I'm not sure if she'll have shoes or be barefoot so I sculpted the feet.

I've also done the face up. I use soft pastels for much of that and use a bit of acrylic for the stronger elements like her eyes. She still needs a varnish and some lashes. I usually paint them on but I think she needs a fine fringe of lashes. Still trying a few things out. Fake eyelashes don't do it for me.  I'm still not sure if she'll be blonde or brunette.

Making your work stand out is an artists responsibility

It's too true, and so many questions about success are answered by the very simple phrase  "A picture tells a thousand tales". 

I've been struggling with photographing my work since I started selling my work on line. I've bought several cameras, took classes and tried different lighting. Knowing that the picture is the first impression when selling online is key to your success and it's a lesson I'm still struggling with. You can write great copy and promote like crazy but remember your online buyer can't pick up your item or look closer so you need to tell the tale with pictures. GREAT PICTURES! Pictures that make you want to click through and look closer and hopefully be so entranced that they will buy your creation.

So, in an effort to knock down that final hurdle to success, I finally consulted with, lucky for me, a truly wonderful photographer. I think he took pity on me and my dollies and graciously agreed to take pictures of some of them for me. I've shared some of his work in my post yesterday but I want to share them all. Everyone of them is a treat for me! They make me take great pride in my work. They are crisp and clean and amazing. They make me shake my head and say wow! I did that? That's my creation? 

I take photos along the way as I make a doll, it documents my process so I can share them with your but when it comes to the final finished photos? Well, a picture is worth a thousand words. 

Ron's Tips: 

"Using proper camera and lighting for portraiture, in this case for documenting different perspectives and details of dolls, is important in order to market the artist's work and relay their vision. Today anyone can easily take a picture, but very few pictures are photographs worth noting. The artist's responsibility is to make their work stand out from others and good photography does just that. If one takes great pride in their work, then it goes that one should take the necessary strides to market that work to potential buyers with beautiful imagery, and beautiful imagery sells."

The following photos are from Ron Jocsak's websites you really must visit to see the spectacular images! Please respect his copyright and do not remove his watermark or reuse the images in any way.

Portraiture http://www.ronjocsakportraits.com

A portrait is about capturing the character or spirit of individuals, which is why having a portrait taken should feel like the most natural thing to do... the result is often extraordinary! I provide portrait photography for home pages, magazines, brochures, corporate websites, families, and special events. My clients receive the portraits in digital format for print and web, and I can deliver print for archive and/or framing as well.
In Business ... "a great corporate portrait is important... it relays confidence and trust, demonstrates approachability, communicates professionalism and expertise, and contributes to brand recognition that translates into sales".
For Personal and Family ... "creative family and individual portraits capture important milestones in people's lives that may never occur again. New arrivals, special occasions, candid moments and group gatherings offer wonderful opportunities to delight in, and later, to reflect back on these special times".

Interpretative Fine Art and Contemporary Landscape http://www.ronjocsakphoto.com

My photography is characterized by simplicity, and clear, uncluttered images.

Nature, with all it's inherent beauty, has always influenced my life. I have unique perspective and understanding of our planet's geography, geology, and geomorphology, having been a petroleum geologist for nearly 25 years. My geologic passion fostered my passion for photography early on and I continue to hone my skill set and vision as a professional photographer. My interpretative fine art and contemporary landscape imagery has evolved through an appetite to explore and document striking landforms, textures, earth tones and ambient light. It is an expression of my respect and love at the land-water-atmosphere interface.

My art can be captivating, symbolic and unique. Nature constantly provides new material for my creative thinking and inspiration. It is always slowly evolving and changing... in a manner not too different for the change and adaptation required in the human process.