This is the official Blog for the EBSQ Self-Representing Artists Community, where you'll find news, reviews, site announcements, and of course, a generous helping of art!
Last week, we hosted a postcard giveaway, sponsored by PrintRunner. We randomly drew an entry number and our winner is: Theodora Demetriades!
Congratulations, Theodora. Let us know how your postcards turn out!
Let me add my thanks to each and every one of you who contributed fantastic ideas on how to use your postcards. We’ll be putting together a best-of list next week.
Stay tuned for more great giveways in the future!
A few years ago, EBSQ Artist, Art Blogger, and regular Mashable contributor Natasha Wescoat put together a list of apps that turn the iPhone into a tool for creativity. You can read her original article on Mashable.
3 years is an eternity on the interwebs. Technology and tastes have both evolved since then. And there are a veritable plethora of new creativity-boosting apps to choose from.
The one that would top my personal list is Instagram. Sure, the filters are nice (and unlike my previous favourite, Toy Camera, I can actually pre-view and choose my filter pre-processing). But the thing I like best (and this is probably silly) is that it makes me think in squares. Folks that are familiar with my artwork know that the bulk of my paintings from the past 10 years have been square. With Instagram, I can automatically compose in square format. The fact that I can also easily push my photos to Flickr, Twitter, and Facebook is another bonus.
What’s on your list?
For this giveaway, we’ve teamed up with our friends at PrintRunner to give one lucky reader 100 5 x 7 postcards, perfect for promoting your art. Interested? Read on for the details!
PrintRunner.com was established with little more than a small press and a dream. Ten years later our company became one of the foremost quality printers in Southern California. Our commitment to provide the best value and high quality full color printing at affordable price made our company grow. PrintRunner is a full service high quality printing company located in Chatsworth, California. Try PrintRunner’s postcard printing through their online printing services.
Postcard Size: Postcards 5×7
Quantity: 100
Colors: 4/0 Front Only Printing
Paper: 14 PT. UV Coating on Front,
Rounded Corners: Yes
Proof: None
Ready to Ship In: 4 Business Days
Standard shipping is free. Expedited shipping will be shouldered by the winner.
*Giveaway is open to US Residents only, ages 18 years old and above.
Consider giving PrintRunner some love by following them on Twitter and Liking them on Facebook
For a chance to win, simply answer the following question in the comments:
Our submission deadline is May 29, 2012. Our winner will be notified via email on 31 May 2012, as well as announced in a separate post. Why not subscribe to our RSS feed so that you can be quickly notified when the winner announcement post has been published?
Our thanks to PrintRunner for providing us this giveaway. EBSQ will be compensated with postcards as well for hosting this event.
The 4th with be with you. Always. Happy Star Wars Day from EBSQ!
In the dozen years I’ve been dealing with the online art market, forgery has always been an issue. Sites like eBay have long been flooded with sweatshop copies of old masters. In fact, that is part and parcel why EBSQ was founded: it gave original artists, via the EBSQ keyword, a way to be easily found amid thousands upon thousands of copies.
With the advent of widespread and affordable giclee printing, forgery has become an even bigger issue. It’s no longer just the old masters being copied, but emerging and mid-career artists as well. Now, some copies are hand-painted by other artists as their own compositions. Beginning artists often don’t understand that this is both unethical and illegal since there is a long tradition of learning to draw and paint by copying other drawings and paintings. In these cases, these aren’t technically forgeries, but rather copyright infringement. And in many cases, this is “fairly” easy to deal with a simple C & D. What is much harder to nip in the bud are the systematic mass-produced forgeries done by people pretending to be the original artist (or a gallery), who are simply printing out (and possibly hand-touching up) copies.
Case in point is the work of EBSQ Artist Alma Lee. For almost a year, she has been fighting an eBay Powerseller who has been selling hundreds of copies of her work. Alma took all of the proper steps. She contacted eBay multiple times. She filed all the forms. Copyright infringement notices were filed by her and multiple parties, all reporting the forged auctions. Phone calls were made. Even the buyers of her originals got involved, speaking up on her behalf. And eBay did…nothing. Apparently, Alma doesn’t bring in enough money to warrant losing a Powerseller over. So, the fraud continues with eBay’s apparent blessing.
So. Let’s assume you want to buy original art on eBay direct from the original artist. How then, do you know that what you’re getting is the Real McCoy and not one of these fakes, particularly BEFORE you are parted from your money? Alma put together a blog post listing the Top 10 Ways to Spot a Forgery.
Take a look at her list. Did she get it right? What else (if anything) would you add?
Even if you don’t get to enjoy an extended weekend, we hope this President’s Day you’ll enjoy this gorgeous set of cameos done by EBSQ Artist (and watercolourist extraordinaire) Cathy Johnson, created for her brief stint as a limner (miniaturist) at Colonial Williamsburg in 1993.
You voted, and the results are in! Between the 3 exhibits, we had 220 entries. Here are the Member’s Choice award winners for each:
From Winter:
From Flower of the Month: Conifers:
From Black & White Animals (TIE):
As a side note, I believe our two Black & White Animals Members’ Choice winners are unrelated 😉
Congratulations to all of our exhibit winners and participants!
We just learned that longtime EBSQ Artist Ruth J Jamieson has passed away. From her husband David:
Ruth Jamieson won her battle with life and passed from this world on February 4th 2012. Rest in Peace my love.
If you’d like to leave condolences for her family, you can post them directly on her public Facebook page.
Our hearts and prayers are with Ruth’s family and friends. And we thank her for the beauty she shared with the world in the all-too-brief time she was with us.
Voting is now open for all three EBSQ January exhibits. Have you voted yet? It’s easy peasy lemon squeezy:
If you’re logged in, simply browse to one of January’s art shows, click the thumbnail to view the details for that piece, then click the large “vote” button.
Don’t have an account? You can still participate in the social vote, known on our site as the Cloud Awards. Simply use the Facebook “like” button for your favourite pieces. And unlike the member voting button, where a new vote overrides a previous vote in a given exhibit, you can actually vote for as many pieces as you like in our cloud awards.
[Learn more about EBSQ Exhibits awards here.]
[View more Valentine Art at EBSQ]
The following EBSQ Art Exhibits will only be accepting entries through the end of Tuesday, Eastern Standard Time:
Show us animals that occur naturally with black & white markings: pandas, skunks, cows, tuxedo cats, zebras…you get the idea. As long as it exists in nature, it’s fair game. [read more]
To quote They Might Be Giants:
“Most with cones for seeds, most with needles for leaves. C is for Conifers, my kind of tree” [read more]
In 2012, we’ll be tackling all four seasons. First up is Winter. All entries must pertain to this season in an obvious way. [read more]
To enter any of the above shows, you must be a member of EBSQ. Not yet a member? Consider joining today!
Our full 2012 Exhibition calendar is here.
And here’s a sneak peak at what’s coming next!
Today starts the fortnight celebrating the Year of the Dragon. According to the Chinese Zodiac, the Dragon embodies boldness, passion, and fiery independence.
Kung Hei Fat Choy!
Today’s piece was an absolutely gorgeous painting by EBSQ Artist, Jamie Golob.
What we DIDN’T realize until just about 20 minutes ago is that Jamie’s normally lovely website, Gulf Coast Atelier, which is a non-profit fine arts organization dedicated to upholding the methods, practices and craftmanship of the Old Masters, appears to now be hijacked. We apologize to everyone who clicked on her website link posted on our site as well as in today’s Art of the Day Newsletter. We did not intentionally send you to a bogus advertising site, and our apologies to Jamie for not catching this sooner! We do hope you’ll take the time to view Jamie’s exceptional artwork directly in her portfolio at EBSQ.
An editorial note: none of these pieces were created to address today’s #StopSOPA protests. Nor did EBSQ have any obvious gallery pieces that addressed censorship in general (that wasn’t of the girly-bits variety, which would have diluted the message too much)
EBSQ did NOT “black out” today out of respect for our paying customers who depend upon our services. But I think as artists, this is a conversation we should probably be having. I personally (and professionally) oppose SOPA/PIPA. From what I’ve read and researched it goes too far in limiting our freedoms and doesn’t effectively address the issue of piracy, which many of our members have unfortunately experienced firsthand. So I bring it to you: Where does copyright protection end and censorship begin?
Hi!
From the very beginning, EBSQ has been all over the interwebs. On eBay. Live Journal (our first blog!). Soon to celebrate our 5th Anniversary on Twitter(!). Are we friends yet?
Here’s where you can find us online:
On Twitter: @ebsq
On Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/EBSQart
We have a Street Team on Etsy: http://www.etsy.com/teams/5789/ebsq-etsy
We have a group on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/groups/ebsq
We’re on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/EBSQ
And Vimeo: http://vimeo.com/ebsq
Oh, and don’t forget our home sweet home! http://www.ebsqart.com
The following EBSQ Art Exhibits are open and accepting entries through the end of this month:
Show us animals that occur naturally with black & white markings: pandas, skunks, cows, tuxedo cats, zebras…you get the idea. As long as it exists in nature, it’s fair game. [read more]
To quote They Might Be Giants:
“Most with cones for seeds, most with needles for leaves. C is for Conifers, my kind of tree” [read more]
In 2012, we’ll be tackling all four seasons. First up is Winter. All entries must pertain to this season in an obvious way. [read more]
To enter any of the above shows, you must be a member of EBSQ. Not yet a member? Consider joining today!
Our full 2012 Exhibition calendar is here.
Congratulations to our First Art of 2012 Facebook Challenge Winner, Melinda Dalke! Her name was randomly pulled from our 30 entries. Here’s her first piece of the year, Headed Home:
Melinda joins our Twitter contest winner, Lori Mirabelli, who won a full year of EBSQ on Twitter the week before. Here’s Lori’s first new artof 2012:
Congratulations, ladies! And our hats are off to all of the participating artists. By the look of things, 2012 is going to be an absolutely gorgeous year!
Tomorrow (Saturday, 14 January 2012) is the last day to share your first art of 2012 on our Facebook wall.* All participating artists will be automatically entered to win a free year of EBSQ Membership! (an $89 value).
So what are you waiting for? Go forth and create!
Psst! Feel free to LIKE us while you’re there!
One of the biggest benefits of EBSQ Membership (at least according to our members) is our monthly exhibits. They’re great for extra exposure, stretching your creative muscles, and on many occasions, winning stuff (which is always nice!) This year, we have 37 opportunities to compete with your art. Because January is a month of resolutions, we’re challenging you to commit to participating in 12 exhibits in 2012.
To be part of our 12 in ’12, we ask that you sign your name in the comments below and let us know which 12 shows you want to commit to in 2012. (I’ll be doing the same, because frankly, I need to get off my butt and make more art. )
We’re looking for a handful of artists who regularly use Pinterest successfully as a marketing tool for their art for a future article here on the blog. Interested? Leave a comment on this post, drop us a line via email, or get in touch via our Facebook page.
We hope to hear from you soon!
Art & News from EBSQ 