The purpose of any news publication is to anchor an organization and provide a voice for the membership. And that is what SKB Legacy News is set up to do. Your voice, your opinion, your concerns, your news. It is meant to further develop the feeling of family that was evident from our first workshop in 2001 in Divide, Colorado. What a wonderful way to honor Susan Kathleen Black whose first priority was always family and friends.

Have fun scrolling down the page of Legacy News and read about what your SKB friends have been up to. Enjoy the informative columns that are sure to educate, make you think, bring you useful information, and make you laugh.

My heartfelt thanks to our columnists who donated their time and expertise. Feel motivated with Christine Knapp, gain a little business savvy managing your website with Wes Siegrist, learn to be more proficient using a digital camera with Ric Helstrom, laugh at the antics of Ron Ukrainetz and chuckle at Mary Lou Holt’s slightly askew look at the art-life.

Each issue we will profile one artist. This issue features Les LeFevre from Cincinnati, OH who has been part of the SKB family since its beginning. Join him on his journey to self-discovery. I have a feeling you’ll all relate.

“Applause” is your column to report and hear about awards, recognitions, weddings, births, foreign travels, adventures, anything you’d like to share.

“For the Good of the Order” will develop as we get in the habit of reporting the shows we are doing and the events we are recommending, as well as any suspected or confirmed scams, or any news of general interest to the membership.

SKB Update will keep you informed about upcoming events, programs, fundraising, volunteer opportunities, future projects/art exhibits, etc.

In our next issue we will add “Letters to the Director”, and “Open Mike”. In “Open Mike”, we will invite comment on just about anything and the opportunity for others to respond.

As an alumni member the SKB website will have a link to your website. Be sure you put a SKB web-link on your website so we can have traffic both ways.

I especially want to thank Jim Parkman for making the Foundation a reality and especially for his unwavering belief in the value of art, and for his support for all of us “flaky art people”. Jim, you were my friend before the scholarship, you became my patron saint during my time at school, and during this last tough year you became my guardian angel. Words will never be adequate to express what you have done for me. All I can say is that I hope I can make you proud!"

Please click the thumbnails below to see larger views of Jo's work

  
"Cemetary Gatepost" oil on canvas, "Allegory" oil on canvas,
    
"Porcelain bag" ceramic, "Diana's Revenge" charcoal, "Coffee Service Set" porcelain, wheelthrown/modified

Now that I’ve gotten an overall view of the various art techniques, I plan to attend the Master’s program in the fall, where I will continue my studies with an emphasis in wildlife painting. I hope to eventually teach art at the University level, while creating, exhibiting and selling my own work.

After spending six consecutive days at the dental office getting my teeth filled (pre-fluoride), I decided I would combine my hand/eye coordination talents with medicine and become a dentist and do miniature sculptures all day long. I wasn’t the best student but I was probably the most determined, and with hard work and a lot of sacrificing I graduated from the Ohio State College of Dentistry.

I had set no other goals for myself. I still dabbled in art and I had taken courses in figure-drawing and ornithology as an undergrad. But now what? Most of the guys were going into the military to expand their dental experience and to make a little money while serving. So I joined the Navy and served a one-year tour in Vietnam with the First Marine Air Wing. Upon leaving the service I drifted around the west for a while, fulfilling another of my dreams – to be a cowboy. Like Lee Cable, I had been fascinated with Indians and cowboys since I was a boy.

In my cowboy-drifter phase, I stayed on a couple of ranches and worked a rodeo at Jackson. But I had this two-pronged problem... I was only licensed to practice dentistry in Ohio and I was broke again.

I headed back to Ohio and soon was absorbed into a practice and the world of dentistry. I hadn’t forgotten my art, and I happened to work in an office with the wife of John Ruthven, a popular bird painter. He encouraged me to work from life and study skins from the local museum. In the process I met a young man of about my age who was the new director of the Museum of Natural History in Cincinnati. We had similar interests and would spend hours discussing different artists and paintings. We went on bird counts and exhibited together at Ducks Unlimited banquets. He even sponsored nature art competitions through the Museum.

The 70s and 80s passed so quickly... but the art flame still humbly flickered. One day in 1992, I saw an ad in Wildlife Art Magazine for an artist workshop in Yellowstone Park and I cancelled my patients at the last minute and hopped on a plane for an adventure that would change my life.

Two hundred wildlife and nature artists, real artists as well as imposters like me, attended the workshop. They accepted me as one of them and I was reacquainted with the west I left so many years before. It was during that week that I realized I could not be fulfilled without doing my art.

I came home to a grumpy staff and grumpy patients and I was grumpy, and I wondered how I would free myself from my practice and still support my family. I knew it would either require an experienced dentist to take over my thriving practice or it would take years to groom a replacement. In this quandry, I continued attending workshops when I could and entered the Federal Duck Stamp contests because they required only one painting a year, and a small one at that. I had reasonable success making the top 100 twice. But was this all I was going to do, I asked myself?

I came to the conclusion that it was now or never. Fortunately, I have been blessed with a very supportive spouse, and by December of 1996 I had sold my practice and was mostly free to paint.

In 2002, my past workshop contact with Pam and Lee Cable, landed me an invitation to the first Susan K. Black Workshop. Of course, I jumped at the chance to be exposed to other artists who were serious about art as a career. I renewed old friendships and have made many new ones. I never come away from these encounters without learning and having a thoroughly good time as well. I am a better artist because of my many instructors at SKB. I have to thank Jim Parkman and Pam Cable for being so generous.

Here I am, still trying to improve and find out where I belong. I have gone from birds to mammals, to western, and to portraits. Trying to make up for twenty years of lost experience is not easy, but I have never looked back and have no regrets. I am doing what I want to do. Once again, DeVere Burt, the former museum director who is following his passion, and I get together every so often to paint and view wildlife. Am I successful? You bet I am, I have a second chance to follow that dream.

Okay, enough of the relaxation stuff! Time to get to work! Did you ever notice that plein air painters are solar powered, too? (Of course we are; ever tried to paint outdoors in the dark of night?) We are often up before the sun, stumbling around our studios gathering brushes, paper towels, paint, easels, umbrellas, panels, and grabbing a couple apples for lunch on our way out the door. Like ants to a picnic, we swarm over the country-sides seeking that special place for that one moment. As we drive, hike, or ride to our perfect location, we become ever more alert and energized by that big, bright ball in the sky. Maybe we should be green and filled with chlorophyll, too! Would it make any of us taller?

Plein air painting is not for wimps. The sun shines 365 (or 6) days a year, unless you live in Washington state (Fog 90 to 125 days a year). Painting in fall or winter could bring a whole new light (no pun intended) on those favorite locations of ours. Among the winter-painting drawbacks are oils that have the consistency of thick sludge, watercolors that freeze on the palette, and acrylics that do both! Pastels and ink may be the only reasonable way to go, but are we really reasonable? Maybe just stubborn in our feeble attempts to prove chemistry wrong.

Armed with four layers of clothes, snowshoes, and a couple small hand warmer packets, an oil painter can easily paint all twelve months of the year. Those handy hand warmers work well under a palette to keep the oils from 'goo-ing up'. A small one in a water color bucket keeps the water from turning into a mini-hockey rink.

During one such session several years ago, I left the cozy confines of my studio to catch a cool, clear, winter's morning glory. Looking like a five-year-old bundled up for my first day of pre-school, I waddled through the knee deep snow to a frozen swamp surrounded by huckleberry bushes, firs, cottonwoods, and reeds. The contrasts were terrific. Trying to assemble a French easel with mittens proved to be much like wrestling an octopus with boxing gloves. After several frustrating minutes, I managed to win that round, and was able to start painting. Thankfully, the 6" x 8" board allowed for short, bold strokes before the paint thickened to the sludge stage. As my luck would have it, and the day warmed, a huge ball of powder slipped its bonds and plopped directly onto my head and palette. Obviously, my concentration was interrupted as the same snow began to melt and trickle down my neck, back, and well beyond. The oils, walnut oil based, reacted accordingly as my paints continued to remain warm on my heated palette. The dreaded 'goo' had arrived. The painting survived, albeit somewhat streaky. Haven't been able to identify any particular style, though.

The solar powered artist thrives on the eternal quest for the best location for today's mood. With the light ever-changing, and four seasons to count on (unless one lives in Montana), our treasure chest of sites should be endless. Hopefully, so is our energy... has anyone ever heard of a retired plein air painter?

    1 pound ground beef
    1 package frozen peas
    2 cups celery, chopped
    1 can cream of mushroom soup
    2 tablespoons cream
    1 1/2 teaspoons salt
    1/4 teaspoon pepper
    1 small onion, chopped
    1 cup crushed potato chips

Back to the Top

Let me tell you a true story that illustrates my point. Several years ago I had the wonderful fortune to spend some time with Robert Bateman when he brought his phenomenal paintings to my hometown of Dayton, Ohio. We all recognize this man as an artist of monumental proportions and international acclaim. His abilities are unlimited, (as are all of yours, I might add). Yet as we stood in the wing of the Natural History Museum, just before he was to give a verbal presentation, Robert Bateman acted surprised and befuddled that people would make such a fuss over his work. I was in absolute awe at the modesty of this man who strokes magic across canvas with a brush. Remember the monsters under the bed when we were kids? Same thing, just different monsters. What’s more, today’s monsters are just as much a fable as those lurking in your room decades ago. Oh yeah, there’s one more thing to remember. Don’t ever tell your adoring public that they are crazy because they admire your work. Say it often enough and they may start to believe it! So, don’t quit! That’s just silly. Go to your art haven, whether it’s a corner of the house or a full-blown studio, and immerse yourself in art with the mightiest passion you can beckon. Then when you’re done, put the biggest, goofiest grin on your face, and congratulate yourself on a job well done. I guarantee you’ll love the warm fuzzy feelings that will bathe your spirit. And then, late at night when sleep creeps up and closes your eyes, dream about those compliments and repeat over and over again, “They are true” “They are true.” You know why? Because they are!

So here you are, booth is up and lookin’ good, and you’re lookin’ good too (or you better be, because despite the starving artist concept, art buyers want to buy from artists who dress for success). Now, how to sell the art? I’m going to share with you what I’ve learned being on the national art show circuit. Here goes…

Identify who is a Prospect and who is a Suspect. (A Prospect is a person who seems interested in your work for more than a few seconds, the others, obviously are Suspects).

OPENING STATEMENT: Example: Prospect is looking intently at a painting of yours depicting wolves. You say, “You seem to be drawn to this painting. Do you like wolves?” (The answer will lead you to more information about the motivation of this prospect.)

At an appropriate moment, ask the prospect to sign your mailing list. Make sure it is legible, and if a couple, get both names. When you have a minute, jot down personal items they shared for reference later. (Personal items can be referred to in phone conversations, invitations to shows, thank you notes, etc. Remember that people do not care how much you know until they know how much your care.)

Breaking the Ice:

Find prospects hot button – ask questions (this is called probing) Remember the motivations for buying anything are: Fear, Pride, Profit, Love

Develop questions (probe) around these motivations.

Fear: Missing a good investment, the price will increase if they don’t buy now, someone else is interested and they might lose out, etc.

Pride: Having an original to show friends, a famous person has purchased from you, they are helping to save an endangered species (you’re selling a conservation print), etc.

Profit: They envision that your work will increase in value with time, they can sell your prints on the secondary market (if you have a hot print nearly sold out).

Love: They love the work. Don’t criticize your own work (i.e. Geeze, I wish I had worked with that sky a little more, a little dark, don’t you think?) have a positive attitude, and they will buy.

Be genuinely interested in what the prospect has to say. Be enthusiastic about what you do for a living. LEARN TO LISTEN!

Handling Objections: Feed the objection back in the form of a question. Ex: “I love this painting, but it is too big.” You say, “The painting is too big? (They will clarify the objection for you).

FEEL, FELT, FOUND: Use this formula once you have clarification of any objections. “I know how you FEEL. Others have FELT that way too. Here’s what they’ve FOUND.” Expand this formula to fit naturally into your conversation.

CLOSING QUESTIONS: The timing here is crucial, but usually you will intuitively know when you need to ask for the sale. Use the alternate of choice close. Ex: “Would you prefer to take the painting now, or would you like to pick it up after the show?” OR “Would you like to use a personal check, or would a credit card work better for you?” The choices offered all lead to a sale. You’ll feel self-conscious at first, but with more shows under your belt this will evolve naturally if you let it.

Finally: SHUT-UP, (you will be tempted to speak and you may ruin the sale) Let the prospect respond. If you have read the situation right you should have a sale!

The positives are overwhelming. The two biggies are: no more film or developing costs, so you can snap and snap and snap with no thoughts of money; and you can see what you've taken immediately, so if it's not exactly what you want, you can make the appropriate adjustments and try it again, and again and again if necessary.

I’ve put together a few tips to help you along the way to better picture taking in this amazing new world of digital imagery.

Many things that you did with a film camera still apply to a digital camera, such as composition, using a tripod, etc.

Batteries for the digital camera can get used up quickly, so it is always best to carry a spare set with you at all times. You don’t want to get caught out in the middle of nowhere with an incredible shot and a dead camera. I recommend rechargeable batteries.

Try to compose your images using the camera eyepiece viewfinder rather than the LCD viewfinder, which drains the camera batteries faster.

Shoot & Delete: Don’t be afraid to shoot lots of pictures, as you can always delete them if you don’t like them. I suggest deleting the bad ones as you are shooting to give you more room on your digital card. Be careful, though, as once you have deleted pictures from your camera, they are gone forever. If you have a big memory card, you may be able to wait until you've downloaded the pictures to your computer before deleting any. To give you an idea of card capacity, a 256M card will hold more than 400 pictures that are printable in the 4"x5" range.

Once you have downloaded your images to your computer, and deleted the ones you don't want, back them up to a CD. This way if anything happens to your computer you will have them all saved on a CD. When everything is safely in your computer and backed up on a CD is the safest time to delete everything from your camera's memory card. In the next newsletter I will go into JPEG vs. TIFF. Which way should you save your images.

If you have any questions you can reach me at fotoga@aol.com
Good picture taking, Ric

Internationally acclaimed African artist, Simon Combes was killed by a Cape Buffalo Dec 12, 2004 while on a hike near his home in Nakuru, Kenya, Africa.

Simon Combes, once met, was a person remembered. Whatever that elusive quality is that draws people, enchants and charms them, Simon had it. Call it charisma or just the plain fact that Simon was “present” in life. He loved adventure and before becoming a full-time artist he commanded Kenya’s parachute force, fought in a guerilla war with Somalia, and trained Uganda’s 4th KAR, which included the now-infamous Idi Amin.

It was a few years back when I first met Simon as a Featured Artist at the Pacific Rim Art Show in Seattle. A while later I was privileged to interview him for InformArt Magazine. Imagine my delight, that by his invitation, I was able to meet with him during a retrospective of his work at The Wildlife Experience in Denver last fall. Over lunch in the museum he agreed to be one of SKB’s instructors this year. Wow! I smiled all the way home.

"wolf macquette" by Christine Knapp

Opportunity: If you would like to apply to the WorldWide Nature Artists' Group (WNAG), a juried membership of the world's best nature and wildlife artists go to their website at: www.natureartists.com. WNAG was the brainchild of Canadian artist, Jeff Whiting, and since 1997 has become the largest, most comprehensive organization of its kind. Read an article on WNAG in InformArt's winter 2004 issue, page 33.

The art conference/workshop this year promises to be a true cultural event. As you all know our new instructors are John Banovich, John Pitcher and David Rankin. In addition we will have a stellar group of first class marketers for a full-day of survival tactics in the business of art. Bob Koenke, Ed of Wildlife Art Magazine will head up the marketing team. Jimmy Huggins, Director of the Southeastern Wildlife Expo, Charleston, SC will also be joining us in marketing and as a judge. The rest of the team will be announced as soon as all are confirmed.

For the first time, the upstairs exhibition will be judged for awards like any other first-class art event. I am working to make this exhibit one where more sales may be possible by enticing the community to join us as sponsors and special guests. Sponsors will be invited to our kick-off dinner and recognized for their contribution. The community will be invited to participate in the silent auction. All will be invited to see the show and vote for People’s Choice, and of course, purchase artwork. I will strive to get a Purchase Award as well. All of this will be leveraged into media coverage for SKB and YOU.

The judges for the show are our industries’ own celebrities and include internationally acclaimed African artist, John Seerey-Lester, Editor of InformArt Magazine, Peggy Kinstler, Director of the Southeastern Wildlife Expo, Jimmy Huggins, and Editor of Wildlife Art Magazine, Bob Koenke (Bob recently sold Wildlife Art Magazine after being at the helm for 24 years, but he will remain a positive force for wildlife art, for which we are grateful).

Dr. David Wagner, SKB’s consultant to the art museums and last year’s keynote speaker, is working with the Board of Directors to identify a major museum for our Blossom project, an international art competition in florals. We are excited about the possibilities.

SKB’s schools, Tesuque Elementary, NM and St Thomas Episcopal Elementary, TX report that our grants have continued to bring creativity and joy to both the children and their teachers. Both schools hold an art show annually for their communities. Nothing is so gratifying as seeing the smiles on the children’s faces. The many ways the teachers have found to assist the kids in connecting with their creativity is simply amazing. In the future I will ask for reports to share with you.

Wanda Mumm’s teen workshop will be augmented this year by more SKB grants for our emerging young artists project. A mentor/mentee program has been designed for further implementation throughout the year.

A milestone was reached with the graduation of Jo Lilley from Sam Houston University, TX. SKB’s full-scholarship enabled Jo to follow her dreams. Good job, Jo!

Thanks to my wonderful volunteers who wrote the columns and provided information (and good advice). Special thanks to our venerable webmaster, Wes Siegrist. Couldn’t have done it without you!