Work Ethic and Artists

Side view of 'Summer in Maui', a 24" diameter reverse painted glass chandelier that includes irons, electrical, chain and canopy. Jenny Floravita's Hand Painted Chandeliers can be purchased through Jenny Floravita's website http://www.floravitalights.com

I'd like to dispel the age old myth that all artists are flaky, temperamental and work only when inspiration hits. The truth is that most professional artists today work extremely hard and those that have become successful including myself, are also very reliable. My close network of professional artists all have extremely high work ethics. And let's face it, I think everybody these days needs to have a high work ethic to succeed...and I think that most people also realize this is especially true of experienced artists.

I personally work and paint almost every day. When I exhibit in festivals, then 2-5 days of my life can be consumed with each show and the surrounding preparations. Occasionally I'll just take a day off and often on these days I'll read magazines, enjoy my backyard, go for a walk down by Marsh Creek. As there is always so much to do, I let these particular days tell me that it's time for a rest and that usually happens on a Monday or Tuesday after a show, depending on how many loose ends there are to tie up but a need for a rest could also happen later in the week.

This past Monday (after my Open Studio show) was absolutely crazy for me from the moment I looked at messages on my studio phone until the end of the evening so a day off was out of the question. And there's always more to do...it's just that an artist must determine when their day is done and a lot of that has to do with how they manage their deadlines.

The bottom line is if an artist is unreliable and doesn't have a strong work ethic, then they definitely won't last in the business of fine art for very long...and it is a business, we are here to serve you and to create custom works of fine art that will add joy to your life.

You may be wondering how to know if an artist is top-notch? Look at their experience, contact them and talk to them and let them tell you about their work and successes. If your friends own works from a particular artist, then you can inquire about their experiences.

The above image is of my reverse painted chandelier titled 'Summer in Maui'. As always, thanks for reading my blog and feel free to contact me if you have any questions. Hope this information sheds some light on what it is like to be a professional artist.

To see more reverse painted glass chandeliers and art by Jenny Floravita, please visit my websites: www.floravitalights.com and www.floravita.com

What inapires my hand Painted Chandeliers? What is my creation process?

Bottom view of 'Orchid Symphony', a 24" diameter reverse painted glass chandelier that includes irons, electrical, chain and canopy. Jenny Floravita's Hand Painted Chandeliers can be purchased through Jenny Floravita's website http://www.floravitalights.com

Inspiration is personal to every artist. Some days I will simply stand at my easel and begin to paint by layering and splashing colors onto my glass canvas. The patterns and values of the colors then inspire the flowers that emerge in my glass hand painted chandeliers.

Recently I had a studio show where I invited a dear sculptor friend who shows in galleries and her process of sculpting is sometimes not so different from my process of painting on glass. She explained to clients that her woods dictate the forms of the sculpture and sometimes add surprises, like an unplanned form the emerges that she hadn't envisioned...it was simply there all along within the wood. When I paint completely freely with my chandeliers, this also happens.

But sometimes, my inspiration comes directly from a very specific exotic flower or a combination of colors. When I am in the creation process for my reverse painted chandeliers, sometimes I end up mixing sections of colors that may be the inspiring starting point for my very next chandelier.

Mixing colors is endlessly fascinating to me and it is my ability to mix colors well that creates my unique voice in this art form. My color mixing is what creates my soft romantic hues and dramatic moods. When I was in my early teens, I knew that I would be a professional artist. I worked then as a watercolorist. There was nothing so fascinating to me as the fist sections of wet fluid color that spilled from my brush onto my Arches watercolor paper. Those first splashes of color set the inspiration to move me through the difficult sections of my paintings towards completion. And I always looked forward to the next painting for the same reason. This makes me a colorist by nature.

These are two very different creation processes that both work well for me as a contemporary glass artist. The starting points are very different yet both creative processes share the same elements at some point.

Inspiration and the creative process, as both are needed in order to create an art piece that is successful, is something that is very abstract to most and...well, God given in the same way that everyone is given their special talents. There is not a day that I paint on glass that I am not grateful that I was born with the talent for this marvelous art form. And I feel like I could write forever about what it is exactly that fuels an artist forward in their form. Creativity is a very interesting process in itself.

Hope that my explanation helps to shed some light on how I choose to paint what it is that I paint. Thank you for looking at a picture of one of my newest hand painted chandeliers!

To see more reverse painted glass chandeliers and art by Jenny Floravita, please visit my websites: www.floravitalights.com and www.floravita.com

See Jenny's Painted Chandeliers at her annual spring Open Studio

Side view of 'Orchid Symphony', a 24" diameter reverse painted glass chandelier that includes irons, electrical, chain and canopy. Chandeliers can be purchased from the artist, Jenny Floravita

I'd like to give a big THUMBS UP to Jack Gaughan and his organizers for doing such an awesome job on this years 2010 East Contra Costa County Artists' Open Studio Tour. I'm certain that this will be the best year ever.

For those of you who live in the San Francisco Bay Area and are willing to drive only a few extra minutes, you can come visit my studio and others and enjoy some wine, chocolates, good art and sunshine. There are 62 artists on the studio this year and if you start at my studio, you can pick up your free 18-page full-color catalog with samples and maps of the other artists' works. The group works very hard on this event!

I will me hosing the fabulous sculptor, Crystal Lockwood, who often uses Hawaiian woods for her beautiful figurative pieces.

When? THIS WEEKEND, Sat & Sun, May 22 & 23, 10am-6pm. Call me at the number on my website if you need directions or have questions. I look forward to talking with you and explaining my creative process, techniques and inspirations.

Next Show: Jenny Floravita's Spring Open Studio, May 22 & 23, 10am to 6pm...see my website for more details.

To see more, please visit my websites: www.floravitalights.com
and www.floravita.com

Blessed to be a painter and contemporary glass artist

Side view of Sunflower Summer, a 24" diameter reverse painted glass chandelier that includes irons, electrical, chain and canopy. Chandeliers can be purchased from the artist, Jenny Floravita

You've probably read this theme a lot if you follow my Mini Master painting blog but most of the time I wake up and feel excited about my work. This happens almost every day with the rare day in which I'm just not inspired and that usually means that it's time to take a break. Today this feeling came over me as I sat down to paint some of my glass nightlights, which is something that I have to be in the mood to do. Painted glass nightlights = lots of work...considering what little I charge for them. Creating beautiful little works of contemporary painted glass art is rewarding but I have to be in a mood that will tolerate working small in scale.

Anyway, this feeling reminds me that I am blessed to be living a creative life that many people envy. Sure, most of the time as a working artist I don't make a bizillion dollars, especially in this economy but I still do well enough...and sometimes I even "do" fantastic in terms of my sales.

Living the life of a working artist is not for everyone, that's for sure! Most people could never tolerate the uncertainty and vast challenges of the business. It can be tough to gauge the market sometimes and just putting yourself in the right spot at the right time can feel impossible at times and then there are times where everything just works and you're not sure why...actually I'm always certain it's the accumulation of my hard work and devotion.

It's these feelings that reinforce the fact that I work every day as an artist because that is what I was born to do.

See more images of Sunflower Summer on http://www.floravitalights.com or on my Facebook page.

To see more, please visit my websites: www.floravitalights.com
and www.floravita.com

Having control over a reverse painted glass chandelier in terms of the painting process

Bottom detail of Sunflower Summer, a 24" diameter reverse painted glass chandelier that includes irons, electrical, chain and canopy. Chandeliers can be purchased from the artist, Jenny Floravita

Recently I misunderstood a client question about the painting process of my reverse painted glass chandeliers. It had been a very long day, I had just come from blacksmithing and everything about the smithy is just pain loud even with earplugs and on top of that it was later in the evening and I was very anxious to simply end my day and relax, have dinner.

So I'd like to clarify to you who read this blog what it means to 'have control' of the paint in terms of creating a chandelier that has all of the correct colors, tones, elements, etc...for a custom commission.

First, when I paint freely on original concepts, meaning that I'm not trying to duplicate a chandelier or parts of a chandelier for a commission, I paint with a freedom that allows me to express my artistry through the paint in wonderful ways. I make thousands of split-second decisions about color, hue, brush strokes, shapes, composition, etc...everything that makes this art form so lovely lies in the control that I have over my brush and paint.

And make no mistake, I did say control with a capital "C" as I have been working intensely in this medium for a few years now.

Now when I paint a chandelier with special requests, make no mistake, I have total control with a capital "T" over my brushes, paint colors, hues, etc... The actual painting process for me is slower because I'm working withing constraints and that is partly the definition of a commission. I've painted countless complex commissions this way.

Every chandelier is original in it's own way because they are hand painted by me, a human artist. There is variation in everything but overall, I achieve the intended goals.

Just wanted to clarify this concept of control because I do know that this art form has a lot of mystery that surrounds the actual artistry of my reverse painted glass chandeliers and for good reason! It's not very easy to do and when I say that, I do mean from making the glass bowl to forging the irons and completing the piece as a whole.

Hope this info helps!

See more images of Sunflower Summer on http://www.floravitalights.com or on my Facebook page.

To see more, please visit my websites: www.floravitalights.com
and www.floravita.com

Creating Innovative Contemporary Glass Art

Side detail of Sunflower Summer, a 24" diameter reverse painted glass chandelier that includes irons, electrical, chain and canopy. Chandeliers can be purchased from the artist, Jenny Floravita

Here is a side detail of one of my newest reverse painted glass chandeliers. As a contemporary glass artist I continually strive to push myself to new creative levels in the contemporary glass art market. Because commissions are a big part of what my business is about, I tend to spend a lot of time creating chandeliers with similar elements to previous pieces. There are many outstanding glass artists who fuse and blow beautiful shapes and they demand that other artists like myself also create only the most innovative works of contemporary glass art.

It occurred to me last week that the innovation of my 'original' ideals are what fuel my commissions. Sometimes only one in every 5 chandeliers is a new original, which is a good problem for a contemporary glass artist like myself. Work is always good and it's a pleasure to create a beautiful work of art for a collector.

So when I have the opportunity to simply create a new chandelier in which I can paint with total freedom, I cherish this time in my studio with my paints. This was the case with Sunflower Summer and I think that this piece really rocks! It's a definite must-see in person and it's quite frankly a very lovely reverse painted glass chandelier.

See more images of Sunflower Summer on http://www.floravitalights.com or on my Facebook page.

To see more, please visit my websites: www.floravitalights.com
and www.floravita.com