The Painting "Heaven's Vault" in Progress

Susanne Clark - Heaven's Vault
Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Canvas - $1985.00

I always get the urge to paint big works but don't actually have the space to easily work on them or put them when they are finished, however, the urge got the better of me!  I had the canvas hanging in the studio ready to work on and with the exhibition coming up at Arta Gallery I decided to get started.

I usually love to try out lots of different types of work but this year I am trying to be more disciplined and focus on one form of painting. I find working intuitively on non representational work very interesting and challenging so this is my 2014 focus.

Working intuitively I don't have any pre-planned idea of how the finished painting will look. I try to choose the predominant colour and then just go from there.  It's a scary process but I find it quite mysterious and exciting too.  The work always seems to develop out of many layers and has lots of changes as I try to bring the painting together.

At the Opening of the exhibition several people asked me how I go about creating a work like this.  While doing this painting I actually remembered to take some "in process" photos.  This is pretty amazing as I usually get so caught up in the process myself that I forget all about taking photos.

Here is the first photo, just a lot of black and grey on the white canvas.  You can see where I have scratched into the paint in some areas.

Here you can see I have started to add some colour.

More creams, golds and some calligraphic line work.

Stronger colour and gold line work.

These two are close ups that show the details of the texture and line work.  Unfortunately the gold leaf in the painting doesn't show well in the photos.

This piece is 30 inches high by 54 inches wide.  It's painted in acrylic and mixed media and is on canvas. The mixed media consists of gold leaf and gold pen, Finally here is a photo showing it "In Situ" to give you an idea of the size.  I balanced it on my fireplace mantle to take the photo before taking it to the Gallery so it's not hung a few inches above the mantle as it should be.  

Susanne Clark - Heavens Vault
Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Canvas - 30 x 53 in

Your comments and questions are always welcomed.

I Know It's Quite Surprising!

Susanne Clark 2013 - Perception's Journey
Acrylic and Gold Leaf on Panel - 30 x 30 in

I just looked at the date of my last post and it's even surprising to me that it was so long ago.  Sometimes life just gets in the way.  I know that sounds like a pretty weak excuse but it's true in many ways.

I won't try and give you an update of the past year but just let you know that I have been painting and doing quite a lot of printmaking.  I have also taught some painting and printmaking workshops and really enjoyed doing them.  The best thing about teaching is that I meet really nice people.

Yesterday my work was hung as part of a group exhibition at Arta Gallery in the Distillery District here in Toronto. The focus of my recent work has been on intuitive non realistic works and I have four large pieces on show there.  The photo above is one of them.  I am finding this approach very challenging and in many ways much harder than working from something realistic.

Opening night is Thurs. April 3, 6 - 8 pm.  Regular Gallery hours and the address are in the link above. It would be great if you are able to make it.

Summer means outdoor art festivals and hopefully some nice weather.  I will be exhibiting at several around Ontario and will list them in my next posting.  I will be showing printmaking at most of these events.

The photo below is a piece I did for the Year Of The Horse print exhibition that was held at the Proof Gallery also in the Distillery District.  You can see most of the work here.  To see all the work on their site you can click on the right side of the page or go to previous posts at the bottom.  They were not able to fit them all on one post so did several.

Susanne Clark 2013 - Sky Prancer
Collagraph on Watercolour Paper - Image 8 x 10 in

As always I love to get your feedback.   Until next time ........

Collagraph Printmaking Workshop

©Susanne Clark
 Blue Totem

I recently gave a Collagraph Printmaking workshop for the Don Valley Art Club here in Toronto. There were ten participants in the group and everyone worked very enthusiastically and really seemed to enjoy it.

At the end of any workshop I give I ask the participants to fill out a short evaluation form covering all the usual things, including whether they got good value for the money spent, and I also ask for comments on how I could improve the workshop.  Because I want people to be genuine and able to critique and not feel that they just have to say something nice, they have the option to fill it in and be anonymous or they can give their name.

I got really nice reviews and amazingly everyone gave their name and permission to use it in any publicity about upcoming workshops.  There were also a couple of comments.  One was that they would have preferred that there were less participants in the group.  I understand that as there is a lot of information to cover and people like a lot of one on one help.  Also we only had one press and for a large group that meant that there were often people waiting to use it. When a workshop is done for an Art Club they need a good number of attendees to make it worthwhile financially.

The other suggestion was that perhaps I should have had a theme for people to work with.  I found this suggestion interesting and is the main reason for this blog post.  Because collagraph printmaking is based loosely on collage, (a printing plate is formed by attaching various papers and creating textures on a support that you use to print the image from) one of the first things to learn is how these textures actually print when inked up.  Do the materials print light or dark, is there too much ink on the plate, do the shapes and textures read well etc. For people who new to collagraph printmaking trying to create a successful image with a Theme before they know how the process works, seems to me, to be attempting too much.   I believe that it is better to work spontaneously without worrying about the end result and then see what you discover.

I would be interested to hear your comments.  Theme or no theme at the beginning of the learning process?


Cello Paintings
http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/susanne-clark.html

The Unfocused Artist

©2012 Susanne Clark - Aggregation in Red
30 x 30 in - Acrylic on canvas

2012 has just about zipped by and I have been thinking about my artistic progress, or lack of it, this year.  I seem to want to do a bit of everything but then nothing ever gets done well.

As an artist, we are always told we should focus on one medium but look at what do I do.

I paint, but then I paint in a variety of different ways.

©2012 Susanne Clark - Euphoria
Oil on canvas

I  have an ongoing series of Musical works in acrylic.
I love to paint people and have recently been doing these in oils.
I have a real interest in non representational work in either oil or acrylic.
I did a number of loose florals this year too.

©2012 Susanne Clark - Lavender Posy
Acrylic on paper mounted on wood panel 12 x 12 in

Now to Printmaking.  This is a medium that I really enjoy however within this medium I also seem to have a variety of different styles of work.

©2012 Susanne Clark - The Ladies
Handpulled Collagraph on paper

I do some landscapes.
I have a series of 1920's women.
Some symbolic works
An ongoing Kimono series
and .... some hand painted blockprints.

©2012 Susanne Clark - Jester in Red
Handpulled blockprint with painted details - SOLD

All these mediums and styles of work and none of them have a similar look to them.  In other words they look like they were done by different artists.  I thought perhaps that being a Gemini may account for two kinds of different work but this is getting slightly ridiculous.  The big problem is that I enjoy all these facets of art.

It also follows through into my other doings though too.  I write a few blog posts and then I get diverted.  I play with facebook and then lose momentum.  I look into promoting my work and then ease off.

Life has so many choices.  We have too much of everything in this day and age.  I have started getting rid of books and a lot of my art that I have kept from years back.  It feels good to have less.  Our house is fairly uncluttered but it could be even less so.

I think I need to do the same thing with my art..  More focus is obviously needed.  Perhaps this could be my New Years resolution!

Anyone else out there with this problem!  I'd love to hear how you are dealing with it.

My Stolen Images on Chinese Websites

Golden Sax - Susanne Clark
Acrylic on canvas 24 x 24 inches

Yesterday I decided to search on Google to see if any of my paintings were illegally on the internet.  I know that there are whole towns in China, and other places, consisting of great numbers artists who work in factories that steal artist’s images and reproduce them for sale.  Copyright means nothing to them and someone told me, jokingly I hope, that the artists think copyright means that they actually have the right to copy the work!

Looking at my website stats I often see that visitors from China have been visiting it and also a couple of other sites that I use so I thought that there could be some sites that had my images on them. I indexed “Chinese Musical Paintings” into Google and within a few minutes found one web site with several of my images, painted in oil, available for sale.  I believe they copy the low grade digital file off the internet and then print it to size, you can order whatever size you want, and then they over paint it in oils and sell it as an original.  Watermarks don't help as they just paint them out.

The next thing I found was a bit of a shock.  I found nearly all the paintings from my “Musical Series”  and several life works listed complete with my bio, all stolen from my web site.  They had some listed as “Special new piece from Susanne Clark” which probably meant that it was the latest piece they had just lifted from my site!  There were a whole lot of others under a variation of my name, Suanne Clark.  Later I found a couple of paintings under my name that weren’t even my work.

The work was on a site where independent sellers from all around China and the world list their goods for sale.  I contacted the hosting company with a list of my works and the URLs and today I had an email saying they had removed my work from their site but to check back in 48 hours.  I’m sure the companies responsible re-list them a few days later or on another site so I will check back frequently.

This is a pretty common thing to happen but it still gives you a shock when you see all your work listed for sale there and know that people are illegally making money from it. 

I suppose I could choose to be flattered that they stole my work.   As a friend said to me  “They only choose the best” which was.nice of them.

Saxophone paintings from the Musical Series

The Sausalito Art Festival, San Francisco

San Francisco Harbour enroute to Sausalito Art Festival

 I'm writing this in chilly San Francisco.  You can see how dull it has been from the photo above!   I'm here visiting my son and I planned the visit so I could take in the Sausalito Art Festival.   It's rated as one of the top art fairs in North America and so I was really excited to get there and be impressed and inspired by the high standard of work.  I'm not sure why, but I didn't find it as exciting as I expected.


We had a nice trip over the harbour on the Blue and Gold line which took us directly to the art show right on the edge of the water.  We were there around midday on the Saturday and the crowds were just starting to arrive.  They really get a great turnout and because you have to pay a good fee to get in, you know that the people who come are actually reasonably interested in art and not just our walking their dog.  It's a large show and as I was with other family members I couldn't take all day to go around but I did manage to do the circuit and see most, if not all, of the artists work.

My favorite was enamel work by Judy Stone.  Her work, which I first thought was porcelain, was beautiful!  I loved the wired parts of her bowls and the beautiful colors.  She has a great video on her site showing the process of creating the bowls which was very interesting.  I don't think the photos on her site do justice to the wonderful colors and presence her work has when you see the actual thing. http://www.jstoneenamels.com

I also liked the abstract paintings of Paula Boas.  http://www.paulaboas.com  Alenjandro Martinez-Pena http://www.martinez-pena.com and Sue Cretarolo http://www.suecretarolo.com.

The printmaker Fernado Reyes had some very interesting work and I particularly liked this image. http://www.freyesart.com/Works_on_Paper/Pages/Monoprints.html#0 .
Do check out his other work too. 

There was also a wonderful glass artist and a guy who made a really quirky series of ceramic cars with funny people in them.  His craftsmanship was great.  Unfortunately I don't have photos of his work and I couldn't find his link on the festival page.

The picture below shows one of the most expensive works we saw.  The image was made with silk thread and obviously took many many hours to make.  You can see the image in the left of the picture taken with two smiling family members.  I'm using a different computer and couldn't work out how to crop them out of the photo!

Another favorite was Robert Burridge http://www.robertburridge.com/roadside_attractions/index.html
and http://www.robertburridge.com/Abstracts/wingland/index.html

All in all it was a good day but I wasn't tingling from the experience.

My Musical Art Used Around The World.

In my last post, written a while back before I got seduced by the lovely summer weather,  I wrote about how my work gets used for lots of different events around the world.

The most recent one is for the 7th Festival Sinfonico Pereira 2012 in Colombia, South America.  I think this poster looks really great!  I also promised to show you this years cover for the Peter Caelen series of concerts held in the beautiful castle in the Netherlands so here it is.

The two images make up the front and back of the brochure cover. I'm not sure how to tie them back to back to show the cover as it actually is but I am sure you will get the idea.

My work was also used on a CD cover this summer and for all the promotional materials for the Artists Series concert season at the Opperman Music Hall in Tallahassee, Florida.  Very exciting!

The Musical Series have been very successful for me and although the actual people interested in musical works is smaller than the demand for landscape art, there are musicians and music lovers out there who really love the work.

I recently had a very proud father email me to say that they have a budding pianist and that they had bought a reproduction of one of my paintings "Music is the Key" to help inspire him.  They made a video, posted it on youtube and sent me a link.  You can see it here and see my keyboard painting in the background.   It was really fun to receive this.

If you know any music lovers who may be interested in my musical works please help me by passing on the link to my web site.  There are also reproductions of some pieces available on the site.

It's not the New Year but I've made a resolution to post more often.  Now that the weather is cooling off it will be easier to stay inside and work both on my art and blog.  That is the one good thing about living in a place where it gets cold in the winter.  It makes for a natural rhythm of working and playing.  Summer for play and winter for working.  I'm already getting back into stride by creating some new plates for printmaking and looking forward to proof printing them.

Musical paintings

Musical Images used for Art Licensing

©Susanne Clark - Cubist Play
Acrylic on canvas - 30 x 36 in 

Cubist Play, above, is being used for the 2012 - 2013 program cover for the Virenze Concerts which take place at the beautiful classical 14th century Castle Rijckholt, near Maastricht in the Netherlands.  This is the second year my work has been chosen as the cover art for their season program and I am excited about it.

Over the past few years I have had lots of requests from all over the world to use images of my musical paintings for a variety of uses.  Most are required to promote music events like concerts, or for CD covers but one was also used as a holiday greeting card for the Leeds Grand Theatre and Opera Company in the UK and another as the cover for a cello society cookbook.  It's great fun for me to see my work used this way and I now have quite a collection of pieces which a friend suggested I put together and publish in book form. This will be a nice way to keep it all together and there are some great ways to self publish using products like Blurb or Vistaprint.

The right to use images of work from the web is not really understood. People think they can use anything but that isn't the case and most images are under copyright as are mine.  Early on one of my pieces, Cello Babe, was incorporated into the poster above.  It won a competition to be used for an annual school musical concert in Australia and was designed by an art student at the school.  After the posters were all printed the teacher somehow found out that part of my work had been used in the poster without my permission and he, knowing about copyright, was horrified and emailed me straight away to see if it was ok to go ahead and still use them.  Of course I agreed but I was impressed that he had the courtesy to email me.

This poster is from back in 2006. Cello Babe was one of my first musical works and has been requested quite a few times as has Jazzy Cello which has been used as a cover on several CDs as well as posters.  The "Musical Series" came about as the result of a request by my son. He is a musician and had just completed recording a CD with a producer he was impressed with. He wanted to give him a gift in thanks, so he asked me to create a painting with a musical theme.  I enjoyed doing it so much that I did several more and the series was created.

In my next post I will show how Cubist Play was used on the new Virenze Concert brochure and the use of my work for the Artist Series in Tallahassee, Florida.

Quirky Fun Collagraphs of 1920's Ladies

© Susanne Clark  - The Ladies
Collagraph - Varied Open Edition

Some time back I created "The Ladies" a Collagraph showing two women with a 1920's look.  I wrote about them in a post called "I'm in Flap About Flappers".    The name "Flappers," I believe, comes from the popular fashion of the time of wearing floppy bows around the head.

People often think these are paintings but Collagraph is a form of hand pulled printmaking based on collage.  You can  read about the process on my web site. Each print is hand inked and printed on a printing press  Even though I can use the same plate to pull many prints from, each one is inked in a different set of colours and so is a unique work of art.

After creating "The Ladies" I decided it would be fun to do a few more in the same theme so I went ahead and made the collagraph plates ready for printing.  In the previous post I hadn't actually printed the new works but since then I have, and also added more "Ladies" to the series. Because the ladies are only very loosely based on the 1920's style I have been able to have fun with their design, making them look slightly  sexy and with exaggerated bows and hats.  The first prints I pulled all sold so this week I printed up some new ones and I'm quite pleased with the result.  I will be exhibiting them at several art shows around Toronto in the next few months.  Details are on my web site.

© Susanne Clark  - Fancy Flappers
 Collagraph - Varied Open Edition

My intention is to add more photos of "The Ladies" to my web site along with the current pieces that I have available from the Kimono Series.

Please share this post, or any others you find interesting, with your friends or people you think would be interested.  As an artist I really appreciate any help in getting my work out into the world.

Fancy Catered Art Openings - Do They Translate Into Sales

This week I went to a very fancy art opening.  It had everything going for it, nice art, great food, ample free wine and a very personable artist who mingled and made everyone feel very welcome.  It was a very professionally done event. The turnout was pretty good too although I was there quite early and didn't see the crowds who may have turned up later, but what I am wondering is did all this translate into good sales. I noticed that many of the people seemed to be more intent on the food and socializing than in really looking at the art. 

So can food and wine be a distraction to art sales?    I know people buy art from artists they like and perceive to be successful but is an expensive opening really neccessary?  I would love to hear about your experiences.

Posies - New Floral Works

Susanne Clark - 2012 - Purple Green Posy - 20 x 20

A few weeks ago I decided to work on some color studies and chose florals as the basis for this study.

Florals are something I haven't painted in years, I had the idea that they were a bit old fashioned, but I decided that they were ideal for my intention of doing paintings in a variety of different colors, and in color combinations that I would never usually choose.

Susanne Clark - 2012 - Posy in Magenta and Blue  - 12 x 12

I also wanted to use more paint in my work.  I often find that I am very mean with the amount of paint I use, trying to cover large areas of the canvas with a miserable amount of paint on my palette. I think this comes from the fact that much of my previous work was created by layering many thin layers of paint to build up a rich depth of color.

The idea with these studies was also to work very loosely with no attempt to create real flowers but just to give the impression of flowers.

I call them my "Posies" an old fashioned name for flower bouquets.

I really enjoyed this exercise and feel I learned a lot.  You can see the whole range on my Fine Art America site.  What do you think?  Are florals old fashioned?

Art That Appeals to Teenagers

Musical Mandala by Susanne Clark 2006

Every year I get quite a few emails from young high school students.  They have somehow found me on the web when looking for an artist’s work to do their end of year art exam project on.  It’s the musical work that seems to capture their interest and I find the same thing when I exhibit at outdoor art shows.  Young people and teenagers are immediately attracted to the work and bring their parents to see it.

When the students write they ask me a lot of questions about my technique, what inspired me and usually how long it takes me to create one of my pieces.  They seem to love the colour and vibrancy of the work and the fact that the Musical Paintings are not a literal copy of an instrument but something more exciting.  I spend quite a lot of time try and answer all their questions and usually add that I would love it if they would send me a picture of some piece of artwork that they have done as part of their exam.  Sometimes I get a nice reply with a thank you and a photo, other times just a thank you and sadly sometimes no response at all.

Last year I was contacted by Becky Sharpe, a 5th grade elementary teacher from Georgia in the US, who wanted to do an art project lasting several months using my musical works as a focus.  I was chosen because as she said “My students asked me if there were any artists who were still alive.  I looked at my curriculum and sure enough, all the artists I was highlighting were … well … dead!  From that point on I’ve made it a practice to seek out contemporary artists whenever possible”.

As the project went ahead I really enjoyed getting updates from Becky and some emails from the children. The final event was a combined art/ poetry jam.  The children created a poem to go with their musical instrument piece and they invited the adults in the school to come to the exhibit. I was extremely honored to have had my art chosen to be the inspiration for the project!

Becky also sent me some of the poetry pieces that they had written but I have chosen to focus on the artwork in this blog.  I think they did some really fun work and I hope they are inspired to continue creating. 

Art in Portugal

I'm very lucky to be in Portugal on holiday.  When I'm away I love to go and see local art so I'm always looking for Galleries however here in the Algarve in Portugal they are almost non existent.  This is my third visit here and I think I have only found five in total but yesterday was very exciting because I actually found a really nice one with some interesting work.  The young lady working there said that people in Portugal don't buy much art.  I'm sure the poor economy has a lot to do with it but it appears that there just isn't much interest.

I bought art materials here with me and intended doing some art each day but it's hard not to be seduced by the beautiful weather outside and the interesting places to visit.  To justify my lack of work I have been taking lots of photos.  Yesterday we went to a totally amazing church called the Sao Lourenco Chapel.  The walls inside were completely covered in blue painted tiles showing the martyrdom of St Lourenco or Lawrence as I guess his name is in English.  It was absolutely amazing and quite beautiful inside despite the awful theme. It is a small chapel or church but one of the most stunning I have seen.  Taking photos inside was not allowed but here are a couple from the outside.

Sao Lourenco Chapel

Blue tile picture on the back of Sao Lourenco Chapel

The beaches are fantastic.  A day or so ago we went to a small town called Luz where we sat in the sun outside and had lunch overlooking the sea.  The scenery was amazing.  We felt very lucky to be here.

Beach at Luz, Algarve, Portugal

View from our lunch spot at Luz

More to come.

5 Unusual Reasons to Buy Art

Art By Shona McFarlane

Some 22 years back I was on my way to my weekly sculpture class in Wellington, NZ when from the car window I saw a painting in the front window of a local Gallery.  It was a large, free flowing and colourful work by a NZ painter Shona McFarlane who had a personality as vibrant as her paintings.  I decided right then that I would buy it.  What also appealed was that it showed the view of the valley where I lived and was very soon to leave.

Fire on Second Ave, Ottawa, Nov 1999

Fast forward to November 1999.  I am living in Ottawa, Canada and my house has just burned down in the largest fire in the city in 34 years.  My new town house of under a year old is almost completely destroyed along with 12 other homes.

What was left of my front entrance

The house was a crime scene for a few days but then we were able to walk through a few areas to see if anything could be saved. There on the wall was the painting, covered in smoke but still in one piece.  Days later I took to it with detergent, water and a soft scrubbing brush and because it was acrylic it came up like new. 
Our house was rebuilt within a year and with this painting on the wall it felt like home again.

This got me thinking about different reasons to own art and so here are 5 of mine.

1   Unlike clothing and most everything else, it doesn't wear out.

2   It will stay with you through difficult times and give you joy.

3   It will still fit in 10 years.

4   Art adds real personality and uniqueness to your home and reflects who you are.

5   When you look at the art you will remember when and why you chose it and who you were with and it will remind you of the unique path you have taken in your journey through life.

I'm sure you will have your own reasons to buy original art and I would love to hear them.

Keyboard Paintings

"Alchemy in Colour" Exhibition

View from the front entrance

On Sept 15 my solo show "Alchemy in Colour" opened in the beautiful Marianne van Silfhout Gallery at St Lawrence College, Brockville in Ontario Canada. 


View of the gallery

When I arrived and saw the whole gallery full of my work I had quite a strange feeling!.  After spending time working so closely on the pieces you become very intimate with them but seeing them again like that, it was as though they had suddenly developed their own identity.  A bit like the the children you nurture and watch grow up knowing them so well, and then suddenly they are their own person and stand separate.  Not that this is a bad thing .... it's as it should be.  

Collagraph "Under the Hot Sun" by the guest book

 So there was my work arranged around the walls like separate moments in time each one exposing a part of me to be either liked, disliked or ignored. I had an odd feeling of distance and was slightly amazed that I had actually created all this work! 


With my daughter Trudy and husband Brian


To send my work out into the world in such a beautiful gallery was a wonderful experience.   I was also very appreciative of my friends who made the journey to be at the opening.  It was very special to have you there.

If you've experienced a similar feeling when confronted with your work in a new setting please tell me about it.

The 1920's - I'm in a Flap About Flappers!

A few months back I did the above collagraph print of two ladies.  I had no idea when I started, all I knew was that I wanted to do a couple of figures.  They ended up with a 1920's look to them and were quite cute, nothing serious, but just fun.  I framed the first print I pulled in a nice white frame and took it to the Cobourg art fair where it promptly sold.   Several other people came back also wanting to buy it. 

My son then kept saying to me how much he liked it and that I should do more in this 1920's theme.   "The retro thing is very trendy at the moment" was his comment.   The theme is probably trendy because of the recent TV series  "Boardwalk Empire" which showed recently on HBO.

A few years back I started a series of collagraph Kimono prints and they were great fun to do.  It was a bit like being a dress designer  ....   I could make the kimonos with patterns and colors that I liked and fortunately other people seemed to like them too. 

The thing is, I really enjoy making this type of decorative plate and so I thought I would try some more with a similar 1920's look to "The Ladies".

Making the plates is proving to be very compelling.  I can't wait to get into the studio and create another one and I haven't even started printing them up yet and seeing the results in color.  It's very easy to get inspired when you have wonderful decorative elements, like exotic hats and stylistic clothes to work with.

After recently working on a series of non realistic abstract paintings this is a complete about flip!  It must be my dual natured Gemini personality breaking forth!

Next week I want to start printing the plates and see if the final results are are as exciting as I hope they will be.

This photo is part of one of the plates in it's beginning stages. The color showing is from the shellac sealer and old thick paint that I am using to create textures on the plate. These colors are not what will show up when I pull the print and you can also see pencil where I have mapped out the design.

Artist Blogs - Are They Written For The Wrong People?



Jester's Rattle
Original Blockprint
$99.00 unframed



Like many artists I am still trying to find my way with my blog and one thing that I wonder about is am I writing it for the right people.  Who do I want to read my blog and what is its purpose?



 Many art blogs seem to be more for other artists, with technique tips and marketing ideas, and not much for non artists who are art lovers.

 

As an artist I love to see what other artists are doing in their studios but wouldn't it be great if a blog was also really interesting for art enthusiasts and potential buyers as well.  What does it need to make it that way?

Perhaps it would tell more about the creative art process and give a personal insight into who the artist really is and what motivates them?  Maybe we talk about these things but just don't go deep enough or expose ourselves enough. Do we focus on showing our professional side and not let some of the nitty gritty raw feelings come out?  Would that make it more compelling?

What do you think?  As a non artist what would you really like to read about?