Book Description:

An insider's view — with marketing tips designed to help you overcome the ups and downs of the fine art world. Soft cover, 74 pages plus 30 full color reproductions of works by Timothy R. Thies, Richard Schmid, Nancy Guzik & and one bronze sculpture George Carlson.

Kristen Thies knows the world of fine art intimately. She is a gallery owner, graphic designer, publisher, executive producer, and publicist with extensive experience, as well as the wife and partner of painter Timothy R. Thies. As a result, Kristen Thies is ideally suited to introduce artists to the practical world of making money from their work.

But even more than her remarkable grasp of the business of art, Thies has a gift for seeing art's unique promise. Her outlook marries an artist's vision with a gallery owner's sensibility. In her book Wisdom & the Dreamer: Achieving Fulfillment in the Arts, Thies shares with the reader information and inspiration in equal measure.

In part one, Thies discusses the emotional aspects of creating a living as a fine artist. She explores mechanisms for overcoming rejections and the juxtaposition of the creative drive of the artist versus his need to treat his completed works as a commodity. She discusses as well the tendency of artists to fall into a trap of thinking of themselves as victims and embracing the role of the starving artist. This section includes a great deal of introspection from the author, who mines her own experience for examples.

Part two of the book focuses on the nuts and bolts of earning a living through art. Thies discusses the need for introspection that translates into action. She encourages artists to embrace the “four P's”: practice, perseverance, patience, and professionalism. Thies offers practical tips for marketing art and advice on framing. She also explores the reasons why collectors acquire art, providing excerpts from several interviews with collectors. She completes this section with an outline of a sample artist-gallery agreement and a comprehensive list of resources.

This gorgeous soft-cover book includes thirty full-color reproductions of paintings by artists Timothy R. Thies, Richard Schmid, Nancy Guzik, as well as a bronze sculpture by George Carlson. Kristen Thies is the representative for Thies, Schmid, and Guzik, all representational artists. Their sensitive paintings provide a lilting counterpoint to Thies's encouraging prose.

Product Details:

• Paperback: 63 pages
• Publisher: West Wind Fine Art (2006)

Condition:
Brand New Paperback, no spine or cover creases, clean, tight, unmarked, Still in original publishers shrink wrap