But how to get you to see/want my work?

Buster sits patiently, but Luna's decided she's done

Ah, this is the dilemma of every artist!  After years of perfecting my skills, I am at the peak of my artistic skill, so now is the time to reach out.  I know my work brings great joy to those who commission pieces from me.  My portraits are so lifelike – capturing the essence, the inner spark of each subject – that it’s like having your best friend right there with you.

When I paint a portrait it’s as though I am developing a kind of relationship with my subject.  As I travel over the contours of each face, taking the most time with the eyes so that the subject’s true personality can shine through, it’s like getting to know them.  When the portrait is complete, I actually miss my subject, similar to the way you feel when you finish a great book and you no longer share the world of those characters every day.  That’s really why the portrait artist craves more commissions.  Yes, of course income is necessary, but I like to have a relationship going with a subject as often as possible.

So that leaves me with the prospect of marketing.  Not always the favorite task of an artist, marketing is vital.  How am I marketing my portraits at the moment?  For me everything obviously begins with artwork, so I am taking on the fascinating challenge of creating a portrait of every breed of dog, beginning with the 10 most popular breeds.  Then I will move on to cats.  I have a wonderful model in my very mellow, black cat named Bug (more on Bug later).  As I already have many paintings of my two boxers, I’m starting my marketing there.  I recently sent out requests to 50 Boxer rescue sites to post my ad for Best Friend Portraits in exchange for a 10% donation from each portrait commission received from their site.  Why start with animal rescues?   While many love their pets, people who go to animal rescues for their next pet are serious and loyal.  So when their best friend passes on, I would like them to have the joy one of my portraits can bring by allowing them to keep the memory of their best friend alive always.

Faithfully yours,
Johanna
juribes@sbcglobal.net