Business card as personal invitation

Many people have asked me if handing out business cards are worth it. I think that depends on what you consider worth it. If I was a "full-time" artist (unfortunately my computer knowledge pays the bills), then I would feel I needed to get my name out there as much as possible. I've had dozens of business cards, personally and professionally, and my experience is that about 1 in 100 people ever use the information on the card to contact you. I think that is worth it - especially since I print my own business cards and the cost is about 2 cents a piece. Usually, the contacts are wanting a piece of art they were undecided about at a show. Any sale helps. I think everyone should have at least one business card. You never know when people might decide they want what you're selling.

A few words about other artists named Paul Potts

I am NOT the British Opera singer, Paul Potts. I am the American multi-media artist, Paul Potts.
You wouldn’t think it was that common of a name, but I had similar troubles of mistaken identity back in high school. When I was a freshman there was a senior also named Paul Potts. We even had art class together! He was also a very talented artist – beautiful illustrations. I think he owns a hair salon in Tucson, Arizona these days. Anyhow, I remember a couple times when I was called into the principal's office for misdemeanors that my namesake had committed. That was exciting – let me tell you.

If you are interested in the singer artist Paul Potts, click here. http://www.paulpottsofficial.com/

And no, I don’t sell his CDs here…but you can find them at
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000UAE87Q/denverreadandfee/104-8119966-3691960

Selling Small, Making Big

One of the things I’ve learned about selling art is that you have to have some sort of low price point items for sale. I have sold more than four times the dollar amount of small items than the total of medium to large item sales at a show. It makes sense that more people would be willing and able to buy smaller items, but the point is, you have to have enough small items available to purchase.

A good example is the small sandblasted stones that I am making every day. I could easily sell 100 of them at $4 each before I sell one $400 stone sculpture. The key is how much time is being spent on making the art. I might take 16 hours to create a large sculpture. To make the math easy, let’s say I want to make $25 an hour as an artist. That would mean I would charge $400 plus material costs for that sculpture. But when I consider the small stone that I try to spend less than 10 minutes creating. If I charge $4 a piece, that means I am making about $24 an hour. That includes the material cost too, so really it comes to be only about $20 an hour. I have been known to give away a few small stones at a show, so that profit just plummeted to about $14 an hour when I create the small stones versus when I create the large sculptures. But the key is, I really sell the small stones well. Plus, they are fun to make. So, the true lesson is, keep my day job and create the art with no regard to how much money I am making.

Pet Portraits

I've been doing pet portraits for several years now. I love doing cartoon/characteristic looking images of animals. The first one I did was of my beloved companion, Prancer. She had been my buddy for 14 years now and she still seems healthy and happy. She has a very distinctive personality, but for the most part, seems disinterested in the goings on with the rest of the world. The exception is when other animals are in her kingdom. She tolerates the other two house cats, but she has chased dogs out of the yard on more than one occasion. I hope this portrait lasts through time to be a monument of this artist's beloved cat.

The artist Carlos Martinez

My friend and mentor artist Carlos Martinez died back in 2006, but I still miss him. His presence in still in my life, because I have dozens of his pieces of art on display in the house. What I miss most is the motivation and inspiration he provided when we talked about art and artists.

Carlos was a prolific artist, especially in the 80s after his divorce and the tough years that followed. His pieces are filled with interspection and sometimes you see a deep level of grief in the eyes of his creatures. I think that is easier to see when you view his body of work. You can get a better understanding of the artist from several pieces than from one that might seem "scary" or "dark". They don't look that way to me. I feel their connection to Carlos' Experience of Life.

I wish I could find a way to put his works online - even create a web page dedicated to his complete works. His family owns the largest number of his pieces, but he left me his slide portfolio that contains over 400, well-documented, images. Someday soon, they will find their way to a place where people can view and enjoy the works of Carlos Martinez.

Paul

Sandblasted works by Mike Penny

Talking about sandblasting, Mike Penny really is the one that got me into the medium. Awhile back, we started talking about his idea of creating faux relics. It is a time when people are willing to buy an ancient-looking stone without having to pay the price of a true relic. I love the idea of taking a new piece of art and half-burying it in your yard for guests to discover and be in awe.

Even though I have my own sandblaster now, I still purchase Mike's pieces because he finds such great stone to work with and comes up with some incredible designs. Here is a piece I commissioned from him after I saw a similar piece he had done (that is a quarter in the bowl to give an idea of how large it is):


Mike Penny's website where you can purchase his blasted wonders is:
http://www.archembellishments.com/

What image or words would you leave in a long-lasting medium like stone?

Paul

View Other Artists

Here are sites of artists I know and some I wish I knew in person. 

Marcos Lima - Painter http://www.artbythebit.com/Art_by_the_Bit/Welcome.html My good friend. He inspires me to try new mediums!  

Mike Penny - Sandblaster http://www.archembellishments.com/ Mike is just like me. He has enough ideas for three lifetimes. He has taught me so much and I am eternally grateful.  

Derek Cadena - Painter http://www.twolittlefruits.com/Home.html http://members.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewUserPage&userid=twolittlefruits Derek is a great guy and an outstanding artist. I have several of his pieces hanging in the house. I like the EBay store that he and his partner, Brent Rodgers, built. Check it out.  

Joseph Nigg - Writer http://josephnigg.com/index.htm Joe inspires me to write. His books are...magical. Check out his Magical Beasts!  

CT Nelson - Painter http://ctnelson.com/ CT is another artist who shows on Santa Fe Drive in Denver. His work is very unique and has a very jagged feel - shattered images of beautiful stories. I met him and plan on owning one of his paintings some day.  

Matt Alber - Musician http://www.mattalber.com/matt.htm http://www.youtube.com/mattalber I don't know Matt personally, but what a great voice, message, man. End of the World is a-m-a-z-i-n-g! I support his goals.

Read About Me

Who is Paul Potts?

First off, I am not the British opera singer that received his fame from the Britain's Got Talent television show. If you are interested in the singer artist Paul Potts, click here. http://www.paulpottsuk.com/frontpage

And no, I don’t sell his CDs here…but you can find them at
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000UAE87Q/denverreadandfee/104-8119966-3691960

I am the American multi-media artist, Paul Potts. You wouldn’t think it was that common of a name, but I had similar troubles of mistaken identity back in high school. When I was a freshman there was a senior also named Paul Potts. We even had art class together! He was also a very talented artist – beautiful illustrations. I think he owns a hair salon in Tucson, Arizona these days. Anyhow, I remember a couple times when I was called into the principal's office for misdemeanors that my namesake had committed. That was exciting – let me tell you.

I was exposed to art when I was a young kid. My dad dabbled in oil painting, so he stretched some canvas over some plywood and gave me brush. At 7 years old, I painted this.

I have it hanging in the house and several friends are drawn to that abstract style of art. I try not to get hurt feelings when they prefer that piece to my more current pieces.

My inspiration really hit when I moved to Denver in 1999. I got involved with a non-profit art gallery on Santa Fe Drive called Chicano Humanities and Art Council or CHAC for short. Having a major show each year and several other showing opportunities really motivates you to produce. And of course, the more you produce, the more chances you have of selling. Selling your art then gives you the self-confidence to try more and expand your look. You can see by my portfolio that I have a diverse range of creations. I like trying new things and mediums that I perceive as challenging or out of my understanding seem to appeal to me the most. For example, I have always loved the smooth, polished marble sculptures. It is interesting that after I did a little research and bought some tools at the local hardware store, I could make a polished sculpture. And now that I have done it, I appreciate even more the old masters who didn't have the modern electric tools and yet they still produced life-like representations in stone.

I still have idea books filled with mediums and techniques that I want to try. I hope to soon be into glass fusing and kinetic wood sculptures. Keep checking my blog for my latest pursuits!

Browse My Portfolio

Here is just a sampling of some of my art. More to come soon! Click on any piece in the slideshow to see the larger version.

Buy My Art

These are a few of the items I have for sale right now. After the art show, I will post some more. Please contact me if you are interested in commissioning a piece.

Shipping fee is $18.00 per piece. Shipping method is United States Postal Service.

Rich Peach 36" x 36" acrylic on deep canvas $450	Contemplating Buddha 24" x 24" acrylic on deep canvas $400	Near Escape (dog & rabbit by saguaro) 8" x 24" watercolor & ink on paper - framed $125	Robot 8" x 10" silkscreen on paper - framed $75

Attend My Next Show

I will update this page when I have another public art show planned.

First posting for the new Paul Potts blog site!

Oh yeah, I'm excited.

A new venue to post my art and talk about art. That really is my goal here. Art is my passion, and regardless of my audience, I want to explore making new art as I discover new artists and view new art mediums.

For instance, this year I got help from my brother, Dan, to install my compressor and sandblasting cabinet. This new tool has opened so many new art forms for me. I started with stone and glass, but there are possibilities with blasting blocks for block printing in wood, plastic or even linoleum. I've done a few pieces of furniture and stone yard art pieces. This one is called "Garden Sparrow" (granite, 2007). I love it. It is a fun start to the type of sculpture with sandblasted highlights that I want to create.


Two other quick thoughts:
Take a look at my older website that has over 100 of my art pieces in the "Virtual Gallery". Please comment on what you see there. Here is the link:
http://www.angelfire.com/art2/pep/

Also, a BIG THANKS to Skinnyboy for the help on getting this blog set up and running for me. Sorry that it has taken me so long to get it together. Visit his blog at http://dogsarefunyes.blogspot.com/

Paul