For Bigger Images On Pinterest, Use Your Crop Tool

On Pinterest, the image is the beginning, middle and end of the story, so the quality of images in your Pinterest stream is likely better than anywhere on the Internet. But there is a problem with this visual feast: The Pinterest interface is best-suited to accommodate vertical images. Those of us whose work is primarily horizontal are running into “tiny image syndrome”.

The solution? Crop your images. Use a large, attractive vertical slice to compete for a share of the screen, then link that slice to your full-size horizontal image. Pinterest artists are just starting to catch on to “mega-cropping”, but I predict we’ll soon see an explosion of vertical slices.

Here’s how I have my Cropped for Pinterest board set up:

Since Pinterest doesn’t allow redirects or tiny urls, clicking on the slice sets up a three-click sequence to access the uncropped image. However, you can include a one-click, direct link in the caption below the image. Now you’re cooking!

Dan Turner’s 7 Keys to Selling ART Online, a Free eBook for Artists

If you are an artist interested in selling art online, I’ve written a new eBook that will help get your marketing efforts on solid ground. It’s not a how-to book, but rather a what-to-do book.

It’s short: 40 pages of easy to understand information, concisely written, on what to do, what it means and how it works.

My 7 Keys to Selling ART Online is:

• an indispensable tool for artists who are new to online marketing.
• a no-nonsense road-map for skilled web professionals looking to supercharge their online efforts.

Within minutes (literally!) you’ll know what needs to be done and how you need to proceed. You’ll understand how your website, blog, mailing list, backlinks and social media all work together to build a strong sales and marketing presence.

Here’s the deal: it’s free. Download it here or click on the button below. I hope you find it useful and welcome your feedback. You may send it to every artist, fine art photographer, jeweler, sculptor and gallery owner who needs to read it. You may tweet it, email it, link to it here and even post it on your own site or blog. Cheers!

SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE

Although there are literally thousands of images of this architectural icon, the Sydney Opera House ultimately proved irresistible — I had to create my own! The finished piece evolved from multiple layers of fractals and color, all sandwiched together digitally to form the finished work you see here.

I am forever trying to convey how marvelously detailed fractals are. Low-res images simply don’t get it across. Here’s an idea: video! I can bring sections of the art very close and skim along the surface.

Cool, yes? As always, beautiful reproductions are available for your home, office, family and friends on museum-quality fine art paper and stretched canvas, framed or unframed. Click here to buy.

COBALT COLOSSUS — Buy 12 get one free

Nothing says “Wow!” like giving twelve pieces of stunning art to twelve of your closest friends. Yes you can!

This season’s selection is COBALT COLOSSUS. It is an endlessly interlocking assemblage of fractals crafted into one monolithic image. The result is warm, powerful and sensual.

Lovingly sized and framed for maximum impact and enjoyment
As shown —
Finished size: 42.8″ x 29.3″
Print on Somerset Velvet Fine Art Paper: 32.0″ x 18.0″
Frame: Gold Distressed, 2.13″ width
Top Mat: Cabernet, Width: Top 3″, Bottom 3.5″, Sides 3″, conservation suede
Middle Mat: Porcelain, acid free paper
Glazing: Non-glare Acrylic
Normally ships in 6-8 business days

All 13 Pieces — Under $12,000
The finished, framed COBALT COLOSSUS 12-Pack + 1 is priced at $11,172.60 plus shipping. Contact me to help you arrange delivery directly to the doors of your loved ones and special friends (surprise!). Or — if your sleigh is big enough — I can ship some, most, or all of the art to your house for personal delivery. And yes, the 13th piece is free, with my compliments.

2011 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Gullwing

Rolling Art! I’m writing today from my “Is this cool or what?” department. After more than 50 years, Mercedes-Benz will once again produce a gullwing sports car. Have a look:

Nice, yes? Their mid-1950s 300 SL is counted among the world’s most highly-rated and sought-after automobiles, even being voted “Sports Car of the Century” in 1999. Today, the 1955 300 SL Gullwing Coupe (below) can bring nearly $750,000 at auction.

Does the new SLS measure up? Comparing the two models is both unfair and unavoidable, but from everything I’ve seen I say “absolutely!” Advance reviews are somewhat mixed:

About $200,000 IF you know someone who knows someone. Available in Europe next year; as yet no official on-sale date for North America. Gorgeous!

The only car on the road that will blow the doors off itself
So how did Mercedes get a gullwing design approved in the US? Exploding bolts! Should the car overturn, pyrotechnic hinges will blow and passengers can escape.

MAPLE TWIST

When it comes to creating art, I’m managing to stay productive. I completed MAPLE TWIST this past weekend and couldn’t wait to plug it into the blog.

Once again, I worked extensively with various grayscale versions of this piece throughout its creation, and I have included the final grayscale for you here. When working with fractals, it is easy to get pulled off track and hypnotized by the copious detail, especially when applying the final colors and textures. I find that frequently referring to the grayscale image helps keep me focused on the overall impact and composition.

I am especially pleased with how the greens fade to deep purples in the upper center of the piece, and how the maple-colored background supports the orangy-golds.

As shown —
Finished size: 43.5″ x 30.0″
Print on Somerset Velvet Fine Art: 32.0″ x 18.0″
Frame: Distressed Black with Gold Bead, 2″ width
Top Mat: Digital White, Width: Top 3.5″, Bottom 4″, Sides 3.5″
Bottom Mat: Cranberry
Glazing: Non-glare Acrylic
Normally ships in 6-8 business days

MAPLE TWIST is available for purchase (in a variety of sizes and substrates) as of this moment. You may contact me directly to answer questions or assist you with your order, or click here to order now.

EDGE OF EDEN

I plucked this beautiful sprig of leaves from a bush in my backyard. I wish I could tell you the name of the plant. However, when inspiration strikes I am only concerned with making art. From a botany point of view, I only know it’s hearty enough to withstand winter nights in Sedona.

I brought the sprig into my studio and made a high resolution scan. Very nice. From there I adjusted saturation and contrast, then selectively embellished the image with drips and drabs of color. I made a digital collage for the background, parts of which include a rusted metal plate for texture.

The detail is superb. It’s nice to get back to nature every once in a while. Art, as they say, is all around us.

As shown —
Finished size: 46.3″ x 39.0″
Print on Somerset Velvet Fine Art: 32.0″ x 24.0″
Frame: 3 3/8 in. Black/Gold Scoop
Top Mat: Matte White, Width: Top 3.5″, Bottom 4.25″, Sides 3.5″
Bottom Mat: Matte White
Glazing: Non-glare Acrylic
Normally ships in 6-8 business days

EDGE OF EDEN is available for purchase (in a variety of sizes and substrates) as of this moment. You may contact me directly to answer questions or assist you with your order, or click here to order now.

Sedona Valentine (1 and 2)

I must be in my RED period; I couldn’t get enough red when working on these two ethereal pieces. That, and Valentine’s Day is right around the corner.

For all you lovers.

Hmmm. Is framed art more impressive than a card? Oh my yes!

It’s fun to be up to your elbows in the art, isn’t it? Once I’m past the conceptual stages and it feels like things are going to work out, it’s exciting to push and pull the boundaries, work on detail and play with color. That I was able to produce two pieces from this concept is double-good.

Once again, the marvelous detail achievable with fractals (shown above) astounds me. It is beauty within beauty; I never tire of the infinite permutations. The texture, which is generally lost at web sizes, is tasty at close range.

Sedona Valentine 1, and,
Sedona Valentine 2, as shown —
Finished size (each): 29.5″ x 44.3″
Print on Somerset Velvet Fine Art: 18.0″ x 32.0″
Frames: Metropolitan Black with Gold, 2″ width
Top Mat: Fairfield White, Width: Top 3.5″, Bottom 4.25″, Sides 3.5″
Bottom Mat: Digital White
Glazing: Non-glare Acrylic

Both VALENTINE pieces are available for purchase now. You may contact me directly to answer questions or assist you with your order, or click here to order now.

Hey Sailor! You’re Not Lost Again, Are You?

Artists are a lost bunch. All of us. We’re always pushing the envelope, burning the midnight oil, biting off more than we can chew and forging trails where there aren’t any. I may look like I know exactly what I’m doing, but I can assure you I’m lost half the time. It’s my job, because it’s the quickest way to end up somewhere I’ve never been.

Getting lost takes minimal skill. If you’re curious about things and a bit of an explorer, you’ll get lost. The trick, of course, is in finding your way home again.

How many times have you started an art project — filled with optimism and certainty — and followed your creative muse around this way and that until, about halfway through, you’re in no man’s land with no clear path to the finish line?

A key question to ask is “What am I trying to do?” Reestablish your original vision in your mind or — gut check — admit you were hoping things would become clear as you went along. Then push on. Move confidently into unknown territory and keep your eyes open for familiar sign posts: Emotional content, solid composition, pleasing color, visual hooks, tonal harmony and masterful technique.

You can rarely think your way out of an art dilemma of this nature. Too many options, too much procrastination. Roll up your sleeves and get in there, even if you’re not sure where it’s all heading. Work it. Push it. Find the art.

Illustration courtesy Lindsay Podd used under a Creative Commons license.

THE JUPITER EXPEDITION — A Study in Tonal Harmony

I generally keep my work color-neutral until the final stages, preferring to concentrate on concept, composition, design, and focal point before developing a color palette. This insures that the work has a solid tonal foundation which isn’t lost when color is applied.

Simply stated, tonal harmony is “a pleasing pattern in the balance between light and dark.” Before I introduce my latest work, THE JUPITER EXPEDITION, I’d like to point out a technique you may find useful when evaluating the tones in your own art: Convert to grayscale.

Before you send your paintings, photographs or digital creations into the world, look at them in grayscale. Does the work hold up in a pleasing way, or is color being used to disguise tonal deficiencies? Some art is intended to be low-contrast, but if your work can benefit from balanced tonal separation and tonal harmony, there is no quicker way to identify areas of weakness than with grayscale.

Now, on to the new art! I like lost civilizations, ancient tombs and daring expeditions. But…can those themes — and especially those feelings — be conveyed in abstract works of art? I think so, and with a fair amount of drama and imagination. THE JUPITER EXPEDITION was very exciting to work on, from the first tentative anchor shapes to the tattered edges and bleeding tones, to the final explosion of crimson and gold. For me, it is a remarkably satisfying piece. I hope it is for you, too.

As shown —
Finished size: 46.0″ x 32.8″
Print on Somerset Velvet Fine Art: 32.0″ x 18.0″
Frame: Wide Bronze Scoop, 3.5″ width
Top Mat: Digital White, Width: Top 3.25″, Bottom 4″, Sides 3.25″
Bottom Mat: Crimson
Glazing: Non-glare Acrylic

THE JUPITER EXPEDITION is available for purchase (in a variety of sizes and substrates) as of this moment. You may contact me directly to answer questions or assist you with your order, or click here to order now.