Trying to identify the why

Over the years, I've been known to paint a wide range of subjects. I've learned much from each, but recently I've had an inner nudge to really get down and dirty into painting landscapes.

I've tried to understand the why of this decision. With unlimited subject matter at hand, why focus my efforts on the land?

I've driven across the continental United States and repeatedly have been awed by the flow of one land formation into another from state to state, even from one area of the same state to another. There's a compelling movement of land mass, water, foliage, forest, desert, plains, mountain peak.

If one lives in one area for all of their life, I think they might not experience the extent of that incredible motion, the flow and change of the land.

A new friend asked me to articulate what I hoped to "say" with my landscapes, and I was stumped for an answer. I glibly responded with, "I'm an earth sign Virgo."  Perhaps my resolve to try this is too fresh and unformed. I thought of the geometric shapes to be explored, playing with a different palette of colors, but such technical considerations fell short. The heart of the matter wasn't yet identified.

Then yesterday I came across a quote by photographer Annie Leibovitz:

"I wish that all of nature's magnificence, the emotion of the land, the living energy of place could be photographed."

Bingo! I realized that, with the medium of acrylic paint on canvas, I hope to convey my interpretation of the living energy of the land.

Here I go!

First comes identification of target market ...

Danielle, Etsy Seller Education Coordinator, has been publishing a weekly “Holiday Boot Camp” to help online vendors gear up for the holiday season of sales. There are thousands of us vendors on the Etsy site, so trying to stand out from the crowd is an ongoing challenge. I'm finding her articles very helpful.

However, one point in particular made by Danielle that keeps tumbling around in my head is to identify one's market. Once you identify your target buyer, you can then cut to the chase and market your product more successfully to them. Now, that seems a no-brainer, right?

In previous sales in actual brick and mortar stores and galleries, I’ve had the most success with my Bondo Series and the Street Art Series. But when I cobbled together my online shop, those seemed too restrictive.

I have to admit that I do not know to whom I’m marketing my photographs. They don’t fit a niche. I offer a mish-mash of photographs.

I’ve noticed that some photographers’ photos have a dreamy or romantic quality. Some are strictly of nudes or figurative studies. Some are wholly architectural in subject matter. Other photo vendors sell floral photographs. Still others offer photographs of clouds, or birds, or balloons, or baboons.

So, do I narrow my subject matter or style down to appeal to a specific market?

Am I offering too many different photographs? Should I develop a KWest Studio 8 “brand” of photography and adhere only to my brand?

 

So, who ARE my target buyers?

I think I’ll pour a glass of Vognier and ponder this weighty topic. It may take two glasses.