Clara Lieu

Apr. 29, 2013 at 10:53am

Ever since I started videotaping the first 12 minutes of modeling these faces, my modeling process has become noticeably faster. I’ve condensed the modeling process into two work sessions instead of three, and I’ve become bolder, looser, and less fussy about details. All in all I would estimate that each face is now taking only about 2 hours to complete. I think part of what is speeding up the process for me is that I know that the end is near: after I cast this latest round of faces I only have 13 more pieces to complete.

Ask the Art Professor: How do I become a children’s book illustrator?

Welcome to “Ask the Art Professor“! Essentially an advice column for visual artists, this is your chance to ask me your questions about being an artist, the creative process, career advice, a technical question about a material, etc. Anything from the smallest technical question to the large and philosophical is welcome. I’ll do my best to provide a thorough, comprehensive answer to your question. Submit your question by emailing me at clara(at)claralieu.com, or by posting here on this blog. All questions will be posted anonymously. Read an archive of past articles here.

Here’s today’s question:

“Since I was little I have always wanted to be an illustrator for young adult and children’s books. I would like to work freelance on the side, but I really want to try and get a contract with a publishing house; I am at a loss how. Do you have to have an agent, can you just send your work in, do you have to go bring it in person, or what? I’ve looked and looked and looked but I never can find an answer, and I’m desperate!”

The number one must-have book that will get you going is the Children’s Writer’s and Illustrator’s Market. Published annually, this book is THE resource if you want to be an illustrator for children’s books. The book has detailed articles about every aspect of the business, (including how to assemble your materials for submission) up to date contact information for agents and publishers, as well as interviews will established children’s book illustrators and writers. I won’t get into all of the details here, as this book will provide literally everything you need to know about getting established as a children’s book illustrator.

To briefly answer your question about agents, it is very possible to get work without an agent. At the same time though, there are many advantages to having an agent. Children’s books is an extraordinarily competitive field that is highly saturated with thousands of artists who are trying to break in. If you find the right fit, agents can provide a launching pad for you and provide contacts and networking that you would not otherwise be able to quickly establish on your own. Children’s Writer’s and Illustrator’s Market includes tons of information about agents, including their contact information and will provide the information you need to make the decision on your own.

Apr. 28, 2013 at 11:06pm

Anonymous asked: After doing much intensive research of which galleries would work best for my body of work and feeling confident about that body of work, how does one approach a gallery to lead to representation? I feel as if most galleries don't accept artist submissions and only take on artists by word of mouth or a collector/represented artist recommends them. If you don't have these initial contacts, what's the best approach? CD? Quality print outs?

I’ve posted my response here: http://claralieu.wordpress.com/2013/04/28/ask-the-art-professor-how-do-i-approach-a-gallery/

Ask the Art Professor: How do I approach a gallery?

Here’s today’s question:

“After doing much intensive research of which galleries would work best for my body of work and feeling confident about that body of work, how does one approach a gallery to lead to representation? I feel as if most galleries don’t accept artist submissions and only take on artists by word of mouth or if a collector or represented artist recommends them. If you don’t have these initial contacts, what’s the best approach? A CD? Quality print outs?”

Yes, it’s true that the majority of galleries, especially the ones that are high up on the food chain, won’t even look at an artist unless they have been recommended by another artist, curator, or dealer that they know personally. Before I worked as a gallery director, I never understood why this was the case and as an artist, felt that it was unfair. Once I became a gallery director though, it made sense: as a gallery director, you get such an overwhelming amount of artist submissions, the majority of which aren’t even remotely appropriate for your venue. No one wants to waste their time working with an artist who is unpredictable. Most people prefer to work with an artist they personally know or who comes with a strong recommendation. During the four years that I worked as a gallery director, I never once exhibited an artist who sent their materials to me unsolicited.

Check the gallery’s website to see if they accept artist submissions. If they do, send your materials exactlyas specified on the website. If the website states that they do not accept artist submissions, I wouldn’t bother to send in your materials, as they will not be looked at. Unfortunately, the vast majority of galleries do not review artist submissions.

Since this is the case, one can often feel paralyzed in terms of trying to break into the gallery scene. Instead, work on raising your overall visibility in the local arts scene by showing in as many venues as possible; you never know who might be looking. Try to have a show at an artist’s co-op or a gallery at an academic institution and get your work out that way. Get to know other local artists, dealers, and curators. Attend local openings and lectures where you can meet other people in the art field in person. Many dealers/curators will jury local competitions from time to time, so keep your eyes peeled for that and submit your work so the dealer/curator is sure to see it. Eventually, your increased profile in the local arts community will earn you the contacts you need to get into a gallery.

Keep in mind that you won’t get results right away, and that it could be years before you gain the kind of exposure and contacts necessary to break into a gallery-I know that I’m still working on this myself. Even if you do manage to break through and make personal contact with a gallery, remember that there’s no guarantee that your work will be accepted. I once had a high profile Boston gallery dealer do a studio visit with me, only to be rejected by them a few weeks later. Be prepared to be in this for the long haul.

How have you approached galleries? What strategies have you used before?

3:40am with 2 notes

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Ask the Art Professor: Will negative stereotypes about artists ever go away?

Here’s today’s question:

“Do you think art will become an integral part of the everyday person’s life where the negative stereotypes about artists are removed and respected as much as any other profession? What do you think will get us there?”

I think the issue is not that people aren’t exposed to visual art enough, rather it’s that frequently they aren’t given the opportunity to see what’s really involved in the process of being an artist. People encounter visual art on a daily basis, but it’s rare that your average person would have access to seeing the blood, sweat, and tears that happens behind every work of art.

The negative stereotypes that are prevalent about artists certainly don’t help either. Most of them could not be farther from the truth: that artists are lazy, flaky, that none of us get famous until after we die. However, the one that really gets under my skin is when people think that being an artist is just a matter of being talented. People say to me all the time “you’re so lucky that you’re talented”, as if that’s all it takes, and that hard work, dedication, and commitment had nothing to do with my success as an artist.

In order for people to attain a greater understanding of the process of being an artist, at least two things would need to happen: artists would need to start to make themselves and their processes more transparent and accessible to everyone, and the general public would need to a mainstream venue in which they could see what happens in the creative process. An excellent example of this is the PBS series “art21″, which features documentaries of renowned contemporary artists and their process. Reading about historical artists is fascinating in its own ways, but nothing substitutes hearing directly from an artist who is working and living in same contemporary context that we live in. I found that I could relate to these contemporary artists in an intimate manner because their work is a reaction to the same contemporary events that I’ve experienced myself.

Another of my favorite resources is cartoonist Bill Watterson’s “The Calvin and Hobbes Tenth Anniversay Book”, in which he writes in great detail about his creative process writing his comic strip. He’s direct and honest about his thoughts: “People always ask how cartoonists come up with ideas, and the answer is so boring that we’re usually temped to make up something sarcastic. The truth is, we hold a blank sheet of paper, stare into space, and let our minds wander.”

What are stereotypes that you’ve experienced as an artist? What are some contemporary resources you know of that share insight into the creative process?

Apr. 27, 2013 at 6:22pm with 1 note

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Yesterday I was able to get almost all of the finishing touches done on these two clay faces. Lately I’ve been enjoying the beginning stages of sculpting so much that the finishing stages have seemed less exciting for me. For a little while it was the other way around; I used to dread the importance of the beginning stages and looked forward to the security of the finishing stages.

In the initial stages I have to be very quick, sharp, and alert in order to capture the gesture of the facial expression. Essentially, I see the first stage as a three-dimensional gesture drawing. Lately in the later stages I feel like what I’m sculpting is solely cosmetic, that I’m just polishing the surface.

Apr. 25, 2013 at 7:31am with 3 notes

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Ask the Art Professor: How do you learn the basics?

Here’s today’s question:

“So I, as many other amateur artists, did the worst possible thing when I first started drawing. I didn’t realize the need for studying anatomy, so I plunged out in trying to copy stylization. This was mainly, I think, because of my young age and my ignorance when it came to “real” art, I was eight years old when drawing really started to mean something to me. I started drawing because I wanted to give a visual image of my imaginary friends. As I had no friends when I was a child, drawing and making art started to mean more to me than other people. In some ways, it still does.

I’ve always imagined my future to have something to do with art as well. My problem is, though, that even though I’ve drawn and made art for almost ten years now, I have made so little progress compared to most other people. The last year I started getting aware of the fact that I really had to step it up before I could even hope to get into one of my dream schools (CalArts, Art Centre, RISD). I have made progress, especially when it comes to color use.

Still, I find myself unable to learn the things I should learn. I can’t seem to pick up what I’m seeing in my studies and I can’t seem to be able to use it in my personal pieces. It’s really scaring me, it seems like I’m unable to learn and progress when it comes to the things that I feel matters – anatomy in particular.

I was wondering if you had any tips when it comes to concentrating on learning the “basics”? I’ve heard “draw from life” and “study, study, study” a thousand times before, and as I explained, it doesn’t seem to work for me. What do i need to change? My way of thinking of it, my attitude towards it? I’m at a loss, and I really hope you can help.”

To improve as an artist, you need to be rigorously disciplined, have a fierce determination to achieve your goals, have infinite patience, and be willing to put in hours and hours of labor to get there. Being an artist is a major physical and mental challenge that many people are not prepared for. Your mindset is everything. I’ve seen students in my classes at RISD enter with almost no drawing experience absolutely soar with success because of how determined and disciplined they were. I’ve also had students with tons of drawing experience bomb because they had a lousy attitude and didn’t want to work hard or try anything new.

I think that developing patience is a very, very big part of being able to improve your skills. Many people get frustrated very quickly with art, as if it’s a skill that can be learned overnight. Measure your progress in terms of months rather than days.

You have to make bad work if you want to make good work. See the mistakes you make as required parts of the creative process. Rather than punishing yourself for making mistakes and/or bad work, embrace the opportunity to learn something new. Don’t get too fixated on specific pieces of art that you make. Create the work, learn from it, and move on. The more prodigious your production level is, the less attached you’ll be to specific works, and the more willing you will be to experiment and try new things.

Set up a daily schedule for yourself so that you are drawing from direct observation at least 2 hours every day, and do this for at least 3 months. There is no way that you could be on that rigorous of a schedule for that long and not improve. This may sound blunt, but if you feel you don’t have the time, and can’t manage this schedule, then I have doubts about how serious you really are about being an artist.

If you’re looking for some structure in terms of what to draw, I would recommend purchasing the book“Drawing: Structure and Vision.” There are a lot of really hokey drawing books out there; this book is the real thing. Written by two of my colleagues, the book covers all of the fundamentals of drawing and provides excellent historical and contemporary examples. There are also drawing assignments and examples of student drawings throughout the book. All in all, a worthwhile investment that will provide you some kind of reference to work from.

Understand that this task you’re assigning yourself is going to be hard. Really hard. Expect to be frustrated, and yes, there will some tears. Accept that you are in it for the long haul. This is where tenacity and perseverance need to kick in. Develop a thick skin, toughen your mind, and push through the difficult moments. If you want this badly enough, you can make it happen.

How did you learn the basics? What helped you initially get started as an artist?

Related articles:
“What is the best way to practice my drawing skills?”
“How do you develop an idea from a sketch to a finished work?”
“How do you keep pushing yourself to get to that next level?”
“How to be a good art student.”

Ask the Art Professor: What do you do after you’ve finished formalized training?

Here’s today’s question:

“What do you do after you’ve finished formalized training or an apprenticeship and there isn’t a clear path towards employment/financial independence directly in sight? What’s the best way for an artist to approach building a blueprint for how to live doing what they love?”

I remember after I finished my undergraduate studies at RISD that I felt overwhelmed by the wealth of knowledge that I had been gathering over the past four years. I had been embracing so many media and approaches to the point that I felt like I was completely buried in information. My professors were also starting to confuse me with their highly contrasting opinions: what one professor loved about my work another hated. I found it impossible to sort through all of the various opinions and figure things out on my own. I felt like my artwork had become a patchwork quilt of my professors’ techniques and approaches, and had nothing that I could truly call my own.

So what should be your first move after you finish training? I would advocate taking a break to clear your head. I wanted to give myself the chance to sort through everything I had been absorbing as a student. I knew that eventually I wanted to go back to graduate school, but I really wanted to take some time off before diving into another degree program. I was curious and eager to get some “real world” experience and see where I could go on my own. (read this article I wrote about my first few years out of school) Although those four years I took before graduate school were difficult, they were critical to giving me the mental space to breathe after finishing my BFA.

After you take a break, what is the signal that you’re ready to get back to work? When you start yearning to make work, when you truly start to miss the challenge and exhilaration of creating. Starting completely from scratch can be very intimidating, especially after making the transition out of school. My recommendation is to go through your sketchbooks and revisit a prior concept. Resurrecting an old idea can be a great way to get going. Perhaps it was an idea that you never brought to full fruition because of time constraints, maybe it was a concept that you put on the back burner at the time. Either way, an old idea can provide the launching pad that you need to jump start your artwork after school.

My MFA thesis work was a project called “Digging.” One of the final monotypes I created in “Digging” was an image of people waiting near a pit, with the diggers absent from the image. (see below) Towards the end of the project, I had started to lose interest in the diggers, and started to redirect my focus on the people who were waiting. I was wrapping up my degree at the time, was about to move and start a new job, and I knew that I wouldn’t have time to focus on the idea of these waiting figures. I temporarily shelved the idea, and then returned to it once things had settled down. ”Waiting” became my first project after finishing graduate school.

What did you do after you finished your training? How did you establish yourself as an artist?

“Anticipation”, from the Digging series.

11:44am with 5 notes

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Hiding No. 37, beeswax, dimensions variable

11:43am with 5 notes

clara lieu art artist visual art visual artist sculpture face depression anxiety macabre

Hiding No. 36, beeswax, dimensions variable