Opening Up to Community

While I was gallery sitting on Saturday at Gallery 99 I noticed a young woman looking closely at all the art.  She seemed very purposeful so I asked her if she was an artist.  She wasn’t, she and her husband had just purchased their first home and she was looking for something to hang on the walls.  This was just the type of person Gallery 99 was hoping to attract.  Someone who doesn’t  go to galleries and had never bought art before but felt comfortable enough to come to Gallery 99 and buy some original local art.

And it’s this sense of community that made me want to be a part of Gallery 99 to begin with.  A community of artists and people who appreciate art.

But what Gallery 99 also made me realize was that I already have an art community on my blog.  There’s a huge exchange of creative information that goes on everyday between me and you. People commenting on my work, buying it or not buying it, sharing  links to website and YouTube, and sharing their own work and creative idea with me.

And now I’m expanding that community even more.  I’ve added Bedlam Farm to my navigation bar (right next to Events) so anyone can easily go back and forth from my site to Jon’s.  (I was thinking that maybe it should be in dark blue so you could see it better,  what do you think?)  When I first started Full Moon Fiber Art I was very resistant to relying on Jon’s site too much.  Now I understand it just makes it easier for everyone.

Also, last week the editor of the online magazine Fiber Art Now contacted me about putting a click ad on my site.  I hadn’t heard of the magazine before, but when I checked it out, I like what I saw.  It’s substantial with articles on fiber artists and exhibitions.  I was excited by the idea that my site was big enough for someone to pay me to put an ad on it.  I also love the idea of being a part of this new publication. It makes me feel like little by little, I’m continuing to build my community.

Now that I’ve opened myself up to it, who knows what will happen next….