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Jessica Libor

~ Studio Journal

Jessica Libor

Category Archives: Teaching

How to elevate your artwork

31 Wednesday Mar 2021

Posted by Jessica Libor in Courses, Teaching

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art business, art course, artist elevate, how to artist, jessica libor, social media audit, up level art career


    When you get to a certain point in your career, you want to elevate your work. What are some ways that you can do this without having to rely on anyone else?

How can you elevate your work on your own? Is it possible? 

Absolutely. Here are a few of my tips to elevate your work.

1.  Context is everything! You should have a professional website with a white background and modern, simple fonts that mimics the look of a gallery. You don’t want anything distracting from your beautiful work! Get rid of any old work on your website, distracting logos, or “fancy” colors! Coco Chanel said it best: “Simplicity is the keynote of all true elegance.”  

2. Take anything that you aren’t really proud of out of your résumé. You just want to put your best foot forward. If you’ve been published in any press or one any awards those things should also be front and center! When exhibit in your work in public, make sure it is aligned with a gallery or institution that you are proud to be a part of. Also, when you go to the opening, always have your business cards on hand so that you can make connections with people who would possibly by your work. You could even schedule a studio visit with people who like your painting! 

3.  Do a social media audit. This is especially true for Instagram, go through your feed and delete anything that you are not extremely proud of. There’s also the option to archive the post so that you can still have it for later but it makes it private. Do you want a seamless, professional experience sprinkle through with some of your personal moments in the studio and inspiration!

4.  Aggressively apply to opportunities. When you make time each week to apply to, say, five opportunities, some of those opportunities are bound to work out! I definitely suggest entering exhibitions in your area and even throughout the country as you build your art career.  You can find these opportunities at sites like http://www.callforentry.org.

5.  A very important thing to do is to take great photographs. You need to be able to document your work so that you’re able to have it for your own records, as well as make prints of it of a very high-quality if you would like to down the line. If you sell the piece, then you don’t want to be in a situation when all you have is an iPhone photo! You can buy or rent a good camera, hire an art photographer, OR  take your pieces to be scanned at a printer!

6. Continue to improve your work and increase your consistency in quality and presentation. Do you want to be known for a recognizable style and theme. If this is a challenge for you you may consider my affordable course that targets this, Discovering Your Artistic Voice.

7. Revisit your artist statement, and rewrite it if necessary! Make sure it reflects the current body of work that you are working on and then it is clear and powerful.

These are just a few suggestions that you can use to start up leveling your online and in person artistic presence in the art world! The main idea is to elevate everything that your artwork touches… Make sure the way you document your work, present it, and talk about it reflect your love and honor for the work that you are presenting.

These are just a few suggestions that you can use to start up leveling your online and in person artistic presence in the art world! The main idea is to elevate everything that your artwork touches… Make sure the way you document your work, present it, and talk about it reflect your love and honor for the work that you are presenting.

Have a wonderful week!

With love, light and creativity,
 
Jessica Libor

Happy International Women’s Day! Spotlight on Elisabeth Vigee Labrun

08 Monday Mar 2021

Posted by Jessica Libor in Courses, Inspiration, Teaching

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art, artist, artist bios, elisabeth vigee labrun, emerging artist, female artist, international women's day, jessica libor, women painters

Self Portrait in a Staw Hat, by Elisabeth Vigee Labrun

Happy International Women’s Day! I am so happy that there is a day to celebrate courageous and wonderful women all around the world, regardless of what stage of their life that they are in. Let’s celebrate the women in our lives who are our mothers, daughters, sisters, friends, relatives, colleagues, and creative that we look up to! For this international women’s day, I wanted to honor the women who are part of our community of the visionary artist salon! If you haven’t yet joined our Facebook group, you can do so here! We’d love to see what you’re working on, be invited to your exhibitions, and hear your struggles and triumphs.

To celebrate International Women’s Day, I like to focus on one woman a preeminent artist who was a favorite portraitist of Marie Antoinette, Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun.  Elisabeth was an independent artist, mother, wife and world traveler, as well as frequent Salon host.   Her subject matter and color palette can be classified as Rococo, but her style is aligned with the emergence of Neoclassicism. 

Marie Antoniette, by Elisabeth Vigee Labrun

She enjoyed the patronage of European aristocrats, actors, and writers, and was elected to art academies in ten cities.  As her career blossomed, Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun was granted patronage by Marie Antoinette.   She painted more than 30 portraits of the queen and her family,  leading to the common perception that she was the official portraitist of Marie Antoinette. At the Salon of 1783, Vigée Le Brun exhibited Marie-Antoinette in a Muslin Dress (1783), sometimes called Marie-Antoinette en gaulle, in which the queen chose to be shown in a simple, informal white cotton garment. 

She led a long and interesting life, escaping the French revolution when the tables turned on Marie Antoinette and making a home for herself in Russia for quite a long time before returning to her home country of France.   And accomplished artist, she was known not only for her brilliant self portraits and masterful execution Color and form, but also subtly influenced the fashion of France. She was the one who, through her own style of wearing a simple white dress with a colored sash, influence Marie Antoinette to do the same, and when her portrait was done in that style, it became all the rage as the fashionable style. 

Vigée Le Brun,  Marie-Antoinette in a Muslin Dress 

Vigée La Brun created some 660 portraits and 200 landscapes.   In addition to many works in private collections, her paintings are owned by major museums, such as the Louvre, Hermitage Museum, National Gallery in London, Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and many other collections in continental Europe and the United States.  She lived 1755-1842.

There is a fabulous dramatized documentary on Netflix about Elisabeth you might enjoy, The Fabulous Life of Elisabeth Vigee La Brun, in honor of International Women’s Day! 


Elisabeth lived during a time in France where salons, from which the Visionary Artist’s Salon is inspired by, were just gaining popularity. You will see in the film dramatizations of the salons that Elizabeth held within her own apartments, sometimes dramatic affairs with costumes, feasts, and artists, writers, and thinkers of the day present.  The Parisian salons of the 18th century allowed women to play a positive role in the public sphere of French society. Salons provided a unique outlet where women’s ideas could be heard. Women, in addition to conversing with men at an academic level, had the power to influence the topics major philosophers studied. The cross-class communication that salons fostered also allowed social groups, which had never before interacted, to share ideas. Women’s contributions to the development of intellectual and scientific ideas through their role as salonierres marked a cultural shift in how women should be accepted and involved in society. 


Above, Madam Grande, by Elisabeth Vigee Labrun

I hope this little history lesson has inspired you and empowered you to create your own epic story if you are a female artist! Speaking of which, the luminary or the salon will be opening in a few weeks, and if you are a female contemporary realist artist, this may be the program to ship to you into a higher plan that you have been looking for. In this program, I am sharing  how to build a profitable, authentic art career while embracing your own feminine spirit.  You can get on the waitlist to learn more about it by clicking here! Thank you so much for shining bright, and happy International Women’s Day!

You’re also invited to my Sunday watercolor paint along!  Register for the event here, held from 3-5pm on Sunday, March 21. 

With love, light, and creativity,


Jessica Libor
Artistic Coach
The Visionary Artist’s Salon

The special challenges of the feminine artist

16 Tuesday Feb 2021

Posted by Jessica Libor in Journeys, Teaching

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Tags

art, art course, artist challenges, creative, drawing, female artist, feminine energy, jessica libor, painting

 

 In a few weeks, I will be opening a new course that will be my most comprehensive course yet, especially for feminine, contemporary realist artists who are ready to make the next three months a flowering and growth like never before of their artistic practice and career. This course is open to both men and women but is written for people who create in an emotional, feminine, way in their art.

 I have experienced first hand the unique challenges that feminine, empathetic people face in the art world.  Some of these setbacks are self imposed, and others are external.  Tell me, have you ever felt like this?

1. You find yourself struggling to share your work because it is so close to your heart and emotional to you.  You fear being hurt if you expose yourself.

2. You are drawn to representing pretty things, love painting fashion, romance, motherhood and other “soft” subjects, that you fear the art world will never take seriously, but that touch your heart and bring you joy.

3. You are overwhelmed with the business side of art. When it comes to taxes, keeping inventory, marketing and advertising, you would rather just go back to the studio, put on some beautiful music and get lost in your painting again.  You feel like you’re not good at that stuff. ( Or is it that you have just been socialized to believe that? )

4.  You struggle with pricing your work over a certain price point because it then crosses the threshold into making serious money.  
( Is my art worth that? What if I make more than my partner and am no longer the feminine one? What if someone tells me it’s not worth that much? What if I intimidate people? Will people laugh at me? I will no longer be a cute, approachable artist if I ask people to pay this much! )

5. You struggle with feeling like you have to choose between a traditional family or a soaring career. 

6.  You feel like you never have enough time to expand your career because you are taking care of other people and things, and have given so much of yourself in other areas.


(Above) Portrait of Fanny Eaton, be Simeon Solomon

7.  Sometimes you feel like your desire to have a great, successful career is selfish.

8.  You often damper down your femininity in life and in your art because you do not want to appear silly, especially in a male-dominated art world.

9.  Sometimes you struggle to take yourself and your ambitions seriously because you have been brought up to believe that art is not a serious profession.

10.  You feel things very deeply, whether that be your cycle each month, the fluctuations within your family or romantic relationship, and world events, all of which impact and sometimes immobilize your creativity.

If you recognize yourself in any of these things, just know that you are not alone.  I have spoken to many feminine people who have felt these unique challenges. 



  But, we ALSO have unique strengths in the art world that are invaluable, which I will be covering in my next letter!

In the meantime, if this course sounds like it is of interest to you, please join the waiting list to be kept abreast of all developments (you can join the waitlist HERE, with no commitment of any kind).

I would also love to hear from you.  What unique struggles have you faced as a feminine artist? Do these challenges resonate with you? What have I left out?

Sending you light, love, and creativity,

Jessica Libor
Artist and Artistic Coach
The Visionary Artist’s Salon

Drawings in this email are from the Birmingham Museum of Art, used with permission.

Winter 2021 classes taught by Jessica Libor are open for enrollment

06 Wednesday Jan 2021

Posted by Jessica Libor in art, Teaching

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art classes, artist, contemporary realism, ink class, jessica libor, painting, pastel class, rococo class

I’m excited to announce that I will be teaching several classes both in person and online this winter! I am listing the links and descriptions here below, but if you have any questions please don’t hesitate to reach out to me at jlibor@jessicalibor.com. Any in person class will require masks for all attendees and myself. I hope to see you this new year! 🙂

“ONSITE (IN-PERSON) EXPLORING DRAWING AND MATERIALS” at the Main Line Art Center, Tuesday evenings February 23–March 23, 2021. In this class, students will explore the basics of drawing, including line, shape, proportion, and texture. We will also use different materials, such as colored pencils, inks, pastels, and charcoal, to create floral subjects and object still lifes. The goal is to get comfortable using a variety of mediums and, most importantly, have fun! To learn more and register click here.

“ONSITE (IN-PERSON) EXPLORING WATERCOLOR AND INKS” at the Main Line Art Center, Tuesday evenings January 12-February 9th 2021. In this class, students will explore water-based medias, learning to paint from delicate masterworks that exemplify brushy watercolor and ink techniques. All reference photos will be provided. Expect to come away inspired and refreshed after having fun creating beautiful and whimsical paintings. To register and learn more click here!

“ONLINE ZOOM CLASS: PASTEL PAINTING” with the Norristown Art League, Fridays 1-3pm, 2 session options 5 weeks each. Session 1: January 22, 29, February 5, 12, 19th. Session 2: March 5, 12, 19, 26 and April 2. Great for beginners!

In this class, students will learn the basics of using pastels to create a beautiful pastel artwork of a landscape (image provided).  Topics covered will include composition, color usage, blending the medium, and special effects unique to pastels.  Suitable for beginning to intermediate artists with no experience necessary with pastels. It is recommended you have a laptop or tablet to virtually attend the class. To register and find out more, click here!

“IN-PERSON, ONSITE: WATER MEDIAS” at the Norristown Art League. Max 8 students and masks required. Monday • 5-weeks • 2 to 4 pm. 2 Session options! Session 1: January 18, 25, Feb 1, 8, 15. Break: February 22
Session 2: March 1, 8, 15, 22, 29

In this class, students explore a unique way to use watercolor and ink mediums!  Using techniques from the Rococo time period in France, we will layer ink and watercolor to create lush, delicate paintings of landscapes inspired by the artists Boucher and Fragonard (reference images provided). To learn more and register click here.

“ONLINE SELF-PACED: DISCOVERING YOUR ARTISTIC VOICE” with Jessica Libor Studio and the Visionary Artist’s Salon. A guided pre-recorded video course hosted by Jessica for artists to discover their unique style, based on their preferences, personality, values and spirit. Discovering Your Artistic Voice is made up of 7 Modules with 3 lessons within each module.  These include video and slideshow lectures, pdf downloadable worksheets, and surveys–all designed to help you spring forward and focus your creativity quickly! Best of all, it’s yours to replay and come back to whenever you like. To learn more or register, click here!

Summer Classes

14 Sunday Jul 2019

Posted by Jessica Libor in art, Inspiration, Teaching, Uncategorized

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art, art teaching, art tutor, artist, creative, drawing, jessica libor, main line art center, painter, private art tutor

Jessica teaching picture

Everyone has creativity within them.  The creative process has two parts: the impulse of inspiration, and problem solving on the paper or canvas.  Tonight’s class at the Main Line Art Center I was able to share with students this process.  First, through a “flow” inducing exercise, students were able to experience what the inspiration and joy of creativity feels like, without worrying about the outcome.  Then, we learned more technical aspects of drawing like line, value and composition; all of the problem solving that is done within the bounds of the canvas or paper!  Here I am with some of the drawings I’ve made in ink, charcoal and graphite.  Drawing is a learnable skill; what makes the best drawings is a marriage of life within the marks and technical proficiency.  Everyone has life within them; you just need to give yourself permission for your hand to let it out on the paper.  And anything technical is just like any other skill, able to be learned!

There are still some spots open in my classes I teach this summer and fall at the Main Line Art Center.  Go to the website to register and see what is open!

I also teach semi-privately in my studio on Mondays from 2-4pm in Philadelphia.  If you’re interested in these sessions that help you privately to reach your artistic goals, please send me an email at jlibor@jessicalibor.com.

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