The old saying, "Do as I say, not as I do" is alive and well with me.

Well, sort of.

I don't like to tell anyone what to do. I prefer giving advice and insight, and let them decide if they'll follow my suggestions. But, when it comes to the help and services I provide others versus the help and services I provide myself... well, that's where this applies.

As previously posted, I am a printmaking artist with a full studio and a big beautiful press and all the accouterments needed. I have been pretty good about actually getting in there, though not as often as I would like due to what I can only call success with Legacy and helping other artists. 

But, you wouldn't know I've been busy in my studio by the looks of my website. This is precisely where this statement comes into play. 

So, this brief post is more for me than anyone else. It's me putting myself out there (to whoever actually reads this blog - Thanks, Nailah!) and to hold myself accountable and get things done for myself. 

Today is Wednesday, Sept 10.
I'm setting a date... by Friday, Oct 10, I better have an updated website with all the work I've done the past (ahem) year on there as well as updates to the overall look and feel of the site. Or else...

Let's see if I can do that. Wish me luck!

I would be remiss after my recent post directed at artists appreciating their galleries' staff if I didn't talk to the galleries, too.

​I learned a lot working for Karen Hewitt Hagan at Hagan Fine Art. As a client to Legacy, I love that we still work together. And I still learn. She's pretty great.

​One of the biggest things that I learned early on was:

I was talking to a gallerist friend recently about how things have been going for her gallery. The art market has been having a lot of issues lately, and so galleries and artists have to work a lot harder to sell, but aren't necessarily seeing the strong profits for their hard work. Summers are especially difficult. 

Ever since starting my business, I've been given all sorts of advice and suggestions here and there from friends, family, and peers. One suggestion I've been given numerous times is setting up something that provides passive income.

As I mentioned in my very first blog post, when I was working at Hagan Fine Art in Charleston I met a lot of artists and answered a lot of questions and offered free advice. 

There was one particular artist that I met during that time. She was energized about being an artist and had big goals for herself. Like so many artists, though, she knew there was a lot to figure out to fulfill those goals. It was actually talking with her on that slow and hot summer day in the gallery that made me think I could create what later would become Legacy Art Management.

The election is over. Half the country is happy. The other half is not. I'm not going to get into the politics. I have my beliefs and opinions, but that's not why I'm here today. I'm not going to change anyone's mind that disagrees with me, and no one is going to change mine.
​
I just want to share the wisdom of Toni Morrison with all my artist friends and peers. No matter if you're a writer, a dancer, a painter, a sculptor, or whatever your creative nature may be:

​On September 25, 2024, rain started coming down on my little town of Saluda and over 500 square miles of Western North Carolina. When it started, the hurricane hadn't even made it to land... it was still out in the Gulf. 

By 7am the next morning Helene made her way up here. Our power went out, and stayed out for almost 9 days. We lost internet connection at home for even longer. The loss of such creature comforts, like a hot shower or even just flushing the toilet without having to collect buckets of water from the pond, was not lost on us and are extremely appreciated. 

I grew up with numerous hurricanes down in Louisiana. I experienced Irene and Sandy while in NYC. And then there were a handful we also experienced during our time in Charleston.

But Helene... this was something totally different.

When we made the decision to move from Charleston, really the only difficult part of that decision was leaving Hagan Fine Art and its owner, Karen Hewitt Hagan. I spent close to ten years working with Karen in helping her grow her gallery business, her artist roster, and selling millions of dollars worth of wonderful art. It was a proud period of my life.

At the beginning of August, some news came out. After fourteen years, Karen sold her gallery. WHOA! 

And, so... with every chapter that ends, a new one begins. I'm so happy Karen will be focusing on painting more and sharing her knowledge through workshops. I'm also thrilled to now include her as an independent artist and Legacy Art Mgt. client. I just finished building her an artist website on Artcloud. Check it out:

www.KarenHewittHagan.com

Welcome Karen! Thank you for choosing Legacy Art Management to help you grow your online presence for your art!

My career as an archivist has introduced me to so many different database system. I've enjoyed learning different systems, and even have been a beta tester for a couple. As an archivist, the #1 Rule I can give any artist is this:

A spreadsheet is not an inventory management system!

As technology has grown, so have the options on keeping yourself organized. It can be very overwhelming for anyone to choose a way to manage your artwork - both the physical and the digital records of said artwork... especially if you're not technically savvy.  

During the first couple of years at Hagan Fine Art, Karen and I had a heck of time trying to decide on what was the best system for us. We finally found it in a small Atlanta-based company called Artcloud.

When we bought our home in Saluda, I knew there were a handful of artists and galleries in the area, but I didn't realize exactly how big of an art community this town is. Saluda has a population of just under 650 residents. So, it was a great surprise to see 9 brick-and-mortar gallery/studio locations and over a dozen working artists living here. That's 3% of the population!

I have gotten to know and worked with a number of these artists and galleries over the past two years. Being a printmaking artist, myself, I see the need to help my art community market itself to become an art destination the way Charleston, Naples, and even Asheville are.