The newest featured artist is Raymond Difley – this California artist presents his paintings and inspiration. Check out his website for a complete portfolio.
What are your goals?
My goals are multi-pronged these days: one is to attack/flood the local market with my smaller 4 x 4 inch box paintings and my 6 x 4 inch matted pieces. I am starting to do this by getting my work into boutiques, a way to hopefully generate income on a consistent basis and be a presence to be found for interior designers and commission paintings. One of the places I have the smaller works in is Roots Collaborative in Mill Valley, CA and will soon have my work back in Egg and Urban Mercantile in San Francisco – two great places that I see leading to bigger and better things.
I’m also trying to get some of larger works (anywhere from 12 x 12 inch to 43 x 28 to hopefully even larger) . . . the start of this was with K & D Furniture here in San Francisco and became juried into BayVan (bay area visual artists network), based out of Oakland, CA. They represent just 100 artists and work with local interior designers, new developments and corporations to sell and rent the art. As the economy starts to pick up, I foresee this as a great partnership.
Another avenue I am excited about starting is art fairs. I would like to participate in 3-4 art fairs in the next 12 months. I see this as a great opportunity for exposure, sales and contacts. If my work is received well, I’ll try and increase the amount of fairs and festivals I partake in. The last prong or piece of the puzzle is the galleries. I am looking 5-7 years down the road. I want to make connections with galleries now that I can start long term relationships with. Ones I can grow with, build a fan base, get a piece or two into their back rooms and in time having shows with them. I think this will build my future and longevity in the art world. I know I’ll find 2-3 that will be a fit for me and them, just got to put in the time.
What are you working on now?
Currently I’m working on an exploration phase in regards to my color palette. I’ve recently started exploring the magenta and violet hues. My work is very much about lush, deep colors with subtle depths and textures. I am exploring magentas and purples, infusing them with my deep reds and brown-oranges. A good example of this is “The Great Myth of Spring” currently on my website. I am really excited about the new colors and opportunities they will create in my work; the start has been very exciting. You can see more examples on my Facebook fan page too.
What inspires you?
I’m inspired by color first I believe – working with deep colors, mixing and blending them, then laying them down on the surface drives my work. I’ve always been fascinated with the surface of canvas, panel and the paint. It’s taken me a long time to “get this.” It hasn’t been about outside sources all the time. I’ve always had a strong connection to my materials and try to let them speak through me and come out in my pieces. I do get inspired by other artwork I see, whether it’s artwork I’ve seen in galleries, museums, through an artist friend’s blog or a fellow San Francisco artist. I see the work and think, “I’ve got to get into the studio and create!”
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