A Walk in the (Virtual) Park

Published September 7, 2020 by rochellewisoff

For the most part, 2020 art fairs, concerts and festivals around town, large and small, have been cancelled. These cancellations include a few I’d planned to participate in. Heavy sigh. Potential for sales out the window.

However, 2019 wasn’t exactly a great year for us and outdoor fairs. In June, at Corks and Canvas, it took an hour to set up in intermittent rain. Happily the rain stopped. Unhappily it gave way to stifling heat and humidity, coupled by high winds. I spent a lot of time chasing my note cards across the pavement.

Corks & Canvas June 2019

In September there were two fairs. The first one was Independence Uncorked. One would think my wine glass pictures would go well there, right? Not so much. People seemed more interested in wine than art. To be fair (hee) I did fairly well at that one. The wine note cards were my best sellers.

The next September fair was the annual UNPlaza fair, not to be confused with the Plaza Art Fair held the same weekend. Torrential rains washed out our hopes for decent sales.

This year, You-Know-What washed out hopes for this year’s UNPlaza renamed PeaceWorks KC Local Art Fair. However, the wonderful board of directors at PeaceWorks decided to try something new. A virtual fair! Each artist will have an online booth. There will be video chat rooms to speak with each artist. Artists’ web pages will give attendees an opportunity to shop in the comfort of their own home.

I am excited and nervous at the prospect. Save David Bayard, who’s heading the planning, none of us really knows what to expect. At any rate, it is an opportunity for a broader audience. You don’t have to live in Kansas City to come, browse and buy. 😉

While you’re in the neighborhood click my art tab at the top of the page. Thank you.

The fair goes live Saturday and Sunday, September 26 and 27

11:00 AM – 5:00 PM

For info on how to participate

CLICK HERE!

Join other local artists and me for a new experience.

IT’S WINE O’CLOCK

Published June 25, 2018 by rochellewisoff

This past Saturday, the town of Blue Springs, Missouri, hosted the annual event known as “Corks & Canvas.” Artists, musicians and wine vendors set up their tents up and down the street and hawk their wares.

After a month of August weather in May and June, the heatwave broke and we were grateful for cool morning breezes and clouds. Although sunshine prevailed as the day progressed, it was still cooler than the past few weeks have been.

This is our second year to participate. When I say “our” I include my husband Jan who takes charge of the heavy lifting and set up. I don’t know what I’d do without my Chief. 😉 (You should hear his sales pitches for my art and books. Makes me want to buy them.) Things went smoother with set up this year since it was no longer our first rodeo. Last year we spent months shopping for display supplies such as tent, tables and walls. This year the only thing I needed to do ahead of time was paint, frame and have a few more prints made.

Although it seems that fewer people showed up this year, it was an enjoyable time, nonetheless. A few friends I hadn’t seen for a while showed up to visit and lend their support. Did I think to take pictures of them?

One thing I appreciate about signings is the way my books, informed by my Eastern European family, often inspire others to share their histories with me. No exceptions here. I sold out of PLEASE SAY KADDISH FOR ME and sold a few of the sequels FROM SILT AND ASHES and AS ONE MUST ONE CAN.

The wine glass note cards were also a hit. Many thanks to Alexis at Print Graphics for her diligence to details.

We received an invitation to participate in another wine fest in September in Independence, Missouri. It looks promising. I’d better order more books and do a few more wineglass paintings. 😉

Note to self: Bring a change of shoes next time.

L to R: Nettie Weinberg, Edith Weinberg, Miriam Wisoff

DAYS OF WINE AND WATERCOLOR

Published July 3, 2017 by rochellewisoff

It all started when my agent Jeanie suggested I post character studies of my throng of characters on my blog to garner interest in my yet-to-be-published novels. I didn’t start rendering them in pencil and watercolor straightaway. You can blame it on Officer Lafayette A. Tillman, the second African American on the Kansas City Police Force. Since he shows up in FROM SILT AND ASHES and becomes an influential person in the life of Lev Gitterman in AS ONE MUST, ONE CAN I naturally wanted to post a character study about him. There are photos of him online but the only ones I could find were copyrighted. That’s when it occurred to me to paint a portrait of him.

LAFAYETTE A. TILLMAN-Original Artwork – © Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

Fast forward to two novels later with one on the way, my publisher wanted to know if I’d be interested in putting together a coffee table companion book. “Let me think about that a minute…yes.” For going on two years, I’ve worked to make that book upwards of 220 pages. In addition to the sepia portraits of the characters, I’ve been painting watercolor scenes from each of the books. I hate to call it ‘work’ though. To be honest, I’m having the time of my life. 😉

This brings me to three months ago when I was introduced to Alexis at a place in Blue Springs, Missouri called Print Graphics. It had been suggested to me that I have prints made to sell. A festival in the area called Corks & Canvas would be a good venue, I was told, to market, not only my novel trilogy, but my artwork as well. So the games began!

GAVREL WOLINSKY- Orignial Artwork © Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

My husband Jan was excited at the prospect of my finally showing my artwork. Maybe those student loans to the Kansas City Art Institute would finally pay off. At any rate, he was totally on board with purchasing the display racks and tables. He used his Academy Sports employee discount to buy a purple tent and matching chairs. (You expected, maybe white?)

I didn’t think I’d have much to show, but thanks to Alexis, who is an artist herself, my stack of prints grew. My office/studio took on the appearance of an explosion in an art gallery. We found thrift stores to be wonderful places to find gently used frames, some with pristine mats that were the perfect size for my prints.

When the time came, Jan, bless his heart, spent most of Friday packing the truck so there’d be little left to do Saturday morning. We lucked out. After a month of stifling heat and humidity, the temps dropped and we had pleasant weather. We were on site by 8:00 am and set up by 10:00.

I enjoyed friends who showed up to support me and meeting new friends. One young Jewish woman stopped and we chatted for a long time. She was drawn to a couple of the paintings because they reminded her of her grandparents. While she didn’t buy anything, she said she would definitely get back with me. I hope she does.

If Corks & Canvas is any indication, it seemed to me that the artwork sold the books and visa versa. Financially, it was a successful day and makes us want to combine book signing and art display at other festivals.

Who knows where this will lead?