Friday, October 26, 2012

A Pick Up

     So earlier this month there was a pleasant surprise. I had intended to mention it sooner but between a crazy schedule and to many to-dos  to shake a list at it somehow slipped between the cracks and has yet to be mentioned to you...until now.
     I constantly, borderline obsessively submit my work to any and everything it is applicable to. I never want to miss that chance  as I am a true believer in the concept that it only takes 1 exposure and the right passerby . So as a method to never miss that fated moment I press on. Well it's paid off a bit here and there. One such instance is an online gallery by the title of CAGO(Contemporary Art Gallery Online) reviewed my work after my submission and pursued me as an artist further. It was then I submitted my resume, artist statement and more images that they accepted me into their gallery as a permenant member. Indeed after much hard work my art has found a cyber home on  the web walls of this gallery.It things like that that encourage me to continue to chip away at success because I feel like each little bit is a footing. I'm not at the summit. I can't even see the summit. But I know I'm going in it's direction and each accomplishment towards that is a footing that gives me a better grasp and is taking me closer.
     For those of you interested in seeing the work housed by CAGO you can check it out at http://www.contemporaryartgalleryonline.com/AshleyPeters'sArtwork . It much of the same work you may have seen before along with a few new pieces. Thank you again for all you support as I journey forward on a seldom traveled road.

Friday, October 19, 2012

A Year In Review

     Yesterday my birthday and at approx 3:20 pm I turned 24. Every birthday I always think about all the things that happened in that past year and potentially all the things to come . I like to think there's be some sense of accomplishment and growth, not just a stagnant turning of one's wheels gaining no traction. Overall 23 was quite a success and here's a bit of the details in review. 

     I focused my printmaking and redesigned my artist statement. All of which encouraged me to launch my own shop on Etsy under the title of Ardent Prints and the artist AP tying in with my body ink and my name as I had always hoped. We went to Santa Barbra. We celebrated our first Thanksgiving and Christmas together as our own little nuclear family. We may New Years Resolutions some of which have been kept( getting back into running) and some of which have been petering allow( re-learning Italian). I increased the amount of shows I took part in and sales made. My work was scouted and picked up by an art organization (RAW) which has lead to other opportunities. We saw many good friends leave the ship to new adventures but we've welcomed new friends too. We've gone to Sea World, Lego Land and the Safari Park.In June we celebrated our 1 year wedding anniversary. We went on a Ghost Hunt at one of the oldest and most haunted homes of America. My work was selected for a spot at the San Diego Spirits Festival. I was hired by a corporate coffee giant and after seeing their drone-ish ways left "the man". We've dealt with the constant ins and outs of the Navy. We saw Hawaii and what it had to offer from hidden waterfall hikes to surfing; windy weather and strange food. We've felt like real grown ups in a good way. There was a trip to the Grand Canyon and we were memorized on our 16+ mile hike. With Bently in tow we saw an unforgettable landmark. People have called me hippie dippy and an activist and a bit green and I take it as a good thing. Hiking became a new passion along with ocean water kayaking. There was an incredible night camping in the Mojave Preserve literally 13 miles from anyone. I was accepted into Graduate School at the Academy of Art for a Masters in Illustration. We fell in love with the idea of a winery after a visit and think of it's practical applications to our future lives. I was hired as a Gallery Manager- what I trained to do. We've cherished all of our moments together and made so many incredible memories. To say the least it has been a fantastic year full of milestones.
     Like I said I look to what's to come and perhaps some expectations. This year Bently will get to see Ohio for the first time and I truly hope snow. I want more sales and notice on etsy, as any artist would. I am excited for the work with the gallery. It is nice to do what I was designed for(jeeze I sound like a espresso machine). More shows of course! Continue running and hopefully a half marathon before the next birthday. Really brush up on some languages just not sure whether to focus on German or Italian, ( I remember more German). Really enforce my natural ONLY product rule. Get some scholarships and such for school. See San Francisco and the redwoods. Teach Bently some novelty tricks, (in progress). Continue with the Naval ebb and flow but more importantly a little more flow and little less ebb. Time with family and friends and cherishing every opportunity.





     Every birthday is a landmark. People hate growing old and I think of it as just growing, (maybe because I'm not old yet). I truly think though when you take it in stride, in review, it is far more enjoyable and satisfying than for those who think of it as a countdown or a timer. This yet has been jam packed full of events and I can only assume this next year will be as well. I don't know what's coming my way but that's half the fun. I looking forward to a little adventure- as life should be. 

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Gallery Manager

     Merit is worth its weight in gold but as are connections and timing. I avidly believe in some  circumstances you are intended to be at a specific location at a certain moment and by doing so it change change your course. Some things are not coincidence, such as my husband's and my initial interactions. It is not fate which I condone but perhaps an unseen nudge.
     I mention this because thanks to such an unseen nudge and coincidental timing I have recently acquired a wonderful opportunity. As I had wrote prior my work was accepted into the Colour Show at the Undiscovered Gallery on Coronado. End of September there was the final reception of which I was to attend. To be honest I was tired and Danny was on duty so if it wasn't for professionalism and nudge from him I'd most likely had been in the wardroom instead. I arrived and socialized and genuinely had a good time. Business cards were distributed and chatting up gallery goers completed. As the evening drew to a close I was speaking with the Gallery Director, Nicole, and her friend. It was then that she mention because of a recent move she needed help with the gallery and was looking to share the reins. At the sound of this my ears perked to attention and next thing you know it was as if I was making a pitch in the boardroom.
     Hoping to have not came on too strongly I sent along my resume. Shortly then Nicole responded and after we work out some details you can say hello to Undiscovered Gallery's new Gallery Manager! The gallery may be small but I'd rather be there from the start and build a foundation. It's unpaid but this is an incredible opportunity. This is what my degree what designed to do. And one day it could become paid. Most importantly it is a foot in the door.
      I am so glad to have gone that night. To have engaged in that conversation. To have been there in that moment and to have take a chance for such an opportunity. This is just the beginning but it's put my course in the correct direction.