I met Chelle Brantley on Myspace. I became connected through mutual friends and remembered that the first piece I saw of hers was a beautiful butterfly. I checked out more of her stuff and began an online friendship. She has such a loving and kind energy about her and I am inspired by her amazing talents. She truely is “all that and a bag of chips”! I hope to one day be able to sit down with her and learn a segment of what she knows how to do.

Tell me a little about yourself…. what are your creative talents?
I’m a portrait artist, self-taught, who specializes in photo-realistic paintings from photographs. Painting is my overall passion and what keeps me at peace. I’m also studying graphic and web design and I make beaded jewelry.

When and how did you first become interested in art?
As a little girl, I have always been fascinated with color, and I was always doodling or sketching things. I used to trace images from magazines or sales papers and create my own coloring book. I really didn’t take my interest in art seriously until I was 23 years old after my father passed away. I began painting as a therapeutic way of dealing with my grief, rather than drink myself into a coma.

Are there any other artists in your family?
There aren’t any that I am aware of but my son’s father is a very talented musician. He plays bass guitar, drums and keyboards all by ear. He can’t read sheet music, but he can compose about 10 or more different songs within a 24 hour period.

What and/ or Who inspires you to express yourself the way you do?
I get inspired a lot by listening to music while I’m painting. When I’m playing my iPod, nothing else exists in my world but me, the piece I’m working on and the music I’m playing. Sometimes, whatever song I happen to be listening to at that particular moment, can determine how fast I complete a painting. I could be listening to Luther Vandross, India.Arie, Mary J. Blige or rock out to Wicked Wisdom. HA! I think Wicked Wisdom’s helped me finish a lot of pieces!

How would you describe your artistic expression and what is it about the way you express yourself that sets you apart from others?
I don’t know exactly how to describe it, but when I paint the image of a person from a photograph, I not only get just the likeness and the mechanical make-up of that person, but I can just about capture the very essence of that person as I paint them onto the canvas or whatever surface. I guess you can say that I am somewhat of an emotional artist.

Do you have any favorite pieces or jobs that you have accomplished and would you tell us about them?
My favorite piece was a painting I did of Tupac Shakur, Aaliyah and Notorious B.I.G. I painted Aaliyah sitting at the bottom of a staircase looking downward with Tupac and B.I.G., dressed in white, looking down at her. That was a very emotional painting, and I had received a lot of positive feedback about it.

What are your immediate career goals?
My immediate career goals are to continue painting and enter as many competitions as I can, so that my work can be seen and recognized. I’d like to have someone represent me who is honest and knowledgeable about the business, and I want to begin having art shows.

What do you see manifesting for yourself in the future?
I see myself being successful and at peace. I can see my work being in demand by true art collectors and my career goals fulfilled.

How would you define the word “success”?
I would define success as having finally exhaled; accomplishing everything I ever wanted to do.

Who handles your daily business activities?
Right now, I pretty much handle everything on my own, which can be pretty hectic. I have a 3-year-old son with severe disabilities, and I’m a single mom, so as you can probably imagine, I’ve got a lot on my plate. People often ask me when I find time to sleep. HA! Define sleep!

Have you created an actual career, marketing, or business plan?
So far, I haven’t really had the time to sit down and put my goals into writing. However, I am in the process of redesigning my website so that I can sell my artwork online. I also plan to save and invest in a better digital camera and printer so I can photograph and print my own artwork

Who do you feel has influenced art most this century? (don’t know if i like this question, i will leave it up to you)
Wow, that’s a pretty tough question. There are so many different types of artists with so many different interpretations of their own artistic expression, that it would be difficult for me to pinpoint any individual as being the century’s most influential artist.

In what area would you like to see yourself improve, and why?
I would like to stop being over critical of my own work and be able to see my paintings as others see them.

How have you utilized the Internet for self promotion?
I’ve been networking big time! I do have a website: chelleart510.com under construction. I have a MySpace page: www.myspace.com/chelleart510 and I have some of my pieces for sale at http://www.imagekind.com. That is just some of the steps I’ve taken to have my paintings seen by serious art collectors.

How has social networking affected you as an artist?
Social networking is teaching me a lot about the art business and what it entails. However, I realize there is still a lot out there for me to learn.

Have you sold any work or been commissioned for work through the Internet?
I have sold a few pieces over the internet, and I have been commissioned for work through one of the freelance sites as well through the internet.

Does the Internet allow you to exhibit your work as you would like: How could it be improved?
So far, I haven’t had any problems exhibiting my work online. However, I still consider myself a novice when it comes to networking and exhibiting my artwork online. So, there are probably improvements that need to be made, that I am not yet aware of.

I would like to thank Chelle for her interview. I am looking forward to seeing more of her work all over the net and in galleries everywhere. Also thanks to talentspeaks.com and theInspirit.com for the arena for creative expression. If you don’t know what it’s all about, here is a summary:

Talent Speaks is a web discussion that explores how advancements in electronic networking and digital technologies are quickly creating opportunities that will empower independent artists to achieve success through self promotion. As the Internet continues to evolve with far-reaching networking tools, artists now have an unrestricted ability to promote themselves to the global audience. New Media methods are creating a New System that allows artists (musicians, designers, photographers, writers, etc) to deal directly with consumers, bypassing the traditional hurdles of an outdated art and entertainment industry. As a result, scores of independent creatives will benefit both professionally and financially, to achieve success through their networking efforts and the support of their fans.

This forum serves as a sounding board for the world’s emerging talent pool and as a pilot study for a new, visionary web-based talent program called theInspirit. Once launched, theInspirit will teach the ‘art of self-promotion” and encourage creative artists to network with buyers and fans around the world. Through the use of a proprietary suite of promotional tools, the program will create immediate exposure and economic opportunity for millions of creative people around the world.

The New System (as opposed to the old) will undoubtedly rewrite how art and entertainment is produced, promoted, distributed and sold throughout the world. It will offer exposure and success to hundreds of thousands of artists instead of a privileged few. Today’s creative minds are opinionated, New Media has spurred an era of voice and choice, and talent is speaking loudly.

If you haven’t browsed around the site, do so! Sign up to be a beta tester for theInspirit.com and get involved in the new generation of creative expression.

Namaste

barbee

This entry was posted on Friday, January 5th, 2007 at 12:03 pm and is filed under Art, Interviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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