Surtex 2014, Part II - More Artists to Enjoy!

So many artists, so much beautiful work - if you are looking for unique and sellable art please make sure to stop by and see their work at the show!

Surtex 2014, Part I - See These Artists at the Show!

Time is running short until the doors open at the Javits Center on May 18th for the opening of the show. I'm in a mad rush to finish all my last minute details - as well as have my fingers crossed that I haven't forgotten anything really important!

Several artists responded to my offer to post their Surtex ads - so I'll be posting them in groups over the next several days. Please be sure to visit them at the show!

An Agent's Point of View on Surtex and Licensing Expo - Kimberly Montgomery of Montage Licensing

I asked Kimberly Montgomery, owner of Montage Licensing, what she thought of the Surtex and the Licensing Expo shows from her perspective as an agent. I also asked her for some advise that would be of interest to newbies. Kimberly herself brings the perfect pairing of in-depth licensing experience and fine art expertise to the art licensing industry. "A small-business owner for 20 years and a successful licensed artist, I'm savvy to what manufacturers are seeking for their products and I'm profoundly informed on licensing contract issues and on what constitutes a profitable, beneficial agreement," she says. "After all, I successfully provided just that type of work for literally hundreds of products myself. I was recognized as a 'rising star' in licensing by Greetings magazine." Her popular illustrations adorn hundreds of gift and decorative products nationwide. You will find her delightful designs on greeting cards and stationary, home décor, baby products, teacher's gift items, scrap-booking items and pet accessories. How was Surtex 2012 compared to other Surtex shows you've attended - what was different and exciting for you as an agent? The 2012 show was one of the busiest and most successful I've seen in a while! And not just for my agency, but for most of the exhibitors. The mood was upbeat, artists were happy and manufacturers were excited and in a decision making mode – which we love to see! It was the second show for Montage Licensing and I couldn't be more pleased with the results. We've already signed a number of great contracts and have many, many more in the works. At times our booth was so busy that my assistant Heather and I had a hard time keeping up with all the requests. It was very exciting! How was the Expo and what was exciting about it for you as an agent? The Expo is a very different environment than Surtex. Much more character and big property driven with a very small area designated for Art Licensing. Traffic seemed good and the rooms were definitely filled with big hitting decision makers. Personally, the excitement for me came from speaking at the Licensing University. Linda Mariano of LM2 Marketing, Liz Wain, Design Director for Enesco, Rick Barnett, Managing Director for Art Expo and myself spent a lively hour and a half talking about the ins and outs of art licensing. In your view, how's the current economy influencing art licensing and trade shows? The sentiment in the industry is that things are really picking up. I see more art being licensed and more optimism from manufacturers. On a personal level, I'm cautiously optimistic. My concerns are how the economy is going to fair post-election. What will you do differently (if anything) for Surtex/Expo next year? We may make some minor tweeks to the booth, but other than that just show up! Any emerging trends of importance to be mentioned?I keep hearing about pocket watches and peacocks! Can you offer any advice to new artists about breaking into the industry? Yes. Hire a consultant. This industry has become very competitive and sophisticated for a newcomer to really be able to navigate it alone. What makes for a great collection? Any advice for what kinds of designs to include? Stick with subject matter that is applicable to the Gift and Paper Products industries and make sure the work is top notch. Design in collections of 4-6 items and always include images for the major holidays. That will increase your chances of getting your work licensed. What's on the horizon for Montage Licensing? It is my goal to build Montage Licensing into one of the most successful and respected agencies in the business. We'll accomplish this by representing the most talented and hard working artists in the industry, and always being extremely helpful, responsive and fun to work with for our wonderful manufacturing partners. With great art, a great attitude and extreme professionalism, everybody wins! Anything else you'd like to add? This is an exciting and fun industry filled with great talent and creativity – work doesn't get any better than that!

Style, Theme and Technique - Whimsy Retro-Chic

I have been more and more intrigued by art created with a theme in mind - a theme seems to be a vital part of the overall communication in an illustration or a design. Many great masters painted by theme, successful architects and designers have created thematic pieces, and most popular music follows a similar formula. 

Since we already defined the word Theme and explored a bit about the Whimsical and Folk styles in past articles, today I want to introduce a new concept with two additional terms. According to the New Oxford American dictionary:

Retro - imitative of a style, fashion, or design from the recent past. 

Chic - elegantly and stylishly fashionable.

Artist Monica Lee and her dog

Hmmm ... what would be a whimsy retro-chic style? And how would a thematic design apply to such style? What are the techniques that make it so popular and so well loved? Well, all these questions are answered by a very fun and fashionista artist, who will help illustrate the point: Monica Lee! - She is an illustrator, licensed artist and textile designer. Her sources of inspiration - books, interior design and fashion - are sources which are also close to my heart. She has done a fabulous job creating around these concepts. She says, "my main source of inspiration are books - I have so many! Interior design and fashion get ideas going. I am also inspired by the joy of everyday life, the small things that make it beautiful. The aroma of fresh coffee, a curious child, the sound of laughter. I am an eternal optimist, I think the world is bright and everyday is worth enjoying!"

Monica defines her artistic style as clean, fresh and feminine. She likes to use expressive line work and she tends to use a clear color palette. She thinks that it comes from her background as a watercolorist - "No muddy colors allowed!".

© Monica Lee

Monica paints, blogs, and gabs over at her little spot of sunshine on the web, she says. She also enjoys watching trends in all sorts of areas from publishing, to fashion, to craft, to the gift market and interpreting them into her art. Incorporating writing and encouragement in her art has become a passion of hers.

"I suppose my underlying artistic theme has to do with femininity. Whether I am designing something sophisticated or childlike the line work has a delicate hand to it. I do really enjoy chic girly art. I have illustrated book covers for several tween book series. I surround myself with interesting women and was a flight attendant for years so I think I appreciate what makes women tick" - Monica says.

© Monica Lee

Everything she does is hand drawn. She creates art by hand and then goes into Photoshop and paints it. Digital color is bright and offers a lot of options but she also watercolors some of her collections and then scans it all. She says she has become a master at scanning watercolor. She even paints the work in pieces, scans it, then merges it in Photoshop, which keeps everything clean and crisp.

I asked Monica what is exciting about her creative work and she said, " the end result is always the most exciting part. I love when the art resonates with someone, makes them smile or laugh. As much as I get a kick out of the process of creating, I am really creating for others. I am not the 'art for arts sake' kind of person like so many others. I am more of an 'art for people' sake. I am coming to realize that that statement doesn't just mean I am a commercial artist, it means that I am offering my skills, ideas and vision to share with others. In the end I want to bring beauty and hope as well as some fun into the world."

© Monica Lee

Fabric collections are always exciting for Monica because she feels like she is setting a mood, telling a story though line and color. She likes that other people can take the fabric and create their own masterpieces with them. She also is trying to carve out time to load up art prints onto her etsy site - "I have my fabrics and a few pieces of art there now but I want to add more fine art prints as well as 3-D art. I am just trying to figure out how to make the time and space for it in my brain (and in my studio!)" - Monica says. "Years ago (and I mean years) I owned my own greeting card company, Monica Lee Studios so I was involved with the gift industry and even though I went on to be a mom and to work on other art, a few licensing contracts found me. I felt pretty comfortable in the gift arena because A) I am a shopper (believe it or not some artist are NOT shoppers and don’t frequent gift stores! and B) I was a greeting card sales rep for a short while (one of my past lives)." 

© Monica Lee

A couple of years ago, maybe 2 or 3 she says, Monica got serious and really geared her portfolio towards licensing. She still enjoys doing work for publishing but licensing requires a monstrous amount of work in her portfolio so it has taken over her life. "I enjoy this type of work since I tend to gear my art towards the consumer anyway." As far as trade shows go, Monica got around; she has attended CHA and she attends the NYC gift shows. She has attended the International Quilt Market and she also exhibits at Surtex in NYC and Atlanta. It has been several years since she has been but she will be attending in January 2012, she says. "Trade shows revive me! Although it may be seeing and mingling with people that revive me. I am very much a people person which may be a bit odd for an artist who spends a large amount of time working alone."

© Monica Lee

One piece of advice from Monica to other artists is this: "I think one of the best tips I can give is not to compare yourself or your work to others. You really need to run your own race." She started a series on her blog called the Care and Feeding of a Dream; this is a series based on an essay she wrote some time ago but as she revisits it, she is reapplying all the lessons to herself, she says, even though she is at a different stage in her career.

Her goals? She always has so many, she says. In fact Monica is in the process of trying to prioritize them right now. She has two books that she would like to get published and has plans to design and sell embroidery patterns and maybe even a couple of sewing patterns.

© Monica Lee

She also has some new licensors on board that she is super excited about. Since she has become passionate about blogging, she is pretty dedicated to keeping her blog fresh and interesting. "Those are all my business goals, and my art goals are to create more space (physically as well as emotionally) to create larger textile art that marry line, stitching and fibers," Monica says.

Your comments are welcomed. Please enter them in the below comment section.

A Chemistry for Licensing Art - An Interview with Joan Beiriger

This past week I have been busy creating backgrounds for my artwork. I discovered that this is an important factor in creating interesting art for products. I like to sketch the main elements and hand paint them, then scan them, and finally alter them in Photoshop, so I have many layers to play with. A bit time consuming but very effective and fun!

I think that our featured guest this week, artist Joan Beiriger, will agree with me on using Photoshop for backgrounds. As usual, her advice is very thoughtful and useful for a newbie to read. Here is what she has to say:

Artist Joan Beiriger

The Moon from My Attic: Please introduce yourself - I am Joan Beiriger and I design art for products although I did not start my career as an artist. I have a BS degree in geology and worked as a chemist at a national laboratory until 2002. During that time, I tried all sorts of crafts from wood and stone carving to various needlearts such as needlepoint, quilting, and blackwork. I am a great believer that anyone can learn to do anything if they try. I discovered counted cross-stitch in the mid 1980s and decided to design my own charts when I could not find designs that I wanted to stitch. That led into a business of selling my designs to magazines, to kit manufacturers (licensing was not an option then), and my own mail order business. By the late 1990s, I was searching for another way to express my creativity when I heard a presentation about art licensing by Suzy Spafford (Suzy's Zoo) at a Society of Craft Designers seminar.  So I taught myself to paint via instruction books and started my quest in researching the art licensing industry by going to the 1999 Licensing Show in New York.

© Joan Beiriger

TMFMA: What's exciting about your creative work? I love to brainstorm about new concepts and create new art collections that I hope manufacturers will license for their products and consumers will buy.  An extension to creating art is learning about the business side of licensing art. The whole process is challenging and learning information about the industry is fascinating. Sharing information via my blog and networking with others interested in art licensing is very rewarding.

TMFMA: What's your favorite medium or tool/s you create with? I started painting with acrylics but I now use Adobe Photoshop and sometimes water color washes for backgrounds.  I like the freedom that I have when using water colors to create backgrounds but I like the control I have when painting images digitally. I use many layers in Photoshop which makes it easy to edit my art to manufacturer specifications. Besides using Photoshop, I use Adobe Illustrator and Corel Painter to create various effects that I include in my work.

TMFMA: Who or what has inspired you in your art? I am inspired by so many things that it is hard to just mention one thing.  I love nature and especially flowers, butterflies and birds and am constantly photographing them for my huge reference library. I am inspired by artist Alphonse Mucha and other graphic artists that created Art Nouveau style designs in the 1880 and 1890s. I especially love the Art Nouveau gracefulness of stylized flowers and vines as they twist and swerve around one another.

© Joan Beiriger

TMFMA: How long have you been doing art licensing? I started researching the art licensing industry in the late 1990s. But I did not start licensing my art until 2007. The reason is that I had to first learn how to paint and create art for products while I held a full time job and dealt with family commitments. 

TMFMA: What brought you to exhibit for the first time and how many shows have you exhibited in? I have walked the Licensing Show and Surtex and exhibited at the 2009 and 2010 Atlanta Gift Show to market my art. I signed on with an art licensing agency in 2009 and no longer exhibit because my agent manages the marketing of my art including exhibiting at shows.

TMFMA: Do you work with an agent or do you represent yourself? I have an agent, Joan Sargent of JMS Art Licensing. 

TMFMA: How does a new artist "find" a match for their art with the right manufacturers? How does one go about researching this? It is crucial to know the limitations of your art for products. Not all art styles or themes are suitable for all products. For instance, collage style art works for home décor but not for decorative flags (those need central images that "pop"). A whimsical style art works for children's products or playful products such as for garden accessories but is not licensable for adult home décor. And illustrative designs with lots of "white" space works for some greeting cards but not for jig-saw puzzles (those need art that fills the space to make it difficult to solve). Finding the right manufacturer for your art takes time and hard work. Researching the different industries via the internet, reading blog articles, "window" shopping, and walking trade shows are just a few ways to find the right manufacturers for your art.

TMFMA: Please give us your analysis of the market based on your own experience and contacts. The licensing industry has gotten much more competitive than it was even five years ago. There are more artists trying to license their art while there are less manufacturers licensing art and less retail stores selling products with licensed art. Artists that are successful have created many art themes that consumer want and have partnered with manufacturers that license their art year-after-year.

© Joan Beiriger

TMFMA: In your view, what was of major interest to manufacturers this year? What do you think the main trends are for 2011-2012? The major interest this year (2011) to manufacturers is finding art that sells their products. Because of the poor economy, most manufacturers are NOT willing to take many chances so they are asking for the same art themes as last year. Those themes are dependant on the products they manufacture and that are wanted by their retail clients. But overall, flowers, coastal images, and roosters are popular for everyday and Santa and snowmen for Christmas. 

TMFMA: What advice would you give other artists that are considering the art licensing field and that want to exhibit in a show like Surtex? I advise artists new to art licensing not to "jump the gun" and exhibit at a show before they are prepared. It is very expensive to exhibit ($8,000 to $15,000 for booth fee, travel, lodging, banners, and marketing materials). Artists need to do their homework and walk the different shows (Surtex, Licensing Expo, Atlanta Gift Show, and Craft & Hobby Association) to see which one best fits their art. They should have a robust body of art (preferably hundreds of paintings) with a variety of themed collections to enhance their chance in getting deals. 

Artists should be prepared to exhibit at least three years in a row before they "start" to see a return in the cost of exhibiting. It takes time to build relationships with manufacturers. Also, NEW exhibitors are placed in the less desirable booths with poorer visibility at the rear of the show floor. By exhibiting year-after-year, artists have the opportunity to move to a more desirable location and better visibility when booth space becomes available.

© Joan Beiriger

It is also important to already have some manufacturer contacts before exhibiting at a show so appointments can be set-up. Existing contacts and appointments may make or break the success of a show. Normally artists that contact manufacturers, try to get deals, and build relationships and awareness of their art BEFORE they exhibit the first time are the ones that have a successful show.

TMFMA: Any other useful info that you'd like to share about art licensing? If an artist wants to be successful in art licensing, she/he needs to create popular art themes in collections with product mock-ups to present to manufacturers.  Following-up after submitting art to manufacturers is imperative. The more art the artist has the better. Also, new art collections need to be continuously created and older collections refreshed.  

JOAN BEIRIGER | Art for Products

email: joan@joanbeiriger.com

website: www.joanbeiriger.com

blog: http://www.joanbeiriger.blogspot.com/

linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/joanbeiriger

Brief Tips & Tricks in Art Licensing

Here are more key tips & tricks I get from networking and in reading up about licensing from blogs or books. I'm sharing them as I go - again, these are not laws set in stone, just comments I thought could be helpful in some situations.

• The twice a year (January and July) Atlanta Gift Show at the Atlanta Gift Mart is apparently a great way to meet art licensing directors. They are willing to look at art if they have time. This is a friendly trade show where artists are welcomed. 

• In art licensing one important thing to understand is which market your art is suited for - CHA's buyers are all about craft & scrap-booking with some exceptions. Atlanta is for the gift industry, garden, pets, Christmas decorations, ceramic, home decor, rugs, and hardly any paper/stationery buyers. Paper and stationary are at Surtex, along with puzzles, fabric, gift bags, characters, etc. 

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If you have any additional or contrary tips that you'd like to share, please leave a comment! I'll share more tips and tricks that I uncover in the weeks to come. By the way, have you started on your portfolio or collections yet?

 

Brief Tips & Tricks in Art Licensing

I have started noting down some key tips & tricks I get from networking and in reading up about licensing from blogs or books. I'll start sharing them as I go. These are not laws set in stone, just comments I thought could be helpful in some situations.

• At a licensing group meeting a licensed artist/agent recommended to start building up your collections with three basic themes: Halloween, Christmas and birthdays, since these drive a large percentage of licensing deals.

• For those interested in finding an agent, there is a large spectrum of opinions. I've heard it suggested that you have a complete portfolio with some 200-300 pieces of artwork, or 8 collections of 4-24 pieces each, or 3 basic collections with 50-75 illustrations total, depending on the agent, your technical and design skills plus your understanding of the market. There are some exceptions to the above in that some artists get an agent even before they develop full collections, but these are apparently rare instances - their art is very fresh, unique or some sought-after style.

• The ability to develop innovative concepts that can be used for multiple product applications, which can also be applied across multiple categories, is much more important than having a large stack of illustrations.

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If you have any additional or contrary tips that you'd like to share, please leave a comment! I'll share more tips and tricks that I uncover in the weeks to come. By the way, Surtex 2012 is only about 260 days away!

Licensing Artist Maia Ferrell and Folk Art, a Family Affair

I created a new banner for the blog that will give a little glimpse of what the style of my artwork will be for licensing... and I completed the first batch of conceptual designs. I started scanning them and tried out a couple of ideas in Photoshop/Illustrator. It seems like it will work well and I am getting excited about my collections!

To share even more excitement I have a very inspiring interview with licensing artist Maia Ferrell. She was an artist and product designer for Natural Life for a few years and had record breaking sales (which is what convinced her to go out on her own) but nothing was under her own name. She considers herself an emerging artist and will be exhibiting in Atlanta this coming January through Painted Planet Licensing, her agent's booth.  Her colorful website is full of joy and catchy patterns for licensing. She also has a beautiful new shop on Etsy.

Maia Ferrell and her Daugher Lucia

1. The Moon from My Attic: Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your art?  Sure! I grew up in Atlantic Beach, Florida with a wonderful family. Ever since I can remember my mom was pushing me to pursue my artwork and always supported whatever direction I wanted to go in creatively. My childhood was very colorful. Our walls were filled with outsider art, folk art and a lot of my great-grandmothers art. My great-grandmother, Gisella Loeffler, was a famous artist in Taos, New Mexico. 

(image by tartanscottie.com)

She is a huge inspiration to me and I feel like I connect with her creatively through color pallets and folk florals, although I was never lucky enough to meet her. I consider my work mixed-media because it usually combines a few mediums such as watercolor, acrylics, spray paint, pens, markers ... but a definite is always Adobe Illustrator. 

© Maia Ferrell

2. TMFMA:  What is exciting about your creative work? It is exciting to me to think that someone might display my work in their home and love it. Whenever I buy art or look at my great-grandmother's art, there is something inside me that just loves it so much and I just hope that when someone purchases something of mine, they feel that same thing. And it is exciting that I have gotten to this point, it seems like it has been a long road and I know there is still a longer one ahead.

3. TMFMA: Is there a person or thing that has influenced you in your artistic efforts? What inspires you? Well I suppose I answered that with my great-grandmother but I am very inspired by fabrics and patterns. I get a lot of inspiration from vintage, folk floral patterns. It seems like there is inspiration everywhere these days, so many wonderful artists ... I just never know what is going to inspire me. I could discover one amazing floral fabric and all of a sudden it triggers something and I can create a whole line based off of that. I love it when that happens! I read a lot of blogs, print and pattern is my favorite.

© Maia Ferrell

4. TMFMA: What project are you currently working on?  Currently, I am creating stationery products - greeting cards, boxed notes, invites, etc. I am constantly building my licensing portfolio with different ideas, different themes. That seems to be the most important work I can do, you never know what will catch the eye of someone. 

5. TMFMA: Tell us of your experience as an art licensing artist. I think it is really hard. I think it is amazing to be able to do what you love! But there is a lot of waiting and a lot of anticipation. You have to have a thick skin, a ton of hope and be willing to adapt your style. But when just one company takes interest in your work, that makes it all worth it. Doing research on different companies to find out who is looking for artists or to find a company where your artwork is a good match is a full-time job in itself.

When I first broke out on my own, I was feeling overwhelmed with building a licensing portfolio and trying to find new companies and building a website ... then I realized it would be much easier if I designated days for artwork and days for research. So usually about 3 days a week I design and then 2 days a week I do research. Everytime I leave the house, I carry my composition book with me. It is filled with company names that I see in stores, boutiques or online. I spend a lot of time in independent bookstores, they usually carry a large amount of stationery products from companies I wasn't aware of. 

© Maia Ferrell

I find Linkedin to be especially useful in researching companies as well. As far as my style of artwork, I look for trend-setting companies that use a lot of color, pattern and also they have to incorporate digital artwork. I try to find out which artists just signed with what companies, so I can figure out what that company was looking for. I try to find and connect with contacts in the industry, even if they are not with a company that would be interested in my work.

It is a pretty small circle, it seems like someone always knows someone that could be of more assistance. Most people are so kind, everyone wants to help. My agent is all over this kind of work, too. She has a lot of contacts and has a lot of meetings with companies ... but I think it is really important to know what is going on in your industry and perhaps I might make a contact somewhere along the way that might be very beneficial to both of us. 

© Maia Ferrell

I am happy I signed with an agent. It is hard to keep up with everything and extremely expensive when you are just starting to get your name out there. I have a 10 month old at home so I am already about to pull my hair out with balancing everything. It is nice knowing that someone is still working on getting my artwork out there when I am not able to. It is also nice to have the support, a friend ... things get frustrating and everything is so up and down, it is nice to have someone to talk to.

If you are just starting out, the first thing I suggest is finding a great web designer and building a fabulous site that showcases your work. Then you can start sending out your link to agents and companies from there and they will know you are professional and serious. 

© Maia Ferrell

6. TMFMA: Any important tips and tricks you can share or anything else you'd like to share?  Yes, be willing to wear different hats. A good friend of mine in the industry has taught me this and I am still learning it ... You  have to be willing to have your artwork for you and have your artwork for licensing. As much as you may love some of your work and think it would be so perfect on a certain product, it may not be ... so you have to be willing to accept that and find a different way to get that artwork out in the world, such as Etsy or local art shows. 

7. TMFMA: What are your future aspirations and goals? I want to master my craft. I want to be at the stage where there is a consistency or a rhythm. Where I feel confident in what I am producing. I don't feel that yet and I am not sure I ever will but I know if I keep working as much as I can, I am headed in the right direction. 

Seeing Your Licensed Art Applied to Products - From a Spark to a Bonfire: Sheri McCulley Seibold on the Power of Ideas

How does one "find" what works for licensing? It's been an interesting and challenging process to discover what I am willing to license that could be also appealing to manufacturers. I'm still not totally sure in fact, but for the past couple of weeks I've been developing more concepts for my collections and I think I've found a possible way through this narrow tunnel... I still have much more market research to do, although I think this is an ever continuing, integral part of licensing.

To help enlighten the quest for a workable licensing style, Sheri McCulley Seibold of Sheri Berry Designs shares with us her story.

Artist Sheri McCulley Seibold

Since her 2007 debut at the Surtex art licensing show in New York, Sheri has built Sheri Berry Designs into a brand that encompasses fabric, holiday ornaments, murals, crafting supplies, cards, stuffed animals, checks and wallets, and baby clothing and decor – her brand name, Sheri Berry, is based on the nickname her parents gave her as a child.

Sheri’s dad was an art professor, and she grew up among the easels, paints, and brushes of the college art studios where he taught. She also spent summers at her grandparents’ farm in Oklahoma. Wherever she was, she says her earliest goal was simply “to create!” Sheri earned degrees in photography and graphic design from Pacific Union College in California, and since then has done commercial graphic design as well as taught art at all levels from kindergarten to college.

Since exhibiting at her first licensing show in 2007, Sheri has done projects with about a dozen different licensees, including Macy’s, Northcott Silk, EK Success, Provo Craft, and Bradford Exchange.

TMFMA: What's exciting about your creative work? I love having a spark of an idea and watching it grow into a small candle flame, a campfire, and finally a roaring bonfire. Like many licensed artists, I enjoy seeing my work applied to products and getting it into consumers’ hands—It’s how I make a living. But turning an initial concept into a complete, unified collection of art that can be taken to market by a licensee who “gets it” is very exciting.



Woodland Tails on melamine tableware for Lily and George 
© Sheri Berry Designs

TMFMA: What's your favorite medium or tool/s you create with? I work in Adobe Illustrator, but many of my ideas start out as pencil sketches on my clipboard, a sticky note, or the back of a grocery list. You never know when an idea’s going to hit! I often scan in these sketches to give me some reference as I work in Illustrator, but other times I just start drawing on screen.

TMFMA: Who or what has inspired you in your art?
 As a child, I admired artists like Betsy Clark, Holly Hobbie, and Charles Schulz, and dreamed of creating art that would add joy to everyday living, like the treasured pillowcase my mom made me from Holly Hobbie fabric. I studied art history and the “great masters” in college, but what I really appreciate and relate to are the largely unknown commercial artists of the twentieth century—people who created artful advertising, affordable textile designs, charming illustrations for children’s books and home magazines, household goods, and corporate and product mascots. Unlike “fine art,” these things are all a window into the real history and culture of the American spirit.

TMFMA: How long have you been doing art licensing? In 2007, I made my first exhibitor appearance at the Surtex licensing show in New York City, which led to my first two deals for stationery products and fabric.

Tiki Tikes collection for Murals Your Way
 © Sheri Berry Designs

TMFMA: What brought you to exhibit for the first time and how many shows have you exhibited in? While working on the art staff of a scrapbooking supplies company, I became aware of Surtex for the first time when I was sent with a group of fellow employees to walk the show and discover “trends.” I wanted my art to be on more kinds of products than scrapbooking supplies, and felt I had to try the show from the inside of a booth rather than the outside! My husband agreed, and in 2007 we went to New York and did our first Surtex show. We have exhibited there every year since then.

TMFMA: Do you work with an agent or do you represent yourself? Until recently, my husband and I completely managed our own client relations and contracts, based mostly on contacts we got from Surtex. We are now working with a freelance licensing industry veteran to help us build new licensee relationships, assist in contracts and negotiations, develop new product ideas, and generally build awareness of our studio brand. We will be announcing more about this relationship at a later time.



TMFMA: Do you advise new artists to exhibit at Surtex or other art licensing shows to start off their career? And how many shows should they be part of to begin with? As far as trade shows go, Surtex has been my primary marketing and networking tool, and we’ve never felt the need to exhibit anywhere else. It does represent a substantial investment for the first-time exhibitor, but for me it’s been a good source of clients and projects. Those considering Surtex should certainly get second opinions from people who’ve exhibited at other shows before assuming Surtex is the best one for them.

Swell Noel for Afghan kit for Dimensions (EK Success) 
© Sheri Berry Designs

TMFMA: Please give us your analysis of the market based on your own experience and contacts. To summarize the market from my perspective: 2007: Difficult! 2008: Hard! 2009: Challenging! 2010: Competitive! 2011: Scary! My point is that working in art licensing is an inherently challenging and somewhat chaotic way to make a living. Even though it sometimes looks easy to those who are observing the industry from the outside, for me there have been ups and downs, good years and bad ones. Regardless of the economy at a given time, or the number of prospects you meet at the show in a particular year, or even the number of projects you did last year—I don’t see clear-cut “trends” in my project calendar. The market for licensed art has always been—for me, at least—unpredictable and sporadic.

TMFMA: At Surtex an artist can both sell and seek art license opportunities.  How does one decide what to sell and what to license? Our studio always intended to license only, because I’ve never wanted to sell all rights to any of the art I’ve done. That said, I think it’s important to distinguish between licensing for royalties and licensing for a flat fee. Both are licensing, technically, because you sign a contract with a manufacturer to let them use defined art on defined product types for defined periods of time. Some manufacturers are set up to track and pay royalties, while others prefer a one-time, up-front fee that gives them exclusive rights to that art within a particular product category for a specific period of time. Some artists refuse to do anything but royalties, but if you do that try to negotiate for an advance or “guarantee” on royalty payments in case the product doesn’t sell as well as you think it will.

Another way to figure this out is to go to Surtex yourself and see what types of art are being sold and what are being licensed. Selling art outright may be right for some artists, but licensing was the right choice for me.



TMFMA: In your view, what was of major interest to manufacturers this year? What do you think the main trends are for 2011-2012? We didn’t see any clear-cut areas of interest to manufacturers this year, or any year. The only real trend is that it’s getting more competitive, and more manufacturers are wanting to buy art outright.



TMFMA: What advice would you give other artists that are considering the art licensing field and that want to exhibit in a show like Surtex?
 First, if possible, attend your target show as a non-exhibitor so you can get a feel for the show’s vibe and where you fit in. Waiting for the next show may seem like an unbearable delay, but having a booth is a big investment for the first-time exhibitor and you want to be prepared and make sure it’s the right place for you.

The number of projects I’ve done in the four years since I first went to Surtex can give the impression that it’s as easy as showing up and having the deals roll in. What new exhibitors don’t realize when considering that total is the overwhelming number of promising leads that simply dried up, the projects that got cancelled, and the deals that fell short of their early apparent potential. This may not be true for every licensed artist, but I’ve talked to enough of them to know that creating art is a lot easier for us than a) finding new licensees who not only like your art but can push a project through their organization, all the way to market, and b) keeping that early excitement alive for future projects, even with licensees you’ve had a positive relationship with. Having good sales on products your artwork appears on helps keep the door open, but every new project is a test of the licensee’s ability to invest wisely and pick winners in the marketplace—not just art that they personally like. This is another reason why many companies “play it safe” and repeatedly manufacture with designs that they know will sell—and what they pick may not be yours!
  
TMFMA: Any other useful info that you'd like to share about art licensing? While it’s important to be confident about your own look and style, remember—when you get a deal—that you are part of a team that’s needed to get the product to market—not the center of the universe. Be nice and don’t step on other people while trying to get your work noticed.

Second, be prepared to compromise and adapt what you do. You may create beautiful or fun or sophisticated art, but each manufacturer has their own goals in the marketplace and you need to help them achieve those. I love quilts, but I’m not a quilter, so I knew I could either accept the manufacturer’s instincts on adapting my style and actually get a product on the market, or insist on having everything my own way and spend the next 20 years creating art for myself. Manufacturers know their audience—and if you help them succeed, you will succeed.

Third, take production deadlines seriously and deliver your art in the form requested. Just as when you’re working at a salaried job, establish yourself not only as a good artist but a reliable partner who manufacturers can count on.