Art and Blogging {Mati Rose}

My wonderful BLOOMING print by Mati Rose came in the mail today. I already have it framed and on my wall shelf. I adore it!!!! Mati also participated in my Art and Blogging interview that I have been conducting. She is wonderful and so inspiring:)

AM: When did you start blogging?
MR: January 11, 2005.

AM: What was your motivation?
MR: My friend Stef had started a blog: http://www.stefanierenee.net/ I read hers and through hers started reading http://www.superherodesigns.com/journal/ and a whole new world opened up! As my drawing teacher Mark Eanes once said, "first you see the door to the room and then an entire mansion opens up". That is how I feel about my blog discoveries and growing in art.

AM: Who is your audience/readership?
MR: I’m not entirely sure! When I write I am mainly writing for myself to keep track of all the disparate pieces of my life and inspiration. The people
that comment are mostly other bloggers that I have linked on my sidebar, and I assume that is the main audience. Despite the fact that my family and best friend never comment, I know that they read because they make reference to it, and it is a good way to keep in touch?

AM: Does your blog circulation matter to you?
MR: I first answered no, straight up, but to be completely honest, I would like to make a living as an artist, so all publicity helps!

AM: Do you promote your blog?
MR: I think I inadvertently promote it when I participate in Illustration Friday and Self-Portrait Tuesday and comment on other blogs.

AM: Do you use your blog as a social network?
MR: I’m not entirely sure of this question. I do feel like I have made "friends" through this blog, many of which I had previously or since met in person (as listed on my sidebar of links): Amanda of Frenchtoastcake, Andrea of Superhero, Shash of Me Cozy, Meredith of Monstertown, Lisa Solomon, Penelope of famed Illustration Friday, Sean of Boku, Lolo, Christine of Maganda, Jeanine and Spring... I'm probably forgetting some! So, I change that, yes, I am inspired by the blogs and the real people and am social with them! Recently I met someone who recognized me from my blog and it was surprising and I felt like she knew so much about me, and I knew nothing of her and it
was fine, but I felt an itsy bit self-conscious. Like, am I more or less interesting in person?

AM: Do you read other blogs? Which ones?
MR: The ones I link.

AM: Has blogging changed your creative process at all? Are you inspired by other
bloggers?
MR: I am absolutely inspired by others and that is another reason why I started a blog so that I could participate in the inspiration dialogue.

AM: Is there a down side to blogging?
MR: I need to monitor my time. I get in that same liminal space that I get in when I paint where time disappears…

AM: Do you sell your work on your blog?
MR: I have a shop I recently started through etsy: http://www.blogger.com/www.suspectshoppe.etsy.com

AM: Do you find inspiration online?
MR: Oh my goodness, a resounding yes.

AM: Blogs can be very intimate; do you enjoy showing a different side of yourself?
MR: It’s a balance… there is always the fine line of TMI… too much information?

AM: What is a typical day like for you?
MR: Every day is different. Today I got up and went to the coffee shop with my fiancé and read the paper, came home and updated my aforementioned shop,
answered e-mails, ate a banana, put some cds on random and opened some bills… now it is lunch! Usually I balance between class, creating in my
studio and work. I just quit my part-time waitressing job and am now
curating and embarking on my illustration career more intentionally!

AM: Where do you usually create?
MR: There is a wonderful studio connected to our apartment building with a group of artists called Compound 21. The garage in front is also being remodeled
to make better studios with skylights and a roof deck! It is dreamy, but has been many months of jack-hammering in the process.

AM: Do you find the computer has distracted you from your art?
MR: Yes and no. It is distracting when I use it as a tool to procrastinate. It is inspiring when I need my butt kicked, and see how creatively prolific other artists are and gush over all the cool things they are making and then I want to join their club!