I started this project composing the cover music on June 4th. It was completed under three weeks. That is a surprise. That tells me if I had focused more on this work, I could have completed it in two weeks. What stretched out this project were summer distractions, other to be done, and one unusual art move. I took some of this project’s time to compose the music for my next project. It was during working on this project that I decided that doing smaller works was not the direction I wanted to continue. This change in thinking occurred after having a membership meeting with my group, EmptyWallsArt.

This began during a group meeting at a coffee shop (where I was the only one that purchased a coffee). I realized these other six people seated around me had a different art agenda. A while back, I figured out their reasoning for why they wished to belong to the group. They were all open to finding another outlet to market their everyday art, as long as I and my other two founders did most of the work. For a time I thought this group marketing vibe could also work for me. I am not seeing that anymore.

That day, after the meeting, I had a back-en-forth debate over what, how, the why of this art, and its place in the group. It was obvious from this group’s beginnings that my art fit the definition of why I wanted to form a group of 3D artists. I wanted a group to explore taking their art beyond their every year, same old same art fair circuit they all have been living in. I wanted us to specialize in three-dimensional art to grab the interests of galleries and high-quality group exhibitions. The problem became even though I asked the group several times to create focused works for EmptyWallsArt. What I got back was sarcasm and the continuing of their everyday art. Nothing special to make this group stand out from all the thousands of other also artists. I should have expected that. I was unaware of their make-only what-sells art philosophy during this group’s development. Honestly, I see their logic. And I have realized that nothing I say is going to change this group’s focus. Since I am the founder of the idea of EmptyWallsArt, I will stay involved, expressing my beliefs only when asked. I am going silent from this group while moving on with a different plan. I suppose, at their expense, although they all are unlikely to get it.

I purposely planned this current project to be small to better fit with the group’s average wall works. In the past shows my normal size entries all easily dwarfed, in feet, the rest of the group, especially in the third dimension. My pricing was also at less than twice that of any other works. This four-foot work would appear to be a better size group fit in shows. Also, small works cost less to create, need less time to finish. The thinking then would be I could bring pricing more inline with the higher priced works from the group. But in the middle of this project and after the latest group meeting, I became enlightened. Out of the seven artists I was the only one that, although I would like to at less cover my art supplies, I do not sell. Knowing that and going with that gave me the out and the reason to think differently about this art.

Since its early days this art has been big. I like big. I like even bigger big. Small is boring. Big makes a statement. Oh, I see: big makes a statement. Hum? I asked myself: what is more important to the validation goal this art deserves? Is it selling here and there to strangers, or making a statement that is remembered?

In my past attempts to find a market I tried creating dinky artworks, around three feet and smaller. Even at bargain prices, I only sold two for $450 dollars. And that was years ago. To fit-in-with-the-groups small art, local art circuit, I tried this idea one more time at a spring Exhibit at mentioned here. I even hung pieces with musical themes that I thought would work for the river area where the exhibit was. Nothing sold. Marketing garage in marketing garbage out. What a terrible idea and a dreadful waste of my time.
I moved on.

I am the unknown, unknown artist, working in the unknown Chippewa Valley art community, and big art is what I like. Such works make a statement. Right now, that is more important than a vanity sale to an unknown anonymous buyer. Going big and bigger also means I don’t have to hang more than one or rarely two works. I like that. Big means getting notice and remembered. Going big has the extra group benefit of graciously sticking and snubbing it to my fellow art group members. I like that. None of them would market art, given a short few years, if they had my sales history. But to be fair, too each their own. Yes, their…… own.

I have and will continue to display art that absolutely represents what EmptyWallsArt means to me. To make that point, soon I will stand for the photo in front of my next project, a twelve foot long statement from the music of Peter Gabriel. That, for me, will be the opportunity to define a new direction forward to find the answer to what-is-this-art and is this what art should be?

Scott Von Holzen