Kirby's Art.. pg 74 & 77

Looking fine! ... with that distinctive kirby style!

nice one Kirb! Once again your wood grain blows me away...and that bamboo frame really takes the cake.

You gonna be in the LT on the 30th?

I wouldnt miss it,I cant wait to see your stuff in person...

Hey Kirby I like the new painting. Your tikis are cool.

Hope to see you in Long Beach. I know some other TCers are going to stop by maybe we can make some noise.

"happy holloween" pirate tiki
12x24 acrylic on canvas

trick or treat arrrrrgggg!!!

Kirby,

Your art is so distinctive. Your style is unmistakable, which is something that is not very easy to achieve. Keep 'em commin!

thanx fink, you know where to find me...

By the way Im thinking of doing sum prints the signup sheet is here..http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=16938&forum=12&0

Thats cool man, I like it a lot :) . People have done pirate tikis before, but not a tiki dressing up as a pirate. Cool

thanx hewey, thats exaclty what i was going for...

It looks great. I really dig the hook and the cape . what am i saying, i love the whole thing!

Keep em coming Kirby.

Yarrrrr thats a pretty cool painting Kirby!!!! Thanks for posting pic's man!!! I like your style!!!
Later,
Spermy

Yar, that be one fine pirate tiki kirby!

THAT is cool! I like the way you worked it! And I agree your style is very distinctive!

Thanks alot guys, if you can make it the lucky tiki is havin another art show the day before holloween, so come on out and join us. Ill have sum stuff for sale...

AAARRRGGGGGG!!! Matey! Sweet stuff. The hook is a nice touch.

-Gman

right on ! Thank you very much guys for you comments.
Here is another painting im callin, "beachy tiki".

You're developing a very cool style.

It looks like everything is dancing to some crazy song! I like it. :D

The pirate tiki rules,beachy tiki is also a nice piece.Keep up the great art!capo

Thanks dudes,
Fink I think they might be dancin to a song on the ape Cd Ive been listining to that alot lately...oohh ahh ooh ahh...haha

here are sum of my new tiki pendent Ive been making. I will be selling them for 5 bucks at the lucky tiki art show, and to who ever wants one. They are made from modeling clay and they are all diffrent.I will have more detailed pics to come and at my ebey store soon...




This poor guy lost his head during the bakeing prosess. how ironic

So now he has a swivel neck, but I have to get a smaller swivel and and wrap it with cloth or paint it black or sumthin...

KIRBY
Kirby's Island.com
The Tiki Adventure
Kirby's Gallery

[ Edited by: kirby 2005-10-24 22:54 ]

That painting is pretty wild. Love that Kirby style.

The budget pendants are a cool idea too. Favourite is the headless headhunter, Very cool. Maybe a spring neck, like a bobbing Elvis?

Keep the cool stuff coming

thanx hewey
here is a shrunkin head dude..

[ Edited by: kirby 2005-10-25 21:24 ]

Kirby , I think your onto something with the swivel neck. Its a mistake that turned out to be good. I really like the shrunken head guy.

thanks rodeo,Im havin a blast makin these things, Ill post more pics of the new batch soon...

Hey Kirby, great meeting you and your wahine the other day. We took your advice and had dinner at the Yard House, the shrimps were massive and still kick'n on the plate.

I like the pendants, I think my fav is the black one on the far right in the first pic. And the shrunken head is cool. Keep up the great work.

FyI, I will have sum stuff on display at the lucky tiki art show 2 on the 30th , sunday. I t would be great to see some off you so cal tcers ther. it should be a great time. I will be bringing with me about 5 paintings and like 20 new pendents.see ya there...

Love tha new shrunken head. Cool

I was thinkin of doing a hula girl simular to the swivel/broken head. it and the shrunken head turned out great.

http://www.PalmCityTiki.com

KIrby, you're doing some pretty funky stuff, I Love it. The pendants are really neat..

I did this painting for the lucky tiki halloween art show and now that it is no longer, I desided to get rid of the jackolantern and add a treasure chest

[ Edited by: kirby 2005-11-02 18:18 ]

Boy am I likin' those pendants Kirby. My favorite is the bone nose guy with the bionic neck brace. Pretty cool. Also, Looks like you all had a good time at the Lucky Tiki.

Chongolio

" I believe that our Heavenly Father invented the monkey because he was disappointed in man."
... Mark Twain
http://www.Lost-Isle.com
http://www.piggod.com

[ Edited by: Chongolio 2005-11-02 19:04 ]

I like them both Kirby. The treasure chest looks great.

Thanks guys it realy is great to get all your positive comment, But I have a question for all my fellow artists and friends here on TC.
First I will state that I Paint because I love to paint and create art, and I love Tiki. I believe that artists create 1.for themselves 2. for other peoples enjoyment and 3. for money. The first two are my prime motivation but the third still comes into play in my thoughts. I realy only want to make money on my art so I can afford the hobbie, as you other artists know supplies arent cheap, although it is nice to have a couple bucks extra in your pocket at the end of the day. Also if someone is willing to fork over money for your art it is the greatest complement.
With that said, I have been haveing a hard time selling my paintings lately...I put them on ebey,post them here,Ive been puting them out in the public,like at the lucky tiki art show and I have some at my friends vintage shop,and on my site.So far not much luck.
Here is the questons
1.Am I asking to much for my art($100-$200)? If so how much do you suggest?
2.Is my art not up to par with most the other artists selling?

Thanks for your responces, your opinions mean alot to me. In the mean time Ill get back to painting..thanx...kirby

On 2005-11-03 18:51, kirby wrote:
Here is the questons
1.Am I asking to much for my art($100-$200)? If so how much do you suggest?
2.Is my art not up to par with most the other artists selling?

In my opinion Kirby : No its not too much and yes it is up to and beyond talent wise.
I know that much like you I am honored if someone likes something that I have created and are willing to pay something for it.
As for why your art hasn't been selling lately , could be that the holiday season is coming up, high cost of gas , people don't know good art at a good price.... I am not sure. Please continue to create and share with us. I for one will one day be getting some art from you.

Hey Kirby, your art is cool and worth what you are askin' It's been my experience that art can be a tough sell on ebay, especially the tiki or lowbrow art. Unless you've really found a niche and/or are in demand you just got to keep puting it out there and hope you run across the person who likes your style and has the money to pay for it. Maybe you should try doing smaller prints or cards that are more affordable for the guy who likes what he sees but doesn't have the extra clams spare.
Keep the creative fire burnin!

Chongolio

Most art is a luxury, so when it comes to necessity vs. luxury, necessity wins more often. Find out how to make your art a practical, functional necessity and wallah....tiki mug? Don't ax me. I had to ponder this too.

For me, the tikis I carve can blend in with some landscapes I install, so they work together. Sometimes they don't. But then again a landscape is not a necessity, nor is a tiki, go figure. I'm the last guy that a homeowner pays after having his house built and by then, sometimes there's no money left. It can take many years to become established. Hang in there and practice, practice, practice. Soak up ideas like a spongey reggae kinda guy and don't box yourself in. blah, blah, blah.

Hey Kirby - Keep yer head up dude. Tiki art is just one small segment of lowbrow art, which is just one small segment of the art world. We just krill in the ocean of the art world man :) . I would suggest ask folks Sam Gambino and the like how they sell their art. Maybe do some not so full on tiki to make some cash, and keep the full on tiki stuff to make you happy?

And yeh, I think smaller cheaper paintings are much more "sellable" - those pendants of your really hit the nail on the head.

And it wasnt that wordy a question :)

Cut off your ear !!!

Kirby...this is an interesting question...as I have pondered
the level of success that tc members and other tiki artists
might be having. It seems that the tiki world brings
with it a sort of DIY attitude to art...I'm sure that
many of us have thought of buying a carving or other
piece of work...but then think....hell...I can do a pretty
good job myself so "save the cash" for something really
special. From my perspective...your paintings are cool
and you should just keep going...post em...build a
reputation and see what happens. If you wind up with
a few hundred things that nobody buys...paint over 'em...
or cut off an ear...move to Tahiti and get in a motorcycle
crash. Good question...I was wondering how your
EBay Sales were going.

Hey Kirby, I'm probably the last one that should be answering here, but I've considered these things too. I do tiki-type things because I like tiki. I've tried selling some original work on ebay (with a $49 starting bid) before with zero response. Kind'a hurt my feel'ins. I figured (and probably rightly) that my skills are just not there yet. I have to be disturbed, upset, incredibly happy or something - to produce anything of merit. Those things that I've produced that have those qualities (precious few) will never see themselves on ebay.

Then I think about my own buying habits. I won't fork out the heavy paper unless the work just knocks me out, pleases me greatly and/or stirs my emotion in some way. Much like good music. But music is lots cheaper. I've always wanted a Shag serigraph. But there's only two or three out of his whole body of work that I would ever consider buying, though, I admire all of his stuff, generally speaking.

The only folks selling are the top self artists. Benzart, Swamp Fire, Flounder, Sam Gambino, Kooche, Basement Kahuna, etc., you know who they are. Why? Because they're that good and that is pretty much what they do and who they are.

Yeah, I'm a bit in awe, and envious of their skill and talent. Then again, if I put as much time and effort, sweat and frustration into my painting as they do theirs - well, there's a slim, very slim chance I might be as good as they are. So I keep trying when my limited time allows. It's all still fun to me and if I can please myself, then anything else is gravy. Incidentally: I don't please myself very often. And then it's only for a short while.

I'm still trying to find a style. You're lucky, it seems like you have one. So let's keep going.

ugh selling art on ebay , what fun.
I have had some limited success on ebay for my art in general not TIKI specific. I've been selling art for about 4 years now on ebay. Right noe the art market b is pretty much in the toilet because of inflation & the economy et all.

Things I have learned about selling on ebay myself and from others that might be helpful.
Of course none of it might work for you, or you may think I’m full of crap LOL!

1. KEY WORDS you only get a limited # of characters so use your keywords carefully! DON’T clutter up your auction with words nobody is going to search like "look" that kinda thing. Research the type of art your doing and figure out the key words that will bring YOUR customers in.
   Here’s a link to ebay Pulse self-representing artist, it lists the top searched words in that category.
   http://pulse.ebay.com/Self-Representing-Artists_W0QQsacatZ20158

Now obviously your not going to use cat or horse or that kind of thing if it's not in your painting, but words like folk art & paintings might be useable. Also Putting NR meaning no reserve is sometimes useful, especially if you only have 2 characters left LOL.

2. DON’T use the subtitle it’s only searchable if the person is looking in both the title and description, so it’s really just another way for ebay to bilk you outta more cash.

3. Open a store If you don’t have one it’s free for the 1 st. month. It’s a good place to put HIGHER END pieces you are not willing to come down on, or for prints.

4. Create an email list. When you have multiple bidders make sure you email the loosing bidders and say something like:
   ”Thanks you for your interest in my art. I am sorry you did not win this piece. If you would like to be informed when I have more art avlaible please consider joining my email list ( insert url to you list, you can do a free one from bravenet or that kind of place).
   Thanks again for your bid and I wish you luck in the future.”

5. PIMP YOU ART!!! I know we all hate doing it, but how else will people know you have something to sell? Set up a blog or a live journal thing, hell set up 2 or 3, different people look at different things. Join “My Space” or somewhere like that, to communicate with other people, you can also send out bulletins when you have art available.
   You can also find artist boards to pimp your art on, and places where your art might be of interest. BE careful joining boards just to pimp art. That tends to be frowned on. ( you’ll notice I don’t pimp my art here, I don’t feel comfortable doing that.)

What else can I think of hmmm…. I know I’m being very long winded, sorry I really am trying to think of anything I , or artist friends of mine have found helpful

OH, feel free to join NIBBLEFEST on ebay, we have a “contest” on the 20th of every month. You list an item for .99 then the person who get the most unique bids wins. I know starting something .99 is scary as hell, I tend to do smaller pieces for this, and figure it’s part of my marketing. I always list other things around the same time at higher prices and have links to my other auctions in my Nibblefest auction. It’s advertising. That how I look at it

http://www.ebsqart.com/forum/Nibblefest_at_EBSQ_(public)/forumid_76/tt.htm

if anything I’ve said strikes a chord with you or you’d like to ask me a question PLEASE feel free to PM me. And like I said you can also just figure my advice sux ass and ignore any or all of it!

noelle

On 2005-11-04 05:25, RevBambooBen wrote:
Cut off your ear !!!

Yeah! then make a mold and sell the replicas as "tiki ear" necklaces. Put a huge tag on the original, post it on ebay and keep it on ice while waiting for the bids to come rollin' in. Remember to use "Zazz" as a keyword.

Hey Ben you been messin' around with removing body parts? The back of your truck must be getting full.

But seriously, Thanks for the ebay tips Wicked. All very good suggestions. I have been playing around with the idea of opening up another ebay store and possibly carrying other artists work as well as my own. I still have to do somehead scratchin' regarding numbers etc. but I will keep you all posted. Also, I am willing to discuss this with anybody who has an interest or suggestions...Except for Bloody Bamboo Ben. I wanna keep my parts where they are.

Chongolio

Since you're in So Cal have you considered hitting up places like surf shops to see if they would display some of your work with a contact card in it? We have a cool coffee shop here at the beach that has a bunch of tiki carvings in it with contact info for the guys who made them.

Kirby,

As folks said above, art is a luxury for most folks. However, I see it as a necessity, as many of you probably do also. My business took a big hit when the planes hit the towers in New York. Before that, at times, I was making more from art sales than from my biology work for the government. Since then it has been up and down with some fat times and some lean times. I imagine right now, with the Holidays coming and living costs as high as they are, most people are nesting or saving what they can, myself included. Don't get down man, your paintings are terrific and worth every penny you are asking. Don't lower your prices, just hang onto them and the right buyer will come along. I have paintings from 1999 that haven't found a home yet, but they will, eventually. Believe in yourself and in your art, and keep pushing forward and breaking new artistic ground personally. Each of your works will find a home someday, but the real important part is your artistic journey and how you continue to grow as an artist.

I would buy "The Chief" right this second if I could. That is my absolute favorite. It is killer. Maybe I can get it if I move a tiki or two. Hang on man, $$ are around the next bend.....

-Gman

Don't get discouraged, kirby your art is great and the $$$ will flow over time if you stick with it. Even the people on this board who do this kind of stuff full time have dry spells. I remember B-ben telling gecko "some weeks you eat lobster, some weeks you eat spam!"

1.Am I asking to much for my art($100-$200)? If so how much do you suggest?
2.Is my art not up to par with most the other artists selling?

1 - no. your prices are very affordable. don't increase them until I buy at least one of your paintngs

2 - one very good question. kirby...what is art? and how do you judge it? I think your art is great and the only reason why you may not be recieving attention is because you really DO need to "pimp" your work (like wicked said) to people outside of TC - shops, festivals, etc. Keep painting and get your work out there. Not only will you refine your style, but people will start to take notice.

WoW, Thanks for all your feed back, Its nice to hear the raw feed from all you guys. Theres alot of great advice here and I will run with it.You guys are the best. The biggest mahalo to ya's...