Writing
A Book Publisher For One Book-2 More To Go!
I am excited that we are reviewing the contract from a publisher for an up and coming book. The book is” Digital Sculpting with Mudbox: Essential Tools and Techniques for Artists. ” It should be a great book. I’m looking forward to crossing the bridge from digital to bringing technology into the traditional sculptures studio.
An After Thought About Traveling To Vermont, Electrical Outages, And Hurricane IKE
Like many, our home was out of electricity for many days, though I must say not as long as some of the areas of our neighborhood. But apparently Texas was not the only state with outages from Ike.
While traveling out on 59 we saw 61 electrical trucks coming in from out of state. It became our car game to count them. Here is the clincher- every state that we drove through Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and NY all had power outages. They all felt Ike! Here is the map of the Ike route and our trip. Now I can see why so many felt it. I went to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Ike and found that Cincinnati had 927,000 out of power, Arkansas 200,000, Indiana 200,000, winds were even felt in London, Ontario. For a hurricane that had a width of 275 miles it is no wonder. Each state we went to felt our pain, but they were a little irritated because they sent their trucks to us, not knowing what their state would suffer.
I Love To Go To The Cemetery, Inspirational And In This Case, Very Funny!
More IKE
As normal as it feels sitting here in Scholotzsky’s on the WI FI We must go back to survival. Waiting in long lines at grocery stores for food for the house, and more long lines for the gas for the generator. I’m also hoping to get something to chain up that generator with. It is a hot commodity in this city right now. Found ice on the way out and bought a 8 bags. Brought it back to the house and distributed it to neighbors. Everyone has to help everyone else out. Soon as I can escape again I’ll post. Oh yes, FYI Still working, picked up wax just before hurricane and have been working on it with a torch on the studio porch. It must go to the foundry in the morning. And…. the Dick Hathaway sculpture made it along with Jenna. No problems. We will still try to leave on Saturday, if my SUV that I have rented with Budget, is still available.
More of IKE
The next night , after the hurricane we had a rain storm. The water had no place to go because there was a storm surge in galveston and though they are 60 miles away the water pushed up into our bayous, we are after all the bayou city. Then when it rained, well the water had no place to go. I sweated it as the water got closer and closer to our home. Here is my husband and dog, Sam, and my street. Many neighbors already had some debris on their front lawns awaiting pick up. That compounded the problem as it blocked the drainage ditches.
We Made It Through The Hurricane!- Pictures Of IKE
Houston,Texas here. Don’t know what the national news has shown. Report- minor damage on our home. Many, Many homes in our Houston area have trees that have fallen on top of them. about 1/4 of the homes on our street have water damage as well. Huge rainstorm after the hurricane brought on the flooding. Here are some pictures.We still don’t have electricity, and are not expecting it any time soon. City says 2-6 weeks. We do have a generator but can’t use computers on it. Found a Schlotzsky’s with electricity and WI FI. Enjoying a hot meal, though I have to say that I have been cooking, using up what is in the freezer. Here I am trying to pull the tree limbs off of the pond and searching for Tilly my turtle. When I found her I was elated. Sam, my black lab was looking over my shoulder giving the camera the evil eye.
Artists Taking Action
Created for Best of Artists and Artisans web site
By Bridgette Mongeon © 2008
Recently I received an e-mail in my inbox that caused me to clean my clay filled hands and take action. It was from sculptor Boaz Vaadia in Brooklyn, NY, expressing urgency in supporting the Artist deduction bill S. 548 and HR 1524. The e-mail included links to Americans for the Arts. This is a wonderful organization that is working for each of us. According to their website:
Americans for the Arts is the nation’s leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts in America. With 45 years of service, we are dedicated to representing and serving local communities and creating opportunities for every American to participate in and appreciate all forms of the arts.
This bill S. 548 and HR 1524 is described on the Americans for the Arts policy and advocacy page, but let me sum it up in this article.
Since 1969 those working in the arts have not been allowed to deduct the fair market value of their artwork when donating it. The bill “would allow creators of original works to deduct the fair-market value of self-created works given to and retained by a nonprofit institution.” Currently, those working in the arts can only deduct what it cost to create it. Here is some more information from the Americans for the Arts website that indicates the importance of this bill and how immediate the effect of the 1969 legislation was.
- The Museum of Modern Art in New York received 321 gifts from artists in the three years prior to 1969; in the three years after 1969 the museum received 28 works of art from artists—a decrease of more than 90 percent.
- The biggest loser was the Library of Congress, which annually received 15 to 20 large gifts of manuscripts from authors. In the four years after 1969, it received one gift.
- Dr. James Billington, Librarian of Congress, says, “The restoration of this tax deduction would vastly benefit our manuscript and music holdings, and remove the single major impediment to developing the Library’s graphic art holdings. [The] bill would also benefit local public and research libraries. When this tax deduction was allowed in the past, many urban and rural libraries profited from the donation of manuscripts and other memorabilia from authors and composers who wanted their creative output to be available for research in their local communities.”
H.R. 1524 and S. 548 are identical to legislation that the Senate has passed five times in the past few years, but that has not been reviewed by the House.
This bill affects every creative person, not just sculptors. Please take note.
Since I learn best by example, here is one for you to ponder. I have created a life-size newsboy sculpture. There are 10 in the edition of the life size sculpture and they sell for $23,000. I have sold two in the edition. One for the Texas Press Association, who commissioned me to create the piece, the second for the Tabor City Tribune. It costs me approximately $6,000 to pour the newsboy in bronze. I have worked hard to develop a reputation as an artist and to sell the remaining in the edition spending hours on press releases about “Carving newspaper headlines in history,” documenting the process on my website and in an online video number one , and number two. I spent many hours and a great deal of money in mailings and marketing. It would make my heart skip a beat if I could somehow get one of these newsboys into the Albright Knox Art Gallery in my home town of Buffalo, New York. If somehow I could find the funds to pour the sculpture and donate it, and if they accepted the piece, I could only deduct the $6,000- the cost of pouring this sculpture as my tax deduction and not the entire $23,000 That is a loss of $17,000 of income for my sculpture and my pocket book. However, if someone else bought the sculpture and donated it, they could deduct the entire $23,000.
Another example is a piece I am currently working on of Richard Hathaway of Vermont College Union Institute and Goddard College. I am donating my labor and part of the casting costs, a total of approximately $25,000. The City of Montpelier has donated the cost of casting the sculpture. It will be installed this year at the TW Wood Gallery in Montpelier, Vermont. My taxable deduction for a year and a half worth of work $0.00.
I contacted the executive director of the St. Louis Volunteer Lawyer and Accountants for the Arts. “Unfortunately, I often deliver bad news to artists: they can only claim the cost of their materials when they donate a work of art to a nonprofit organization, while a collector can claim the fair market value. The proposed legislation, which includes some caveats, would allow some artists to receive an equitable tax deduction. It’s been on the table before, but it looks like it has some momentum this year, so artists should take a moment to contact their legislators,” states Sue Greenberg.
The Americans for the Arts website makes it quite easy to get involved. By going to the artist’s action center you can fill in your zip code and see if your senator supports the bill. There is a simple form for you to e-mail to your representative or print out a letter with your request for support.
I know it is difficult to take time away from our creativity to become politically involved. It is however, very important to our livelihood. Thank you for your support and your actions.
Here is an update on some of my Creative Endeavors!
Recent articles written by Ms. Mongeon
“Exploring Digital Technologies as Applied to Traditional Sculpting.” Sculpture Review. (Winter 2007) 30.
“The American.” Sculpture Review. (Winter 2007) 32.“Artful Business-The Basics of Designing your Website.” Sculptural Pursuit. Vol. 7 No. 1. (Spring 2008) 50. March 2004
All written work is copyrighted and cannot be used, whole or in part,
without the written consent of the author.
1:20 Update on Ike From Houston
Looks like a beautiful day in Houston. Kids are playing in the yard next door. If it were not for the hectic pace at the stores, and the news on the TV I would not think there was a storm.
My family boarded up the doors and windows the best they could. Don’t have enough wood for all of the windows. Sure wish I had some on the french doors in the back. Decided not to board up the studio this time. Husband is still out looking for things. I guess you get this feeling like you can’t be over prepared and so you just keep doing it.
I found more gas for the generator and I am glad to see that the stations around the house still have gas. This is another great argument for not making inbound lanes out going lanes. I do know that this gas will be useless if the power goes out, and that will be just when everyone needs it.
Those who decided to wait it out are all ready calling for rescue, and the hurricane has not hit. Go figure. I also heard their is a freighter in the gulf that is stranded.
In all I still made a trip to the foundry to get the wax for the surprise Christmas gift that my client is having me make. It will be necessary for me to have those waxes worked on before I leave next Saturday in order to make our deadline.
Hurricane Ike Is On His Way- My Update
For my clients checking in from around the United States and Beyond.
Looking at the news this morning at 8:00 am I am surprised to see some of Galveston already receiving storm surge and streets are underwater. For those who know Galveston the Strand has a foot of water. The Hurricane is pretty far away and land fall will not be until 1-3 a.m. that is more than 12 hours away. So it is surprising everyone that surge is coming in already. Everyone says this will be a storm that most have not seen in their life time.
Our studio is about at the tip of the north end of the star, the foundry is not too far from there. But as you can see the bay comes quite a bit inland. All areas south of that outer loop have been evacuated, and they have been evacuated to Austin or Dallas and not to Houston. Red cross said they sent them to a safe place. That makes me a little uncomfortable.
My question is… if the bay is backing up where does Houston’s rainwater go? No one has said anything about that. I feel Houston will see flooding like it has not in a while. WE are a city of Bayous. I’m so glad I bought flood insurance.
The Hurricane track as of this morning is to go right up the orange line or the I45 freeway. That is the one that goes through the star and just past our home/studio about 6 miles east of us. I think we are in for a heck of a night, and maybe a week.
They told us we should expect to be out of electricity for 2 weeks. Hmmmm I’m expected to pull out of here next Saturday to bring Dick and Jenna to Vermont. I know upon my return I will be exhausted. Not just from the trip but from this week.
Saws are buzzing in the neighborhood and windows are being boarded up across the street. I best go and get more gas for the generator, though our van hold quite a bit and we did buy a siphon. I’ll post if and when I can, I think we are moving the computers.
My prayers go out to those south of us who are not sure if they will have a home in the morning.
Update On Hurricane And Our Preparations.
It is 10:47 at night. Just received an update from the meteorologists and the mayor of Houston. One gets a little nervous when the mayor asks everyone to pray.
Our plans are to wake up early and get more gas for the generator. Only a few highways are bogged down, and I am so glad that I am not in that traffic jam. I remember what happened a few years ago. I guess officials have as well as they are taking that into consideration. They are not taking inbound roads and making them outbound roads. This I am glad for as we will need supplies to come to Houston and the surrounding area.
Pictures show almost all of Galveston predicted to be underwater. The biggest concern for this storm is the storm surge. I heard today that if these low areas did not evacuate 1.5 million would die. I can’t believe some are staying.
We wander around with that strange numbness wondering what we should do, is there something else to prepare? Our saving grace is that it is not a cat 5, and it is moving fast. 100 mile an hour winds make us think about moving all of the equipment off of the top floor and storing it downstairs. A lot of work, but it may be our morning job. Have not boarded up windows, and may do that in the morning as well. Our large containers are on the back porch and will be filled with water. The worse part will be the heat and no AC. I was in this house during Alicia in 1983. IT came right over our house. I was out of electricity for a week, but I had a house.
The best thing that could happen to us is if the hurricane moved to the east. Right now we are on what they call “the dirty side.” The best for us is always the worst for someone else.
I’ll update what I can. Pray for Houston.