Selling paintings from the web.

Moving from St. Stephen, New Brunswick to Lunenburg, Nova Scotia was a difficult but worthy venture. Lunenburg is alive with subject matter for painters. The bad news for me is that I am now almost lost in the crowd of artists craftsmen and artistes. While I have an extensive body of work at my studio (more than seventy completed works) not much of it is being seen by the local public. Currently, the Cheescake Cafe and Gallery in Mahone Bay is displaying two paintings but this is not likely to have much impact. My patrons remain in New Brunswick and I continue to sell from Serendipin' Arts and Crafts in St. Andrews.

The move to Nova Scotia spelled the end of my original website (thecaledonian.com). Someone else now uses that name. It went on line back in early 1995. There was a hiatus of a few months before we became established in new digs on Pelham Street, but in May of this year, I uploaded some of my content from the old site and started redesigning my hobby as well as commercial pages.

Already, there are some results. Four paintings have been sold through the World Wide Web this summer. Two went out by mail order and two have been picked up at the studi0. The web can work for any artist, but websites require more than casual attention to be of use. Unless some time is given over to making connections (called links in the e-world) the effect is somewhat like posting a notice on a telephone pole in Lunenburg in thick o, fog. Soeone may see your haniwork but the odds are against it.