Simulgasp at the unveiling
 

Hi!

I started this in the WIP section and I hope this is where actual unveiling pictures from an event belong as this was a small milestone for me. I thought I would share these with you as I always enjoy seeing other unveilings. Before I go on I must thank the MANY people here who helped me through this painting with their guidance and encouragment. You all are insanely selfless.

I feel more comfortable now that the recipient of the portrait has recieved the painting to tell a bit more about the portrait. I was hired by a committee from a company called Centric Group here in St. Louis to paint a portrait for the 30th anniversary of the CEO as a gift to him from the company. They asked that he be painted alongside the founders of the parent company (this is where it gets good and sounds better) which is Enterprise Rent-a-Car. Big company! Exciting commission. The man in the center is the CEO and honoree. The gentleman to the left is the founder of Enterprise and the gentleman on the right is his son and the current CEO. They are wonderful and gracious people. How I lucked out getting this I will never know but it has been an experience I will not soon forget.

I was invited to the anniversary celebration along with many executives of the company and family members expecting that the portrait unveiling would play a minor role. To my utter shock, the portrait was the focal point of the evening! Talk about nerves. I have never had a formal unveiling for a painting in my whole life. There we were, roughly 100 people in a beautiful golf club when the committee chairman called me from the crowd to introduce me. My knees wobbled. Following that, the velvet fabric that covered the painting was lifted and all I could think was, "What if someone asks who the guys in the painting are." LOL. Potential nightmare. I held my breath, the "curtain" went up and all I heard were the gasps of 100 people followed by applause. I told a friend of mind it was like a simulgasp (to coin a new word meaning simultaneous gasp). Once the blood came back to my face I felt better. They were very pleased and I didn't pass out.

Below is a photo of the final piece as well as some photos from the event which brought me more business already! Hooray. My hot tip of the week would be to seek out an opportunity, even on a smaller scale, to have an unveiling party for your paintings. It offers excellent exposure, a great way to meet people including potential clients, tests your cardio-health, and is a darn good exercise in public appearances.

Thank you for indulging me. It was certainly the highlight of my month if not the year.

This is great news!
 

I can't tell you how elated I feel for you. This was a well deserved commission and opportunity for you. I trust that the effects of the positive exposure will long be a source for new connections and commissions for you. This is phenomenal news! Movin' up to the big time!

I hope you have scribed a press release for this event. You'll get a lot of mileage out of it. Send it out to any and all media in the area as well as galleries and make full color presentation sheets for yourself to add to a package for future corporate work. You can do it! :D

By the way, you look maahvelous! How old are you really? 22?

The check is in the mail
 

Molly,

Ahhh. You are such a nice person. Yes, it was an important commission. I received a phone call about donig more for the guy on the right so I am meeting him Friday. That was such a pleasant surprise. Yipeee!

Doing an "unveiling" seems to be great PR. I think your advice is awesome about a press release but in this case the people are quite private and I feel uncomfortable taking advantage. Does that make sense? I will of course include the commission in other promotional pieces as you suggested.

You must be psychic. I am 22 1/2. Okay, I lied. Double that and add lots of wrinkles. Thank you for the compliment. I'm running with that one. I think I'll tell my husband he's married to a young chick.

You're a sweetie. Thanks for being so supportive.

Lisa,
Congratulations!
Molly said it so well. You got to use this event to the full.!!!

Nice pictures from the unveiling, they show us that the clients got all they could ever dream of.

Allan

Allan, thank you so much. I hope I didn't frustrate you too much in the WIP section for this one. I value your opinion highly and followed almost every single thing you said as much as I was capable. Thank you so much for all the great information.

The unveiling made me very nervous since about 100 people were there and it could have been tragic, but now that it's over I highly recommend doing it.

Thanks again, Allan. :)

Lisa,

Congratulations on the well deserved kudos. What a great opportunity and exciting evening.

I once brought two portraits down to Newport. My husband and I carried them in. The wife, a tall aloof blond said, "oh that's us, put them over there." That's it! The paintings were a result of months of work and over 7' tall.

I heard they love them and are up.

Lisa, congratulations! I really enjoyed reading this and I'm so happy for you. This is really going to help your business plan.

Big congratulations, Lisa! The painting turned out beautifully, I watched all the developments and admire your tenacity. The background is just luscious.

Jean

Thanks for sharing your unveiling story with us Lisa!
Gosh, I got all exited for you just reading about it. Must have been quite a spectacular evening for you. You go girl!

Congrats Lisa,

You made a wonderful job.

Thanks for sharing that with us.

Lisa--

Big congratulations! After all the hard work, a good unveiling does wonders for the ego, and for the energy to keep going...

Best--TE

Congratulations Lisa!
It is great vicarious story to read! Never, ever hesitate to share your victories and accomplishments. Your work is fun to watch progress and I am looking forward to what good commissions this brings your way.

Enjoy the kudos, you've worked very hard and deserve them, oh, and the commission too!!!

Congratulations Lisa! Wonderful news. :)

Thanks
 

You folks are good for the ego.

Sharon, thank you so much. It was exciting.

I know exactly how you feel about that underwhelming response from an aloof person. I have a hard time relating to personalities like that and it's so disappointing when you don't get feedback of any kind. I'm sure everyone loves your work but boy, those quirky personalities are hard to deal with.

Linda, thank you! I have been trying harder on the business end of things. It's helping but now I sleep less. I hope I'm not too cranky.

Jean, you're so kind. I plugged away on this one to be sure. I think not rushing has it's advantages and the input here is priceless.

Heidi, thank yo so much. I'm glad you enjoyed the story. I also like reading about other people's unveilings and the responses they get from presenting their work. You are probably used to the shock and awe with those awesome works you do. I have been watching your step-by-step and it has been fabulous.

Claudemir, thank you for the kind words and for taking the time to read about the final results of this painting.

Tom, you are so right! I felt for a minute like a rock star. LOL. A good unveiling is inspiring. Since I have only had one so far I hope I don't even have to see what a bad one is like.

Patricia, I am happy you liked the story. I thought it was funny in some ways as I was overwhelmed. I often have trouble sharing victories. I am so humbled by the work here. Even though there isn't a shy bone in my body, there is a lot of insecurity. Don't tell anyone. ;)

Kim, thank you so much! It's made for a good week. I even got a new skirt out of the deal.

You all have really been the icing on a very sweet cake. Thanks.

Congratulations Lisa -- well deserved. Do talk to them about how they'd feel if you did a press release. It has to be right away if there's any chance the papers will run a story, though. Certainly use photos and a summary of the event in any and all marketing materials you have. Good for you!

Lisa,
Congratulations! From the photos, I see you did an excellent job on the portrait! Wow!
You deserve all the praise and notice for this one. Great job!

Use It or Loose It
 

Lisa,
Your humility is so real that I felt like I was there with you. (PS You write well!)

How well deserved and wonderful a culmination for all the efforts that go into such a painting. Each artist can relate to what you wrote.

"Use it or loose it.", could paraphrase Michelle's post. Well deserved applause from here in Arizona. Can you hear it?

Carol :)

"Simulgasp"
 

Lisa.

I like your new word! Congratulations are much deserved to you on your fine portrait!

I know exactly what you mean by simultaneous-gasp. So often when it happened to me, I was so overwhelmed by the event and nerves that I didn't even notice that the veil has been lifted and painting was unveiled until after I heard a swelling wave of gasps followed by applause and someone slapping me on the back, bringing me back to my senses. Although I was standing right beside it, I never saw the veil being lifted on the portrait of Mayor Ed Rendell . I think he was the one who slapped me on the back that time. I was blinded and in a daze over the TV news cameras pointing at us. Oh well!

Well done, Lisa! Now do some more.

Garth

My congratulations to you Lisa. And may that sweet feeling never go away. In fact, i look forward to hearing more of your stories at unveilings!
They certainly are "blog-worthy"...kekeke :)

Congratulations, Lisa! Your hard work definitely paid off. I enjoyed lurking...I mean, watching...your WIP thread on this fabulous portrait. To echo Garth's statement......Go do some more!!

:)

Sincerely,

Belated congratulations! To paint three VIP's and have them all be equally thrilled with big smiles on their faces means that you did a wonderful job! How exciting!

Michelle, thanks for peeking in and for the support. I am meeting with one of the gentlemen this morning (yeah!) about other work so I will ask about PR. I do hate to miss the opportunity but I am also aware that some groups of people aren't so thrilled with others capitalizing on their position and I want to be sensitive to that. As far as marketing materials go I am with you 100%. Thanks again.

Brenda, I appreciate your thoughtful words. I don't think I "deserve" anything but can I just say it's a lot of fun to have people want to shake your hand...even if only for one day?!

Carol, you said the nicest things. One, I am totally humbled by everyone here and genuinely feel I have miles to go before I am content (if that ever happens). Two, if you knew how I agonize over what I write so it comes across with it's original intent you would laugh. I write like I speak so not having personally met anyone I hope my tongue in cheek comments and silliness comes through. I worry that the printed word can be so misunderstood and everone is sitting at their computer's saying, "that girl is an idiot and she takes herself too seriously." LOL. Anyone else out there have a tinge of that? Anyway, your reply was so nice that I actually had a few minutes of relaxation along with a big "whew." I thought the sound I heard was something flapping in the wind so thank you for letting me know it was the sound of one kind woman clapping.

Garth, thanks! Yes, I like that word too. I laughed my behind off when it hit me as I was telling someone how the evening went. It just popped right off the tongue. I don't know if I will ever have something that will compare to your blinding cameras and news folks but it sure made my day. I think I will take your advice and paint more.

Marcus, you are always so generous. I am flattered by what you said. Thank you. Blog -worthy? Too funny! Maybe some day.

Richard, first, thanks very much. Second, shame! Don't get me wrong, I am glad you lurk...I mean watch the threads, but why are you denying us all the pleasure of seeing your work as well? That doesn't seem fair. Do you know how many of us linger and wait for the next post with such anticipation that we nearly drool? You could keep us from the painful disappointment on the days in which there aren't any new posts! I'm counting on you to make up for this one day soon. ;)

Enzie, thank you. It was indeed so nice to have happy clients in such a prominent postiion. Of course every time a client is happy it's a huge relief and gives such satisfaction but you are right, it was especially nice for this one. I must say I did try very hard. I had the best help in the business too here at SOG!

Lisa I can't add much more, but...

clapclapclapclapclapclap ;)

Lisa, can you tell us how you go this commission? I know we'd all love to hear!

Congratulations, Lisa! I'm so glad the audience responded enthusiastically. It sounds like a very successful event, and I hope you get other commissions out of it. Don't forget to follow up on possible contacts.

Alex

Elizabeth, thank you for the applause. Oh to be a rock star...

Michelle, yes, here is how I got this commission. You will laugh! I wish I could say it was some wonderful advertising trick I had up my sleeve. Nope.

The company formed a portrait committee knowing they wanted to commission a portrait for this occasion. As I understand it each member provided a list of potential candidates whom the committee would interview. The committee member who recommended me had commissioned me about 13 years ago to do a portrait of his dog! He said he thought it was so good that I must be able to paint people but wasn't sure if I did. Too funny. It just goes to show you that seemingly insignificant things can wind their way to one's future. Who would have thought? Anyway, after reviewing portfolios and doing interviews I am grateful to have had the opportunity regardless of how I got there. Right place, right time I suppose.

I also received comments about being professional, organized (ha ha), open to working with a committee, and living up to expectations and promises. I think these things are important for clients in the corporate world. I actually enjoyed the process so much. I often miss the business world and adult conversation. Sometimes it's lonely when you work alone in a studio and commissions like this make up for that. Thanks for asking.

Alexandra, thank you! It was nice being slightly popular for an evening. I have already received 4 more oil commissions for one person which I have begun working on. I met with the client yesterday and I am really excitied! Now that's the best result of any public appearance I have ever had. It was simply a lucky week.

Congrats to you, Lisa! I was looking on in the thread where you were finishing the painting, and I've been excited watching this thread also. I can just imagine what you mean about being popular for a day! I can tell that this has been a big success for you and I wish you many more. :D

Congratulations Lisa!

Sounds like a great success and what a wonderful outcome for you! Well deserved :thumbsup:

Lisa, I've really enjoyed following this thread. I'm so proud of you, even though I have no reason to be. You did all the work, all I did was watch. :D

Jean

Lacey, thanks for the compliment and for watching the thread. I'm glad you liked it. I normally shy away from anyone seeing my work in process. This time I am so glad I posted because I got some great help.

Terri, thank you! I think it turned out as nicely as I could have hoped. It was really fun.

Jean, you are so sweet. Thank you for keeping an eye on me. I feel like a happy little baby bird. I'm under good care.

Well deserved congratulations.

Although the finish is fantastic and it would be hard to notice, I was actually relieved when you were struggling with this in the earlier stages. lol. I thought "whew, she does have problems like many of us and this one must have taken more than two hours!!!"

Very happy to hear about the great news! :thumbsup:

It took 3 hours
 

Hi Jimmie! Good to have you back and active. Love your recent post. Thanks for the compliments. I struggle constantly just not with speed. This one took 3 hours. Ok, just kidding. Jimmie? Jimmie! Wake up, Jimmie! I said I was kidding. ;)

Congratulations Lisa, as you know I have been swamped and a little slow to respond to posts recently. I'm SO proud of you! Keep it up. :thumbsup:

Lisa,

I am so happy for you. I've been out of town for a month and missed all the WIP excitement. You really did wonderfully with a difficult subject. :thumbsup: