Penguins In Vegas...

...Another reason the Licensing Expo in Las Vegas is so darn fun!

A Study in Contrasts

Well, I'm back from yet another trade show...seems like that's all I blog about these days, but it is the "season" for trade shows. We wind up this round in Atlanta next month and then not another show until next January. (there will be business travel just not the show kind,---just the visit fun clients kind) We were in Las Vegas last week for Licensing Expo 2011. And if ever there are contrasts within a city, this is the one. Balancing on the beautiful (the Bellagio Botanical gardens) vs the tacky (the constant barrage of noise, information and smoke), the noise of the casinos vs the surprisingly quiet hotel room and the beautiful people vs the...not so much.

We had a great show, always fun to see "the people" after hiding out in the studio for the weeks between this trip and Surtex in May. I think we'll see some great stuff happen as a result of those efforts and of course the enthusiasm and pluck (I love that word) of my fabulous branding agents Lisa and Mickey Marks. They are the founders of Lisa Marks Associates, a branding agency with clients like Peeps (you know you love 'em!), Martin Guitars and other biggies---and me of course! They have resumes a mile long and apparently know everyone. Really... everyone! And they are super fun too.

The biggest contrast was after racing around getting ready for the show, living in the weird world of Las Vegas for a week and being "on" for 3 straight days (and nights) at the show, Jim and I took a drive for a day and hung out at Red Rock Canyon---I highly recommend this side trip if you ever find your way off the strip. Simply beautiful, awesome and blessedly quiet too. A nice transition, I must say!
Ronnie

What day is it?

Oh, well... let me just check my handy new My Friend Ronnie wall calendar! I can only check 2012 dates, but you get the idea! This is one of those products that I have always dreamed of having my artwork on and here it is! How cool...

Heaven Help Me!

I designed this cute little angel line with a company called Blossom Bucket---they do some of the cutest heartfelt products out there and I am proud to be a part of it. And they're really nice to work with too! See the line here. To paraphrase my fave Ina Garten...how cute is that?

Great Insights...

Did you listen to the Ask Paul Brent call last night? I did, and what a great way to spend an hour--while I worked on new collections of course! Tara Reed, an art licensing coach and artist hosts "ask" calls with prominent contributors to the art licensing market. For the past 3 years, she has had a Surtex wrap-up call with Paul. To those of us in this industry, Paul Brent is the gold standard of someone who's success is only overshadowed by his generosity and good humor. (loved his giggle when asked if the economy has affected art licensing!) He had lots to say about trends both in the market (a trend away from vector art, more florals) and within the show itself (more artists, shorter visits by fewer people---but quality attendees, baby, quality!).

With the changing economy and retail trends (such as they are) he really emphasized the importance of continually showing up with new work, new ideas and concepts. The man is a machine apparently, as he mentioned that he put out 40 new collections in the past year. Yeah...40, people!

I decided a while back that I had to step up my game as well....if you want to have longevity in this business, you can't wait around for inspiration to strike, you've gotta go get it, wrassle it to the ground and show up!

So, guess what I'm doing this weekend? Besides making potato salad and drinking a beer (or two) on the dock? You guessed it, I'm drawing pictueres!

Studio? I have a Studio?

Hello? Hello? It seems like ages since I've been in the studio. It's not like I haven't been working, mind you...it just seems like it's been forever since I actually drew an actual picture. My time has been taken up with getting ready for Surtex, going to Surtex and following up on Surtex. I'm not complaining as it's just a part of the world in which I work. It's kind of like Christmas, it comes every year whether you're ready or not!

And now for the pictures. The top one is my adorable friend and spectacular artist Cathy Heck. Cathy and I have known each other for years, art buddies from way back. We shared a booth with each other at Licensing Expo waaay back, before our hair was this color. Her new collection is absolutely adorable and I can't wait to hang with her in Las Vegas next month.

The next shot is with the lovely Connie Haley, another amazing artist with a wicked sense of humor---we were booth neighbors in Atlanta and let's just say if we had been in 4th grade the teacher would have separated us immediately! And people get us confused all the time!

I get to meet new delightful people too. I met the darling Monica Lee on a shuttle bus. It's a blast to meet people you only meet through their blogs, and she is as just as cute as her artwork. Every once in a while you meet an artist and you can't believe from their personality the kind of artwork they do. Really? That's you?! But not with Monica. Cute girl, cute art.

You'll notice that I am wearing the same thing in each photo, as I suddenly remembered after the show had closed that I meant to take a bunch of pictures! So even though these shots don't show it, booths were crashing down around us and the sound of forklifts was deafening. But we're all about illusions, right?

Talk to you soon, I've got pictures to draw!
Ronnie

Bring on the Shows!

Next Friday, we leave for New York for Surtex---a trade show for people like me where we exhibit our work and meet with manufacturers of all kinds of things. We have meetings set up with stationery, fabric, giftware and greeting card companies, plus we always meet new people along the way. It's an exciting show plus it's in New York! So in the next few days, I will be doing the following: printing out portfolio pages, organizing all the supplies, tools and stuff we need to actually hang the booth, figuring out my outfits (the most important part of this whole deal, right?), designing the handouts, begging for more appointments, losing 5 pounds (ok, that's not going to happen!) and trying to continue to speak in full sentences. I know I've done these shows for over 10 years, but they do tend to somehow sneak up on you. Here's a picture from last year---I'll post new ones after we return. See ya!