My Creative Images Promoting Digital Photo Artistry and Digital Photography
Issue 44 (November 2021)
Welcome to the Mycreativeimages Magazine Last month I wrote a basic article about NFT’s and the benefits of this new market for all artists no matter the medium they use. I had intended on doing a follow on article on how to set up a wallet and an account on opensea, but seeing as how easy it is I didnt see the need to do something so basic. In its place I offer this: NFTs and cryrpto tokens / currency are going to be a BIG part of the artworld as time and technology move on. NFT’s will become the “must have” fashion tred for the wealthy that buy “bling” as a statement that they are “trendy”. Social media profiles will be used to display expensive NFT’s to show their spending power, in the same way as buying a top of the range car or jewellery. The artwork out there ranges from sets of “cartoon” style characters generated using code scripting to create sets of 10,000 unique PNG’s through to delicately crafted and sculpted 3d art created in programs such as Blender. The price of this art is astonishing and the profits available if you are prepared to buy and sell NFT’s are mind blowing. I will stress cation though, buying NFT’s is easy, the associated fees for selling NFT’s and loading them to a platform can be very high. For example, buying an animated gig of a flying unicorn / mermaid can cost $24, however the associated fee to complete the changes to the ownership details that are retained on the blockchain can add anything up to 4x that amount to the purchase price. Meaning that a simple $24 NFT actually costs $100 or more. However, buying the right NFT when it is launched has seen some huge returns when they are resold. BUT, you are not guaranteed to resell it. In addition, if you do not have at least 10,000 followers on Twitter then your art collection will not be verified by the platform you are selling git on and this makes selling your art very difficult. I do recommend however that you explore this medium yourself, do your own homework and make your own choice as with the announcement that Facebook, now Meta, are going to invest time and money in the Metaverse then you really need to look to offer your artwork in this format. If you are reading this magazine as an art lover, picture this, you favourite artwork displayed on a digital panel in your home, auto switching to the next image with the option to resell it at anytime in the future and potentially make a profit. James Hurley Photo Artist / Magazine Editor
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Featured artists
Susan Jones 4 Bernie Tuffs 12 Claude Trew 18 David Walker 22 James Hurley 28 Keeley McCleave 42 Vivien Capper 50
Cover image “Alice Found a key” by Susan Jones page 4
Please note, that some articles contain affiliate links which direct you to 3rd party sales pages, for example Amazon. In the even you purchase something via one of these links a commission is paid to the editor of this magazine or the author of the article. All images in this publication are sourced / created by the artists, unless otherwise stated on their websites or social media pages and as such must not be copied or sold without the express consent of the artist. This publication is created and owned by James Hurley, ©mycreativeimages.com 2021. Please feel free to share the magazine but do not make changes to any of the content.
The future of art is in the metaverse Unless you have had your head in the sand over the last few months you should have heard the latest craze is digital art sold via the Blockchain. You will be familiar with PC games, Playstaions and Xboxes and Game Apps on phones. Kids are addicted to them, they constantly ask for funds to buy add ons or special features or outfits for there characters. NFT’s are very similar, they are none physical items that you cant tocuh or see without the use of a mobile, a games console, a PC or a digital photo-frame. NFT’s are to the wealthy the equivalent of skins in Fortnight, they are the must have for 2021 and 2022 and the growth in NFT art is in its early stages. Much like all trends tho, it will peak and then reach saturation and plummet back down to earth with a bang and then at some time later it will stabilise and find a level that is a mix of quality and value as opposed to volume and novelty. At this point the market will reach a point where NFT’s are common place on Facebook profiles, and sold regularly on Amazon and Ebay. There are already a number of very stable platforms, although they are flooded with “Cartoon art”, which sells for very high amounts, you can see some of these by visiting my website (click here). If you click on one of the images it will take you to the detail on Opensea, from there you can choose to go to Opensea and then filter the list of “art” to specific types. I do suggest you look around and check out some of the artwork as it is amazing and some of it is very reasonably priced.
A body of work or a group of very similar artwork is essential To establish yourself as a popular artist is difficult, as it is in the normal online and physical world of art. BUT key to it is to have a large recognisable body of work available to sell. Single pieces of work, although amazing and unique, sell, but slowly. Whereas, offering a body of work of 30 or more images that are very similar in style / technique are very very popular As one artist to another, please explore the opportunities that this new method of decentratilsed artwork sales offers the small indepentant artist.
James Hurley Photo Artist / Magazine Editor
View NFT art
There are many platforms out there offring NFTs, some require that you apply to sell, others simply require you to have a crypto wallet that you can link to their site so it identifies you. Even large companies that trade in crypto currance are getting in on the act, for example crypto.com. To view some examples of the NFT artwork follow this link to my profile and from there you can view all the other art available: https://crypto.com/nft/profile/jameshurley
Susan Jones My name is Susan Jones I have loved photography all my life, though I was rejected from the photography class at school due to not having my own SLR camera. About 20 years ago a bought a DSLR and haven’t looked back, I love taking photos, mostly studio but as often as possible getting out and about, particularly London. I have been using Photoshop for a few years, and to my joy found Sebastian Michaels Photoshop Artistry courses and then Awake and have learned so much about Photoshop and continue to learn every day. I love the program, I love changing plain photographs into fantasy colourful worlds. I hope you enjoy looking at my work as much as I enjoyed creating it.
Credits: MUA - Serah Eames Lighting - Mike Baker Styling Concept - Salli Gainsford Workshop Assisting- Natasha Ibell Alice Model - Liv Burrows Outfit - Wyte Phantome Wig -Salli Gainsford Red Queen Model - Matthew Andrew Outfit - Models Wardrobe Wig - Mike Doardo Hatter Model - Katelyn Eames Outfit -Wyte Phantom Hat - CC Millinery Creation Wig - Salli Gainsford
https://www.instagram.com/sulisloveswater/
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Ooooh lala
Hatter
Mad Hatter
Alice found a key
Three Whispers
Bernie Tuffs Hello! I’m Bernie and I live in the little seaside town of Margate and having lived here all my life, I couldn’t live anywhere else now! I’m continually inspired by the scenery here, with skies and light that so excited famous artist J. W. Turner, who said of this area, “…the skies over Thanet are the loveliest in all Europe”. Apparently, a love of the sea stayed with him all his life and I can well understand that! Painting with light holds a real attraction for me - the gentle light that is still strong enough to dispel darkness. I’ve always been arty, progressing from childhood sketching, through gouache and then oil painting, then paper crafting and scrapbooking which led me to digital scrapbooking and finally to Sebastian Michaels and Photo Artistry. My latest venture is designing and selling digital overlays and textures. Now I feel I’m home and am having so much fun with my art!
https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/BernieTuffs
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SadSoul
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Remembering Times Past
Amongst Friends
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Earth Bound
No Need To Be Alone...When You Have Magic
Claude Trew I retired a few years ago, and since I had more free time, I decided it was time to expand my photo art skills. I have been a member of my local camera club for many years, but I wanted to branch out in areas of photography that would be more artistic and outside the style of photographs that are most successful in club competitions. With this in mind, four years ago I joined the international online Photoshop course “My Photo Artistic Life” created by Sebastian Michaels. I have never regretted my decision and I am still a member of this vibrant and artistic FaceBook community. A few months ago I joined another online course “Elevate your Art”, this time learning to paint with Photoshop’s mixer brush. My vision is, one day, to be able to paint images which will look like oil paintings. You are welcome to visit my website to see some samples of my Photo Art.
www.claudetrew.com
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Fire and Ice Queen
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Icarus Falling
Answering the call
David Walker Rarely does a photoshoot have a lasting effect… Rarely does a piece of art have such an immediate and compelling effect… A visit to the Kelpies at Falkirk, Scotland delivered both much to my surprise. I can count on the fingers of one hand the number of times that I have been totally entranced by an artist’s endeavors, Van Gogh’s Sunflowers, Warhol’s Campbell Soup Cans, Monet’s Gare St-Lazare series, Da Vinci’s Last Supper and now Andy Scott’s Kelpies! I must admit that great art does leave me feeling rewarded, and in truth, perhaps, I have been entranced on many, many occasions. The sheer majesty of the Kelpies perhaps made the difference, similar in many ways to the Last Supper and Campbell Soup Cans, I was surprised at the size! Hardly subtle, the two 30m (100 ft), 300 tonnes steel sculptures depict Kelpies (or Water Kelpies), which are shape-shifting water spirits which inhabit lochs in Scottish Folklore. Although a Celtic Legend comparisons have been made between the Germanic Nixe (or Nixie), the Scandinavian Bäckahäst, the Wihwin of Central America and the Australian Bunyip. Almost every sizeable body of water in Scotland has an associated Kelpie story, but the most extensively reported is that of Loch Ness. Some accounts state that the Kelpie retains its hooves when appearing as a human, leading to its association with the Christian idea of Satan as alluded to by Robert Burns in his 1786 poem “Address to the Devil”. The origins of the history about the Kelpie are unclear but the practical purpose of keeping children away from dangerous stretches of water and warning young women to be wary of handsome strangers are perhaps favorites. The original concept of mythical water horses was a valid starting point for the artistic development of the structures, but as Scott outlined the sculptures of the Kelpies also represent the lineage of the heavy horse of Scottish industry and economy, pulling the wagons, ploughs, barges, and coal ships that plied their trade on the Forth and Clyde Canal and other Scottish Canals. On my return from Scotland all of this astonishing find led to an exciting week or so when I could channel my feelings into different portrayals of the Kelpie. I enjoyed working in impressionism, in traditional oils, in different drawing styles, with special lighting, playing with imagination (something rarely used by myself) and even in comic book style. All of this for a £3 parking charge and some pretty wet clothes!
https://www.vista-foto.com/
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Kelpie
Guarding the Kelpies
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Watch Out there’s a Kelpie About!
Kelpies
The Kelpies
Address to the Devil
Beware - Take Care...Kelpies About!
James Hurley James is BOLD and direct, this is reflected in his art. He doesn’t let other peoples actions or approaches to life corrupt his mind or attitude. He is his TRUE SELF and has learned to follow his own path brushing himself off and carrying on when he stumbles or has taken a wrong turn, he learns from mistakes or failures. James has turned his negative thoughts about his dreams and ambitions, “its impossible”, into his reality “I’m Possible” this was achieved when he realised he is his most underused and undervalued asset. When asked to describe his work James responded as follows: “I am an Artist. I am a creator. I am a creative entrepreneur. I turn Love, Joy, Passion, challenging emotions into art that makes connections between fantasy and reality to make photo-art that feeds the creative mind and generates happiness at a subconscious level. I LOVE who I am and I POUR this love, my compassion and raw emotions into my photography and Photo-art as a way of sharing my LOVE with you. My sole aim is to leave a lasting impression on people that I meet, that interact with me online or choose to invest in my work, either my artwork or the magazine. In short, if you want artwork that resonates with an emotion you have experienced or that fuels your thoughts then look no further, but remember, emotions should be observed and recognised for what they are they should be learnt from and not drive your choice and decision making.” This month James has returned to his favourite location, Ullswater, to capture some fresh shots to add to his collection. “You don’t take a photograph, you make it.” Ansel Adams
https://www.mycreativeimages.com/
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Keeley McCleave I studied illustration at art college, so there is a story-telling feel to most of my work. During the summer I re-discovered my love of illuminated manuscripts and was inspired to incorporate some richly detailed page borders in some of my compositions. I love the way borders can draw the viewer into an image and help tell the story. More recently my attention has turned to the festive season and I have had fun playing with different aspects of a British Christmas, drawing on folklore, historical costumes and traditions. I love Christmas, so always find it a springboard to creativity! I hope you enjoy my work, as much as I enjoyed creating it.
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the girl with the sun in her eyes IIb
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Platiscine Porters monotone
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A ticket to ride
Pepperland Express
Vivien Capper Hello. My name’s Vivien and I’m from the beautiful county of Kent, England though currently living and working near Rome in delightful Italy with its exciting, lively way of life and vibrant colours and designs . I started out as an artist developing Indian ink artwork of a variety of subjects especially figurative artwork and abstract floral designs, then progressed into creative photography and digital artistry thanks to Sebastian Michael’s courses at ‘Photoshop Artistry’ and the advanced courses ‘Awake’ & ‘Kaizen’. My inspiration is drawn from my love of nature, figurative artwork and Italian design and I love using many textures, patterns and colours. This month I’ve again tried doing something a bit different in my artwork and have created variation on two pieces applying different colour tones.
https://saatchiart.com/vivienjane
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Forgotten in the Depths of Time
Forgotten in the Depths of Time Blue & White
Waves & Motion Afternoon
Waves & Motion Evening
Waves & Motion Morning
Ocean Reflections 54
Swirling Shark in the Depths
NFT artwork
The advent of NFT artwork on multiple platforms using various types of cypto currency is an exciting new platform for artists to promote their work and offer images with commercial liecences without the need to rely on stock image sites. It also enabes an artist to explore the options of offering a certificate of authenticty created from an NFT, thus providing a digital method to confirm proof of ownership of artwork. There are a number of high profile platforms available, some require nomination from other artists, some require an application process. All require the use of a wallet which authenticates the artist or buyers identity, stores the purchased NFTs and allows them to buy cyrpto currency. In all cases to buy or sell an NFT you will need a wallet attached either to an app or a browser. There is simply thousands of pieces of artwork available to buy, but the main thing to bear in mind is read the sales post and ensure you are aware of what you are buying and any associated cost or usage rights. Visit https://opensea.io/collection/cherry-series-photo-art for some examples.
NFT Art on OpenSea by James Hurley
If you enjoyed this issue, follow the link below and check out the previous months magazines. Each one is packed full of photo-art made especially for you.
https://issuu.com/mycreativeimages
M e t v IImages ae My CCreative Promoting Digital Photo Artistry
