Beyond the Original
What makes an original? What sets it apart from a reproduction?
On the surface, there is seemingly a straight forward answer to that. With a hand crafted object, its flaws and imperfections make it unique. What of music then? It is not an object, but it comes from a unique source, a single performer or group, again, with their idiosyncrasies that make their sound and performance a one off. It is this uniqueness, the scarcity that makes it valuable.
As soon as there is some sort of multiplier brought into the process, something that can duplicate, then the end result is no longer unique. But, that uniqueness can be traded off for utility, something functional, available for everyday use.
You're not going to drive around in your car with a band in the backseat playing music, or have one follow you down the street as you head off to work. Yet through the tools of multiplication and the appliances of utility, that uniqueness can be reproduced in a way that it practical to have it with you almost always.
Of course nothing compares to the original, the live concert or the painting on the wall, but you can have an echo of that to add an extra bit of flavour to your life.
This motivation has been with us, even long before the digital age we now find ourselves in. With the advent of the printing art became accessible to a wider public. Albrect Dürer's reputation spread due to his woodblock prints, which even in his day, became collectables.
So, like Dürer, being able to print my artwork has been an absolute boon for bringing my artwork to more people. Of course there is the internet, but your digital device is not always turned on. A print hanging on the wall however, never tuns off. It's there even when the power is turned off.
A couple of years back I started using Red Bubble, a print on demand service to manage my artwork reproductions. The major advantage to using a service like this is, I do not have to invest large sums of money in stock, I don't have to store it, or ship it. It's a win, win, win.
Leave a comment below, upvote and resteem if you like it.
More of my artwork can be found on my website. LeoPlaw.com
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Print-on-demand is the Way
Indeed, indeed. =)
Very creative and original t-shirts! I would wear one of them with pleasure:)))
Now you know where you can get one of them. ;-)
This is great! If we can't afford the original, at least now we have an alternative. There are so many designs to choose from, nice!
By the way, you never cease to amaze me with your ability to come up with some beautiful words to accompany your art. Always some drops of wisdom for me to read while I have my coffee ;-)
Greetings from Berlin, Leo!
Thank you Irime! =)
I must admit, sometimes it is a real stretch for my brain to come up with the words. But like all good exercise, it keeps my mind in shape. That's something I've been enjoying about making a commitment to posting on Steemit, is I have an opportunity to flex my writing skills. Many ideas that I have, might otherwise be fleeting. So I very much appreciate having people read and respond.
I was drinking my coffee as I wrote this.
Greetings Irime!
Thank you for the resteem! =D
No problem, always happy to share great content here in Steemit ;-)
=D
I have to write down what I saw in my head with this sentence of yours
You're not going to drive around in your car with a band in the backseat playing music,
street with cars, and drivers with different bands and musicians in the back seats, made me laugh a lot :)
What's your experience with Red bubble? I was thinking of putting some works there..
I've been happy with Red Bubble. People who have purchase my items have been happy with the product. That is important.
However, regarding making sales, you need to promote your store/profile. Expecting to make sales through the Red Bubble community alone won't net you anything, because it is a community of artists all trying to hawk their wares. You need to promote through your own channels. Hence the point of this post. ;-)
Another thing I like about Red Bubble over similar platforms, is that they allow you to set your own profit margins.