A 2nd Day of Christmas gift from Jon

[Jon123Jon]

Hand -- yes, your monitor is at a much higher resolution than my iPad. Paradise in pixels! That accounts for the blurry book images... will see if I can fix their size in the HTML.
I think we are coming at Xara and art from different perspectives. You from fine art, me from graphic art? In my commercial world, art is pretty simple. No sable brushes. And Xara scores big because it seamlessly combines vector and raster. Ad, brochure, and annual report images are simple. Pix for websites. We are selling our clients' products, not our own graphics talent. Sure, there are features we would like Xara to have. But they are unimportant because everything you need to make good money is already there. And then the focus shifts to, well, how do I get the money? Which again is different for both the fine art and commercial worlds. If you have time, go back and read my chapters '5 in gold' and 'Fine art world'. Would love to hear your thoughts ... if you can take a break from painting an undiscovered Vermeer with that sable brush!

[handrawn]

I am closer to watterson than vermeer

I am not convinced that selling a product throiugh art is that different from teliing a story or making a joke/point - either way the art is a way of delivering something in an attention getting way, be it for financial gain or not

I am, up to a point, quaiified to comment on xara having used it on and off for 20 years; I am not really qualified to comment on your book it was never my world, but I wish you well

EDIT - guess I should make clear that is bill watterson, just in case anyone thinks otherwise; if I could use a brush like he did I would be a very happy man....

[Jon123Jon]

Watterson! Hand, here's a story for you --
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2...on-book-review

And I like your note on art as a story, commercial or not. Even the white on white paintings by Kasimir Malevich, Russian Suprematist in Paris after WWI. Which he said symbolized icons of the Virgin of Kazan, found above the inside doorways of Russian homes. Story!

Also I appreciate your British reserve and modesty, claiming that you are not qualified to review my book. Of course you are, and if you were here in Tombstone you would feel perfectly free to say "Jon, it's a dog's breakfast" or "God, that's the most insightful book I've read since the Xara user manual." At 79, I'm worried that here in the States we have so many younger people charging up so much debt to learn so little actual skills. Near zero ROI on their huge bills for college tuition, housing, food, etc. University is a cruel racket, for artists anyway. I hope Drawing For Money helps a lot of graphic designers find good careers and stay financially solvent. And Happy 6th Day of Christmas!

[handrawn]

thanks for the link

I do not know about the US University/College situation, but over here the funding model is broken - my other half works in Uni, I get chapter and verse. but it is very political and this is not the place...

happy 2024