Grimm Visions Blog

We’ll be heading to Atlanta for DragonCon in a few days. Just wanted to remind people that I won’t have any art for display or sale in the Art Show this year, but I will be in the dealer’s room. I’m sharing space with Ruth Thompson, LA Williams and Brian Canfield Mitchell so we should be easy to find. If you are checking the listings or the map look for us under Ruth Thompson’s Tarnished images. That’s where you’ll find me. Hope to see you there.

This year Grimm Visions had a spot in the small press section at Comic-Con international. We had a lot of fun,  and sold a lot of art.    One of our neighbors was Mandy from Sappy Moose Tree, she makes great handmade toys including ZOMBIE SOCK MONKEYS!  They were so cute.  If we weren’t so concerned about the space in our luggage I probably would have come home with a couple of her cute critters.

We met a lot of great people and had more fun then we should have before heading off to Oregon for some vacation and FaerieWorlds.  But that’s a different story.

On June 26th I flew out to Cloudcroft, New Mexico for the Cloudcroft Renaissance Fantasy Faire.  After some annoying/frustrating flight delays I arrived late at night.  My good friend Rhonda Napoleon was there to pick me up and drive me all the way from El Paso up 9,000 ft above see level to Cloudcroft. The drive to Cloudcroft was pleasant, but because of the darkness I only really knew we were going up because my ears kept popping.  When we get to Rhonda’s house I try to be the tough girl and lug one of my heavy suitcases (nearly 50pds) up the stairs.  I go slow because I know I’m high (born and raised at sea level), but then I nearly pass out at the top of the stairs, I guess its stupid to try any exertion 5 minutes after getting to 9,000 ft.

Friday the altitude is a bit tough on me,  every time I have to walk up the stairs of Rhonda’s house (3 story house) I feel like I’m 80, or maybe a life long heavy smoker.  Thankfully the worst of it only lasted Friday.  By Saturday I was able to move and felt fine as long as I remembered not to run or jump.

Rhonda’s house is gorgeous, nestled among the trees and mountains.

The Cloudcroft Rennaissance Fantasy Faire is a wonderful intimate little affair.  Games for the kids, some wonderful vendors, oodles of great faeries and trolls and even some reasonably priced food. Anyone who goes to many faires or conventions will understand how amazing reasonably priced food is.   As one of the guest artists I got to share a space with my good friends from Time of the Faeries, Joseph and Donny.   Our booth was even awarded the Best of Show for Fantasy Vendor Booths.   Despite rain both days there was lots of interest in the Grimm Visions Comics.  Also popular were our Little Red T-Shirts. Supplies are running low, and with several conventions in the near future now is the time to get yours, before they are gone.

After the festival was over I stayed in Cloudcroft for several days to work with some of Rhonda’s Models.  She runs the group the Skyline Forest Faeries.  Monday we got to shoot at White Sands National Park, which is beatiful,  a great place to watch the sunset.   On Tuesday I got to take pictures out at a gorgeous 70ft waterfall and explore some creepy abandoned building that I am told are reminiscent of “The Hills Have Eyes” (I’ve never seen the movie).  Wednesday I worked with a few models close to Rhonda’s house, her yard feels like you are in the middle of nowhere, cooler than many parks I’ve visited.  All of the Models were great to work with.

One model that was truly a joy to work with, Ashley made her way up a bit of a rock wall for me…….  then I almost killed her.  Really,  Seriously.  She was a playing the part of a mountain fairy and we went to a location where there was a bit of a rock wall that wasn’t really shear and allowed her to zigzag up a bit so she could be on an outcropping above me.  She got to the top okay,  she shot great, then on the way back down (going the same way she came up)  we suddenly hear …. rattle rattle rattle.  BACK UP, BACKUP I yell.  She backs up a foot and almost screams “Oh god I see it, its pissed”.   I then have to hurriedly kill a bush to provide her with an alternate path down the rock wall.  Thankfully rattlesnakes are polite and let you know when they feel their space is being invaded, giving you a chance to get away.    We were in BFE, and who knows how far from a hospital.

This is Ashley in high spirits before the snake.

The Shoot

Ashley, every the little trooper after near brush with death.

At the end of it all I got some great shots and got to meet and/or hang out with some really great artists including: Vicki Visconti, Francine Dufour, Michael Finucane (who was wonderful enough to join me on a few of my shoots and hold the reflector for me).

Plenty of great images to come soon from the trip.  Stay tuned.

Cwn Anwnn- The Fairy Hound. Often associate with the Wild Hunt Cwn Anwnn are the canine companions of faeries. While never small, their size and shape can vary from dog to dog, however they coloration is always the same; white with red ears.

Closeup

Here are a few new images from my Pixy shoot.

Prints available.

Prints Available

FROM THE ILLUSTRATORS’ PARTNERSHIP

Backers of the Orphan Works bill are circulating their Talking Points:

“Neither the House nor the Senate drafts of the bill contain the word “registries,” [they write] but rather they require users to search non-governmental databases of copyrighted works. The purpose of any database is not meant to take the place of copyright registration, but to have a way to search for visual images. Any participation in such a database would be voluntary.”

But this doesn’t mean what it appears to say. Take it point by point:

Talking Point #1: “Neither the House nor the Senate drafts of the bill contain the word ‘registries.’ ”
Response: Correct. They contain the word “databases,” a synonym:

Registry: register: an official written record of names or events or transactions
http://wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

Database: A database is a structured collection of records or data
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Database

Q: Why a synonym?
A: Because international copyright law forbids member countries to impose registries as a condition of protecting copyrights: Berne/Article 5(2) ”The enjoyment and the exercise of these rights shall not be subject to any formality.” http://www.law.cornell.edu/treaties/berne/5.html

In other words, if they used the word “registries” in the bills, it would be a red flag to other countries that the US is flirting with non-compliance with international treaties.

Talking Point #2: “…rather they [the bills] require users to search non-governmental databases of copyrighted works.”
Response: Non-governmental databases” means databases maintained in the private sector.
For users to find your work in these commercial databases, your work would first have to be in the database.
Work not in the database would be orphaned.

Talking Point #3: “Any participation in such a database would be voluntary.”
Response: Congress cannot pass a bill making registration mandatory because that would violate Berne/Article 5(2).
And that would state explicitly to other countries that the US no longer intends to honor its international agreements.
There are red flags all over these talking points.

Summing up: The Orphan Work bills would mandate the creation of registries by commercial interests.
You would not be legally forced to place your work with these for-profit registries.
But failure to do so would orphan your work.

The deceptive talking points accompanying this bill are another red flag.

— Brad Holland and Cynthia Turner, for the Board of the Illustrators’ Partnership

Take Action/ Write Congress http://capwiz.com/illustratorspartnership/home/

Over 37,000 messages have been sent from the site in the last 48 hours. Please spread the word.

Please forward or post this announcement in its entirety to any interested party.

The Leanan Sidhe, or Fairy Muse, is both the blessing and bane of creative minds. Learn more about this dual nature fae in the near future, but for now enjoy your first glimpse.

Prints available in the Store.

This tricksy pixie may look friendly and inviting but beware.  Those who allow themselves to be pixie-led often never return.

Prints available in the Grimm Visions Store