Recently I launched Happy Art Friday on myfacebook fan page, where I will give something away, list a new painting @ auction, offer a new promo or even start a giveaway.
If you still haven’t, join me on my facebook fan page to learn more about it, or if you prefer join my newsletter to receive the latest updates via email.
This weekend I’m auctioning “Summer Fun”. Starting bid is $100…. Bid Now!
After a long sour and less than ideal partnership I’m parting away from Compassionate Arts Tiles & Stone, a company based in California, as the exclusive supplier of my line of ceramic tile murals and kitchen back splashes.
My decision to part away from this joint-venture comes after experiencing numerous irregularities over the years committed by the company owner. The lack of professionalism and the low quality of the products, along with many other reasons, pushed me to make the decision to find a more suitable supplier of custom fired tiles for my collectors and clients.
Nevertheless, I’ve made arrangements to produce my line of kiln fired, food safe ceramic, glass, botticcino marble tile murals and back splashes, along with my exclusive line of one of a kind mosaics. These glass and tile works will be soon available directly from my website within the next few weeks. They will be available for immediate purchase and can be delivered within the US.
For inquires or custom orders please contact my studio directly as my murals are not available from any other mayor supplier.
UPDATE 7/8/2011: To clear some of the misconceptions of these past few months. In a correspondence with the only lawyer that has contacted me, in the company owner’s futile attempt to make me remove this post, he on behalf of the company owner claimed back in April of this year, I should remove my post as “I’m slandering and defaming the company owner’s good name” or else she will sue me as according to her and her lawyer “I hacked her website, removed valuable information off of it and the FBI will find out since no one else had access to her website but me”. Nonetheless, after my, I admit rude reply to her lawyer for all the nonsense his client expressed, this went no where as expected. The company owner has being fabricating information and committing perjury trying to coax me to remove this post, which is just not going to happen as I want to prevent other artists to fall for the same scam I was victim of which has costed me over $15000 in unpaid fees for web design, graphic design, implementation, consultation and customization for the company’s owner.
More over the company owner has being spreading rumors via email to many of my friend artists and colleagues, informing them “I’m a dishonest artist” among many other more serious and defamatory statements for which I have copies as many of the artists have forwarded me the emails.
The reason why I decided to tell this short story is because I’m fed up with the tons of false allegations spread by the company owner in the past few months. These are just a few of the reasons why I ended my contract with Compassionate Arts Tile & Store and the reason I don’t want anything to do with the company owner. If others have had similar experiences and have decided to end their business relationships with the company owner, I have no fault in that, but can only be blamed on the company owner herself for running her business in a less than unprofessional manner as I stated before and for scamming artists into believe her business intentions are honest. I’m not the only one the company owner has scammed, lied to and deceived. Unfortunately there is a very long list of mostly artists who have fallen into this weird business model the company owner runs, who have been scammed, who have never received any commission for sales, whom have done jobs for her and her company that have never been paid for. Many of these artists have contacted me after my first post and have offered their entire support if needed, which I appreciate. If my post help others avoid become victims of this bizarre business scenario, then so be it. I just wish more people would stop being afraid, come out and tell their stories.
UPDATE 8/18/2011: The company owner once again in a futile attempt to remove this post as it’s exposing her wrong doings which she wants to keep private, has reported me to my hosting provider causing not only a business interference which I do not accept, but the removal of the company owner’s full name. I was requested to remove only her name to be in compliance with their terms and conditions and substitute it with “the company owner”. My post on the other hand will not be removed as it has already helped many avoid becoming victims of a less than ideal licensing agreement.
I’m generally a positive person. But when things go wrong on my personal life I crumble down and my work suffers the consequences. I guess I’m more sensitive than I want to admit? too much pride perhaps in acting like a strong person during hard times when it reality I’m not that strong?…
On the personal level 2010 was really bad with both parents getting terribly sick at the same time and my dad passing away by the end of the year. These events impacted my daily painting tremendously to the point, I quite frankly took a sabbatical year from painting to deal with everything.
Although I admit I’m not emotionally completely recovered (that’s easier said than done considering the events) the worse of the storm has passed and my urges for smelling paint have slowly returned. I’ve found myself looking at my stack of pictures for inspiration and started painting again my postcard size paintings.
Meanwhile although excited for all the great things I’ve planned for this year I’m taking it slow, and I’m back at listing brand new and some old daily paintings @auction.
So don’t forget to check daily on my auction site www.valentiauctions.com and on my Postcards from Around the World blog for that brand new daily painting.
Happy New Year 2011 and happy painting!
Me, Mom and Dad December 1987
It’s been a while since I wrote on my blog. Things haven’t been good this year, quite surreal I should say. If I have to guess I’ll say this was the worse year of my entire life! Ever since it started, even before 2009 ended things started to turn for the worse. I see it back now after the worse of the storm had passed and it looks like a horrible nightmare from which none of us could woke up from no matter how much we tried.
Don’t get me wrong, business wise it was quite a challenging year, my skin care brand became a success and my studio/gallery keeps moving forward despite the economy, but family wise was not so good. At the end of 2009 mom was already living with Alzheimer’s disease for 4 years and turning for the worse every day. She was institutionalized and released in February 2010 after my dad so requested it. He said he couldn’t live without her and thought with his love he would be able to face anything and care for her. Very sweet but in my eyes unreal nonetheless.
In 2010 we discovered dad had been living with a brain tumor for a long time and we learned it was a metastasis from the lung cancer he had been suffering from for years in silence. I guess it was his way of protecting all of us? I wish he would have said something…. things would have been much, much different between all of us, but he was stubborn and too proud of a guy to admit he was being defeated by cancer. He sure was a very strong man! hey, he was my dad!
As his disease progressed and the tumor took the best of him his body started collapsing rapidly. It reached a point that my dad couldn’t control the left side of his body. His leg and arm weren’t working, yet he kept going for my mom. My mom by summer time didn’t know who any of us were. It was like if another person had occupied her body. She had no clue who any of us were, and we had no idea who she was. But we love her even if she doesn’t know who we are. Despite all what dad said about caring for mom with all his love, he reached a point he couldn’t do it anymore, his body didn’t have the necessary strength and mom had to be institutionalized again, this time with dad.
The doctors knew what was happening, but by his request we were kept in the dark about the most important details. I was able to talk to my dad in November and for the first time in quite a while we were able to tell each other how much we loved each other, no matter what.
On December 1st, I was about to launch my new perfume URBAN, finally my dream became a reality. I wanted to call him early in the morning to tell him I made my dream come true, but stupidly I was too busy with the behind the scenes to call my dad.
On December 1st, at 7:30pm Italy time, 1:30pm EST, my dad had passed away. Finally the cancer had won…
We find thousands of excuses to not reach out, we all get caught up with the every day life and pay little attention to our loved ones when we should care more. Life is so fragile to just not care enough. Although I know in my heart my dad is without a doubt in a much better place, is finally not suffering any more and is looking out for us, I would give anything to hear him at least one more time, to have 5 more minutes with him.
Don’t wait to tell your mom, dad, brother, sister, son or daughter how much you love them. Don’t ever stop telling them how much you love them. You might not get that second chance I’m so much wishing for.
Love to all especially to the ones that are no longer with us.
Happy Holidays
Manuela
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