Art & Inspiration Blog

Each year I donate a postcard to Visual AIDS’ Postcards from the Edge mainly because I have lost friends to AIDS and this happens to be a well run charity that I can support. Plus, of course, they solicit art from artists and I get the fun in exhibiting my postcard (along with 1000 plus others) in a top tier Chelsea gallery.

This year’s event was at the prestigious Cheim and Read. Many of the very best Chelsea NY best galleries have served with the event moving to a new venue each year.

At the time this blog is posted Postcards from the Edge benefit has raised over $83,000 and displayed the work of 1,475 artists. Thousands of guests attended, including those who pay to attend the jam packed opening night where they stalk out the postcards that become available the following morning when they sell for $85.00 each.

So far, I have only donated Genesis: Sunrise Sunset painted postcards. Partially because since my first donation I learned that they sell, but also as Genesis I:7 is the theological (but not scientific) basis for Post Conceptual UnGraven Image Art theory.

VisualAIDS Sunset 2011 is created of strokes that are all the original letters from Genesis 1-:27. It is a part of my Genesis: Sunset-sunrise series.

Visual AIDS Sunset 2011

By Judy Rey Wasserman

To see the postcard I donated last year go to: http://ungravenimage.com/blog/2011/03/genesis-sunset-for-visualaids-2010

This artwork’s name tells the basics of its story: that it is created from strokes that are the original Torah font letters of Psalm 148 and that it is an image of a poinsettia.

Yet there is more to this image, as poinsettias have become a popular decoration during the winter holiday season.

Poinsettias are native to Mexico. According to legend in the 16 th century a young, poor Mexican girl was inspired by an angel to gather weeds from the roadside as a present for Jesus’ birthday, and to place these before the church alter. When red flowers blossomed the flower became associated with Christmas. By the 17 th century Mexican Franciscan friars were including poinsettias in there Christmas celebrations, claiming that the leaf pattern symbolized the Star of Bethlehem, while the red color symbolizes the blood of Christ. Plus, of course the colors that symbolize Christmas are greed and red, which are the colors of Italy where the Vatican is located.

Poinsettia Psalm 148 Print

Although the plant can be grown easily in warmer climates and is fairly drought tolerant, it was not until the Ecke family in Los Angeles developed a special grafting technique to make the plants bushier and more attractive, and then sold and promoted them across the USA that the strong association between poinsettias and the winter holidays began. This is a very recent development that was successfully promoted by Paul Ecke, Jr., who appeared on television shows such as the Tonight Show and Bob Hope’s Christmas specials.

Since poinsettia’s are native to Mexico, they are not mentioned in the Bible; nor do they play a role in any of the world’s other major religions, as other flowers, such as the rose and lily do.

So Jews, who celebrate Chanukah during the winter holiday season, also bring home poinsettias and use this image on cards and decorations. Like snowmen, poinsettias brighten winter décor without being especially religiously significant.

Poinsettia Psalm 148 is stylized to represent both or either the Jewish or Christian symbols. While real flowers were uses as models, the leaves were purposefully arranged. The green leaves have four points, while the red ones have six, visually symbolizing both a cross and Star of David. As during the same time period that poinsettias have become recognized as a holiday season flower, much of the Christian community in the USA has been increasingly supportive of the Jews and then Israel.

Poinsettia Psalm 148 can be seen as a symbol and visual prayer for tolerance and peace for the winter holidays and every day.

Poinsettia Psalm is available as an open edition fine art archival (click–>) print from the artist’s studio. It is also featured on cards, postage, ornaments, bags and attire, etc., at (click–>) Judy Rey’s Zazzle Store.

Last night, I kept awakening for now reason and then just comfortably cuddling beneath the covers as I was wide awake.

As I lay awake last night , I was very much in the moment. In the Now. So I decided just to experience lying in bed.  Just being.

And it just naturally followed, as being in the now, in the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand – the I AM moment – that I naturally welled up with appreciation for it. One cannot drag in resentments, anger, fear, upsets, and any of the past woes into the now and actually be in the Now. Being in that present time, which is a kind of being in the Truth, one enjoys the clarity of appreciating the gift of the moment.

There I was cozily appreciating and giving The Divine thanks for my being cozy, for the breathing I began to experience, for the dark, for the now…At that moment, everything was perfect.And then the alarm went off. It was morning. At some point I had just fallen fast asleep.

Woman of Valor Rosebud print

Despite our daily concerns, worries and goals, we have so much to be grateful for that we did not really create for ourselves. Even a sick person has enough good health to be alive, and enjoy all if not most of their senses of sight, taste, smell, etc.

It’s not about seeing the glass as half full or half empty but experiencing the kind of miracle that there is a glass that can hold water and that there is water. For even glassblowers cannot make the silica and ingredients used to make a glass, and water is always a gift of life.

This Thanksgiving I look forward to giving more thanks quietly and personally. In appreciating small moments and acts of moments of chewing, sharing, laughing, seeing breathing and being in the now.

I hope this inspires you to join me in that appreciating and give thanks in the now, too.

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From now through Sunday, November 27, 2011 at 11:59 PM EST you can get a discount of 35% off of anything and everything available in my Art of Seeing The Divine and UnGraven Image estore: http://estore.artofseeingthedivine.com/ ! That includes signed and numbered limited edition prints, open edition prints and – for the first time ever—a discount of the initial down payment for a personal Essence Portrait for you or a loved one. Use code BLKFRI when asked for your coupon code in the easy secure check out. You can use any credit card via PayPal to pay for your order.

There are gifts available in the estore for everyone who is important to you, and in most price ranges, plus do not forget to gift yourself! Bring the Bible into your home or place of work, or into those spaces for the people you care about. This is the art that inspires a new vision.

My video, “Painting with the Big Bang of Genesis” won the top prize from Ulpan Or’s Facebook contest. SEE:  http://www.ulpanor.com/2011/ulpan-or%E2%80%99s-free-online-hebrew-course-contest-%E2%80%93-the-awards/

The contest asked contestants to answer the question, “Why I love Hebrew”. Watch the winning video below to see the amazing correlations between Torah font Hebrew and elementary physics as depicted in the radical new Post Conceptual UnGraven Image Art.

My first lesson was two days ago, and I am already saying some phrases and answering simple conversational questions. The materials include Ulpan Or’s book, a CD to listen and review what I am learning, plus, a wonderful and patient teacher, Miri, who I will be working with over our Skype connection.

The most difficult subject for me to learn, even just pass has always been foreign languages, in both high school and college. I am so visually orientated that learning to speak and understand another language is difficult. After many years of French studies, I can read French fairly well, but understanding what is said to me is difficult, beyond elementary phrases.

However, I am applying myself diligently, and am finding that the approach of Ulpan Or, through the one-to-one teaching over the phone and the CD quickly gives me more listening experience and also engages my participation.

It is my hope that my mouth will speak Hebrew as well as my hands “speak” Hebrew’s Torah font in my art. To watch that happen, see the video below.

USA Money Flag I, is created using strokes that are the original letters of Exodus 20, plus Leviticus 19 for the portrait of Alexander Hamilton and Proverbs 13 for the portrait of Benjamin Franklin. At the moment this is an original tradigital print combining artworks that were created by hand and scanned in on a professional scanner then combined and manipulated digitally.

This pigment ink painting features original artwork by Judy Rey Wasserman of all six USA currency bills currently issued by the U.S. Treasury in an American Flag, stars and stripes image.

USA Money Flag I visually explores and represents the current focus, problems and even dilemmas that face the USA as we continue to create a unique national identity during the ongoing recession and money problems that include the bailouts, unemployment, fraudulent practices by many of its major banks in relation to foreclosures and mortgage securities.

A version that combines acrylic paint with the hand drawn printed pigment ink currency bills is planned for canvas. This 16 x 24 inch original pigment ink painting on paper is a signed limited edition of 150. This is a study and version for the very much larger work, which will use life size currency. [For more information, including closes-ups of the work, dealers, collectors and press can contact the artist through her website at http://ungravenimage.com, follow and message her on Twitter: @judyrey or Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/judyreywasserman .]

USA Money Flag I, 2011 by Judy Rey Wasserman

Another original artwork from Judy Rey Wasserman’s the In God We Trust series, which features money, was shown in the Green Holly Greetings blog, depicting a variation on her basic one dollar bill, and again in the Vote 2010 blog. However, the Essence Portraits of Presidents (using the original letters of Exodus 20) of George Washington, Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant, and Grover Cleveland, plus the Essence Portraits of Benjamin Franklin and Alexander Hamilton have all been previously featured in blogs and most may ve seen in the You Tube video, “Essence Portraits, The Art of Seeing The Divine in Ourselves and Others” “Essence Portraits, The Art of Seeing The Divine in Ourselves and Others” . To see close ups and purchase an open edition print of the George Washington Essence portrait Click http://estore.artofseeingthedivine.com

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Judy Rey Wasserman is an artist and the founder of Post Conceptual Art theory and also the branch known as UnGraven Image Art. Download a free copy click: Manifesto of Post Conceptual Art– A Painting’s Meaning is Inherent in its Stroke. Follow her on Twitter at @judyrey .]

On Wednesday, May 18, 2011, it was my privilege to be interviewed by the Biz Chicks, Bonnie Green and Jill Freeman for their month featuring Artists and Writers.

Their questions were insightful and inspiring and I am assured my answers were likewise.

Listen to the podcast of the show to learn about art, my earliest memory of art, new ideas of how to use social media to promote your ideas, and creativity. Plus, learn how I use the ideas I’ve learned from Warhol, Da Vinci and other great artists to approach social media.  Enjoy!

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Watch a short video “Painting with the Big Bang of Genesis”  that shows you  how a new Post Conceptual & UnGraven Image is specially created. It’s like watching a universe form in front of your eyes!  Go to :http://ungravenimage.com

Judy Rey Wasserman is an artist and the founder of Post Conceptual Art theory and also the branch known as UnGraven Image Art. Download a free copy of the revolutionary art manifesto (PDF) — CLICK:  Manifesto of Post Conceptual Art– A Painting’s Meaning is Inherent in its Stroke.

Follow on Twitter = @judyrey
Facebook Fan page- LIKE Fan Page

To see the available limited edition signed and numbered prints or less expensive open edition prints, or to reserve a place in the line for an Essence Portrait commissioned for you or a loved one, or to purchase a copy of The Art of Seeing The Divine, Book 1, What Do You See?,  GO TO to: http://estore.artofseeingthedivine.com

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”

Prayer can be visual art.

As an artist, there are times when I can best express myself , my prayers as art because even though I use words– the letters of words actually as my strokes, my hands can sing  the words of my heart in a way that my mouth cannot.

One week ago today, my best friend and prayer partner, Rebecca Sellers, called me at 7 AM , waking me up. Rebecca knows better than to ever call me at that hour as I usually work into the early morning hours, after our prayer time ends, usually after midnight.

Fearing someone had died; I picked up the phone and asked, “What happened?”

“We have to pray. There’s a tsunami headed for Hawaii after a massive earthquake in Japan,”

We watched together and channel surfed TV and web from our home offices, mine in New York and Rebecca’s in Florida we learned that a tsunami has also hit Japans north east coast. And we prayed, and prayed—not our usual once a day joining together, but several times a day as the news story develops.

Sadly, the tragic story continues to develop as the full devastation and destruction continues to be discovered and grow due the nuclear crisis which has curtailed some rescue effort while creating another horrific threat.

Where I live the leaves of the jonquils and crocuses can be seen pushing up out of the earth. There are gnarly bumps of buds and new growth on bushes and trees. These promise a coming burst of colorful blossoms, much needed after an unusually bitter cold and snow filled dreary winter.

The stores, flyers and even shopping channels that I surf to during commercials are promoting seedlings, seeds and garden stuff, which visually coexist just one click away with my remote, or a turn of the page in a newspaper with the news and images coming from Japan.

I kept thinking about flowers and Japan as I created what could be called a basic Essence Portrait of a rose, using the original letters of Deuteronomy 6 for strokes. This is a basic Bible text prayed by Jesus, the disciples and many Jews throughout history on a daily basis.

Basic Rose Aleph by Judy Rey Wasserman

Strokes are Deuteronomy 6

But these flower had nothing intrinsically to do with Japan . I couldn’t think of a flower that could be specifically associated with Japan , so, I asked Rebecca, who immediately replied, “Cherry tree blossoms.”

Perfect.

For Japanese people cherry blossom is considered an omen of good fortune and is also an emblem of love, or affection. They are also an enduring metaphor for the fleeting nature of life represented by spring, which has not yet arrived in Japan .

I set about to find images of cherry blossoms and trees, plus a scriptural text that could serve as the strokes to represent what had and was happening and also my prayers and hopes for Japan.

The next night as Rebecca and I were praying via telephone for Japan, we fell silent at a loss for words to express our sorrow, hope, and fears about the situation.

“Hold on,” said Rebecca. After a minute she returned and read aloud, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will we not fear, though the earth do change, and though the mountains be moved into the heart of the seas; Though the waters thereof roar and foam, though the mountains shake at the swelling thereof… ‘Let be, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth. The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our high tower…”

We said “amen” in unison.

I knew Rebecca had also provided me with the text I needed to use as strokes for the cherry blossoms, Psalm 46.  Perhaps coincidentally, the full text of Psalm 46 also seems to allude to the events in the Middle East as “nations topple”, which is also currently in the news.

Cherry Blossoms Prayer for Japan by Judy Rey Wasserman

Strokes are Psalm 46

This is the second time a tsunami that a story for the results of a tsunami inspired me with a new series of art. The 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami coincided with a blizzard here, which together focused me on how wild animals endure and overcome nature’s fury and trials. The Written on the Wind series depicts animals.

Rebecca and I continue to pray for the people of Japan and those who are there to aid them and report on their stories to us all.  I have plans for more art about Japan to inspire and offer hope.

The Cherry Blossoms Prayer for Japan will be available as a print next week to help raise funds for Japan. Sign up for the newsletter, follow me on Twitter or the Facebook Fan page for news about that offering, which will bless your home or office space while you bless those in need.

I do not have a name for the new series depicting flowers, and if you have a suggestion please tweet it to me @judyrey or post it on my Facebook fan page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Judy-Rey-Wasserman/54246793250

[ Rebecca Sellers lives and works in Orlando, Florida where she is the owner of CMEWebs http://cmewebs.com/ Follow her on Twitter @cmewebs

Judy Rey Wasserman is an artist and the founder of Post Conceptual Art theory and also the branch known as UnGraven Image Art. Download a free copy click: Manifesto of Post Conceptual Art-- A Painting's Meaning is Inherent in its Stroke. Follow her on Twitter at @judyrey . ]

Each year I donate a postcard to VisualAIDS for their Postcards from the Edge show and sale.

As usual my postcard sold, which always makes me happy as this is a really good cause. To quote from their web site,” Visual AIDS is the only contemporary arts organization fully committed to HIV prevention and AIDS awareness through producing and presenting visual art projects, while assisting artists living with HIV/AIDS. We are committed to preserving and honoring the work of artists with HIV/AIDS and the artistic contributions of the AIDS movement. We embrace diversity and difference in our staff, leadership, artists, and audiences.”

Here is a view of my postcard size art fro this year. This work was created with watercolor pencils using strokes from Genesis 1-2:7. Therefore it falls into the Genesis: Sunset-Sunrise series and is Post Conceptual Art that also belongs to the branch known as UnGraven Image.

Genesis Sunset for VisualAIDs 2010 by Judy Rey Wasserman

Judy Rey Wasserman is an artist and the founder of Post Conceptual Art theory and also the branch known as UnGraven Image Art. Download a free copy click: Manifesto of Post Conceptual Art– A Painting’s Meaning is Inherent in its Stroke. Follow her on Twitter at @judyrey .]

A portrait of Ulysses S.  Grant has been on the face of the USA’s $50 dollar bill since 1913. My special interest in creating an Essence Portrait of President Grant stems from this as the final bill face for my new In God We Trust series is that of the $50 bill. My versions of all of the others currently created by the USA Mint are completed.

Ulysses S. Grant (1822 – 1885) was the 18th President of the United States (1869–1877). He was also the military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant’s command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military. After leading many military victories, Confederate general Robert E. Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox, and soon after the Confederacy collapsed and the Civil War ended.

Grant also merits our attention due to his civil rights record in both heading up the Union Army and then his actions during Reconstruction and during his presidency.

The  Essence Portrait of Ulysses S. Grant uses the original letters of Exodus 20 (the Ten Commandments) for each and every stroke. All of my Post Conceptual and UnGraven Image Essence Portraits of  USA presidents use this text as our Chief Executive’s duty is to administer the federal laws, statutes and especially to protect the Constitution. The Ten Commandments are widely held to be a basis for the ideas, ideals and original laws and the Constitution.

Ulysses S. Grant (Exodus 20 – the Ten Commandments) by Judy Rey Wasserman

For more about Ulysses S. Grant see Wikipedia’s Ulysses S. Grant .

To discover more about Essence Portraits, including many more portraits, a video about the history of portraiture and how Essence Portraits are the next 21 Century step in portraiture, plus how you can commission one for yourself or a loved one, SEE: Essence Portraits

To purchase an Essence Portrait print of George Washington (Exodus 20 – the Ten Commandments) to display in your home, office or as a gift SEE: Washington

Dear Jerry,

This third and final blog on Twitter basics covers lists, follow back or not, Twitter Favorites, and some extra Twitter tips. Although specifically written for you as an email, I post it as the information can help others also. Sharing (and to an extent eavesdropping, is a big part of what Social Media is about.

There are several ways to see other people’s tweets, or have your tweets seen.

1. Our Tweets appear in the Timeline of everyone who follows us, and vice versa.

2. Anyone’s tweets can be seen in Search IF they contain the term being searched. This is how we converge to discuss #workofart in real time when it shows. However if you type in any term, even without a # all the tweets that include the term will show up, newest on top.

3 We can follow Twitter Lists of people that we create or that we subscribe to that are created by others.

Twitter Lists

Every Twitter List has a name, which hopefully helps describe it. For example, I have an Art list and you are on it. So are most major museums, galleries, art news sources and some artists. Anyone can follow it, and once they do they can click on any of their followed lists at anytime to check out what the people on that list are saying.

We can place people on our lists, plus read the tweets of Twitter members on others’ lists without needing to follow them.

We can create a list of our favorite Tweeter members, or one of family and friends or important informational sources, so that on hectic days when catching up with our whole Timeline is difficult, we can simply check out the people and sources that are important to us.

Following the lists of others who we enjoy following also serves to introduce us to new members who they place on special lists.

When someone places you or me on a list it increases our reach of influence as now we have more potential to reach people who do not follow us because they follow that list.

Follow Back or Not?

I am known for following back people who follow me, unless they spam me—especially my DMs, or if their Tweets are porno, racist, sexist, or intolerant, etc. [By the way such tweets need to be reported to twitter, and there are Contact links at the bottom of every twitter page. For spam simply follow @spam, which is Twitter's spam cop that will follow you back so you can conveniently send them A DM about any spammer. Spammers are people who incessantly tweet the same message with a link to some product, or send many such links to our DMs.]

One of the reasons I follow back is that it allows me to reach more people to introduce and gain interest for Contemporary Art, and art in general, plus of course introduce Post Conceptual Art, including the branch of UnGraven Image.

Jerry, you are well known and respected as an art critic and now also Reality TV celebrity, so people will follow you who are already your fans and interested in what you have to say. But what if you want to widen your reach and influence?

I enjoyed it on Facebook when you went off-topic and messaged about your new coffee machine. If you had done that on Twitter anyone who searched for “coffee” might have found you, recognized you shared a common interest and followed you. Certainly there are people who are also baseball fans and opera lovers who you can find and follow and be followed by on Twitter who you can introduce to Contemporary Art.

Many Twitter members prefer to ReTweet (RT) the messages of the people who follow them, since a RT is a kind of endorsement. Why would anyone freely endorse someone who did not want to even be in a simple follow back relationship? Especially on Fridays, I actually search out free, family or especially interesting events being held by museums that follow me , and some galleries and RT them as a service to my followers. I have issued an ongoing invitation to museums who follow me to DM me such events that I will RT.

New Media, which means Social Media, is interactive and about relationships. It is a two way model as opposed to the Old Media model of broadcast and print that sends news and information out, without including input, response or debate in the process. This is the new paradigm.

Jerry, on Facebook you have been an example how a critic (or news source) can be influential and engaging via Social Media. I wrote these blogs about Twitter Basics for you in hope that you will bring the same kind of dialogue to Twitter. This is selfish of me as I enjoy the Facebook dialogue with you and your friends, but more importantly one of my goals is to expand the interest Contemporary Art to include more people. Elsewhere I have written and commented that for me, Bravo’s Work of Art is success as it is achieving that (and thanks to you for participating as a judge).

When I first ventured onto Social Media I asked myself what certain specific artists who I admire would do with this outreach and relationship opportunity if they had had it in their day. I consciously continue to consider what Andy Warhol, Monet, Vincent van Gogh, Rembrandt van Rijn, Leonardo Da Vinci, plus others, would do.

One of the insights this gave me was to utterly be myself and although I am an artist, I have other interests than art, as did the aforementioned artists. Jerry, how might the great art critic in the past have used Social Media?

I naturally seek to follow an eclectic mix of people on Social Media, because I am an information and news junkie. I spend more time reading links I find to information, which certainly includes a art news and information, but ranges into science and technology, business, psychology, the other arts, history and current events, which includes information about Social Media itself. I am forever curious and fascinated by other people and the world, so I spend more time lurking and following information than adding my own messages. Like Warhol, I’m watching quietly from my corner of the room.

When I first became active on Twitter I busily followed so many people, over 1,000 in a little over an hour. I followed the people who the most interesting people I could find, in many fields, including art, were following. Then I sat back and watched my Timeline for three days, which felt a lot like eavesdropping. When one of the people I followed was in a conversation, I followed the people in the conversation. This is a good way to find new and interesting people to follow.

Some of the people who I was following followed me back, which surprised me, especially since I was not tweeting, just avidly watching.

When I finally entered into a conversation, and began to tweet, including links to my blogs and images of my art, some of the people who followed me clicked on the links. Many of these people were not interested in art and were not following me because we shared an interest in art, but because we had a different interest in common they were some of the first people to discover Post Conceptual Art and the branch of UnGraven Image.

Twitter imposes limits on the number of people we can follow, which they do not actually publish. Basically the skivvy is that until we have about 1,914 or so followers we cannot follow more than 2000 people. After we cross that limit we can follow 10% more people than the number of people who follow us, plus about 1, 914. For example is 80,000 follow you can follow 8,000 people who do not follow you back. Since many more people now follow you than you follow this may not seem to concern you, but it absolutely does concern anyone who seeks to expand their influence and reach.

Most Twitter members never break that 1, 914 limit. Having explained the limits and helped people who follow me before, I have learned that people dislike unfollowing other Twitter members, especially if they tweet interesting information, but that they quickly learn they have to pick and chose their sources of information wisely due to the twitter limits. Members who follow back are “free” since they do not effect one’s limits.

Other than limiting the percentage of the people who we can follow back based on our number of followers, and also the number we can follow daily (based on the previous allotment, but no more than 1000), there is no limit to the number of people who we can follow or that can follow us. This means we can potentially reach and interact with as many people as Twitter has members.

There is no reason to ever unfollow anyone who follows us back unless they tweet messages that we find reprehensible or annoying. Lists can be used to sort members who tweet on specific subjects, and those we want to watch closely. My life has been enriched by many of the people I follow back, some of whom I never would have known had I not followed them.

The Talmud asks: “Who is wise?” And, answers: “The person who can learn from anyone.” Plus, it is difficult for me to imagine, Vincent van Gogh unfollowing anyone who followed him and was not offensive to his sensibilities. That last sentence totally settles the matter for me.

Favorites

Twitter gives us a Favorites tab, wherein they suggest we can store our all time favorite tweets. But, we do not have to use it for that.

I use mine as bookmarking tab, where I store tweets I wash to check out in depth at a later time, tweets I am considering RTing and as a place to remind me of people, both followers and non, who I also intend to check out further. For me, this makes it very handy. Nothing in my Favorites tab is actually a favorite of mine.

More Tips

Two experts on Social Media that I cannot recommend everyone follow, who I learned this and other Social Media and other tips from are @ChrisBrogan and @GuyKawasaki . Both will follow you back.

It seems that no more that 10% of our followers are on Twitter to see our tweets at any given moment. Guy Kawasaki says he generally tweets a link three times during the day to the stories in Alltop, his online magazine that aggregates so much great information on almost any subject, including art. Of course, the best way to tweet a link or information again is to ReTweet someone who ReTweeted it!

Twitter now makes suggestions of people who we might wish to follow. I find that some of these suggestions have merit for me but many do not. It is easy to find out about any Twitter member from their profile page. It is impossible to make a mistake as it is very easy to unfollow anyone.

Final Notes

Twitter is a micro-blogging platform that offers almost unlimited opportunity to interact with all of its members, and include them in the conversation via the use of hashtaged phrases, such as #workofart, lists, retweets, plus allowing an unlimited number of followers, which differs to Facebook friends that are limited to 5,000. This not only gives others greater exposure to us, but allows us greater opportunity to discover new people and sources of information about anything.

Unlike Facebook’s Fan Pages, Twitter accounts do not need to basically remain within their brand to attract followers, but can add additional interests, interests such as baseball, opera and what brand of cashews is the best, and thus widen one’s connections.

Using a hashtag phrase in a search allows to you easily find members who share your interests, or find information, including breaking news via Twitter. Any event, such as a TV show or game or breaking news can be immediately discussed in real time with anyone and everyone else using that #. This week #sotu (State of The Union ) became a TT (Trending Topic) as Twitter members watched and commented on President Obama’s address in real time.

For convenience here are links to the two prior blogs of Twitter Basics:

Twitter Basics I covers: I.D. name and avatar, basics of account set up, how to tweet, including links, retweets, expanding influence, hashtags, and more.

Twitter Basics II covers: How to follow and unfollow, and just about everything about Direct Messages (DM).

Jerry, your use of Facebook to encourage discussions about art has been one of highlights of my experiences on Social Media. These blogs to you are a sort of thank you, with the hope that you will also bring the discussions to Twitter, too. For a while I had considered blogging much of this information as it seems to me than many of the museums, artists, informational art resources, galleries, etc., on Twiier could benefit from it. So, also thanks for your questions about Twitter, because encouraging you to Tweet motivated me, which I hope is for the common good.

I especially hope you will comment through the next broadcasting of episodes of Bravo’s Work of Art, which some of the contestants did last season. The show introduces and brings Contemporary Art and ideas to many people, which is something I support.

If, you or anyone has more questions, concerns, tips or remarks about Twitter please ask them in the comments below so everyone can see the answers.

[Note: Jerry Saltz is the Art Critic for New York Magazine and also one of the three art judges on Bravo's popular reality show, Work of Art. Here is a link to an archive of his articles at New York Magazine: http://nymag.com/nymag/jerry-saltz/ .
Judy Rey Wasserman is an artist and the founder of Post Conceptual Art theory and also the branch known as UnGraven Image Art. Download a free copy click: Manifesto of Post Conceptual Art-- A Painting's Meaning is Inherent in its Stroke. Follow her on Twitter at @judyrey .]