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Mom turns to Internet to sell artwork
BACOLOD CITY – A Bacoloña artist has turned to the Internet to sell her art, in the process discovering that she could be a stay-at-home mom and still have a lucrative career.
Alpha Trinidad-Shanahan, 45, who recently held a one-woman show in Bacolod City, is now based in Brunei with her husband Philip Shanahan with whom she has twins, Conner and Niall, 5.
Shanahan, who also has a twin named Sigma, is a former nun, teacher and a cancer survivor.
“I am a self-taught artist who has discovered the joys of drawing and painting in my 30s. Now I am a stay-at-home mom and grateful for my passion for art, which helps me balance my energy especially through the days when domestic duties can be very demanding,” she said.
“Creativity is a gift and my response is to give my best in every artwork so it becomes a prayer of thanksgiving to God the Almighty,” Shanahan added.
The artist is the daughter of the late Joaquin and Jovencia Trinidad of Bacolod City and is an AB Psychology graduate from the University of Saint La Salle here.
Former nun
As a nun for six years, Shanahan worked among the Ifugao in the Cordilleras, and later in Taiwan.
After she quit being a nun at 27, she taught at the University of St. La Salle in Bacolod, Notre Dame in Cotabato and Assumption in Iloilo.
When Shanahan married Philip, an English teacher from Ireland who works for the Center for British Teachers, she moved to Saudi Arabia
with him and later to Malaysia and Brunei, where they have been living for a year now.
Her vast experience and travels have enriched her eye as an artist.
“I am mostly drawn to women as my subjects for my paintings. No nudes for me, though. A favorite master artist is Modigliani. I have a few small paintings done after his style. Catholic images also inspire me (such as) images of Jesus, Mary, the saints, the Pope, angels, etc. Once in a while, I do some florals or some other subjects for variety. Drawing something new is always a challenge I delight in,” Shanahan said.
Her adventure in painting began eight years ago, before she met her husband.
“I grew up in a very creative environment and my artistic tendencies did not have much room to blossom in a very hectic teaching schedule. So, I packed up and rented a small house and started drawing and painting. After about a year, I invited some friends to a little party to see my work. Their comments were encouraging,” she said.
Then romance caught up with her, Shanahan got married and had to leave for Saudi Arabia where her husband worked as a teacher.
“A month before departure, I found out I was pregnant with twins. So the following months were mostly adjusting to my new state of life, to a new country, and to being pregnant. All my painting materials never got unpacked,” she said.
Then, the couple decided to move back to Bacolod City for her to give birth so she could be close to her sisters.
“We only stayed in Bacolod until the boys were 4 months old before moving to my husband’s new job in Malaysia. My painting materials again traveled with us, but they remained kept in boxes until the boys turned three,” Shanahan said, and she decided it was time to paint again.
“My home studio evolved from just a tabletop in my kitchen, living room or bedroom, wherever my boys were playing or sleeping, to a spare bedroom.
Balance
“Painting was more like a hobby then, just to give me some space I can call my own. It provided some balance to my very busy life as a stay-at-home hands-on mother to twin boys,” she said.
This was also the time when she was introduced into the blog world, she said.
“I discovered many blogs by artists who paint every day and post their small works of art. So, in September 2007, I started my Daily Art Walk blog. I had so many small works stashed in folders or boxes, waiting to be posted,” Shanahan said.
Blogging also helped her sell her work. “As an artist blogger, I got introduced to so many other opportunities and sites where artists can display or sell their work. This was when I started to think of selling my artwork,” she said.
Shanahan posted her artworks on the Etsy Online Shop and on the Australian-based Red Bubble Shop.
At first, she said her customers were her family and friends.
Then slowly, strangers from other countries ordered her work.
“They either found my blog through surfing or they are artists or crafters who also run shops with Etsy and RedBubble. I reached a point when I told myself I have to start thinking business here,” she said.
Approaching the whole thing as a hobby was not enough anymore, she said.
“I needed organization and time management in my studio to be able to meet the demands at my shops. I needed promotional work, too, locally and internationally. My being a mom still comes first in everything. This belief got me even more driven to work with a timetable so my household does not suffer,” she said.
Today, in addition to Etsy and RedBubble, Shanahan has other online sites where her paintings are available for purchase. Dawanda Online Shop is similar to Etsy but based in Germany.
Another is the Absolute Arts site where she has her portfolio.
All the links to the online shops where Shanahan’s art are being sold can be found on her blog at http://www.dailyartwalk.blogspot.com. One can also view her artworks at http://www.alphashanahan.etsy.com.
Shanahan also held a one-woman show in Bacolod last December where she sold many of her works.
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