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Nancy Cawdrey Gallery News
 The fam in beautiful Glacier National Park, at Rainbow Falls near Goat Haunt on Waterton Lake Two weeks ago, I had never been out West. I had never been to a wedding or a rodeo. And though my parents have lived in Texas for six years, I had managed to avoid wearing a cowboy hat. I had never hiked for four days through a National Park and, most upsetting to me, I had never eaten a huckleberry! It’s a summer of firsts for me and I’m loving the ride!
 Me with Morgan at his cousin Ryan's wedding My time in Montana has been a whirlwind of excitement, surrounded by some of the nicest people I’ve ever met. I’ve been introduced to so many wonderful, interesting new friends since coming to the Valley; just please don’t quiz me onall the names yet! The mountains are breathtaking and driving by Flathead Lake in the morning makes me pinch myself, but it’s the people that have made me fall in love with Montana. Surrounded by this vast expanse of land and sky larger than I have ever seen, I have come to realize that people here fill the space with sincere kindness, deep friendships and big hearts.
There’s always energy around the Cawdrey residence. Usually it comes from Nancy running off to 4.0 tennis, Steve flying around on his cell phone taking care of five things at once or Willy scurrying about with a Frisbee in his mouth. This week, the energy came from Morgan’s art classes. Morgan and his students (including Debbi Waldenberg, her daughter Lauren and friend Angie, Angel from Plains, Carol Atkinson, Nina Anderson and Laura Clayton) painted pears, sunsets and leaves under the Cawdrey’s beautiful pergola, surrounded by lavender, hops and of course little Willy.
 Willy!  Morgan teaching his silk painting class to three talented students Thank you so much to Nancy and Steve for graciously welcoming me into their home, but more importantly into their lives. I’m looking forward to a move to Whitefish with Morgan this October and our adventures to come!
-Avis Caplan
 - Nancy Dunlop Cawdrey Gallery & Studio, Bigfork, MT, USA
When I first met Steve Cawdrey, he was open to the idea of using Social Media to market Nancy Cawdrey Gallery, but he was definitely reticent. Steve, like everyone else who doesn’t truly understand the nature of social media marketing, wanted to know about ROI (Return On Investment). After all, he’s a business man. His job is to generate revenue. Simply put, he wanted to see results and he wanted to know how long it would take to see them. But as someone who has been using Social Media Marketing for a number of years, it’s almost maddening to me to hear this question FIRST. Why? Because there’s a misconception that Facebook, Twitter and any other social media platform is similar to the ad campaigns of days that are now long gone. Social Media is absolutely NOT a numbers game. Social Media, when used correctly, is about building relationships, creating your personality, providing on-line customer support and company branding that will eventually lead to increased revenue. Your strategy, simply put, it to build relationships. Your tactics are what follows.
Most businesses depend first and foremost on revenue, and it’s very difficult to explain to someone unfamiliar with social media that being social and making money are totally natural and compatible; all in good time. It’s how you DO social media, and in what context you do it that separates good social media marketing from bad. Social Media is not about self promotion. It’s about greeting the customers who walk through your door, but the doors have transcended all notion of space by way of technology.
Social media allows you to amplify your reach in ways that marketing on television and and radio cannot. For example, last week we saw that 13 people from Italy have liked our Nancy Cawdrey Facebook Page ( http://on.fb.me/lTnavR ). For us, the joy is in seeing that our brand has reached Italy. The frustration is in not quite knowing how we did it. One thing is certain, social media does NOT have boundaries. So if we want to take our Social Media Marketing to the next level, we could start speaking to our Italian fans on Facebook using their native language which Nancy speaks fluently. The challenge lies in the fact that we want Nancy to focus on what she does best, which is to paint. In addition, Nancy isn’t a big fan of technology. She prefers to interact with people who visit her in her studio or at gallery’s where her artwork is on exhibit. This leaves the social media up to me, and I don’t speak Italian. However, if we were to engage with our Italian guests on Facebook, we could potentially start building relationships with more people in Italy, who will potentially start sharing our links, who will hopefully be curious enough to start perusing the website: http://bit.ly/pjS1ml. Next thing you know, Voila! The Nancy Cawdrey brand is alive and well in Europe. Here’s the point of this little example: your audience is global and if you want to increase your revenue, you will not take this for granted. So it’s my role to be thinking about how to capture this market and build these “likers” into long term relationships. (P.S. – Steve can’t come to the phone right now, he’s studying his Italian).
 - Nancy at a recent exhibit at Hayden Hays Gallery
So, although the ROI from using Social Media isn’t immediate, it IS measurable and the investment is typically far less than the investment made when using a combination of print, television, radio and billboard campaigns. In fact, when you’re thinking in terms of investing in traditional media, you ask the salesperson “how many households will this potentially reach?” And when doing so, you’re looking at two things: the actual household numbers and the actual printed MEDIA itself, which can be very satisfying. People who hesitate to invest in Social Media are typically skeptical because they don’t see the shiny ‘tactile’ bobble that comes through printed material. If you want to see fast results using social media, create a video, post it on You Tube or Vimeo, and watch the number of viewers grow incrementally. Like I said, there are several tools to measure your social media investment.
Let’s be candid, the first several months after introducing a Facebook Business Page are extremely time consuming and labor intensive. You must constantly be getting to know the people who’ve taken the time to actually “like” you while reviewing and readjusting your targeted demographic. When it comes to leveraging social media to increase sales, you must develop and appreciate your new online relationships and navigate your target market using the precise combination of social, intellectual and technological skills. Using these new relationships, coupled with good old fashioned ad campaigns that incorporate promotional components can yield results and make your message stickier by being authentic and engaging, versus just promotional. At some point, you’ll reach what I call your “sweet spot,” which is the spot where momentum starts to kick in, and THEN once you’ve created the personality of your brand and you have a captive audience, you can start to incorporate your promotional tactics, which in the case of Nancy Cawdrey gallery, will be a variety of contests and promotional giveaways to the people that we appreciate for taking the time to look at Nancy’s work via our Facebook Page. ( http://on.fb.me/lTnavR )
In summary, Social Media is about thinking in terms of the big picture, your long term goals and the brand that you’re creating using technology as the platform. You can’t ignore someone who likes you on Facebook. If you do, you’ve just missed an opportunity to greet them at the door.
 - Please enjoy the ride with us by copying this link and pasting it into your url: http://on.fb.me/lTnavR
Wednesday’s from 2 to 4 pm have a totally different vibe around the gallery. It’s that one day of the week, that for two quick hours the flurry of activity gives way to visitors who take center state as they come to meet Nancy and experience life in her studio.
Set along the river in the gorgeous Flathead Valley, the gallery is approachable by car, bike or boat. Of course there’s also plenty of land if your preferred method of travel necessitates an air strip or a landing pad, in which case please call ahead so we know to close the windows. Dust is a dreadful annoyance when painting on silk.
 Visitors from Flathead Lake Lodge drop in by boat Just a skip past the gallery is the Cawdrey family residence. Set atop the garage, Nancy’s studio is unpretentious and fantastically welcoming. The brief journey up the stairs into this highly inspirational space, provides a miniature tour of some European memoirs. If you have the time and you’re feeling compelled to soak in as much information as possible, you’ll enjoy hearing stories of some of the paintings that Nancy has acquired over many years of studying and travels abroad. Years which clearly have instilled in her a cross cultural balance of work life with life-life which Europeans tend to excel at.
A unique experience greets you at the top of the stairs as the natural light on a warm sunny day envelops you softly. You’ll find your eyes wandering delightfully between breathtaking views of the landscape and the vibrancy of Nancy’s art supplies, her inspiration and a variety of “in progress” work.
 Nancy showing some visitors how she creates light and shadow. As I observe Nancy with a recent group of visitors (who arrived by boat) from Flathead Lake Lodge (www.flatheadlakelodge.com) I can’t help but notice how seemlessly she slips between artist and instructor. She talks about light and shadow, color and texture and a variety of techniques using salt. She’s not just sharing how she transforms a splash of color into a brilliantly blossoming poppy, she’s offering years of wisdom as a teacher and a mentor to many fortunate students. Her passion to help others goes beyond mentor-ship as Nancy contributes significantly to the Flathead Valley community. As you enjoy an intimate conversation with Nancy, what you DON’T know, is that Steve and Deborah are working very hard behind the scenes to selectively respond to numerous charitable requests, fund raising shows and gallery exhibits.
 Nancy showing Wednesday afternoon visitors how to create texture using salt. For students, artists, collectors or anyone aspiring to tap into their artist from within, this rare opportunity to meet Nancy in a small intimate setting is an absolute must. Please call the gallery for more information and directions: 406. 755.2727 or visit the website: www.nancycawdrey.com. And don’t forget to bring your pocketbook because you never know if you will meet that one special piece that speaks to you. For me, it was love at first sight with “Fang,” pictured below.
 "Fang" touched my heart the minute I saw him. He now has a new home.
It was all going so well, until life got in the way. I imagine that’s a sentiment many bloggers share with me. With guidance, encouragement and even a guest blog from Connie, we’ve really tried to make these postings a regular thing, but my full-time job as a TA at a summer school and camp in New Hampshire, my duties as the assistant show director for the Western Masters Art Show, and my very healthy appetite for fun in the summer sun allow precious few moments to meditate on the previous week’s events.
 My group at the top of Mt. Lafayette, 5200 ft. Middle of the clouds. But no excuses! Nancy is working hard and playing hard, like every other summer. She’s actually working a little harder this week after leaving one of her studio windows open overnight, allowing an intense Montana hailstorm to ruin three nearly completed pieces! Dye on silk, for all its archival quality and longevity, is still water media and very vulnerable to accidents like that. That’s why one doesn’t see many water media artists doing plein air painting. Aside from that, Nancy’s two-woman show with Carol Hagan in the brand new expansion of West Lives On Contemporary Gallery in Jackson, WY was stunning and successful.
 "Drinking Buddies" - dye on silk Before I headed to summer camp, my mom gave me as a gift one of my favorite pieces she has done recently: “Drinking Buddies.” It’s part of her African series, and I feel very fortunate to already be on my way to being an art collector. I now have three tiny pieces from my mom, Carol Hagan, and Brent Cotton, my favorite Montana artists.
That’s about it for the past week’s events, please check back next Friday for another update. Thanks for reading!
Hello from Nancy,
On our way to Jackson Hole for the Two Woman Show (with Carol Hagan) at West Lives On, we stopped by Bell Cross Ranch near Cascade, Montana at the invitation of Mike ad Sheila Ingram. I had completed a large commission for their ranch house entitled Bell Cross Posse, now hanging in their dining room/kitchen, and had scarves printed of the painting at the behest of Mike as gifts for the CAA gathering.
The Cowboy Artists of America (http://bit.ly/kuXYn3) were gathered there for their annual ride – and I was delighted to find that a friend and former teacher R.S. Riddick (http://bit.ly/kXzR17) was there! I had painted with Ron and others with the Plein Air Painters of America and travelled to Estes Park in Colorado to paint with him and other students. I also would connect with him when I visited my parents in Tucson. I particularly recall several strong statements that he would impart usually with a distinct Russian accent, learned from Sergei Bongart and other mentors: “No amount of good painting can save a bad composition. It doesn’t matter what color you use as long as the value is right. Painting- it’s not so difficult! Just put the right color in the right place!” To enjoy learning more about the Plein Air Painters of America and Sergei Bongart, please click on the following two links: http://on.fb.me/j45vIl http://bit.ly/m9l9t1%20
I so enjoyed re-connecting with Ron who has been in the CAA for a number of years and still continues to learn, draw, and paint a wide range of subject matter – his latest show features Sonoma wine country. (http://bit.ly/kodm4f)
At Bell Cross we watched a number of the CAA members shoot century-old Sharp and Remington rifles – with varied degrees of success at a target (buffalo) 300 yards away. Sculptor Oreland Joe (http://bit.ly/iJZOEH) and Cowboys & Indians Publisher Greg Brown (http://on.fb.me/lPy0lW) hit the target!
That night we socialized, watched a video taken that morning by artist Julie Jeppson (http://bit.ly/kHOk3C) and crew immortalizing everyone trying their hand at mounted shooting, and danced to a live cowboy band. The next morning as we departed the Great Falls Tribune featured the mounted shooting by the CAA group on the front page. (http://bit.ly/lpk99e)
Now I am here in Jackson, WY for the Grand Opening of the show Two Women: Boundless Color at the new West Lives On Contemporary Gallery. Come in and visit today if you are in the area! (http://on.fb.me/kogZ1i) And visit my Facebook page for more photos and information from behind the scenes of the Gallery and Studio (http://on.fb.me/koBtZ9).
 Steve: Wearing one of the custom men's scarves done for Bell Cross
My introductory meeting with Steven Cawdrey went a little something like this “It’s nice to meet you Connie. You should know that I’m very skeptical and you’re going to have to prove yourself before I can think about working with you.” With an appreciation for his cautious nature and his uncertain skepticism, I knew immediately that this was going to be the perfect fit. I hope you will continue to join us on our journey, as we provide a glimpse of life behind the scenes of famous Western Artist Nancy Cawdrey and her family. This is the story of how my journey with them began.
As I arrived at the studio to meet Nancy for the first time, I was completely taken by the artwork that enveloped me with every step. I wanted to know the story behind each painting, sketch and masterpiece, and within minutes, Nancy is kind enough to start sharing her stories. Having studied in France at an impressionable age her appreciation for the simpler European lifestyle is apparent as she guides me through her small studio, which she sometimes opens to the public on summer afternoons. If you have the opportunity to stop by, I strongly encourage you to do so. I promise you will leave feeling inspired beyond words (http://bit.ly/l8qP5L).
As she continues to let me explore her space, I’m taken by her gentleness and the calm that fluidly moves with her as she explains her various techniques and what inspires her the most. Clearly she loves animals of all kinds. In fact, she just so happens to have a relatively large collection of wildlife miniatures that she uses to study with an incredibly developed eye for detail. These collectible plastic figurines have been generously provided to her by Murdoch’s Home and Ranch Supply, and I believe with complete certainty, that these little creatures whisper in her ear while she works. If you are a student, I encourage you to think about investing in these unlikely models. (http://bit.ly/lVZbkU)
The vibrant color that Nancy has become so famous for creates an energy that she somehow tries to explain to a complete novice like myself. She tells me that people sometimes ask “Why did you use bright green on the legs of that horse?” She replies as if the answer is completely obvious: “there’s so much energy in the horse that I can feel it, and then I simply paint the energy that I feel.” When you experience this kind of intimate conversation with Nancy, you feel like you’ll never look at color the same. It takes on new meaning as I now look at the simplest blade of grass quite differently. Pick a blade for yourself and you’ll see; it’s not just green, but three shades of chartreuse with a dash of sun splashed pink. She points to pictures of horses and buffalo and dozens of poppies, many of which were photographed on a recent trip to Italy. She delicately traces the light and the shadow with her fingertips, and unlike anyone I’ve ever experienced, she somehow manages to breathe life into these photographs with her detailed, impassioned explanation. From this, she will create a one of a kind piece of artwork that someone will someday cherish. For more examples of Nancy’s work, please click on this link: http://bit.ly/iOsbHo.
As I listen, it’s becoming more and more apparent that Nancy’s talent spans far beyond the canvas. I hope that you will join us each week, as we continue to explore the behind the scenes life of Nancy Dunlop Cawdrey, her husband and manager Steven Wiley Cawdrey and their son and artist, Morgan Cawdrey. In the meantime, if you’re interested in what’s going on at the studio and in the daily lives of the Cawdrey’s, please join us on Facebook: http://on.fb.me/koBtZ9. It is my absolute honor to be working with this family, and we look forward to having you join us.
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