Illustration Friday A super fun weekly artistic challenge!

Illustration Friday Giveaway :: Artist WordPress Theme!!

By Penelope

Hello artists! I am super thrilled to bring you this giveaway. This is a WordPress theme, designed by Josh Sears of Papertelevision, to help make your artwork look amazing by showcasing it in a professional, easy-to-manage way. Read the Q&A below for more info.

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1. Okay, so my dumb question should probably come first: What exactly *is* a theme?
That’s actually a good question, if only because it’s surprisingly tough to answer! Without getting technical, a theme allows you to make your WordPress site look and function with a specific set of features. These features are pre-designed, and pre-programmed by designers and/or developers, allowing you to launch a professional-looking site at an extremely low cost compared to building from scratch. Even better, Artist is fully responsive, meaning it displays properly on every tablet, and mobile phone. There’s a lot more to that answer, but in short: It let’s you make an awesome, personalized WordPress website, without the fuss.

2. You probably already answered this in the first answer, but who are themes for?
Themes in general are intended for just about anyone who wants to get a professional-looking website at an extremely low cost. They’re relatively easy to install, and dirt cheap compared to hiring a design and development team. I know this because I own a design and development company… and we cost… a lot. Themes are also great for people who have a lot of sites and don’t have the time to craft a site from scratch. So much thought is put into themes beforehand that the only thing left is to add your unique content, and then — bam! — you have a website. One negative with themes is that they can be tough to decipher for those without coding experience, but one of the benefits to the Artist theme is that it is almost all automated via the admin section, which we’ve built from scratch to make it simple to install and update for users of any level. We also have great tutorial videos to help walk you through building your site.

3. Can I still make one of these themes feel like “me”? Is it possible to personalize it?
Heck yes. The Artist theme, in particular, was designed with this concept firmly in mind. My background, before I headed into the Web Design stratosphere, is actually in Fine Arts and Illustration, so I know how important it is to project a unique personality. You also want a website that presents your work while meshing with the overall look and feel. Artist lets you do just that—whether you’re looking for a super-slick photography site, or a more handcrafted look for your oil paintings — Artist handles those, and everything in between. You can get a feel for the unique “looks” of the theme by visiting the demo site. We’ve designed it so you can preview each and every customization:  Check it out!

4. How much less time and money does it take, on average, if I go with one of your themes versus creating my site from scratch?
Well, the time that goes into installing and editing a typical WordPress theme depends on your comfort levels with WordPress, CSS, and HTML. It’s not unrealistic to have your theme launch-ready in as little as a single day, though some themes are a bit more dependent on your abilities than others. The good news with the Artist theme is that user-friendliness was a priority from the get-go. It was designed and coded from the ground up to make installation and functionality as simple as possible (No experience needed. At all.). We’ve also provided multiple how-to videos to help you get started, which you can check out on the demo site under the “Tutorials” tab.

As for cost… The theme is $39. It’s not even close to an exaggeration to say a similar site built from the ground up would run you close to about $5k. What?! Yep, I know these things.

5. How do you know so much about this stuff? Didn’t you start out as a designer?
I actually started out with a degree in Fine Arts in pursuit of an Illustration gig, but quickly learned that my knack for marketing and “computer stuff” made me a good fit for Web Design. So, I went back to school for a design degree, worked a 5 year stint at a small agency, and ultimately jumped into the land of entrepreneurship back in 2008. I co-founded a Web development company — Littlelines.com, which is still going strong — and most recently branched off into sole ownership of a Mobile App and Web Design company called PaperTelevision.com, aka PTV. I spend my days building interfaces, strategizing with clients, and otherwise launching exciting projects via the web and other handy devices. Oh, and I still draw. Mostly doodles of my dogs.

Oh, so you’ve learned a lot about the technical and programming side, then. Cool. Because my iPod has been acting up, and it seems to only be when it’s really rainy out, but if I jump up and down and kind of — hey, where are you going?

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Ok, are you ready? Here’s the details on how to enter:

Papertelevision has offered to give away one Artist Wordress theme to a lucky reader!

To Enter:
- Leave a comment on this post expressing interest.
- This is a random drawing.
- One entry per person, please.

Winners will be announced on Monday! Good luck!

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The winner is Shannon Castor who said: ”This is fabulous, I’d love to win!” Congrats, Shannon!

Posted by penelope on 03/20/13 under giveaway
74 Comments