I have never traveled because someone tried to sell me a destination. I’ve chosen my destinations to travel to because someone told me a good story or tall tale about their experience there, or they showed me a few of their magical and personal photographs. I’m attracted to a place because it’s an important contemporary art center or historical in some art or cultural or archaeological or spiritual way and often the experience of being in a landscape also inspires me while the deeper mystery of a destination is what pulls me there. That’s what I try to share with my readers of this site.” — Kimberly Kradel, artist-at-large
IMAGES@ARTIST-AT-LARGE is about photography and cultural travel. Good for both the trip researcher and armchair traveler, you will find travel stories, travel information, quirky survey questions, and photos of the day. The stories and information presented on the site are written in a way that is meant to be valuable over a long period of time, like an art or travel magazine or guidebook that you keep by your desk and flip through when you need information, or just want to daydream.
Site Structure
The site uses categories and tags to sort information by subject and/or destination.
Statistics
I do not truly know how many hits the site gets per month. Web stats say one thing, google another, but if you really want to know, go ahead and ask and I’ll give you the most recent stats.
On twitter, @artistatlarge is on over 570 lists and has over 3550 twitter followers that consist of travelers, artists, techies, galleries, museums, and friends. The site does have a Facebook page. All posts to the site get pushed to twitter and facebook.
There is only one person working on the site at the moment. The site has been online, and growing, since September 4, 2000, with a few little sputters. I’m in it for the long haul. Need more information? Contact!
Demographic
My readers are intelligent, well read, and are interested in culture. They make the most of their travels by getting the best local experiences within their budget. They travel independently, only using day tours when a site they want to visit is out of reach by any other means of transportation. They often rent cars, but prefer public transportation. They spend a lot of time in museums and archaeological sites, they love to eat and drink in a foodie sort of way, and they take a lot of photographs.
That’s my idea of who my readers are.
Alexa.com says that my audience is well educated, mostly at the four-year college level, some at the graduate level, mostly female, although men visit too, and most readers are between the ages of 45 and 64 although all age groups are represented. Most of my visitors visit me from their home internet connections.
Referring to ARTIST-AT-LARGE and IMAGES@ARTIST-AT-LARGE
The moniker “artist at large” is common enough, all you have to do is a web search to see that. I’ve been using it as a personal tag line since the late 1970s, but since then other people have been taking it on.
So to avoid confusion with other web sites on the internet, when referring to this site in a blog post, link list, print article or sidebar, please respect the brand and refer to it as IMAGES@ARTIST-AT-LARGE or IMAGES.ARTIST-AT-LARGE.COM. All upper case letters (ARTIST-AT-LARGE) and with the hyphens.
When referring to me as the site publisher please use my real name, ie: Kimberly Kradel from ARTIST-AT-LARGE or IMAGES@ARTIST-AT-LARGE.
Using Travel Images
Contact me for more information about using images from the site in your project. All images on the site, whether by me or by site members, are under the copyright of the image maker.
In 2020, many of the site’s images will be available for purchase on the stock image division here at IMAGES@ARTIST-AT-LARGE. You should be able to find many of the editorial images in my Alamy account. Work is also available through Stockimo (images should show up on Alamy).
Destinations, PR, and Press Trips
2021-2022 Travel Availability: I am available to travel in search of content, photographs, and for story research during this time period. If you have a press trip happening this year that you think might benefit from my writing or photography skills, or have any questions about dates or destinations, please drop me an email.
Available for San Francisco Bay Area day-long and longer press trips throughout the year.
Through the pandemic, I prefer to travel as alone as possible.
I tend to work backwards from the way a journalist might work. Because I write from personal experience, I don’t have story ideas or agendas or expectations when I travel. Rest assured though, if I can find experiences that fall into one of the categories below, I’ll probably write about it.
Culinary travel and restaurant stories are published in Food for the Table and interviews with chefs and local food purveyors (as well as artists, writers, and musicians) are published in Interviews.
Be forewarned that I am a Vegetarian, borderline Vegan and wheat-free. I’d be particularly interested in your destination if you cater to my habit, but would not want to be eliminated from a trip because of my diet.
Travel with a Twist is all about personal experiences and observations.
Photos of the Day happen randomly while traveling and are not usually taken that day. POTDs usually come out of the site’s photo archives. I like to publish photos in this section that either have an interesting back-story, will inspire a traveler, or will make the viewer think on some level. While not considered to be art, POTDs are on the arty side of photography rather than the PR side.
The turnaround on a story can be quite quick – within days or weeks of a trip – for stories with a lot of factual information. Other more personal accounts about a particular trip can be written anytime, up to a year or more later, after the experience of a trip is really processed. I also write a lot from memory – years, sometimes decades, after a trip.
Site keywords: art, contemporary art, photography, archaeology, architecture, art history, digital/tech, galleries, museums, restaurants, hotels, spas, culture, cultural travel, travel journal, reviews, language, landscape (photographing, hiking, writing about), interesting factory tours, local flavor, culinary travel, vegetarian, vegan, wine, winery tours, interviews with artists, writer and musicians, interviews with chefs, winemakers and artisan food producers, music, film, open studios, independent travel, solo travel, solo/independent woman travel, mindful travel, vanlife, traveling for the sake of art and culture, languages
Current Destination Content: Paris (inluding sidetrips to Champagne in the east, to Chartres in the southwest, to Beauvais in the north, so far), South of France, Tuscany, Rome, Prague, Berlin, San Francisco (including Napa/Sonoma down to Big Sur and the East Bay), Yucatan (Quintana Roo, Yucatan), Baja
Future Destinations: I’m not limited by my past travel experiences and am open to going on press trips to any destination that provides some sort of cultural experience.
What I Need To Feature Your Destination: All travel (air, train, bus, rental car/gas, etc.), at least one meal per day, accommodations – or – a combination of the previous with a per diem or stipend so that meals, transportation, tips, and entrance fees will be covered.
Here is an example of the content I wrote after a solo press trip I took to The Yucatan. One week was paid for by a venue and at that time I was able to stay for an extra week out-of-pocket.
Note: I live off-the-grid and do not possess credit cards and travel only with savings – cash and/or debit card. This may create scheduling problems if I happen to not have bank when your trip is scheduled, hence the stipend/per diem request to cover expenses. Yes, I think my writing and photography are worth it.
There is only one writer/photographer from artist-at-large available for Press Trips.
Perspective: The site is written primarily from the perspective of an artist who independently travels and is interested in art and cultural travel and wants to point out great things to explore for any income level.
Social Media
Twitter: artistatlarge
Instagram: kimberlykradel
Interview artist-at-large
Are you looking for sources for your art, photography, and travel related stories? Traveling with cameras and tech? Women traveling alone? Women living the vanlife solo? Social media and art and travel? I welcome interview requests.
Interviews, Profiles and Mentions
Does Travel Really Matter Anyway?, by Kim Mance, Huffington Post : 2011
10 Questions For: Kimberly Kradel of artist-at-large on HappyHotelier.com : 2008
Interview with a travel writer…Kimberly Kradel on WriteToTravel.com : 2007
Reviewing Books and Films
I love books and film! Books and films can be any genre (fiction/novels, narrative, documentary/non-fiction, coffee table art or photography books) except guidebooks and technical books. I’m not fond of reading travel narratives in the long book format unless it is extremely well written. I prefer to review books that are literary and have a strong sense of place or use a place as a character or coffee table style books. Think of titles like The Book of Salt, A Room With A View, Girl with a Pearl Earring, On the Road. Please contact me regarding your book or film.
Road Testing and Reviewing Gear And Software
Please contact me regarding your product and how we might help you road test it. I am committed to using Canon cameras and lenses. Other cameras and all computer/tech equipment can be negotiated. I have many years of work experience as a hardware and software QA Engineer in Silicon Valley. I also live the #vanlife, and would able to review gear that focused on alternative lifestyles.
Giveaways
This is a new project! In 2021-2022 I’m interested in working with you on product or trip giveaways to not only attract new readers, members, and eyeballs to artist-at-large, but to give you the opportunity to show off your brand or product. Giveaway products could include anything that relates to cultural travel – from art supplies, to books (fiction and non-fiction), to cameras, travel gear, tickets/museum passes, trips, etc. etc. I’m open to hearing about your product and reviewing it for a giveaway.