Long Day, Lots of name Dropping Here

Today was the opening at the Brush plus a whole lot more:  I picked up Sylvia at 9 and set the GPS for the Auditorium where Images 2010 was being held.  She had scoped out the ramp on the back side so we knew just where to unload and pulled right up.  The industrial-strength dolly I use to haul groceries up to my second floor condo and haul garbage out was perfect to move Sylvia's massive trunk show quilts.  I teased her that the neighbors would wonder where her husband might be if they saw us hauling the huge rolls out of her house and stuffing them in the car!  Quilts leave fiber evidence, but no blood or DNA evidence-  this I know from being a CSI addict.

We had Maureen from the program committee meet us and show us the way up the ramps and into Sylvia's class room.  She was staying at the auditorium to see the Images show, but I wanted to go to the museum for the SAQA meeting.  I parked the car illegally in the lot across the street and decided to walk back to the Quilt Museum in time for the meeting, knowing parking would be at a premium back at that end of town.  Walking was faster than waiting for the shuttle.

I charged through the museum's Broiderie Perse show and made it just in time.  I met out new MA rep, Valarie Poitier, a woman of seemingly boundless energy and a good addition to the crew.  She seems to have some good ideas and is already up to her armpits in projects and plans.  Jeanne Marklin was running the program, and Wen Redmond was there representing Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire.  Lisa Chipentine was also there.  Diane Wright, and old friend from when I first moved to Jupiter almost 15 years ago, and now a rep from CT was demonstrating the way she mounts her smaller pieces on covered foam core for a professional presentation.  I got to see Karen Bettencourt, my webby guru and Sandy Gregg too.  Next, there was going to be a show and tell but I was already late getting back to the auditorium to help Sylvia so I 'exited, stage left', chatted with Anita Lozcasco who I hadn't seen in ages, stopped at Van Gogh's Gear to pick up my abandoned collage from the Paste-Up show at the ALL Gallery, and opened my first power bar for the fast-walk back.

I missed her set-up but that was just a matter of laying out her quilts in some sort of order and she had some help.  She did a great job and it was really fun to see some pieces I hadn't seen in years, and even some early pieces I don't think I had ever seen.  I helped hold up a few, then scurried around putting things back on the dolly and picking up the books and papers strewn about that she had sent around the room, and then ran out to get the car positioned so we could stuff everything back in.  Together we rolled on back to the Quilt Museum to look for parking and food and luckily found a parking space on the street, and a table space in the Greek restaurant where we had a great little lunch.  This year for the first time they had some vendors set up in the courtyard outside the ALL Gallery so I was in a big hurry to check that out so ran over as soon as we could get the check.  There were about 10 booths there, some very nice things but I was down to one lone $10 at that point so kept my wallet in my bag.

Stopped to check out the ALL Gallery where there was also a fiber show.  Several pieces were really compelling, and it was good to be greeted by several old acquaintances from the Fiber Studio who actually remember me, not something that happens very often any more!  I saw Linda Dunn and Margot Stage there, both with some great work, and Laura Gawlinski who shares my interest with encaustics and mica (how many people can there be in that club???) and also said my goodbyes and we were off to the Brush Gallery for the opening.

Here is my ID card with my little Faux Quilt on it!  Frankly I couldn't 'get' why this piece was in the show, but when I got there it all made sense.  None of the pieces in the show were much in a quilt-way, most were other kinds of textiles and fiber work and I was so happy to see the high quality represented.  And I am SO happy that this was the piece picked by the ever-so-forward-thinking jurors!  (Thanks!)  Debbie Bein was there having More Fun as a Blond, Beverly-the-North (Beverly Fine) was represented by a piece I love, I met Benedicte Canelli who was in Art Elements in Wayne with me but I hadn't met her there. Joann Jangigian has promised to send me a new watermelon rind recipe, and old Armenian one that includes lamb that I'll believe when I see!   I was especially happy to run into Jenny Gilbert too, the former director of the quilt museum, and to catch up on what she's doing now at the Preservation of New England Antiquities.

I have leetle quibble with the Brush about the show though-  Smack in the center was a vendor set up selling kimono and Japanese fabrics.  There was a long rack of kimono with people trying them on and taking up room, as well as three tables of goods to show.  Naturally everyone was gathered around and looking BUT we were supposed to be there to see the art, not as a shopping op. I am not complaining about having a vendor associated with the show, lord knows I am an avowed capitalist, but why wasn't she installed outside with the other vendors in the courtyard where it wouldn't have been such a distraction from, and yes, OBSTRUCTION to the art.  As it was, one whole wall of some amazing surface design pieces was blocked by people pawing the obi table, and anyone trying to circle the room to see every piece up close was stopped by the crowd.

We had to skip the Whistler opening-  it was just too much in one day to add on after all the back-and-forthing and hauling quilts in and out of the auditorium.  I'll go back this week sometime.

By 4 PM I could barely stand up and found myself getting light headed from talking so much and knew we both had to get out of town or drop in our tracks, so off we headed home.  Fortunately Sylvia's husband was alive and well and not rolled up in the quilt bale, so he helped unload the car, and I was on my own to eat my emergency cheese sticks and head home.  I want to go to bed at 8:30, I am exhausted.  (If I forgot that I talked to you, I'm sorry!  Let me know.)  And that, dear pals, is the end of my Art Career to date.  Guess it's time to apply to some new shows. Or time to make some things to apply with...