"How's the gallery goin'?"
A bit of time has passed since my last post, but now that the Christmas and New Year’s madness is over and the quiet, relative calm of deep winter is upon us, I can dedicate more time to these contributions.
Artistically I have been moderately busy. I completed a gift portrait before Christmas, delivered it, and received positive reviews. A minor change was required, one which I was not opposed to incorporating, and that change has been completed. I am now working on a large (36X48”) painting for the gallery – a still life of tulips. I sold a painting – “Sharp Turn” – to a Regina friend who was here for the holidays, and have a commission for a seascape which I will begin in late February or early March. So things are moving along, both in my own personal creative life, and in the gallery.
I am often asked how the gallery is “doing”. It’s always somewhat awkward providing an answer. I assume that the thinking behind the question is monetary – “Are you making some money? Are people coming in? Are you selling some stuff?” For me, that’s not the primary motivation. Don’t get me wrong, I love and want to sell stuff, whether mine or the work of others. Wanting to pay the rent is not a bad thing. But what I want most is to have a place where people can come, relax, chat, and see some good, competently executed art work. And I want them to see something a little different than the stereotypical lighthouses, fishing boats and lobster traps. The Eastern Shore of Nova Scotia, while steeped in tradition, is about more than its iconic, predictable images. That’s what I want the Clipper Gallery to represent and reflect.
So far, so good.
