Outdoor Shows

    On many Summer Sundays on the Cape, you can visit outdoor art shows.  I'm not talking flea market or those traveling truckloads of mass-produced-artwork extravaganzas. 
    The folks who display fine original works put in a ton of effort.  I did it for a few years.  It is a kick to sell something after hours at the easel, shopping for suitable frames, setting up on a lot and...waiting.  This is no way to make a living.  Yet, profits can go toward quality brushes, pigments, canvases, etc.  Most of the artists are notorious course-takers.  Sometimes, a sale pays for this skill sharpening.  
    The best part is that while hanging out out there, there is a wonderful sense of belonging.  Having moved to the Cape at the turn of the Century, I knew few people here.  While taking some courses at the Chatham
 Creative Arts Center, I heard of theYarmouth Art Guild.  I was a little apprehensive about joining, as I had run up against snoot here and there.  "This element is everywhere, so just ignore it," I said to myself.  I am so glad I did.  The folks at the YAG are great.  Really supportive.
    When I started showing my first summer, I had no rig.  There were no second-hand metal ones available at the time.  They can be broken down to fit your car.  Withstand the rain.  Are quite expensive.   Sharon and I put our heads together and came up with a wooden A frame.  (Sharon learned good carpentry skills from her father.)  We used 1x3" wood, which is actually 3/4x2 3/4" and was at the time lightweight enough for me to handle. We used plastic coated chicken wire, also not too heavy.  Anchored it with a staple gun.  Bought some small galvanised gate hinges.  Hung an exercise weight by a bungie cord to stabilize rig in the wind.  The A frame is good, as you can position it so the wind blows through it.  Placing a small American flag near one of the hinges helps show wind direction.   I used some drapery hooks to fasten the paintings on the rig.  Painted it with some left-over plum colored paint.  She was ready.  My rig and I did a several years out there.  SeeSpecs. You will see that I improved rig.  The turkey wire was obtained from a local feed and farm supply company.  It makes for a much nicer image for paintings (They hang straighter on squared off patern of fencing material.)  The removable pins are a blessing.  The two sides of the rig are heavier with the turkey wire, so you can carry to site one piece at a time.
    Sundays were O.K.  For a while I did Mondays too with another group, "The Brewster Monday Painters".  Some paintings that did not sell went into the "Sacrifice Sale" at the Creative Arts Center.  They are currently holding these sales twice a year.  I volunteered a time or two there.  People line up at the door before opening time.  It can get wild.  Like the old Filene's Basement!  
  • At present, I belong to four organizations.  If I do not avail myself of member rates for courses, nor enter in shows for a while, I still like to hang in there with these good groups.  Art is a blast.   

11/17/07 :
    This Thursday, I decided to pack up my paintings and bring a half-finished oil down to the local Senior Center.   I wanted to see some of my "Art Friends", as Sharon used to say.  It was good having their company.  The biggest bonus in getting together down there is the instructor.  She has a lifetime of knowledge behind her and is willing to share with us.  Thanks, J.  And thanks, Art Friends.

Below are some shots from the Taylor-Bray Farm Show.  Each year, they have a wool-spinning exhibit and sale and feature domestic animals (you never know what you'll see, Llamas, for instance).  There are always lambs, lambs,  lambs, lots of chickens and one happy rooster! 

Please use Print Preview and the arrows at bottom of screen to scroll.  This way, you will see the full size photographs:













Last Spring, we were fortunate in that we could hang our Yarmouth Art Guild
paintings in the big barn.
On the lower level to the left, barn swallows fly in and out through the open doors.  In the background you can see a small portion of the tents that house spinning wheels and the barefoot women who show you how it's done.  Bought a beautiful warm hat there last year.  

2/20/08
: Good News. The festival next year is scheduled for June First.  We have been invited to participate.  Check with the Yarmouth Art Guild
when June is approaching.  We should have more details by Springtime.  Love those lambs.






You never know who will drop by the Taylor-Bray Farm.



 
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