It’s a week to go – June 25-26 – before our Spring Open House, Maria has descended into her usual pre-curating state, racing to artist’s homes, doing her videos, beginning to re-arrange her studio, waking up at three in the morning thinking of all the things we have to do. The Spring Open Houses are really her artistic event, her support and encouragement of artists, the power of her blog, which is much loved.
She does get a little crazy.
“I love rope,” she announced this morning, after hanging a new clothesline, then buzzing off like Wiley E. Coyote to make signs, hang clothes, put up a video, talk to an artist, move our “Art Of Rural Life” sign from a fence to the front porch (she yelled at me for taking so many photos). This morning, I ordered new brass numbers for the front porch, I’ve been meaning to replace the old stenciled ones for two years.
Maria will be crazed for the next week and it is my job to point people to Maria and the art and the animals and to understand this, help her, be steady. She loves the Open Houses, but she is also intensely conscientious, she wants every detail to be perfect, and it usually is.
My role mostly is to show off Red and Fate, give donkeys talks and introduce the very compelling visitors and speakers who will be here this weekend, greet people who want to meet me (warning, I don’t really have too much time to stand still for long). A time of encouragement, community, art and hope.
A time for Maria to show and sell her wonderful art and the art of many people she knows, loves and works with. My friend Cathy Stewart will be here over the weekend to help me organize the non-art activities, Deborah Glessner, a wonderful friend and member of the Creative Group, will be here to show and sell her own art and help out. Tyler Lindenholl is returning, twice the size of last year.
Next week, Saturday and Sunday, ll a.m. to 4 p.m. All are welcome. We are asking for a voluntary $5 donation to help defray the costs of the Open House.
The farmhouse is looking spiffy, ringed with full gardens (there is the new Three Sisters garden, among others), newly painted, three new birch trees in the back yard.
We can’t offer food but there will be two portable toilets and the Round House Cafe is just down the road. Come bye and meet Lulu and Fanny, Chloe the pony, the chickens will be walking around, Flo will look for laps to climb on, Fate will look for people to jump on, Red is available to hugging and communing.
Deb Foster will be conducting donkey tours, we are expecting the farrier (Ken Norman) the shearer (Jim McRae) and Ed Gulley the dairy farmer to show off their skills and art and talk with us. Joshua Rockwood will be stopping by as well.
I feel so good about the weekend, it has returned to its roots, pure and simple and open and warm. That is the plan. Details here.