This week has been all about the Gallery. In between antibiotic infusions, doctor's appointments and a quick trip to the Big Smoke, we have been hard at work. We had arranged to drive to Narrogin on Wednesday afternoon to choose and load about a dozen of Christine Davis' paintings.
Monday and Tuesday involved taking other art pieces down from the eastern wall and moving these to different positions. We also had a good look at those pieces that hadn't attracted much interest, either returning them to the artists or storing them for later in the year. By Tuesday evening, we were reasonably satisfied with our efforts.
Wednesday morning started with yet another visit to Doctor Susie, our fabulous GP in York. She is really taking us in hand, delivering great healthcare and some uncomfortable realities about our ageing bodies. Middle age and beyond is definitely not for the faint-hearted. We don't recommend getting old...
Our spirits were lifted by our trip to Narrogin and catching up with the remarkable Christine Davis. Along with her husband Mark, she runs a picture framing business, along with her full-time roles of art teacher, parent, grandparent and artist.
And she is prolific. Her house bulges with her paintings as does the holiday cottage she and Mark have restored and offer for short-term accommodation. At her recent exhibition during the Dryandra Art, Food and Wine trail, she sold seventeen paintings in one weekend. Her star is definitely on the rise.
We enjoyed afternoon tea and French biscuits with Christine, whilst listening to her latest adventures in Narrogin. She is definitely an international woman of mystery with a very interesting past.
Christine juggles teaching,supporting their two young adult children who still live at home as well as raising their three-year-old grandson with Mark. He also works full-time as a high school teacher, is a father, grandfather and general dogsbody, all whilst exuding an aura of unflappable calm amongst the regular chaos.
After another exceeding happy hour choosing paintings for our showcase, we left Christine to head back to Beverley. We arrived at the Gallery in the dark and cold, unloaded her pieces and went home. Thursday involved another get-together of our Artists' Group, welcoming visitors and sorting out the eastern wall we were using to showcase Christine's paintings.
Needless to say, the project continued to expand rapidly, rather like the universe. Hanging the new paintings led to shifting more, changing the positions of just about everything in the Gallery and Giftshop. As I sit here, now on Saturday evening, I think we have just about finished the revamp. Only a bit more arranging in the morning. Then I just have to rewrite the catalogues...
After all this work, the East End Gallery is looking refreshed and revitalised. Worth every drop of blood, sweat and tears. Now we can sit back and relax until the Showcase ends on 19 June.
Enjoy this sample of the Southern Showcase, featuring Christine Davis
"Parlour Seat"
"The Last Light"
"Pastel Bouquet"
"Mister Ebb and Miss Flow"
"Hydrangea Hug"
"Farm Yard Orchard"
Front half of the eastern wall
Rear half of the eastern wall.
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