Cinema Place Gallery is exhibiting my work in The QuiltEssential Event and I have agreed to sit the gallery twice during the exhibition. My first experience was on a Thursday, 4 – 8 p.m. Considering the day of the week and the hours I was there, I anticipated a rather quiet time. Not so. Foot traffic on the street was steady and, at times, rather brisk. There was not a moment that I didn’t have the company of viewers taking in the art quilts before them.
I had an interesting exchange with one man who brought his three sons to the exhibit. Upon entering the gallery the father ignored my greeting and whisked straight into the smaller room of the gallery. The youngest son – I’d guess about 12 years old – greeted me and followed dad. The four stayed close, pausing before many pieces and chatting among themselves. I thought it wonderful to see this father exposing his sons to art quilts. “A nice teaching moment,” I thought.
After about 30 minutes, the father approached me with questions. He had several general questions about the artists and the work before he asked two more pressing questions: “How would you use these pieces – they don’t fit the bed?” I replied, “You would hang them on your wall to enjoy them just as you would a painting.” And his final question, “Why would one buy these pieces – would they be worth a lot of money in the future?” To which I replied, “They may well be worth a lot of money in the future but one should invest in this art form for the same reason that you invest in any art form: because you simply love it. Collect what you love.” “Hmmmm. Thank you,” he said, as he turned to leave the gallery. The youngest son thanked me, smiled and followed dad. Hmmmm, a nice teaching moment.
Good Morning, Franki…
It’s actually nice to see a dad take his sons to an art gallery. He seemed to approach the experience like someone who was genuinely open to learning something, even if he ignored your greeting. My husband and son ‘get it’ re quilts and art quilts, but they have been exposed to it much over the years…fabric and art supplies strewn through the house have become part of our lifestyle.:) My guys, though, would have stopped to shoot the breeze with you for awhile…..enjoy your day.
Darcey
xxoo
I was very impressed to see this dad in the gallery with his sons. Though you couldn’t know this from my narrative, I wasn’t upset that he ignored my greeting….I simply thought he was eager to see something that caught his eye from the street. The fact that the four spent 30 minutes in the gallery tells me that they were really serious about figuring this whole art quilt thing out. I was glad to be there to answer questions for them. Thanks for reading and commenting. I hope to hear from you again.
Nice story, nice lesson Franki!