So Tired

I've just finished a week of 12 to 14 hour studio days, a day of set up, a night market, and 2 days of studio tour. And only one bad photo of one little part of it to show you. I am tired! I really had no idea what to expect of the studio tour. Or at least what I expected had very little to do with the reality of it. I've only ever attended the tour. I've never shown my work on the tour. It's very different from this side of the street.


Something like 5,000 people attend this local event. The way it works is that the Arts Alliance coordinates and publicizes the event and selects a juror for the show. This year 10 studios were selected as host locations and 56 artists were selected to show their work. Our location was in the home of a jeweler, and in addition to my ceramics, there was an oil painter, an acrylic painter, and two photographers. We used the entire house as our 'gallery' so there was a lot of art. I had no real understanding of just how many people mark their calenders and get out there bright and early on Saturday. You know 5,000 is just a number a multiple of 5, 5 x 1000. Numbers are an abstract concept to me. This is a pretty serious big event and I was completely unprepared for what perhaps 700 people coming through one home would be like. Overwhelming is probably an understatement. And these people are serious collectors and buyers. Which turned out a good thing for me but Mother Hubbard's cupboard was pretty bare by the end of Saturday , with another day of tour to go.

It was good though. I shared the dining room with my friend Liz and her beautiful photography, a piece of which came home with me. We laughed ( a lot). We learned together as it was her first studio tour as well. I learned to add numbers in my head (sort of). I learned that you really, really do need to bring a calculator. But lacking that, buyers will get out their mobile phones and add up numbers for you. I learned that it is good, really really good, to ocassionally step outside of your comfort zone and do something new.


I feel a little like a creation story today. And on the 10th day she rested.


Tomorrow, I will be back to my normal routine, thankful that I won't do another large show until April. Heaps of time to prepare, right?