This little watercolor of the hunter ponies is going to be on display at a brand-new gallery that is opening up locally. I am really looking forward to the opening--it will be a fun mix of fine art, craft, and furniture. If you are in the Northeast Connecticut area, check out the Gallery and Shoppes at Celebrations in Pomfret, when it opens on May 5. This beautiful Victorian house, a former B & B, will make a fine showcase for art, and hopefully become a destination for travelers in our area.
I am also very excited about my Open Studio Weekend. I have hung dozens of pieces, made nice little labels for them, and have been working at getting some local advertising done before the newspaper ad deadlines.
But you know, all this, plus a hundred other things in the business of life have left no time for actually painting. And despite our earnest attempts to curtail our driving, it seems like I am always having to run somewhere in the car!
This morning, I had a respite from the merry-go-round in the form of a blacksmith appointment. Every seven weeks, I have the pleasure of hanging out in the barn for a couple of hours, shooting the breeze with my blacksmith. It's a much needed forced break from everything else. We can talk about our kids, our horses, the price of fuel, property taxes, local government, alternative energy...the topics are varied, and I always learn something. And while my boarder's horse is being done, I get a good grooming done on my mare.
On a totally unrelated topic, I just have to get off my chest---I hate lawnmowers! We have a riding mower and a push mower, and right now, the only working mowers we have on the property are four-legged ones. The push-mower is only a year old and won't start, and the riding one is about 6 years old, and has had to be serviced nearly every year, because it won't start. Starting a lawn mower should not be rocket science--it just shouldn't be that hard! So just about every year, we get to the time when the grass starts to grow out of control, and we can't mow because the mowers won't start. I know that neither my husband or I has the "tractor-gene", the innate ability to tinker with internal combustion engines.
The only way I would like to tinker with them is with a sledgehammer.
Whew, I feel much better now. And tomorrow, the horses get to graze on the lawn.

Alecia

Can't believe a month has gone by since my last post. The driving conference proved to be a pleasant show. It was an enjoyable time, talking to carriage enthusiasts all weekend. I'm signed up to do the show next year, so I'll be busy doing some more paintings with a driving theme. Now to get ready for the next item on the schedule--an open studio. This will be my first year participating in the Artist's Open Studios of NE Connecticut, and although the event runs for the first two weekends, I am opting to do just the first weekend. It's tough to give up two spring weekends in May to sit around waiting for visitors. After all, it is prime gardening and riding season. I do hope there will be plenty of turnout. I'll be spiffing up the studio, baking refreshments, and hauling all the art I have hanging in my house out to the studio to display there. It will still be a lot less work than hauling everything in my car to some other location. It's a good thing I have a month to prepare. Somehow April is so booked up with appointments, art openings, swimming lessons (for the six-year old), holidays and soccer. The month is going to fly.
The image I've attached is a mini watercolor painting. It's only about 3.5 inches across. I really enjoy doing these quick little paintings when I feel bogged down by a complicated oil.