Traveling notes, and Marsh with a Palm, daily painting by Everglades artist Jo-Ann Sanborn

Marsh with a Palm, 2012, Jo-Ann Sanborn

acrylic on archival board, 5" x 7"

I didn't have much to say last week, partly because I was mostly on the road.  I drove off into the sunset and spent a couple of weeks in New England visiting family and friends.  I didn't once pick up a brush, but encouraged grand kids along the way.  It was a good respite, but it's good to be home again, too. 

I visited family as I went, making seven (7) different stops along the way.  It was a bed-hopping marathon!

Talk among the family was all about wildlife this year.  New England was almost all clear-cut fields 100 years ago but with less agriculture is now filled with mature forests, and the forest animals and birds are making a comeback.  I heard about fisher cats and coyotes and deer, and saw wild turkeys more than once,

including this beauty who flew up to my sister's porch railing to groom while her babies ate seeds thrown out of the feeder.  The feeder was a constant source of amusement and amazement, hosting a chorus of songbirds, and a flying squirrel late that night! 

Much of my family still lives in Gloucester, MA. my old home town. Gloucester, chartered in 1623, now almost 400 years old, is filled with monuments.  You may be familiar with the Fisherman at the Wheel, cast for Gloucester's 300th anniversary.  A companion piece has been added further along the harbor boulevard to recognize the contribution of the wives of the fisherman, who care for their children and maintain the home while husbands face the perils of the deep. It's a lovely and moving piece.     

In addition to a secure harbor filled with boats from around the world, Gloucester is filled with wonderful art.  I just missed the North Shore Arts Association's  auction, an event I always attend when in town.  And there's an artists opportunity here. 

The reception for Mainly Marco art exhibition at Harmon's and Barton's Gallery in Portland came right in the middle of my stay.  Portland hosts a very successful First Friday Art Walk.  Hundreds of visitors, residents, and students filled the streets, some with wares to sell, some playing their music, and others enjoying the show and purchasing the artworks.  Stores and restaurants were open and the galleries flowed with people.

Harmon's and Barton's did a great job of hosting the Marco Artists in an exchange program.  Their upstairs space was perfectly suited, and with two doors offering welcome, droves of people walked through the lovely space.  People really seemed to enjoy the art and a number of pieces were sold.

Those of us who attended were delighted to greet old friends and make some new ones.
 

Good show, with hats off to the gallery, and to Sandy Wallen for her vision of an exchange program that worked.

Next, the journey continues with strange vegetables and a surprise Wolf Kahn show!