open studios!

I survived open studios! I had a great time! I realized that I really needed to share my work with others. It gets difficult to spend too much time working alone without someone to see and react to what's been created. It's not just about positive feedback and encouragement as much as asking the question, "Do you see what I see? Is my vision coming across?" I was excited by the number of people who 'got it' and I also loved the observations from others that shed light on things I never considered or did not see as I created the work. It was such a fulfilling time. Being at the shipyard allowed me a chance to expose myself to a different audience. I was also excited by the number of fellow artists that came to visit. The flow was steady and yet allowed me a chance to have some great conversations with visitors and I got a chance to personally greet almost everyone - something I enjoy and think is important. I don't think people realize how much of an impact their presence makes when they take the time to visit artists at events like these. One of my favorite moments of the weekend was watching a few guys checking out the work. They'd strolled in together and looked like they were having a good day. One guy stood in front of a sculpture for awhile. Suddenly he sighed and said, "Oh... I wish I were a girl." A bunch of us looked over at him and he suddenly looked around and said, "Oh - did I say that out loud?" as he and his friends began to laugh.