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July 20, 2008

It's been a very, very busy week since wrapping up my Harbor Your Arts shanty
experience. We've had a bunch of meetings with gallery members and our various
committees, as we are working through all the many projects that have to be
completed to get things running smoothly as an ongoing business. There are a lot of events in Hyannis during the summer season, and we are making many plans to
integrate several showings over the next 6 weeks.

As the gallery treasurer I also attend board meetings, Finance and Marketing
committee meetings, as well as putting in my monthly shifts sitting in the gallery,
so I've had a very full plate, to say the least!

Last week we also got a great writeup in the local newspaper, with a bunch of great color photos of several artists' pieces (including two pics of mine!) Can't beat free publicity!

We also attended the Hyannis Chamber of Commerce monthly soiree, "Business After Hours", last Wednesday. A great chance for networking, exchanging business cards, promoting the gallery, as well as free food and wine, outdoors under a big tent on a beautiful summer's evening. A lot of the attendees had heard about our opening and were very positive about it, as well as the Pearl Street Arts District in general. I managed to win $105. in gift certificates as a door prize, so it was a great Win-Win all around!

And, I've also created our infant website -- www.TwentyPearl.com -- just a simple one-pager to start, which will be growing soon, with more individual information about all our artists, as well as upcoming showings and events. Stay tuned!

July 13, 2008

Just finished my week's participation in the Harbor Your Arts shanties, and it was
pretty cool! There are 8 small (10' x 10' interior) wood utility sheds along the
Hyannis harborfront that were put up by the town several years ago, right next to
the ferries to Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard. (See pics below) They are rented
out to individual (or small groups of 2-4) artists for the season, and are open 7
days per week from mid-June to the end of September, a major commitment.

However, this year the town selected one of the shanties to be on a weekly rotation so that there is somebody new every Saturday. So, this made it possible for me to have the experience of selling my work there for a short time without having to commit for the whole season.

The location is just superb -- there are people coming and going from the ferries,
the fishing charters, the harbor cruises, and the 4 or 5 restaurants in the area.
The shanties are under the trees and get a nice amount of shade, and the breeze
comes in steady off the ocean. It was humid the first half of the week, but dry,
heavenly weather the second half. All-in-all a fun experience!

The interior of my Shanty space

Some other shanties, looking left from my doorway.

The view out my back window.

July 4, 2008

Well, the Grand Opening at the Gallery at Twenty Pearl on July 3 was a great success! We had a super crowd of people come through, and everybody raved about how great the space looked. The whole Pearl Street Arts District was humming as all the other galleries, studios, and artists' residences were all having open houses. Add to that a most splendiferous balmy summer's eve, and live music on the front lawn, and you have the best possible opening that you could ever want!

In the immediately below this text, you can see my table display on the far left, and one of my tower displays on the far right.

And, starting tomorrow, I'm going to be working a week in the Harbor Your Arts artist shanties at the Hyannis harborfront, but more about that later!

June 30, 2008

So, I'm thinking that it's time to start a blog, partly to answer some questions
that interested people are asking, and partly to provide me with a place to clarify
some of own thoughts.

This is a particularly exciting time for me and InsideOutBeads, primarily because
we're right on the cusp of a brand new adventure!

For the longest time I've wanted to participate in an artist co-operative gallery.
There are several successful ones here on Cape Cod, but none close to where I live.
I've always felt that proximity was a very important factor to me for this type of
venture, not just because of the time commitment for manning the gallery, but also
for monitoring sales and replenishing pieces promptly so as to always have a fresh
and attractive display. I've never worked with my art in a permanent retail
environment, but have always felt that someday the right opportunity would come
along.

There was an initial attempt at an artist co-op here in Hyannis a couple years ago,
but it closed down due to organizational, management, and funding issues. The town
had provided some partial backing, but not a formalized effort. Subsequent attempts
to organize another gallery were unsuccessful until this year, when three
organizations (the Town, the downtown Business Improvement District, and the Arts
Foundation of Cape Cod) came together and obtained several grants to get the
gallery off the ground.

So, we have this fantastic space, an old Victorian home (see photo at link on my
website home page) just off Main Street that had been recently renovated into an
upscale women's fashion boutique. It's got tons of windows/skylights that bring in
a flood of natural light, and a really eclectic layout, with an open staircase to
the 2nd floor, that is all just perfect for an art gallery.

The Gallery at Twenty Pearl is located on the same street that offers several other
art/design galleries as well as the new artist living/studio building that was
recently opened. The town has really gotten behind making Pearl street a true arts
district, and it's really a thrill to be part of this!

The initial group of 15 artists has been selected, the attorneys have drawn up the
articles of incorporation as a non-profit, the bank accounts have been opened, the
board has been selected (I'm treasurer . . . because I'm such a whiz with money . .
. not!) and the accountant is in place. The electrician is finishing up the
lighting, the furniture is arriving, the display cases are in place, the easels are
about to arrive, and the interior designer is arranging/curating the artwork as we
speak.

Tomorrow all the artists meet at the gallery to do a group cleanup & final
scrubdown and to review all the sales/packaging procedures. Wednesday I'm going in
to fill my display cases with my pieces (I've got one table-top glass display, and
two 6-foot glass tower displays, an arrangement I've never worked with before).

This Thursday (July 3) is our Grand Opening, just in time for the July 4 kickoff to
the high season here on the Cape. It's being opened in conjunction with the First
Thursday (each month) ArtWalk here in Hyannis, where a select group of galleries
in town is featured, and customers are enticed with outdoor music and
entertainment, discount coupons to area restaurants, and wine/hor d'oeuvres in each
gallery.

The excitement is reaching a crescendo! Please wish us all luck!