2022, a year of changes?
Allihies, sometime in the cold, stormy, wet month of February 2022.
The pandemic seems to be on its way out, at least we all hope so… Hugging friends, how did we manage to be deprived of that for 2 years ? Taking the masks off and unveiling the smiles…
And then, only a few days later, another huge worry, the war in Ukraine…
Why can’t the human race simply live in harmony with each other and with our planet?…
2022 really has to be a year of changes, filled with new exciting projects, positive thinking, and lots and lots of hugs and smiles …
Well, my big 2022 exciting project is to open my own art gallery!…
For years, I used to open a pop-up shop in my house every summer and sell my own paintings, drawings, cards, prints and jewellery, as well as Indian clothes, scarves, bags, jewellery that I gathered in my winter travels. For 2 months each year, our living room mutated into an open Ali Baba cavern. Visitors were delighted to explore the “boutique” and be welcomed in a private house. I was making henna tattoos in my kitchen, and didn’t have opening/closing time: if I was home, the pop-up shop was open, as simple as that.
It was a very successful and enjoyable adventure, yet sometimes we missed our privacy…
And the pandemic of course put an end to the concept …
But life goes on and opportunities pop up sometimes unexpectedly…
Let’s jump back in time, before the pandemic… In 2019, our uncle and neighbour Tommy sadly passed away. An 82 years old batchelor farmer and joyful character, he was loved all around in Allihies valley.
He left us some land, his house, and a cowshed.
A few months later, in 2020, during lockdown one, I started to draw and paint details of his house, silent witnesses of his life .
The subject was unusual to me but somehow, may be because of the confined atmosphere of lockdown, it resonated with my feelings. I made a whole collection of oil paintings, watercolours and photographs, just guided by my heart, with no plan to show them.
Here is my previous article, about that work, back in 2020 :
In 2021 we slowly started plans to renovate Tommy’s house and plant native trees on the land. Tommy’s cowshed was not a priority yet, until a dream whispered in my ears : what if we turned it into a gallery and show my work about Tommy’s life?…
And here is 2022… The big new adventure has started!… ( Well, once I managed to sow the seed in my husband’s head that this also was a priority !…)
So the project, beside the renovation of the house, is to convert the shed into :
An art gallery for the Summer months, ( art, jewellery and Indian stuff)
An art studio for the rest of the year ( until now I’ve been working in our kitchen!)
A space to store all the art and pop-up shop stuff that has been invading every corner of our house!…
… Ideally and in my dreams, I would like to open my first exhibition in my gallery this Summer !…
The building is an old stone milking shed ( for 8 cows!…), 3.3m by 6.5m with currugated roof.
It needs lots of renovation…So far, we have replaced windows and doors, brought electricity and water to the outside wall, and ordered the materials for the new roof.
One thing at the time… I have the feeling things are going to move on at an exponential speed and as it seems very slow now, I am keeping busy getting the exhibition ready : I bought a picture hanging system second hand, had a few printers sending me samples, ordered cards and envelopes, signed my paintings, had them photographed, ordered frames, prints and cards displays, made lots of thinking and researches and lists that I can tick of as I go…
After a long 2 years hibernation, at last, exciting times!…
Let’s all cross our fingers for a better loving world and brighter future …
2022 really has to be a year of changes, new exciting projects, positive thinking, and lots and lots of hugs and smiles …
