Heatwave Art


We are glad to bring back good news from Hendersonville, NC of another successful show. Although we're slightly disappointed in our total sales you can't blame folks for staying out of the heat rather than venture out into high humidity and temperatures reaching close to 100. Obviously and thankfully the morning hours were rather busy with activity.

Several factors actually made this one of the most memorable of the year. I was so close to home that I was able to sleep in my own bed each night. And I didn't even mind the daily 45 minute drive each way via Highway 25. Our local readers will know why. Most of the trip is a scenic drive (no billboards or commercial developments) through the foothills and mountains just below the southern end of the Blue Ridge Parkway.

On Saturday one of my closest art buddies came by for a nice long visit. Gypsy Hundley's gallery and studio are a block away from my booth location so she braved the heat to hang out with me and catch up on life. The "Groovy Goat" is one of her works. Chicago has it's cows, Tybee Island (GA) has it's turtles, and Aiken (SC) has it's horses. Well Hendersonville has goats decorated by local artists with a few bears mixed in. Generally speaking I wouldn't think the two mix since one's a carnivore and the other eats just about anything else. I guess being made of porcelain makes them willing to share the same sidewalk.

Sunday was a real treat since Jessie willingly tagged along just to help me pack up the booth and indeed she was a huge help! I cut almost a half hour off my usual time. We took turns visiting the two "toy stores" in front of our tent to enjoy an occasional air-conditioning break. Directly in front of us was the usual variety children's version. Jessie did a wonderful job picking out a treat for Ben. My version was the gourmet cookware store complete with a wine cellar below. The sign to the right reads "Wine Tasting - downstairs 1 to 4." It was tempting but I stuck with the iced coffees.

The good news is that the local arts guild will be moving the show to late September next year. It's early enough in the fall that the Floridians with mountain homes will still be around and leaf-watchers along with apple aficionados will be traveling those parts in search of eye candy and a local culinary delight.

Special Note: We will be leaving this weekend for our summer beach trip (more about that later in the week). I've e-mailed a couple of you to see if you'd be interested in blog-jacking our site here and contributing a post. If you are interested in doing so then shoot me an e-mail (benwaddell at bellsouth dot net)! We'd love to have you contribute "A Work of Art."

Ben's locked arms with his sleep buddy Pooh on Saturday morning.

Jessie catches up on stocks and gas prices Sunday morning.

Wood turner and sculptor Mark Cairnes from Whittier, NC cools the few remaining hairs on his head.

The lovely Teresa Bowen (Smyrna Beach, FL) chats with a customer about her pottery.

Native Cambodian and glass artist Wann Near happily endures the heat. Wann and his wife Rebecca have become good friends over the past couple of years. They live in nearby Asheville, NC.

Ben locks arms with Nurse Vicki instead of Pooh yesterday morning.

Top photo: We had the unusual set up of facing our booths toward the local storefronts. From left to right in the photo is Wann & Rebecca's tent, Teresa's, mine, and Mark's.