“Fantasy Garden” 2013 Cindy Grisdela 10″ x 20″
What a great week at the Ann Arbor Street Art Fair! The weather was beautiful, I met a lot of interesting people, and eight of my wall quilts went to new homes, including Fantasy Garden at left.
The new tent worked out just fine–it was easy to set up and take
New Tent and Booth Setup at Ann Arbor 2014 Cindy Grisdela
down, and it added a lot more light into my booth. This snapshot doesn’t do it justice unfortunately, but I made an appointment for a professional photographer to come by the first day, so I should have a good shot to use for my juried show applications soon!
Street View at Ann Arbor Art Fair 2014
It’s so exciting to see an art show take shape–from empty streets you hear the clanking of metal poles being set up and pretty soon white tents are dotting the view. Each one is different from the next and showcases the creativity of an individual, or sometimes two. It never fails to amaze me as I walk around how each artist shares a window into his or her world in a 10×10 ft. space.
I wish I could include a photo of every piece that sold and tell the story of the purchaser. I’m always so gratified and humbled when someone decides my work speaks to them enough to want to take it home with them. But I’ll let the last one speak for all.
The last piece I designed before I left for the show was a new idea
“Doodlebug” 2014 Cindy Grisdela 12″ x 12″.
for me. Called Doodlebug, it’s a 12″ x 12″ quilt mounted on canvas that I painted black. The idea was to use a very simple composition that was enriched by horizontal lines of different stitched textures. I’ve seen drawings like this, but not quilts. I was interested to see how people responded to it, since I’m thinking about making it into a series exploring different color combinations and textures.
It got a lot of attention throughout the show, but Doodlebug went home on the last day with a woman who came to the Fair each year to buy a present for herself for her birthday in September–this year she chose my work and I couldn’t be more pleased!
My next show is Art in the High Desert in Bend, Oregon. It runs August 22-24 on the beautiful banks of the Deschutes River. This is my second year in the show and I’m really looking forward to it!
And if you’re in the Atlanta area, I have six wall pieces in the Summer Swan Invitational exhibit at the Swan Coach House gallery for a couple more weeks. Visit their website here for more information. The show goes until the first week in August.