Art Opening at St. Avit Sénieur

It's been such a busy week! Some time before we moved to here, I was lucky enough to be invited to participate in an art show at the gorgeous little village of St. Avit Sénieur, a town on the St. Jacques de Compostella pilgrimage trail. The setting could not be lovelier. Here's a photo of the courtyard in front of the presbytere, where the show is hung. It was a real challenge to get together the paintings to hang and to find all the little things we need for a show as well. I had ordered new business cards and they showed up in plenty of time. Plenty of time to disappear for a while, since one of the enduring problems with a new house is that you no longer know where you put things. But they were rediscovered in time for the opening, which occured this past Friday. It was a great success, in that crowds of people showed up. Here's some photos of the crowd - well, since I was taking them, they are the parts of the crowd showing other artists. But, trust me, there were people other that artists and their friends there! The organizer of the show, Jacqui Clark, mentioned that people come to this show because over the years that it has been running, it has gained a reputation for having art worth seeing. (I am doubly pleased to have been invited to participate.) The featured artist at the show is a well known New York Abstract Expressionist, John Griefen, who has recently moved to St. Avit.

I seem to have specialised in the backs of artist's heads! From left to right, Gillian (red hair), John Griefen (grey hair), Jane, then (facing you) the mayor of St. Avit, and Jacqui.

As usual at this sort of thing, Jacqui gave a speech about the show, and then the mayor did the same, mentioning that there were plans in the works for continuing the renovation of the space, providing us with more in the way of electrics in the near future. All in all a very good evening. But - even better - Jacqui called me today to say that I had sold two paintings on Sunday. Wheee!

Yesterday, in our travels back and forth, we took a little road that leads to one of the noted 'must-see' items in Nojals, a dolmen several thousand years old. It's much larger than I thought. You could walk around in it. Interesting to ponder how they makers managed to pose that upper rock on the others. No cranes...