Studio in the cottage. July 2013.
It's been about a year since I started incubating Farm Share Studio. In the beginning I was just trying to eat local and painting what appealed to me. I wanted small subjects since I hadn't painted in decades and needed to rebuild my technique. I can't say that I have a technique yet. Each painting is new and as I try new mediums or introduce a new pigment or brush I find that everything changes.
Ready for the Wintemarket. December 2013.
Last December I organized a Wintermarket in Altamont and I prepped a few paintings for cards and prints. I then created an Etsy site, which required branding and Farm Share Studio was born! Being featured on the Mohawk's Felt and Wire blog was like coming home. Besides Etsy, my cards are available at the beautiful new Pulp & Paperie shop in Toronto and The Open Door Bookstore in Schenectady. Prints are available at Gallery 5 One in Clifton Park.
New studio. June 2014.
Even the studio changed. In September I rented the cottage to a friend and moved my supplies into a small three-season porch in the main house. We cleaned out my parent's house and I "inherited" my mom's wooden easel and some of her brushes and paints. Yes, they all still worked after 40 years!
Studio wall. July 2014.
Besides the joy and frustration of sitting down to paint, the best experiences have been meeting farmers like Everett Rau, actually harvesting my own food, and working with the Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy to support their work in Guilderland.
And of course, the food. There really is nothing like eating food that comes from your neighborhood. The more I learn about the industrial food system and our local, organic alternative, I'm so grateful to live in a region that is waking up to the joyful necessity of local food and local farms.
WPA poster promoting Victory Gardens.