Looking toward the opposite end of the hall this is what you see as you stand at the entrance to the hall designated as our Art Gallery. More about what you see further on. Last fall when picking paintings from those done by our residents I suggested to fellow Gallery Committee members that we withhold any that were of flowers with the intent of creating an all flowal art show to be hung just when we couldn't tolerate one more bit of winter. By the arrival of spring due to the productivity of our artists throughout the long cold dreary winter we were pleased to find ourselves with a plentiful supply of paintings from which to choose for the anticipated flower art show.
As we made our selections we found that the pictures available to us were in deed lovely harbingers of spring. So lovely they inspired us to expand our opening reception into a celebration of spring at which time we would not only honor our artists but also the people in our community who have particularly enhanced our lives here by what they have done with flowers. Thus special invitations went to a couple who have for several years created a huge oval garden planted with a variety of beautiful annuals from which we were all allowed to pick flowers, the members of our Landscape Committee, and a lady who has become known for the number of small bouquets she distributes throughout our small village to those celebrating birthdays or anniversaries or who may need perking upfor one reason or another.
The weeks just before the show was hung my particular responsibilities kept me busy as I framed ten of the recently completed paintings, sent out invitations, made labels to identify the paintings and name tags for our honorees, created posters, and arranged for the reception including flowers for table decorations.
Now back to those pictures at the top - twelve beautiful paintings based on calendar illustrations which had as their inspiration Monet's garden. My job was to figure out an arrangement for hanging that would be more pleasing to the eye than in a long straight line. To do this I ended up taking all twelve pictures to my apartment, placing them on my floor and experimenting with assorted layouts until I had one that suited me. Actually it was thinking about that oval garden that gave me the idea. Since it's been up people seem to like it, so it was well worth the time and effort.
On the morning of April 4 our entire commitee was on hand to assist with hanging the fifty-five pictures we had chosen. We were pleased that the favorable comments began even as were hanging the pictures. It took us several hours to get all of them in place to our mutual satisfaction. When it was finished we had assembled a kaleidoscope of colors ranging from pale pastels to brilliant reds, greens, purples, and oranges with all of the shades in between.
They ran the gamut you would expect to find in a large flower show (the kind I was privileged to see when I lived in the Philadelphia area and could attend their fantastic internationally recognized annual flower show). We had the twelve bits from Monet's garden; we had a beautiful pink dogwood tree in bloom in a local church yard; we had a tiny clump of snow drops heralding the end of winter along with bouquets, both large and small; mixed and single blossom; as well as a number of single specimen blossoms of many vibrant colors. We also were privileged to have what you wouldn't find at an actual flower show: several paintings done by artists who shared with us their special vision that allows them to see more than the ordinary eye perceives when looking at flowers in a garden.
Since the show has been up we have had the usual fickel April weather here - lots of gray skies and rain. We have even had to cope with tornado warnings and a power outage lasting for almost twelve hours. So it's nice to know that spring has arrived and remains constant in at least one spot. Although Easter Sunday here dawned as a gray grungy day we had a lovely spot where we could walk with our many visitors without getting wet. I know that's where my family and I headed for a stroll after eating brunch in our dining room.
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