Creativity Takes Courage

This summer, I submitted one of my quilts to a call for entry from a Gallery in Gainesville, Florida, about 70 miles  from my home.  The title of the call - Creativity Takes Courage - caught my attention, and got me thinking about what art pieces might be entered.  I gathered up some courage, and submitted my little drummer boy piece, called Fiddlesticks.

 

To my delight, my work was juried into the exhibit.  This was a nationwide call for entry. There were 330 pieces submitted by 170 artists, and 63 works by 52 artists were selected by the jurors. 

 (I'm always interested in these kinds of entry statistics.)

  

The opening reception was Friday evening.  I debated about whether or not to make the drive, but I was curious to see the other work, so I went.  Not too far into the journey, an extreme lightning and rainstorm appeared.  And stayed.  I considered turning back when it got really hard to see what was ahead of me.  But I thought about courage, and leaned closer to the windshield, and kept driving.

I was sure that because this event was far from home, I would not know anyone at the reception.  Less than two minutes after arriving at the Gainesville Fine Art Association gallery, and as I began looking at the work, I heard my name called.  It was a friend from SAQA - an international organization of fiber artists.  She had previously lived in Tampa, where we met at a local SAQA meeting.  We enjoyed catching up, since I don't see her anymore, now that she lives in Gainesville. 

I wish i had taken photos of some of the other work.   It was a wide range - paintings, photography, drawings, collage, clay, fiber work, even wood pieces.  They called the artists to the front and had us introduce ourselves.  I was surprised to hear the name of one of my former elementary (and high school) Art students -  Michelle Nagri, who received a Judges' Recognition Award for her photography! 

Behind me is a beautiful fiber work by Gainesville artist Candace McCaffery.  So, I'm very glad that I made the effort to attend the reception and was able to reconnect with these two ladies. 
I did take a couple of snaps of my work, because I was tickled that they placed the musicians next to my drummer. 

The exhibit will be open through November 10 at the GFAA gallery.  Check it out, if you're nearby.