job$ somebody's gotta do...
job$ somebody's gotta do...
The St. James Court Art Show located in what is called Old Louisville (Kentucky) is one of the largest art shows in the United States and goes back to 1957.
HUH? What's up with that?
Old Louisville consists of about 48 city blocks and is located north of the University of Louisville's main campus and south of downtown Louisville. It covers about 1,200 acres. Today, the Art Fair blankets four square blocks of that acreage.
Back in the Eisenhower years, the neighborhood of St. James Court, which consists of all 19th century homes, was faced with an empty Association treasury. The art show was started to help the community maintain and upgrade their neighborhood.
The centerpiece of the Victorian neighborhood is a huge fountain built of cast iron that was constructed in 1892 when the neighborhood was being established.
St. James Court and the Belgravia area are must see attractions in this city. The homes are as pristine and well kept as they must have been a century ago. It is impossible to walk the neighborhood without conjuring thoughts of what life must have been like in 1900.
Originally, the Art Show was to be open to anyone who wanted to enter an exhibit. The paintings were hung on clotheslines tied from tree to tree. By 1965, the annual affair had become a tradition and netted the neighborhood $700. In her book, St. James Court in Retrospect, Marguerite Gifford wrote in 1966, ...the $700 was used to purchase and install 20 gas lights which gave emphasis to the atmosphere which prevails in St. James Court.
This year's Art Show, which ran from September 30-October 2, saw over 300,000 visitors scoping out over 700 artists. One artist told us the weather was perfect all three days for the first time in her 10 years as a vendor in the event. She said it usually rains at least one of the three days.
Regina and I were among the masses and we chose Sunday (October 2) to attend. It's a lot of walking to see the entire exhibition, but, we were ready.
Over the years, we have purchased a lot of different items at St. James
My wife has a penchant for people who have the skillset or talent to paint, make unique, custom jewelry, construct furniture, and any number of other handmade artsy stuff. One year, we walked out with a solid cherry, wood table.
Part of the fun of St. James for me is to find out how far various artists have traveled. This year, we were told all 48 contiguous states were represented, plus Canada and Mexico.
I spoke with a couple of the exhibitors for this job$ somebody's gotta do.
Larry and Pam Smith are from Peachtree Corners, Georgia. They have three children and five grandchildren and have been married 50 years. Larry was the spokesperson for the couple.
I spent 30 years in advertising as a creative director and as an owner, he said.
When did you roll the dice and throw all that aside and decide you wanted to paint full time?
All the time I spent in advertising, I was really preparing myself for my first true love, painting, he recalled. I've been oil painting for 20 years now.
Judging by the prices on your exhibits, I would call you a high end artist. True?
I would say that is accurate, he smiled.
What is your work called?
I'm what is called an American impressionist, he informed me. I'm a member of the Oil Painters of America.
Do you only work Art Fairs like this one, or do you have a studio too?
Well, my wife Pam and I travel to the big shows like this one and we have a studio back in Georgia. Plus, she is a portrait artist. Besides our paintings, we've taught over 1,300 students painting in the past 20 years, he said proudly.
I was looking at some of your paintings before this interview. They are beautiful.
Thank you, Larry answered. Painting has been good to us. My work has appeared in museums, art galleries, and, over 200 top juried art shows in America.
You have a sign over there that says you do commissioned work. Does it ever get old collecting thousands of dollars for your talent?
Never, he laughed. Would it get old to you?
David Scherer's booth had a sign that told patrons he was from Madison Heights, Michigan. I have been to that particular suburb of Detroit a few times and decided to talk to David about his exclusive artwork.
Your art is different than anyone else's that I see.
Most of what I do is a desire I have to create uniqueness, he told me. I want to create a piece of art that no one else owns.
How do you describe your art?
I specialize in 3-D paintings, sculpture, and very cool clocks, he informed me. I've been doing the clocks you see on display for about 37 years.
Tell me how you started out.
Well, I was painting faces on watches that another artist taught me how to do, he said. Then, somebody hired me to paint a face on a clock and I've been doing it ever since. I started out in a studio, but couldn't make any money. I've been doing these Art Fairs for a lot of years and that's how I live.
So, you travel all the time?
No, between shows, I go home and create more art, he smiled. I do about 12 Art Fairs year round.
(I then explained to David about job$ somebody's gotta do)
Well, you should talk to Fletcher for your jobs blog, he retorted.
Who is Fletcher and where can I find him?
Oh, you won't find him, he laughed. My former wife introduced me to Fletcher's parents, but, I've never met Fletcher. I keep in touch with his mom and dad on a regular basis.
So, what's Fletcher's deal?
Fletcher has a job a lot of us would envy, David said. I keep up with his comings and goings through his parents, and, it's quite a story.
You know I have to hear it now.
Fletcher is in his mid 20s and he was doing odd jobs for his family in Michigan, he related. He met a man who asked him if he would like to do some work on a carriage house in the Upper Peninsula, so, Fletcher finished the job for his family and went north.
I take it Fletcher has a car or truck.
He drives a pickup truck. He said goodbye to his mom and dad, packed up and went to the U.P. , he said.
Sounds reasonable, so far.
His dad told me Fletcher was just about finished with the work on the carriage house and had to go to Loew's or Home Depot for a couple items. While he was there, he started talking to another guy who asked him if he would be interested in working on a ranch out in Colorado.
That's not an everyday occurrence. Did he go?
Of course, David said casually. He went out there for about six months and was working on a ranch when he met a man who lives next door to the guy he was working for. Keep in mind, this is a 4,000 acre ranch, so next door was a long way away. But, anyway, he met this man.
Let me guess. Fletcher now trains horses.
No, no. That rancher knew a guy who owned a barge company on the Colorado River and he needed some help, he explained. So, he asked Fletcher if he wanted to interview for that job, and Fletcher did go see about it. He took the job, and, he was there for about two months.
And, that's the end of the story?
Not quite, he enlightened me. Fletcher met a woman who is exactly like him and they got married. She is a free spirit and had been traveling the country. Fletcher and his bride built a tiny, tiny, home that fits on a trailer. They pull the trailer on their pickup and travel the country doing odd jobs, some construction and a whole lot of fix up and repair kind of stuff.
We're talking about free spirits here.
Absolutely, he agreed. They would have to be the ultimate definition of free spirits. I'm just a pretender compared to Fletcher.
Coming up: meet more POS; another job$ somebody's gotta do; find out what those guys who meet at McDonald's for coffee at 6:00 really talk about, and; another oddities, observations, and omg's.
And, finally. Fletcher's life appeals to me in the same way the TV show, The Fugitive did back in the day. Wandering from town to town and seeing what life has to offer. The only problem I see is the part about tools, construction, fix up and repair. Not good for me. Oh, well. Life is good.
HUH? What's up with that?
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