Thank you so much to everyone who came out to support and see my paintings this past weekend at The Other Art Fair! What a whirlwind! I am so grateful for all the connections, new faces, and lovely artists I got the chance to meet while at The Barker Hangar in Santa Monica.
Thursday was such a crazy rush- with my car and a van packed with all my paintings, display supplies, and tools, I drove from Orange County up to Santa Monica. I arrived at 10am to prepare and set up for the VIP opening reception that evening. However, I arrived to find that the painting crew had not finished painting my walls! I waited an additional two hours to begin hanging as the painters finished up the walls and we gave them ample time to dry. It took about 5 hours to hang and prepare everything for the opening.
The Private View opening reception was sold out and packed with curators, gallery representatives, collectors, and art lovers of all kinds. I got an overwhelming response to my paintings and made some great connections. My work “Reef” was also a part of Kate Bryan’s “31 Women” exhibition- read my previous post for more information- this mini exhibition within the fair was a big hit. I also found out that I was the youngest person exhibiting at the Fair this Fall. I couldn’t believe it!
Friday was just as busy as Thursday night, and I thoroughly enjoyed talking to so many people in depth about my work. Most people were very intrigued and amazed at the amount of texture, alternative materials, and three-dimensional elements within my paintings. Friday evening was Friends and Family evening, and I was thrilled to see so many people I love come out to support me, see my paintings, and enjoy a fun evening socializing and looking at art.
The rest of the weekend was more mellow, and I could relax by my work and enjoy chatting with many interesting visitors, art lovers, art students, families, and more. I was also thrilled about getting to connect with some of the other artists in the fair! I know I will be keeping in touch with many and am excited about new artistic friendships.
I am grateful for the works that found new homes and for such an overwhelmingly positive, loving, emotional, and moving response to my paintings. I am newly inspired to paint and can’t wait to start my new body of work. I am so thankful the fair has given me newfound energy, enthusiasm, and inspiration to bring back into my studio.