It is a pleasure to see the many old friends, loyal customers, and to be introduced to new art appreciators from near and far, as Sydni Sterling and I exhibit our paintings and plant-fiber forms together. Sydni’s attire (above) often matches her paintings. Filled with rich color, her paintings reflect the landscapes, details, and moods of the interesting places she and her poet husband, Mike Dillon, travel to each year.
I am grateful that Syd generously shares her space with me. Over the two plus decades we have been showing our work together in her Indianola studio, we’ve been able to observe and encourage each other while developing our art forms, as we’ve explored, experimented, and developed new bodies of work.
Here are a few highlights from the Art in the Woods Studio Tour. People come from great distances to take in this tour, and sometimes stay overnight and see every studio paced over the three days of the tour.
I think most customers realize it is informative and fun to go into various artists work spaces, to see where the art is made, and to have the opportunity to pick our brains if you can get us to talk! One of my favorite moments of this tour is when families come in with their school age children, who study the pieces and talk about the art they are drawn to with their parents.
Syd and I sometimes will get “interviewed” by young, budding artists, which is quite fun for us!
Another great moment is my Dad coming by to check out the new work! Where does my creative nature come from after all? My parents! I probably was using tools before I could talk, because my Mom and Dad were always building or repairing one thing or another while I was growing up. I’m so lucky!
