Adventure!

This life is such an adventure! I've been riding my bike regularly for two months now. New strength, calm and the start of a new poem has come to me as the wind resists or assists me in the stunning terrain that we are blessed to live amongst.

I've been enjoying a lovely stream of visitors in the gallery this week. Victoria came in early to pick up copies of the Chronicle News which has been reporting on the Herzstein Memorial Museum's recent Old West Days. Janet came by to drop off some items she knew I'd make good use of. Both went off into their days with chocolate to sweeten things up.

Later, Sandra & her husband John stopped in for the first time. They are building a home east and north of here and Sandra is looking to bring together a vocal ensemble to sing classical music. She gave me an impromptu voice coaching which synchronistically answered a question I had about my own vocal training (I just started taking lessons with my dear friend Carmen who lives in Albuquerque). I am looking forward to hearing Sandra's group! Maybe they'll debut a song at one of our open mikes in the future!

Tomorrow, Saturday August 29th, is Live @ Studio C! I am proud to present Gabrielle Louise and her partner David Rynhart as our featured act. For more information read Tim's article about Gabrielle Louise in the Chronicle News: page 1, page 2. Kathryn Engel is in the spotlight and presents a dramatic reading to warm us up.

Kicking it all off, as is the tradition here at Studio C, will be the open mike. All forms of performance and presentation are welcome at our open mike. Traditionally, open mikes provide a nurturing time and space for anyone brave enough to step in front of those assembled to share their talent. They provide you an opportunity to grow and the audience an opportunity to get to know more about you. I hope you'll come see the show Saturday and even sign up for a spot on the open mike. Send me an email and I'll add you to the list. Abbie did!

We are gearing up for another fall full of events....

Calling all types of creative people! Come set up to sell what you have at our 2nd Summer Arts Street Fair here in Des Moines New Mexico on Saturday September 26th from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Click vendors for more information. There will be food, fun, and stuff to buy. Support your local economy in the truest of senses... buy from friends and neighbors. Your money will be circulating in our community which is GOOD thing! I also encourage you to spend some time developing your own crafts and harvests for sale. We often have more than we need in our gardens... this is a perfect opportunity to share and make some money. I'm drying herbs myself! It's fun to see my shelves begin to show signs of abundance beyond my own household needs. I'm keeping things simple; living by the credo to "Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle" so overhead is low even while I'm producing high quality herbs and plants to sell. I wonder what you have that could provide you with added income and our Summer Arts Street Fair shoppers wonderful choices for their hard earned dollars. Questions? Let's open this up for discussion. Leave a comment with your ideas. Let's grow our creativity together!

Next month in September, Live @ Studio C! will be a little different~ It's a field trip! We'll meet at The Mandala Center for their fall evening concert: September Sizzle. The Mandala Center presents Randi Whitman, Eileen Terry and Valerie Powell. They are a very accomplished trio comprised of flute, piano and soprano voice. The event is free and includes a wine & cheese reception. The Mandala Center would love an RSVP and donations are greatly appreciated.

If you want to hear about what is going on in our area, one of the BEST things to do is to tune in to KRTN, 93.9 FM radio out of Raton, New Mexico and listen to the dynamic duo of Billy D and Buddy Springer. They do a wonderful morning talk radio show called This, That & The Other. Sponsored by several local businesses, Billy and Buddy welcome any and all who come to the studio Monday through Saturday to talk about... well, this that & the other! Thank you Billy & Buddy for a terrific show!

Wes, on his way back to Durango from San Antonio is sitting out front with a cup of organic fair trade Guatemala Maya Ixil coffee, freshly ground and brewed, enjoying the sound of water running in Nathaniel Franklin's two water sculptures. He's in a blessed time in his creative journey and knows that there is plenty of time to get to Colorado. He's taking time to stop and smell the roses and savor the delicious coffee grown and picked and purchased at fair living wages. A nature lover and nutritionist in training, customers like Wes are part of why I love growing Studio C!

I hope you will come by the gallery to see what we have to offer. Studio C is growing and changing as we all do. Life is rich with Joy and discovery for all of us. I send you vibrant bliss!

Cheers!

Christina

Good Bye Tom Fool Paisley

Today has been a grand day. Anna & Marissa stopped in on their way back to Dallas. They were on a road trip to show Anna, visiting from Scotland, the sights in TX, OK, KS, CO & NM. They did some shopping and thus, goodbye to Tom Fool Paisley. He is a handmade horse figure made by New Mexico artist Amy Caldwell. Amy's horses are so cute it's just crazy!

I am excited about the Old West Days being held in Clayton, New Mexico tomorrow. (Clayton is the next town 40 miles east of here.) Read about the event here. I can't go but I hope you will, and if you'll be driving through town stop in to visit.

I'm swimming in Endangered Species chocolate thanks to the new order I recently made! big bend coffee roasters' whole bean organic fair trade beans are here by the pound for your morning java pleasure... or take a cup to go as you head on down the road; east to Clayton, west to Raton.

Gabrielle Louise will be here with David Rynhart on the 29th to wow you with her original songs, expressive playing and warm generous spirit. Kathryn Engel will be here too, she's bringing an heirloom letter from her great grandfather and will give a dramatic reading which is sure to inspire you! I encourage you to bring something of your talent to share with us as we start the show with our open mike. You'll be glad you did!

A big shout out to new friends Sherry Wolf & Steve Knight at knight/wolf studios in Cimarron New Mexico. Yvonne O'Brien introduced me to Sherry & Steve during the reception we held in celebration of her show. Yvonne's photography is available at their gallery, Old Town Gallery located at 114 East 17th Street in Cimarron and here at Studio C in Des Moines New Mexico.

I'm headed out to watch my swallowtail butterfly worms...... hope you too are enjoying this fabulous late summer weather!

Blessings and Salutations~

Christina

Changing Times, Changing Ways

Well, the day has begun! We've got great weather, 30% chance of rain, blustery warm winds and inspiration from new projects getting underway.

New T-shirts from Chiapas Mexico artist Nono Espejo have arrived. Come by to see his new shirts in both men's and woman's styles/sizes. His Mayan-inspired images are batiqued and tie-dyed in deep rich colors that are perfectly tuned to the fall season coming up.

Don't forget to mark your calendars for August's Live @ Studio C! Saturday August 29th we are featuring Gabrielle Louise with David Rynhart. This is a night not to miss. Be sure to check out Gabrielle's link so you know why. We'll also spotlight Kathryn Engel and of course hear from the adventurous participants who sign up for our open mike. Did I tell you about our give-a-way at our July show? (I've decided that we'll be giving some "door prizes" away. You never know what that will be and you do have to be present to win.) Last month Sharon Niederman won a loaf of pineapple nut bread made fresh for the evening by Abbie Reaves. Abbie's breads are available here each Sunday at the Des Moines Area Farmers' Market which will be here from 11:00 am - 3:00 pm.

The Union County Fair is in progress and Art Plays Its Part! student work is hanging in the show barn in Clayton. Students should all be proud; the work looks wonderful! FYI the Colfax County Fair is also going on. The work will come down Saturday and then make its way to the State Fair/ New Mexico Expo in September. Talk about well travelled!

The Herzstein Memorial Museum in Clayton, just 45 miles east of here is hosting a new event on Saturday August the 22nd from "noon - ????". Presenting a full day of fun with their first ever "Old West Days". There'll be long horn cattle to get your photo taken with, good food, arts & crafts booths, games, historical reenactments and in the evening music and a street dance. Attendance is free. All this will be at 22 South Second Street in Clayton New Mexico.

Speaking of events, there is a new open mike in Raton. The series is called Second Wednesdays. Pay a $5.00 cover fee, sign up and share your talents at the El Raton movie theatre on the second Wednesday of each month! Hey, with that schedule I can even go sign up.... proceeds from the night will go to the Wounded Warrior Project.

I've received the prospectus for a new event in Raton, Raton Bearfest - Fine Arts & Craft Show which will be held in Raton October 10th & 11th at Ripley Park. Artists are juried into the show. Entries must be postmarked by September 21 and include fees. Email Cindy Montoya for details.

Here in Des Moines we are getting ready for our second annual community events series! Were putting out the call for vendors, artists and artisans to show and sell your wares on Saturday September 27th during our Summer Arts Street Festival. Send us an email for more information.

Check out Tim's blog this week for information about the Folsom Museum and goings on there.

So, there it is! Another week here in the gallery has arrived. I hope you'll come by for some coffee and chocolate and fresh veggies and of course: ART!

Thanks for leaving your comments here on the blog. It's such an honor to know you are reading and enjoying this news.

Blessings and Magnified Creativity to you!

Christina

Facing West

Actually.... we're facing north in this view of Studio C but we are looking directly at the works of sculpture by Nathaniel Franklin, our currently featured artist, lit up in the early evening sky.

Tim and I just returned from a mini-vacation at The Little Tree B&B in Taos where we took advantage of the lovely accommodations to rejuvenate. Yep. We did pretty much nothing but read, sleep and eat in celebration of our 10th wedding anniversary, my recent birthday, and 23 years of joyful journey together. It was a perfect time in the busyness of our lives to step back and reflect. We wandered back to Des Moines via the 3 T's Art Trail yesterday. Thanks to Sasha who helps me out on occasion. She is a fine artist and lovely person to have in the gallery.

We just received a new shipment of hand batiqued and tie-dyed T-shirts which I'll be putting out as soon as I get this blog update published. Nono Espejo is the artist we continue to import after meeting him at the plaza market in San Cristobal de las Casas in Chiapas Mexico. The colors he works with are rich and exotic, perfect for the fall palate. They are further embellished with Mayan inspired images done with the batique process. We love them and continue to import them as they have proven to be very popular. This new collection comes to us just in time for your back to school shopping!

I'm keeping it short today since there is so much to do... Tomorrow afternoon Studio C will be the place to be between 3 & 6 with a reception for the artist, Nathaniel Franklin. Come by to enjoy the festivities, visit with Nathaniel and see the work we are all raving about. We'll be christening the west gallery "The West Gallery" and Nathaniel will discuss his work. It will be an arts event not to be missed! Want more information? Read Tim Keller's review of Nathaniel's work: p. 1, p. 2.

Are you craving chocolate? We just received a new shipment of Endangered Species Chocolates in assorted styles and flavors... come on in to support your happiness and better health through chocolate... I'm just about to open the box now!

Life is indeed full of pleasures that I am blessed to be able to offer here at Studio C!

Blessings and Songs of Joy!

Christina

P.S. Do leave a comment! I'd love to hear your thoughts!

C

Rainy Days Remind me of Scotland!

Well, I've been enjoying the Scottish rainy day here in Des Moines! I was all set to write this entry early before I opened the gallery until I went out to feed our birds... the drizzle, the wet spongy ground, the beautiful morning light... I was transfixed by the days of rain we've enjoyed these last weeks. I did some light gardening! I've got lovely flowers and herbs to fill the vases here. I've had a shop full of internet cafe patrons. I've downloaded the camera and have some new images to share with you!

It's been fun even as you've been waiting to get the news this week!

OK Here it is:

First off, mark your calendars for next weekend, Saturday August 8th from 3:00 - 6:00 p.m. We'll be presenting Nathaniel Franklin with a reception for the artist. Come out to meet Nathaniel and see his work in person.

You might be planning on going to the Folsom Museum on the 8th see Dorothy Smoker in a chautauqua. Come by Studio C first 3:00, meet & visit with Nathaniel and others at our reception and then drive the 9 miles to Folsom to see the chautauqua at 4:00.

Sunday we'll have fresh veggies and homemade breads here Sunday from 10:00 - 4:00. The Farmers' Market is a great place to meet your friends and neighbors, share some recipes and take home some good foods. We're looking for more vendors... just come on over with your goodies and set up next to Sunny.

Speaking of Sunny, it was earlier today but now the rains have come and all is drenched yet again! The New Mexico gourd vine is threatening to take over but the ground is wet so I can easily pull it. I was here at 7:30 pulling the new crop of vines... I pulled for 3 hours 3 weeks ago getting every vine I could see... though I swear that it does grow even as you pull it! I've got another half hour to go to get the last of it. I'm composting it so all that lovely greenery will eventually help the grounds look even better.... still remember some fun things my brother & sister and I did with them when we were younger. Have any good stories about New Mexico gourd vine? Tell your story in the comments.

Inge Bobek's stained glass bottle hummingbird feeder is full of sweet nectar and the hummers are coming in to feast!

Sharon Niederman stopped in with her husband Chuck last Saturday and read during our open mike. She's working on a new novel and read her first chapter, fresh off the writing pad, after her week at the Taos Writers Festival. She is going to be presenting a memoir writing workshop, Writing from Personal Experience: Memoir, Journal, Family History and More, at The Mandala Center later this fall. Check out the links to find out more information so you can plan to attend!

I've got fresh coffee in and will send out another order for chocolate this weekend. All is well here at Studio C! The only thing missing is you! Hope you'll stop in soon!

Blessings~

Christina