nahcotta

Reverie opens tomorrow night!

2011-12-01T09:53:00.001-05:00

We hope you'll join us tomorrow night, between 5-8pm, for the opening reception of Jennifer Judd-McGee's solo show! REVERIE, in the words of the artist herself, “is about joy and hopefulness and strengthening, about finding that dreamy place where beauty and calm is found in the tiniest unexpected details.” I love that.

Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow night!

Rose Umerlik: Histories

2011-11-01T14:42:00.002-05:00

Join us Friday, November 4 from 5-8pm to celebrate the opening of Rose Umerlik's solo show, entitled "Histories." Included in this exhibition is the release of Umerlik’s second book of images and essays, featuring an introduction by Shawn Hill and intimate journal entries from Umerlik concerning her emotional and cerebral processes transpiring with each painting’s creation. We'll have it for sale at the gallery on Friday, or you may purchase it online anytime.

The paintings within our exhibition are selections of the work depicted within the book, also entitled Histories, although additional pieces are shown within its pages.

New Interior Photos

2011-10-17T12:55:00.004-05:00

It's been awhile since we posted photos of the interior of Nahcotta. Thanks to Michael Winters for the beautiful images.

Opening photos from ETA 10

2011-09-12T09:00:00.000-05:00

Some photos from our ETA 10 opening! Thanks to all who came out and celebrated with us. It was a WONDERFUL night.

Enormous Tiny Art no. 10 - Coming Soon!

2011-08-12T10:48:00.001-05:00

Free Workshop - this Saturday!

2011-06-22T10:34:00.000-05:00

Join us this Saturday, June 25 between 10am - 1pm for a free event we're calling, "Workshop in the Window." Our artist and graphic designer friend Rebecca Daw will set up camp in our front window and show anyone who is interested lots of creative ways to use the wonderful resources found in the Lotta Jansdotter stencil and printing kits that we have here.

Stop by, won't you? And, in case you were concerned, no artistic talent is needed! The friendly Ms. Daw will here to answer questions, offer some tips, and help you make some pretty things (like the wrapping paper shown above).

Hilda Fleisher: Living with Art

2011-06-16T16:22:00.003-05:00

Long time collector and wonderful patron of the arts, Hilda Fleisher, was recently featured on NH Chronicle in a piece called "Living with Art." We were pretty pleased to see one of the pieces she made note of on camera was a painting by Rose Umerlik. We so appreciate Hilda's passion for collecting original art. She's an inspiration.

Click here to see the piece on the NH Chronicle website.

Janet Echelman: Taking imagination seriously | Video on TED.com

2011-06-14T13:05:00.002-05:00

Janet Echelman: Taking imagination seriously | Video on TED.com

First, I love TED. There are dozens of talks that inspire me and I am so happy that this website exists. Second, I love how this artist was faced with a potential disaster (her paints didn't arrive) and turned it into an incredible career.

Thoughts on the Unknown

2011-05-05T15:45:00.000-05:00

Maybe it's because of the long winter, or the new season that has finally arrived, but lately I've been feeling vaguely anxious/discontented/unsettled which, with the help of people smarter than me about this stuff, led me to understand that I need to make some changes. By that I mean, I want to try doing things differently here at Nahcotta. The really scary part of that sentence, is that I have absolutely NO idea what that means. And for those of you who know me, I'm much more comfortable with the telling of this kind of story when I can present it all wrapped up with a nice bow. And here I am telling you the story totally unfinished and not a bow in sight.

I don't think that the changes will be major, but who knows? It's possible that we'll keep a strong focus on art but do fewer but bigger gallery shows. Maybe. Or maybe we'll do more events showcasing the products that we sell. Or not. Maybe I'll spend more time here at Nahcotta. Maybe I'll spend less. Maybe I'll hire someone so Abbie and I can spend more time traveling and getting inspired but what other folks do. Maybe we'll keep keep the staff as is. What I know right now, is that I don't know. As tough as that sentence has been for me to embrace, I also understand now how exhilarating it can be. Because I can easily now imagine that being less sure will lead to a (possibly very small) tweak to the way we do things and, very likely, that will lead to something really wonderful.

On the recent podcast, "Back to Work", Merlin Mann said that he's focused on"making the time to be scared of more interesting things." From where I stand right now, I find that enormously inspiring.

I also want to be clear that this need for change isn't based on declining business or anything wrong. In fact, sales are up and things are really fine. But I want great! The best part about owning your own business is that you get to change course without asking for permission or having to blindly adhere to some set of guidelines set by some other entity. Rebecca just reminded me of that the other night, and for that I'm enormously grateful.

So, in the spirit of not knowing, I can't say what's next. But I will keep you posted.

Handmade for Japan Auction

2011-03-15T09:08:00.003-05:00

Starting this Friday, there will be an eBay auction organized by Handmade for Japan with all the net proceeds going to Global Giving's Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund. I am so moved (though not surprised) by the outpouring of support and generosity from the artistic community.
**UPDATE. Auction moved to March 24th.

Working with Vendors We Love - Part 2

2011-03-14T15:09:00.009-05:00

Smart Glass Jewelry was on our radar for awhile, but we just started carrying the line last summer. It became an instant favorite for our clients (and ours) and these folks are SO NICE which also adds to our affection. The jewelry is made from recycled glass bottles so no two pieces are exactly alike.

Last week, Kathleen, the genius behind Smart Glass, emailed us this INCREDIBLE news:

I am excited to announce I have created a new Smart Glass chandelier in conjunction with the Guggenheim Studio NYC which is going to debut at the Architectural Digest Home Design Show March 18th, as well as be on display in the Guggenheim's 5th Ave. window from Mid March through April! If you are in NYC during that time run by the museum for a look!

And then check out these photos:

Stunning.

Check out her website here and of course, we have some of the pieces on our site here (adding more soon).

Artists + Books

2011-03-11T12:09:00.001-05:00

The post, and others, may also be found in the Be Inspired section of our website. -Deb

[This post is by Rebecca Cox, who is the LA-based part of the Nahcotta collective. She sends in her missives from the west, proving that inspiration comes from anywhere you want to find it.]

Here’s a tip: when an octogenarian literary neighbor has a yard sale, you can’t get there fast enough. The heap of paperbacks I scored from my writer/neighbor, Jack, and his ceramicist wife, Nancy’s, yard sale last week is a completely fantastic find – e.e. cummings, patchen, plath, salinger and more. I especially adore the graphics, fonts, and color combinations, all wonderfully iconic. They’re like awesome little pieces of art, really.

Speaking of merging art and literature, several of our Nahcotta artists have collaborative work of the literary sort out in the world which you may or may not know about. Ian Dingman (artist) and Matt Allard (writer) have put together the masterful “To Slow Down The Time” while Julia Rothman and company’s "Exquisite Book” is super engaging and playful, both having received great accolades from both artistic and literary pundits. The Mincing Mockingbird, known for his outstanding avian imagery and hilariously wordy titles, has a book, too, titled “It Is Folly To Assume My Awesome Lies Dormant.” You can buy it right here on our site. In fact, the three aforementioned are all available at Nahcotta!

update

2011-02-23T14:14:00.003-05:00

We're having some issues with linking to multiple artists on our home page, so we'll feature one artist a week instead. We're working on a fix -- thanks for alerting us to the issue!

Working with Vendors We Love - Part 1

2011-02-21T14:27:00.009-05:00

One of the the nice benefits of the early days of the recession (words I didn't imagine I would ever write) was that we got really intentional about what companies we wanted to work with more - and which ones we were ready to, well, fire. I came to the conclusion that if things were going to be tough (and they were), then buying from folks who we really liked, and who made things that added value to the world was the right move. It felt a little scary at the time since that meant clearing out a few items that sold fairly well, but were being produced more and more irresponsibly. Would we find things that fit into lower price category but were made by good people, who cared enough to either make things themselves, or find really responsible ways to make them elsewhere? In short, yes. And now, two years after the worst of the downturn, I am sitting in the gallery surrounded by art and objects that I feel so proud to display and sell.

So, in celebration of that, we are going to feature some artwork by artists that license work with some of these great companies. First up, iPop! Currently in the gallery, we have work by these iPop artists: Susie Ghahremani, Danna Ray, Jennifer Judd-McGee, Ryan Berkley, Mati McDonough, and Amy Ruppel. The home page on the Enormous Tiny Art page is dedicated to those folks!

Enormous Tiny Art Show #9

2011-02-04T11:08:00.002-05:00

Happy snowy February! I can't believe that we're up to the ninth enormous tiny art show already! If you're in the area, please stop by and help us celebrate! If you can't make it to the gallery, all of the amazing work is on our site here.

Opening this Friday!

2011-01-06T12:14:00.004-05:00

Join us this Friday, between 5-8pm for our first opening of the new year! Check out all the work here, or please do stop by the gallery if you are in the area! As an added bonus, our friends at 3S Artspace will be here encouraging you to vote for 3S in the Pepsi Refresh Grant contest (50K goes to the top vote-getters as of 1/31/11). If you bring your cell phone and text in a vote while you're here, you'll be eligible for a $50 gift certificate from Nahcotta!

Jennifer Judd-McGee: Rally

2010-12-27T12:22:00.003-05:00

There are still a few more days to see Jennifer Judd-McGee's solo show (Rally) at Nahcotta. These beautiful papercuts are not to be missed. Of course, you can also see them online too if you can't make it in.

Up next in January - 11 in '11 will open on Friday, January 7th. More on that soon!

Trip to Boston for Inspiration

2010-11-23T13:08:00.006-05:00

Last week, Abbie and I headed down to Boston in search of some window inspiration and very happily found some! Some of our favorites were the Chanel window on Newbury. We loved the beautiful white cut paper:
And the window at the brand new Simon Pearce store down the street, featuring white and silver that was so simple, yet so lovely:Simon Pearce himself designed this spectacular hand blown glass chandelier that is hanging in the front entryway. Yes, it is for sale ($20,000), and we were told that he will install it in your house if you're interested in purchasing this one of a kind masterpiece.

Abbie is hard at work on our windows as I type this. Clearly, she was very inspired! Pictures and post soon!

Rose Umerlik Solo Show Opening Tomorrow Night

2010-11-04T13:13:00.004-05:00

Here's a glimpse of a few of Rose Umerlik's gorgeous paintings. Join us tomorrow night (Friday, Nov. 5th) between 5 and 8 pm to celebrate with us! If you can't make it in person, images of all of the work is on our website.

New Fall Window Display!

2010-10-16T17:11:00.002-05:00

When Abbie and I were in NYC at the NY Gift Show this past August, we were both immediately struck by the gorgeous display by one of our favorite vendors, Middle Kingdom. Of course, because Abbie is clever and resourceful, she figured out a way to reproduce their display for our windows for about ten dollars in stakes from Home Depot, twine, and some of our favorite vases. End result = lovely.

eta 8 opening!

2010-09-04T17:52:00.001-05:00

eta 8 opening 4,
originally uploaded by nahcotta gallery.

Thanks so much to all who braved the heat and the threat of Hurricane Earl to come to our opening last night! It was great fun, and we are feeling so grateful for our amazing clients and friends and artists who make this show such an amazing success.

Enormous Tiny Art Show #8 - Opening Friday!

2010-08-31T19:18:00.004-05:00

Join us between 5 - 8pm this Friday, September 3rd for the opening of our eighth Enormous Tiny Art Show! See 400 pieces of original art that are 10" x 10" or smaller -- or check it out online here!

Leah Giberson

2010-07-01T16:07:00.003-05:00

Our new show is opening tomorrow night! Please stop by any time between 5 and 8pm and see Leah's wonderful show. All of the work is now on our ETA site, and soon to be up on our new fancy Nahcotta site so if you can't see it in person, it's all online!

(Our nahcotta site is taking a wee bit longer than we'd hoped to go live, but we're planning on a live launch on 7/2. Thanks for bearing with us!)

opening, market square day, and press

2010-06-15T13:26:00.003-05:00

I'm so happy to report that we had a fantastic opening on the west coast for ETA LA 3! The red dots were flying, the crowd was great, and it was such a treat to see some old friends, and meet some news ones. More pictures may be found here. There is still some pretty amazing work available, so head over to the site and take a look! Remember that we're offering free shipping in June! (Unless you absolutely need the piece sooner, work will ship out on 7/1).

Meanwhile, Abbie was busy holding down the fort here for Market Square Day and, despite the rain, had a super busy day. Summary = she is awesome.

We've had some great press lately, including this piece in the LA Times and an interior shot of Nahcotta in the new Coastal Home magazine.

news from the east, and heading west

2010-06-08T16:02:00.005-05:00

June is shaping up to be a pretty full month with an opening here last Friday, an opening in L.A. this coming Saturday, and Market Square Day in Portsmouth on Saturday too.

The opening in L.A. is for our third Enormous Tiny Art: LA show held once again at the Living Room in Silver Lake. All of the work for the show has been uploaded on to our website and we're pretty awed by the incredible talent of the many artists that we have the privilege of working with.

If you can't be at the opening, and you'd like to pick up a great little piece of original art, we're happy to announce that we're offering free shipping (worldwide!) for the month of June on our site .

Jeff Fitzgerald - Featured Artist at Nahcotta

2010-06-01T16:01:00.004-05:00

We're so pleased to feature Jeff Fitzgerald's wonderful paintings of the rocky Maine coast this month at the gallery. Here's a link to all of the images and hope to see you at the opening on Friday, June 4th!

Celebrating TEN!

2010-04-30T17:48:00.002-05:00

Hope you'll join us Friday, May 7th from 5-8pm to celebrate our TENth anniversary!

To see images of some of the work from the show, click here.

at last, a mission statement

2010-04-26T11:15:00.010-05:00

Last fall, I took an ecourse with the great folks at Think Bakery who strongly encouraged their students to write a mission statement as part of an overall business plan. Even though I'm approaching ten years in business, I hadn't ever had an explicitly written statement. We have spent time talking about what we want to sell, who we want to work with, and what kind of local business we want to be -- but we hadn't ever spent the time to get an overall philosophy narrowed down to a few lines. These past few weeks, Rebecca and I have done just that and here are the results:

We believe a sense of humor, compassion, art, integrity and pets are integral parts of a happy life. We believe in the importance of being inspired. We believe that the things that make you feel are just as important as the things that make you think. We believe in connecting - with our neighbors next door and across the world. We strive to make art accessible to anyone and everyone because things of beauty enrich our lives in ineffable ways. We love what we do.

I'm so grateful to Erin and Jamie for teaching a great class, and also for urging me to do this. We plan on posting this newly crafted statement here at the gallery in a prominent spot as a daily reminder of our guiding principals.

The Spring Show!

2010-03-25T16:26:00.002-05:00

Happy Spring! We're celebrating the new season with a lovely show featuring the work of Matt Adrian, Beth Billups, Amanda Blake, Teresa McCue, Helen Musselwhite, Cathy Nichols, Betsy Thompson and Charyl Weissbach. The opening will be on Friday, April 2nd, from 5-8pm. Check out a sneak peak of some of the images here.

Lots and lots of tiny art

2010-01-28T14:08:00.002-05:00

This is just a small sampling of the tiny art that is pouring in! We're updating our flickr site regularly and as the work arrives at the gallery, we're uploading it to the enormous tiny art site just as quickly as our fingers can type. This show is the best cure for the winter blahs that I know.

mark your calendars for eta 7!

2010-01-20T14:00:00.002-05:00

new work will be added to the site soon. meanwhile, see the images we have so far here!

Verbatim

2010-01-07T13:00:00.004-05:00

Please join us tomorrow night (Friday, Jan. 8) from 5-8pm for the opening of "Verbatim: Inspiration in Translation." A few installation shots are below but to view all of the work, and for more information about the show, please visit our website here!

Happy Holidays!

2009-12-21T16:26:00.002-05:00

For all of the support and love you continue to have for Nahcotta and what we do, we thank you! Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Winter Solstice, Lille Juleaften, Reveillon, Yemanja gift-offering, Festival of Light-loving December celebrations! May the new year bring you love, laughter, great discoveries, and loads of delicious art, food, literature, and music.

so this happened...

2009-12-11T17:29:00.004-05:00

the other day, i checked one of my very favorite sites dooce, which is written by the funny and talented heather armstrong, and was astounded and amazing and so very excited to see that the placemats we developed with modern twist and artist jennifer judd-mcgee were featured on her gift guide! thank you for making our month, heather!

double whammy december

2009-11-27T12:23:00.004-05:00

in just seven days, on friday, december 4th, nahcotta will be simultaneously celebrating two exhibitions commencing on both coasts of the u.s.. yes, it's a fabulously fantastic double art whammy.

on the east side, in portsmouth, we've got our group show december, featuring this gorgeous bunch: michael winters, tim beavis, jennifer davis, shannon rankin, bonnie goldstein, and cheryle st. onge.

on the west side, eta la ii regales the silver lake 'hood of los angeles with its 26 artists from the PST zone: amanda blake, benjamin schlitter, charles adler, david lloyd, hugh d’andrade, jess fogel, joe ryckebosch, joey remmers, karen kang, kate bingaman-burt, katja leibenath, lisa congdon, lynn milosz, marisa haedike, mati mcdonough, matt adrian, matte stephens, ned evans, rachel robertson, rebecca hahn, ryan berkley, sarajo frieden, susie ghahremani, ute zaunbauer, valerie pensworth, and walt hall. this is just a portion of the tiny art pile-up that's been arriving in venice, california all week.

you've no excuse! whether you're right or you're left, you've got awesome art to check out and super fun openings to attend next friday. rest up and recover from turkey overload and black friday madness and put on your partypants, 'cos nahcotta's got your dance card filled, so to speak.

oh, if you're an FB'er, you can keep yourself in the eta la ii loop via this link or this one.

happy friday to you all!

december

2009-11-22T14:31:00.006-05:00

our upcoming show, called december, is abbie's first curatorial foray here at nahcotta. i love the pieces that she chose and i'm so looking forward to seeing all of this stunning work on our walls. for a preview of some of the images click here. we'll be adding more as they come in. the artists in the show are: tim beavis, jennifer davis, bonney goldstein, shannon rankin, cheryle st. onge, and michael winters (who, incidentally designed this beautiful postcard).

eta la 2!

2009-11-16T12:49:00.005-05:00

we are so excited that the enormous tiny art show is about to head back to los angeles! once again, the li ving room will be our host and the show will be up from december 4th through january 15th. join us in person or online!

new book by rose umerlik

2009-11-11T13:50:00.005-05:00

rose umerlik's new books are in! she signed them all and they are looking so beautiful. order your copy here or get in touch with us at the gallery.

the opening last friday was fantastic! thanks to all of you who came by - you were such an inspiring crowd! m. winters took this photo of rose in front of her painting, yellow surrounds.

eat.shop.guide!

2009-11-01T10:04:00.000-05:00

we just found out that we'll be in the new england edition of the eat.shop.guide due out this fall and we couldn't be more thrilled! these guides are beautifully designed and feature only independent businesses. in their words:

not to get all gushy, but here at the eat.shop guides, we have loving feelings for one-of-a-kind, worth going out of the way to visit, independently owned local businesses. though it’s a uniquely american sentiment to think bigger is better, we believe smaller is special—and we’ve dedicated an entire series of city guides to this premise.

they emailed us an image of our page. here it is!

where did october go?

2009-10-30T09:55:00.004-05:00

with the flora and fauna show soon coming to a close, i'm aware that it's been an awfully long time since i updated the blog. it's been an incredibly nice month being surrounded by such lovely art by julia rothman and jennifer judd-mcgee. good thing we have an equally incredible show coming up next. gorgeous big paintings by rose umerlik will grace our walls next week and we are really excited!

abbie and i attended a reception last night to celebrate the finalists for the piscataqua region grant, of which rose was one, and quite a few people walked up to rose's paintings and gasped. truth. she makes paintings that absolutely wow me and i feel so grateful to be filling the walls at nahcotta with her work. there will also be a book available of her work...more on that later.

join us next friday, november 6th, from 5-8pm, and see for yourself!

flora and fauna opening friday night!

2009-10-01T11:00:00.003-05:00

join us tomorrow night (friday) from 5-8pm for the opening of jennifer judd-mcgee and julia rothmans' show flora and fauna at nahcotta. their work may be seen online here and here.

check out the window drawing that these incredibly talented women did yesterday! we feel so incredibly lucky to work with such creative and inspiring artists!

picnic this saturday!

2009-09-10T12:01:00.003-05:00

if you're in the vicinity of portland, maine, please come visit us at picnic this saturday! looks a great group of artists, craftspeople, and musicians. we'll be right next to our pal jen judd-mcgee of swallowfield. yay!

the new math

2009-08-23T14:24:00.004-05:00

while we realize the new math has already made its rounds, for those of you who may have missed this one, we think it calls for another go 'round of healthy exposure. lapel pins should be made with this mathematical equation and handed out at the entrance of modern art galleries and museums to set the appropriate mood and quiet the naysayers. not that you're not entitled to your own opinion, of course. but this is so undeniably fantastic:

bludot 20 20 sale!

2009-08-22T12:34:00.004-05:00

for 20 days (august 20 through september 8), bludot is having a 20% off sale! stop in or call us anytime before the sale ends to take advantage of these great deals!

whirlwind trip to nyc

2009-08-20T13:53:00.006-05:00

abbie and i just took a whirlwind (and i do mean whirlwind) trip to nyc for the ny gift show. it was really, really great, and really, really tiring. we left at about 6am on tuesday, got to the show about 4.5 hours later and hit the deck running. we saw some amazing stuff, met with some of our favorite vendors, and met with some new folks too. also we got a sneak peak at a super secret project that we're working on with jennifer judd-mcgee. oh, it's going to be so great! we then went out to really yummy dinner with my favorite new yorker, who then insisted that we check out the highline. wow, it was amazing and so worth the trip across town. we stayed overnight with the above-mentioned new yorker and his adorable pug and left at 7am on wednesday. did i mention it was a whirlwind? here are some photo highlights!

new notebooks!

2009-08-17T10:00:00.006-05:00

we're adding to our list of nahcotta specific products with this amazing notebook with a cover design by rose umerlik. the first 50 notebooks are signed and numbered the artist and are available here. because these notebooks are so finely constructed and designed, you might be tempted to hang them on the wall. but i highly recommend using it! i carry mine around everywhere i go and it's where i've jotted down some of my best ideas lately. i give all of the credit to the notebook.

we're getting ready for eta 6!

2009-08-15T15:15:00.004-05:00

hotshot hodges: brooklyn, boards, and donuts

2009-08-01T16:19:00.006-05:00

our beloved jennifer hodges, whom we occasionally call "hotshot" for her amazing artistic prowess and intellect, graduated from yale with her mfa years ago. leaving new york, she'd relocated to york, maine, where she surfed the ruthlessly cold atlantic with few female companions, made art, lived in an old barnhouse, and curated for nahcotta. ultimately, this dynamo recently made it back to new york - brooklyn, more specifically - and she's now bouncing back and forth between the two for the best both worlds have to offer. she recently rode a bus for seven hours to get an adrenalin-induced dose of some outstanding sea swells, as well as the levity and loveliness provided by the company of her seacoast pals. we thought you might be as interested in her new digs as we were, so here's some shots of her brooklyn studio and roofdeck, while the rest of the photos are narrated by hotshot herself.

"Ok, here is the donut, old fashioned cake style with a glaze. My favorite place to run is along the East River on Franklin Street, then over the Williamsburg Bridge to Manhattan. I live in an area where there are lots of parks, and a great view of the Manhattan sky line. There is a Surf shop called Mollusk within walking distance of my house. There is a giant population of surfers in New York, and Mollusk is a legitimate surf shop selling boards and wet suits. Mollusk sponsors outdoor surf movies that are projected on oil tanks outside the shop on summer nights. I looked up Mollusk online and it said there is a shop called Mollusk in Venice CA. Is that true, Rebecca? Another Bi Coastal connection! [nahcotta/rc sidenote: "yes, jen. it's true! the venice mollusk is the original. it's right down by the infamous, iconic venice sign that stretches across main and welcomes you to the big, bad boulevard. here's a pic. as always, east and west are perpetually connected.] Another favorite store of mine is Sodafine. Sodafine sells women's clothing made by emerging designers from Brooklyn and beyond. Look up Sodafine.com."

"Just a couple more...Metropolitan Ave, which has everything. And more donuts."

"This picture of the park on North 8th is about as close at it gets to the beach on this side of Brooklyn."

new york in the summer ... a gorgeous sight. we hope hotshot's finding all sorts of inspiration through her roofdeck vantage point, delicious donut shops, and fellow surfers in the urban borough. jen, thanks for giving us a glimpse into your new york 'hood. eat a donut for us! to check out jen's work, by the way, go here or here. we don't call her "hotshot" for nuthin'.

happy august!

trademark!

2009-07-19T10:36:00.005-05:00

a large envelope arrived in yesterday's mail, and when i finally had a minute to open it, found that it contained this very official looking document:
the official trademark for enormous tiny art! thanks to some very wise counsel, i started this process almost a year ago (there's nothing quick about this trademark business). i'm so, so pleased to have this very official piece of paper that represents a part of my business that i absolutely love!

recent press

2009-07-10T16:33:00.004-05:00

great big thanks to coastal living magazine and artscope magazine for their recent nahcotta mentions!

leah giberson opening reception tomorrow!

2009-07-02T09:58:00.004-05:00

please join us tomorrow night celebrate the opening reception of leah giberson's show at nahcotta! our opening goes from 5-8 and the fireworks are scheduled to start at 9:15pm so the timing works out perfectly!

see the larger work here and the smaller work on our eta site here.

sparklers, summer, and a solo show

2009-07-01T23:10:00.006-05:00

this past weekend, i was in palm springs, where it reached a peak of 110 degrees out of doors. insanely hot. truly and unapologetically the desert. i'm reading "seven days in the art world", having finished the chapter on cal arts within the withering, blistering heat, and can say the book is super, thus far - it's a fascinating book that reads more like a chapter-by-chapter essay on seven specific elements of the art world - the auction, the studio visit, the crit, and so forth. you might notice a trashy gossip rag hiding behind the hardcover. it's requisite for sunbathing. sorry, dear readers.
i always associate the fourth of july with the official onset of summer. the corn on the cob, the incessant mosquitoes, the vibrant green grass, lounging on an old blanket watching the night's fireworks while waving away the aforementioned mosquitoes, and "oohing", "aahing", and applauding at all the worthy moments. this independence day, i think you should ignite your barbecues and sparklers in addition to your ardor for awesome art. check out leah's newest work and meet the lovely lady at the opening of her solo show this friday, the 3rd, from 5-8 p.m..

happy long holiday weekend! here's to hoping the sun breaks for all of us!

- rc

a bone bike and more

2009-06-21T12:18:00.007-05:00

after a quick closing reception party at bergamot station last night, ned and i checked out the black cat festival in culver city, partly because andy moses invited us and partly because it sounded like it could be a total gas. a total gas it was not, unfortunately, but perhaps that's due to our inability to actually witness the breakdancing duo as they tore up the floor while the front of the crowd hooted and hollered "woot! woot!" in amazement. that said, however, the bellydancers could have been a success (i mean, one of them balanced a sword on her head for five minutes or more, for crying out loud) were it not for the distracting, histrionic, somewhat rave-like music which i described as "the triumphant battle music from the lord of the rings".

with that said, i don't want to sound super judgmental and cranky about the show. pulling together a festival of that sort must be an exhausting and overwhelming task - they had art, fashion, film, dance, and more rolled into one event. AND, they did have a
raymond pettibon on display (nfs) and it was, true to my expectations of his work, dark and wonderfully witty, of course.
and outside, on the bed of a parked truck was the bone bike i'd only seen photos of and had definitely wanted to see in person. unfortunately, i don't know the name of its creator, but how rad is this thing?

in other, less l.a. arty news, happy father's day to all the big poppas out there! yours is a job that is just as vital as a mother's, part of a team intending to produce the best possible progeny!

all my best from the west - *rc

bicoastal openings are all the rage

2009-06-12T21:55:00.008-05:00

it's hard to believe it's been a little over a week since the eta la and kelly moore, dana robson, and danna ray opening receptions coincided and nahcotta shared a mutual adoration of art almost simultaneously, if it weren't for the time zones. i've been terribly remiss in not getting more photos posted of the opening. that said, here are a few to whet your visual appetite and get your curiosity piqued.

since every perspective of the opening is unique to the beholder, you might want to check out steve's own eta la album and robert schulbaum, one of our eta la artists, has his own album here
(and robert, thanks for loaning me four out of the five photos depicted in this post). don't forget, dear and wonderful readers, that eta la is available at living room in la for the next two weeks, at which point it will be relocating to the east and adorning nahcotta's walls. either way, east or west, it's always available here.

and, on a totally unrelated note, someone recently opined to me, without provocation, that she thinks blogging is "just chatter". i bristled at her comment and her general coarseness and let it pass, silently repressing my disagreement. a day later, i came across a small editorial piece on this blogger. and redemption washed over me. this woman got it right. blogging is about connecting. and that's the truth.

connecting from one coast to all and others -
*rc

kelly moore, danna ray, and dana robson opening!

2009-06-04T15:44:00.003-05:00

we're so thrilled to be exhibiting work by these three lovely and talented ladies! please join us for the opening here at nahcotta tomorrow (6/5), from 5-8 pm. and, if you can't get in to the gallery, the images from the show may all be seen here.

we're pretty excited (understatement) to be hosting shows on both coasts tomorrow night! this is a first for us, but hopefully, probably, not the last.

eta la a-go-go!

2009-06-01T00:41:00.002-05:00

last friday was the delivery date for the enormous tiny art: los angeles artwork! this is a cropped portion of a pile of boxes awaiting my arrival, each one containing amazing and stupendously imaginative tiny art! avital and i made our way through the work this weekend while deb was madly posting everything here. the opening is this friday the 5th at living room in silver lake, california. join us in the tiny art merriment! and if you can't be in l.a., then be at nahcotta, because the kelly moore, danna ray, and dana robson show opens that same night. east or west - it's your choice.

all my best from the west - *rc

owl tree

2009-05-24T22:05:00.007-05:00

in case you weren't aware that this is out in the world, able to be worn by you, your best friend, your sister (by marriage, birth, or otherwise...a soul sister, what-have-you), a super cool indie mom living next door, you name it, we felt that a posting was in order to get the awesomeness out.

nahcotta is always looking to support the independent artists with whom we work. they're fantastically talented, hard working individuals and we hope that, through representing their work and inspiring them and goading them to create new things, we can fortify their passion and collective life's calling. to that end, we've begun creating our own line of nahcotta merchandise with the designs created by none other than our nahcotta artists. and so, the big reveal is as follows:

designed by the most modest artist i know, with her innate artistic talents exceeding her abilities to self-promote by such inexpressible and immeasurable bounds that we virtually coerce her into attending openings and publicly discussing her work. kelly moore, we do adore you so! an outstanding woman and artist, miss moore created this design for our first nahcotta tee! exclusive to nahcotta and printed on organic cotton, modeled by our own abbie, this little beaut will keep you cute and cool in the midst of a summertime swelter. contact us to get yours!

hoping you all had a spectacular holiday weekend...
- rc

west, meet east. east, meet west.

2009-05-19T22:43:00.008-05:00

eta la is off and running and coming together with the wonderful simplicity of events that are just intended to be. of course, it helps when you work with an outstanding bunch of people. and we do. we simply could not be more enamored with the artists with whom we work, their fans, their families, friends, and, obviously, the original, amazing, irreplaceable art. the art. it's so goddamned good, i'm driven to swearing in my unbridled enthusiasm. the rate at which we're receiving work is definitely accelerating as the opening night (june 5th) draws closer, but here's just a glimpse of a glimmer of a speck of the highlights thus far...more work can be viewed here! we'll post as the work comes in from all 25 artists, so stay tuned in and turned on to the eta la beat...

(the hostess #2 - abbie chislett)

(mountain life - joe ryckebosch)

(hanging on every word - ian dingman)

(break - jennifer hodges)

more soon. until then, all my best from the west - rc

you say it's your birthday...

2009-05-09T17:06:00.003-05:00

nahcotta turns NINE today! it's been a wonderful and unpredictable, inspiring and crazy, happy and challenging, fantastic and emboldened nine years. we're one year shy of a decade and can't believe how much has changed, grown, and become even more spectacular as the years have whizzed past.

to all of our artists, friends, family, and fans, your support is indescribable and vital. thank you for being enchanting, engaging, and downright awesome.

happy birthday, nahcotta! it's cake time...

(candle photo courtesy of this company. many thanks for the loan.)

eta la

2009-05-08T17:44:00.003-05:00

i'm super excited to announce that rebecca and her pal avital have been busy putting together eta la! hurray for tiny art on the west coast! for any of you in the l.a. area, mark your calendars for june 5th - the party to celebrate eta la at the living room in the silver lake area. if you aren't able to see the work in person, don't despair! the work will on our eta site for the entire month of june. these ladies have been hard at work and it shows. it's going to be a super fun event!

and the winner is...

2009-05-03T12:48:00.008-05:00

there are times when the 3,000-mile divide separating los angeles from the sweet city of portsmouth can work in my favor. and this is one of them.

the annual spotlight awards, held at portsmouth's gorgeous, historic music hall, has honored our dear, uber talented, and wonderfully sarcastic friend mw, as 2008's best photographer. i'm quite sure mw has some mixed feelings about receiving such an award; heretofore, the great divide is extremely convenient. i would never dare to make such an unsolicited announcement if i were still living on dearborn street in portsmouth, mere blocks from the best photographer of 2008 himself.

nonetheless, we love him and think he's a superstar, with or without a camera, and we wanted you, our readers and nahcotta lovers, to know about the recent acknowledgment of his success! you can see some of his work here. the proof is in more than the award, methinks. but the award certainly doesn't hurt.

(my apologies for the shoddy quality of the photograph - it was not taken with the intention of being publicly posted, obviously.)

all my best,
rc

opening tonight!

2009-05-01T14:36:00.004-05:00

join us tonight for an opening reception for teresa mccue and tim beavis! if you can't get here to see it person, see all the work online here.

guest deejays

2009-04-26T11:23:00.007-05:00

as our newsletter readers know, we have a profound respect for the relationship bonding music and the visual arts and so we regularly ask our artists what music they're currently into. often finding that artists become very attached to blasting certain music while they paint, i believe there's a correlation between music and the state of your psyche, your head, your soul - whatever you want to deem it, the creative spirit is swayed by the sounds that surround it. music and art connect to one another, both feed and fuel the senses and allow for creative catalysts. to all the artists who've answered in the past and the future artists to be questioned, we thank you for sharing your musical musings! we've yet to turn the query to ourselves. until now...
from deb:
"the dorky songs that make me happy are:"
lovely day - bill withers
thunder road - bruce springsteen
memories are made of this - johnny cash
beautiful world - colin hay
and i've been listening to joe purdy radio on pandora, which is great. and thievery corporation on last fm.

from abbie:
"i tend to like low key, rather depressing songs. i can't help it!"
dogs and lonelily - both by damian rice
romeo and juliet - (dire straits covered by the killers)
patty griffin's heavenly day and her cover of bruce springsteen's stolen car
"the next few songs are my power walk, get some energy going songs when mw gets on my case about listening to depressing music:"
we used to be friends - dandy warhols
flaming red - patty griffin
lola - the kinks

from avital (the west coaster helping out the full-time nahcotta peeps with a secret eta project, to be revealed soon enough...)
"ok, here are the five albums i can't get enough of right now (in no particular order):"
kanye west - 808s and heartbreak
simon and garfunkel - the concert in central park
antony and the johnsons - the crying light
bon iver - for emma, forever ago
okkervil river - the stand ins

and from yours truly:
recently recommended by a friend, the new brian eno + david byrne project is indubitably amazing and i listen to it regularly on repeat.
and because my friend sam just mailed me two stellar mixes, I’ve again heavily delved into morrissey.
some music that circulates back into my regular listening regime and makes me nostalgic, sentimental, inspired, hopeful, fired up, or contemplative:
this is the day - the the
doolittle (album) - pixies
lemonheads – my drug buddy
tiny dancer - elton john
rogue wave – california (the lyrics in this song are wonderful.)
inní mér syngur vitleysingur (aka "track two") on med sud i eyrum vid spilum endalaust - sigur ros

from your favorite nahcotta guest deejays and with all my best from the west - *rc

new window displays for spring

2009-04-13T14:04:00.004-05:00

it recently occurred to me that i had a totally underutilized talent in my midst. i love nahcotta's big windows, but it has always felt like i should be doing something more with them. so when i realized that abbie has a knack for such things, we decided that this would be one of her projects. she's planning to redo them each season and given how fantastic the spring version is, i can't wait for the next iteration!

the entire display is made of cupcake liners and fishing line. not only is she a great photographer, she's pretty damn creative in other areas too. clearly. i feel super lucky.

growth

2009-04-12T16:39:00.006-05:00

today, i'm remembering the note i left for the easter bunny instructing him to no longer leave me a chocolate bunny, but to please present a stuffed animal in its place, as i "didn't like chocolate." what sort of five-year-old madness i could have been experiencing at such a delicate age is unfathomable, but the easter bunny (a.k.a my mum, the easter poetess) followed suit and the following year, a generic brand of soft and snuggly stuffed bunny awaited me behind the red velvet chair in the living room.

this year, no bunnies. no chocolate, either, but that happens to be an incidental oversight. nope, this year easter is about growth - growth in my small but lovely garden where chard, beets, and tomatoes share soil with varied lettuce and herbs. an attempt to get my green thumb working adeptly, i hope this garden will bring some delicious, pesticide-free bounty, finding strength and tenacity in its verdant growth.

i wish the same for all of you on this holiday weekend - whether your own garden is literal or metaphorical, i hope it's thriving, potent, vital, powerful, and photosynthesizing like crazy.

as an art side note on a sunday, stay tuned for the upcoming show with tim beavis and teresa mccue! it's going to be colorful and gorgeous, just about as gorgeous as a happy garden. in the meantime, check out our current show for the best artistic triumvirate yet...

- *rc

mati mcdonough on eta

2009-04-06T09:23:00.004-05:00

thanks to mati mcdonough for being our featured artist on the eta site this month! rebecca did a little q+a with her, which i loved reading because it gave me a better sense of the person behind the art. we sent it out in our newsletter (sign up box on the eta site) but for those of you who didn't get it, here it is!

nahcotta: when did you know that you were meant to be an artist?
mm: I've always wanted to be an artist, but it's taken me forever to call myself an artist!

nahcotta: what is your most vivid, earliest memory of encountering or creating art in your childhood?
mm: I think my first memory of drawing was of moths and pollywogs, age five.

nahcotta: do you have a favorite museum? if so, what?
mm: Honestly, I am not just saying this to curry favor, but growing up in the Seacoast area, i always *loved* Nahcotta and dreamt of being in a show there some day when i grew up and hey, voila! I love so many galleries though and feel lucky to be in a few, namely yours!

nahcotta: do you listen to music while you draw? what's the CD/album you can't stop listening to right now?
mm: Oh such a good question! Music is essential to making art for me and helping me get in the zone. Bon Iver, She & Him and CocoRosie have been on solid rotation today. Ohhh and my friend just dropped by the newest Lucinda Williams earlier called "Little Honey". I love her achy voice so.

nahcotta: Louise Bourgeois is quoted as saying, "Art guarantees sanity." How do you feel about that? Agree? Why?
mm: YES, absolutely. I think it's a perfect outlet for channeling your crazy thoughts. It's meditative too. I also think from a developmental standpoint art making helps you make decisions and work out alternatives. Like should I put blue or chartreuse here and how can I resolve this issue of the little man jumping off the page. I think art education should be mandatory and integrated into all subjects for this reason and so many more.

nahcotta: what would your pseudonym be?
mm: Let's see... "Uncle Floyd" is a grumpy alter ego I inhabited once for the purpose of art making-- to free myself from making "cute" art. It worked, but then the cuteness crept back in! I've accepted it. That's an alter ego though. I actually love my name and just wish people would pronounce it right, so my pseudonym would be phonetic: Matey Rose, maybe preface it with "Argh".

happy-go-lucky

2009-04-05T12:42:00.006-05:00

(photo courtesy of imdb)

last night, i stayed in with the animals and watched a movie. yes, on a saturday night in los angeles. yes, i'm a dork. but i wanted to watch happy-go-lucky, a movie on which i'd heard mixed reviews, a movie with a super-sized hunk of positivism that i thought certainly couldn't hurt. it's the kind of movie that, if i were still living in portsmouth, deb and i would have watched together after a long saturday at nahcotta, no doubt. :)

happy-go-lucky is a definite departure for writer/director mike leigh, with whom i'm familiar from one of his films i saw many years ago, the film "naked", a tragi-comedy steeped in bitterness, anger, and distrust and with a cast of thoroughly maligned brits. as you can imagine, happy-go-lucky, a movie concentrating on the incessantly positive poppy, with her indefatigable cheer and constant quips, therefore seemed totally out of character. while i found poppy's optimism and gleeful approach to some of the darker elements of our 21st century society (the homeless we've jettisoned and the hateful and bigoted we've not changed, for instance) to be naive and, truthfully, a bit dangerous, i smiled a helluva lot during this film. and it reminded me that, whenever possible, it's better to laugh than to let the ugliness get you down. there's an endless amount of ugliness to be found if you look for it, a constant source of depression if you need it. isn't it more appealing to, a la poppy, take a flamenco class and stomp your feet in strength and off-beat unison or to take a piss out of the surly dude behind the bookstore counter by saying "stay happy!" to his unchanging frown as you exit the door?

with optimism on a sunday,
rc

amy ruppel in "i love you, man"

2009-04-04T16:44:00.003-05:00

i saw i love you man during the weekend of its theater debut, not because i couldn't wait for the movie to be released so much as ned and i wanted a goofy film and where else does one go but to a film starring paul rudd and jason segel and a tagline of "totes magotes" for absurdity?
ever since i saw rudd in an unfunny and less-than-mediocre 1998 film "the object of my affection" (is it more or less embarrassing that i read this book first?), rudd's been an object of my own affection. have you ever seen him rock his 80s dance moves on jon stewart? impressive rug-cutting, that's all i have to say.

anyhow, i'm watching i love you man and in the background during a kitchen scene, there's an amy ruppel piece hung on the wall! so fun to see an artist's work in a hollywood venue.
congrats, amy!

by the way, if you're in need of a goofy film (and who isn't these days), suspend your kafka-reading, chomsky-loving inner selves and watch this film. it's funny. and sweet. i promise. oh, and transporter 3 just made its way to my dvd player, too (thanks for the reminder, mw). talk about suspension of...something? but such fantastic fight scenes using a button-down shirt as a weapon. amazing!

hope you're all having a wonderful weekend!
- rc

chinese lanterns

2009-03-22T20:50:00.002-05:00

is spring officially here? these delicate chinese lanterns living next to my desk seem to think so. let's cross our fingers that this is a harbinger of good things, both weatherwise and otherwise.

p.s. in the background is a teeny, framed photo of my dear, sweet grampi (about whom i began my TIB essay) and nana. speaking of family, to my mum and dad, thanks a million for the subscription to real simple, which i can only assume was inspired by my last post. i eagerly anticipate the arrival of the first issue.

a week from tonight is the next nahcotta opening! mark your calendars and be prepared for inspirational awesomeness from jen renninger, amy ruppel, and diana weincke.

it's really real simple

2009-03-21T17:18:00.003-05:00

i always had an opinion about people who subscribe to real simple. when i was in my twenties, i thought, 'who needs to know how to make a 20-minute meal? or when to find the best travel deals?' nowadays, i'm getting texts from friends asking "do you ever sit down?" and i'm reading the text, laughing, while in a traffic jam, en route to the grocery store in search of organic flea shampoo and i realize that relaxing is, in fact, a truly rare occurrence in my life, i could use an injection of real simple. at this point in my life, i feel like i totally need to know how to make short ribs in 40 minutes and how to extend the life of my dish detergent with common household items.

in short, life is fast. life in los angeles can be faster. and days, weeks even, can pass between e-mails and phone calls with my distant and not-so-distant loved ones. so, i'm making an attempt to contact through e-mail, phone, or the obsolete but sentimental means of letterwriting (on lovely handmade stationery with deckled edges is even better) one person per day. it's an attempt to maintain connectivity. i know facebook is meant to accomplish such connections (um, among others), but it feels flawed and less intimate. with the meager amount of time (and possibly money) real simple saves me through its suggestions and tips, maybe i can allocate some decadent and wonderfully free time to zoning out to more of this and contemplating that.

to connecting with greater frequency...
- rc

april show card

2009-03-20T16:09:00.004-05:00

we're so looking forward to this show!

on an unrelated note, abbie just showed me about this video from bbc four. woah.

thinking about spring

2009-03-18T11:16:00.004-05:00

i don't know about anyone else out there, but i have had a serious case of march. symptoms include feeling blah, uninspired, and a little blue. but that's all changing. today is a beautiful, warm-ish, sunny day, and we have a really, really lovely show coming up in april. jen renninger, amy ruppel, and diane wiencke are sharing the walls for our upcoming show and seeing the images is enough to make me feel lighter and happier. things are looking up...

{image pictured: diane wiencke, safety net, oil, wax, plaster and resin on panel}

tiny art mavens

2009-03-10T23:04:00.006-05:00

mati mcdonough, next month's eta featured artist , seems like one of the most genuine, giving, super talented and connected people around. having never met her (we geographically-challenged nahcotta peeps don't always get a chance to meet the artists we represent, unfortunately), i can only assume her greatness by way of her outstanding blog posts championing the work of her peers, the multitude of grins on the children, dogs, and f ellow artists in her company, and her joyful, creative collaborations with her husband, hugh.

check out this project they partnered on earlier this year, producing this giant, lovable monster:

as for our current featured eta artist, marisa's wonderful little characters are going quickly, so grab one of the last few while you can! below is a mere glimpse into her eta q+a. if you're a reader who wants to know more about our eta artists, sign up for our monthly newsletter on the lower left corner of this eta page and you'll get all the skinny you could need!

nahcotta: do you listen to music while you draw? what's the CD/album you can't stop listening to right now?
mh: flight of the conchords ☺
i'm also a huge fan of soundtracks ~ so i've been obsessed with music from this year's best picture nominees, like "slumdog millionaire", "the wrestler", and "revolutionary road
nahcotta: do you have a favorite museum? if so, what?
mh: in college i had the opportunity to take an art student trip to to new york. our professors took us on the most jam-packed insider tour of the ny art scene ~ from museums, to galleries, to studios in SOHO. the "whitney" was my favorite ~ probably because it was the first time i saw an exhibition from william wegman ~ and those gorgeous weimaraners. it was unlike any of the traditional "art" i had seen as a college student ~ that it made quite an impression.
now that i live in LA i love the MOCA ~ i've been to so many inspiring shows there in the last few years from basquiat to andy warhol to robert rauschenberg. i think i tend to be drawn to "smaller" museums. i can get so inspired by the art that i see, that less is more in a museum for me, otherwise i can become overwhelmed by all the inspiration.

thanks, marisa!

nightlight

2009-03-07T15:34:00.006-05:00

speaking of much-needed cheer, i've had one helluva week. so i was overjoyed when a box arrived with nahcotta noted as the sender. swaddled in bubble wrap was a gorgeous candle ball made by perch. one of the last times i'd talked with deb, i'd asked if she had any in stock. i'd stumbled across these little beauties online (where i seem to spend a vast amount of my time these days) and, knowing that nahcotta carries perch's awesome handmade ceramics, thought i could snatch one up. deb, being the fabulous best friend that she is, packed this magnificent orb into a box and shipped it out to me unannounced. it made my night. moreso, it made me forget my exhausting week and bask in a little nighttime glow.

by the way, if you're interested in purchasing the candle balls, contact nahcotta through our site and deb or abbie will set you up tout de suite.

happy daylight savings weekend! at long last, spring is upon us.

- all my best from the west *

new work by marisa haedike

2009-03-02T14:13:00.003-05:00

eight very sweet and very tiny paintings by marisa haedike have arrived! marisa is our featured artist on the enormous tiny art website this month and the work will also be hanging in the gallery. these pieces arrived just prior to snowstorm number 6,492 and they are bringing us some much needed cheer! thank you. marisa!

saturday night life

2009-03-01T18:20:00.004-05:00

going out in los angeles is always a bit of an exciting and exhausting adventure. traffic is an inevitable obstacle, parking is a nightmare, and it can be challenging, energy-wise, to bounce from one happening to another without finding myself yawning by midnight. alas, i took on the challenge yesterday, spending the afternoon in my old 'hood of silverlake, where my friend avital and i ate lunch at an outstanding and fresh vegan place on sunset called flore (i had a quinoa and tabouli wrap and avital had the vegan-style blt - both so huge and delicious!). i also stopped by to visit with my old pal, steve, and check out the shop. he seems fantastic and, as per usual, is a complete crack-up. i miss that guy. he's in the dude in the red shirt, working hard, which is yet another steve constant.

we zoomed back to the west side just in time for the tail end of tom lieber's opening at the craig krull gallery at bergamot station in santa monica, then rushed off to the brentwood home of stanley and elyse grinstein, who began the company gemini gel here in los angeles. gemini created hand-printed lithographs, screenprints, etchings and sculptures since the early 1960s. consequently, stanley and elyse hobknobbed with the very best of the southern california best: ellsworth kelly, rauschenberg, christopher burden, frank stella, warhol, larry bell, richard serra, noguchi, and more. their house was jaw-droppingly amazing. in the front foyer, elyse told us to look up, pointing out the new baldessari, titled "god nose", which was affixed to the ceiling. on a field of stereotypical sky-blue, with white, puffy orbs surrounding a protruding nose. okay, i would have taken photos of all of this, but it seemed entirely inappropriate with this group. to snatch a shot of frank gehry after meeting him at the cheese table, or to pull dennis hopper and his wife and child aside for a quick photo op seemed like an unforgivable gaffe. nonetheless, trust that i was inexplicably wowed by the living art collectors and genuises in the room as much as i was by the unbelievable collection of gifted art that adorned the walls of their home. it is so obvious that they are loved and appreciated by the artists they've supported for decades.

next (and finally), we headed uptown on la cienega to the opening for skateboard icon and artist steve olson. steve is charming, brusque, lovable, and super talented, to boot. this body of work was simultaneously challenging and engaging, "like a punk ed ruscha", ned said. and that's a perfect description, i think. steve uses words in the way of ruscha, but they're emboldened by the message and the medium. (see below)

it was a super fun opening, a rented empty storefront filled with great art, as well as loads of quasi celebrities and assorted candies. finally, i was home, completely arted out and knackered!

meanwhile, back in portsmouth, at one of my favorite spots to sip scotch and eat the best burger in town, deb, chris greiner, and winters were having their last meal at the victory. the restaurant where we had countless after-opening dinners and drinks is closing its doors. i hope they can reinvent themselves elsewhere, because they had such a wonderful thing going. nonetheless, deb, greiner, and winters sallied forth and celebrated for one last night victory experience. thanks for sending the photo to me, winters. you guys look adorable. victory, we will miss you!

art heist

2009-02-24T23:54:00.003-05:00

you know, when i was visiting back eas t in december, i was desperate to visit the isabella stewart gardner museum, as i haven't been back there since i was a teenager (which i'm somewhat ashamed to admit, actually). nonetheless, the wacky and unpredictable weather that rules new england no matter what the season may be threw a nasty snowstorm into the way of my genuis art-focused plans. i barely made it down several blocks with deb's rig cruising in four-wheel drive at ten miles an hour, never mind a zoom down 95. so, today, i was searching for an artist of interest on the internet when i stumbled across this story. it struck me, oddly, as a classic new england heist story. but, maine isn't that big, right? i mean, how long could it take the police force to search every home in the state of maine for $300 million worth of stolen art?

by the way, my last animal-inspired post was a teeny bit motivated by fellow animal lover, marisa haedike's post regarding her co-workers. marisa also happens to be the enormous tiny art show's featured march artist. stay tuned for more of her incredibly wonderful creatures who exude joy, possibility, bliss, and contentment. like marisa herself, they are both magical and adorable. thank you, marisa!

a dog a day...

2009-02-22T19:56:00.005-05:00

it would seem that suddenly my life has become inexplicably and irretrievably dog-involved. whether it's at the gallery, where two labradoodle puppies named duke and ella get cozy in their dog beds next to my desk every day, or the weekends, when i volunteer for much love, my life literally includes at least one a dog a day. particularly now that i've taken on a rescue dog i met while my brother and sister-in-law were visiting me last month . the woman walking her in culver city came around the corner where i happened to be eating a quick lunch outdoors with bri and mj before their departure and i absentmindedly uttered, "wow, what a beautiful dog." without hesitation, the woman then stopped and told me "she's a rescue dog and needs a home." and i was hooked. lucie has the most adorable dog grin and wants nothing more than love and whatever food she can get into her mouth. although it's been, er...challenging, with the other animals, i think she's found herself a permanent residence. i took her and sam to the overcast malibu beach this morning and she was so overjoyed that she spun around and around and around, kicking sand everywhere ("everywhere" includes my face, hair, cell phone, etc.). she was so happy that i couldn't be angry.

not to show favorites, poe and bright get a little face time here on this post, too.
and, now, i'm off to make a steak and watch the oscars! i've got my fingers crossed for milk.

life is beautiful

2009-02-16T23:23:00.003-05:00

this morning, as i was driving to work in the extremely rare los angeles rainfall, and blaring sigur ros (the entire collection of cds compiled on one, thanks to a very dear and wonderful friend) in the confines of my car, i was thinking about this holiday weekend. not today's holiday, but february 14th. i mostly just used v-day as an excuse to eat a lot of super sugary, highly caloric pastries from canters. i'm talking about enough cupcakes to actually feel slightly ill - the kind of cupcakes wherein the frosting and cake share equal proportions. with sprinkles.

so, whatever you did for v-day, whoever and whatever you spent it with, if you gorged on sweets or otherwise...i hope you had a fabulous day and shared a little luuuuuurve. in the nostalgic sentiment of the moment, here's a mr. brainwash piece i shot on melrose in west hollywood.
listen to hitchcock, people. he's a brilliant man.

obama through ghana

2009-02-13T02:02:00.004-05:00

a week or so ago, i went to an opening at the los angeles art gallery of ernie wolf, a true man's man in the legendary sense of the moniker, a man who shoots wild boar, skins serpents, and roasts rabbits. his art gallery is a reflection of his own predilection for african oddities, totems, coffins, and ephemera. this particular show was a group show of work by untrained artists in ghana, a collection of artists wolf supports and motivates. it was the strangest, purest, most unadulterated gathering of images inspired by obama's election to "the black and white house", as many deemed it. caught between bemusement and fascination, ned and i wandered the room and i snatched some shots...

also, this actor from the later episodes of six feet under was in attendance at the obama show. this actor was at an opening i stopped into on fairfax last night. and a few weeks back, my brother and sister-in-law and i had dinner at nobu in malibu next to pink (who is clearly back together with her ex-husband, with whom she was gnashing on sushi). i'm not much of a celebrity gawker, but i have to admit i get a bit of a giggle when i actually do recognize someone even remotely famous and they're in my immediate social vicinity. eventually, this part of living in los angeles will wear off, i'm sure.

but, aren't these obama paintings so odd and amazing simultaneously?

the magic of tiny art

2009-02-09T17:51:00.006-05:00

i've been thinking a lot lately about bounty and gratitude and loving what i do - and what all that means in trying economic times. it's easy to feel tapped in to all that in good times, but a little more challenging (at least for me) to set aside the worry that i'm so skilled at carrying while watching the relentless bad news on tv. but i continue to feel really lucky that i show up to work every day and get to surround myself with inspiring and incredible art. and there is something pretty amazing about the enormous tiny art shows that happen twice a year here: people who come in to see the show seem really happy, the artists are really great to work with, the openings are packed and energetic and fun. it's like a magnet for good things. (my friend michael w. is now cringing).

anyway, in the midst of the marathon week of hanging all of the tiny art, abbie created a really elaborate scenario which involved her very favorite singer, patty griffin, walking in to nahcotta, loving the tiny art show, and inevitably giving her two tickets to her feb. 8 show at the music hall. well, saturday night, patty griffin did walk in to nahcotta, raved about the tiny art show, and ended up not only promising to leave two tickets for her at the box office, but left two back stage passes as well. lucky for me, abbie took me with her to the show. she met her idol and i took a crappy camera phone photo to capture it. [we also took a picture with emmylou harris, and i'll post that when/if it gets emailed to me - done!]. the concert was absolutely fantastic and we got to sit in the front row.

i'm telling you, the tiny art show is magic. who knows what other amazing and unexpectedly fantastic things will happen this month.

eta v opening reception TONIGHT!!!

2009-02-06T13:42:00.005-05:00

come join us TONIGHT at nahcotta for the eta v opening reception. celebrate what has become a marvelous biannual event here at Nahcotta - it’s a guaranteed good time. we promise!

why should you celebrate with the nahcotta peeps tonight, you ask?

1- in such a delicate economy, i think it's vitally important to support the independent ventures of the sole and soulful entrepreneurs.

2 - you’ll be aiding and abetting many hard-working, passionate, and devoted artists whose work is original and amazing and should be snatched up as quickly as possible.

3 - eta openings are infamous for their unbridled fun.

4 - m.winters will be there.

5 - original, diminutively-proportioned art is easy to collect and even easier to love.

i could go on and on and on, but i've got a snoozing dog in my lap and a cold cup of coffee on my desk, both of which need attending to...in short, GO, GO, GO to the eta v opening tonight! and see work like this from michelle ramin:

and this from michael winters:

and this from gardner foss:

and this from brenda rose:

and this gorgeous little piece from the newly married and still incredibly talented sam faix (congratulations, sammie! we're so happy for you!):

enormous tiny art show 5

2009-02-03T11:59:00.005-05:00

please join us for a lively and fun opening on friday, february 6 from 5-8pm to celebrate tiny art! though all of the work isn't yet installed on our walls, it is all up on our website so check it out!

dear abbie

2009-01-30T01:23:00.003-05:00

i got an email from deb the other afternoon, her somewhat regular update regarding the influx of tiny art entering nahcotta's doors. she said (i'm paraphrasing), "hey, abbie's eta photographs have arrived. woah, check 'em out." i am a big, fat fan of abbie's photos and am lucky enough to own a couple myself. deb wasn't speaking out of turn in her announcement - abbie's newest body of work is even more plaintive, poignant, and beautiful than her prior works. the piece depicted here, titled string and stairs no. 2, is just one sample of abbie's sophisticated, wonderfully poetic work. i'm mystified by how she captures the elements of domesticity and darkness simultaneously. these new works, in particular, are especially evolved and sensuous, bringing an ethereal, gauzy quality to the subject matter while brilliantly exposing light, color, and texture. there's something about them that feels...timeless.

click here to see more of abbie's eta photographs.

more eta v work to come!

inspired: this i believe - essays (part 8)

2009-01-29T11:38:00.002-05:00

by special request (thanks for the reminder, jen!), here's a great "this i believe" essay by the lovely jenn stevens, editor of the spotlight.

I, J.L. Stevens, believe in Journey. Not thee journey, but of course, as Robert Frost would lead you to believe, that can make all the difference.

No. I believe in the band Journey.

The one Steve Perry left behind only to be replaced by the singer discovered on YouTube (who, upon learning that I had tickets to their Sept. 3, 2008 concert with Heart and Cheap Trick in ManchVegas, decided that he missed his home in the Philippines, and right up and quit).

And, especially in this year upon which I’ve entered into marriage with my man, after 12 years, I believe in Journey’s song, “Don’t Stop Believin‘.”

I don’t just like it, I believe in it. It’s guiding me in ways I don’t have enough words for (and might disgust you). It’s not a religion. I don’t consider Steve Perry a

saint. But here’s a little history.

I first heard this song at Camp Foss the summer of ’81, a formative year indeed. One of the CITs was playing it on the cabin’s box (they don’t stick you at a girls’ camp in the middle of Strafford, NH without a boom box). I remember bouncing a raquetball in the air 100 times or more with my tennis racket while listening to it. Anthemic and mantra-esque, and awesome to an 11-year-old. And the CIT knew all the words. And she was cool. (And she had beautifully long hair.)

And it wasn’t long before I wanted that song. “Just a small town girl/living in a lonely world.”
That was me.

It wasn’t deep.
That too, was me.

Fittingly, months later, when Dad told me a fellow at his office had a lot of music, and he could create some tapes for me -- what band would I like? -- I asked

for some Journey. What I got was “Infinity” and “Evolution.” What I wanted -- pre Google by 20 years -- I came to find out was “E5C4P3,” (“Who’s Crying Now?” and “Open Arms” also good tracks on that album.)

And, when we committed ourselves to each other this summer at the Stone Church (we were “Stone in Love,” don‘t you know?), I vowed “to never give up on us.”
I had inscribed in Dan’s ring three words.
Not: “I. Love. You.”

But three other words that you can probably guess.

*I also believe in Bill Morrissey, but we have been asked by Deb to keep these essays positive, and Bill’s songs of love that sits in a hollow in your heart long after it’s gone, or long after you’ve shot your dog behind the barn with “a borrowed .22,” won’t meet that standard. Although now that Bill’s given up drinking, they’re getting there.

**CAPTURED!, A TRIBUTE TO JOURNEY plays Saturday, Feb. 14, 7 p.m., Meadowbrook Center Stage Café, Gilford, 6:30 p.m., doors 7:30 p.m. dinner 8:30 p.m., concert, 21+, dinner, entertainment and tax all-inclusive, $46, www.meadowbrook.net.

J.L. Stevens has worked as an A&E editor on the N.H. Seacoast for 13 years. She also believes in newspapers and refuses to imaging a world/Seacoast without them.

And, BTW, she has not watched any episodes of “The Sopranos,” let alone the last one.

eta v awaits you...

2009-01-24T22:42:00.005-05:00

while i understand if many of you have been so lost in the obama fog of wonder and joy that our upcoming eta 5 may have been pushed from the foreground of your to-do list, it's time to get back into the tiny art game! with that, immediately after "celebrate the inauguration" was checked off your queue, what should have followed suit was "go to nahcotta's flickr page and choose a new piece of small art." you could buy one for yourself and your best friend, boyfriend, girlfriend, mother-in-law, work crush, landlord, mailman, officemate, favorite professor. it's up to you. valentine's day is quickly approaching and nothing says "i love you" like a tiny piece of art. right?

new pieces just came in from julia rothman and justin richel. i am so ridiculously in love with this piece from julia rothman, i can't even put it into words. so, i'll spare you the awkward attempt.

also, i love, love, love this piece from ian dingman, whom i find to be spectacular and incredibly talented.

there's more where these came from, people...go here to check out the goods and stake your tiny art claim...

we are one

2009-01-20T03:00:00.003-05:00

on the eve of a very important day, a day when not just a man but a movement is soon to be inaugurated, it's late here in los angeles and helicopters are soaring overhead while two black cats named poe and bright snooze on either side of me. and i just feel so fortunate to be a part of what's happening in america right now. ready to embrace hope, progress, change, millions of americans are going to awaken tomorrow feeling deliciously emboldened and enlivened by a new possibility for our collective future and present. a new day!

below is the martha graham quote that was a gift from deb this recent holiday. i think it's apt and beautiful and galvanizing. thank you, deb, for giving me this quote! it's framed and resting on my desk, where it consistently reminds me to stay the course...

"there is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening, that is translated through you into action, and if you 'block it', it will never exist through any other medium and will be lost."

this i believe - today's broadcast

2009-01-18T15:46:00.003-05:00

pam just wrote to tell me about today's this i believe broadcast. click here to listen. it's a seven year old's take on what he believes, and it's pretty outstanding. enjoy!

inspired: this i believe - essays (part 7)

2009-01-15T10:21:00.002-05:00

today's essay comes from kimberly kirkland, law professor at franklin pierce law center. she's someone i've had the great pleasure of getting to know this past year. thanks, kimberly, for contributing this wonderful statement on integrity - one of my favorite topics.

I want to live my life with integrity: When faced with hard moral or ethical choices, I want to make honest, thoughtful, compassionate judgments about what I think is right and I want to have the courage to act accordingly. I strive to act with integrity in my life as a citizen and a teacher. I work to parent and love with integrity. I believe that living with integrity is a skill—one I can learn, practice and teach my children. I believe we practice integrity by telling our stories.

I learned much of what I know about integrity from my students. I’m a law professor. Several years ago I invited students in an ethics seminar I teach to examine ethical choices they’d made in the past. In response, they wrote stories about their lives: A child with a serious, chronic illness lying to her parents about violating her health restrictions, a former process engineer eliminating her friends’ jobs without warning them first, a daughter deciding not to go to her alcoholic and abusive father’s bedside as he lay dying. As I read my students’ unwaveringly honest and unabashedly human stories, I realized I had never done what I’d asked them to do. I needed to write my own story.

Inspired by their examples, I wrote about an experience I’d had blowing the whistle on a colleague. I’d had a sense of unease about my actions for some time and wanted to understand why. Writing my story and reading and talking to my students about theirs, I discovered that the process of telling and examining stories about our ethical successes and failures is a way to learn how it feels to act with and without integrity. Stories expose our motivations—love, fear, anger, greed, our desires to fit in or avoid making waves -- forces we often don’t acknowledge or understand at the time we make choices. At the time I told myself that I was reporting my colleague’s misconduct because his actions were unquestionably wrong. That was true. But in writing my story, I had to acknowledge that I reported my colleague without confronting him first because I disliked him. If he had been someone I liked and respected, I would have handled the situation differently. Living with integrity demands that I unravel my self-deceptions. As one of my students put it, “It’s like a hot dog; you really don’t want to know what’s inside, but you’d better find out before you eat it.”

The exercise of telling stories that expose the multi-layered and complex reasons for my past choices has made self-deception more difficult in my present. I’m more likely to recognize the twinge in my stomach and the white noise in my head that signals it’s time to examine my motives. And, more often than not, I now assess my motives before I act. No doubt, I will continue to make ethical mistakes; but fortunately, living with integrity means I can continue examining and learning from them.

-Kimberly Kirkland

inspired: this i believe - essays (part 6)

2009-01-13T08:00:00.000-05:00

peter egelson, of the portsmouth brewery and smuttynose brewing company, contributed this essay to our exhibition, reprinted here by request! as a red sox fan, this essay holds a special place in my heart...

A number of years ago, I became a Red Sox season ticket holder, and for half of each year, I find myself spending way too much of my precious free time wedged into a tiny, wooden grandstand seat at Fenway Park enjoying the National Pastime. I grew up with baseball; I was the kind of kid you used to see a lot at games in pre-digital times, earnestly keeping score in my souvenir program, a bag of peanuts balanced on my knees, completely absorbed in the game. As an adult, I am surely too disconnected from the moment and too easily distracted to breathlessly attend to every pitch, as I once did, but in some ways, I haven’t changed; I still check the box scores faithfully every morning, the same as I did when I was eleven.

I am drawn to the dual nature of baseball. It is a place where the inevitable and the unexpected embrace. Each season is a protracted drama, inexorably unfolding over six months, where tiny, incremental differences in performance, imperceptible in a single game, represent the difference between a team’s triumph and failure when played out over 162 of them. Yet during the course of that long season, the tyranny of statistical destiny can be momentarily obliterated in a single game by a player or team’s heroic performance.

As a fan, I hope and pray that the light hitting shortstop coming up to the plate with the game on the line will catch hold of a pitch and send it sailing in an improbable arc into the night sky over the outfield wall, yet the chances are far greater that my .250 hitter will turn out to be just that - someone who is three times more likely to get an out than get a hit, and even less likely to knock the ball out of the park. If he defies the odds and triumphs, I go home elated; if he doesn’t, my disappointment is fleeting because there is order in the universe and there is another game tomorrow. Going five for five is a statistical anomaly for any hitter, much like tossing a coin and seeing it land on heads five times in a row. Over the span of a season, the very best hitters inevitably get only three hits out of every ten at bats, and the next time the coin is tossed, the odds it will land on heads are still fifty-fifty.

For me, the game of baseball is both a microcosm and metaphor - a satisfyingly self-contained miniature world, as well as a versatile armature on which to build meaning. I believe in the 162 game season. I believe in incremental progress, and the accumulated wisdom of nature. I believe that the past is the best predictor of the future, not matter how much we may wish it to be otherwise. I believe that tiny variables, played out over a long time, make a difference in the end, and that virtue is best expressed in small brush strokes. And yet, knowing all this, I still balance my bag of peanuts on my knees and root for that unlikely ninth-inning home run. Spring training is just around the corner.

-Peter Egelston

inspired: this i believe - essays (part 5)

2009-01-12T11:18:00.003-05:00

thanks to the uber talented writer and musician guy capecelatro iii for his essay and accompanying piece of art for the show.

I believe we are all the sum of our parts; each antecedent condition leading us to this very moment, this very thing we are. And though not ultimately deterministic, there is something like a string that runs through every event, every experience, forming a perfect trail to this particular spot in time. To understand this interconnectedness is to have a better understanding of who we are as people.

At age three my mother had a tug of war match with my aunt using me as rope. I have a vague memory of this, being scared but excited by the chaos of it all; something big was going on. My father was at work, my grandparents at the park and my somewhat off-kilter aunt bore the responsibility of keeping me safe. It was the late sixties and a traditional family was just not what my mom was looking for, so she snapped me up and we hitch-hiked across the country.

We spent years traveling around, living a nomadic lifestyle with no money or stability whatsoever. We were living in a house in northern California where all the drugs and guns and imminent sense of danger finally brought my mother to the realization it wasn’t a good environment for a kid. She sent me to live with my dad back on the east coast, who must have been surprised to have this scraggily, shoe-less boy exit the plane, thrust back into his life.

My life in New York was, by comparison, more subdued. At age nine I started racing motorcycles and freestyle skiing. My father remarried and I gained an older brother. My former life seemed so far away and surreal. Dream-like. After leaving for college in New Hampshire and having my eyes opened to many different experiences, that prior life then took on a murky quality. I found it strange to go back home and see the remnants of that former life and still it was all such a part of me.

On a break from college, I went to see my mom’s twin sister and my cousins and, while looking through an old photo album she had, found a picture of my mother and father and another of the three of us, with me as a dorky, smiling kid. It was the first time I’d seen them together from that time and it conjured powerful feelings in me. It’s almost as though, being so very far away from that time, I thought it had never happened and yet there is the proof. I think that may be why old photographs, in general, are so amazingly evocative for me. You can see the evidence of a life, a history on the face of the subjects; a particular place and time captured and documented.

Most of us have lived many different lives, had different sets of friends and occupations. I believe that through all these experiences we find out who we are and to deny any aspect of that history is to deny our true self. Our past is what informs the kind of people we are, the belief systems we establish and ultimately who we become. I believe we are not one single moment in time but a continuum, an amalgamation, a line running from the past and into the future.

-Guy Capecelatro III

betsy thompson speaks

2009-01-11T23:38:00.005-05:00

i hope you're enjoying the inspired: this i believe essays as much as i am. it's a joy to read these impassioned, honest, genuine, sincere accounts of the writers' beliefs, particularly, for me, because i know some of these writers personally, but also because i know that the creation of an essay of this kind truly does make you question not only what you believe, but how do you believe it. and to meet this challenge is a clarifying, liberating, galvanizing thing. i was honored to be asked to write an essay and doubly honored to have it posted on our blog (thanks, deb, on both counts).

as you may or may not know, super talented collage artist, betsy thompson, is our current eta featured artist. her work brings its subtext to life, giving color and form and action to the words within the collage. betsy was gracious enough to take some time out of her extremely busy schedule as a full-time mom and artist to answer our eta q+a, which is sent out to our registered eta readers once a month. go here to sign up on the bottom left-hand corner of the home page and get the scoop (and the deals!) before anyone else. i'll post betsy's q+a for your enjoyment - to read future eta q+a's, you'll need to be a registered to receive our eta newsletter. betsy, thanks for your thoughtful, gracious, and fantastic answers!

when did you know that you were meant to be an artist?
bt: oh. well, i'm not sure there was a moment to be honest. i was in the field of education for 20 years as a teacher and then as an educational consultant. there was never a light-bulb moment that i realized i was meant to be an artist. that being said, i've always been an artist and created things. i went to an "artsy" high school and spent a lot of time in the studios. it felt like home. and i have always drawn, painted, and been a print-maker. when my second child was 4 years old, i started spending more time in the studio. i remember after i had my first show and had sold a certain amount of work, i turned to my husband and said, "should i call myself an artist now?" i'm someone who trusts the journey, the process (though not always gracefully). so, yes, i do think i was always meant to be an artist but it has been a circuitous route.

what is your most vivid, earliest memory of encountering or creating art in your childhood?
bt: this isn't a great memory but it is vivid. i remember my elementary art teacher mrs. hayden. and at that point there must have been some art funding cuts because there wasn't an art room but rather "art-on-a-cart" which meant the art teacher came to the classroom with the art supplies on a cart. i think i was in 3rd or 4th grade. we were painting winter-y trees - blue paper and black trees with white snow. a child in my class painted an interesting tree with black paint: a trunk with branches sticking out of the trunk. "no," the teacher said, "no trees look like that." and then she proceeded to show the student just how trees looked. fifteen years later i was traveling in south africa and i saw the tree. the very tree the student had painted with branches coming straight out of the trunk. it did exist. i wasn't surprised. somehow i knew it would. either in reality or in the mind of the student. did it really matter which? but it was certainly then that i realized that an idea, one person's idea, was a single perspective and neither right nor wrong.

do you have a favorite museum? if so, what?
bt: without a doubt my favorite museum is the picasso museum in paris. i love visiting museums and galleries everywhere but i spent about eight hours in the picasso museum about 20 years ago. it completely shaped who i am as a person and artist.

do you listen to music while you draw/create? what's the CD/album you can't stop listening to right now?
bt: yes, i rarely work without music. at the moment i'm listening to pandora quite a bit but i've also put together several studio mixes that include music by the innocence mission, bread, hank dogs, eva cassidy, iron & wine, the beatles, mazzy star, coldplay, sarah vaughn, andrés segovia, morcheeba, nick drake, bach, cat stevens, and imogen heap.

what's the best part of winter?
bt: i'm a new england girl so i do love my seasons but i'll admit that maine winters can be long. at the moment i'm loving the starkness of the season, the purity and quietness of new snow, rich winter stew and soups, the crackling fire, and skiing and sledding with my family.

what would your pseudonym be?
bt: clementine hewitt.

louise bourgeois once said "art guarantees sanity." how does that resonate with you? do you agree?
yes. it resonates with me. deeply. art guarantees sanity for me in a way that nothing else does. i love my family, my home, my friends, my life, the ocean, my garden - all are critical components to maintaining sanity too. but art? it is yet another window to my soul and heart. i think on the surface most of my work is bright, cheery and full of color but look a little deeper and you'll find a bit of darkness, complexity and maybe just a bit more life.

inspired: this i believe - essays (part 4)

2009-01-11T08:00:00.000-05:00

this one is by my very smart, very kind, and very wise mom.

Everyone has some degree of bias about others, whether open and conscious, or hidden deep in their psyches. That’s the bad news. The good news is, if prejudice is learned, it can be unlearned.

Learning to dislike someone because of their sexual orientation, or to discount the intelligence of a person with brown skin, are not lessons any of us signed up for. We didn’t consciously decide that someone who lives across town, or who collects garbage, is less deserving than someone with a high-paying job and lives in a big house. No designed curriculum teaches us to be suspicious or frightened of differences. But the lessons are clear.

When as a little girl I asked my mother, “Why is that person in a wheelchair?” I felt her tense as her grip on my hand tightened. Her voice dropped to a whisper as she explained to me that the person had a disability. I got the message that there was something wrong about being in a wheelchair and I shouldn’t have asked. It was embarrassing and scary. In the school history books I read there was precious little about the achievements of women. At home, my father, who was incensed when a Jewish friend was not allowed membership in a local club, routinely referred to gay men as “three dollar bills.” While my parents invited my dad’s international colleagues to our home for dinner, the only African-American I knew was the man who cut our grass.

I learned what it was to be “different” when my family lived in Japan. As a blonde teenager, I stood out wherever I went with my mostly Asian friends. I also learned the value of reaching out to “aliens” when two elderly Japanese gentlemen helped me my way home one rainy night. My lessons came in all styles and sizes.

Did I consider myself prejudiced? Heavens, no! However, when I sat in a room with fifteen people at the end of a multicultural workshop and had to speak about the racism I realized I had harbored, my mouth went dry, and tears welled in my eyes. I always thought prejudice was about meanness and violence. It’s not. I began to see that I’m not to blame for my hidden biases and with that awareness, I began unlearning them.

If, at my age, I can learn new ways of viewing the world, anyone can. I feel passionately that every person can participate in making our country safe and welcoming for all its citizens. It has been occasionally difficult for me to discard some of my old, comfortable beliefs. I sometimes feel a little exposed—like not wearing a coat on a frigid day—but as I’ve tried on new ideas and attitudes, unexpected friendships have come into my life. Unlearning bias and prejudice is like a continuing education program—ongoing, challenging, stimulating, and rewarding. I believe that when we give ourselves permission to respect others who are different from us, we also empower freedom for everybody, including ourselves.

-Sandy Thompson

inspired: this i believe (part 3)

2009-01-10T08:00:00.001-05:00

today's essay is by pam raiford, a high school teacher in durham, nh. she is so unbelievably gifted at her job that i wish every young person could spend one day in her classroom. i think that the world would be a better place as a result. seriously. anyway, this is her contribution to our show:

I believe in the importance of doing the right thing. Shortly after my father died my brother reminded me of a story he shared with us when we were young. It’s a simple story that I remember being deeply struck by as a young girl. My father grew up on Ventnor Beach in New Jersey during the Great Depression. One morning he and his father went fishing. As one of them went to cast, their line struck and broke one of the lights along the pier. Without saying a word, my grandfather packed up their fishing gear, grabbed my father’s hand and walked several blocks to the town hall. He told the town clerk about the broken light and gave him money to cover the cost of replacing it. My grandfather, like millions of other Americans during the Depression, had very little money to spare. This wasn’t an issue of cost though. It was simply a matter of taking responsibility for one’s actions—of doing the right thing.

I’m a high school teacher and in my sociology class we cover a unit on The Holocaust. During this unit we examine the various roles people played and the choices they made. We generally spend the most time examining the role of the bystander. This, in my view, is one of the most important roles to examine, because it raises the critical question of personal responsibility. Should the many individuals who witnessed these events have taken some action in defense of the victims of the Holocaust—people who were often their own neighbors, or co-workers, or even family friends? What choices did they have? Can we expect people to risk their own lives and the lives of their loved ones, to fight through the enormous forces of fear and uncertainty, in order to help others? This role can be particularly challenging for us to examine, because it is here where we can most clearly see ourselves. It is impossible not to wonder; what would we have done? And hopefully it leads us to ask: what are we bystanders of in our own lives? These are not easy questions to grapple with, and the goal of examining these questions is not to stand in judgment of others, but to look closely at what it means if we don’t take responsibility for our actions—if we don’t expect ourselves and others do the right thing, even, and perhaps especially, during the most difficult of times. The answer to these questions was summed up powerfully in a series of questions asked by one of my students; “If we don’t hold people responsible for their actions, if we don’t expect them to do what is right-- even the seemingly innocent bystander-- how can we ever hope to prevent another Holocaust from happening? How can we expect to live in a better world?”

Irena Sendler was example of one those amazing individuals who rose above the fear and uncertainty that took hold during the Nazi regime. Ms. Sendler was a Polish Catholic social worker who rescued 2,500 Jewish children from the Warsaw ghetto. Her story is an extraordinary example of the power and importance of doing the right thing. Her courage in the face of such fierce oppression seems superhuman, but her actions weren’t superhuman, they were deeply human—and they show us that we all have the capacity to be our best selves—to do what is right. Whether it is an act as simple as paying for a broken light or as profound as saving the lives of thousands of innocent children, I believe we can make this a better world by taking responsibility for our actions and doing what we know is right.

-Pam Raiford

inspired: this i believe - essays (part 2)

2009-01-09T08:00:00.001-05:00

thanks to holly of decor8 for her contribution to our show!

My Declaration of Interdependence

"No man is an island". Whether this quote calls to mind author, John Donne in his work Meditation XVII written in 1624 or the 2002 film About A Boy in which Hugh Grant perfectly plays a single shallow thirtysomething with a disposable income but no real "life", the point is clear: We can not thrive when isolated - we need each other.

The Indie movement has made great strides and continues to thrive because though "Indie" may mean breaking off from 'the man' it does not encourage complete independence, its success is based on the principals of interdependence. Interdependence is about making allies, building bridges, forming solid partnerships. In big business you can step on a few faces to climb your way to the top. In the indie world, and I'm speaking of the one in which I'm a part of mingling with creatives and artists, stepping on others is the fastest way to find yourself at the bottom. Going "indie" also means that we'll find ourselves handing over power to others, trusting and sharing, and that's perfectly okay because our goal for personal and creative freedom can still be met. A desirable goal for creatives and artists, the indie lifestyle is also becoming a necessity as corporations continue to outsource, downsize, and close their doors.

This is exactly why I left a lucrative profession in the corporate environment in 2005, I wanted to pursue my talents and use more of my creativity to help others. Working from home nearly full-time as a writer and blogger, I'm able to do that successfully but there is a negative to this lifestyle: too much independence can create a personal vacuum and hinder growth and development. I'm not as independent as I once thought going 'indie' would make me. I'm more dependent on others than ever before. I depend on my readers, my contracts, my clients, because I care about their success, I have a vested interest. Their success is my success, and I like it that way because it keeps us all responsible in my 'circle' and that's a good thing. I've come to learn that this daily interaction -- being independent as a small business owner and being dependent as a creative professional -- is interdependence.

My husband Thorsten Becker so nicely puts it, "We are becoming independent of the established conventions and restrictions placed upon us by conformist thinking and profit margins yet we need a strong support network to stay independent." That is why I believe in interdependence within the creative community. The exchange of ideas, whether through a blog or at a gallery such as Nahcotta, can influence our thinking, open our minds, and help us to build such networks. Great things can be accomplished amongst independent but interconnected individuals and groups who work together towards common goals. I think another excellent example of this is blogging and how rapidly it has grown in such a short period of time. At first, it required some effort in overcoming long established but outdated thinking patterns, certain preconceived notions as well as misconceptions about what on the web is worth reading and what is not, but the reward has been that bloggers are recognized as a large reason for the success we see in this new creative economy. Design and craft blogging started off very small, one person, then two, and currently blogs number into the thousands. What better way to illustrate interdependence and its power to transform than online.

Another powerful illustration of interdependence is alive around you in this very space, at Nahcotta. Many independent artists are presenting their work and their interpretations of the theme “This I Believe” through art and text. We all want to believe, though we may not always know what the future brings as we cannot foretell the definite outcome before we reach it, but the more we believe in each other and ourselves the greater the end results will be. There is also the journey to consider, and I believe that the journey alone is often more rewarding than the result as new dependencies are often established and existing ones strengthened while at the same time the spirit of independence is fostered. Seeing it all in motion and experiencing it first hand as a blogger and freelance writer, I believe in interdependence even more but also believe that in order to see change we must be a part of that change and work alongside those who support it. No man is an island.

-Holly Becker, decor8blog.com

inspired: this i believe - essays

2009-01-08T12:59:00.002-05:00

we've had many requests to post the essays that are part of our inspired: this i believe show online. so, every day for the next week or so , we'll post a different essay from our wonderful participants. the first is from our very favorite nahcotta writer from the west (and my bf):

THE PURSUIT

The last legible letter from my 95-year-old grandfather was composed on the 2008 Beijing Olympics stationery provided by his assisted living development. Of the three complete sentences he scribbled in his failing penmanship, he wrote, “I admire your tenacity in the pursuit of a good life.”

It wasn’t too long ago that I lived in a very small town, a windy city by the sea held together by its core - three distinct blocks of darling buildings, the latitude and longitude of brick sidewalks, unavoidable familiar faces existing at every coffee shop, restaurant, and boutique. When I decided to leave my comfort of the last decade, I thought I needed anonymity. The anonymity intrinsically built into a sizeable city makes the essence of connection more prominent because it’s, well, so much more challenging to connect. In the vast city of Los Angeles, in cars stopped at streetlights, people chew on sandwiches, apply mascara, and stare at cell phones. Eye contact is a rarity, and is typically met with immediate aversion, strangers remaining strangers in our mobile metal boxes heading in the same direction. My reverence for connectivity and friendship grew exponentially when flight was necessary in order for me and my loved ones to be within the same walls. Cell phones and e-mail may be imperfect means of communicating, but they remind us that we are not built, nor are we destined to be, solitary creatures.

Regardless of where we live, in small towns or big cities, I believe that we are interconnected through the tales and storytellers that enthrall us, the films that seize us, the books that engross, the people we know, the animals we love. I believe that we all have stories that are amusing, agonizing, and wise, some of them so raw that we can’t find the words to shape experience into a transferable narrative. Listening to these stories engenders compassion, belonging, and connection, all vital elements of living well and experiencing genuine humanity in this world.

I believe that a good life is mutable, different for everyone, fluctuating as we age. I’ve determined that it doesn’t necessarily need profundity to give it depth or consistent strife to render it worthwhile. A good life needs purpose. Whatever that purpose might be – changing the course of lives as a counselor, globe-trotting to stop environmental slaughter, dropping off groceries for your grandmother, speaking with authenticity as often as possible. A good life connects, creates, produces, fulfills.

And when it changes its course, as a good life tends to do, we need to maintain malleability; with rigidity, we break. So, move ahead, stomp, leap, sometimes stand absolutely still until the next move reveals itself, acknowledge absurdities, laugh as wholly as you can, continue kicking the can down the street. And pass it along. Like Dean Moriarty, we give and take and go in the incredibly complicated sweetness zigzagging every side.

-Rebecca Cox

enormous tiny art show 5!

2009-01-05T15:31:00.005-05:00

i love 2009 so far. yesterday, i took the day off (a rarity for me - i nearly always work on sundays) to head to the ica with a friend to see the tara donovan exhibition. if it hadn't closed last night, i would have made plans to see it a dozen more times. it was that good. the ica still has a link to her work on their site, so check it out. giant installations of plastic cups, or straws, or paper plates - i know, it doesn't sound that incredible. that's why you need pictures, which i don't have because the ica wouldn't let me take them.

the other reason that 2009 is off to such a spectacular start is that we received some initial images from many of the eta 5 artists! i posted them to our flickr site and invite you to check out the beauty there. feel free to ooh and aah. i did.

the prodigal returns (second installment)

2009-01-04T16:59:00.004-05:00

sunday plans for the ica were canceled due to a seemingly neverending onslaught of wind and snow. while I was desperately whiny about missing the tara donovan exhibition for about five minutes, once I accepted my snowed-in status, I embraced the frigorific new england holiday like a young woman on a dickensian high. I trudged through the snow to visit with kim at her gallery, three graces, on market street, and met her boyfriend, bob (who’s ridiculously nice!). by the way, they’re making some magnificent red currant candles by hand, complete with a three graces wax seal and I can attest to its deliciousness, as I’ve been burning it here in l.a.! thanks, kim and bob!

deb and I went to dinner at radici on sunday night (thanks, sandy!) and gorged ourselves on antipasti and roasted vegetable salad, followed by a chocolate chunk crème brulee. truly bust-your-buttons yummy! deb and I were two of the mere five patrons dining out during a snowstorm, so we got some super stellar service.

after our scrumptious dinner, we ran to the parking garage (that's deb in the above photo, zipping through the swirling snow), down the windy streets of Portsmouth, hollering “it’s cold! it’s cold!” as we slipped in the snow. thank goodness for the reliability of four-wheel drive, right, deb?

this is what my feet looked like once we made our way to deb's front hallway. yikes! snow to the knees!

the prodigal returns (first installment)

2009-01-02T20:39:00.005-05:00

little did i expect my new england visit to be consumed by massive amounts of snow, which is surprising given that i've been dealing with the unpredictable nature of new england winters since i was a wee lass. upon my east coast arrival, picked up by none other than the wonderful mwinters, it was somewhere around twelve degrees in the granite state. with a mere two and a half hours of sleep gained on the red eye and a three-hour time difference, I was a bit, er, out of sorts, to say the least. when I showed up in nahcotta’s ice-adorned doorway, I was blown away, my socks entirely knocked off (metaporically speaking, thankfully, given the temperatures), at the magnificence of nahcotta and the bevy of new artists, work, stationery, jewelry, pottery, and so much more wherever my eyes rested. nahcotta looks spectacular, and this is owed entirely to the work that abbie and deb put into the space and the respect and admiration that they have for the artwork and products nahcotta sells and represents. it absolutely shows that you love what you do, ladies.

after a quick shower, some snacks, and much-needed quality time with my best girl, deb, we dashed off to a holiday party at our friend, bruce’s. a photo of some of our dapper friends in festooned in holiday revelry (i miss these fabulous knuckleheads already!):

later, deb and I gazed upon several glorious sigur ros videos at mw's and then fell asleep to love actually, which I especially adore during the holidays and particularly for the scene where laura linney’s character, sarah, dances awkwardly with her work crush, karl, at their company holiday party.

more updates on my east coast visit coming soon! stay tuned. and happy 2009, nahcotta lovers! let’s make 2009 the best year yet…

new beginnings, and an opening

2009-01-02T15:40:00.002-05:00

happy 2009 everyone! i hope it's off to a fantastic start. i love january 1st. there's something a brand new year that fills me with optimism and enthusiasm for all that may lie ahead. i don't care much for new year's eve, which feels oddly weighty and comes with this pressure to have a kind of big, social, party-filled night. but the next day is when i sit and think about the year ahead and make my crazy long list of 101 things that i want to do in the new year. rebecca wrote me yesterday and suggested i look at the list from 2008. i did, and it was really satisfying. number three on my list was "start enormous tiny art website." check. number 11 was "visit rebecca in l.a." check. i didn't accomplish everything on my list, but it was a satisfying reminder of all that can happen in a year.

if you're interested in starting your year by celebrating with us and some very talented artists, please do stop by our inspired: this i believe opening tonight between 5-8pm. you won't be disappointed. it's a wonderful show that feels hopeful and optimistic and inspiring, much like i do right about now.