Pascal Bouterin, Les Romantiques a New York
We try not to pester. We’ll send our artists little reminders, like, “Do you have anything new you’d like to share with us?” or “What’s cooking on your easel?” We try to prod gently and urge them to send us images. We ask them if they’d like us to stop by their studios, hoping they’ll take it as a hint that we are dying for new work. We write them about their inspirations, or tell them about all the people who’ve been asking about their work (always true). But we never quite know what to expect and always hold our breath for more.
Sometimes we get it. And sometimes we don’t. And sometimes, the reality exceeds even our wildest hopes and wishes … which is just what happened yesterday.
First, our dear Pascal Bouterin wrote to say that he had a few paintings he wanted to share. There was no precise timing or details, so we just politely waited for his move. Imagine our immense surprise and delight when Pascal’s lovely friend Ashley brought over a dozen new paintings, all of which (we kid you not) made us swoon and salivate. Pascal is a very talented artist whose unique style has captivated so many of us that he has an immense following in Atlanta. But even with Pascal, as with virtually every artist, we’ve been known to turn down a couple of painting in the bunch. Except not this time! We loved every one of them and grabbed the whole batch. And we started selling them even before they went in to inventory, some still in their plastic sleeves.
Pascal Bouterin, Ville
Pascal Bouterin, Personnages sur Bleu
Pascal Bouterin, Lexington Avenue, Watercolor
A couple of hours later, our brand new – and already popular – artist, Judy Cox sent us some new images of the work she’s been doing. Again, there wasn’t a bad one in the bunch. We were so excited because we so quickly sold her previous black and white series that we have been clamoring for more, without trying to be too persistent. This new work shows the artist’s great strength at composition and texture, as well as her understanding of balance, color and depth. Selfishly, we want them in the gallery and hope they won’t sell for a while so that we can all enjoy them, and, as is important with abstract work especially, get to know them better on several levels.
And then the icing on the cake. The email came in around 11 p.m. last night, and it was Nancy Franke, responding to another plea on our part for more work – especially a couple of bigger pieces. Nancy is on such a remarkable run right now, selling her work at a very rapid clip, and having such a strong following among collectors as well as fellow artists. Again, there was the collective “ooohh … “ when we viewed her new work, followed by the ever dignified email, “You knocked it out of the park!!” These paintings need no further commentary and speak for themselves. Quite simply, they are magnificent.
Nancy Franke, Don’t Ask, 36 x 36
Nancy Franke, For Me, 12 x 12
Nancy Franke, Dianne’s Flowers, 16 x 12
And so, another day in the life of a gallery owner. The kind of day that feels like Christmas, three times over. The kind of day that makes us thank our lucky stars that we are in this business, which really doesn’t even feel like a business sometimes because it is all about love. The kind of day that makes us just want to sit back, smile, and say “thank you” to the wonderful artists whose work is so beautiful that it can bring tears to our eyes. It’s the kind of day that makes us value the beauty of art for its unpredictable, unexpected and ephemeral quality. You can’t preorder it, can’t demand it, can’t duplicate it and you certainly can’t expect it. And so when it happens, and it hits that magical mark ... and the ball goes sailing out of the park ... it’s the most wonderful day in the world.
Tata,
HH
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