Time for a a hangin'

Today was hanging day for my show "On Pens and Needles" at the Shelburne Arts Cooperative.  It is a 30 ' wall I had to fill with a combination of calligraphy and wall hangings.  The top 3 photos are of the hanging crew - 2 ladder climbers and the two Sandys (myself and the curator Sandy Denis) standing on the ground trying to help the ladies on the ladders get the pieces level and also trying to help get them positioned correctly so there would be enough air space around each piece.  There is a lot of prep to get ready to hang a show.  First the old show has to be taken down and stored safely in the back room.  Also, to be able to hang the show and not damage anything else that is in the shop the display tables that are below the wall have to have everything taken off of them and moved out of the way  It was a 90+ degree out today so we quickly found that having the spot lights off was the way to go.  It took a little over 2 hours to get the main wall hung. There was definitely a sigh of relief when what was accomplished.  LUNCH TIME!

Each wall piece needs a label saying the name of the piece, a small description (such as patchwork quilted wall hanging), the artists name (ME) and of course the price.  I printed up all the labels for my pieces since there were something like 27 of them.  Fortunately there is a device that puts double sided sticky tape on the labels lickety split so after lunch I put up all the labels and then did what I will call finger print patrol.   The glass over the calligraphy was finger print free when I brought them in but there is no way you can get all those pieces hung and expect them to not need a bit of a touch up.  

There were two runners that did not make it up on the wall so one of them ended up along with the other runners I brought in on a quilt rack by the door.  I had brought in other items that would be placed on the tables and shelves below the wall hangings.   I had made a collection of items out of all the same fabric to place of the tables along with a few miscellaneous baskets, a tote bag and a purse.  Sandy Denis was still working on placing them on display when I left at 2:30. 

One thing I can say for sure is that one should never hang one's own show.   I have lost all objectivity and I realized that fairly early in the day.   We were a bit short of people today since two of the hanging crew were missing, summer being that time of year that people go on vacation.  So, I was needed there to help but it is wonderful that there are other artists looking at what I brought in and were able to make a show out of it.  At this point I just have to trust that they did make it look good.  I will be working at the co-op on Saturday and will be able to observe what people's reactions are to the show, which is really  part of the fun of all of this.  

The show will be on display through August 29th.  The next thing on my plate is to send out  a mass e.mail to my friends telling them about the show and inviting them to the reception which is 2-4 pm on Sunday, August 7th.  But at this point....it's all done except for the selling and I am keeping my fingers crossed about that!