This sounds like the title of some 1970′s cold war movie where some international incident almost brings the world to the brink of Armageddon, but it’s not. It’s a comparison to last month’s downloads where by the first 13 days in April we had 100,236 downloads. By the end of the month the April issue had brought in 112,795 downloads – an amazing number that I didn’t think would be beat in some time, but we have a race on our hands.

April 2012 issue

In the first 13 days in May we have had 103,921 downloads – that’s 3,685 more than last month in the same amount of time – a real surprise. By the end of the month will the May issue surpass the April issue? I don’t know. It’s a long wait until the end of the month to find out.

I also speculated that the April 2012 issue just might be the issue that could knock the March 2012 issue, our official cult issue, off its top seat for all time download king, but although it came out of the gate running hard in May – the March 2011 issue has already passed it with 4,312 downloads. May 2012 has received 3,727 downloads.

March 2011 issue

But, I have to say, what really has me wondering what’s going on is the fact that we’re going to have another 100,000 + download month. Don’t get me wrong – that’s a great puzzle to deal with. I’m not losing sleep at night yet, but it does make me wonder – is this the new norm or just a Spring spike? Only time will tell.

You can check out any of these issues at Carolina Arts’ website at (www.carolinaarts.com).

I did the blog about some of the North Charleston Arts Festival exhibits first as they will end on May 12, 2012. For info about other exhibits being offered visit (www.NorthCharlestonArtsFest.com).

So, Friday I went to see The Plantation (Plan-ta-shun) featuring works by Colin Quashie as it was going to end in a few days. I didn’t want to miss the exhibit that launched over 112,000 downloads of our paper. It was the first time I’ve been to Redux since their major renovation and the place looked great. Seeing Quashie’s works up close was a testament to the mission of our paper. We exist only to show you what you have an opportunity to go see every month. We don’t want to be your outlet to the visual arts in the Carolinas – we want you to go see art. No matter how good things look in the paper, they will never look as good as they do when you’re standing in front of them.

Quashie’s works were even more powerful seeing them in their true scale – something we can’t duplicate in our paper. These works were much larger than I expected. I know we sometimes give the dimensions of works with some images we present, but they’re just numbers until you’re standing in front of the actual works. It works the same way for smaller works too.

I love the works that poke fun at how “Madison Avenue” might market slavery today. They’re clever statements about the past and present, but I loved Quashie’s portraits more. I can’t write in “art speak” but I hope this exhibit finds other venues in the Carolinas and I hope Quashie continues the series. And, I sure wouldn’t mind featuring more works by him on our cover – someday down the road.

While at Redux I discovered they have another gallery space, called the Conolly Studio Gallery which features current works by some of its studio artists every eight weeks. This was news to me and a slip by the folks at Redux by not informing us about it. It was a good thing I checked it out, as while there, I ran into one of my favorite artists, Karin Olah Knowlton, who left Charleston for a Rocky Mountain high to live in Colorado and got to meet her very new daughter Ali. Karin has some of her new floral works (fabric paintings) on exhibit at Robert Lange Studios in Charleston. That was an unexpected pleasant meeting.

Go see her works at RLS soon – I bet they won’t last long before they are sold and off to new homes.

Next stop – Charleston’s French Quarter and my first stop there was Nina Liu & Friends, on State Street, as Liu was back in town for the Spoleto season. She finally moved to her new home in Mexico this winter, but is still looking to sell her “prime location” home in downtown Charleston. And, Spoleto visitors always bring a new crop of future Charlestonians – they come – they fall in love – they move to Charleston.

The gallery is presenting the wonderful black and white photographs of Michael Johnson through June during Spoleto. You would think that since she moved to Mexico the gallery would be a little sparse, but it was full of art. So all of you Nina Liu & Friends fans – the gallery is open and ready for business, but the building is also for sale.

You hear that greater visual art community out there? A gallery/home in the heart of Charleston’s French Quarter art district is available for anyone interested in opening a gallery or expanding their business to Charleston. Of course I’m not looking forward to the day when Liu is gone to Mexico for good – I’ll miss her and our conversations.

I got to Nina Liu & Friends well before the Art Walk officially opened and she was having some new lighting installed, so I slipped out to go over to Robert Lange Studios, just around the corner on Queen Street, to see those works by Karin Olah Knowlton, and then I walked over to Lowcountry Artists LTD on East Bay Street to see the exhibit,  Painting With Fire: Lowcountry Impressions in Clay, featuring works by Marty Biernbaum, on view through May 31, 2012.

That’s the beauty of the French Quarter – you can’t toss a stone in any direction without hitting an art gallery. If you run and just barely stick your head in each door you might be able to visit them all in one art walk, but you really have to narrow your visits to a few if you want to see some work and if you’re like me – there will be some talking going on too. I don’t get to the art walks that often, but I still know a lot of folks there.

Biernbaum’s works looked great in our paper, but also much better in person. And in person you can get that tactile experience too. I’m not saying you can touch all art works, but it’s usually OK with pottery. Just remember – you drop it – you bought it. And you don’t always have to pick things up to get a little feel.

That exhibit was about 20 minutes from officially opening, yet they say they had already sold a third of the works. Better get down to see this exhibit fast. Of course they have lots of other art there too, so you won’t have to leave empty handed if the pottery is all sold out, but I bet Biernbaum has some backup works on hand.

I checked back in at Nina Liu & Friends, but Liu was busy with another art walk matter and it was just after 5pm so I headed across the street to see the exhibit, First Light by Shannon Smith, on view through May 18, 2012 at Smith-Killian Fine Art, on the corner of State and Queen Streets.

I’ll never admit to having a favorite out of the Smith clan, but Linda claims I’m partial to Shannon’s work. I’ll invoke the 5th in any court, but she had some spectacular works on display, but I also saw a pretty fantastic view of Charleston from Mt. Pleasant by Jennifer that evening and it was just a year ago when Betty’s abstracts knocked my socks off. And, being an old black and white guy myself – Tripp holds his own in that clan of artists. So, how could anyone pick a favorite? That’s what I say and I’m sticking to it.

My next stop was going to be Corrigan Gallery, further down Queen Street, to see the exhibit, Landscape Reconfigured, featuring new works by Linda Fantuzzo on view through May 30, 2012. I don’t know if it was the heat and humidity, the week of work, or the fact that my age was catching up with me, but that walk seemed like a couple of miles instead of a few blocks, and I was feeling it all.

The one disadvantage of the May art walk in Charleston is that at this time of year in Charleston, at 5pm the sun is still bearing down and well after the art walk is over the sun is still up. Because I’m an hour plus away, I can’t show up fashionably late like some when the temps are a little better and I still have to make that hour plus trip back home.

I finally made it there and I’m glad I did. I’ve known Linda Fantuzzo for a long time – way before Linda (my Linda) and I started doing an arts newspaper, and her works just keep getting better and better and they started out good. She was part of the old John Street art colony – back in the day with Manning Williams, Bill Buggle and Bobby Brown. If you know these folks – you’ve been around Charleston for a long time. We (Linda and I) were doing photo processing on John Street, but the City ran us all off when they built the Visitor Center causing high rents to settle in on John Street.

I got in a few words with Fantuzzo and Lese Corrigan, but this gallery was filling up fast and these folks needed to talk to some real customers. While I was checking out some of the other works in the gallery, I was offered some help by a young lady who I guessed was helping Corrigan out, she might have been an intern from the College of Charleston, I’m not sure, but she told me about Mary Walker, Kevin Parent, and John Moore’s work – which I was checking out. I never know what to do is a situation like that. I know these artists’ work well, but she didn’t know that and I didn’t see any reason to say anything – why should I, and what would I say that wouldn’t seem rude? She knew her stuff – much better than some I’ve encountered in a similar situation. I once had a gallery helper try to tell me Corrie McCallum was dead long before she passed and there was nothing I could say to change her mind.

Situations like that make me think of saying – “Look, I know Corrie McCallum, I’m a friend of Corrie McCallum – you don’t know diddily about Corrie McCallum,” and then storm out – but I don’t. What would be the use in that? I’m just an old dude who has forgotten more than some know, but a new generation is in control now. This wasn’t the case – this young lady knew her stuff and she was a real asset to the Corrigan Gallery. And, the next person might not know who these artists are.

I hate to admit it, but after Corrigan Gallery I was finished for the evening. I was going to be lucky to get back to my car and endure that hour plus drive home. Luckily, a good night’s rest made it possible to do the North Charleston Arts Festival’s Main Event the next day.

If people want to sell me on the notion that 60 is the new 40 – I know I felt a lot better when I was 40 and I’m not doing too badly now, but what else do you want to sell me – the Brooklyn Bridge?

You can read more about these exhibits in the May 2012 issue of Carolina Arts. You can download a copy of the paper at this link (http://www.carolinaarts.com/512/512carolinaarts.pdf).

I started off my trip to the 2012 North Charleston Arts Festival with a trip to the 7th Annual National Outdoor Sculpture Competition and Exhibition at the North Charleston River Front Park at the old Navy Base on the Cooper River where I think I gave a pint of blood. No, there wasn’t a Red Cross blood drive going on, but the mosquitoes where taking their fair share of blood from me. I don’t know if it was that I got there so early, about 9am, before the sun made them run for the shadows, but they were out in force, so you might want to take some spray if you go there – just in case. But this show will be up for a year – so no hurry.

I completely missed last year’s event so I wanted to make sure I photographed this year’s event, but I think the exhibit was still being set up so we’ll wait for that posting a little later, but here’s a little tease. I don’t have names and info yet.

I next headed over to the Charleston Area Convention Center for the Festival’s Main Event which is the site of many of the Festival’s exhibitions and competitions. I’ve never arrived at the Main Event when it was opening and I was amazed at the river of people flowing into the Convention Center to get their first look at the Festival’s offerings. This place was wall to wall art offerings – performances of all types and visual arts in every area of the facility, including the exhibits and artists’ booths selling their creations. Music could be heard just outside in the courtyard between the Convention Center and the Coliseum where area graduations were being held. I heard many a folk headed to the graduation say the festival was their next stop.

I started out at the Judged Fine Art & Photography Competitions and Exhibitions to see who the big winners were this year. I was really curious to see if Denise L. Greer was dominating the competition again this year. She’s been all over the place and even has a big solo exhibit at the Sumter County Gallery of Art through July 6, 2012.

The artworks were marked better this year, but for this 60 + guy I wish they would put the ID tags at the top of the works instead of at the bottom. I really had to test my ability to bend over to see who some of the artists were. My apologies to those folks who got a way too close look at my rear during this process. The lighting here is not so good, so in fairness I didn’t take any photos of these works.

Denise L. Greer didn’t do as well this year as she did last year. She won two Honorable Mention ribbons in Mixed Media and Watercolor. But I think she might have been robbed of a higher award in the Oils category due to some bad placement. But, that’s just my opinion. She had a small work in a very dark area of the Center – with almost no light on her work. The work itself was also very dark which didn’t help. From what I could see the work could have been very interesting, but hard to tell and I don’t see how any judge could tell either, but that’s the luck of placement – a factor in any competition. But I have to tell you there is a certain lure to an image you can’t see very well. I spent three hours looking at art that day and I kept going back to see if the lighting got any better, but it was always the same. Pretty soon I was getting the feeling that someone was trying to keep something good from me and that this work might be the best work of art in the world and I was being denied a look at it. That’s kind of crazy, but it’s how I felt.

Bob Graham, another dominating force at this show from year to year had won 1st Place in Drawing and 2nd Place in Watercolor. But Best of Show this year went to Shelia Thompson, an artist I do not know of, but the work was very good – so I’ll keep an eye out for that name in the future.

There were a number of new people with works in the show this year and a lot of the same people. I was glad to see Peter Scala had work in the Oils category. He won 2nd Place in Oils. His style does stand out from a lot of artists and I was glad to see that the judge agreed with my taste in art.

After a couple of turns around this exhibit to make sure I saw everything, I went to look at the Youth Art Competition and Exhibition next, which got a better placement than the Adult works did – lighting wise. This was a massive display of student art in three groupings, 1-5 grades, 6-8 grades, and 9-12 grades, from various schools in North Charleston, which includes the Charleston County School of the Arts.

A lot of people who come to see the art exhibits seem to dismiss the Youth Art, especially if they don’t have a child of their own whose work is on display, but I like looking at it to get a glimpse into the future of our art community and I saw some strong signs that things are doing well there despite cutbacks in school art funding.

My favorite work in the 1-5 group was by Jose DeLa Cruz, a student of Peggy Bennett at Howe Hall AIMS. This photo stood out from all the works I saw – there was nothing else like it.

Work by Jose DeLa Cruz

Another favorite was in the 9-12 group by Allic Alcerno, a student of B. Moore at the School of the Arts for a haunting portrait. (Not sure about the spelling of names here as tags were hand written.)

Work by Allic Alcerno

But I have to say the most impressive thing I saw in the Youth Art show was a group of works by students of J. Carol Gardner at Hanahan High School in the 9-12 group. Works by Eliza Westbrook, Tristen Mincey, Anthony Gabrish, Cody Dawson, Katie Hancock, Alyssa Black, Kaytlin Clack, Frances Fisher, and Ashley Seiderman were outstanding. Other students from that school had good works too. And the types and styles of the works were all over the spectrum of media. It showed that students don’t have to go to a school especially set up for the arts to get good training and guidance. This was the sign of a good art teacher. But that name seemed familiar.

I went back to the Adult competition and found that this teacher practiced what she preached. J. Carol Gardner had won an Honorable Mention in Oils and Mixed Media and a 3rd Place in Mixed Media. And, it was also good to see that the teacher wasn’t turning out clones of the teacher. The student work was very different from what the teacher was presenting. That’s not always the case in the student/teacher relationship.

I hate to say it but some of the works in the Youth Art display were better than some of the works in the Adult Art exhibit. But, again – all this is just my opinion. Others would see things totally different and neither of us would have the final right opinion. After all it’s just an opinion or how you feel at the moment – educated opinion or not – that’s how juried shows are.

I next went into the room the SC Palmetto Hands Fine Craft Competition and Exhibition was in and the first thing I noticed was that it seemed to be much brighter and it was a lot easier taking photos. This may just be another opinion, but I think my photos were better.

This show is always interesting, showing some of the best craft work being done in SC, but I know there are many others out there that don’t enter, but the works presented show viewers a good sample of the quality being done in our state. And, selected works from this show will travel throughout the state for a year.

The good thing here is that I can let photos do most of my talking.

Pearl Fryar’s Glorious Garden, clay by Patz Fowle

High Chair Driver, mixed media by Dennis Vernon

Cleo Car, mixed media by Dennis Vernon

Spool Cradle, mixed media by Susan Lenz

Close up of spools in Spool Cradle, mixed media by Susan Lenz

Mark Leaving Series #2, mixed media by Fran Gardner

Some of My Very Best Friends, clay by Pamela L. Steele

Brown Jug, clay by Pamela L. Steele

Time Signature, mixed media by Susan Lenz – back

Time Signature, mixed media by Susan Lenz – front

Tone: 31, mixed media by Doni Jordan

Container, clay by Tuula Ihamaki-Widdifield

Lidded Jar, clay by John Johnson

Handed Down, mixed media by Susan Lenz – Best of Show

My last art viewing of this day was the Photography Competition and Exhibition which included works by professional and amateur photographers. This year’s offerings included another outstanding group of images. I’m an old photographer myself (in a time – far, far away) and for some reason I feel funny about taking photos of photographs – so I didn’t.

There was a time when I would recognize many of the names of the photographers in this display, but I don’t think I recognized one. But, that’s not unusual in that I’ve been out of the local photography scene for several decades and many of the people I know no longer submit their images to be displayed in a way that anyone could reach out and handle their images – including children with sticky fingers. So, I admire those who had excellent images, yet still participated in this competition. What they get back after a couple of weeks may be very different than the prints they submitted.

About this time that massive art viewing headache was coming on strong. It’s one of the side effects of viewing too much art in a short period of time.

What was my lasting impressions of these shows?

First off, my favorite work might have been that work by Denise L. Greer hidden in the shadows, but today Fran Gardner took the prize. It might be because it’s been so long since I’ve seen her work, but it was such a surprise and joy to see what she was up to these days. And, I liked it. I’d like to see an exhibit of her works in a gallery setting and I think a lot of other folks would enjoy it too.

Mark Leaving Series #3 by Fran Gardner

Second, the works by Hanahan High School students and their teacher left me with a positive impression that an individual art teacher can still make a big impact on children to express themselves through art – despite funding cuts. And, it makes you think what could they do with proper funding?

Except for the Youth Art show, the other shows will be on view through May 12, 2012. Viewing times include May 7-11, 9am-5pm and May 12, 9am-noon, with free admission and parking.

The 2012 North Charleston Arts Festival offers a lot more exhibits throughout North Charleston during the festival. You can find out about them in our May 2012 issue of Carolina Arts. You can download a copy at (http://www.carolinaarts.com/512/512carolinaarts.pdf) or you can check out the info by visiting the festival’s website at (http://northcharlestonartsfest.com/).

Read more here: (http://www.thestate.com/2012/05/05/2264061/7-graduate-from-american-college.html).

I have two questions: How much money did it cost the City of Charleston and the local community to have these seven people graduate? Money that could have gone to other things. And, how many of the seven will end up staying in Charleston – six months to a year from now?

I wish this was a joke, but it’s just another of Mayor Joe Riley’s follies.

Oh – let me throw in a third question: I wonder how many students will graduate from Johnson & Wales University in Charlotte, NC, this year? Another of Mayor Joe Riley’s follies.

One of the reasons for this big jump was the fact that we featured works by Colin Quashie, an artist from Charleston, which were from an exhibit showing at Redux Contemporary Arts Center in Charleston, SC, dealing with slavery and how it might be marketed today. Those images caught a lot of people’s attention and they spread the word around.

From the minute we launched the April issue the downloads came in fast and by Friday the 13th the numbers had passed the 100,000 mark  – a figure Linda and I only dreamed of reaching – sometime in the future. But instead of falling off after the first ten days – which is the norm with us – the downloads kept coming until the 24th of May when they took the traditional dive.

Those numbers represented a lot of new viewers for Carolina Arts and when those new viewers discovered our paper, some discovered that we didn’t just start publishing this paper last month. So, we also saw in April, 18,751 downloads of previous issues of Carolina Arts – giving us a total of 131,546 downloads of copies of Carolina Arts in April.

And, the April 2012 issue is now a contender to knocking our cult issue (March 2011) off its perch as the all time download king for attracting downloads long after the issue was first published. The April 2012 issue has already seen 3,658 downloads in May (3 days) – compared to 2,133 for the March 2011 issue. Competition is good.

The March 2011 issue didn’t do too bad in April either with 7,581 downloads. It will be a hard climb for April 2012 to overtake March 2011 – as from launch date in March 2011 that issue has seen 166,378 downloads. It’s very popular, but if any issue can knock it out of first place – I’m betting April 2012 can do it. We’ll see.

May 2012 is off to a good start but we won’t know anything about how good until the end of the month.

I had hoped to get away from counting beans, but people just keep pulling me back into it. But, you know what – I don’t mind as long as it’s good news. And I think it’s great news.

The May 2012 issue of Carolina Arts is up on our website at (www.carolinaarts.com) – all 82 pages of it. Our largest issue ever. We had an amazing month during April with over 112,000 downloads. That’s more than 30,000 more from March. I think Colin Quashie’s images on the cover attracted a lot of new viewers.

We ask that you help us bring the news about the Carolina visual art community to others by spreading the link for the download around to your e-mail lists and posting it on your Facebook page. Once people see all that is going on in the visual art community they will spread it around to their lists and on their Facebook pages.

The link is: (http://www.carolinaarts.com/512/512carolinaarts.pdf).

If you would like to get direct notice that our latest issue is ready to be downloaded you can send us an e-mail to (info@carolinaarts.com) to be placed on our mailing list.

So download that PDF and dig in – it’s going to take a while to get through this issue. And, don’t forget to find a way to thank our advertisers – they make the paper possible.

Thanks – Tom and Linda Starland
Carolina Arts
843-825-3408
info@carolinaarts.com

Spend a fun-filled Saturday meeting the artists, touring their studios, and admiring their creations. Come check out 14 memorable potteries in a self-guided car tour. Each pottery will have a unique culinary delight with a wine pairing (beef tenderloin on rounds of French bread, shrimp served with remoulade and red sauces, open-faced pork sliders, an elegant almond torte, to name a few), and demonstrations focusing on different aspects of the craft – from shaping at the wheel, to glazing, to firing techniques. Or you can roll up your sleeves and make a pot yourself with the help of an expert. Last year’s participants were inspired by the beautiful countryside, the world class artistic talent of Seagrove, NC, and the unique way the featured artists live and work.

From Dean & Martin Pottery

The 2nd annual Behind the Scenes Pottery Crawl is organized by the Northern Moore Family Resource Center (The Resource Center) which is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organization established in 1996 to serve children and families in northern Moore County, NC. The area that The Resource Center serves has been decimated by the departure of manufacturing over the last 30 years and it has resulted in too many children living in poverty. The Resource Center helps at-risk children succeed academically by offering, among other things, after school programs and summer camps. The Resource Center is a United Way agency and their six-week free summer day camp is partially funded by the United Way.  All proceeds from the Pottery Crawl will help children and strengthen local families. Potters will generously donate 15 percent of all sales during the event to the Resource Center.

From the Ground Up Pottery

The Pottery Crawl is much more than a one dimensional art gallery experience. It’s a ‘Behind the Scenes’ look at how and where the art is created. It’s about the uniqueness of each individual potter. To visit the potters is to immerse oneself in their creative world. For them life and work are fused together by their artistry, as many live and work in the same environment. Often they live on winding country roads, and when you venture down them you may find a beautiful sculpture garden, a lush pond, a picturesque log cabin, or a sturdy converted barn.  It’s quiet in the country except for the sound of the clay fired wind chimes, or the crow of a rooster.

And of course, there is the art itself. On this pottery tour you’ll find a rich diversity of styles, colors, shapes and sizes that range from the decorative to the utilitarian. You’ll encounter pieces that are worthy of museum lighting, as well as everyday treasures like place settings, serving bowls and mugs that will jazz up a room or any meal. Every potter is an artist with his/her own unique style.

View of Jugtown Pottery

Seagrove’s pottery tradition dates back to the 18th century, before the American Revolution, due to the high quality of the local clay. Today it’s known for the high concentration of potters, the unsurpassed artistic talent, and the eclectic mix of people – some with roots eight generations deep and others drawn here from around the world.

The following are the potters on the tour: Avery Pottery and Tileworks, Ben Owen Pottery, Blue Hen Pottery, Bulldog Pottery, Chris Luther Pottery, Dean and Martin Pottery, Frank Neef Pottery, From the Ground Up, Great White Oak Pottery, Jugtown Pottery, Luck’s Ware, Old Gap Pottery, Seagrove Stoneware, Studio Touya, and Westmoore Pottery.

Don’t miss this unique event or the opportunity to help local kids and their families. And it all happens on Mother’s Day weekend. So spare Mom that tired gift and spend an unforgettable day with her instead! After seeing the bounty, you may never again give a generic store-bought gift.

From Avery Pottery & Tileworks

Individual tickets are $45 and Patron tickets are $100, and they include a commemorative pottery piece. Mother’s Day packages are available for $150. The package includes two tickets and several gifts for mom – the commemorative pottery piece filled with chocolates and a bottle of wine. Participants will receive a ticket and program for the event, with a map highlighting all of the participating potteries.  Tickets and programs may be picked up at the Resource Center, 130 S. Middleton Street in Robbins, NC, where guests will also have the opportunity to learn more about the programs that the Resource Center offers, or at The North Carolina Pottery Center, 233 East Avenue in Seagrove.

The Resource Center will also raffle off four-4 piece place settings of tableware from Dean and Martin Pottery and from Avery Pottery and Tileworks. They will also raffle off a salad set, plus salad bowls from Seagrove Stoneware.   Raffle tickets may be purchased separately from tickets to the event, and winners do not have to be present at the drawing. The drawings will take place at 5:30pm at the Resource Center on the day of the event. Raffle tickets for the dinnerware are $10 apiece, and you can designate whether you want to be included in the raffle for the set from Dean and Martin Pottery or Avery Pottery and Tileworks.  Tickets for the salad set are $5 apiece, and for the set of six salad bowls tickets are $1 apiece. Pictures of all items to be raffled will be posted on our website in early April.

This event is made possible in large part by contributions from St. Josephs of the Pines and Wachovia Wells Fargo.  St. Josephs of the Pines has an active presence in northern Moore County, with its Providence Place development in Robbins – lovely one bedroom apartments for seniors, plus it brings its fully equipped Semi to Robbins for two days each month where local residents can be seen by the Moore Free Care Clinic, meet with the Sandhills/Moore Coalition for Human Care and the Benefit Bank, and soon will be able to see dentists free of charge. Wachovia Wells Fargo provided funding to support the financial education classes that the Resource Center offers as part of its IDA program.

To purchase raffle tickets or tickets to the event, visit the Resource Center website at (www.nmfrc.com), or send checks payable to the Northern Moore Family Resource Center to P.O. Box 190, Robbins, NC 27325 or call the Resource Center at 910/948-4324.

Don’t you just hate it when you think you have your budget all figured out to make it through the next week, month or year – then out of the blue – the car needs a major repair or the air conditioners gives out on the hottest day of the year? What’s the saying – “Stuff Happens!”

The NC Pottery Center needs our help and I think they are worth it. Here’s their problem:

The NC Pottery Center has recently experienced unforeseen maintenance issues and they are asking you as a supporter of the NCPC, or just someone who is looking for a good cause, for your help in paying for lighting repairs at the Center. They hope to raise $2,000 to cover these expenses.

They are asking that you please consider a monetary donation, becoming a new member, increasing your membership level, renewing your membership early, or buying a brick for your business or in memory/honor of someone.

The staff and board of the Pottery Center are working hard to keep the NCPC a viable museum and hope you will consider helping us.

If you can help, please visit their website at (www.ncpotterycenter.org) where you can make a quick online donation, or call then at 336/873-8430 and tell them you want to help. Thanks.

The largest crowd in history pressed auction prices to a new high for collectors of Western American art in the Scottsdale Art Auction sales room during two sessions on Saturday, March 31, 2012, in Scottsdale, AZ. When the hammer fell on the last of 392 lots offered, sales totaled over $16,250,000.00.

Top lot for the auction was a world record setting Howard Terpning oil, Captured Ponies (estimated at $400,000 to $600,000) that was fiercely contested by several bidders before it fetched $1,934,000 to a buyer on the telephone.  A Terpning oil earlier in the sale, Mystic Power of the War Shield, (estimated at $600,000 to $900,000) had broken the previous record when it sold for $1,710,000. By the end of the sale, six Howard Terpning oils and one drawing had achieved a total of $5,018,250.

Howard Terpning oil, Captured Ponies

The morning session was highlighted by Ron Riddick’s oil, The Blessing Dance, (estimated at $30,000 to $40,000) that brought a new record of $109,250 and a small oil, True Love, by Ray Swanson, (estimated at $3,500 to $5,000) that sold for $17,250. With 93% of the first session lots selling to an enthusiastic crowd the stage was set for an afternoon featuring works by the Taos Founders, Cowboy Artists of America and legendary paintings and sculpture by Russell, Remington and Frank Tenney Johnson.

Notable achievements included Frank Tenney Johnson’s oil, When all is Quiet, (estimated at $400,000 to $600,000) that sold for $575,000, Packin’ In, (estimated at $200,000 – $300,000) that brought $316,250 and an exceptional oil by W. Herbert Dunton, Roping a Wolf, (estimated at $250,000 – $350,000) that fetched $402,500.

Other lots of special interest featured Charles M. Russell’s oil, Indian Scout on Horseback, (estimated at $400,000 to $600,000) that reached $690,000, a Russell bronze, A Bronc Twister, (estimated at $125,000 – $175,000) that hammered for $258,750, the iconic Frederic Remington bronze, Bronco Buster, (estimated at $75,000 to $125,000) that brought $87,250 and a dramatic Herman Herzog, oil landscape, In the Yosemite Valley, (estimated at $40,000 to $60,000) that sold for $207,000.

Among contemporary Western masters, Tom Lovell stunned the crowd with Marking the Crossing, an oil (estimated at $125,000 – $200,000) that sold for $402,500, two wildlife oils by Bob Kuhn, Game Watchers, (estimated at $200,000 to $300,000) that brought $230,000 and Renewal, (estimated at $100,000 to $200,000) that sold for $115,000.  An important early oil by Tom Ryan done on the 6666 Ranch, Two More for Chow, (estimated at $40,000 to $60,000) fetched $69,000 and an impressive Western landscape by Clyde Aspevig set a new record for the artist when it hammered down at $99,250.

Tom Lovell’s Marking the Crossing, an oil

With 90% of the 392 lots sold, one hundred twenty-seven lots (32%) exceeded the high estimate and the total sale exceeded the total low estimates by 20%. Over 500 potential bidders in the room and a telephone bank of 10 operators kept auctioneer Troy Black on his toes for over six hours. Scottsdale Art Auction has clearly established  leadership among auction houses for American Western, sporting and wildlife art.

For a complete list of all sales results visit (www.scottsdaleartauction.com). Sale date for 2013 has been set for Saturday, April 6th.

For further info contact Jack A. Morris, Jr. by calling 480/945-0225.

The Upstate Heritage Quilt Trail is always expanding and we’ll always try to keep you up on these developments as best we can. Sometimes we just receive a photo and a little info while other times we receive a photo or two and some details about the quilt, its sponsor and the location where it can be found. For the latest and most updated info about the Upstate Heritage Quilt Trail, visit (http://www.upstateheritagequilttrail.org/).

Here’s what we’ve heard lately.

A new quilt square or quilt block, (#71) Box Square, can be found at Comfort Keepers, 402 E. Greenville Street in Anderson, SC (GPS N34° 30.7061′, W082° 38.8874′). The block is sponsored by Melisa Morris Gleen and features the design by quilter Cassie Colfelter Morris.

The late Cassie Colfelter-Morris made the original cloth quilt, Box Square. Mrs. Morris was the grandmother of Melisa Morris Glenn and the quilt was made in 1981 to honor her graduation from high school. Cassie learned to quilt from her mother and grandmother.

Lucky Acre Farms has joined the Upstate Heritage Quilt Trail with the addition of a quilt called (#74) Grandmother’s Quilt mounted on the barn of Gloria and Joe Williams, owners of the farm. Located at 1024 Milford Road in Townville, SC, the Williams’ raise alpacas primarily, but the farm is also home to pygmy goats, a peacock couple, dogs, cats, donkeys, a horse and two hives of honey bees.

According to Mrs. Williams, “This is a quilt that I made for my mother. After she died, it came back to me. My grandmother had taught me to quilt, crochet and sew. My grandparents raised me on a small farm in Upstate New York. We had very little money, grew most of our food and used everything we could from the farm. At that time, animal feed came in calico feed sacks which we used for making clothing and quilts.”

Grandmother’s Quilt is a pleasant two-block star design and is listed in Barbara Brackman’s Encyclopedia of Pieced Quilt Patterns as one found in book #116 of the Old Chelsea Station Needlework Series, a syndicated service available since the 1930s to the present. It may well have been a pattern printed elsewhere featuring the two-block combination. It works because they both have the same drafting category (a four patch).

The Williams’ bought 28 acres in 1994 on what was described as an “old homestead” in the local paper.  They went to the Townville post office for directions and before they knew it, they were the proud owners of Lucky Acres Farm. They lived in their camper for two years, as Joe demolished the old house on the property and built a log cabin. In 2001, they joined the AOBA (Alpaca Owners and Breeders Association), began to create pastures suitable for alpacas, built a small barn, and installed fencing. In 2003, they purchased their first alpacas, 3 pregnant girls, 1 herd sire and 1 gelding.

Today, Lucky Acre Farms is open to the public four weekends – the first weekends in May and December as part of the Heritage Corridor Farmer’s Association tour; the first weekend in June as part of the Carolina Farm Stewardship Association and the last weekend in September as part of the Alpaca Owners and Breeders Association Open Farm Days. The gift shop at Lucky Acres offers a wide selection of articles made from alpaca fiber – scarves, sweaters and blankets knitted or crocheted by Gloria, as well as bears, dolls and other toys. Check their website for more information at (www.luckyacresfarm.com).

“We have to carry on the tradition of small family farming. It is our belief that anything we can teach our young people about the traditional ways is of highest importance.  In hard times we can rely on the farmer to sustain us, growing our own food and making our clothing.  If the knowledge of how to be self-reliant were lost, it would be a great disrespect of our ancestry.”

The City of Easley has two new quilts as part of the Upstate Heritage Quilt Trail. The home of Robert and Betty Chrismer, located at 1034 Anderson Highway, is the site of a replica of a Tulip quilt originally made by his grandmother, Mary Rider Spalding in 1885. The daughter of William and Mary Ann Rider, she was born in 1858 in Littlestown, PA. She married James D. Spalding, a farmer and businessman in 1885. Mrs. Spalding died in 1894 at the age of 36, leaving behind her husband of 9 years and four young children.

Mrs. Chrismer’s father, Roy Reeves of Reeves’ Builders, built the Chrismer home in 1962. Mrs. Chrismer’s grandfather, Charles Jefferson Hendricks, originally acquired the land in 1906. Mr. Hendricks was a cotton farmer and lived on this land until his death in 1956. Three Chrismer children were reared here. The Tulip quilt is mounted on a woodworking shop built by Mr. Chrismer and his sons in 1981. He is a retired engineer and furniture maker in his spare time.

This particular quilt block may be referred to as a (#78) “tulip quilt”. In the mid-19th century, quiltmakers created countless variations of appliquéd floral designs, typically favoring a color scheme of red and green. The inspiration quilt combines two popular elements – a modified fleur de lis in the center with four outstretched tulips – in a familiar format. The majority of these early quilt patterns did not have distinct names; the maker of this quilt probably called it her “Tulip quilt.”

The Chrismer’s daughter, Elizabeth Hitchcock, lives with her husband, Ken, across the road in the original family home built by Mr. Hendricks. The farm was recently named a ‘South Carolina Century Farm’ and was home to four consecutive generations of the Hendricks family.

Their quilt block is an (#77) Oak Leaf pattern mounted on an old smokehouse built by Charles Hendricks that was used throughout the 20th century to cure meat. The smokehouse is now a garden shed used by Ken and Elizabeth to store garden tools and equipment. Elizabeth is a Master Gardener and enjoys landscaping as a hobby.

The quilt runner was designed and crafted in 2011 by Virginia (Jennie) Grobusky of Walhalla, SC, and is used on a desk handmade by Elizabeth’s father, Robert Chrismer. The oak leaf pattern was chosen to symbolize family heritage.

The Oak Leaf pattern, in many variations, was popular throughout the second half of the 19th century. Some early examples featured four small red and green acorns tucked among the four leaves. Early Oak Leaf quilts typically contrasted red and green; later examples made use of other color combinations.

The offices of Gloria and David Arnold, located at 10612 Clemson Blvd., Seneca, SC, joined the Upstate Heritage Quilt Trail. As they explained, “We decided that we wanted to be a part of the quilt trail and thought this would be a great opportunity to showcase the quilting skills of our friend and former neighbor Lori Kuba by having one of her quilt blocks mounted on our office building. The pattern we chose is from a wall hanging she gave us after we moved into our home.”

The quilt, titled (#73) Blue Horizon, was originally designed and created by Mrs. Kuba, who took up quilting after she and her husband moved to this area in 1991. She said she’d been reading about quilt groups in the area and decided to give it a try. She attended several meetings finally joining the Lake and Mountain Quilt Guild here in Seneca. One of her favorite things has been helping to establish the Guild’s “Day Bees,” or free classes held on the third Tuesday of each month.

Mrs. Kuba makes all kinds of quilts, but prefers to do hand appliqué and hand quilting to machine work. Blue Horizon came as a result of a class she took on Bargello quilting from Marge Edie, a well-known local quilter and author. Bargello takes its name from the Bargello Palace in Florence, Italy, where there is a collection of tapestries employing this technique. Bargello, or flame point, gives the impression of flames of color moving up or down. It can be done with paint, in needlepoint, or in quilting. The construction technique of bargello quilting is different as well, in that strips of fabric are laid down onto the backing and batting rather than making a top and then attaching it to the backing.

Mrs. Kuba’s advice to beginners is simple. “Find your own way. This area of the Upstate is home to some of the most marvelous quilters – people who enter shows and win awards. It’s good to expose yourself to such talent.”

Gloria, David and Corey Arnold are the owners of The Arnold Corporation (www.thearnoldcorp.com), building custom homes and emphasizing the need for a successful relationship between homeowner and contractor. Their work is accomplished with a Lump Sum Contract and a specific completion time.

Chattooga Belle Farm has joined the Upstate Heritage Quilt Trail. Two quilts have been mounted at this mountain resort vineyard, owned by Edward and Kitty Land. The first features geometric patchwork patterns that play with our perceptions. The predominant round ‘flowers’ in its design emerge at the intersection of eight triangles, each of which has contrasting petals on the two acute corners.  This pattern is called (#75) Hearts and Gizzards, a 19th century name for a 19th century pattern. The Ladies Art Company published under this name in the 1890s. Coats and Clark published it in a pattern booklet in the 1940s as Hearts and Flowers. Other 20th century companies published it under other names such as Snowball, Windmill, Lover’s Knot, and Pierrot’s Pom Pom.

The second quilt (#76) Hearts and Stars is a modern design that combined simple elements in a novel manner to create an unusual and effective design. Each block features, alternately, a heart or a chubby star. The blocks are set together with “sashing” pieced of squares and triangles. Careful placement of the light, dark, and medium shades of the fabrics creates the image of interlocking stars.

The original quilter is Jean LaFreniere, Mrs. Land’s mother. She quilted these quilts for her granddaughter, Taylor, when she was born in 2000. Mrs. LaFreniere began quilting when she was 45 years old. As the mother of four girls ranging in age from 12 to 27 years old, she picked up quilting as a hobby for the first time in her life. Over the next nine years, she made a full-sized quilt, completely stitched by hand for each of her daughters. With the assistance of a sewing machine, she continued to make quilts for her grandchildren and more for her daughters. She quilted for 25 years, and loved it immensely.

Chattooga Belle Farm is located at 454 Damascus Church Road, in Long Creek, SC. For information on the farm, call 864/647-9768, or go to (www.ChattoogaBelleFarm.com).

When Anderson County built its Main Library in downtown Anderson, SC, at 300 North McDuffie Street, one of the architectural decisions was to place a compass-rose mosaic in the middle of the floor in the main lobby. The compass theme was then used in a variety of forms on signs and shelving throughout the building. It is said to illustrate the library system, with the 8 points representing the branch libraries and reaching out from the center circle, or Main Library. Since its simplicity is a memorable image for people to associate with the library, the compass was eventually chosen as the library system’s logo.

The Main Library has been host to the Anderson Prickly Fingers Quilt Guild’s meetings for many years. To honor that long-standing relationship and to celebrate National Library week, the Guild and one of its members, Diane Schonauer and husband David, decided to co-sponsor a quilt block for the Upstate Heritage Quilt Trail. Diane fashioned her mini quilt after the (#79) Compass Rose mosaic. Her quilt was made in 2011 as an appliqué that is top-stitched using monofilament thread. The complexity of this pattern appealed to skilled quilt makers of the mid-1800s. The radiating design has appeared in many variations under such names as Compass Rose, Chips and Whetstones, Sunburst and The Sunflower. These patterns require the maker to measure, cut, and sew accurately, so that the points are sharp and all the pieces lie flat without bunching or rippling.

Diane learned to sew from her sister Linda. Their mother had a Singer sewing machine and they used it first to make doll clothes, then eventually clothing. She was exposed to quilting at a young age with her mother’s Cathedral Windows, Yo-yos, and Log Cabin blocks. She had always admired them—as a young adult, she took a quilting class at Katie’s Calico Corner, a local fabric shop. Twenty years later, her local high school offered evening classes on quilting—she signed up for the class and has not stopped since.

The quilt block is mounted on the west side of the Anderson County Main Library that faces McDuffie Street.
For more information about the Upstate Heritage Quilt Trail, click on (http://www.upstateheritagequilttrail.org/).