Last week was a blur as I frantically prepared for my
(fingers crossed!) annual trip to Madison, Wisconsin. That’s where you would find the Art Fair on the Square and a
base of exceptionally knowledgeable, fun and enthusiastic art buyers. I pushed hard to finish one last piece
I’m calling ‘Riding Into the Sunset’.
I’ve been moving that piece along for the past couple of weeks and
wanted to take it with me to Madison.
I had laid out the green yarns for the grassy area at the base of the
weaving and the gradient to a setting sun in the distance. I envisioned a winding path through the
gradient that flowed from a tangerine orange to a crisp lemon yellow at the
top. When I had the background
under control I delved into my container of bangles that I’ve collected at
various places around town, including Opportunity House. I used those as the basic structure to
created my bicycle wheels, which I then wrapped with silver cording. I also used silver yarn that I got from
an overstock sale on Etsy (thanks Marilyn Brackney for the heads-up!). To create the tires I’ve been
collecting black shoelaces of different thicknesses. That let me create different types of tires, ranging from thin
racing tires to thick off-roading tires.
Together they just roll off into the sunset.
When Thursday morning came, the whole family packed up and
we headed out to Hollandale, Wisconsin.
Deep in the rolling hills of southern Wisconsin, next to the headwaters
of the Pecatonica River, we found our friend and host Wendy. Duane was off at a business trip in
Texas, but we were greeted enthusiastically (although with some suspicion) by
Jamie and Buddy, the fierce guard dogs.
Along the way we stopped in Champaign, Illinois at Papa Del’s pizza and
took three pies on the trip for dinner.
They weren’t as good as the pizza in the restaurant, but they were well
received after the long drive from Bloomington. We sat around and chitty-chatted longer than we should have,
then headed for bed to get ready for set-up the next day. I had been following the weather
forecasts with predicted highs over 100 degrees with chances of thunderstorms
each weekend day. Fortunately, the
forecast missed the mark and set-up wasn’t too bad with a pleasant breeze under
overcast skies. After fortifying
ourselves with frozen yogurt we set up the show without a hitch and headed back
to Hollandale. When I arrived
Saturday morning, the crowds were already there an hour early. They might have been trained to visit
the farmer’s market there, or they might have been planning to beat the heat,
but the crowds showed up in big numbers.
Better still, I had a lot of fun talking to the show regulars who seem
happy to visit with me and talk about my art. 
They tell me about the pieces from last year that they
remember and comment on the new pieces—I feel like I’m developing friendships
there and the art fair is when we have a chance to catch up. Some of the new favorites this year
included Solitude, which features a bicycle leaning up against a maple tree,
and my new turtle piece. The bad
news was that on Sunday the thermometer shot up and the oppressive heat took a
lot out of the fairgoers. I could
feel myself fading a little as the temperature approached 100 degrees. I decided to put some ice in a ziplock
back (actually three nested bags) and slip it under my hat to cool my
head. Within five minutes I was
feeling spry and chipper. I’m
going to have to remember that trick!
While we traveled to Wisconsin for the show, it was
wonderful to spend time with Wendy and Duane out away from everything. Wendy made us delicious shish kabobs
using fresh marlin and vegetables, which turned out very well. I really loved the barbecued onion from
the grill. She followed that up
with an amazing chocolate cheesecake with a layer of ganache on top—yum! A nice meal with a glass of wine,
followed by something tasty and chocolatey just can’t be beat! Alas, good things must come to an end,
and Monday morning we packed up and drove back home to Bloomington. It’s good to be back in my cool art
studio, but I’m back in frantic mode to create more art for the rest of the
summer shows! It’s a good problem
to have. There’s only one thing
that would speed me along, and it has something to do with ripe, juicy yellow-orange
summer fruit and a crust. I’m
thinking of a number between three and four—any guesses, Jim?
Until next week…
Martina Celerin
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