All right, I admit it, I live a double life and have been doing so for many years. My “regular” life is much like yours. I get up five or six mornings a week and go to work. In addition to working in my art gallery I also perform all the necessary daily, weekly and monthly tasks and errands including attending committee and board meetings required to create and sustain my desired quality of personal and civic life.
Being widowed, I live alone except for the companionship of my beloved little dog, JoyJoy. My home is filled with remembrances and artifacts of past years. There are photographs of my parents as well as my late husband, extended family and friends. These are layered with souvenirs of special moments enjoyed through travel and other adventures and scattered throughout an unusually large collection of art and books. It’s truly a maximalist’s heaven or hell depending on your point of view. While I don’t have much of a yard, I do have three patios which I overstock with plants and flowers to create my very own solitary oasis. This eclectic environment, with all of its visuals, textures and smells, allows me to quickly transition to my “other” life when I come home at the end of the day.
For you see, my “other” life is even more Idiocentric than my regular life. It is not as task related as it is tied to my personal feelings and ambiences of choice infused with all the objects I collect and enjoy. It’s a creatively integrated life. In the quiet of the evening I can become one with a character in the book I am reading. When I look at the large painting of a regal woman installed in the stairwell of my living room, I stand straighter and nod to her as I would a friend. I smell the flowers as I walk by a watercolor painting of a summer bouquet.
When I am working at the Gallery, I certainly see and experience the art, but my responses are more measured. It would not be appropriate for me to change personalities as regularly as we change the art. But all of us who work here are affected, not only by the artistry of the paintings and sculptures with which we work every day but by our customer’s responses as they experience those works of art.
It’s not uncommon, when we ask a customer what kind of art they are seeking, for them to respond, “I can’t tell you, but I will know it when I see it.” Or, “I’m looking for something that will change my life” or “change my Living Room.” Or, “ I need something to remind my daughter, who is going off to college for the first time, that I love her.” Or, “I need something for my office that will help my clients feel they can trust me.” We listen and understand our customers' responses, knowing they too are seeking an enhanced personal experience with art. They want to expand and strengthen that bond with their audience.
Art in all of its forms, with which I am surrounded both at home and in the gallery, creates the opportunity for me to live not only a double life, but to live and enjoy many different lives. For this I am and will always be grateful.
-Joy
