Thanks

Even with all the damp, bone chilling, windy weather of late, I was surprised when I stepped out onto South Trade Street today. The wind had stilled, the sun was shining, and I stopped trying to pull my heavy jacket on to bask in the warm light.

This time of year things can get out of hand. Everyone gets tied in knots with too many things to do. It’s worse than October and April when every local festival and celebration has to take place.

But it’s those little times when the sun hits your face and makes you stop for minute or two that can snap me back into something like my right mind. Thankfulness, satisfaction, appreciation, etc. Those are the basic things that keep an uptown manager type from getting down or losing hope. Oh yes, the task is big, and some days it will be scary, but we will make some progress.

I’m hoping those sunny moments keep hitting me up the side of the head.

Local Color

When I first arrived here just two months ago things were so green. It was the live oaks and all the greenery around Court Square that first tugged at me on the first visit. But even though the live oaks are still green, I’ve been appreciating the blaze of maples and dogwoods that have suddenly made their presence impossible to ignore. Local color is that blaze of glory that can make you stop and gasp. But local color is way more than some pigment on the surface. It’s the quirks and quacks that makes a place different and enjoyable. It takes more than two months to find them, but I’m sure they are here. Who knows? In a few years I might be one myself as I age. (It does run in the family!)Yesterday I spent the day in Columbia (SC) at a seminar by the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s Main Street center. The topic was Finding New Merchants for Main Street, something on the mind of just about every town I know of. Unfortunately, there were no magic bullets among the many ideas we discussed. However, there were enough hints and tips to make a trip down worth the drive.We talked about things that are just good common sense, like making certain that buildings are clean and sound before recruiting, avoiding expensive brochures in favor of basic fact sheets, and the like. But I was glad to hear the instructor tell us that recruitment is fine if you have loads of time and money, but the best way to build up new businesses for a place like Uptown Shelby is to encourage local entrepreneurs, that fancy word for people who create new stores, new businesses and services. Encouraging people to take the chance that their idea is one that will work isn’t easy, but I hope we can start that process soon. It takes a broad effort, from teaching school kids how to think about money and the ways business works, to helping the recently laid off office worker or forklift driver think about ways they can establish a new business that lets them have greater control over their work-life and finances. As hard as it sounds, it can be easier than trying to get someone from corporate headquarters in New York or San Francisco to put a Gap on Layfayette Street.Coming full circle, local business means local customs and, especially with Foothills Farmers Market, tastes that are familiar. It’s local color! Right?Does anyone out there have ideas or want to volunteer to help? Let me hear from you!

Art Around Town

I was pleasantly surprised by the Art Around Town Gallery Crawl last Thursday. Not by what happens during a gallery crawl event. Been there, done that, in many places.

But I was struck by the depth and quality of what is presented for the public here. Part of it was exhibit only, part for sale, and a good part was for giving folks a chance to talk with artists about their work.

We used to joke about how potentially scary these interactions might be to many folks when some communities began to host these events back in the late 80’s. My best carnival barker voice might intone “See the exotic artists live in their native habitat!” And my artist friends would break into wild calls every time.

But Cotton Ketchie is from Mooresville and is a born story teller as well as a fine painter and photographer. He’s too busy to be an exotic character, but he’s also the guy who has never met a stranger. I’ve met him before, but didn’t have any of his work. Well he showed up at Frame Masters with a beautiful photo of an old tobacco barn with Pilot Mountain in the background. I had to get it. Pilot Mountain, or Mount Pilot, is the southeastern view from my farm in the hills up in the Mount Airy area. Mr. Ketchie gave me a bit of home to hang in the office.

The Arts Council gallery presented arts and artifacts from El Nido, the Gibbs house that is being restored and stabilized by Preservation North Carolina. Images from the past, but intriguing and surely not something you see every day.

The artists at Buffalo Creek were not doing anything very different from their day-to-day operations, except that they had new work available for viewing and purchase. The great thing about this cooperatively owned gallery and its artists is the variety, depth and breadth that is seen in their work.

I hadn’t had a chance to see much of the other galleries/shops before The Crawl, so I was glad to have a chance to stop and talk with Allan Griffin at his studio and shop. There were several nice pieces to see, with some arts & crafts references, as well as a nicely original take on the traditional face jugs so well known across North Carolina. I know several potters and this was different in a nice way.

Synergy had some of the edgiest work on display, but I was also surprised to see the quality of the different artists in the exhibit. I also loved the look and feel of the studio space they’ve carved out for themselves in an old mercantile building just west of the tracks on Warren Street.

And lastly, the beautiful work at Alley Quilts. It’s next door to the Uptown offices, but there’d never been enough time to duck in and take some time to enjoy their work. What a terrible shame, it turns out. From a funky pink flamingo banner to traditional patchwork bed quilts, wall hangings and table runners, the colors were lively and intricate. Plus quilts just make me feel like I’m a little kid again, visiting my grandmother on a late fall day for milk and cookies while she had the quilting frame up in the front parlor.

Uptown Shelby alone has the visual art strengths to keep a sizeable community lively. I hear there are great artists and good work around the countryside and small towns hereabouts. I think we all ought to enjoy this rich blessing whenever possible and invite the rest of the world to sample it as well. The variety and high quality is what is so very striking.