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A Successful Open Studio During the Pandemic
27/09/2020
My most successful NEOS to date saw 15 paintings find new homes.
North East Open Studios (NEOS) has long become a tradition and a much anticipated event by many art lovers in the North East of Scotland but of course this year it wasn’t clear for a very long time if such an event could be held under the constantly changing regulations. To be honest I wasn’t quite sure myself whether I really wanted to go ahead with it or not, but thanks to the NEOS administration who showed some extreme flexibility telling the participants that they could cancel at any time so I kept my options open and only finally committed a couple of weeks before the event.
And I was so glad that I did because it turned out to be one of the greatest Open Studio weeks I had ever had and most definitely the brightest event in the middle of the gloom and uncertainty of this year. Of course some new rules had to be introduced and strictly observed like wearing face coverings, cleaning hands with the antibacterial gel provided at the entrance and only one party up to 4 people from the same “bubble” was allowed in at a time but despite all that the general atmosphere was quite uplifting and jolly, especially when I suddenly realised that I could still provide some refreshments to the visitors outside on the patio where they could safely take off their masks and relax with a cup of tea/coffee and a slice of a fresh bake. When I was first tentatively sending out invitations to my existing customers and friends I had no idea what the outcome could be and had extremely low expectations therefore I was surprised and touched by the response of the public, people must have been cooped up for too long and were very eager to finally get out of their homes and visit art venues and see some art, it brought some normality into their lives as well as mine. I was delighted to see 15 of my original paintings and a number of prints leave the studio to go to the new owners. I am very grateful to all the visitors including my old and new customers and those who just came to have a browse, your support is very important to me especially during these tumultuous times.
And I was so glad that I did because it turned out to be one of the greatest Open Studio weeks I had ever had and most definitely the brightest event in the middle of the gloom and uncertainty of this year. Of course some new rules had to be introduced and strictly observed like wearing face coverings, cleaning hands with the antibacterial gel provided at the entrance and only one party up to 4 people from the same “bubble” was allowed in at a time but despite all that the general atmosphere was quite uplifting and jolly, especially when I suddenly realised that I could still provide some refreshments to the visitors outside on the patio where they could safely take off their masks and relax with a cup of tea/coffee and a slice of a fresh bake. When I was first tentatively sending out invitations to my existing customers and friends I had no idea what the outcome could be and had extremely low expectations therefore I was surprised and touched by the response of the public, people must have been cooped up for too long and were very eager to finally get out of their homes and visit art venues and see some art, it brought some normality into their lives as well as mine. I was delighted to see 15 of my original paintings and a number of prints leave the studio to go to the new owners. I am very grateful to all the visitors including my old and new customers and those who just came to have a browse, your support is very important to me especially during these tumultuous times.
