Beast In Show

Anyone who has a dog, cat, or animal of any sort that they have brought into their lives knows just how amazing these relationships can be. And people who have these strong bonds with animals tend to share these bonds with other animal lovers. It is one thing we know we have in common. When we are out walking our dogs, we chat about how old he/she is, how long we have had them, how we came to have them. We, of course, may never know these individuals names but they know our dogs name.

Two animal lovers whose names I do know, are the very talented Susan Mathias and Nancy McGinnis. They are the artists in the upcoming Beast In Show- An Art Show And Sale To Benefit Our Furry Friends. Artwork of animals and for animals. The opening reception is November 18th from 5:30-9pm at Monkitree and it is going to be fantastic. A portions of the sale of Susan's work will benefit the Kennebec Valley Humane Society and the sale of Nancy's work will benefit the Maine Greyhound Placement Service. Plus Monkitree will donate 10% of the total sales during the opening to the Kennebec Valley Humane Society. And to make it even more fun we have a drawing for a piece by each artist and will be holding a silent auction with gift certificates donated by local businesses. This last bit is a new development. It was exciting to have people so willing to get involved.

So come on out and enjoy an evening of amazing art and amazing people while you support local artists, local business and most importantly the animals.

Happy American Craft Week!

I am sitting here in Monkitree surrounded by beautiful art, turned wood and assorted craft. Most of it made right here in Maine by what seems to be an endless supply of talented artists and craftspeople. Please remember to support your local artist, craftspeople and you local retailers and galleries this coming holiday season. Keep your money in your community, your state and your country. We have talented people here making gorgeous things.

Today I am pretty excited about Gardiner, Maine. It is a rainy day and hardly anyone is coming through the doors but I am still thrilled by Swine and Stein this past weekend. Many people came through the doors that hadn't yet been in and plenty of people returned to visit and make purchases. I had women trying on jewelry and pointing out to their husbands all the things they would be happy to receive as gifts. I had one young woman who currently lives in Portland but grew up here tell me that she was happy that something like Monkitree could exist in Gardiner. Peter tells me he took pictures of the gallery full of people. I must say it felt good to have a full space.

There were a couple of inquiries about buildings available for sale downtown and it is sounding like there just may be some new businesses coming to downtown Gardiner. It makes me happy when people see the potential and want to be a part of making the downtown a vibrant and active downtown.