Yesterday seemed like a day-long episode of the Twilight Zone. First there was the sighting of 'Sly' Stallone in the Italian Market, then yesterday evening, I went with Bridgette to deliver a painting of mine that recently sold to the client's home. Most of the time, people will pick up work from the gallery, but once in a while, she'll deliver the piece(s) herself. She'd called me Tuesday afternoon and asked me if I wanted to go along to meet the purchasers and I said yes. I'm always interested in who is buying my works and where they wind up.
Anyway, this particular client lives in Moorestown, NJ. Bridgette and I drove up, almost got lost, but made it in time to meet the guy and his wife at their place. During the last part of our drive, it's getting darker and the houses are getting bigger...and bigger...and...yeah, you get the idea. The mail boxes are almost half-a-block away from the houses in this particular development. The good thing is that the houses are not the ugly, cookie-cutter homes you normally see in suburban, and increasingly, urban, developements. It also wasn't a gated community. Nonetheless, the 'neighborhood' seemed, well, sterile and cold, and not just from the weather last night. I'm too used to seeing people walk around at night and standing there looking at these places, I couldn't imagine much life happening there, despite the obvious presence of people in their homes. Maybe it was the newness of everything. From the looks of it, these houses haven't been up for long, a few months at the most. The lawns were also a little too green. Hmmm...
At first, we were afraid that we had the wrong place, but luckily, Bridgette's instincts were on target. The wife opened the door, toting one of her young sons and let us in, painting in tow. As expected, the inside was as big as it looked. The husband was in the kitchen and after getting settled, the wife showed us around the house.
It was big, but modest in style and very relfective of the owners. Bridgette and I kept looking at each other every time she showed us room after room. We didn't even make it to the third floor. There wasn't time for that anyway since Bridgette had another meeting last night and the client had a dinner to get to. We chose the best spot for the work and hung it.
I've always wondered who lived in places like this and I got to find out last night. This couple, at least, was very nice and down-to-earth. They're genuinely into collecting contemporary work and very curious. They asked a lot of good questions and aren't into art just for the hell of it. I have gotten to meet other collectors of my work, but most of the time, that was at the gallery. I like connecting with the people who buy my work, but I felt a huge disconnect lifestyle-wise. I couldn't imagine living in a suburban development and having a place that requires having people come in and clean. There's no way they do their own house-keeping in a home that big. Everything was too new, also. I need a good mix of old and new where I live.
Overall, it was a good experience. I liked meeting the couple and they are enjoying the painting and paying for it, so everybody benefits. Below are a couple of shots of the painting after we hung it. Painting info: The Other, 2005, acrylic on canvas, 48" x 60"
