two month catchup

It's been so long I don't even know what to tell you! Our fall schedule is nearly over and we're delighted to be back home. Our shows were all great (well, maybe more like 3 out of five!) and we took second place overall at the Bayou City show in Houston. Bayou City spring and fall have been consistently strong shows for us for three years and our win means that we're jury exempt for both installments in 2011/2012. What a relief to know at least one show we'll be in next year! To attend 15 shows in a year we generally apply to 30 or so.

Sausalito was FANTASTIC. I've never spent so much money to do a show before and it was absolutely terrifying but ultimately worth it. Genna was right about the big class portrait paintings. We brought two 4' x 5' versions and found new homes for both of them.

I came home thinking about the three months unfurling ahead of me with nothing to do but whatever I feel like. That lasted about a week before I hear from Genna that his good friend Gia Miminoshvilli got approved for a visa to come visit. Gia was one of Genna's early artistic mentors in Ukraine who helped him learn his craft as a potter. Originally from soviet Georgia, Gia now lives in Kiev (where Genna's from). Gia will be here at least a month, living and making art with us. At the end of his visit we'll be launching a show for him somewhere. Somewhere. Then Gia wants us to come to Georgia (the soviet one) to do a three man show with him there. Oh, and Genna's mom is going to come visit for two months this winter. The unfurling of my boundless free time has halted and begun refurling! [If you're reading this, Gia, we're totally stoked that you're coming...I just enjoy complaining.]

Here's Gia and Genna outside Gia's Kiev studio in 2006:



and in the studio, doing what they do in the studio (shooting vodka):



and with him and Genna's brothers Sasha and Costya once the singing started!



That's what our studio will look like through December!