This morning, as I was getting ready to leave for church, I noticed I had a voicemail on my cellphone. When I called to check it, I expected a wrong number, or maybe even that it was an accidental voice mail from me calling myown phone to locate it yesterday.
I was pleasantly surprised to hear it was from one of the volunteers at the Ellipse Arts Center in Arlington, where I have a piece currently on display in their "Photo '07" show. As I was listening to the woman introduce herself, I realized, "Wait a minute, they only call to give *good* news..." Sure enough, she was calling to inform me that just Friday, a gentleman had come in and had purchased "Variety is the Spice of Life." What awesome news! Although hopeful, I hadn't really been expecting the piece to sell, so this was very, very good news.
Then she said something that made me smile even more...she mentioned how happy she was that I'd sold my work, because she thought it was a great piece and especially since Frank Day, the juror, had mentioned it. I was floored. The juror actually mentioned my piece? Specifically?
Curious, I went to their site to see if there was a copy of his juror's comments, and sure enough there was. I scanned through, and in the first paragraph, I found the following remarks:
"I am very happy with the broad range of quality work in the show, from the intensely personal, moving yet technically proficient tribute by John Babineau to his dying mother, "Mother and Son" to the more abstract and cerebral, such as J. Brooke Chao's "Variety is the Spice of Life" and Jim Burkholder's "Barn/Flag"."
(To read Mr. Day's full Juror's Statement,
click here.)
I couldn't be more happy. I went into this show just happy to be part of it at all, not really expecting much more than just a chance to participate in a great show, and so I am surprised and just as happy as a clam to have not only sold my piece, but to have actually had it noticed and mentioned by the juror, Mr. Day. It was a much needed pick-me-up to my confidence as an artist.