Finding your pace

1/14/13 backyard

January is the month I take to nurture my dreams and ideas for the coming year. I find this time to be vital for me to make good decisions on what I choose to do and not do in the year ahead. Some of these decisions include resolutions. Some include how I will spend my time. Some days in January are spent doing nothing. That's right - nothing. It's my favorite thing to do. Living in a rural area allows us to be able to drift into nature right in our own backyard. So what does this all mean or add up to? For me - sanity.

artstream turns ten this spring!

Almost ten years ago we started artstream. It has been a lot of work. Good work, work we love and enjoy. Work we are pleased with and are pleased to share with some wonderful clients and artists. It hasn't always been easy finding the balance between work/play/doing nothing, a pace to live with daily. But, doing nothing helps slow the pace. Evens our playing field, recharges the creative batteries. It is an essential non-activity for me. For our family and for our business.

Kristin Horan (untitled)

One of the most endearing/maddening  qualities of my husband is his ability to go slow. To take his time doing something. To think before acting. To be focused on only one thing at a time and to do it well and move on. It was one of the (many) things that I found and still find attractive about him. He calms me down. Maybe that is why we work so well together. He helped me find my pace. And when you find your pace - it seems that anything is possible.

Prints of the Year

We were so lucky to host the Prints of the Year show this month. Parker Potter created this wonderful exhibit which showcases 40 fine art printmakers from NH. The show is a knockout and is full of affordable beautiful art to grace your walls. The work ranges from emerging student work from the colleges around the state and other work is from established artists. Some of the works are available online here at the shop - others will be added throughout the month.

Check our facebook page for photos from the opening - and hey! why not like us while you are there?

Stepping into 2013

What a fantastic roller coaster ride 2012 was!  We have so much to be grateful for at artstream with a full roster of enthusiastic students, gifted teachers, an incredible intern lovely design clients, super supportive customers and exhibiting artists from around the globe. We are so very thankful! 

Personally we are thankful as well. We enjoyed good health and a sweet loving family, surrounded by creative and intelligent friends.  I'm very excited (and thankful!) about  finishing up two more art books for children (and adventurous adults!) one which will be designed by my husband Rainer as well as the other having a cover designed by him too!   Thank you Quarry Books for believing in my ideas!  Art Lab for Kids has been a success (thankful again!) and has been translated into German and Russian as well as being released around the world in English. 

Daughter Chloe applied for early acceptance at  Massachusetts College of Art and Design and was accepted! (much celebration and happiness all around..) Daughter Grace moved into her own place with her boyfriend Matt (whom we love) and is rounding out her work with an internship in publishing.  

So where will these snowy steps of early 1/13 lead? So many wonderful places!

We are welcoming back students in two weeks with fresh new classes and new workshops - Jewelry, clay and handmade books!  New exhibits starting with Prints of the Year - 40 printmakers from New Hampshire working in fine art print making techniques. Exciting! There are many other events in the gallery which we will unfold over the coming weeks too. So, where will your 2013 lead?