Sunday, December 28, 2008

Dutchess County Fair 2008


Thought I'd end the year with a bang. Finally got around to sifting through my photos from August's Dutchess County Fair. My faithful fair companion Harriet Bass, Ryley and I jam-packed our two fair days with old favorites like Rosaire's Racing Pigs and bull riding, and events that were new this year like gospel singers Sammy Terry and the Highlights, Hansen's trapeze act and the high diver who plunged 80-plus feet. Things are changing at the fairgrounds as the new manager settles in. Now's your chance to let him know what you liked and what you didn't like. Leave me a comment (click on comment window below this post) and I'll forward it to him.

I haven't gotten releases for all of these images, so if you recognize someone, let me know how to contact them.







Blog-o-Meter Reading December 27, 2008

Search results for Molly Ahearn:
• Google: #1
• Yahoo: #1
• MSN: #1

Google Page Rank for my site: 2 (out of 10)

Number of page views to this blog: 4757

Number of page views to my site: 4372

Number of email subscribers: 21

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Vote on Best Photo of 2008

As a way to spotlight other photographers, I started a photo competition on my web site this year. Twenty submitted images. All of them are contenders. Instead of asking a professional photographer to judge, I'm asking all of you to vote on the best of 2008. Simply follow the instructions. You will have a chance to see all of the images from inside the survey.

Monday, December 22, 2008

White Christmas

It's been a few years since we've seen snow like this. Aren't we lucky to live in such a beautiful place?


Monday, December 15, 2008

Rejection Letters Make You Feel Like a Talentless Piece of Lint

I have received enough rejection letters to wallpaper my hall. Nowadays many places don’t even bother to send a formal letter on nice stationery, preferring a quick email instead. No matter the delivery, rejection is always a blow to the ego. The words kind of blur a bit after that first sentence, as you prepare yourself for the rest of the correspondence. Thanks for entering, the level of work was high, but you didn’t win…again. Rats. I didn’t win the Aperture Competition…again. (A girl can dream, can’t she?) Purdue University also turned me down recently.

Sometimes I make myself feel better with a few choice words and a hand gesture. Others I treat with a big fat glass of wine. A younger me might have tried tears. Occasionally, I’m grown up enough to reconsider my entry. Was it my best work? Did I describe it well in my artist’s statement. Or, was my work okay, but the winner’s soooo much better. (As is always the case in the Aperture Competition, which actually makes me feel better about losing. It reminds me to work harder and try again.) Don’t know who won the Purdue show, but suspect it’s that sort of avant garde/Whitney Biennial kind of art.

My yoga teacher would say to take a deep breath. Sometimes it works. What’s your remedy?

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Flash Failure


You plan and plan. You shoot tests. You get in the right spot, despite the crowd. And then someone accidentally bumps into your camera knocking the flash just enough off of its seat that it doesn’t fire. By the time you notice, the event is nearly over. Ugh. That’s what happened to me during the Sinterklaas parade. Frustrating! I did get some cool shots of the fire-eaters. Richard Prouse’s painting of the Hudson River valley made a spectacular backdrop. Jeanne Fleming did an incredible job organizing the weeklong series of events. Really cool stuff—7-foot tall puppets, dancers, bagpipe players, celestial figures, singers and storytellers. The kids really enjoyed being part of the event carrying their lit stars. Hundreds of people were involved and thousands enjoyed the fruit of their labor.



Friday, December 5, 2008

New York City Christmas


My parents used to take us into New York City at Christmas to see the window displays along Fifth Avenue and the tree at Rockefeller Center. The smell of roasting chestnuts filled the air. Maybe a few snowflakes fell. My dad treated us to lunch at the Gingerman. I always ordered Coquille St. Jacques. Don’t think I’ve had it since. Now, I take my son. This year we went to see the show at Radio City. I had the impression that the Rockettes were all about fluff and leg kicks. Not true at all. The choreography and skill was quite amazing. The kids loved the 3-D ride on Santa’s sleigh over the city. Ryley’s class is making stained glass art, so we ducked in to see the windows at St. Patrick’s. A good day.




Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Insider's Look: First Move


My Photo Stories
A dapper young Irving awoke after death amidst the ruins of the Overlook Mountain House with nothing but the memory of chess to amuse him.

Or…

Webelos scout Brian had no regard for the nature around him, nor his leaders, sullenly setting up his pocket chess set, when all of a sudden…

Or…

The perfect crime is a debatable achievement, but chess champion Ivan Ropovich was looking for a challenge.

Or…what are your story ideas?

Behind the Photo
The ruins of this hotel are slowly crumbling near the top of Overlook Mountain in Woodstock. Hikers who can withstand the 2-mile-or-so steep uphill climb can wander through its main hall and peer into the depths of the once splendid guest rooms. The Miss Haversham in me sees the fountain spouting ice-cold mountain water and lush gardens welcoming tourists. An unfortunate fate met all three hotels on this site. The first two burned to the ground; one on April Fool’s Day. As a result, an enterprising businessman decided to use concrete for the third, the one pictured in my photo. He ran out of money before completing it.

Be the first to buy a First Move print and get a 50% discount on the size of your choice. This is my December home page photo, part of my Truths, Lies and Legends collection

Sunday, November 30, 2008

Sinterklaas: A Feast for the Eyes


Last night Sinterklaas came landed on the banks of the Hudson River. The night sky not far behind, the boat was draped in lights and guided by claus hat-wearing kayakers. The grumpus’ beat their drums and twirled their ritual dances in expectation. Hundreds paraded through the streets of Rhinecliff behind Sinterklaas on a prancing white horse. Next Saturday, the townspeople of Rhinebeck will host Sinterklaas and the grumpus' in a day-long celebration. A parade of lit stars and children will be an event not to be missed.





Blog-o-Meter Reading November 27, 2008

Search results for Molly Ahearn:
• Google: #1
• Yahoo: #1
• MSN: #1

Google Page Rank for my site: 2 (out of 10)

Number of page views to this blog: 4389

Number of page views to my site: 3784

Number of email subscribers: 17

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Tag, You’re It!

Bloggers like to have loyal followers, but it’s easy to get lost among all the voices on the internet. One way to increase readership is to share your blog audience with other bloggers’ and vice versa. That’s just what Carol Lambert did when she tagged me. Carol paints found objects in her native Alaska and shares them on her blog. I met her some time ago through artscuttlebutt, a community for artists.

To follow the tagging procedure, I’m supposed to
1. put a link in my posting about the artist that tagged me
2. write 5 -7 unusual things about myself
3. tag 5 - 7 other bloggers and let them know.

Bloggers I Tagged
Sally Ahearn Nepotism is completely okay in cyberspace. My sister Sally is a writer and editor. Her blog offers helpful advice to writers from her own experience as well as many guest experts.

Donna Iona Drozda My cyber friend Donna is a very spiritual person and her paintings reflect a deep sense of thought and symbolism. She also inspires and guides others to reconnect with their own inner creativity. Her blog is always worth stopping by.

Cheryl McClure I also met Cheryl through the butt. A very successful professional artist, she uses color in a sensual way that draws me in every time.

Paul McCubbin I went to high school with Paul. When I first started my blog, he reentered my life by leaving me many helpful comments and suggestions for how to keep it going. He maintains several blogs, I like the Central Park Zoo blog best.

Deborah Mix Deborah is a talented illustrator and uses her skill to make all kinds of gift and craft items. Check out her needlepoint Santa!

Nadine Robbins Nadine’s portraits are so lifelike, many people mistake them for photographs. She’s halfway through her yearlong project to paint artistic couples, so look for a show announcement next year.

Unusual Things About Myself
1. I can still do a handstand.
2. I can whistle extremely loudly using my fingers.
3. I have been in every state in the country except Hawaii and Louisiana, two places I definitely plan to visit.
4. One weekend while my husband was out-of-town, I had a Home Depot employee sell me everything I needed and give me instruction on how to install tile in my bathroom shower. (My husband says I did a great job!)
5. Every year I get together with several girlfriends for Wild Women’s Weekend where we do secret things and laugh a lot.

Friday, November 21, 2008

Last Chance to Enter Photo Contest

Procrastinators, listen up! The deadline for my online photo contest is fast approaching. You need to email your images to me by midnight on November 30 to be eligible. Check my web site for complete instructions. Don't put it off any longer—send your image today!

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Google Knows Who’s Talking About You

Google is as deep as you look. Recently, I signed up for Google Alerts which sends me an email every time my name is mentioned on the internet. You can set an alert to watch for anything—photography fellowships, portrait competitions, humpback whales, whatever. Try to target the search as narrowly as possible to avoid being inundated with alerts. It’s been interesting to see where my name pops up. There’s a high school swimmer named Molly Ahearn whose name pops up in the local papers occasionally. I’m quietly watching her career develop. I wonder if she’s watching mine…

Sunday, November 16, 2008

Meet Moll Diavolo

In September’s Art Calendar, I caught a little side note about a blog dedicated to opportunities for artists in Second Life. For those of you unfamiliar with Second Life, it is a virtual 3-D illustrative world that mirrors the real world in every way—currency, home buying and building, shopping—except it is a complete fantasy. The first thing you do is create an ‘avatar’ to represent yourself. This is where the fantasy begins. You can be blonde, tall, muscled, sexy, tattooed, whatever you’ve most desired. My second life name is Moll Diavolo and she’s a vampy babe with a muscled butt (the view I see most frequently).

Having created Moll, I was ready to navigate to Artropolis, the place Ann Aubree created for her virtual ethnography project. Trouble is I couldn’t figure out how to get there. The graphics load in slower than your navigational instructions, so I frequently found myself in a hole, or wall, or under the ocean. I gave up on Artropolis and did a search for art galleries. Bohemia—Home of True Creators & Artists—sounded intriguing. A collection of studios along a tree-lined walkway, I tried to find some art. One studio I entered showed promise. A pig was roasting over a fire and a mouse kept dashing by at my feet. Gray squares—presumably art—were hung on the walls. But as long as I stayed there waiting for the graphics to load, nothing appeared in the gray squares. Sigh.

I searched for photographers. The Google-like search feature turned up 493 results and a sidebar filled with paid classified ads(!) I checked the International Photographers Society, a club for real life photographers who want to promote and sell their real life work in this make-believe world. A window popped up with what looked like it could be a directory but I was unable to make it do anything. Is my computer too slow?

Then somehow I clicked something that landed me in Artropolis! Happy accident. It’s a cool place with virtual art! And, my ‘fly’ capability was activated. I took off and flew around the island. Now I see what people like about second life—flying. I had a little trouble landing, but what fun.

I never ran into another person which was kind of a relief. What would you say? What are their expectations? Will they be themselves, or a make-believe person? I can’t say that I’m a convert, or that I’ll return, or that I can see how it would help your art career. Have you been? What do you think?


Friday, November 14, 2008

No More Shelter

Sad news to report. Photoshelter, the stock photo company that was founded on the idea that artists should make the lion’s share of sales revenues, has had to admit defeat. Their business model apparently didn’t translate into a profit for themselves.

Though I’d yet to make a sale through Photoshelter, I’d had over 100 of my images selected by their staff to sell and was very excited about the longterm prospects of selling through them online. Maybe there are other good places. I’ll keep you posted if I find any.

Saturday, November 8, 2008

Make Your Own Book—and Sell It!

If you’ve always dreamed of being published, the internet has made it a quick and easy-to-accomplish task. The first thing you need to do is decide what the purpose of the book is and whether you’re going to sell it. If you want a beautiful coffee table-style book of your photography or artwork, you will need high-resolution output, quality paper and a hardbound cover, then blurb.com is a good place to look. For really high-end books check out loxleycolour.com (leather covers!) or photobookpress.com. If it’s more important to keep the price low, consider lulu.com or winkflash.com. I recently used lulu to print programs for my True Cowgirls show. An 8-1/2 x 11, 44-page book with a color cover and b/w inside pages only cost me about $6/per book including shipping. The quality of the printing on the inside leaves something to be desired and I learned the hard way not to have images fill the full size of the page, but at a selling price of $12, many people bought a copy.

All of these sites offer templates that you can download and insert your own images and text. Some of the templates are more artful than others, but using their templates certainly makes the process fast and easy. Since I’m a graphic designer, I prefer to design my own layout using InDesign (layout software by Adobe) and upload a print-ready PDF file. This takes more time, but allows me to maintain a similar ‘look’ to all of my printed pieces.

The beauty of these online sites is that you can publish on demand. In other words, you’re not required to print more than one copy at a time. While this makes the books more expensive for small quantities, you’re only printing what you want to sell or give away. So, if you want to make a big impression at your next pitch to a new client, design a custom book especially for that meeting. You can also make the book available for the general public to buy (and make millions!). The top sellers at lulu are e-Start Your Web Store with Zen Cart, How to Become an Alpha Male, and You Can Beat Prostate Cancer.

With the holidays approaching, making a book is a personal and special gift. Consider a cookbook of family recipes, turn your blog into a book, share your antique car hobby, make an unforgettable record of last summer’s vacation, document your family’s geneology, write a songbook of your original music, or be brave and launch that novel.

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Central Park Draped in Fall Color


Ryley and I spent the weekend with our dear friend Paula at her new place in New York City. We spent Saturday afternoon wandering in Central Park. The leaves were in brilliant Fall plumage and the city was busy preparing for Sunday’s marathon. You never know what you’re going to see there. A woman posing as a statue. Break dancers flipping like pancakes. Avid birdwatchers with scopes. A squirrel that stood on its hind legs and danced like the critter in Caddyshack. Unfortunately, the line was long and the minimum age was 16 to get into the Chanel Zaha Hadid building, so we didn’t see that.





Friday, October 31, 2008

Insider's Look: Table for One—Steak Anybody?

Readers of my blog get the first look at my new home page photo every month. This photo is part of my Truths, Lies and Legends collection. I begin with a spectacular natural setting. Then, I interfere. I place something in the frame giving the impression that a person has been there recently. My interfering in this way transforms a photographic landscape into the set of an unfolding story. My intention is to involve the viewer as storyteller. To get ideas flowing, I offer a few storylines of my own.

My Story Offerings:
Upon reading of how the cow, Emily (the Vegetarian Activist), escaped from a slaughterhouse, Marissa set up a roadside display to make passersby think twice about steak for dinner.
Or…
A line of curious Angus proved their true nature to be carnivorous as they strained their necks through the fence to taste the raw meat.
Or…
After retirement, Bob developed an odd friendship with his neighbor’s cow Bessie.
Or…what are your story ideas?

Story Behind the Shot
The craziest thing happened while I was doing this shot. I live across from this farm where they raise both Angus cattle (beef) and dairy cows. At least 3 times a week I walk by both kinds of cows and have noticed that the dairy cows are always curious about people and the Angus flee as soon as you approach. Who says cows are dumb? Anyway, when I set up the table with the steak, the Angus cows overcame their fear. They formed a tentative line (that you see in the photo) and then slowly and carefully walked right up to the fence—with me standing right there—and tried to eat that steak!

Be the first to buy a Table for One print and get a 50% discount on the size of your choice.

Monday, October 27, 2008

Last Call for the Rodeo

Only 3 weekends left to see my True Cowgirls photos at Millbrook Vineyards and Jose Acosta’s saucy Caribbean-flavored paintings. The show ends Sunday, November 16. Personally, my favorite Millbrook wine is the chardonnay, though their pinot noir is pretty tasty, too. Which is your favorite?

Blog-o-Meter Reading October 27, 2008

Search results for Molly Ahearn:
• Google: #1
• Yahoo: #1
• MSN: #1

Google Page Rank for my site: 2 (out of 10)

Number of page views to this blog: 4007

Number of page views to my site: 3475

Number of email subscribers: 20

Saturday, October 25, 2008

Animals Are Not What They Seem


Colossal. Bewitching. Stunningly beautiful. Disturbing. These are just a few words to begin to describe Walton Ford’s work. I went to high school with his wife and hadn’t seen her for 25 years when she surprised me at my first exhibit opening at the Starr Library in Rhinebeck. So, when he had an opening, she called to invite me. Where? The Brooklyn Museum of Art!!! The show was held before I’d started this blog. When he was the feature interview in the October issue of Art in America, it reminded me to share his work with you. His stuff is incredible and inspiring and thought-provoking.

Ford’s watercolors all feature a closeup view of one main animal in the foreground painted in a breathtaking realistic, almost Audobon style. Low on the canvas, he paints a horizon that identifies a place. The rest of the background is white which makes the animals leap off the surface. You could walk through a show of his work and just see that (almost), or you can take a closer look.

Ford is an intense man and the scenes reflect the deep thought he gives to his subjects. For example, he painted a gorilla holding Carl Akeley’s skull and titled it Sanctuary. Akeley was a taxidermist and one of the first to shoot gorillas for display in the Museum of Natural History. Later in his life, he became a gorilla advocate and frowned upon hunting them, even for study. When he died, he requested that his body be buried in the site where he’d spent so much time with the gorillas. Years later, fellow researchers came upon the site and discovered that Akeley’s bones had been exhumed. In his depiction, Ford shows a large silver-backed gorilla that Akeley had shot holding Akeley’s skull.

Nila is a 12 foot by 19 foot piece comprised of 22 panels (presumably because you can’t buy a single piece of canvas that size). A stunning study of an elephant surrounded by North American birds. I’ve forgotten the story behind it, but notice the pair making love on the end of the elephant’s penis.

My friend Paula, my sister Margaret, Ryley and I went to see the show together. I remember passing by one painting, Chingado (Spanish for fucked), where a bull is screwing a jaguar. It’s an up-close and personal view. No mistaking the action. I was afraid Ryley, then eight years old, would ask for explanation. He studied it, as he’d studied all the others, and moved on.

Walton Ford is represented by Paul Kasmin.

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Thanks for Hopping By

What a weekend. Nadine and I had close to 100 people come through our studio. Many people were interested in the new work I had on display from Truths, Lies and Legends which was invaluable to me. I was nervous about the story component since it’s very untraditional, but people liked the idea a lot. One woman suggested I have a vote after collecting everyone’s stories to decide on the best one. “People love to vote,” she said. A writer told me she’d come up with some story ideas and send them along. Another woman brainstormed ideas with me over how to present the stories for the final show—hand write them? Display on computers? One woman told me that I’d inspired her to get back to photography herself. She bought a cowgirl print from me.

Thanks to everyone who stopped by. Your words of encouragement will keep me going. All the artists on the tour had a great experience, so look for it to become an annual tradition—sharing Fall color and art.

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

How to Post a Video on YouTube

1. Export to the QuickTime movie format using the default settings. If you know what you’re doing, you can set different preferences for audio output and video quality. (I used iMovie to create my video.)
2. Create an account at YouTube.
3. Verify your account after they send you an email.
4. Go to YouTube.com and in the upper righthand corner of the window, click on the Upload button.
5. Give your video a title and a bunch of key words that will help people find your video.
6. Click on the Browse button to locate your .mov file.
7. That’s it! Check back in a while to see it by going to My Videos under Account in the top right nav bar. I’d already gotten 5 views a few hours after posting!
8. YouTube will provide you code to embed the video as you see here.
9. Pass this link on to all your friends!

Monday, October 13, 2008

Ryley—The Next Coppola?

At long last, here is the directorial debut of Ryley Robinson. For the subject of his first film, he chose to document his mom taking her Fried Eggs photo (part of the Truths, Lies and Legends collection). At times serious journalist, at other times comedian, Ryley’s created a gem his children will treasure. My husband, the sound engineer, will no doubt cringe when he hears the audio. But, it would have been cheating to consult a professional.

How Did We Create the QuickTime Movie?
Our dear friends Stephen and Sandy gave us a video camera when Ryley was born. It films onto a tape, but has a cable that you can hook directly to the computer. On a Mac, when you plug up a video camera, iMovie automatically starts up. From there, you simply hit the import video button. iMovie is pretty easy to use. You kind of pick up and drop stuff into a timeline. You can split video into scenes and place transitions between them. The title slides are canned. I wish we could have custom made them, because the one thing we couldn’t include are the stories that actually accompany the Fried Eggs photo. The thing that gave us the most trouble was including the song. You’ve got to be sure to include an aiff file or an mp3 file that isn’t in your iTunes purchased library.

Please let me know if this doesn't play on your computer.

I’m going to figure out how to upload the movie onto YouTube for my next challenge…stay tuned.

Friday, October 10, 2008

Cyber Friend

My life has been so crazy recently, I haven't had time till now to share a wonderful experience I had over the summer. As most of you already know, I've dedicated 2008 to trying to figure out how the internet can help me as an artist. One of the first things I did was sign up on an artists' community site called artscuttlebutt which is sponsored by art calendar magazine. For several months, I actively participated by looking at other people's work, starting conversations, and I even organized a photography group. It was a great way to get this internet thing going.

Sometime in July I got a note from Donna Iona Drozda—a fellow artist on the butt—about one of my photographs. We got to talking and sharing work and really hit it off. I added a link to her blog on mine and vice versa. When I saw her profile, I realized she lives in Virginia Beach. As luck would have it, we were headed there on vacation. I suggested we meet up.

Donna greeted us with a warm hug at the front door of our hotel feeling like an old friend, not a new one. She took us to the Contemporary Art Center of Virginia where she is a teacher and active participant. What a great place. My first thought was, we've got to figure out how to follow their model. They have a first-class exhibit space, offer a broad range of classes for kids and adults, have a stage and theater, and own an original Gilhooley! The exhibit we saw—Transformed—featured contemporary artwork that pushes the limits of art. One installation was a grouping of toilet paper rolls that had intricate branch carvings cut out of them (all in one knife stroke!) and then placed to look as if they were growing out of the rolls. The piece was meant to be a commentary on the overuse of trees and paper.


Donna's own work is beautiful—like her spirit—and colorful. Inspired by things in every day life, she interprets them in ways that make you stop and think. Her work can be appreciated by the most ardent art fan as well as a two-year old in a stroller. This piece is called Morning Song. Notice the moons along the edge of the boat. Check out all of Donna's work on her web site, and stop by her blog to read more about what she does.

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Slap Yourself in the Face and Go Shopping

As Cher said when she slapped Nicolas Cage in Moonstruck, “What’s the matter with you?” This financial crisis or Armageddon or whatever you want to call it, has everybody shaking like a bunch of scared mice. Like much of the country, I have little understanding of how this mess was made but I do have a solution for how to get out of it—GO SHOPPING! If people start spending again, jobs will be preserved, spending indicators will go up making everyone on Wall Street happy, PM’s and Presidents won’t come on TV looking ragged and weary every night, and life will return to normal.

So, grab that DSW coupon—those Boho boots look cool—or head over to Sears and treat yourself to that snow blower you should have bought years ago, or go to Staples and buy some office supplies. Help save the world economy, buy something, quick.

Comments I've received so far by email:

1. genius.

2. Nice sentiment. I would add that if you must go shopping, go shopping for
art. Who needs a snow blower when you can buy a great water color or
photograph by a local artist for half the price (and the artwork doesn't
have to be in the garage unused half the year.)

3. You sound like Georgie W!

4. Hi Molly, I was wondering...could you lend me the money for that snow blower I have
wanted for years? Hee hee

5. Be sure to buy it local!

6. hey where do i get that dsw coupon!!!!! horray for shoes

7. Just bought a new Delsey light weight carry on and am going to Tanger Mall tomorrow.

8. Great idea to get everyone to go shopping - but, what if you're one of those that are so hard hit that you can't go shopping just for the fun of it? In fact, I love Sears, but, I'm squeezing pennys to just buy snow tires for this Winter.. enough about me though... although Sears is one of the few big stores I do like to support, did you now that the sales tax we pay at big stores like Walmart, Home Depot and a few others, doesn't go back into the local economies like they promise? Nope, it goes back to the store, (like Walmart), (part of the big corporation tax breaks) - and they put that towards making more big Walmart stores, etc.... ( I heard this from a US, IRS/ financial analysist on VPR,) and I'm sure if we do some homework, we'll find it's true - one reason why Walmart is a muti-million dollar corporation. So, I propose that people shop not only at Sears and Staples, but, think about where they buy - and buy local, support small businesses instead - like that little office/stationary shop in the neighborhood, or family hardware, clothing shop, etc... and don't forget your artists! Instead of buying xmas cards from Walmart- buy them from artists, craftshops, galleries and art shows instead. Have a great week and happy art and photography to all!

9. is this said in jest? are you serious? part of the large-scale problem is that consumers purchased things they coudn't afford, namely mortgages. and there is blame to share all around. banks should have been far more diligent in examining loan applications. financial responsibility makes more sense right now.

Monday, October 6, 2008

Leaf Peeping and Art Studio Hopping


The Rhinebeck area has a reputation as being a haven for artists but has struggled with keeping an art presence in town. A bunch of us artists got together and are about to change that. October 18 and 19th we’ll open our studios and invite people to come meet us, learn what inspires us, and maybe buy something—ready or not, the holidays are coming! I'll have lots of proof prints and other treats for sale that people normally don't get a chance to see.

Start off the tour in downtown Rhinebeck, at Rhinebeck Savings Bank—our platinum sponsor—and see a show of prints of everyone’s work involved in the tour. Then, cross the street and see Nadine and I; walk in the Starr Place restaurant and go the second floor. We’ll give you a map of all the artists and help you plan your next stop. The artists involved include a huge variety of styles and media.

Barrett Art Center is hosting their annual paint-out in downtown Rhinebeck on Saturday, October 18th. Artists set up along the streets and paint. Later in the evening, Barrett auctions off the work of the day.

The leaves are turning brilliant colors here in the Hudson Valley. Art will be everywhere. Come join us! Saturday and Sunday October 18-19 from 11 to 5. Check our web site for details. Or, click on individual artist links below to get a sneak preview.

Molly Ahearn
William T. Ayton
Arlene Becker
David Borenstein
Richard Chianella
Doris Cultraro
Nayanrekha Das
Barry Entner
Kathleen Gavin
Dan Goldman
Mimi Graminski
Michael Gregorio
Betsy Jacaruso
Clive Jacobson
Joanne Klein
James Ransome
Nadine Robbins
Jeff Romano
Roni Schnadow
James L. Stevenson
Dean Vallas
Elizabeth Watt
Joel Weisbrod
Reese Williams

Sunday, October 5, 2008

Polly Picked Molly!


How exciting. I’m one of Polly’s Picks in this month’s Hudson Valley magazine. Polly Sparling is Senior Editor and highlights what she thinks are the best events going on in the area with a special callout. I’ve followed many of her recommendations over the years and am very proud she felt my cowgirl show at Millbrook Vineyards worthy of her seal. (Plus, there’s an ad insert right at my page, so the magazine falls open to my photo!)

Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Insider's Look: Aluminum Foiled


Readers of my blog get the first look at my new home page photo every month. This photo is part of my Truths, Lies and Legends collection. I begin with a spectacular natural setting. Then, I interfere. I place something in the frame giving the impression that a person has been there recently. My interfering in this way transforms a photographic landscape into the set of an unfolding story. My intention is to involve the viewer as storyteller. To get ideas flowing, I offer a few storylines of my own.

When Frank Goldberg was a young boy he created vast futuristic cities made of aluminum foil.

Or…

As he toiled to push the shopping cart full of precious recyclables, a ball of foil popped out
unnoticed.

Or…

After reading a viral email that aluminum foil causes alzheimer’s disease, Frank took it upon himself to alert the American public.

Be the first to buy an Aluminum Foiled print and get a 50% discount on the size of your choice.

Saturday, September 27, 2008

Blog-o-Meter Reading September 27, 2008

Search results for Molly Ahearn:
• Google: #1
• Yahoo: #1
• MSN: #1

Google Page Rank for my site: 2 (out of 10)

Number of page views to this blog: 3505

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What a Party!

Thanks to everybody for making the opening of True Cowgirls a magical night! Great job on the photos, Nadine. Thanks for sharing.