Goodbye

On March 30, 2016 we officially sold the old hardware store building. We are renting a smaller space next door. This is not a sad occasion. While we poured our heart and soul into restoring the building, our resources were finite. We sold the building to someone with more resources and a new vision for the space. Ultimately, this will benefit the town of Boston as a whole. It also affords us the flexibility to find new ventures and adventures for the future. The Boardwalk will live on in some other configuration. Time to write the next chapter.

Thank you to all who followed our progress over the few short years. What a great journey.

Best wishes to all,
Rich and Lori Curtis

New items

This is a hand-printed card Rich made for the holiday season. It features the Boston skyline of water tower and peanut silos.

Rich also made a strange soft sculpture out of old t-shirts. He cut them into strips, braided the strips together, sewed the braid into a large vessel shape. Then, he shaped and sewed the vessel into this organic form. The red thread creates a nice contrast against the earth tones of the fabric. The sculpture doesn't have a title.

Things broken and (almost) fixed

 We ordered 25 mugs with an image of Rich's Boston mural from Discount Mugs. Four of them arrived broken.

Unfortunately they only offered store credit. So now we have a whopping $11 to go to our next order… if we choose to do business with them.

 The street lamp in front of our building has been broken ever since we have been here. The lamp shade was apparently knocked over and melted on to the bulb. After several attempt to get a work order through to the city, Rich finally went directly to Georgia Power.

They finally sent a technician to fix it. However, the ceramic casing was broken and has to be special ordered. So, the lamp shade is back on, but the light still doesn't work. At least it looks a little better...

Mini Marathon Festival

It was such a festive day! The Boston Mini Marathon took place last Saturday, October 31- aka Halloween. Rich ran the full 13.1 mile race! The festival is always a big draw. An estimated two thousand people packed the little town this year. There was music, a parade, lots of food and fun. The new pizza place around the corner, called the Buzzery, was a happening spot!

Rich's dad came down from Huntsville. He brought a few pieces of furniture to display, use and sell in the gallery.

 This chest is an old wooden piece that was in the house Rich grew up in. It fit perfectly against the wall under the series of photos of a prescribed burn. Rich took those photos at Pebble Hill, the local plantation museum.

 This chest was also in the house Rich grew up in. Lori's still life painting works well with the finished wood.

The chairs in the main gallery, and rugs really soften the space. They make for nice conversation spaces.

 The old post office on Main Street became a pop-up "French Market" featuring a few items from each downtown business. We put this display together. Several cards, mugs and the painting were sold over the weekend.

We had invited a few artists to set up on our side yard to display, sell and demonstrate their work. This is Wyatt. She is a textile artist. She spins yarn, weaves it into fabric, and tailors fine garments. She also knits wool socks and other items.

Lynn and Jeff Freeman also set up. Lynn makes beaded jewelry. Jeff creates and repairs stained glass windows.

We drew a lot of interest and activity. It was a good day!

Sprucing up for Mini Marathon!

Rich made two more benches for the front. They are 8' long and very sturdy. Perfect for spectators and festival goers to cop a squat. The picture shows the benches in their raw state. We will sand, prime and paint them later.

We painting deck restore and non-slip coating on the front steps and ramp on the boardwalk. Since these are not covered, they tended to get slimy and slippery when wet. Now they should be much safer to walk on and not a hazard to pedestrians.

The pile of limbs is from some tree trimming we did to minimize debris falling on the roof.

We also removed the wood rack on the side porch and painted the  wall a with a fresh coat of light yellow. It really brightened up the building. Our aim is to make the side entrance the main focal point and draw customers to that door.

Mini Marathon is only two weeks away. Rich has been training to run it this year! We hope to have a big crowd and lots of interest. Can't wait to see how it goes!!!

After School Classes at The Boardwalk

On the Walls

These are two pieces by OL Samuels, a Tallahassee-based folk artist. He is recognized nationally in the National Folk Art Museum and numerous collections of major institutions. We were introduced to his work when Rich bid on two sculptures by him at an estate auction. After bringing them home, we did a bit of research. The following week we met with OL at his home to authenticate the pieces. While we were there, we bought these birds!

This is a series of eight photographs that Rich made during a workshop on prescribed burning at Pebble Hill. The practice of clearing undergrowth by intentionally setting fire is a practice somewhat unique to this area. The workshop was interesting and the participants got to tramp through the plantation backcountry. These haunting images are an attempt to capture to mood, and the summer heat.

This is a large, four-panel collage made up of dozens of drawings that Rich cut up and arranged. The imagery is evocative of both cosmic and atomic forces that explode and recycle endlessly.

This is a painting Rich made some years ago. It is entitled Puberty. The background is made of linocut images printed in paint directly on to the wood panel. The image of the boy in the foreground was appropriated from a study by Michelangelo for the Sistine Chapel. The painting overall, and the title, are a reference to that awkward transitional time between childhood and adulthood. By extension, the painting is a meditation on the transition from apprentice to professional artist.

A Look at the Walls

This a view of the wall to the left as you enter through the front door. A rack of hand printed cards, a table with guest book, an assortment of vintage paintings and prints on the wall, and the chair and "stool table" Rich worked on this summer are all there to greet you.

 As you  turn left into the smaller gallery, the Boston Morning mural is on the right wall. It is  flanked by drawings on the left and a series of photos taken as Rich witnessed a prescribed burn at Pebble Hill Plantation. There is also the green table Rich made.

The rest of the smaller gallery space shows the benches we made, a large painting/collage screen, and a quad-trych (four panel image) on the wall. There are other paintings, drawings, prints and a table as well.

Other views of the rest of the space will be forthcoming. We are in the process of re-organizing the space.

Another Bench

This is the fourth bench we have made in the this style. There are several other smaller ones, including the "picket bench". This is a heavy, durable bench that is built to last. The painted design is made with outdoor latex-based paint. These benches are perfect for a funky garden or patio space. Come by the gallery and take a look!

Calling All Local Artists and Craftspersons!

Light My Fire… just not within 50 ft of the building

In addition to wooden boxes, wooden nickels and wooden furniture, Rich designed hand-drawn covers for matchbooks and matchboxes. He started with blank white matchbooks and boxes. At first, he treated them like tiny canvases to create abstract marker paintings. His technique evolved to composing more representational images, similar to his nickels. Like his nickels, he is selling the packs of matches for $2 each.

Wooden Nickel Mania

These are some of the more than 350 hand-drawn wooden nickel tokens Rich made over the summer. He was inspired by carnival and side show tokens, advertisements, ancient coins, famous works of art, food, animals, vintage travel coins, fictional organizations and businesses, brothel tokens and other tongue-in-cheek humor. Most of the nickels have writing or an image on the reverse side that explains the image on the obverse. Rich is selling these at $2/each. He says, "They may be worth a nickel, but they cost two dollars!"  Along with the nickels, Rich also produced a number of small wooden tiles. These were mostly inspired by Arts and Crafts era pottery and tile works from the early 20th Century. Come by and browse through the basket of nickels and other assorted treasures.

More highlights from a summer of making!

This is a peacock made from a repurposed wooden rocking chair.

 This is a vintage wooden box that Richard burned, carved and painted with the image of an oak-lined dirt road.

 Continuing in the peacock theme, this box is painted with a peacock feather design.

 This is one of several benches that we have been painting. Richard burned in the decorative grape vine motif, then painted it.

 This is another vintage wooden box with a sliding lid. It has a very Asian feel to it with the stylized old tree and the sunset images.

 This is the first bench we painted. It was inspired by quilts and stained glass.

 This is a small "picket bench" made from a section of old fence.

This is the newest piece- a decorative table that is topped with a collage of wooden pieces. To give it a little more functionality and a smoother surface in the middle, a round glass piece was added (it is removable).

New Creations

Red bench with birds by Lori ($60.00)

Detail of red bench

I mentioned last week that Richard has been busy making benches, boxes, tables, and other assorted wood crafts; here are a few images. He has worked this summer like the Tasmanian Devil and so the Boardwalk is filled with all kinds of beautiful pieces.

Dogwood box by Richard ($45.00)

Benches

So, last Thursday I told Richard I wanted to learn how to build a simple bench; he liked the idea and so we went to Lowe's and bought a strip of lumber.  We talked about projects we could do with the benches and became excited about the possibilities.
Friday I go off to work and shortly afterward I get an email with a picture of theses two benches that I wanted to make. :)
This is just the beginning of the story of last weekend.
Stay tuned...

Wooden Tiles

original, hand-painted wooden tiles, (1" x 1")

Just a mere sampling of the work that Rich has produced this summer. More pictures to come. He's been very busy!!

TU TAKEOVER

We had about 100 folks on Friday night. They ranged from students, parents, friends and family, to teachers, school administrators and community supportive members. It was a great night!

 The TU Jazz Ensemble rocked the house.

 The show featured paintings, printmaking, and digital photography from TU students.

Work by two of the students was featured. They were exhibiting as part of their thesis project for graduation.

Miss T as we call her is a first-time painter who took the Intro to Painting class and excelled with a painterly, folksy style that was quite charming.

Rachel, one of the graduating seniors, did her photo project on homelessness. She interviewed and took portraits of people living on the street as a way of raising visibility of issue that generally goes unnoticed.

Marcus, an graduating athlete, transferred to TU with some prior painting experience. He created paintings that captured his drive and determination through the use of the tiger as a metaphorical image.

The Boardwalk was proud and honored to host such a special event. We look forward to doing it again next year!!!