Late nights meant burning the midnight oil — and wood — to get frames ready for the show.
What a surprising opportunity!
It’s crunch time producing exclusive handmade frames to go with matted photos for the Blue Collar Black Friday Art Show. North Dakota barn board, North Dakota images, North Dakota art — I’m fortunate to be one-quarter of the show at the little coffee shop and cafe on the east side of Bismarck.
It’s a win-win-win. The Blue Collar Cafe gets more traffic, four artists get more exposure and Black Friday shoppers get original handmade art at ridiculously low prices. If the same products were in Macy’s or Daytons, they’d be hundreds of dollars. But here, only tens of dollars.
I visited with Jerod Hawk earlier this week when the idea was kicked about. Within an hour Hawk had lined up four artists to set up on Friday at his little coffee shop and cafe. That was Tuesday. Now here it is Thursday and we’re almost ready to throw open the doors to throngs of people who want a piece of North Dakota.
Since the idea first took hold, I’ve been keeping the wood fires burning in my wood shop making frames. . As it is, I have mass-produced hand-made frames for an inventory, but not as many as I would have liked for this little show.
The abandoned Pettibone Elevator at Lake Williams is one of my favorite pieces that will be on display at the Blue Collar Cafe art show on Friday.
From near Rugby, this abandoned farmstead is wrapped in a barn board frame from a barn near Good Rich.
Tuesday and Wednesday I started the work of matching photos I had on hand to the frames I thought would work. I think I went about it backwards. I first should have selected the prints, then built the frames to fit.
Color looks good in the barn board frame from a 100-year old barn near Goodrich on the left, and in a frame from a 100-year old barn that once stood near Almont
Either way, it was crunch time. I turned my kitchen in to a matting and framing shop. I brought in all the frames I thought would work from my wood shop. Then I started matching prints to frames.
A couple of quick trips to Bismarck and I bought a few pieces of glass and some mat board. I would have liked more, but time was running out. Wednesday I put in some 12 hours framing and matting. Sadly I got in to so much of a rush I ended up damaging three prints and throwing them in to the trash. A couple of my larger print were damaged and so will only be on display as examples, but not for sale. They’re not “perfect.” Mats were crooked, images warped. *groan*
Wilton’s Soo Line Depot, also 100 years old (1910) is framed in 100-year-old wood from a barn near Goodrich.
So, here it is Thanksgiving days. Just as the other three artists and Hawk are doing, we’re dedicating a portion of the day to getting ready for the Blue Collar Black Friday Art Show. It’s a first, so we don’t know what to expect, how much room we have or how many people show up.
Grain bins from near Regan in barn board from a 100-year old barn near Almont will be at the Blue Collar Black Friday Art Show.
Here’s your invitation to joins us. 135 Airport Road, Bismarck, just across the RR tracks from Krolls Diner, one block south of Main Street in East Bismarck.
Come on down!
North Dakota 365 