Serendipity

Part Three of My Art Colony along US 68

Every art colony needs a sound track, and I had a taste of mine this very afternoon at the Neal Building(108 W. Main Street) in beautiful downtown Carlisle, KY. David and Arwen (who are also our CSA farmers) have created a monthly jam session (on the third Sunday); and each quarter they bring in a special group to perform for half an hour before the jam session.  This month, the Lucy Becker Trio was featured.  Lucy is a wondrous 13-year old fiddler (and the rest of the trio is middle-aged, and pretty wondrous, too.) The trio is special on its own, but we were treated to an inaugural event in the Mozart Hall (yes! Mozart Hall) upstairs in the Neal building.  The acoustics are fantastic!  I hope there will be a lot of musical events in Mozart Hall.  In the late 19th century, this space was used for Vaudeville programming.  Today, it was warm and the sun was shining in the generous windows.  It was a total sensory delight.  I was a bit late arriving for the jam session because my husband was preparing for the Lexington Philharmonic Family Concert, so you can see that my sound track tracks the length of my art colony (more on the Lexington end later.)  

    Right next door to the Neal Building is the Kentucky Doll and Toy Museum, which our friend Jan directs.  When you enter the Doll and Toy Museum, you are instantly transported back to childhood--or maybe the childhood you wished you had, materially speaking. When the museum opened, there was a charming tea room in one corner.  One day, when Meg and I were having lunch in the museum/tea room, a lovely scene unfolded and I was handed a story, which I wrote down.  Now, all I have to do is make the illustrations. Come to Carlisle and visit the Doll and Toy Museum.

   And there is more!  Nicholas County is home to Artcroft--a beautiful creative residency situated on 400 acres.  Robert and Maureen are the creators of Artcroft and they draw some of their inspiration from William Morris, a personal hero of mine. The thoughtful inspiration from the Arts and Crafts movement is integral to the work of Artcroft.  A new project is a cafe, and gallery in the works for Millersburg, KY, which just happens to be along US 68.

 

   So, don't you agree with me, that I have an incredible art colony along  a route that began as a buffalo trace?  And that is what I'll write about next time--the buffalo trace that started it all.