A Normal, Regular Day

On this very regular, normal day
I am grateful for;
The sun
The beauty
The temperature
The aliveness
The possibilities that this day holds so closely to my heart.
I am grateful for this vey regular, very normal day.

The View of Our Daily Ritual

As some followers may know by now, T-roy and I are living with his mom, Del, in rural Port Barre, LA while we finish the restoration of our 1969 Aluminum Gold Avion RV. 

We've been with Del almost a year now as our project looses the timeline now and again. We are lucky enough to have a front porch view where the Bayou Teche and the Bayou Courtableau meet. 

This is not our RV :) Just one on the Teche...

Every evening right about sunset, everyone on our block slowly and naturally comes out on their porches to catch the final view of the sun before it retires for the night. 

This evening ritual has become something I look forward to every day. And in the wind, sometimes the old houses sway.

While I sometimes take for granted the rise and fall of the sun (I realize this on rainy days like today), this front porch ritual has become one of those simple pleasures that I file away in my "happy" box in my brain. 

Have a beautiful evening...

Follow Your ARt!!

January Artwalk-Lafayette!!

If you somehow decided not to watch your beloved Saints play Saturday night, what a loss :(, then maybe you caught Lafayette's Second Saturday Artwalk. For those who choose to cheer for the Saints, here is The Art Trail Lady's take on what went down!

The find of the night for me was definitely the showing at Arts Co-op! Fine art, fine food and what a fine atmosphere! Jared Guidry's abstract pieces on soft material delicately framed, invited me and as I perused, I couldn't stop! I was intrigued by the work of Giorgio Russo and his storytelling collages and continued the maze with Travis Prejean's figurative wings. Unfortunately, I don't have photos of these beautiful works of art here today because the artists were unavailable for permission, but this show is definitely worth the trip to Arts Co-op before the next Artwalk in February.

I was surprised to find at the end of the maze, a quaint patio garden of fine foods like humus, cheese and wine of course with mosaic furniture making a sitting area that gave me the space for writing. 

This wooden rocking chair even helped set the relaxed, romantic mood of the evening here at Arts Co-op.

 Just next door at Cajun Spice, folk art seemed to be the theme where mosaic instruments, wood carvings and sculpture and brightly colored paintings stood proudly. Artists names you may recognize here are Melissa Dronet, James Hebert and Pam Shensky. Cajun Spice is definitely a fun place if you're looking for a more relaxed style of visual arts.

As I made my way to Acadiana Center for the Arts, I came across these performers on the corner of Jefferson and Vermillion St. They seemed to be depicting either passion or death and dying. I'm not too sure which...what do you think?

I ended the night with a stop at ACA, and what a surprise for me! Several Clementine Hunter pieces among other greats from the private collection of Brunell Lemoine, superintendent of Lafayette Parish Schools and strong supporter of arts in our community. If you're a self-taught or folk art lover, this exhibit is definitely one you'll want to see at ACA!

Well, that's it for the Artwalk recap...hope you all have a great week!

Follow Your ARt!!

Love,

The Art Trail Lady

What's New at The Funky Flea!

If you've read my new book, The Acadiana Art Trail, you'll know that The Funky Flea in Sunset, LA is a must see on The Acadiana Art Trail. I met Claudette at her shop today (one of the owners of The Funky Flea) to bring in some of my own art for consignment. What a surprise! So much more ART!!! What started out as a high end flea market has quickly become a hot spot for buying some of the coolest, funkiest art in Acadiana. The style here is upcycled, folk, hipster and fresh....you've got to see this place!!

If you've already made your way to this treasure chest, you might be wondering what's new...well, here it is my friends! Forgive the photos, my iphone came with me today....my real camera needed a day off. :)

The first is a very colorful "Dusty" from the area. All of his pieces are 3d and have lots of life! If you feeling vibrant this is definitely work you'll enjoy!

Our peacock friend is the work of the one and only art local, Susan Carver. She shows her cutouts on almost all of the trails of The Acadiana Art Trail and now at The Funky Flea, a perfect venue for folk artists!!

This CD clock is an upcycled piece by Faye of Opelousas, LA. Faye definitely has some wild ideas and you can see more of them at The Funky Flea!!

 Here we have "Sissy Fish" by Annie Hendrix. Also check out Annie's clay art at The Glass Porch on The Coteau Trail.

Rock Clocks by Margaret Castille of New Iberia...The Funky Flea is definitely a "must visit place" for all you vintage souls out there. Wink, Wink!!

And who ever thought of welding bowls!?! Kenneth Patin definitely gets his grove on with his torch, metal and bronz (for real, why can't I spell today)!!

These nastalgic photographs (how do you spell that anyway?) depict the Cajun Country side with barns and shrimp boats alike. Kenneth Vidrine also adds a little digital flare into his photos like the one here of the Funky Flea....

Photographer, Michelle Broussard, keeps us rockin with her New Orleans and Acadiana love for "instrument picture taking" (I just made that up, hope you like it).

And lastly, and the most interesting, we have Miss Lacey Dupre Nutria earings and necklaces. What a find!! And I thought picking up road kill was a dying tradition!! Keep us smiling Lacey!

Thanks for being funky with me today with What's New at the Funky Flea!!

Peace, love and keep on rockin,

The Art Trail Lady

Follow Your Art!!

Happy New Year!!!!

OMG!! Its 2012! Troy and I and the dogs (Cola and Roux) had an amazing weekend at Lake Kincaid in Boyce, LA. We camped on a private (primitive) island in Kistachie National Park with access by boat only. The dogs ran free and swam while Troy and I got loud and out of control! We laughed, sang, danced and rang in the New Year our style....in the middle of nowhere.

We fished a little, but caught nothing but renewed love, friendship, respect and admiration for each other. We had a great trip. One that got us reconnected with nature, with ourselves, with each other. What a great day way to ring in 2012.

Here are a few pictures from our adventure...wishing you all a Happy New Year and a very abundant 2012!!

Love, The Art Trail Lady