What I Am Looking Forward to this Fall (Hint: one includes Paris)

The upcoming fall season brings much good news. Listed below are 3 items I am especially grateful for and excited to share with you:

I am honored and humbled that AIR Serenbe has chosen me for their artist residency for the month of November. What an honor! I will spend an entire month in the wooded community of Serenbe located southwest of Atlanta, Georgia, USA. I will be in my own cottage, with no assigned tasks except to explore, discover, experiment and create art!  This accomplishment would not be possible without your continued encouragement of my work and me. (Thank you!)

Nehi Cola. Front Ave and 10th St, Columbus, GA, by René Shoemaker

2) I'm also thrilled to report that the Paris exhibit is finally going to happen after many delays due to the pandemic. I will be hanging the tropical flowers themed exhibit at La Caféothèque de Paris next week. In the heart of Paris, La Caféothèque is situated in the 4th arrondissement, right on the Seine River with a view of Notre Dame Cathedral. The exhibit opens on Friday August 28th. The reception (vernissage) will be held in October and I will be sure to let you know the date so that you can plan ahead to attend (!). I am extremely excited to be part of this two-person exhibit, held in the heart of Paris, which includes the French artist Anne Buxerolle.

Begonia 'Raddi', 2020, by René Shoemaker, at La Caféothèque de Paris.

Lévitation 009, by Anne Buxerolle, at La Caféothèque de Paris..

3) Les toits d'Aubusson is included in an exhibit that opened this week at ATHICA, the Athens Institute for Contemporary Art. SPACE: 2020 Juried Exhibition "references SPACE which is found all around us . . . as a concept and a construct with many different connotations." I am proud to have been chosen in this competitive exhibition, which will be on view through September 27.

Les toits d'Aubusson, included in the SPACE exhibit, sold to a collector in Chicago this week

Finally, as you know, for a number of years I've been working hard to bring the best art possible into the world to share with you while seeking to reach a wider, global audience. In the service of this goal, I am raising my prices on original art effective October 1st. As my subscribers, collectors, and loyal supporters I wanted to offer you this window of time to buy original art at the original price. (Fine art prints will remain at their current price.)

In 2001 when I first exhibited at the Clayton Street Gallery in Athens, Georgia, a silk painting sold, unframed, for $100. Today, the cost of materials, upkeep for the studio and working every day to bring my best art into the world is not sustainable at my current prices. Adjusting the prices to more  accurately account for the value of time, labor, and skill I invest and the quality of the materials I use will insure that I can pay my monthly bills, allow my business to thrive, and enable me to continue to create art over the long term.

I appreciate your understanding, and as always, I am abundantly grateful for all the ways in which you continue to inspire and support me. 

Église de Notre-Dame de Montluçon, France

La Creuse, France

Upcoming:

August  28 - October 15, 2020
De l'écorce à la fleur:
Les temps de la forêt
La Caféothèque de Paris
52, rue de l'Hotel de Ville
 Paris, 75004, France

Now On Exhibit:
August  15 - September 27, 2020
SPACE: 2020 Juried exhibition
ATHICA: Athens Institute for Contemporary Arts
675 Pulaski St, Suite 1200
Athens, GA 30601, USA

Seeking advice

It was mid-March, our bags were packed, and the dog’s paperwork was in order. It was the day before we were to fly to France, and we were watching the news very closely. The EU borders had closed; we thought our visas would get us into the country, but who knew for sure? We certainly didn’t want to arrive at the Paris airport only to be detained or sent back to the States.

So here we are. It’s mid-April now, and we are watching Spring arrive in Georgia. We live in a rural location, we don’t go out much anyway, and we don’t need to try too hard to social distance, since our nearest neighbor is ¼ mile away. Our family is here, safe, and watching out for us.

Make no mistake about it; COVID-19 is a catastrophe. But don’t you think the world is going to change, somehow, when this is all over? I think so, too.  

I now have a vision for peace: if everyone in the world can agree to work together to stop the spread of the disease—if we can all agree to  wash our hands, social distance, shelter in place, and work from home—then certainly everyone worldwide can decide that peace is possible. What if we all, collectively, said “No more war!” Couldn’t we do that? We are already proving that we are all humans who can work together to bring this tragedy to an end. 

For the past month, you may have noticed that I’ve been very quiet. No texts, no emails, no newsletters, no Instagram or Facebook posts. Personally, I’ve been in a hibernation mode of sorts. 

I was supposed to go to France and my mind was already in a “no contact” zone. 

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A quote from Thich Nhat Hanh, shared from a previous post.

I’ve been sequestered in my home and studio-in-the-woods, and I’ve been focused on getting some work done, discovering what the new reality of not going out would be. Although I may not have been communicative, please know that I am thinking of you, and I am moving forward. 

For the last six weeks I have also been focusing on a program to better this business of art, and it’s been fun and stimulating to be in “school.” At university, I studied art, not business. As you can imagine, being an entrepreneur is a little nebulous and the parameters of running a small business continue to change. 

My business model up to this point has been to produce beautiful creations, sell them, pay my taxes, and buy supplies to produce more beautiful creations. There can be more to it, and I am ready to take this business to the next level. I hope that I can serve you a lot better with care and compassion as I grow as a person, an artist, and an entrepreneur. 

I am in B-School with Marie Forleo, and she and the program are changing my life for the better. I am coming to the end of the coursework and I am about to graduate—with your help. If you are willing and have time to help, I have one simple question to ask you.

Marie has challenged me to identify my three strongest, best qualities: my Superpowers, if you will. It’s so hard to recognize one’s own strengths, and I need this information to move forward and better serve my community. What do you come to me and my website for, and where do you see me offering substantial value to the community? If you’re able to share any ideas, it would help me tremendously. 

If you would, please leave a comment below (or you can contact me directly), and respond by filling in as many of the headings below as you can: 

René’s three superpowers are:

#1 Superpower :

#2 Superpower

#3 Superpower

Thank you! I deeply value your opinion and appreciate your time. 

Again, thanks for being here with me. We will certainly get through this pandemic together, and hopefully create a better world built upon our collective experiences.

Sending love your way,

-René

SEEING INTO THE FUTURE

I’d like to share with you a pivotal moment in my career as an artist.

In 1998 I was in Cortona, Italy for the summer with my family, working as the librarian for the University of Georgia School of Art’’s study abroad program. I was an artist myself, but didn’t believe I could realize my artistic potential while raising a family and pursuing my career as a librarian. 

Working with the art students, many of whom were work-study students for the library, gave me the opportunity to get to know and bond with many of them. Although I was admittedly a little envious that I wasn’t able to study abroad myself when I was in art school, I admired their hunger to learn and to grow. I also came to know the art professors and attended their lectures describing their careers, artistic endeavors, styles, and works-in-progress. 

That summer was the source of one of my most important personal insights. For it was then I first realized that the artists who surrounded me were really no different from me, no better than I was. We were equals, artists in community. In other words, I saw for the first time,

I WAS A REAL ARTIST, TOO.

That recognition changed my life. At the end of the summer I returned home and took action. I worked hard and started being not shy about pursuing my art, acknowledging my determination, and honing my ability to share and talk about my artwork. Now, I had a vision.

You may have heard this part of the story before:
In 1998 I embarked on a 10-year plan (which ultimately took 12) to launch my career as a full-time artist once I retired from my job at UGA. I would no longer sit quietly and wait for life to happen to me. In those dozen years, I had 24 solo shows, participated in 83 group shows, won 6 awards, and created 5 large-scale installations.

This past year I realized that year 10 as a full-time artist was quickly approaching, and I knew that was a magical number. I didn’t know what it meant, but I knew it was going to be exciting!

Fast forward to 2019. Last week I attended a program at the Pompidou Center in Paris for the exhibition opening of “Cosmopolis #2” because one of my creations is on exhibit there! I was immensely excited, pleased, and proud. The dress I designed, painted, dyed, sewed, and styled is just a small part of one installation; although the exhibit was not mine and my name was not on the program, I was able to take part knowing that my art was in a MAJOR world museum. As I listened to the artists present their Cosmopolis #2 work in front of windows that looked out on the bustling Parisian life, with the citizens and architecture of Paris as a backdrop, I knew in my very bones that 
 

I COULD DO THAT.

I COULD BE SITTING IN THAT CHAIR

BEHIND THAT MICROPHONE

IN FRONT OF THAT ROOM FULL OF PEOPLE

AT THE POMPIDOU CENTER

IN PARIS.


YES, I COULD.

Seeing my dream take shape before my very eyes, I know success is on the way, speeding towards me like a French locomotive, driven by determination and belief in myself.

Many thanks to Christina Chirouze Montenegro, who made it happen. Here she is, above, modeling the dress when I first presented it to her.

We all have fears to face and obstacles to overcome. It’s hard when you have a vision and don’t know where to start. But I am happy to report that a motto I have believed in for many years has served me well:

Perseverance furthers.

Thank you, as always, for your time and your gracious support, and for following me on this adventure called life.

Simón Vega. Archipiélago de Intercambio (sketch), 2019

Save the Dates

Until December 23, 2019
Cosmopolis #2: Rethinking the Human
Centre Pompidou
Paris, France

June, 2020
Floral Heritage of Guatemala
La Caféotheque de Paris
Paris, France

August, 2020
Silk Works by René Shoemaker
Galerie des Marches
Aubusson, France

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where I teach the fine art of silk painting.
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