One day last December, after my husband and I agreed that we weren't going to exchange holiday gifts, my husband announced that he had changed his mind--he really wanted to give me something beautiful, something special. He asked if I would go shopping with him so he could get some ideas of what I would like. I couldn't turn him down (he was being so incredibly kind), but I was worried as we began walking down Main Street in Beacon, where we live. I kept on thinking--there are a lot of beautiful things in the stores here, but I really don't want any of them. How am I going to handle this? And then I remembered Erica Hauser's paintings. Erica is an artist who lives here in Beacon. She is super nice (among many other kindnesses, she lent me her green bicycle for the Sewing Green photo shoot) and super talented. I have always loved her work and desired one of her paintings. So, that's what I suggested to my husband. I asked him to call Erica and talk to her about a commission and then surprise me. In January she came to our house and presented me with the beautiful painting above. I treasure it because it holds both Erica's magical artistry and an expression of my husband's love for me.
This afternoon, while I was planning this blog post (a painting of a tree beginning to bloom to celebrate the beginning of spring), I heard a little bing on my computer, indicating that I had received an email. It was an announcement from Erica that she is trying to raise money for an artist residency in New Mexico via Kickstarter. Although I'm worried that Erica will love New Mexico so much that she won't want to come back to New York, I want to support her in this opportunity. To learn more about what she is doing, click here. And to see a portfolio of her work, click here.
Here she is painting (freehand!) a Babe Ruth quote on the wall in my son's bedroom a few years ago.
And this is her bike in a photo from Sewing Green. (To see Erica's painting of the bike, click here.) Although that's not Erica in the photo, it could be. I see her riding her bike around Beacon often.
Good luck, Erica! (Don't miss La Lana Wools in Taos.)