This morning my sister called me, not because I am sick and she is worried about me, but because she remembered that she wants me to go to First Friday with her when we visit during Spring Break.

My sister lives in my hometown of Canton, Ohio.  Canton is your typical mid-western small city, struggling for decades to transition to a service economy.  It is my impression that people in Canton really TRY.  They work hard.  Even at The Grotesque.

Brennis is a case in point.  A childhood friend, Brennis owns 2nd April Galerie & Studios.  He works diligently feeding and nurturing Canton’s art scene.  He and his partner, Todd, throw a bash on the First Friday and encourage all their downtown neighbors to participate in a Gallery Hop.  Coincidentally to my sister’s phone call, today Brennis posted pictures from a recent event on his Facebook page.  I stole them and am reposting them here.  (Thanks, Brennie!!) 

They sell First Friday gear.  Maybe my sis will buy me something.

Wood-turned bowl by Marty Chapman

Wood Sculptor Todd Migge

From left to right: Clare Murray Adams, photography by Bob Baker, (top) Kevin Maxwell (bottom), Chris Triner

From left to right: Ted Lawson, Kevin Maxwell, Bev Stafford and BZTAT

On the wall from left to right: Ted Lawson, Bob Davis, Joe Martino, Gail Wetherall-Sack, Linda Hutchinson and Greg Kandis

Glass by KC Glass, X3 Latex Enamel on Paper by Patricia Zinsmeister Parker, Sculpture by Marcy Axelband and Joseph Close

A First Friday.  Must be summer because people are in shorts.

I spy a Christmas Tree, so this one must be more recent. (I told you, I stole the pics!)

I had the pleasure of spending the weekend with my wonderful old friends from college.  The reunion was wonderful and, just as before our long separation, we have much in common. 

But Kirk’s house stole the show. 

(Be aware of the magnitude of this statement.  We went to BROADWAY….)

Kirk is very much an artist.  A Renaissance Man, really.  Having owned an art gallery and a restaurant, and now selling high end real estate, Kirk understands good taste.  He and his partner, Arijit, who is a landscape architect, left the rat race to create an oasis in a field.  A short train ride from the heart of the largest city in America, they have created a sophisticated country haven full of art and beauty.  I loved everything about it.  Their home is rich and warm, full of teak and tile.  Yet it still remains modern and clean.  It is a little bit Indian, a splash Santa Fe, a touch mid-century, a smidgen country cottage, reminds you that you are few miles from Manhattan, and pays homage to my hero Frank Lloyd Wright. 

The original house was comprised of a tiny room with a bedroom above and a lean-to kitchen.  Most of that structure is now the guest room.  Arijit designed the rest of the house to gracefully project behind.  Full of wood, windows and light, the home seems to be rise naturally out of the landscape.

Sitting at the table, enjoying the benefits of having friends that owned a restaurant, I noticed the light over head.  Kirk adorned it with holiday decorations before we arrived.