Finding Balance

         I have so many things going on right now that my head is spinning, so today I have a wood engraving of people who may be doing a better job than I at finding balance!  This wood engraving by William Phelps Cunningham (US, 1903-1980) depicts a crowd at a Tri-County Fair watching the performance of “The Five Comptons.”  (At least, that's my guess.  It could be Bromptons, Lomptons, or Yomptons!)  It looks like an impressive feat, and the crowd certainly seems riveted!  I feel a certain kinship with those who make their living by setting up their show at various locations, and seeing who comes to see.  Two weeks ago I was at Roslindale Open Studios, tomorrow I’ll be participating in the Needham Open Studios Fall Art Pop-Up, and in a month I’ll be at the Celebrate Newton Holiday Craft Fair.  And that’s just the art side of things.  What’s really making my head spin is all the other hats getting shoved on and off and on again all the time!  But tomorrow I’ll be sitting at my table carving a block, and all I have to do for those five hours, like the performers in this piece, is focus on the job at hand.

[Picture: Tri-County Fair, wood engraving by William Phelps Cunningham, 1933 (Image from Beach Museum).]