Exhibition at Taste Restaurant, 1995 Whitney Avenue, North Haven, Connecticut

In early April, I was able to hang my first solo exhibition at Taste Restaurant, where I had been employed since graduating from college.

After months and months of fighting with my boss and restaurant owner (first he thought my dimensions were too big, then he refused to let me put new holes in the walls, etc., etc.), I was finally granted permission to install my work after I assured him I had calculated all the measurements, planned my layout, and explained I practically had a degree in spackling. I was given one hour alone on a Sunday to install nine dress paintings. With the help of my friend and former teacher, Caryn Azoff, I felt my work really looked exquisite and fit the walls of the restaurant perfectly.

My boss called me several hours later when he saw the work. When I saw his name flash on my phone, I thought: "Ut oh... here we go." I had prepared myself for the 203478852 things he was going to complain about. Instead, to my surprise, he called to say everything looked "very nice", and that I "obviously spent a lot of time on my work." But my boss cannot dole out a complement without a back handed comment, so he continued to say, "I'm glad our restaurant now looks ready for Prom." Ha! Fine, I'll take that.

The reception of clientele at the restaurant was overwhelmingly positive. My favorite times were when clients seated at my tables would notice the change of artwork and ask who the artist was. When I would off-handly say I did it, they would laugh and say, "No you didn't!" I would then smile and say, "Yes I did... my artist statement and photo is hanging up by the host stand." Then the disbelief would come over their faces. I would then proceed to tell them that I could make them a nice painting or a really great martini... or both! Their choice.

Probably my favorite part of the show was seeing the different reactions of men and women. Most women loved the fashion and loved the idea. When men spoke to me about the work, the first thing nearly every one of them stated was, "None of them have heads...".

The show has been highly successful and I am proud to say that five of the nine pieces have sold. My boss is unsure about when the pieces will come down, so I invite anyone and everyone to come to Taste Restaurant on 1995 Whitney Avenue in North Haven, across from Krauzer's and next to Dairy Queen, to see for themselves.