Art at the Buzz

We have somewhere to be. Dinner plans. But first we decide we must pop into Art of the Town Exhibition at the Buzz Ware Village Center--referred to simply as The Buzz. The art exhibition is part of a larger Wilmington initiative: First Friday Art Loop. Back when I was in college at the University of Delaware, my friends and I would drive into Wilmington to do the Art Loop, which was an actual loop, complete with bus ride between gallery stops. I was a Fine Arts major. Sure, I was there to see art, but also to get giggles on free and illicit (because we weren't of age) wine. For some reason, it never occurred to me to go to a frat party while in college. Mark and I have been to the Art Loop in downtown Wilmington twice since we moved to Delaware. The first time was a dud. Summer. In a month when Lancaster's First Friday would be so crazy you had trouble finding a spot on the sidewalk, let alone a table at a restaurant. But we are in Delaware now, and Delaware has a beach culture. Even in Wilmington, things slow down from June through September due to migration south to Delaware's beaches.

The second time we went on the Art Loop was just last month.  Our main stop of the evening was to friends Linda Celestian and Susan Benerarcik's new venture The Highlands Art Garage where they display art and give lessons. We stopped into a few galleries on the way because we were encouraged to give the loop another try and also because my college classmate Sara Teixido was showcasing new jewelry at the Delaware Center for Contemporary Arts (DCCA) gift shop.  The atmosphere this time was more like I expected with young hip crowds and the free wine I remember so well. The quality of art, like most art on First Friday, ran the gamut between questionable and professional. I really fell for Sara's and Susie's work. Both women are exploring nature and spiritual object in ways that seems to mirror my way of seeing the world.

Back to the Buzz. We are going there to see art, yes, but also to support Bernadette who recently took over curating duties for this event. The Buzz has been the center of controversy lately. It is owned and operated by the village of Arden, but is used by all three Arden villages. In an attempt to make the Buzz self-sufficient and not be a drain on Arden residents, the board made some decisions which were unpopular with citizens of Ardentown and Ardencroft. People took sides. Feelings got hurt. Under this reign, the previous curator quit, and the future of the monthly art exhibitions was in question.

In the parking lot, we run into Bill, who is trying to get into his frozen car. Being on the board, he was at the center of the Buzz controversies. The scoop I heard is that Bill made himself into a human blockade at a certain high pressure board meeting to keep out those who were merely advisors from the other villages. He cares about the Buzz, wants to see it succeed, but not every one sees it that way. I ask after Bill, because his wife posted on the Facebook page of our walking group that she wouldn't be walking because Bill had slipped and had fallen on ice earlier. Bill is embarrassed that I asked about his fall.

"It was nothing," he tells us and then adds that because of his wife's post, he has had to turn down so many offers of meals and help from concerned neighbors.

We go inside and see Bernadette manning the hors d'oeuvre table. Bernadette and her husband Jerry moved into Ardentown a few months before we moved to Arden. We met her at one of our friend Cynthia's barn shows. I have gotten to know Jerry better through Poetry Gild. On the table in front of Bernadette are the most wonderful array of focaccia breads, and I can't resist a piece of goat cheese, caramelized onion, and walnut even though we are on our way to dinner. I find out that they are from Black Lab bakery in Wilmington. I always appreciate scoop on the food scene in Wilmington. I make mental note.

art by Joseph Patrick Crouse

In the middle of the room, we encounter Phil who is a month removed from a heart attack and a well-timed ambulance ride. We met Phil the first weekend we spent in Arden. Our friend Cynthia arranged for us to tour artists' studios. Last summer, we bought one of Phil's metal sculptures. It sits outside our kitchen window, and I see it every time I wash a dish. We remark that he looks good to which he replies that he will live to pester Arden another day.

Next we talk to Anita. Anita and I were in the middle of some melee last month that centered on a missing dog. The state police were involved because of the possibility that the dog may have been stolen. (I do not personally believe this was the case.) Anita and I were links in the chain between the owner and the person who had the missing dog in his care on a cold night. Anita and I greet each other warmly and review the previous night's concert. We came to a lot of the same conclusions, but Anita has offered to lend me some SunVolt and Uncle Tupelo CDs so that I might have a better understanding of Jay Farrar's catalog of work.

Time is getting short, and we are trying to leave when our friends Jan and Alex enter. I am on the Arden Community Recreation board with both of them. I missed the yoga class I attend with Jan earlier that morning because I was sleeping in after the concert. She tells me I missed a really good class. Alex and I discuss the Fun Jar we are passing around all of Arden. It started when I gave them a jar of homemade salsa and it has taken on a life of its own. Alec put homemade chocolates in the jar and passed it on to Cecelia, a former Shakespeare production costumer. Alex gave Cecelia instructions to keep the jar moving. Tonight, we speculate where the jar might be. Alex also talks to Mark about what kind of card games interest him. The newly started Bridge Gild is looking for members, but Bridge isn't really Alex's or Mark's game.

Finally, after thirty minutes inside, I manage to pull Mark out of the Buzz so we can continue with our evening's plans. As we leave, we see the featured artist sitting on a bench smoking a cigarette. In an accent  (British?) he thanks us for coming. I realize then, that I didn't really give his work more than a cursory look.  I mentally chastise myself and try to figure when I might see the paintings again. I have a G-Ardeners meeting on the 17th. Will the artist (I don't even know his name) let his work hang all month?

We have only lived in this community a short while and already the relationships we have formed  have eclipsed my love of art. Or maybe they are the art. Maybe the dance that we are doing, the web we are weaving is the thing. It turns out that I went to the gallery tonight to see my own part of a work in progress. It's a beautiful chaotic tumble of connections that reminds me that we are all really alive. Isn't that the purpose of art?