‘Let there be cake! (Photo: Susan Duca)
A good-bye letter
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I have penned several pieces in the latest edition of Inside AWA put none more important than this one, as it represents an announcement of AWA’s closure, which has been confirmed for this summer – June 2021. After long-and-hard soul-searching on how to share the news, I’ve decided to do it quite simply, aided by this ‘gallery’ of photos, published for this purpose.
These photographs, though too few to represent the breadth of good-bye, were chosen – perhaps subconsciously – for the range of their poses. We see conservators with tools building structures bigger than themselves or ‘on their knees’, peering at a picture – to guarantee it is ready for public debut. We see an expert art-mover whose wall-climbing would impress even the likes of Spiderman – as he prepares to hoist up a canvas whose restoration involved the moving of mountains! They evidence a truth that deserves to be documented: our work has been a truce between the brains and the brawn.
Then, there are pictures representing the words we have conjured and projected – whether in conversations emerging over a mud-caked canvas or during ‘thrilling meetings’ – where a scholar of tomorrow meets the forerunners she will admire, likely for the rest of her life. There’s a photo to represent the countless ‘good-day’ speeches, offered to applauding audiences gathered in monumental spaces – the privilege of a microphone as ‘payback’ for the rivers of unseen words that flow under bridges built with every project.
Several of these pictures remind us of the community we’ve fostered and nurtured over this 14-year AWA experience – just a few snapshots, as a nod to the many who have made our work possible through their skills, talents and financial support. Oh, how we’ve worked, and oh, the fun we’ve had!
I’ve chosen shots of Florence, in her pristine far-way guise – the muse of our journey, the mother of much of what the West has created. They remind us of how Florence has been a place of work and rebirth for each of us. Advancing Women Artists was born from a love for Florence. And I am certain our readers and supporters stand firm in their conviction that the organization’s legacy will continue to enrich the city in the years to come.
As, I pen this first ‘good-bye’ as an invitation to accompany AWA in its final six months of life, there are two more pictures to which I’d like to draw your attention. The first is a detail of Plautilla Nelli’s crying woman. That is for the sadness of AWA’s end but its tears also evoke the stuff that life is made on: heartfelt commitment. Finally, and happily – there is the cake. So, let us be joyful for the accomplishments achieved and let this end’s celebration be sweet and enriching for us all.
Thank you having made AWA a precious part of your lives.
Fondly,
Linda Falcone, AWA Director
*This letter was originally published in December 2020 issue of Inside AWA.
These photographs, though too few to represent the breadth of good-bye, were chosen – perhaps subconsciously – for the range of their poses. We see conservators with tools building structures bigger than themselves or ‘on their knees’, peering at a picture – to guarantee it is ready for public debut. We see an expert art-mover whose wall-climbing would impress even the likes of Spiderman – as he prepares to hoist up a canvas whose restoration involved the moving of mountains! They evidence a truth that deserves to be documented: our work has been a truce between the brains and the brawn.
Then, there are pictures representing the words we have conjured and projected – whether in conversations emerging over a mud-caked canvas or during ‘thrilling meetings’ – where a scholar of tomorrow meets the forerunners she will admire, likely for the rest of her life. There’s a photo to represent the countless ‘good-day’ speeches, offered to applauding audiences gathered in monumental spaces – the privilege of a microphone as ‘payback’ for the rivers of unseen words that flow under bridges built with every project.
Several of these pictures remind us of the community we’ve fostered and nurtured over this 14-year AWA experience – just a few snapshots, as a nod to the many who have made our work possible through their skills, talents and financial support. Oh, how we’ve worked, and oh, the fun we’ve had!
I’ve chosen shots of Florence, in her pristine far-way guise – the muse of our journey, the mother of much of what the West has created. They remind us of how Florence has been a place of work and rebirth for each of us. Advancing Women Artists was born from a love for Florence. And I am certain our readers and supporters stand firm in their conviction that the organization’s legacy will continue to enrich the city in the years to come.
As, I pen this first ‘good-bye’ as an invitation to accompany AWA in its final six months of life, there are two more pictures to which I’d like to draw your attention. The first is a detail of Plautilla Nelli’s crying woman. That is for the sadness of AWA’s end but its tears also evoke the stuff that life is made on: heartfelt commitment. Finally, and happily – there is the cake. So, let us be joyful for the accomplishments achieved and let this end’s celebration be sweet and enriching for us all.
Thank you having made AWA a precious part of your lives.
Fondly,
Linda Falcone, AWA Director
*This letter was originally published in December 2020 issue of Inside AWA.
View our ‘Good-bye Gallery’… just a handful of pictures to celebrate just a few of the moments we have shared.
