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3:06:00 PM EST
Feeling Happy
Reverse Paintings
(a reverse glass painting, not one of mine. )
About a year and a half ago I got a wee settlement from when the van door fell off it's hinges on top of me. I spent the money getting some of my pictures and paintings framed. I dropped them off, prepaid for them, at a new frame shop in town (more about this later.)
Let's just say that I love art. While my husband loves art as well, he prefers bare walls, I think--or walls with maybe one painting on them. I crave lots of right brain stimulation. I like to see paintings almost everywhere I look.
Fortunately, I have many friends as artists, and I also haunt thrift stores. We have bought three paintings from my husband's best friend, Al Hoffring, who is now a medical illustrator. We also have bought three paintings from Tom Mitts, who went to high school with my husband. We also have bought a few other paintings and prints over the years. If I can't afford to frame them I tuck them away until I can.
I prefer handmade originals. The Chi (energy) in them is quite different from a copy. You can FEEL the artist in them.
Lately I have been collecting reverse glass paintings. They are tacky and glorious. They were popular in the late 1800's and early l900's and were a popular Appalachian art form. I bought one at the antique mall the other day. Now I have bid on one on ebay. This will make three. Not a huge collection, but quite a charming one.
This is the one I just bought from eBay.It is an Irish castle.
Back to the framing story. Two nice lesbian women opened up a frame shop in town. Wanting to be particularly supportive, I took my paintings there to be framed....and prepaid over four hundred dollars. The Perfect Uncle Dave accompanied me. This was in November 2003. I am sometimes guilty of reverse prejudice--because someone is a minority, I bend over backwards to be extra fair, extra nice. The women took forever to frame my paintings--in fact, they went out of business and it was only through a weird coincidence thatI learned where one of them worked (a bank)--we have the same hairdresser-- and I showed up there, very nicely asking for the return of my art work. A year after they received them for framing, they returned them. They returned two paintings, but LOST two. They said it was in storage somewhere. Seventeen months later, I still have not received them. I am out of the price of the picture (an engraved print of greyhounds from England), a less expensive print of greyhounds, and the price I prepaid for framing.
They never return my calls. I just spoke with them today by calling from an unfamiliar number (they answered THAT call.) I asked to just get my money--about two hundred dollars--returned.
It's been seventeen months. I have been very patient, don't you think? Should I get meaner, like small claims court? I hate to do that....I don't want to appear homophobic, but this has nothing to do with their sexuality. I just want my two prints returned. To be honest, if they weren't lesbian I would have been more assertive.
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I would take them to court...that isn't right for them to do.
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Take em to court! The PEOPLE'S court! lol ;-) Seriously. A letter on stationary from a lawyer's office might be just enough to scare them into doing right by you.
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This is just too funny! But great art! Wow!
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Kas--I agree with the others here--Small Claims Court-- immediately! No wonder they went out of business. No one gets to cheat you out of money or property, regardless of their sexual orientation or minority status.
Hope you have some supporting paperwork, reciepts or cancelled checks, etc. for Small Claims Court.
The reverse glass painting collection sounds interesting, I'll bet they're kind of fun to look at in person. A unique thing to collect. --Albert
3/21/05 10:36 PM
xoxo