Recently Danny and I had gone on a scouting trip to Johnson City.  Danny needed a camper top for his old Jeep pickup truck.  He knew of a place in Johnson City that sold used camper tops.  I was feeling the need to loafer, so I went along and I’m so glad I did. 

For those of you who may not know Danny, let me tell you a little bit about him.  Danny is my partner and an artist.  His main focus is Native American Indian Art and music.  Danny makes his living as an artist, and he also does performances on the Native American Indian flute for various venues.  You can see Danny’s artwork at:  Mountains Spirit Flutes and Gallery. 

Danny travels around the country selling his artwork at mostly Native American Indian fine art shows.  That is why he needs a camper top for his pickup truck.  He needs to be to able to carry his things for the art show in the back of his truck and keep it safe from the elements and the would be stranger with sticky fingers. 

We had no success at the used camper top place, so I said to Danny “Lets drive through downtown Johnson City (JC) and see what is there.   We really don’t go downtown and we have no idea what is there”.  He said ok. 

We were heading into the  heart of downtown JC and we saw some cool old houses on our way in.  We hadn’t driven far, when I saw a bead store (Beadworks) and pointed it out to Danny.  I talked him into parking and checking out the bead store. 

It was a great bead store.  It had lots of beads and jewelry making supplies, but the store also had some local artwork for sale.  I actually purchased some pottery.  I got a couple of handle-less mugs for drinking my tea out of.  The store clerk (Rachel) told me that the pottery artist is a wonderful woman.  I’m sure she, because I just love my new mugs. 

If you find yourself in downtown JC, stop by and check out the Beadworks.  I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. 

We have lost our bead store in Greeneville – Jane’s Fiber and Beads.  She seems to be closed.  Her place of business said they were moving to another location, but when we checked out the new location, she wasn’t there. Maybe her move has been delayed.  Lets hope that is all it is.  I did find a link to her web site: Jane’s Fiber and Beads.  We loved Jane’s Fiber and Beads.  This is where Danny would purchase some of his supplies for making his beautifully carved shell necklaces.  Here is a short slideshow of a few of Danny’s carved shell necklaces. 

Hand carved shell necklaces by Daniel Bigay

Now, I have detoured a bit.  While we were at Beadworks, I saw a flyer for an upcoming art event called at that time “Staving Artist Night”.  It was an art event for local artist to exhibit and sale their artwork and to hear some live music. This event was a few days away and it was taking place just across the street from the Beadworks at the Venue in the King Center. 

Danny and I decided that we would attend.  It turns out that the “Staving Artist Night” we attended was the first one and they plan on having them every 4th Tuesday of every month.  There is a $5.00 cover charge, but it is worth the $5.00 and it supports the arts. 

There were about 10 exhibitors there.  The artwork we saw was really creative, unique, and of good quality.  The artist were on hand and friendly.  We really enjoyed everything we saw, but our favorite was the glass maker.  A young man with lots of talent.  He created fine pieces of glass work.  We loved his work. 

We also saw a young woman who was making chainmail jewelry.  It was so creative and just plain awesome.  

The music was really good also.  We really enjoyed listening the music as we milled around looking at the artwork and talking with the artists. 

There was also food, drinks, beer and wine there.  This was provided by The Main Street Pizza Company. They had a booth setup in one corner of the room and seem to have a line most of the evening.   I didn’t have any of the pizza, but Danny did and he said it was really good. 

They were asking for suggestions that night for a name for this new art event.  We never stayed long enough to hear what they chose, but looking at their web site today, I see this event listed as:  Creative Fusion.  I like the new name. 

Here are the details for the next Creative Fusion event (I pulled this right from their web site):

Tuesday February 22, 2011- Creative Fusion- VENUE’s monthly art exhibit-This exhibition will include displays from artists around the area. We’ll also have a little live music, and economical drink specials provided by The Main Street Pizza Company.  This is a great opportunity to display and network with other artists from around the region!  Limited spacing for exhibits- email info@venuejc.com for information.

The only thing that I thought they could really use was an ATM (Automatic Teller Machine).  The nearest one was a block or two away.  You might want to make sure you stop and pick up any cash you think you will need on your way.  The Main Street Pizza Company was setup for credit cards and atm/debit cards. 

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Enjoy!

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