MAC First Fridays

🚨Quick housekeeping note: this week’s post is arriving late. I wish I could blame a glamorous author’s retreat or a case of writer’s block, but the truth is far less impressive.

As you know, I’m juggling three jobs, a 19-year-old with autism who keeps life beautifully interesting, and a 15-year-old whose baseball (and social) schedule appears to have been designed by someone who despises free time.

So, when my posts occasionally wander in a few days behind schedule, just know I’m over here doing my best and running mostly on sweet tea, stress and very little sleep.

Patron of the Arts is not a title I imagined for myself. I’m a writer, and love writing in any form. Canvases - painted, sketched, or any other medium - have never been of much interest to me. UNTIL I discovered, purely by accident, JP is a very talented artist. Not in a drawing boats or dogs kind of way (like his Papa keeps trying to encourage), but in an abstract way.

Not surprising since that’s the way his mind works.

JP has a natural talent for combining paints in a very unconventional way. Several friends, and strangers, have shared their amazement at how he sees colors. JP loves to watch the colors mix as he pours them onto a canvas. It didn’t take him long to discover patterns would change if he blew through a straw onto the wet paint. JP loved the way that worked, so he graduated to using the only hair dryer in our house. It took me a while to figure out why strange color blotches appeared on Preston’s shirts. He was using the dryer every morning and the heat caused the paint splattered all over the hair dryer to melt and rain down on his shoulders.

Turns out, that was only one of the perils of painting we all began to experience as JP’s artistic talent emerged.

Paint splatters on the walls, floor, and dining room table/chairs was a small price to pay for witnessing his personal metamorphosis. All the doctors and drugs in the world could not do for JP what his love of painting has done for him.

Because this is my space, I can put in a plug for him without feeling too guilty. JP Beam Art has an Instagram and Facebook account. You can also see his work on my Facebook and Instagram. Go take a look!

JP’s art has been on display at Cohesive Coffee, our favorite spot to work and drink coffee, for several months. Owner, Kevin Williams, operates Cohesive Coffee at 301 Airport Road, adjacent to White Duck Taco and across from The Greenville Humane Society.

This shop is the perfect workspace for serious on-line workaholics and students of all ages. There’s a comfy section in the back with couches and a book exchange shelf (take one, leave one). If that’s not reason enough to become a regular, now Cohesive Coffee is an art gallery!

The atmosphere of Cohesive sets the perfect vibe for art enthusiasts. Kevin’s friend, Curtis Shirkey, is an awesome artist whose paintings hang on the walls of Cohesive. Works by other local artists will be unveiled soon.

Cohesive Coffee is fast becoming the place in Greenville for all aficionados of the arts. Sometimes when I’m enjoying my latte and writing, I fully expect some talent to suddenly stand and read his poem! In the wise words of a dear friend, “We’re not just coffee, we’re Cohesive.”

Allow me to take this opportunity to introduce you to Metropolitan Arts Council First Fridays. The first Friday of each month, studios in Greenville are open to art lovers from 6 - 9 pm.

JP participated in his first First Fridays last week. The night was a huge success! Gotta pause to send out a GIGANTIC thank you to BJay and Holly for all their help and support, and our dearest Debbie who always shows up. We LOVE you guys.

JP was able to stay for a good while before he reached his “people limit” and went home with Papa and Preston. JP has never been comfortable in crowds, but he definitely doesn’t like being the center of attention. That’s exactly where Nanny, in all her “proudness”, puts him every single time his art is featured anywhere. She insists on pointing him out and announcing to the world that he’s her “artist grandson”. It makes my heart happy that she’s so proud of him, but I wish she could turn it down a few (hundred) notches. She finally refilled her medicine, so hopefully that will help before our next market (3/28 at Trailblazer Park).

She’s editing this and approves the above message. Lol

While you are on MAC’s website, checking out the maps for all the First Fridays, you will notice JP will be a part of Arts After Dark again this year. It’s a feature of Downtown Alive on the third Thursday of each month. Make plans to enjoy live music while you visit us on Main Street, July 16.

Sorry (not sorry), this newsletter may come across as one big advertisement for JP Beam Art, but I am his (very proud) Mom!