Despite a delay due to hurricane Sandy, Melissa finally had her show in NYC at the Soho 20 Gallery in Chelsea, West 27th Street. The weekend after Thanksgiving Jonathan and I drove down with Melissa to NYC to see her exhibit, and tool around the town for a day. On Saturday morning we visited the Guggenheim and saw a fantastic Picasso black and white exhibit. We stayed at Johnathan's Aunt's apartment in the Bronx. Kudos to Aunt Nancy for her hospitality, and very warm and tidy accommodations. Melissa and I adored her trinkets, books, and decor. For Johnathan it was a nostalgic revisiting of youthful memories.

We took the bus and subway into Manhattan. It was a rather cold and windy day, and we did our fair share of walking. We arrived at the gallery early to poke around. I selfishly took off to walk 19 blocks to visit the Strand Bookstore, a destination I've wanted to visit for years. On the way I went through Union Square, probably just missing my friends Eve and Stacey, who were also visiting NYC, and spending the day at an open air farmer's market. Stacey's dad had a stand at the market.

I went to the Strand and a unique glassware and dinnerware store called Fishs Eddy. It was a shopping heaven experience, but I was also feeling kind of alienated in the big city. I headed back to the gallery.

all photos by Johnathan Donahue

Meanwhile Melissa gave her talk to a small crowd of gallery tourists. Johnathan stood nearby, and Matthew and Jennifer arrived as well, but missed the talk. They enjoyed their own private tour afterwards.

Jen, Melissa, and Matthew

Melissa Kulig is a Waltham, MA based artist located just west of Boston. She and her loft are part of the Waltham Mills Artist Association. The group, begun in the 1970’s, is very active in the local community. Her drawings have been juried into many galleries including the Limner Gallery in Hudson, NY, the Bromfield Gallery in Boston, the Agni Gallery in NY, and a solo exhibition at The Artist Foundation Gallery in South Boston. She received her MFA in Drawing in 2009 from The Art Institute of Boston, a school of Lesley University. After working under Anthony Apesos and Debra Todd-Wheeler, she received an honorary scholarship from the faculty and students at her graduation. She is a member of the Women’s Feminist Project and continues to teach art to children and adults as she’s done for the past 10 years.
www.mkulig.artspan.com