Outtakes from the Luchadore Photoshoot

Happy Holidays Y'All!
-Open Door Art Studio-

Brr! Open Door's Top 5 Ways to Stay Warm (inside and out)

1. Wear a hat; Growing up I heard over and over again- "Wear a hat! You lose 80% of your body heat through your head!" Now that I'm older, and have internet access, I know that this isnt' totally accurate. It is true, however, that the more warm things you wear the warmer you are, and really hats are just cool. Put a hat on anything and it's instantly better. Case in point:






2. Move around; Get that blood moving in whatever way says 'fun' to you. We here at Open Door are in favor of dance parties and flash mobs. Have a boring mid-winter office party coming up? Don't just stand around shivering and making small talk- liven it up with an impromptu lucho libre wrestling match! (I know a place you can get a good deal on some handmade masks)
   
   
   



3. Hot Cocoa; Not only is hot cocoa unspeakably delicious in nearly all it's forms, it's also good for you. In the 16th century, hot chocolate was used to treat liver disease. Which may sound silly, but even modern science (SCIENCE!) has found all sorts of real, good stuff in cocoa. Flavanoids, antioxidants, phenylethylamine are all found in hot chocolate and can help with artery health, digestion and even your mood.(1) Plus, it tastes awesome.
   





4. Share the love!(and the body heat); Sheep have the right idea. Standing close to other people helps to stay warm. One North Carolina study found that hugging actually triggers your brain to increase oxytocin (feel-good hormone) and decrease cortisol (stress hormone) and even lower blood pressure. (Again, SCIENCE.) Huddling up to strangers at the bus stop might get you a few stares, though, so stick with friends.
   
   
   
   
   



5. Support a cause you care about; This time of year we are innundated with ads and commercials telling us to buy! more! things! It's easy to get caught up in it all and even easier, for me, to get all scroogey and angry about. Take a break from the rampant consumerism and use your resources to buy from a nonprofit you care about. Your loved ones will end up a unique gift with a story behind it (other than 'I elbowed strangers in the face for this deal!'), you'll feel good knowing your money is going to someone who needs it, and gift giving will be an enjoyable experience again. Magical.
   
   

(1)info found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hot_chocolate . Note: I am not anything even close to a doctor or scientist. All recommendations made in this post are based on tastiness and the internet.

On Display

Just in case you weren't able to make it to the open house, here is a little glimpse of what the gallery looked like. From left to right, the featured artists on this wall are: Marjorie Conway, Marty Freireich, Randall Perkins, Curtis Wellman, Tory Harper, Donna Hans, and Wallace Peck.

Mucho Gusto!

HEY-


Thank-you to everyone for making our opening this past weekend an undeniable success.
Thanks to those of you who came, those who helped before, those of you who sent good thoughts, loved ones who were patient with long days, thanks especially to all studio artists for making work worthy of such an awesome opening- Thank. You.

It couldn't have happened with out all of you.

(did I say thanks?)

F'real. Go eat some ice cream or something, you deserve it.

Open Door on WOSU!

CLICK HERE to check out Marilyn Smith's article about Open Door on WOSU!

Don't Miss Our GRAND OPENING!!!

Boo! Fun Fall Things at Open Door

Greetings Columbus! Ohio! And beyond!

I don't know if you've noticed, but we're now halfway through October. How did this happen? I feel like it was, at most, two days ago that I was sitting outside, in the sun, thinking summery thoughts...(Of course, this could also be because it's Ohio, so two days ago it could've been sunny and summery)

As much as I love summer, though, I love fall. And so do many of the artists here at Open Door.

The most popular response to "What do you love about this time of year"?
COLOR!
No surprise, coming from a bunch of artists. Reds, oranges, and browns have been steadily creeping into sketchbooks, canvases, and sometimes, even yarn (like here in Marjorie's Fancy Fire Reef). ODAS artist, Tory, loves not only the colors of the leaves, but also the patterns they make on the ground. For some, watching the leaves change brings back other warm-fuzzy fall memories. Margaret remembers trips she used to take with her parents to Old Man's Cave to see the fall foilage as a really special time spent with family.

And of course, October means Halloween! Whether you're into tricks or treats, Open Door has some great artwork that can serve as trule unique Halloween decorations. Some prefer the gentler side of Halloween. Haystacks and hayrides are favorites, while several artists are looking to flex their creative muscle on some pumpkins. Some, however, are looking forward to both treats and tricks. Beth, whose calm abstracts might lead one to expect otherwise, is looking forward to "Ghosts! And Spooks!" while Rex loves watching scary movies this time of year.

Universally exciting is the chance to dress up. Whether trick-or-treating, handing out candy or going to a Halloween party, who doesn't love costumes? As you might expect from a group of creative types, there's a wide range of costume plans ranging from skeletons to scarecrows to Cher. Charles, seen here modeling one of his creations, is particularly excited to dress as one of his favorite luchadores. If you're still looking for a costume, Charles has dozens of masks for sale in the gallery, each one handmade and one of a kind.

Personally, I'm all about the treats. Candy corn, cider, pumpkin flavored everything, more candy corn, popcorn, cook-outs, (did I say candy corn?)- I love it all.

Last, but certainly not least, with fall comes all the preparations for our Grand Opening, November 12, from 3-7pm at our new location! We can't wait to see you all there!

For more information on the studio, and to see more amazing artwork, check out our site!