One dirty dime found by the pump at the gas station . This brings me up to $1.09 in found money for 2026.
Found Money 2026 (Episode 7)
Smorgasbord
Yesterday afternoon I attended the art reception for the Art Haus summer exhibition. Called Smorgasbord, this is the first time the curators have displayed eight artists at once. Usually the shows include about four artists.
This time there is a sculptor, a photographer, an assemblage artist and several abstract painters,
The eight artists all happen to be men this time: Peter Allen, Tyrel De Bique, CJ Hodge, Dennis Kinsey, Steve Nyland, Steve Pearlman, Marc Anthony Polizzi and Robert Poorman,
The art is available until July 11, 2026. See the gallery website for more details including making a purchase.
Art Haus is located at 120 Walton Street, Syracuse, New York 13202. Current hours of operation are Tuesday and Wednesday noon – 7:00 PM, Thursday and Friday noon – 8:00 PM and Saturday noon – 6:00 PM. Visit them on Facebook for updates to this schedule.
It’s a great show with a little bit of everything that you never knew you wanted – color, texture, size, shape. Viewing art in person in order to understand an artist’s point of view is just the best!
ISO Fish Fry: Ruston’s Diner
The trip to Ruston’s Diner was not about the food. It wasn’t about memories either. Many Jamesville-Dewitt grads have waxed nostalgic about this place, but I’d never been there.
It was about Dad. It was the last place he worked as a chef/cook before he retired. For my sister, there was history too. Once, I mean it was years ago, Dad went to work and all the waitresses had called in sick, so he recruited Mom and my two sisters to be the employees.
I found out about all of this at Thanksgiving. Why wasn’t I contacted? Clearly, because they’d decided that I wouldn’t have wanted to do that – wait on people, even though my job as an art teacher was mostly that except without food.
Presentation: So when the waitress messed up our order, we didn’t complain or anything. Because Kathy just said, “She’s probably new.”
I ordered broiled haddock with coleslaw and fries, and my plate arrived with macaroni and cheese on it. I also said tartar, no cocktail sauce but was delivered both. Kathy order the fried clams with one side but got the addition of coleslaw and was charged for the dinner, which, all in all, was fine. Who cares?
The presentation with that giant slice of bread on top was strange, but oh well.
Taste: The fish was great! It had paprika on top and was served with a slice of lemon. It was not swimming in watery butter like other incarnations of this dish and I liked that. The fries were perfectly cooked. The coleslaw was quite runny.
I brought the coleslaw and bread home for later and Kathy packed up about half her meal to go.
Restaurant Experience: Let’s face it – this is a diner. It is a place for friendship and athleisure-wear. Most of the diners come for the camaraderie with the staff and for that casual atmosphere, as it is in proximity to their location in the ‘ville.
If you need to pee, lol, get ready for that experience. The bathroom is so tiny. It was like a jet plane toilet situation and I wondered what handicapped or fat-challenged individuals were supposed to do. I loved this quirkiness. It’s so my father’s humor.
Location: Ruston’s Diner is located at 6407 Jamesville Toll Road, Jamesville, New York 13078.
Parking: There are plenty of parking spots for the restaurant’s capacity crowd. However, leaving the parking lot is somewhat dangerous, as it is around a blind corner from drivers of gigantic trucks (and cars, of course) turning right from Jamesville Road with a mere yield sign. This requires alert driving skill!
Thanks, Dad. <3
Found Money 2026 (Episode 6)
More found money! Added a dime and a quarter to my 2026 collection. Up to ninety-nine cents.
Road Trip in Rain Finds Garden on Main
I took a road trip today to visit Main Street Arts, 20 W. Main Street, Clifton Springs, New York 14432. My painting, Mustang Dance, will be in the next group show, Horse Power!, which opens Saturday, June 6, 2026 with a reception from 3:00 – 6:00 PM..
The current display, The Garden Within, will be up until May 27, 2026.
The abstract work in this collection was created by former Arts-in-Education colleagues Sara Michalak and Jari Poulin. For more information about them click here.
This is a beautiful art gallery! I’m in love with this place. It is worth a visit – rain or shine! My trip was 100% rainy, lol, but so worth it.
I will be back on June 6th for the Horse Power! opening. Join me if you can. It will be nothing but horses-horses-horses-horses…..
Ann’s World View
Ann Clarke is one of four artists selected by the CNY Arts Initiative to exhibit artwork in that gallery I call the crawl space (it is actually the Member’s Art Council gallery tucked into the corner of nowheresville) in the Everson Museum of Art, 401 Harrison Street, Syracuse, New York 13202.
The work here is all new and is a study in the contemplation of family, life, mortality and the camaraderie of the sewing circle – techniques and skills passed down through the generations preserving and respecting this predominantly female handiwork while creating a modern tapestry, which she refers to as “Under the Canopy”, implying both the idea of a landscape as subject matter, as well as the broader landscape of shared experiences in community and education.
The work is fresh and new, and yet, masterful and mature. To take a medium like rug making and turn it into an emotional infusion of love and all the heartbreak that unfolds from that to the extent that the art breathes, well, it is exquisitely sublime.
The only thing that would have made this show better is if Ann had created a rug that was actually displayed on the cold cement floor, allowing the community to walk upon it in order to participate in the group spirit of said canopy. I mean, it would get dirty, but that is kind of the point, that life presents unexpected challenges and hardships – that art is both a pursuit in solitude and an opportunity to connect with people, reminding us that we are not alone – not ever, really. <3
The exhibit runs through June 7, 2026.
Hours:
Mon./Tues: Closed
Wed. 11:00am – 5:00pm
Thurs. 11:00am – 8:00pm
Fri. 11:00am – 5:00pm
Sat. 10:00am – 5:00pm
Sun. 10:00am – 5:00pm
Heraldry
On Friday night, I went to the spring art reception at the Everson Museum of Art (401 Harrison Street, Syracuse, New York 13202). While in the Robineau Gallery, I had a fully developed vision of an art exhibition of my own in that space. It was this strong realization that all of my various encaustic and collage series are creating a kingdom.
There are the houses, the landscape of trees and flowers, the fans, the crowns…and so I went home with the clear idea for my next series: heraldic shields.
You can see the progression here. I’ve been working on them all weekend and I am almost finished. I feel like they have always existed and I just pulled them out of the ether, the way I will manifest that dream art show.
I feel incredibly content. I will finish them in the next few days. There are twenty-four encaustic & collage paintings – 6″ x 8″ that will be mounted on 8″ x 10″ cradled hardboard and framed.
Then I will title them and photograph them.
And possibly make more. 🙂
Photos @ Canastota Library
How adorable is this venue? It is in the Canastota Public Library, 102 W. Center Street, Canastota, New York 13032. The library was built in 1903. It is an Andrew Carnegie library and it is a spectacular place – three floors of books, videos, games and more with the basement space designated for both the art gallery and an event space (complete with a full kitchen!,) hosting regularly scheduled clubs. You can also reserve the space for small parties. I will be exhibiting artwork there later this year. I might do an art reception, which would be fun, but I’m not quite ready to commit to that – stay tuned.
For the month of May 2026, the library is hosting photographer Ted Nicholson.
LIBRARY HOURS
Monday: 9am – 8pm
Tuesday: 9am – 8pm
Wednesday: 9am – 8pm
Thursday: 9am – 8pm
Friday: 9am – 5pm
Saturday: 9am – 12pm
Sunday: Closed
The Situation
I’m in the middle of an update. Waiting for supplies to be delivered is always frustrating because (daddy, I want it now!) I want to complete these tasks right now. Immediately!
I wasn’t satisfied with the presentation of my bungalow series of paintings. I decided to switch out the frames. This created the domino effect of needing to purchase new hardboards for a yet undetermined series that will go into the “old frames”.
I received four of the new frames so far and at first I heard – what are you DOING????? from that contradictory voice inside my head that spews negativity (no doubt). But upon execution of this task, I am very pleased with the decision. The bungalows look incredible in their new digs!
In addition, I purchased frames for the horseshoe paintings. The 9″ x 12″ horseshoe paintings are now framed and residing on the floor of my living room. The 11″ x 14″ frames will arrive sometime next week or so. Needless to say, the artwork will be pricier now than when customers purchased them during their residency at Syracuse Yoga.
I also removed the backing chalkboards from the remaining horse and cow paintings. I created them in 2012 – they are among my first encaustic paintings. I’m waiting for 12″ x 12″ cradled hardboards to arrive (sometime today?). Then I will add the hardware to the back and mount the paintings. Not sure if I will tweak them as well. I don’t think they really need changes, but it seems that my ever evolving artistic standards may overrule that temporary plan.
I sold several of the horse paintings – I remember most of those sales. However, I do not know why I only have ten cow paintings. I did gift one to a student once because he was a dairy farmer. So, what the heck happened to the other one???? Who bought the purple cow?
The changes to these paintings were inspired by storage – clanking those boards around had damage potential. They were impossible to store properly and impossible to transport safely. It was only that – I still love the way I mounted them prior to this change. I am very grateful to those who purchased them in their original capacity.
Revisiting paintings is like rereading an old journal. It is a visual record of progress. Of the (over used word) journey, dare I say it.
If I end up having a huge retrospective one day, I think that these encaustic paintings will reveal a sort of fantasy realm, as though I am reliving another life with another voice. A message from the other voice (in this case a love language of positivity), which is how I described a series of oil & collage paintings I made in the late ’90s. It will be a full circle moment and for that brief time, everything about this situation will make sense.
Horses….
Exciting news!
My painting – MUSTANG DANCE – will be included in an exhibition called Horse Power! taking place at Main Street Arts, 20 W. Main Street, Clifton Springs, New York 14432. The exhibition begins on June 6, 2026 and will run through July 15, 2026.
The artist reception will be held from 3:00 – 6:00 PM on Saturday June 6, 2026.
Normal hours of operation for Main Street Arts: Tuesday & Wednesday 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM, Thursday, Friday & Saturday 11:00 AM – 6:00 PM.
