Opening tonight from 5 to 8pm the Asheville Area Arts Council is excited to host 16 artists in a new exhibit by curator Barbara Fisher called Who’s Afraid of RED? 

The title is inspired by a series of Barnett Newman paintings called Who’s Afraid of Red, Yellow and Blue.

This exhibit will explore the many meanings and associations to the color red: love, vitality, opulence, fire, the heart, the devil, blood, power, passion…. as well as the many uses of the word red in our language such as: red tape, red carpet, red-letter day, red herring, red ink, caught red-handed, red cent.  Also, because of the expense of the dye, red cloaks and hats have been worn as status symbols throughout history.  The associations are endless.

Go HERE to find out the skinny. Cheers!

As real estate agents with a visual sense we are always being asked about what to do in preparing a home for sale. While we do love light and neutral paint choices we are, also, big fans of grays and well curated pops of color for accenting key walls. 

The below recent article on Houzz seems to capture a clean aesthetic while giving it some personality. Check it out. Cheers!

LimePrimeBathroom

Healthy Paints and Finishes of the Earth and for your Home Recently, I was browsing Yolo:Colorhouse's website from our sister city and my old stomping grounds, Portland, Oregon. Yolo is a cool company started by artists producing healthy paints. I especially enjoy their marketing style. It occurred to me that we should have a healthy paint company here in Asheville. Doing a quick search I discovered Earth Paints. Rather than trying to pretend I know much about them I have borrowed some of their thoughts from the website. Also, while browsing I found this great video from Healthy Child Healthy World. The message and marketing style work well together. Finally! Beautiful Paint & Wood Finish without the Poisons!! Earthpaint produces only Healthy Sustainable Finish!  Earthpaint was founded by Tom Rioux, a professional painter for 25 years. Tom was poisoned by the paints and wood finish he was told were safe. He narrowly survived. This is the basis for Earthpaint’s deep, life affirming commitment to make strong, safe paint and wood finish. Earthpaint now offers beautiful floor finish, deck stain, wood finish and non-toxic paint products that are as good or better than conventional paint and wood finish. Earthpaint was the first, and may still be the only, USA based Healthy Sustainable Finish manufacturer. Earthpaint is proving that there are better, kinder alternatives. We do not use toxic petrochemical solvents in deck stain. We do not use mineral spirits in our oil wood finish. No naphtha, toluene, xylene, vinyl or benzene in our wood finish. No Poison! We are confident that Earthpaint is providing the safest alternative on the planet!Our biodegradable paint and wood finish contain non-toxic and natural ingredients derived from plants, vegetables, trees, minerals and elements. Nearly all of these finishing components are gathered locally (within a day’s drive of Asheville, NC) and are domestically produced and harvested. We avoid using anything in our paint and wood finish that gets shipped in from overseas.  Embodied energy and the entire ecological footprint is examined throughout the paint and wood finish formulation process. It is then reexamined on a yearly basis because things change and we need to be responsive to that.For more information on Earth Paints click here.Watch this great video from our friends at Healthy Child Healthy World.[vimeo http://www.vimeo.com/9071036 w=413&h=232]

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Benjamin Moore Comp

Affordable Remodeling that is not Black and White If you've been with me over years of remodeling homes and retail spaces you would have heard me say, during my efforts to be creative and economic, “It’s all about the paint and lighting.” It was over this philosophy that I bonded with Scott Courtenay-Smith last Tuesday night sharing glasses of Spanish red at the Battery Park Book Exchange. Scott is owner and resident artist of  “Renovate with Color.” We all know about Design-Build companies. Scott refers to his company as a Design-Paint company. Get it? I first heard about Scott on the weekend pages of the Citizen Times. His work was featured in the “Home of the Week” section where he transferred a North Asheville, mid-century ranch into a creative retreat for a couple of IBM Executives who moonlight as potters. How perfectly Asheville! He combined a bold color palette mixed with vintage Asian illustrations from the couple’s travels. Scott's inspiration ignites directly from the home or business owner using what they have as the nexus to begin the transformative and aesthetic dialogue. The clients were comforted in the way Scott included them throughout his process, so they felt even closer to the final result.For a business client, understanding their branding is important to Scott and he likes to illustrate their story with his color and graphic choices. Recently, he noticed how the local Benjamin Moore store missed an opportunity by painting the outside of their store a muddy brown. Given the richness and history of the paint company, Scott approached them with his own vision that captured their branding at a billboard scale to grab the attention of the driving audience on busy Merrimon Ave. The result reflects the story of the business itself.Another component that Scott feels is important to his work is the green aspect. He is able to bypass extensive remodeling and waste while transforming a space completely with paint. Once, he convinced a residential client to keep their kitchen cabinets and let him rework them. They were thrilled with the dramatic change, the expert paint treatment he provided and the money they saved in the process. No cabinets and hardware were harmed in the process and, more importantly, they did not end up in the landfill.For merely $125, Scott will come to your business or residence for a one-hour consultation. He follows that up with a summary report and a master color palette tailored for your project. Given the nature of today's economy and home values it sounds like an appropriate alternative for your investment dollars. More with less. I get it. Article by Troy Winterrowd