Rich Gombar

Rich Gombar is an artist with a BFA from Pratt institute. Rich ran the Professional services crew at the Guggenheim in the 90s and 2000s. I was fortunate to not only have worked with Joe and the art handlers, but also work with the builders and the painters under Rich. These were high stress, labor intensive gigs, but most of the time they were fun. All my coworkers were artist or creatives of some kind. I use to call him Coach, because I am a smart ass, but only after this talk did I learn he played football in high school and might have continued if not for a life changing event. Checking in with Rich after all these years was awesome.

Snuggery 5

Oyster Fields

Blue Morning Barn

Julie Knight

Artist Julie Knight Majored in printmaking at the Ringling College of Art and Design. Also Julie is a skilled Potter, Art Framer and Mount maker. 

She won the Anna Soik Award  Award for Ceramics in 1999, and was also the recipient of the 2009 Mary Blakeley Fellowship at the Haystack School of Crafts. Julie is currently an instructor at Greenwich House pottery in Manhattan.

We’ve been a good friends for over 30 years. In this episode I share our recent conversation. As I attempted the game of 20 questions with her, I was reminded of events and activities that deserve their own episodes. Julie is a wealth of information with many stories to tell. We cover some them here, Check it out. 

Rob Gainfort

On one of my freelance work trips to NYC I met Rob Gainfort when he joined our crew at the Guggenheim. Enthusiastic, engaging and hard working. We hit it off right away. It was a pleasure working with him. He Studied Studio Art at Hunter College and Interior Design/Art at Parsons School of Design. He is currently the chef preparator at the MassArt Art Museum or MAAM for short. Also Rob is a brilliant musician. Check out “Ego & the Appropriators”. It was great talking to him after so many years. Listen to this people.

Deborah Whitney

My guest on this episode is Deborah Whitney an artist with degrees from Mass College of Art, Boston, BFA, and Wimbledon College of Art, London, MA 

But I know her as an astute and focused crew mate a fellow museum laborer, a guiding spirit and a friend. She shares with me the healthy attitude of an artist, and what it was like to be a woman in the art handling biz in the 80s-2010s.

Pageants 1 2 3

Untitled 1 (The Pugilists)

2017

oil paint, encaustic and carnauba wax on board

20" x 20" x 1.5"

Bethanee Waya

 I’ve just had and inspired chat with the brilliant Composer, singer/songwriter Bethanee Waya. Bethanee was one of the first performers I met when I decided to peep my head out from under the rock from which I was hiding seven years ago to participate in an open mic. The over all themes here are: Creators must create, Love your self, Listen to your higher self, and make art. Listen up people.

Kristen Baskin

So much of what we throw away can be recycled or reused or converted into nutrient-rich soil for gardening. I meet with Kristen and learned about her business, Letuscompost, A brilliant company that will collect your compostables and deliver soil and mulch to gardeners. Check it out!

Fun Bonus: My Interview With Larry

Dale Wheatley

Have you ever heard of a film called Don’s Plum? Neither had I until I met a man named Dale Wheatley. Dale made a film starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tobey Maguire that is banned in the US and Canada. The other day I had a couple beers with him. I got a peek into his world of film making, writing. directing and producing. He also had a major role in a local hit filmed mostly here in Athens GA called Small Group.