Upon reaching the age of 50 or thereabouts, humans begin their quest for meaning or beauty or magic.
We begin to seek those special moments, those things on the bucket list that will add a definitive purpose to our life. This fact is the primary reason that Cervantes’ Don Quixote, written in 1605, has remained such a cherished masterpiece.
It is all about a man coming to the end of his life and sensing he has not experienced enough magic or goodness and why the Broadway song “To dream the impossible dream’ is loved so well.
I think this desire to achieve a bigger dream emerges in earnest after midlife since we begin to realize we are getting closer to death then to birth.
That painful truth provides the motive to find a permanent joy or meaning to our humble lives. This quest for meaning or joy or whatever you want to call it is the Holy Grail and the sine qua non of our existence.
Alas, you ask what does all this gibberish have to do with our town of Williston Park.
Well perhaps a town, its architecture, its stores and its common places or town squares are made to facilitate these special moments or ‘happy times’ that when added up make for a good life.
Last year I recall talking to John Robinson, the owner of John’s Variety Store about the sudden growth of restaurants on Hillside and he said “That’s all well and good but you need regular stores as well so that the people will walk along Hillside and meet each other. We need shoe stores and clothing stores and book stores and things like that.”
Point well taken.
So if a town needs shops that help to facilitate a good life with social interaction and with a sense of magic or beauty I was happy to see a new shop called The Little Art Studio open up at 74 A Hillside Avenue right down the lane from Hildebrandt’s.
I interviewed Kristin Riggers who is the owner of this little shop.
When you walk into her studio you notice the freshly painted brick walls, the natural light and the wooden tables set up to nourish and develop young artists.
Ms. Riggers gained her passion for art through her mom who was a painter. She graduated from University of Rhode Island and actually worked on Wall Street for many years but never lost her desire to become immersed in the world of art.
Recently she had to make a choice to either go to London as a business consultant for the year or stay right here and pursue here secret dream. Well she chose the latter and here we are.
She told me she liked the feel of Williston Park and felt there were many kids who could benefit from an art studio.
I mentioned that Eileen Drobbin’s A Gathering of Artists is an art studio down the road a bit but said that A Gathering of Artists provides high level training for college bound visual artists where Ms. Riggers offers things like birthday parties, special events, and summer art camps for kids.
The front of the studio sells art supplies and along the right wall are ceramics and paint brushes and canvases waiting to be used.
She told me she hopes to attract adults who have a yearning to paint. She said:
“Art can be intimating but in fact everyone has a creative side longing to come out.”
She said her wish is to “create a non-threatening atmosphere where people can come, hang out, relax, socialize and paint.” She said her job is to teach them how to use the tools of art and to encourage their creative side. ”There is so much competitiveness these days with sports and I think art is a counter balance to all that stress.”
I am happy to welcome the Little Art Studio to our town.
My belief is that a studio like this approximates what we call the commons or the third place, somewhere that you can walk to in order to relax and have some fun.
It is not just Starbucks that can provide a setting where people can come to relax and find some peace and it’s not just a gym which can bring people together. Like John Robinson said we need a variety of stores to add richness and flavor to our town.
Williston Park may never produce the next Jackson Pollack or Andy Warhol or Pablo Picasso but then again maybe it can. So here’s hoping that you go down to The Little Art Studio and find yourself some meaning and beauty and magic all your own.
You needn’t be Don Quixote and become a Knight-errant to find some special moments in your life.
All you need is a paint brush, a canvas, some paint and the dream of beauty.
Just put paint to canvas and low and behold you can create your own magic and without the risk of being knocked off your horse during a joust with another knight.
