Two Artists, One Roof ~ Tapestry & Plaid
- jrhrice
- Feb 18
- 5 min read
BEGINNING NOTE FROM JAN ~ This month's guest blogger is Fabian Gilchrist. I met Fabian when I visited with a local book club (thanks for inviting me, Peggy Ashley!). We connected by email, and when she realized she knew my favorite husband from the Y, she invited us to dinner. What a treat, seeing their lovely home and touring the amazing art-filled home studio she shares with her husband and fellow-creative, Jim Gilchrist. After a bit of arm-twisting, Fabian agreed to share scenes from the fascinating artistic journey they’ve shared through their many years together. I hope you’ll enjoy reading her post as much as I have.
Cheers ~ Jan
AND NOW, HERE'S FABIAN'S STORY ... IN HER OWN WORDS:
When asked the question, “What’s it like when two people who are married are both creative?” I had to pause. I’d never thought in those terms about my 56-year relationship with my husband before. We had long found our respective ‘talents’ or ‘hobbies’ early in our marriage. Being an art major in school, I thought the graphic arts were where my creative juices lay. I had learned the ‘domestic arts’ and found them to be to my liking, whereas my young man strove to find a career that gave him a chance to highlight his natural talent of persuasion. He had the art of garnering trust in people and following it up with the hard work of making that trust work to get the results he wanted. Both different, both effective.
Fast forward through several jobs that highlighted some of our talents … and some that just paid our bills through our building years. Some years were very exciting, like leaving our home in Georgia and moving to Colorado. Other years were just work, but we never lost track of activities that would give us a creative outlet.
In Colorado, Jim found that woodworking and building small furniture items brought him pleasure. I dabbled in turning aspen limbs into candlesticks with a modicum of success. I also made quilts and Western-style shirts for people, and those brought in a little money on the side. The glory days of craft shows were alive and well, and homemade needlework, candle craft, and various wooden gifts for family and friends filled our time.
As we both continued in our respective careers, our creative time suffered like most people who find that life gets in the way of doing everything you would like while building a future, which, hopefully, will assure more creative time again down the road. So, we buckled down with our basics, with him selling for various companies and eventually starting our own company, and me becoming a graphic artist/typesetter for a printing company. These were natural for us and paid the bills. But there was more in store for us. I moved on to get a degree in Church Business Administration, which gave me latitude to use a whole lot of my creativity within the church that employed me. He went to an Episcopal seminary and into the priesthood—a complete 180 degrees from where we began, but fulfilling.
Another fast forward … to retirement. The joy that we found in our careers enriched our lives in ways that we could never have imagined. And underlying those lives was the very creativity that sparked our interest in the paths we took. As we navigated the loss of parents and the move back to Georgia (during the pandemic), we found ourselves back in a place that had changed in the 45 years since we’d left. Not many soft Southern accents anymore, thanks to television and travel. Plus, living near a huge city proved a traffic nightmare that we hadn’t known much in Colorado.
We also found that we both needed to find our creative side in this new environment. At first, it was easy. We had purchased a home that needed a bit more than the tender loving care we thought we’d have to give it. It is still a work-in-progress, and we continue to take great strides to make it our own with some corrections and replacements along the way.
As time allowed, we took our creativity more seriously. He found an art instructor who has given him the guidance he needed to spread his art wings and fly into some of the local galleries and even sell some of his work.
I have found pleasure in decorating our home and even branched into designing a landscaped patio for our backyard which we enjoy often.
Flower arranging and entertaining has become a delightful pastime, and we have availed ourselves of the local museums and galleries to find inspiration and a whole new group of artist friends, who also provide much encouragement and inspiration.
We have found over the years that our interests, though not always in the same genre, have provided us with a colorful tapestry of art craft. Our home features both our own pieces and the productions of people we have met along the way. We appreciate how they’ve used the arts to express their outlook on the world and provide meaning and delight to those who appreciate their good works.
As our paths crisscross with the people who have added richness to our lives, I find an incredible piece of tartan plaid with abundant colors that brings a cohesiveness and meaning to our lives in retirement.
So … what’s the creative atmosphere like living and working in the same place? Sometimes challenging, particularly when two people want to use the same tools, paint, or lawn equipment, or when plans change to accommodate a class or reception at a gallery. But we never experience a mean-spirited sense of competition, only support. It has been such a gift to grow into our talents and see our pleasures come to fruition after a life of hard work to get us to this place in time. I suppose it’s about the same as any other couple who have found their life partner and grown into the fullness of their lives together.
What a blessing this journey with my fellow creative has been!
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ENDNOTE FROM JAN ~ Next month’s creativity post will feature Ellen Dennis French, who will share some of the amazing quilts and nature photos she’s created through the years.
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As always, thank you for reading!
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