Mary Ann Testagrossa Art: 2020 in Review

For me, the year actually began on December 30th, 2019. That evening, my husband and I had to bring my eldest cat Tiger to the emergency vet because he kept throwing up. We all ready knew he had IBD, but his vomiting had increased, and his energy was very low. The next day, New Year's eve, we also had an appointment at his regular vet, where he had some testing done, and we got some medicine to take home. That night, I got a 24 hour flu. I rarely get sick, and this knocked me on my butt.

The results to Tiger's tests hinted that he might have cancer. Tiger was sick during January and February, and we thought we were going to loose him. Then he made a miraculous recovery in March and April, due to a new supplement I had found for him, gel potassium that helped reinvigorate his appetite and his energy. His cancer got the best of him, though, in May, and he passed away on May 15th. His passing really colored my year with sadness. I still miss him everyday.

January 1st I was to start a new job, hanging my first show as gallery manager in a local restaurant. Though it had to wait a day because of my flu, we hung the show on the 2nd, and all was a success. That job as gallery manager lasted three months before Covid came along, and then hanging art and hosting openings just didn't seem like a good idea anymore.

In January, I did get to hang a show of my work at a local business. It was fairly large, and I exhibited my linocut prints, and some large watercolors I had left from my painting days.

In July, I helped facilitate, through the Small Business Development Center (SBDC), teaching 12 local artists about the business side of being an artist. We held weekly workshops, one night a week, teaching: marketing, branding, social media, presenting artwork to galleries, vendor fairs, and many more topics. The workshops lasted 2 1/2 months, and it was a wonderful experience on so many levels.

2020 was supposed to be a year of celebration. My husband and I had our 20th wedding anniversary in August, and I turned 60 in October. The original plan was a BIG vacation to Hawaii, one of my favorite places on the planet. We didn't want to take the risk with Covid, so that did not happen.

This year was the third year in my exploration in printmaking. Usually I do an art show at the end of the year, a nice way to look back at all I have created in a year's time. That did not happen this year, so I decided I would share with you what I created from January to December. Fifteen new and unique images. With different color editions, 21 new prints. Not bad for a year of creative work.