
Confessions of THE Art Executor
This blog explains that when my sister Jenny died suddenly I became her Art Executor and had to learn what to do from scratch. I hope these posts explaining what I did (and didn’t) may help others in the same situation – and encourage artists to think ahead as well.
Following the numbers
4 years on, I am starting to realise that being an Art Executor is a lifetime’s calling.
Into the blue
Setting off into the blue sky, two men in a balloon are alone in the vastness.
Changing the plan
Like many, more important, projects for 2020 our plan for an exhibition of Jenny’s work has fallen victim to Covid-19.
A Question of Style
Did Morandi’s example inspire her to paint the same pots for 50 years?
A question of definition
An artist’s experiences can influence their work after a long gestation and without their being conscious of it.
Picture in focus: Square, Circle, Triangle
What made her sit down to make another?
Picture in Focus: Missing, believed lost
is it really lost?
Making it up
It was a lightbulb moment when I realised that sometimes you just have to make it up.
Learning to Look
When I started cataloguing Jenny’s art I wasn’t looking in the right way or seeing what was important. I had to learn to look more deeply.
A Christmas Card
Every year Jenny would design a special card to send to friends and family.
Learning to Count
You have to know what you’ve got.
Picture in focus: the right frame makes a difference
What a difference a frame makes.
Storage
We had had under two weeks to pack the contents of the studio. What have we learned, after storing them for three years?
Planning
We thought we knew where we were headed, because we had decided our goal was to put on an exhibition.
Clearing a studio
Clearing Jenny’s studio was a hard and painful experience.
Picture in Focus: Questions not asked
When I look at this painting I think of all the questions I never asked when I had the chance.
Law and taxes
Jenny had not made a will, that is, she died intestate.
First decisions, next mistakes
About two years after we had agreed to be her Art Executors, Jenny died, unexpectedly.