We began doing home shows years ago when our gallery at the time Ann Nathan in Chicago made it clear that she was only interested in the more expensive painting. The drawings and woodcut prints didn't warrant the real estate space of her walls. We began having little shows in our home for our friends to share the work "unfit" for the gallery and not only found willing buyers in our own community but also found that we really enjoyed the opportunity to take more control over the process of placing our work. We came to appreciate the ability to nurture relationships with our collectors in a more organic and direct way then what was possible with the gallery.
There was another side benefit to this homegrown model, the children were easy to weave into this mix. Consequently our children have grown up in the milieu of making and selling art in a way that seems as normal to them as going to the backyard chicken coop to gather eggs for breakfast. Our two oldest daughters Pearl and Rose have been able to develop their own brisk business of selling the crafts they make which began in their early teen years. They played at it as young children and now are making their way doing art for a living as young adults.