Colombian artist, Martha Zamora, demonstrates her oil painting technique.
Sirius Alpacas had the incredible fortune to be invited to display our alpaca art – sweaters, scarves and other accessories at the Martha Zamora art show in Kirtland, Ohio last weekend at the home studio of Hector Vega. I’m no artist or art collector, but I love discovering other people’s passion for living an artful life. I don’t care if it’s a knack for coaching baseball strategy, cooking a perfect soufflé, growing a luscious garden, playing flamenco guitar or painting a stunning portrait. Talk with anyone who does not merely want to dance or write or paint or draw – but needs to express themselves through their work – and you’ll find that your world just got a little richer, more colorful, more deeply textured. And chances are, you’ll want to go off and do whatever you do better than you’ve ever done it.
Martha and Laffy Taffy, Sirius Alpacas' easy-going alpaca, hang out for a few minutes between art demonstrations.
That’s how I felt after seeing Martha Zamora’s collection. She is a Colombian artist whose work comes to life in oil paintings she renders with her fingers and a spatula (yes, the same kind you scrape cake batter off your mixing bowls with). Her portraits are luminous. Her still-life pieces don’t feel very still. Her work brims with a lovely personality.
I have no talent for drawing or painting. I raise alpacas. I work with their fleeces. I import alpaca fashions from the best producers I can find – from both North and South America. And I blog about them. Occasionally, I wax a little philosophical. Most of the time, I share farming tips and practical alpaca fiber knowledge.
Madison, 9, enjoys alpaca Laffy Taffy's company.
Talking with the guests at the Zamora art show, I was reminded of how wonderfully diverse people’s skills and tastes are. I spoke with a jewelry maker, a dog trainer, a woodworker, a wonderful mom and loads of other people who stopped by my alpaca display. Sirius Alpacas nearly sold out of alpaca teddy bears. (Don’t worry; we’ve contacted our suppliers to get us more!) And, we surprisingly sold several of our warmest, most comfortable scarves. I expected to sell summer mosaic tile scarves, but they didn’t move.
Kira, Gabby and Maya, the three lovely Sirius Alpacas' ladies, brought Laffy Taffy to the Martha Zamora art show. They led Taffy around the lawn so that people could feel what an alpaca's fleece is like - before it becomes a scarf, sweater or hat.
The surprise of the day was when the three Weber daughters loaded a 2-year-old alpaca into our minivan and drove her from Chardon to Kirtland to greet guests and give people a first-hand glimpse into where their alpaca fiber comes from. Everyone had fun petting Taffy and feeding her grain. We are lucky to have such an accommodating PR alpaca!
Jax, 13, takes a moment to play with Laffy Taffy.
Sirius Alpacas would like to thank the hosts of the Martha Zamora art show, Hector Vega and his family for opening up their lawn and studio to us, all the people who stopped by the Sirius Alpacas display – and all the folks who took the time to snuggle up to Laffy Taffy and let her know just how special she is – and how wonderful alpaca fiber feels – and to enjoy the incredible art of Martha Zamora.
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Sirius Alpacas is a family farm in Chardon, Ohio that raises and boards alpacas for fun, therapy and profit. The farm uses its fleeces in the production of high-quality yarns and felted goods.
Sirius Alpacas also imports fair-trade Andean items including socks, scarves, hats, gloves, sweaters and more from Peru and Bolivia, offering the style and culture of South American goods while helping the farmers, artists and craftsmen of that region. Lori Weber, co-owner of Sirius Alpacas, is the creator and writer of this alpaca blog. You may reach her at lori@siriusalpacas.com.
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Nice article. Thank goodness you won’t run out of the Alpaca teddy bears. My family now fights over who gets “Fluffy”. I need to order a few more.
PS. I like the artwork Martha did. Sharp and unique!