Coffee, Bread & Croissants
in which Lyn expresses gratitude to Umpleby's Cafe & Bakery in Hanover, NH
Hello my friend!
What is it about coffee, bread, eggshells and other stuff that fill me with pure joy?
Perhaps it’s the familiarity of their shapes and smells,
or the surprise of what might be in any given bucket any given week when, for four years, I collected food scraps from Umpleby’s Cafe & Bakery in Hanover, NH.
Sometimes is was pure spent coffee grounds, ready to serve as the backdrop for watermelon.
Other times, it was the mixing and mingling of leeks, stale bread, onion peels and eggshells. I can smell the leek soup now.
What I love most is the dynamic give and take between the collection of food scraps (thus diverting them from the landfill), the creation of fine art, and the cultivation of friendships.
From the beginning, I’ve been in awe of how compost needs to be mixed and mingled in order to become fertile for new growth. Might cafes, in their own way, be like compost piles, only for people and ideas instead of food waste?
When I first hung my work in the cafe, the space was silent and empty. It was May 2020. I was eager to get my work out into the world. Charles Umpleby and Carolyn Begley were excited to celebrate our collaboration.
Even if the world was quiet, I hoped these images would make people smile.
Who knew compost could be so beautiful?
Every year since then we’ve mixed it up…moving images from the main cafe into a bathroom, or from a bathroom into the main cafe.
Grapefruit & Snow proved particularly popular this past year. Limited Edition copies now hang in houses in Seattle, New York City and New Hampshire. I love how one collector used a white frame and no matte - the grapefruit really pop.
It is kind of funny, though, that this piece doesn’t contain any scraps from the cafe!
Anyway, earlier today I removed all of my compost photographs from Umpleby's.
It’s not only time for others to share their work in this vibrant space, but it’s also time for me to regroup and let my work emerge as it will in the coming months.
There are no words, though, that can express my gratitude to Charles and Carolyn for our seven year collaboration and friendship.
It is art’s capacity to bring people together that keeps me showing up in this newsletter, in the studio, and wherever people gather to celebrate the act of creation.
In the spirit of Thanksgiving and friendship, I hope you will come join me this Saturday at the Griffin Museum of Photography in Winchester, MA from 12 - 4.
I’ll be in the main gallery as part of the Winchester “Open Studios” event. Compost photographs from Umpleby’s as well as other work will be for sale…
Come say hello if you’re in the area…and check out the view through this window - - It’s different every time I visit this glorious gem.
Thank you for sharing this space and your time with me. This newsletter is a work in progress and I am deeply grateful for your support.
With cheers and gratitude for you being you,
Lyn
PS: Any thoughts on compost, cafes and community, please share them in the comments section. I’m truly curious about what you think: Are cafes, in fact, like compost piles - - a mixing and mingling of people and ideas cultivating transformational possibilities?
Wow 7 years! What a beautiful relationship. The photos looked great in there.
Wish I could visit the museum and see your work, meet you !!