Over a month ago I had a conversation with Mohammed, the owner of Paris Coffee House, about the future of his business. He told me about the challenges and difficulties he has overcome to keep his business a float. It was from that conversation that I decided to name our April art show Endangered Species.
I thought about how heart breaking this bad economy is for small business owners in our community and around the country. This economy is such a burden and as a result the domino effect is felt by everyone, and those businesses are disappearing faster as a consequence of the lack of support from their community. Paris Coffee House in a sense has become an Endangered Species itself.
Our collaboration has lasted about six months and each show has brought the community together; we had been able to bring musicians and artists from different backgrounds. Each opening had over a hundred people coming to support our efforts and as a result the art quality has been really great and the artists themselves had brought their A game to each show.
I organized these art shows because I noticed how important was to have a place where artists, from the highly trained to beginners, could coexist and exchange ideas and become friends. Many of the visitors told me how inspiring the art shows have been for them; as a result they are visiting the local museum, and others have established similar partnerships with other local businesses to have their own art shows. Many artists began creating again after many years of inactivity and some are even taking classes so one day they can show their work at the coffee shop.
After the great success of the many art shows we had at this establishment, it is with great sadness that I am announcing that “Endangered Species” is our last show at Paris Coffee House.
I want to thank my friend Mohammed for his unconditional support allowing me to pursue my dreams, uniting my colleagues for a wild ride during the last six months. As a result, we all became better artists and experienced that together we can make a difference.
I want to thank all the artists for trusting me with their paintings and for letting me know that I was doing something important, without having an agenda or pursuing my own benefit. The only purpose was to showcase their talent. I learned from all of you, do not stop creating.
Please, come over to celebrate our final show on April 5th and let Mohammed know how much we appreciate him.
Edwin R. Vasquez
