To go with the windfall apple, I painted a pear, it seemed only fair to the pears.
At this point, it was early September, about a month after I first picked up a paintbrush. I felt that 15 paintings was enough for an exhibition, which I realised I had been working towards. So I took them down to Graiguenemanagh Library, round the corner and they said, "Yes, bring them in on the 17th. Do you want two weeks or three weeks ?". In my naivety, I asked for the two weeks, thinking that was plenty of time for everyone to get thoroughly bored with them. I since found out that it is best to leave them there for a month, for an unknown artist, because people tend to buy at the end of that period.
As it happened, the space was available a few days earlier, so up they went on the afternoon, Wednesday 14th September. The staff who ran the library were very positive. You can imagine how I went back to the library every few days to see had any paintings sold, and I would take a new painting up if I had one. After a week, no joy so I stopped popping in. Then the phone rang with a "query" about one of the paintings. Someone wanted to buy one that was already sold - had I got another like it ? Sold - did you say sold ?!. Oh yes, and we sold another one yesterday and would you split the pair of paintings of apples and pears, someone wants to buy the pears but not the apples (curse those fake-looking red apples!). I ended up selling four paintings. And someone rang me asking if I gave art lessons, which I thought was very flattering.