Wow.What a morning. As much as Jimmy works my nerves, knowing he’s a construction guy and has the connections he does makes me feel more comfortable leaving him in charge at my house while I’m at work. In a perfect world, I’d be able to be there and oversee what is going on but this Alvin Hamilton thing has me beside myself.
My normal routine is to make a pot of coffee when I get to my office, drink a cup while checking email and prioritizing my day, and then move on to the nitty-gritty parts of my schedule. A quick flashback to yesterday’s incident scratches that plan. The few sips of coffee I had at Jimmy’s will have to do.
I pop open my laptop and pull up my budgeting program. I want a quick review of how I plan to allocate the funds for this project before I start redoing the work I’ve already done—and ruined. If the gallery can secure Alvin’s work, I know it will mean big things for us. It will bring in a different demographic, the younger kids that now refer to anyone over thirty as boomers. I turned thirty last month and I’m far from a boomer, though I’ll admit that I’m somewhat out of the loop when it comes to a lot of things. By the time I realized dabbing had nothing to do with bingo and flossing wasn’t for your teeth, the fad had passed. I don’t even know what’s hip these days.
Maybe Iama boomer.
But Alvin Hamilton. He’ll be big. Heisbig. I’m certain he’ll bring a newfound love for art for the same people that once “dabbed” and “flossed” and use words like “yeet.” (What on earth does that even mean?)
My phone rings and before I even answer it, I double-check for any liquids around it. Better safe than sorry. “Reese Turner.”
“Ms. Turner, Alvin Hamilton is here to see you,” CJ from the front desk alerts me.
“I’m sorry, did you say Alvin Hamilton is here?”
“Yes. He’s asked for you.”
What? How? I’m not supposed to meet with him until next week. I haven’t even thought about how I want to bring him around the gallery and present it to him. First impressions are everything and I’m not prepared to give one right now.
I don’t have a choice.
“Okay. I’ll come out and greet him.” I’m not about to have Alvin Hamilton find his own way to me. Someone of his caliber needs to be greeted properly.
Although I don’t want to make him wait too long, I race through my office and stack up loose papers, clear up my desk a bit, and make sure everything is in good standing. As I walk out my office door, I notice a picture is off-kilter. I stop and fix the frame before walking to the front desk.
My heart races as I turn the corner and see Alvin standing up front. His hands are in his jeans pants pockets as he observes the artwork around the front desk. He’s wearing a flashy jacket (it even has sequins on the shoulders), his dark curls falling right above his shoulder. As I expected, he’s wearing his signature black-rimmed glasses. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a picture of him where’s not wearing them.
“Mr. Hamilton.” I reach my hand out to him, but he takes a hold of my shoulders and air kisses my cheeks. “Oh,” I say, completely caught off guard.
“Ms. Turner. It’s wonderful to meet you in person. My assistant Nathan has told me about you. I’ll admit that I searched you up and you have quite the impressive resume.”
Why did he check out my background? I don’t think he could have found anything compromising online about me. I have a social media presence, but it’s mostly locked down and whatever I do share is usually art related.
“Thanks. You’re more impressive though, which is why we want to feature your work here.”
He slides his glasses off and touches the end to his cheek. It’s surreal seeing his eyes. They’re non-impressive. Light brown. A touch of green. Hazel, I guess. Maybe he wears the glasses to give himself more mystery. “Everyone wants to show my work, my dear, but not everyone is so lucky.”
We want to be one of the lucky ones. This pop-up visit must go well or that chance may disappear.
“Please enlighten me as to what I can help you with today. Our official meeting isn’t scheduled until next week.” I sense CJ watching out of the corner of his eye. Everyone at the gallery knows how critical securing Alvin Hamilton is.
He slides his glasses back on and takes a moment to answer, as if contemplating the best words to relay his thoughts.
“Well, if I’m going to even consider allowing you to feature my work, I want to visit this place, take it in, get a feel for what other types of work you feature. Yes, I do charge a fee for my work but I still have to like the place showing it. Do you have time right now to show me around?”
No. I need to work on my presentation and structure for next week, when you’re supposed to be here.Alvin isn’t going to be happy with a “No,” though, so I say the only thing I can. “Of course I do. CJ, please forward all my calls to voicemail for the next hour. Thank you.”
I take a booklet off the front desk and hand it to Alvin. “This changes every three months when our main exhibit is shown. If you chose to show your work here, you’d have the cover feature. Inside, we include an interview with the artist, if living. If we’re featuring a deceased artist we include a biographical write-up written by the editor, Crystal Heffernan.”
Alvin flips through the colorful catalog. He doesn’t stop to review any of the pages, but nods his head as he moves through it. “Nice work.”
He says this like we’re a middle school newsletter covering the daily lunch or if recess should be extended by fifteen minutes. Crystal works very hard on the booklet and does an amazing job. Her graphics design degree shows through in her work. He hands the booklet back to me. This can’t be a good sign. Most people hold onto it while they tour the gallery.
“Why don’t we start over here and work our way around?” I figure I can take him through a loop and if he wants to see pieces we have down some of the halls, he can.
I love how this gallery is set up. It’s more like a museum. Each piece is displayed with a small marquee about it and there is plenty of space around the artwork. I love the spacious feel. Hopefully Alvin feels the same way.
I take a deep breath as I start to walk Alvin through the gallery, knowing that even though the presentation is next week, he’s making his decision based on today.
