Montpelier Arts Trail

It's arts weekend in Montpelier. That's not a misspelling, as I mean Montpelier, pronounced Montpelier with an 'er', in Bristol, UK, not Montpellier with an 'ay' in Southern France.
The weekend began in the Attic Bar in Stokes Croft, where we watched the bidding for paintings by local artists raise nearly £10,000 for Temwa. Amazing, and very exciting.
The weekend continued, for a very long time, in the Studio, where Matt and I had been tidying, hanging and pricing in preparation for the Arts Trail. Actually, before really starting we attempted to nurse our hangovers with a slap-up breakfast in The Bristolian, but it turned into lunch, so long was the wait for beans on toast. I could have walked to the shop, bought the food, gone home, cooked it, eaten it, washed up, queued up for a Banksy print and got one, in the time it took between paying and eating... and I would've remembered the difference between brown and white toast. (One is brown, one white, it's not hard).
Anyway, once finally fed, we installed ourselves in the studio, with supplies of tea, coffee, biscuits and beer, and chatted to the local art enthusiasts as they dropped in and out. It was fun. Most people seemed to love the space, and the art, and quite a few transactions were made, so the happy, arty, local, lovely feeling from the night before was sustained. Then Matt's parents came and took us out for dinner, to The Social on Cheltenham Road, where the service is normal speed and the food delicious, so it couldn't have been better really.
On Sunday we hung out some more with the artists who share the studio, and welcomed more Bristol people through the doors, and sold more work, and drank more beer. It was good to see so many people out and about, wandering in and out of people's homes and work spaces.
Another uniquely Bristol weekend, and it was great to be so involved. I'll be sad to miss the Stokes Croft Street Fest coming up this month...but much as I love Bristol, I do also love to leave it.