OLMA Time

 Fall Farm Show

Each autumn, eastern Switzerland has an exhibition of local farm animals, products, and commercial things for home and garden. It is in St. Gallen, very near. We hadn’t visited it for some 15 years, but we did today. The exhibit was originally focused on family farms and handwork. Now it still showcases various kinds of livestock and foodstuffs, but it also has commercial exhibits of household and garden and farm goods. We started in the arts section. It was small, but had excellent quality works. 

This is a regional folk costume. People still wear these for special occasions. 

This man was weaving, very much like thousands of poor people did in their little rural houses, especially in Appenzell in the past centuries. This and lace-making were the chief income producers for most families. They were usually paid by the piece, not by the hour.

A few artists were there, working on pieces. This woman had wood slabs as her substrate. She was using a colored pencil at that moment, but I think she was working hair texture over paint. Rather unusual, but her works were very well done, and she knew anatomy. 

A young man was working in white paint on black. These are very large works. The shaggy sheep was sculpted with a power saw, so the sign says.

This was an enormous banner, showing more folk costumes. 

This delightful old couple sang a folk song with yodels. They sang in harmonies. Quite lovely.

This is an example of a wood “Ofen” that you could have custom built in your house. You have a choice of  carved rock faces, this one being from Wallis. Fr. 20,000 would get it made and installed for you. 

Some exhibitors have been coming for a long time. This one notes 25 years. 

Seeming a bit out of place was this wall paper display. It’s colorful and sparkly. 

To be continued….(my Tablet won’t let me add more pictures here. Machines!)