Bette left her position as the Dean of the School of Arts at CU in mid-November and made her introduction as the owner of the Bette Porter Gallery a few days after she and Tina returned from Lake Arrowhead. They would take time for a honeymoon between mid-December and the first of the year.

The gallery was scheduled for the grand opening in January after which Bette’s days would be filled.

Bette had acquired several wonderful and unique pieces of artwork; paintings, sculptures, and photographs over the past several months. She had works from famous as well as emerging artists. She loved the freedom to express her creative passions that owning her own gallery gave her. She was really excited to showcase several new artists that she’d discovered some of whom had never shown their work publicly before.

Yolanda, Joanie and the construction crew had done a fabulous job with the gallery’s interior design. The craftsmanship of the showcases were works of art in themselves. The entire design was fluid so they could change the look and feel by adjusting lights or moving a display case or changing the wall color.

Bette was excited to once again immerse herself in the rich art culture. Her name and reputation still attracted interest from wealthy private collectors. The first two weeks in December Bette hosted intimate artists’ dinners and private showings where she invited the most influential and renowned patrons of the arts. She also gave personal interviews to top art magazines which served as a great marketing venue and opportunity to showcase both the gallery and the artists Bette represented.

She’d hired Kristen Clark a brilliant CU graduate with the same passion for art as herself to be her full-time assistant. She also had a curator and a receptionist on staff. As she walked around the gallery Bette Porter could not have been more pleased at how everything had turned out.

***

Bette was working in her office at the gallery when her assistant Kristen knocked on the door.

“Bette? You promised Tina you’d be out of here by 5:00pm so you better get going.”

“Thanks Kris. It’s so easy to lose track of time here. I just wanted to make sure I didn’t leave anything pending. You’re going to have your hands full as it is.”