Vlada Rousseff, the woman behind the name and cartoon face of Vlada Boutique in Stockbridge, Mass., has owned the women’s clothing and accessories shop that bears her name for more than 45 years. An artistic career that began with sewing bags for the shop has grown into a love of fine art painting, and Vlada will exhibit her work in a two-person show with Robert Ayers, "And Now For Something Completely Different," at the Old Chatham Country Store & Cafe beginning with an opening reception on Sunday, April 17 from 3-5 p.m. I’m originally from Wisconsin, I graduated from Northwestern University in Illinois with a major in English and an art minor, and then moved to New York City. I had an apartment there for almost 20 years, the last eight or nine of which I was traveling back and forth between the city and the Berkshires. I opened the shop, which was originally located behind The Red Lion Inn, in 1970. It was a summertime-only business at first, but became year-round when I moved to the location where I am now, on Elm Street.
The first time I came to the Berkshires, it reminded me of where I grew up in Wisconsin, so I immediately felt at home. I like being in nature, the ease of getting around here, and the people. I started making and selling things when I lived in the city, mostly through craft fairs. I made stuffed fabric dinosaurs and dragons, and large soft sculpture pieces. My father was an artist, so I grew up with that kind of feeling around. Although I did draw and paint (I was always making something), I didn’t think of myself as an artist for a long time. I was interested in theater initially, so having the store feels a little like theater, like setting the stage. For a while I was sewing my bags and wholesaling them, but my friends noticed how much effort I was putting into them while only making about a nickel an hour. I decided to start painting, and that felt more expressive to me. I studied with artist Leo Garel in Stockbridge. He really pulled out of people their strengths.
He didn’t tell anyone what to do; he made gentle suggestions and gave guidance, but always based on what the person was already doing. Prior to that I was trying to make my work look like everybody else’s, more traditional, which was certainly not my strength. I used to spend all day in the store and half the night painting, but that can only last for so long. Now I have more of a background role in the store and I continue to go on buying trips, but I spend more time painting in my home studio.
