ATLANTIC HIGHLANDS HERALD
New Jersey's 1st Official Electronic Newspaper
Atlantic Highlands - Fair Haven - Highlands -  Keansburg - Little Silver
 Middletown -  Monmouth Beach - Red Bank  - Rumson - Sea Bright 

published Atlantic Highlands Herald 20 January 2005

KEYPORT, NJ —  In 2004 Teresa Bolte and Chris Hudson, a mother and daughter team, launched a brand-new Keyport shop, The Clever Hen, specializing in gifts and home furnishings. Barely six months later, The Clever Hen is hatching something else new.

Teresa Bolte's previous experience in retail, combined with her creativity and enthusiastic ideas, give The Clever Hen its personality and artistic flair. Her daughter, Chris Hudson, having come from a career as an investment manager in a stock transfer firm, brings solid know-how to the business-end of this venture. The team visits trade shows to stay abreast of what shoppers want; and they've already made The Clever Hen a vibrant part of the community through active participation in the schedule of Keyport's citywide events. Their store is becoming known as a friendly, fun place to stop in and enjoy "eye candy" -- an array of merchandise that shows wit and imagination.

Longing an Assemblage by Cecilia Swatton

Memory Detail by Cecilia Swatton

Now Teresa and Chris kick off a new project as they host "Yesterday and Today," a display of original art by Middletown artists Mary Ann Russo and Cecilia Swatton. The art is currently on display, and will be until April 8. An open house will be held March 5, from 4 - 9 PM.

Mary Ann Russo's hand-colored photographs take viewers from "yesterday to today:" some images evoke nostalgia, while others stir yearnings for escaping today's world to rest in faraway tropics. Her work has a soft, vintage look and invites viewers to share her vision of the beautiful, the innocent and the exotic. Her artwork has been published in Collage magazine and exhibited in The Guild of Creative Art, Monmouth Museum, Monmouth Beach Cultural Center, No Ordinary Joe's in Red Bank, Brookdale Community College, Staten Island's Snug Harbor Museum and the last four annual shows at the Reformed Temple in Tinton Falls.

Cecilia Swatton's work ranges from the vintage look of yesterday to the modern/abstract look of today; from "flat" computer-generated art to three-dimensional wall hangings. Her artwork has been published in Expression magazine, The Stamper's Sampler magazine and Spring Hill Review, a West Coast journal. Her greeting cards and a limited selection of her assemblages are available year-around at Smuggler's Cove in Ocean Grove. Her work has been displayed at the Sheraton-Edison in the Raritan Center, Guild of Creative Art in Shrewsbury, No Ordinary Joe's in Red Bank, the 2004 show at the Reformed Temple in Tinton Falls, and a number of public libraries.

At 34 W. Front Street, Keyport, The Clever Hen is open every day except Monday. The store's phone number: 732-264-3993.