Artwala Road

My friend, Debra Bures, is organizing an art benefit for the Foodbank in Northeast Ohio which has been hard hit by the economic down turn.  Over forty artists, including me, from all around the country are donating small paintings.  Should be a fun event for a good cause. Here’s what Debra says—

Find the perfect holiday gift as artists across the country offer Cups of Kindness through a small-works art show and sale to benefit the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank. The opening  will be held on December 6, 2008, from 10:00am 2:00pm, at the Peninsula Art Academy, 1600 W. Mill St., and Elements Gallery/Bures Porcelain, 1619 W. Mill St., Peninsula, OH. Enjoy light refreshments and a festive atmosphere in the Village of Peninsula, located in the heart of the beautiful Cuyahoga Valley. Admission to the opening is $10 per person or $30 per family. Cups of Kindness runs through January 11, 2009.

Check it out online—www.cupsofkindness.net

And Debra’s beautiful blog will have more—www.fromskilledhands.com

Thanks to Debra for her hard work and to all who buy paintings.  For every dollar donated seven meals are provided to those in need.  Now that’s a deal and good karma!

October 21st, 2008 | Category: Dear Reader | Comments (2)

The Drawing Club is out on the high seas again and on Saturday we drew our hands without looking at our paper.  We followed the contours and drew the inner lines of our palms as well.  Then we drew a water bottle, a seemingly simple object that when closely observed has many interesting facets—drops of water clinging to the inside of the bottle, reflections, the label and the bottle form.  Again, we discovered that we drew far better and more energetically when we’re not looking at our paper.  In every case the drawings are more interesting, freer and livelier. And we’re aiming for the freedom that really celebrates life.

With the world economies in turmoil I did wonder if any of this was worth mentioning.  But drawing is a great practice as well as an art.  When we’re focusing on what we’re drawing, just looking, our minds really are at peace which is where we need to be to create good on the planet.  Clarity of mind can save us from being swept up in negative currents.  We have more power than we think to create good a world that has prosperity and peace for all of us.

I’m nearly moved into my beautiful new studio.  The art desk is set up, the supplies are stacked on shelves.  I even have a little hot plate to boil water for tea.  I brought a bunch of my art books in too, the ones I often thumb through for inspiration.  The studio is an opportunity for me to do art in a new way.  I can conceive and do bigger projects now and I’m really excited about it.  My first project is an art installation—something I’ve never done before.  100 small paintings in a grid entitled—A Hundred Reasons To Smile.  My friend Mark Peterson is giving me a tripod so I can photograph the work in progress.  I’ll post here as I get going.

Meanwhile, we’re all consumed with the election and asking what we can do.  A lot of us have given money to Obama and I’m thrilled that his campaign is going as well as it is.  In art class on Saturday we spent the first hour talking about politics.  One of the members, a truly liberal and compassionate woman, mentioned how deep-seated racial prejudice still is, how she’d grown up in Florida with the idea implanted in her that black people were somehow inferior.  Having grown up in Canada I have no experience of that.  We had a different history and I’ve been privileged to have spent a lot of time in the black community when my first husband was in Muddy Waters band.  I was always amazed at the incredible dignity of the band members.  Once, in the mid-seventies, we were in Washington, D.C. and they stayed at a rooming house run by a woman named Mable while we checked into a nice hotel.  They stayed with her out of loyalty because only ten to fifteen years earlier they hadn’t been able to check into a hotel in Washington at all and Mable ran a place where touring black musicians could stay.  Even though it meant that some of them had to sleep on couches they never complained.  We were there for a week and they were giddy with happiness.  Mable cooked for them and they stayed up talking and laughing.  They never said a word about why they were staying there.  I have to say that these were some of the finest, most loving and generous people I’ve ever known and the hardship they experienced is more than most of us can imagine. But never once did I hear them complain about anything, or talk about the past or treat anyone with anything but respect.  They put their sorrow into the music and let it go—incredible lessons for all of us.  The blues heals.  No matter how troubled this country is now, there is still greatness in it.  If we can celebrate that people of all races and backgrounds are making lives here together we can really go to the bright side.  Time to let the fear go.

I love that Barack Obama is post racial.  He’s an artist of change and vision.  He’s creating a brave new world and I can’t wait to live in it and contribute to it.  Onwards, President Obama!

October 20th, 2008 | Category: Dear Reader | Comments (5)

My Obama For President buttons arrived today and I immediately pinned one onto my jacket before heading out to do a bunch of errands.  I’m thrilled with the way Obama is comporting himself in the face of the irresponsible decisions of the other side.  He’s staying focused on the challenges ahead.  I ordered my buttons well over a week ago and they were a little slow to arrive.  I expect they were sold out!  But here they are now.

I’ve been doing small things to help out.  One of the artists at the Center where my new studio is, Deb Putnoi, held a sale of her work and donated 30% of the profit to Obama.  She also designed t-shirts and is selling them online.  Bravo, Deb!  It was a great success.

I’m just wearing my button at the moment and keeping the bright vision in mind.  I believe the mind and energy are very important.  We cannot afford the luxury of a negative thought, as Louise Hay, the wonderful healer, writer and publisher says.  What I didn’t expect was the happiness the buttons would create when I went off to do my errands.  I was in and out of four or five shops today and I swear that the people I met were kinder and friendlier once they caught sight of the button.  It’s rather large and hard to miss, I have to say.  No one said anything but I truly felt there was some kind of bond—that the button awakened a shared hope, even confidence and, in one case, a pat on the hand.  I wear it proudly.

Half of the errands had to do with getting things for the new studio.  After working at home for the last five years it’s quite an adjustment to move everything to the new space and make it workable.  The space itself is fantastic as are the people. I couldn’t be happier.  So much more will be possible but I must also confess to not knowing yet what will emerge.  Perhaps the economic meltdown puts even greater emphasis on something I’ve been feeling for a long time.  I’m not so much interested in producing paintings for the affluent who are really the only ones who can afford to buy them.  I love the idea of multiples which are affordable for all, that means prints of some sort or making art experiences that convey something of what I really care about—the way our energy and vision changes the world.  I want to make art that turns people on to their own incredible potential.  A tall order.  Right now I’m still focused on finishing my drawing book.  Once that is done, I’ll open to new inspiration.  One step at a time.

The drawing class will not meet this weekend which is a holiday.  Last Saturday we drew upside down again, this time on large paper.  I think this is a miraculous practice.  When we get out of our own way we’re capable of so much more than we imagine.  It really was interesting and I’ll post some new drawings next time.

It’s no miracle that Barack Obama is forging ahead.  May we all have the same steadfast dedication to making positive change.  Onwards, President Obama!  Meanwhile, I hope you’re all keeping the faith and that your worlds are bright with life and purpose.

October 9th, 2008 | Category: Dear Reader | Comments (2)