Music for Sunday - Bob Mould, Sugar and a little note from me

I

I won't be around much for the next couple of months. My classes start next week; one going into January. I may post an occasional pre-done art post but otherwise will not be able to visit your blogs much or reply to comments. At least that is what I'm thinking now. Maybe I'll find that I need a break and end up blogging more than I think I will.

 I hope you all have health, happiness, peace and love in your lives. If it's hard to find any of those things, take some time for yourself to look at something beautiful and restorative. Hug someone really tight. Find one thing that shows you a little light.

All the love,
Pagan Sphinx

Happy Spring

View of Arles
Vincent Van Gogh
(click to enlarge)

I've been posting some weird art lately, so tonight I thought I'd wish you all a happy Spring Equinox and post something beautiful.
Are those not the most incredible blues and purples you've ever seen?

Love,
Pagan Sphinx

Artist of the Week

Steve Emery

This week's artist is our very own Steve Emery of the blog Color Sweet Tooth. As I was searching my notes and the web for an artist to feature this week, it hit me. Why not feature the art of bloggers whose art I admire. Steve immediately came to mind.

I love Steve's art. It's intensely personal and filled with beautiful color that covers the canvas with life. Steve mostly works with watercolors and occasionally adds ink. He lives with his wife and two children North Carolina

A wonderful bonus of visiting Steve's blog is that he will often guide us through the artistic process. Sometimes he takes a photograph and posts it to the blog; followed by a sketch and finally by the finished painting. He writes beautifully about his inspirations, his muse and the details of the actual process of a painting. Steve's posts will often include tidbits about how his family reacts to a particular work-in-progress, giving the reader a very holistic glimpse into the life and work of a painter. If you don't have time to scroll through the posts (but I hope you do), I've linked to this artist statement on Steve's gallery web site.

If you're a regular bloggie friend here, you may have seen Steve's lengthy and substantive comments on some of my art posts. He adds so much intelligent insight and knowledge my bare-bones presentation, for which I am truly grateful. I feel fortunate that he comes by because I've learned so much from him but also because he's such a great person.

After seeing the following sampling of Steve Emery's work, I'm sure you'll want to see the rest of his online gallery. Stop by the blog, also, and tell him I sent you over!

Self-portrait

Woodpecker

Mistletoe House

The Elopement
See this post and this post; they explain the process of this painting

Sunshine

Autumn

Stay tuned for next week's feature of another lovely blog artist in our neighborhood.

A Beautiful Elopement

My daughter and daughter-in-law
October 28, 2008 San Francisco City Hall

View the entire wedding album and leave comments if you'd like; the brides will love it!

Album 1: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2050368&l=6004e&id=10403044
Album 2: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2050371&l=ee098&id=10403044
Album 3: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2050372&l=d1a50&id=10403044
Album 4: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2050373&l=9aa6c&id=10403044

Beauty Break

Rossetti

(I actually saw this live at The Tate. I believe WP had time to take a nap in Trafalgar Square while I stood riveted to this painting)

I'm feeling rather gloomy and grumpy. Firstly, WP has been in California for the last ten days (due home tomorrow). Then there is the matter of our sadness and dismay over Prop 8 passing, as well as very ill feelings toward Washington regarding the "bail- out".

I needed me a beauty break.

Camera Critters # 25

click on badge to go to the site

We completed our Monarch life cycle science unit with the kids today. Here are the caterpillars on their milkweed leaves. These were found by teachers on our team and brought into school.

It was difficult to get a good photo of the chrysalises because of the way they suspend themselves from the cover on the fish tank. They're a beautiful green, with little dots that look like gold trimming the top.

The monarch sheds its now thin chrysalis and begins to prepare for its life as a butterfly.

Several small fingers invite the monarch to sit a while.

Time to lay this beauty gently on the butterfly bush to stretch its wings and begin to prepare for flight.

Please check out the many fine entries at the Camera Critters site.
And a huge thanks to our hosts there!

,
Good morning...

More Favorites From The Clark Art Institute

Offering the Panate to the Bullfighter
Mary Cassatt
American Impressionist, 1873



The Women of Amphissa
Lawrence Alma-Tadema, 1887


Young Christian Girl
Paul Gaugin 1894








The Snake Charmer
Jean-Leon Gerome, 1942

In a recent post I featured some works by William Bouguereau, the French painter of the
Academic Classicism school. One of those paintings, Nymphs and Satyr, adorns the title bar of my blog and is in the permanent collection at The Clarke Art Institute in Williamstown, Massachusetts. This is our Western Massachusetts art treasure and my personal favorite of all the local museums. For its pastoral setting, its fine, eclectic permanent collection and the many fine exhibitions held there, particularly in the summer - a glorious time to visit and enjoy a picnic on the beautiful grounds.

I've found these images of four other of my favorite paintings in the collection at The Clarke. I hope you enjoy them. If you're in the area and choose to visit, you will not be dissapointed by this lovely museum.

Green Man - XTC

Nothing Further

Georgia by Stieglizt (below)

Annie Leibovitz (upper & bottom left)

(indeed)

National Poetry Month

The Emily Dickinson Museum

Today I headed south to Amherst, Massachusetts to visit the Emily Dickinson Museum. I've lived in Western Mass for forty years and this was my first visit.

I parked on Main Street and walked down to the Dickinson compound. On my way, I stopped at a park with beautiful flowering trees, flowers and benches.

Across the street from the park is The First Congregational Church (below). It's a gorgeous stone church which Emily's brother, Austin helped to found. Emily dickinson, I learned later, was never to step foot inside it. Calvanism wasn't her thing. She had a difficult time accepting the idea of original sin. Her religion was the natural world and the ecstacy of living.



Some keep the Sabbath going to church; I keep it staying at home,And an orchard for a dome.
~ Emily Dickinson





When I first arrived, I went inside to get my ticket for the 2:00 p.m. tour and then went around to the back of the main house and out to the garden to eat my lunch. I bought a small baguette, an orange and a bottle of water at the deli up the street.


I learned later from our tour guide that Emily Dickinson, though a recluse later in her life, was not a stranger to her family. She was very close to her father, though from her letters it is theorized that Emily's relationship with her mother was chilly and strained. She adored her brother Austin and sister Lavinia and forged a strong friendship with Austin's wife Susan.




This beautiful old tree is to the left of the house as you come up the path from the garden. Though a recluse, Emily didn't stay in the house all day and write poetry. She kept quite busy in the garden, tending the animals and baking. She was known to adore her brother Austin's three children and spent a great deal of time with them.



The main house. We toured Austin Dickinson's house next door as well but I can't manage to upload another photo, as blogger is not working again for me today.


Tulips in the garden.

The experience was two hours well spent. Of course, I'm a bit of a geek about these kinds of things so I had a great time.

If you visit the area and you're into Emily Dickinson, histori places or other components of geeky tourism, I recommend you visit.

Find ecstasy in life; the mere sense of living is joy enough. ~ Emily Dickinson

Bound By The Beauty

It was such a beautiful day but I'm so, so tired. I'll say goodnight to you, my friends, with this infectiously positive song by Jane Siberry - Bound By The Beauty and a beautiful image by Matisse.

Peace & Love,

Pagan