52 Weeks of Peace [squared]: Week #83
“Be happy while you’re living, for you’re a long time dead.”
~ Scottish proverb
In honor of National Tartan Day and my own MacNaughton Clan heritage. : )
April 4, 2013
In
art, communication, creativity, design, inspiration, philosophy, poetry, words and language
Happy Birthday Maya Angelou
I could spend hours playing with Maya Angelou quotes… such a wise and beautiful soul! But I have many chores today, so have picked just two quotes and three posters to share with you, in honor of this lovely, inspirational woman on her 85th birthday. We are blessed to have her in our midst!
April 2, 2013
In
art, craftsmanship, creativity, design, inspiration, skill
Tuesdays with Chris: “Learning to Learn”
How do we learn? In particular, how does someone who might be unfamiliar with art learn to express themselves through an art class setting? With the premise that art is about a sense of wonder and the asking of questions, Chris shares a number of fun exercises he’s used to help students find their own voice.
Whether experienced or beginning artists, I get the distinct impression that Chris has a talent, not only for clay, but for gently drawing out people’s creativity, allowing them to discover what may lie sleeping deep beneath the surface.
(If you missed my introduction about Chris Staley, master potter, educator and Penn State Laureate 2012-2013, you can read that here.) Enjoy!
March 30, 2013
In
art, color, creativity, design, drawing, illustration
The Easter Bonnet
In your easter bonnet, with all the frills upon it,
You’ll be the grandest lady in the easter parade.
I’ll be all in clover and when they look you over,
I’ll be the proudest fellow in the easter parade.
On the avenue, fifth avenue, the photographers will snap us,
And you’ll find that you’re in the rotogravure.
Oh, I could write a sonnet about your easter bonnet,
And of the girl I’m taking to the easter parade.
~ Irving Berlin
Easter seems to have come much too early this year. Whoever is in charge of the calendar must have gotten mixed up. Regardless, it is upon us; and it’s generally one of the brightest, loveliest, most cheerful holidays.
Depending on your religious association, it can also be one of the grandest. I remember one year being in Athens on Easter. There were fireworks and loud celebrations throughout the night. I had no idea! And there I’d mistakenly thought I’d get some sleep to recover from jet-lag. Apparently it’s their holiest, and most joyful celebration, a much bigger deal to the Greeks than Christmas.
My own Easter experience has been fairly mild. Happy, but certainly void of fireworks. And while not lost, bunnies and baskets and colored egg hunts seem to have masked the deeper meaning; Easter relegated to consumerism. parades and pretty pastel dresses. But at its core is “joy” ~ whether the welcoming of spring, honoring new life, or the ressurection of Jesus ~ the celebratory nature is one of hope and love and light, and all our modern material expressions are rooted in ancient history. Eggs and chicks for new life and rebirth, rabbits for fertility and abundance, and of course the less seen but still relevant Easter Bonnet.
Easter bonnets were worn long before we began celebrating Easter. The first bonnets were made by weaving a circular wreath of leaves and flowers in celebration of the coming of spring, the round shape symbolizing the cycle of the seasons, the sun’s path around the earth. While today’s Easter honors life and rebirth in more biblical terms, the symbolism remains jubilant, and the Easter bonnet is still typically round, still decorated with flowers and still a burst of pretty springtime color.
Happy Easter to you all! Wishing you much love, light and peace ~ Patricia
March 29, 2013
In
art, inspiration
How Do You Like Your Eggs?
I prefer mine over-easy, thank you, on top of a toasted, buttered english muffin. Maybe a side of pancakes or french toast. (Can we say carbohydrates?! Yea, that’s me. All that’s missing from this meal are the spuds.)
Of course if we’re not actually eating eggs, but decorating, well then, the possibilities open up nice and wide and carb-free.
We’ve had an easter-egg painting tradition in our home. There’s the standard (and not so standard) dying of real eggs ~ but our special fun was acrylic painting on egg shapes we’d cut out from some old cardboard. Punched a little hole in the top, tied with a thread. Then each year we grab a few fresh twigs from the yard, hang our artsy little eggs and we have our own homemade easter egg tree. Easy and sweet.
But that’s just us. Creativity knows no bounds and there are many, many beautifully decorated eggs out there. So I thought I’d share a few, to inspire or just to admire these adorned symbolisms of new life. (known sources are linked by clicking on image)
March 26, 2013
In
art, craftsmanship, creativity, design, inspiration, skill
Tuesdays with Chris: “Tight or Loose Pots”
Every art form has two distinct expressions on either side of the creative spectrum: the articulate and the free form. Like ballet to modern dance or abstract painting to realism, a potter’s work can be tight or loose. And what can set a piece apart is what Chris calls a “sense of gesture”.
There’s an ongoing process of being in control and out of control. There’s presentation, and there’s representation. Chris is a master of both.
(If you missed my introduction about Chris Staley, master potter, educator and Penn State Laureate 2012-2013, you can read that here.) Enjoy!
March 24, 2013
In
art, creativity, imagination, inspiration, painting
Random Inspiration
I was going to write about how busy I’ve been. How I can’t see past my nose, my plate is overflowing with this that and the other. How there isn’t enough time in the day. How when you’re not getting enough sleep things bother you more – like the fact that ice cream cartons are smaller and lines are longer or that kids rely on electronics too much. Frenzied cleaning binges are also a tell-tale sign of overload.
But then I realized that to some degree, almost everyone I know is feeling a sense of too many to-do’s ~ and how boring it would be to recite mine, however poetically expressed.
So I decided instead to share some cool art, something inspiring, a random artistic discovery. Italy-based street artist Kenny Random, to be precise.
Maybe it’s not new to you, but it was the first I’d seen his work and I fell a little head-over-heels. It feels fresh and charming and raw all at once. Brilliant, actually. Free-spirited and fun. It gives me a happy feeling. And this is something art should do – make us glad we’re here, give a respite from the madness. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
All art © Kenny Random.
March 19, 2013
In
art, craftsmanship, creativity, design, inspiration, skill
Tuesdays with Chris: “Body as Vessel”
In this video, Chris eloquently describes the symbolic correlation between pots (vessels) and ourselves, and teaches that the strongest piece of pottery has a sense of breathing, of expanding and contracting. Personally, I found this one particularly intriguing, as I’ve long had a fascination with painting pots (on canvas) ~ something I eventually understood as subconscious expressions of the body as a vessel. So I was really interested in his point of view!
In the making of pottery, “the answer lies inside the pot”. Listen and learn why.
(If you missed my introduction about Chris Staley, master potter, educator and Penn State Laureate 2012-2013, you can read that here.) Enjoy!
March 14, 2013
In
art, design, graphic design, inspiration, intelligence, life and the universe
A Few Words From Einstein
I’ve always been a bit of a quotophile (is there such a thing? one who loves quotes?). There are so many great ones ~ and Einstein’s are right there at the top of my list, for just about every subject. His genius makes my jaw drop (it’s unfathomable to me). Combine that intellectual prowess with his insights into “life and the universe”, and I’m just blown away.
So, in honor of his birthday, I made a few designs using three of my favorite Einstein quotes. Of course there are other favorites, like … “People like us, who believe in physics, know that the distinction between past, present, and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion.” or “It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity.” or “Education is what remains after one has forgotten everything he learned in school.” or “Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.” or “Do not worry about your problems with mathematics, I assure you mine are far greater.” or “Joy in looking and comprehending is nature’s most beautiful gift.” … on and on, they are wonderful.
Happy Birthday, Dr. Einstein.
