April 20, 2012 In books, children's books, creativity, design, drawing, fine art, illustration, imagination, writing By Patricia Saxton

Fairy News!

I’m officially excited ~ because my second book, A Book of Fairies, has virtually sold out and is being reprinted!!

A second edition. Wow, I have to admit that feels great.

My heartfelt thanks to my publisher, Shenanigan Books, for believing in me from the start with The Book of Mermaids, and to anyone and everyone who’s bought A Book of Fairies and helped make it this far. It may not have been discovered by the New York Times yet (ha ha!), but to know it’s being enjoyed by thousands of people truly, truly means the world to me. Thank you!

from A Book of Fairies / © Patricia Saxton

from A Book of Fairies / © Patricia Saxton

from A Book of Fairies / © Patricia Saxton

from A Book of Fairies / © Patricia Saxton

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April 17, 2012 In appreciation, communication, design, graphic design, inspiration, philosophy, words and language By Patricia Saxton

A Plethora of P’s / #54: Purity

proactively punctuating life with the plausible, powerful possibilities of positive thought presented through a plethora of “P’s”.

– ♥ –

A perfect rose. A flawless chord. Pure white snow. The softness of a baby’s skin. A child’s laugh. A cherry tomato plucked from the vine. Mountain air.

We all love purity. I think on some level we crave it. And it’s not just a nice concept for optimists, it’s something real and raw, basic and primitive. It’s untouched and genuine. It’s unsullied, honest-to-goodness simplicity.

Even in this increasingly technological world, this world of mayhem, madness and convoluted this and that, a world where a drink may say “organic” because one of ten ingredients may have actually been organic, a world that sometimes seems almost tragically impaired by impurities of all kinds ~ purity can still be found.

We find it in the new seed planted in the garden, in the bear hug from a loved one, in the sunrise. The just right cup of tea. The sparrow’s song. The rhythm of a drum. Wit. Wonder. Wisdom. In so many ways, it’s all around us.

Go get some ~ however small, however large ~ and give it your attention, and let purity wash over your spirit like cleansing waves.

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April 15, 2012 In appreciation, art, creativity, fine art, history By Patricia Saxton

Afterthought to “Beautiful Paintings in an Unexpected Place”

I woke this morning wondering why I’d been so surprised by the artwork at the Air Force chapel.

Art ~ some of the most beautiful art, in fact ~ has been intertwined with faith and patronized by religions for centuries. Stories have been painted for eons. Some quite famously.

And then I reflected that many church structures are architectural works of art themselves, often filled with exquisite artifacts and outstanding craftsmanship.

And then, of course, I was forgetting that so much of art is spiritually inspired to begin with. Not necessarily a religious inspiration, but artists are often moved by spirit. And by that I mean that there is something that happens during the artistic process that transcends the every day “here and now” reality.

Whether the subject matter is divinely inspired, or the physical act of creating a work of art feels almost like an out-of-body experience, there’s always a point (and who knows how long before one becomes aware of it) where you realize it’s not your conscious mind guiding your hand, but more a partnership of heart and spirit. Call it what you will, there is something else going on besides you, the paint and the canvas.

Considering all that, I don’t know why I felt “surprised”. Maybe I expected something less grand because it was a military-based chapel ~ you know, as if it should be sparse, regimented, orderly, practical ~ until I realized that faith and war have also gone hand in hand. Soldiers need a sanctuary, perhaps more than anyone. A God to call upon, an angel or two on their shoulders ~ a way to feel there is something greater, larger, more knowing and filled with light to look to when their own feels dim.

And now that I have this all worked out, I think my reaction was more about the art itself. While biblically based, the art wasn’t what one might think of as typically “churchy”. And maybe the fact that the paintings were framed, much like they might be in a livingroom, made them feel accessible as opposed to otherworldly. Or maybe I just really liked their contemporary style, and their presence in a chapel simply set their reverence apart.

So I guess there really shouldn’t have been any surprise. But there was an unexpected appreciation.

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April 15, 2012 In appreciation, art, fine art, painting By Patricia Saxton

Beautiful Paintings in an Unexpected Place

I expected to see fighter jets and smartly clad cadets during a recent visit to the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.

I didn’t expect an intriguing, architecturally and symbolically impressive chapel, and I definitely didn’t expect art ~ especially the kind that’s inspiring. What a delightful surprise I was in for!

The works below are 7 of the 9 paintings created by Polish born artist Shlomo Katz permanently displayed in the Jewish synagogue area of the Academy’s chapel. (There are individual Protestant, Catholic,  Jewish and Buddhist chapels, all self-contained under one amazing roof of the chapel building).

Katz painted all nine pieces in a 9-month period, which is pretty incredible in and of itself. Each piece tells a biblical story, created with oils over a gold-leaf base. The effect is truly beautiful ~ enhanced by a marvelously rich color palette, wonderful artistic styling and a terrific sense of design.

I guess the only thing that wasn’t a surprise was learning, after the fact, that these pieces of art are considered a national treasure. They really are stunning.

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April 13, 2012 In art, books, branding, creativity, imagination, inspiration, life and the universe By Patricia Saxton

“where in the world is peace?” … rocky mountains

With a Rocky Mountain backdrop, tall pines and splashes of giant red rock, 52 Weeks of Peace traveled west this week, under the big skies of Colorado’s Front Range. (And a little fun was had setting the stage at the famous Red Rocks Amphitheater!)

Mountaintop in the ranching community of Livermore, Colorado

the camera lens was blurred, but the sentiment is clear. 🙂

Red Rocks Amphitheater, near Morrison, Colorado

arranging the bags for a long-distance shot

two more get into the act of arranging

the stage is set!

"Peace on the Rocks"

Northern Colorado. (This bag weathered a bear attack in Pennsylvania before traveling back to Colorado. It's cleaned up, but you can still see a smudge from the bear's paw on the bag's lower right corner!)

Where to next?

ps:  All “where in the world is peace?” images are compiled on our special “where in the world is peace?” page. Our book is on Amazon, our totes, mugs and things are available here. Send your own pictures to 52weeksofpeace@gmail.com and we’ll also post them on our FaceBook page. Let’s see where peace goes!

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April 4, 2012 In art, children's books, creativity, design, illustration, imagination By Patricia Saxton

Great (& great fun) Design

Here’s something I wish I’d created. I absolutely love this minimalistic children’s story poster series by designer Christian Jackson. They’re clever, delightful, artistic and clean in a wonderfully organic way.

Great stuff, Christian!

By the way, I’ve also learned that they’re for sale, here at imagekind . 

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April 2, 2012 In appreciation, art, creativity, fine art By Patricia Saxton

Weird Theatre of The Contemporary Art World

Clearly, I’m doing something really wrong.

According to cutting edge L.A. gallery owner Tim Blum (interviewed on 60 Minutes at Miami’s Art Basel, one of the biggest, most lucrative art fairs in the country), the contemporary art world has become the ‘wild wild west’ of our time, a place with no rules and a multi-billion dollar economy.

As 60 Minutes’ Morley Safer said (I paraphrase), art fairs like the Art Basel are not necessarily the places you’ll find art that stirs the soul or shows you beauty, gives you a sense of peace or upliftment. No, here it seems the more bizarre, the better. With outrageous price tags.

Artist: Sam Durant

So I’ll admit that a small little part of my brain is saying, hey, maybe I could do some crazy s#%t and get on the bandwagon here! Because apparently art buyers want avant-garde, controversy, angst, and things projecting off walls that leave you feeling bafflingly unsettled.

But I can’t go there. It wouldn’t be authentic. And art, if nothing else, should come authentically from the artist’s heart.

There are many amazingly talented artists going without notice who have something quite real to share. Very different from a more theatrical art-speak world developed by god-knows-who-who-pulls-the-strings about what should “be worth” millions of dollars. But then maybe I’m just jealous that I didn’t think of creating a piece of art consisting of faucet fixtures placed on a wall.

Artist: Haegue Yang

I’m also guessing this post won’t win me any calls from highfalutin art dealers or earn me a show at the MOMA. Mind you, I have nothing against unusual interpretations, those who might feel, say, that a blue toilet seat is a deeply profound statement on some important aspect of life that I’m not enlightened enough to understand ~   but I am blown away by what brings the highest bidders.

There’s room in this world for all kinds of expression, and I applaud artists’ works being received and financially rewarded. I just don’t “get” the phenomenon of this particular, and kind of peculiar, corner of the marketplace. The jaw-dropping checks written for works that are at best “intriguing” for a moment or two. (But that’s just my opinion. Obviously some folks find them intriguing for longer than that; and those same people would most likely find my work incredibly boring.)

I suppose it all boils down, at some level, to the old unanswerable question “what is art”? And what will the market bear…?

Makes you wonder though. Where are the Michelangelo’s and DaVinci’s of our time? Where would Van Gogh, Homer, Innes, Benton and O’Keefe fit in all this? Where is the quiet but lasting emotional response as opposed to an immediate surface “shock”? Or will time, the great tester, find us nostalgic for dangling lightbulb art? I guess it could happen. And those who had the vision to see what so many of us don’t, will be hailed.

What a strange world we live in. Maybe I’ll just go out back and grab a banana from my van.

Artist: Paulo Nazareth

The full 60 Minutes segment can be read here. 

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March 31, 2012 In appreciation, communication, design, graphic design, inspiration, words and language By Patricia Saxton

A Plethora of P’s / #53: Path

proactively punctuating life with the plausible, powerful possibilities of positive thought presented through a plethora of “P’s”.

– ♥ –

Some of us, especially when we’re young adults, think we need to follow a set path. Line it up, stay on course. If you falter, get up, brush yourself off and carry on. And there is much truth in that ~  because if we try to follow too many paths at one time, we can become a.) overwhelmed and b.) lost. One path allows us to define a direction, set goals, see progress, maybe even see down the road a bit.

But life teaches us that a clear path isn’t necessarily what it seems. We learn that “things happen”, causing us to change course. There are detours, and there’s debris along the way. Not all the stones are smooth and flat, or angled just so. They might suddenly veer off, dip, crack or overlap. You might have to go through some muddy parts.

And besides all that, how do you know if you’re on the right path? And what happens when you stumble upon a different path? One that looks more inviting?  Ah… that can really mess you up, if you’re humming along, thinking you’ve got this all nailed down pat. Are we really on track, or just kidding ourselves?

Maybe though, we could see many of those dips and swerves as opportunities. Adventure. Choices. After all, who’s to say what path is right for any one individual? Who decides? Who really knows?

Except that when it’s right, it feels right. Right there in your gut. You feel stronger, with more clarity, more determination, more light. Your dreams kick in. Obstacles? Surpassable. Detours? Hey, maybe they’re enhancements.

So go ahead and follow your path, your calling, your dream, even if it you don’t know for sure that it’s “the one”. With a plan in your pocket and an open mind, follow what lights you up, because in taking action, taking steps, you might even stumble upon something better.

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