Angel Cows

Angel Cows- First installment of why I paint those cows..enjoy:0)

Vulcan's Rest Fiber

Here's a shout out to my newest retailer Vulcan's Rest Fibers in Chespeake City, Maryland. All I can say is- adorable. That pretty much sums up the whole town on this idyllic little inlet on Marylands Chesapeake Bay. The town is made up of tiny historic houses on narrow little streets leading from the highway down toward the bay. The streets are lined with quaint little shops and restaurants inside some of the historic houses. There is a sweet (literally) ice cream and dessert shop, a fine dining restaurant and a large waterfront restaurant (The Chesapeake Inn) where the boats dock and the boaters hang out and party and eat a lot of crabs. Once in a while, my husband and I will spend a lazy afternoon wandering in and out of the shops and having a bite and a couple of cocktails while watching the boaters and the seagulls.

On one such day, I wandered into the Vulcan's Rest, located in one of those adorable little houses on George Street. I could not help but be impressed when I walked into this fine shop. Margaret, the owner, is a woman like myself who loves color and variety and it shows. The store is comprised of 4 rooms brimming with yarns and supplies of all persuasions. I am not a knitter but I was taken by all the beautiful colors and textures protruding in skeins from the walls.

The shop also carries books and supplies not just for knitting but for felting (which I just love), needlework,crochet, rug hooking and pretty much any fiber related activity that you might want to get involved in. Margaret also has a great appreciation for other kinds of artists and features some paintings and fabric work by local artists as well as some dynamite looking carved gourds (not the halloween witchy kind) but beautiful, deep patterned and sophisticated designs. Now, I have been brought into the party with my unique yarn bowls.

If you get to Chesapeake City, stop in and have a look around, sign up for a class or peruse the extensive library of books to purchase. You will find very knowledgeable and warm sales people in addition to Margaret who will help you with all of your questions and needs.

106 George Street
Chesapeake City, Maryland 21915

Open everyday 10am to 5pm
Knit Night on Wednesdays 6-9pm
Closed for all major Holidays.

Call us at: 410-885-2890

*8 Days in France-Day 1

I had the time of my life on my recent trip to France, a place I never thought I would see. I had never been to Europe and had no plans to go there when my husband called me one morning and asked me if I would like to accompany the singer in his band,(Dyana Cannon, Knowlton Point) on a trip with five of her students and some of her family. Apparently, because she had so many people going there was the opportunity for one more person to go at a VERY discounted rate and she wanted a roommate. Wow! I could not believe my ears and immediately decided that indeed, my notion that I was married to the sweetest, most generous man alive was true. That was in March. It seemed a long time until our June departure, but since it was really a dream to me, I didn't start to get really excited until the week of the trip. I have not in the past been a great flyer which accounts for much of my lack of travel when I was younger, but with the help of a wonderful free Fear of Flying Course, I was able to make this trip as well as one to Hawaii,Mexico (twice) Jamaica and Santa Fe. I am really getting to the point of enjoying it :0) Thanks Captain Chance! We flew overnight (British Airways, love them!) to Heathrow airport where we had a layover for a couple of hours. I was immediately impressed by the clean,glitzy airport and the sad lack of a good cup of coffee. We took a puddle jumper and landed at DeGaulle airport. Exhausted from the overnight flight, the last thing we wanted to encounter was a backup at the doors going into the airport. They had this weird revolving glass tube which only allowed people to get in every so many revolutions. Well, it wasn't revolutioning and people were getting very upset. Finally someone (American and impatient) just held the thing open and then walked through. I didn't know that doors and lav facilities would be an adventure all their own on this trip :0)

After a 1 1/2 hour bus trip to our hotel way on the other side of Paris, we disembarked at our hotel where we met our French guide Christine Brouillett who I would come to know as possibly one of the best guides in France.

Being that this was a school trip, (I was a chaperone on paper only), we also met up at the hotel with two other groups of students and teachers, one group from Washington State, the other from Newfoundland. Sadly,it was already late in the afternoon by the time we got there, so we had to dump our belongings in our dorm style hotel room and hike about 1 mile to the subway where we would take 4 trains back into Paris to get to the Louvre.

Even though I was really jet lagged and tired, I was so happy, because I couldn't believe that I had already seen the Eiffel Tower and the Seine on the bus on our way in and that I was really in Paris.

In fact, I was a little weepy for a couple of days. When we finally got to the Louvre, we only had an hour and a half to explore it. Fortunately, Dyana understood when I asked her if she would mind if I took off on my own, because there was so much to see and our time was so short. I made a beeline into the museum to see the things I wanted to see. Straight to the Winged Samothrice, then the Mona Lisa. Geez, what a rock star! The crowd of people that was around the painting, snapping away with photos was stifling. I took my picture of course, but I also took some time just to LOOK at it and BE with it.

Straight across the room is the Wedding at Cana, a huge painting which takes up almost the entire wall. My eyes kept going around from mini scene to mini scene inside the painting and I kept finding whimsical images of dogs and cats mixed in with the celebrating people. I found the image of the man below eyeballing this little tiny dog who is approaching his food as if to say "Oh no you don't" so endearing.

I ran around the museum at breakneck speed almost through the great hall of French monumental paintings ( I did stop to drink in some Delacroix) then made my way though to the Egyptian sculpture and the seated scribe. (He is much smaller than I imagined).

I have a new found sense of awe when looking at the ancient pottery now that I have become a potter. I asked myself, "who was it that figured out that if I put some clay on a thing and make it spin around really fast, that I can use my hands to make it go up and it will create a vessel that I can pout things in? Who decided that if I put it in a really, really, hot oven (kiln) that it will harden to the point that it will last thousands of years! I am lucky if my pots make it through the kiln sometimes! What had started out as a rainy windy day turned sunny and warm and I got to go outside in the courtyard and take in the full grandeur of the building. Breathtaking! Amazing to me that these people made a building so ornate and beautiful without any of the modern tools that we enjoy today. Such workmanship and skill. And then there is the Pyramid. Read my earlier post on Pop Art at Versailles and you will also be getting my thoughts on the Pyramid. I did enjoy the beautiful twisting sculpture mimicking a Gothic spire inside the Pyramid which you get to enjoy on the escalator on the way up.

After our brief but glorious visit at the Louvre, it was off to another part of town for dinner (something called Flam kuke) and the hour Subway ride back to our hotel. Needless to say, I was glad to see my bed, after hitting the hotel bar for a glass of 2 euro (I damn near fell off my chair when the bartender said how cheap it was!:0) red wine. I had practiced what I knew would be my most used and important French phrase "Vin Rouge Sec, Sil vous pleis" (Dry Red wine,please!) Stay tuned for more adventures in France right here on my blog every Weds. till I get to the part where I came home and slept for 4 days at the beach :0)!

Body and Soul- Art for health

Reprinted from CreativityinHealthcare.com

Now, onto integrating Creativity in Healthcare…

Effects of Art in Lowering Pain Levels

The power of art to heal emotional, spiritual and psychic wounds is well known, but could looking at art considered beautiful or magnificent have the same effect on physical pain? Researchers at the University of Bari in Italy also wondered this and decided to investigate.

Research was coordinated by the neurological and psychiatric sciences department at the University of Bari, Italy. Principle investigator, Dr Marinade Tommaso, concludes that looking at paintings identified as ‘beautiful’ may lower pain levels in hospital patients, than those looking at bare walls or plain pictures in disrepair. (crystallized testosterone & estrogen, Marti Hand)

Lead researcher and neurologist, Dr Marina de Tommaso and assistants asked 24 healthy adults (12 women & 12 men) to select 20 paintings they considered most ugly, and most beautiful from a selection of 300 works by artists such as Leonardo da Vinci, Picasso and Botticelli from an online art website.

They were then asked to contemplate either the beautiful paintings, ugly paintings, or a blank panel while the team administered short laser pulses on their hands causing a pricking sensation. Below are the conclusions made by the researchers of the study:

• The subjects rated the pain as being 1/3 less intense while viewing the ‘beautiful’ paintings compared with the pain levels experienced while viewing paintings they considered ugly or the blank panel.
• Brain wave activity showed a reduced response to the pain when the subject looked at positive or beautiful paintings, such as Starry Night by Van Gogh and The Birth of Venus by Botticelli. Artwork considered ugly or plain included art by Pablo Picasso, Fernando Botero and Antonio Bueno. Remember, the subjects selected the art they considered beautiful, ugly or uncomely at the beginning of the study.
• Dr. Tommaso states, “Beauty obviously offers a distraction that ugly things do not. But at least there is no suggestion that ugly surroundings make the pain worse.” By viewing aesthetically pleasing artwork, pain levels maybe reduced or changed at the cortical level in the brain.
• *Brain scans showed “a clear inhibition of the P2 wave amplitude, localised in the anterior cingulate cortex”. (The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) plays a role in regulating blood pressure and heart rate, cognitive functions such as anticipating reward, decision-making, empathy and emotion).

Sources: 1)de Tommaso M, Sardaro M, Livrea P. Aesthetic value of paintings affects pain thresholds. Consciousness and Cognition Dec 2008; 17(4): 1152-1162. 2) University World News, 3) New Scientist

ACTIVATE THE BODY’S SELF-HEALING PROPERTIES BY EXPLORING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ART MAKING AND SELF-CARE WITH

Creative Interventions in Healthcare:

• Art-making
• Writing
• Music
• Dance
• Humor
• Laughter clubs
• Art exhibits with artwork created by patients, families, professional staff
• Indoor and outdoor gardens
• Art at the bedside
• Creative interventions for healthcare professionals
• Integrative medicine modalities
• Limitless possibilities

Below are 2 paintings created by 2 participants in a Creativity Workshop for People with Cancer & Families. What’s more interesting than the fact of it being their first time painting are their stories behind the paintings.

Interview with a Southern Belle

Where are you from?

I spent the first eighteen years of my life growing up in north central Louisiana with my very large extended family and friends.

How long have you been in this area?

We have been in this area for 52 years. Luther, my husband of 51 years, and I came here from El Paso, Texas in 1960. He was an Engineer for Sun Oil Co. for 35 years before his death a year ago. Our house was built in 1929 on a private lane and it's been our home in Media for 44 years. We lived in San Francisco and Alberta, Canada for a few years. This house is a perfect show place for your art work.

Do you/did you work outside of home? What did/do you do?

In 1976, I helped open Claire's Boutique in the Granite Run Mall where I became manager for 10 years.....then was a district supervisor for eleven of their stores for another 2 years. My favorite job though was for Old Marple Vet. Hospital where I worked in the office and got to know and love the animal clients........even adopted a cat from there.

What are your hobbies?

When I was much younger I had lots of hobbies but have slowed down some now. Gardening was always my favorite but now a handyman does all the outside area and I take care of the orchids and many plants inside. I still love to do embroidery, crewel embroidery and cross-stitch. Baking and cooking is still something that I enjoy.......especially for Kat and Nate,my grandchildren.

What brings you joy in life?

Like most grandparents, I have to say that my grandchildren, Kat and Nate, have brought much joy to my life every day for the past 19 years. Their home is always so full of laughter, singing, sports conversation and animals. I feel much joy when my family and friends come to visit. Trips back home to Louisiana bring me joy and fill my heart with love.

You collect several artists including myself. How many of my paintings do you own now?

I have purchased six original paintings of which I've given two as gifts to friends.

Which ones?

The originals I have in my home are:

Up, Up and Away

Beltie Balloons

Phony

Autumn Cows 1

I gave the original of " Fairy Cows" to an artist friend, Iris Innes and "Escaping With My Friends" to my son, Marty. I liked those two so much that I bought a print of them for myself.

Do you have a favorite?

It's hard to say that I have a favorite. They all say something different to me. My first two purchases were the hot air balloons because I was going through such a difficult time with Luther's illness that I wanted to float away in one of the balloons. The funny cows with no faces make me smile deep down. As of now I don't have any of your couch people or cats.

What made you want to collect my paintings?

I first saw your paintings in my daughter, Donna Sottung's home. She has quite a few of the cows and she commissioned you to do one for her daughter's graduation.........which by the way was awesome!!! Donna took me to your open house where I fell in love with so many of them. I knew from just looking at them one time that they would make me smile and feel good every time I walked into a room with them in it.

What is your favorite thing about my work?

Color! Color! Color! and what is happening in each painting.

You also commissioned me to do a painting for your son. Why did you think that he would like my art?

I asked you to paint "Escaping With My Friends" for my son Marty. The painting depicts him as the soft adorable Beltie, his hunting buddies as the camouflage cow and his colorful fun friends floating away from or arriving at his farm. I knew he would love the concept, the colors and the memories it held for him. He loves all the KOH paintings he's seen.

Which other artists do you collect?

I have five art boxes hanging on my walls, one table box and two large oil paintings done by Iris Innes and a Shaker style floor clock made by her husband who also makes fine furniture. Her art work and a video can be seen at irisinnesart.com. I also have originals painted by my husband, my sister and a dear friend from Louisiana. Karen, all these and yours mean more to me than the Wyeth and Scarborough that I have.

If you could change the world in one significant way, what would it be? As all hopeful Miss America's say "I would wish for world peace" BUT seriously at my age I would like to see more kindness and love going out to everyone we know.

Thank you Nelva for your support of my art and other artists. Without people like you, we wouldn't be able to do what we do :0)

Nature Inspires Art

At the Lascaux caves in France, paintings more than 17,000 years old depict horses, deer, bulls and other animals that once roamed the land.

Two paintings from the Ming Dynasty show the important role nature has played in Chinese art. Mountains in particular were revered as the manifestation of “qi”—nature’s power.

French post-impressionist painter Henri Rousseau, known for his exotic landscapes, once said: “Nothing makes me so happy as to observe nature and to paint what I see.”

Often described as the “Father of Modern Art,” Paul Cezanne was moved to paint the image of Mont Sainte-Victoire in southern France more than 60 times.

From the beginning of human history, nature has played a vital role in our creative expression. The lands and waters we rely on for daily survival shape how we view and interpret the world around us. And in turn, the art we create from nature’s inspiration becomes part of our personal and cultural identity.

In the United States, many people have rafted down the Mississippi River with Huck Finn or proudly sang of America’s “purple mountain majesties” – a reference to Pike’s Peak in Colorado.

In China, since the earliest dynasties, artists have glorified mountains as being the manifestation of nature’s vital power “qi,” attracting rain clouds that water crops and providing medicinal herbs that cure the sick. And in France, cave paintings have been found of horses, deer and bulls dating back more than 17,000 years.

Nature’s beauty and power is ingrained in our lives, our history and our culture. By conserving nature, we are helping nurture our artistic spirit and ensuring that future generations will continue to find inspiration in the natural world around us.

(-Reprinted from The Nature Conservancy)

Ansel Adams looked to nature as his muse. This photo of Grand Teton National Park, WY, is from a series of photos commissioned in 1941 by the Interior Department.

Frank Lloyd Wright’s “Fallingwater” in Pennsylvania exemplifies the influence nature played in the architect’s designs. “I go to nature every day for inspiration in the day's work,” Wright said.

Claude Monet’s famous “water lilies” series was based on his garden at his home in Giverny, France.

Hunters Rob Citizens of Paradise

One of the best things about living in Southern Chester County Pa. is the many pristine and beautiful Nature Preserves that make up a good portion of my 12 square mile township. Along with the cow farms, horse farms and wineries, these are the places that recharge me as a person and inspire me as an artist. After a hot, hot summer in which I did not care to go outside much to excercise but opted for the YMCA instead, I have started to really look forward to my favorite time of year- Autumn.

With the temperatures already beginning to cool, I have felt motivated to get up in the morning to head to one of my favorite spots to hike. White Clay Creek State Park straddles Pa. and Delaware with some trails beginning about 1 mile from my house in Pa. It is a spectacular place to walk along the creek as attested to by the many joggers, bikers, and dog walkers that I usually pass along my way. One of my other favorite places is Crossan Park in Franklin Preserve.

Recently I learned that I have to be willing to take my chances on having an arrow shot in my back or getting shot with a gun if I want to enjoy a walk in any of four Nature Preserves.(Goodwin, Banffshire, White Clay Creek Crescent, Franklin) Apparently, our local township supervisors have approved provisions for a private Hunting Club of about 30 members which puts local residents at risk.

Formerly limited to 2 weeks of archery hunting only, the gun club can now hunt for 6 weeks with bow and arrow and GUNS. There is no restriction on the hours and the parks will remain open.

The best part? They are allowing children under 18 to hunt!

Therefore, township residents who pay for these parks are restricted in their usage of them for the recreation of 30 people. The Supervisors who approved this are selling it as deer management even though they voted to dissolve as unnecessary the oversight group previously formed and set in place for that purpose.

I am glad to know about this. I was able to warn my daughter that she and her friends should not enter the woods near our local park. I know that I can't go in there. Uninformed people however, who may decide to go out for a walk at the wrong time could end up shot by by some 12 year old with a gun or an overzealous adult.

There is no other township in our county that allows such insanity in their township owned parks. I just pray that no one ends up hurt or worse before ours figures out that this is a bad idea.