My art life and previous life are coming together in a delightful way. I have been asked to teach classes on painting and collage through the OLLI program at Duke. Long before I picked up a paintbrush to make art, I trained and taught high school English (my first job was in Cary, a town barely on the map in 1966).…
The Pinxterbloom Azalea, also known as Pink Azalea or Pinxter Flower, is a frothy pink and white species native to the Southeast. It's often found blooming near rivers or creeks, and a cluster of these shrubs grow wild at the edge of my pond. I must have checked the pond every day for a month this past spring, rather impatiently…
During the Renaissance, artistic ideals changed from a serious and formal way of depicting subjects, generally religious, to a much more realistic style incorporating scenes from common life. "Man is the measure of all things" was the motto of the time, and painters began to include details from daily life in their frescoes. With the invention of the perspective, paintings acquired a firm place…
Last summer, I began painting with an artist group at a friend’s studio. The tables we used were covered with white paper for protection of the surfaces, but by the end of two months the papers collected quite a mess of paint and marks. I didn’t see the beauty in those papers until I participated in an artist challenge to…
Every winter, my thoughts shift from the skies to what lurks underground. Dormant seeds and water channels were on my mind this past winter and I began a series of small pieces inspired by these thoughts. In this series, I focused on the idea of a seed, or a cell, and its micro-environment. Soon after working on these pieces, I…
I work in a variety of sketchbooks of varying sizes in my art making. A few years ago I realized that hundreds of books were headed for the landfill, so I began reclaiming some of them as sketchbooks to work in. In the first photo I have arranged a number of them on a table top along with my usual…
Marbled patterns on silk can be simple: ripples, swirls and shapes, or scintillating: cross currents of different patterns and colors sweeping across the landscape of fabric. I remain fascinated by the many different forms I can create and continue to be informed by the patterns found in nature, as seen in water, in the sky, and on the earth. My highly decorative art…
People have always been curious to learn about the creative process. "Where do you get your ideas?... How long does it take?... Do you draw it first?"... etc. When I am asked these questions, here is what I have to say about my process: In the past, I have occasionally had a complete and preconceived idea, gone to my studio, detailed drawings…
This summer, I returned to the Berkshire Mountains in western Massachusetts to hear live music at Tanglewood and attend dance programs at Jacobs Pillow. As usual, I brought my journal-sketchbook with me like I do whenever I go on a trip or attend a concert, theatre or dance program. The drawings you see in this article are just a few of the images I…
If you haven't had a chance to stop by Elia Bizzarri's shop in Hillsborough and meet him, this story might give you a feeling for one of things he enjoys about making and delivering his Windsor chairs. Here is what he has to say about his craft: With the delivery of each chair order, the customer gets a short, written story from me about…