Vincent's Chair

I love lilies, but they take quite a toll with 2 boys adventuring in the garden. I simply sigh & remind myself how fast my son is growing. All too soon he will be off with his friends & I will have a quiet yard full of flowers.
I have acquired marvelous, still-life treasures from Mr. Cotton. Urns, tables, old lamps, a child's wagon, a mounted groundhog, even antique, kerosene lanterns grace the my students' art work courtesy of Cotton.
One of my favorite artists is Vincent van Gogh. (My art history professor in England insisted we pronounce it "van Goff", as "it is a Dutch name".) Vincent dreamed of starting an artists' colony & secured a happy, yellow house in the south of France where he painted a chair much like this one.


When I spied "Vincent's chair" along the road, I couldn't resist. It turned out to be a beautiful garden accent which temporarily protects some of my towering lilies !

"Shiny, Happy People"

The scout leader set the telescope up, before he was called to another task. I watched as the cubs took turns peeking at a close up view of the moon. I love watching the delight & wonder of children!!
Some toddlers can paralyze even the most grizzled heart with their "cute rays.". One such baby peered into the the site of the telescope & exclaimed, "Ees shiny! Ees shiny !!!" I didn't have the heart to tell him he was seeing a speck instead of the close up, & I asked, "Is it made of cheese?" "No, Ees shiny! Ees shiny all over da moon !!!"
When the scout leader returned, he readjusted the telescope & showed the wee one how to properly peer through it. I sat at just the right angle to watch the reflection on the boy's eye. As he landed on the moon, both of his eyes doubled in size, as did his delight.
"Ees shiny people! Ees little, shiny people... Little, shiny people on da moon!!"
Days later I remain warmed & amused by the wonder of a child.

Early Impressions

Prior to the last photo class I took, I was to shoot 100+ images without regard to light, composition, balance, etc. This was very difficult for me...to shoot without thinking artistically. The goal was to identify what things attract my eye. What I realized most is that I am attracted to texture...particularly mixed textures. It made sense and yet, felt odd. As a visual artist, I render smooth, gradual shading in pencil, paint and pen.
My brother, Wesley, and I periodically go "grazing" at the store. This is something we don't do often, but LOVE ! We will be gone for hours. We always find ourselves in weird, off-beat sections of the store...I noticed that we will point and look and, "wow" at the same thing at the same time...and it is usually texture-based! I commented on this and he said, "It makes sense. We both grew up in the same house." We are also drawn to the same shells when we beach comb together.

The home my parents chose to raise their kids in was built by a contractor for his daughter, who only lived there a short time. He had outfitted the place with all kinds of cool and varied textures...white gravel, framed in wrought iron in front of the fireplace which was double-sided in a rose, stone wall. there were copper tiles in the kitchen, more gravel in the bay window. Several of the plaster-walled rooms had one wall of a different kid of panelling.Outside there was brick, gray stone and wood. There were fields arund and forests nearby.
It is amazing to me how our surroundings, subconsciously affect our preferences. The youngest of 8 grand kids, I was the only girl. I was a tomboy and was always trying to keep up with my brothers and boy cousins. All the adults wanted to keep me in pink and ribbons and lace... As an adult, this has become my "comfort color"...the color that makes me happy...the color I wear when I want to feel loved or just plain comfortable. Early impressions may be more lasting than we think.
Next time....an array of different shell textures...