Just a Tiny Little Epiphany

Lucy and I often stop by our Sacred Heart Cultural Center where she has to visit the gift shop and stop in the Great Hall. In spite of exploring with a three year old, who likes to sing "Oh, My Darling, Clementine" from the altar stage, I am always awed by the illumination in this former sanctuary.

On our last visit, a singular beam of light soared through high back windows and lit just one of the angels among the sculptures on the altar: she glowed from within; she suddenly seemed to be a divine being; she was frightening. We thought the shepherds near Bethlehem might have felt the same way we did when the angels appeared to them on Christmas Eve.

Yesterday marked the end of The Twelve Days of Christmas. For me, it has been twelve days of family, quiet times, comfort foods and joy. It has been a time to enjoy the Promise of Christmas and to think about new directions for 2009 -- resolutions, goals, the diet.

Today marks The Epiphany. It is a day in Christianity when "God created man in his own image" (Genesis 1: 27) and the Light of the Christ was revealed in a small corner of the world. For some, Epiphany represents the Visit of the Magi who followed the light of the Star and then returned home to tell their strange story of the Birth of the Son of God. For others, it is the Celebration of the Baptism of Jesus and the beginning of his ministry to the people of the World. For all of us, it is a day of illuminating discovery, a day for perception and understanding, a day for changing lives.

So, today I am waiting for the power of The Epiphany to inform my path. I don't expect a frightening divine being, a blinding light or a chorus of angels. I think just a tiny little epiphany will do. . . a little revelation, a little acceptance, a little courage.

BushStrokes (c) AAB

Street Talk -- A Lady Among Many

When we take our walks down the street, Lucy and I never quite know what we will discover. One day this week, we were surprised to see a large mirror leaning against a tree. I was especially interested in getting some photos of the nearby monument to finish up my ''street talks," but we stopped to take a photo and ponder about its presence.



We continued our stroll and approached the four delicate columns from the rear.


I haven't counted the number of monuments on the street, but I do know that all are dedicated to men, except this one. Its axis sits on a perpendicular line with the altar of one (visible behind Lucy in the mirror) of several churches in Tennessee and Georgia which were funded by Emily Harris Tubman. It recognizes her concern for education and her founding of schools for girls. It acknowledges her firm stand on colonization of freed slaves who carried the Tubman name back to Africa and the country of Liberia. It acknowledges her life as a gentlewoman.

In 1993, I was approached about painting the proposed monument to raise money for its construction. The committee did not want an architectural rendering; they wanted a painting and they wanted one of mine. I struggled. Finally, on the 199th anniversary of Mrs. Tubman's birth, I stood beside our mayor to unveil the painting. A burst of wind blew the framed watercolor off the easel. Everyone gasped until they discovered that I had removed the glass for the photos. Then everyone smiled. It was exactly like they thought it should look!

As the year progressed, reproductions of the painting were sold and changes were made in the original plans which I had used to develop my painting. The flower bowl is much larger with a flat-sided base for engraved acknowledgments. The capitals are not as defined. There are no benches now (or in my painting) even though they were part of the initial design -- no one could agree on exactly where they should be.

The monument to Emily Tubman was dedicated on what would have been her two hundredth birthday. I don't mind that it doesn't match my painting. It feels exactly right.

And it's on my street . . . . That's something to talk about.

AAB

Street Talk -- Balancing Act

I often complain about all there is to do with the time I have. (I will admit that having a two year old around makes a difference.) I don't seem to control the many layers of my day as I have in the past. I try to decide what is really important.

This week, as I watched the junk man roll down the street with his amazing balancing act, I realized that somehow he knew that the placement was right and that it would not fall over. And while he added pieces to his shopping cart collection, I saw that sometimes it's the little things which hold up the big things. I understood that they keep things balanced and rolling smoothly over the bumpy parts.

Sometimes the big things alone just get too top-heavy.

Color of the Day - Red Pears II

In some of these images, there are only subtle differences; in others, there are major changes. BUT, there are no secrets -- I just found a description and clicked!

While there are challenges to learn technique and explore creative ideas -- every flower, barn and landscape can be painted a hundred different ways -- a photo editing program like Photoshop allows me to try out some results without the work!

"Secrets" with rough pastel added through the magic of Photoshop.


Joyce has recently done The Work (and with pears!) on her daily blog. See examples here (watercolor and ink) here (Klimt pear) here (Mosaic) and here (Cubist). (Or just start with the wc/ink and click on 'newer posts' to see each in the series.) No gimmicks; just pure painting. I love her daily paintings. Some are more successful than others; I think because she is willing to take risks and try new things.

"Secrets" with poster outline and cross-hatching added through the magic of Photoshop.

When I am teaching, I am dismayed that students will select a photograph or a sketch and never consider other options for their use. And we're not talking about a different point of view here! They just want to copy what's there. They are afraid to take risks and try new things. Maybe that's why I see so many dead paintings.

"Pick on Somebody Else" enhanced with drybrush through the magic of Photoshop.


I must admit that I refused to allow graphic design students to use their computers until they understood WHY they were doing things. They thought I was old-fashioned; I thought they needed to know more than technology. I wanted them to learn design and explore creative ideas so their technology bones would have some substance.

"You Smell Nice" transformed into cut out shapes through the magic of Photoshop.

Today's technology opens our eyes to so many ways of doing things and getting them RIGHT! It seems decades ago that it was radical to just put a small painting on a copy machine to check the values in the resulting black and white copy. Who knew what we'd be able to do today?

"Whadda Ya Think?" with sharpened edges through the magic of Photoshop.

Two Words to Live By

Labor Day Weekend was probably the last of the reading-in-the -hammock days until next summer and I chose a typical "beach read" -- one of those which doesn't lose its train of thought during a nap.

There was a slight breeze and the sun sparkled down through the canopy of leaves. It was quiet and I became drowsy as I read. Then two words just popped off the page, "Joyous Naughtiness."

Oh, My! What would happen if my life, my paintings and my writing were filled with those two words?

Taking a Challenge

Several months ago, I decided to create a blog for my old High school classmates -- Class of '59. We are getting ready for our 50th Reunion so lately there are more contacts, photo ops and emails and it seemed like an easy thing. The committee didn't seem interested in using E-communications, so I did it for me!

I know. I hardly have time to post here on BushStrokes, but this a different. I also thought it would help to generate a little enthusiasm between the sometimes-quarterly newsletters. Well, the Barbecue which we held five years ago to build interest/enthusiasm for our 45th Reunion has grown annually to include its own committee, all classes from the 50s and 800-1000 attendees -- all of them pre-baby boomers! I don't expect the blog to grow to those numbers, I just want to have fun with it. So why not!

Now, the Reunion Chairmen have asked me to do the print newsletter too, "After all, you do the blog and it's the same stuff," they said. "Same info, but a different kind of writing," I said. "One is for you and one is for me!"

The same news. Twice. Different. It's a challenge.

I'm always saying, I wish I had one more week.

On Sunday, I attended a concert by the Manhattan Piano Trio. Their first piece was a fantastic dance of the piano, violin and cello in three movements.* Fingers flew, bows dipped and butterfly notes swirled in the afternoon light of the stained glass. My friend who had booked them called them just three weeks earlier to ask if they knew this wonderful piece she had just heard on public radio. They didn't; but they learned it. I thought, "That's how you do it! You don't say, I don't know how or there's not enough time -- you just do it!"

Manhattan Piano Trio -- http://www.manhattanpianotrio.com
*Beethoven - Trio No 4 in B flat major, Op. 11 (Allegro Con Brio, Adagio, Tema: Pria Ch'io Pipegno)

Concerts with a Cause are sponsored by St. John United Methodist Church with donations to various local charities -- this month to Salvation Army. They were begun when the new Dobson organ was installed three years ago. Pictures of the organ and a concert schedule are here: http://www.stjohnumcaugusta.com/MusicProgram.htm