words + pictures from the studio of Joan Colbert
The late date of Thanksgiving seemed to make the days leading up to Christmas more rushed than usual, so I was feeling extra thankful for the relative quiet of the holiday morning with family. Isaac had a special surprise – a delightful painting on canvas and a wonderful story behind it.
That is me, driving my dog-shaped car past a park where the hounds frolic. It’s now hanging in my office, viewable from the living room, too. It is awesome (as is the elf with the mismatched socks)!!
This year’s holiday card is a hand colored print, Oak + Holly.
Among the stories of the Oak and the Holly is the Celtic myth of the two kings whose reigns divide the calendar year. The Oak King’a rule begins with the Winter Solstice, replacing the Holly King, who returns to power at the Summer Solstice. The burning of an oak log (the yule log) heralds the coming of new light, while holly branches are brought indoors to bid farewell to the old year.
Happy Holidays!
Artsy Mart returned to the third floor of Summit Artspace for the first weekend of December. In addition to the studio artists, more than twenty guest artisans displayed handmade work, including fiber, jewelry, ceramics, glass, paintings and more. I couldn’t resist a trio of recycled glass trees by Jennifer Worden:
See more of Jennifer’s work here or visit her Etsy shop here.
Just like Christmas decor and marketing in the retail world, holiday flowers on the windowsill are arriving earlier every year. The Christmas cactus decided to bloom for Thanksgiving, adding a bit of welcome color to the days leading up to winter.
The hibiscus is overwintering in the basement, but instead of hibernating, it is brightening up its less-than-lovely surroundings with some festive cheer.
Turkey + Crows
block print
Coming across a bit of art in the storyline of a novel is always a bonus. It can be a piece of art, an artist, or a spy whose resume includes expert painting restoration as in Daniel Silva‘s Gabriel Allon series. A Georgia O’Keefe painting provides the motivation for the characters in the fun mystery, A Dangerous Talent, by Charlotte and Aaron Elkins, while the clues that lead to the perpetrator in Louise Penny‘s Still Life are hidden in a painting. The triptych in Tracy Guzeman‘s debut novel, The Gravity of Birds, holds the key to the lives and relationships of her characters.
The Gravity of Birds opens with a 1963 Mary Oliver poem, No Voyage, beginning with the line,
“I wake earlier, now that the birds have come
And sing in the unfailing trees.”
The book, too, begins in 1963, but focuses on present day as the search begins for the two pieces that will complete the triptych painted over forty years earlier, when the painter and the subjects, sisters on summer holiday, were young. An introductory synopsis can be read on the author’s website, along with reviews, including these words from Natalie Villacorta writing in the Cleveland Plain Dealer: “. . . Much like the paintings that the book describes, it is the details that hold our attention: the secrets we learn about the characters that make us care about them…It is only at the end, when the puzzle is completed, that we see all the pieces Guzeman so cleverly layered into the story.”
And, of course, when the puzzle is complete, we can almost visualize the three paintings side by side.
West Hill Neighborhood Organization
2013 Annual Meeting & Celebration
Thursday, November 14
The Balch Street Community Center was the site for this year’s annual get together of WHNO members. There was much to celebrate this year, including a busy schedule of community events made possible by energetic, committed neighborhood volunteers.
It was an honor to receive the Art Design award – a lovely engraved vase! Outside, a bright yellow carpet of recently shed leaves surrounded the gingko tree beside the community center, visible even in the dim light. I just happened to have the perfect container to take home a few souvenirs.
For additional pictures visit WHNO on Facebook here.
“In Ohio seasons are theatrical. Each one enters like a prima donna, convinced its performance is the reason the world has people in it.” Toni Morrison, Beloved
Tags: autumn, hawthorn berry, hawthorn tree, snow
Summit Artspace artists take the show on the road and head west . . .
The eight studio artists at Summit Artspace are exhibiting together in a collective show at St. Paul’s Gallery through the end of the year. Although the artists’ media, subject matter and styles vary, the artwork and the artists work well together, filling the spacious, windowed gallery with color and creativity. Participating artists are Connie Bloom, Bradley Hart, Terry Klausman, Carolyn Lewis, Cari Miller, Katina Pastis Radwanski, Ron White and Joan Colbert.
The opening reception was held on Sunday, November 10 – thanks to the gallery committee for all of their work and to parishioners, friends and art-lovers for attending!
Cari Miller snapped this photo of Katina and me during the reception.
Thanks to both Katina and Cari for the use of their photos below:
Postcard design by Cari Miller; Summit Artspace image by David Bryan Lile.
For the first time the Akron Area Arts Alliance biennial celebration, Arts Alive!, was held at Summit Artspace rather than an outside venue. Guests were treated to three floors of fun that started in the gallery and ended outdoors with mini bonfires, jugglers and s’mores.
Brenda Cummins, event chair, came up with The Arts Color Our World concept which was then deftly interpreted by Triad Communications for the invitations. The Out of the Box Auction artwork was relocated and rearranged for final bidding. By evening’s end each and every piece had been purchased.
The current issue of akronlife magazine, features this year’s award winners with photographs by Shane Wynn; Shane’s images are marvelous – even when the subject is somewhat very reluctant to be confronted with a camera.
The Beacon Journal has a recap of Arts Alive! here.
