THE SOURCE AND SOUL FOR PROMOTING THE ARTS SINCE 1994
AUGUST into SEPTEMBER 2021
THE ARTFUL MIND
Visual Artist REGINA SCULLY
The Fine Art of Printing Fine Art. · Giclée and Photo Printing · Digital Reproduction of Paintings · Photo Restoration and Repair
“The prints have amazing clarity and are absolutely beautiful reproductions of the original works. Clients are amazed with the quality.” – Virginia Bradley
Playa Santa 22 — Virginia Bradley
Drop-off & Pick-up Available in Great Barrington, MA and Millerton, NY Studio located in Mount Washington, MA l berkshiredigital.com l 413 · 644· 9663
ARTS CALENDAR August into September 2021 S ART 2P S ,L T M CULPTURENOW
HE OUNT LUNKETT T ENOX, MA • 413-358-3884 / SCULPTURENOW.ORG Juried exhibition of 30 contemporary, large-scale, outdoor sculptures by regional and internationally recognized artists. Thru Oct 13
510 WARREN STREET GALLERY 510 WARREN ST, HUDSON NY • 518-822-0510 July 30-Aug 29: Linda Hertz: Color From My Garden; Sept 3 - Sept 29: Peggy Reeves: Works on Paper
SOHN FINE ART 69 CHURCH ST, LENOX, MA • 413-551-7353 / SOHNFINEART.COM July 30 - Oct 11: We May As well Dance: Valda Bailey; Oct 15-Jan 2022: Jeff Robb: Solo Exhibition
CARRIE HADDAD GALLERY 622 WARREN ST, HUDSON, NY • 518-828-1915 AUG 4 - SEPT 19: THEN AND NOW FERRIN CONTEMPORARY 1315 MASS MOCA WAY NORTH ADAMS, MA • 413-346-4004 https://ferrincontemporary.com/ July 26 - Sept 5: Melting Point A group exhibition of ceramic and glass by artists whose use of the melting point is central to their practice. This exhibition is in collaboration with Heller Gallery and will be presented simultaneously in NYC and the Berkshires.
CLAUDE LALANNE, POMME BOUCHE D'ALAN (ALAN’S APPLE MOUTH), 2010, BRONZE AND COPPER, 4 3/4 X 4 1/2 X 4 3/8 INCHES, EDITION OF 100 (#45/100). PRIVATE COLLECTION. LES LALANNE © 2019 ARTIST RIGHTS SOCIETY (ARS), NEW YORK, NY / ADAGP, PARIS, FRANCE. COURTESY OF KASMIN GALLERY
FRONT STREET GALLERY 129 FRONT ST, HOUSATONIC, MA • 413-274-6607 FRONTSTREETALLERY@AOL.COM Featuring watercolor and oils by artist Kate Knapp, Landscapes and still lifes HUDSON HALL 327 WARREN ST, HUDSON,NY WWW.HUDSONHALL.ORG Thru Aug 22: Hudson Talbott: River of Dreams JANET PUMPHREY GALLERY FINE ART PHOTOGRAPHY 17 HOUSATONIC ST, LENOX, MA • 413-637-2777 / JANETPUMPHREY.COM A photographic gallery showcasing the work of photographer Janet Pumphrey andother artists.
Clark Art Institute 225 South St, Williamstown, MA 413-458-2303 http://www.clarkart.edu/ Claude & Francois-Xavier Lalanne: Nature Transformed July 26 through October 31, 2021
BENNINGTON OUTDOOR SCULPTURE SHOW NORTH BENNINGTON, VERMONT July 26 - Nov 7: Large-scale outdoor works will be featured throughout the historic village of North Bennington, at the Hiland Hall Gardens, and on the 10-acre campus of Bennington Museum in Old Bennington. PAMELA SALISBURY GALLERY 362 1/2 WARREN ST, HUDSON NY • 518-828-5907 Sept 4-Oct 3: Harry Roseman: The Fine Art of Getting Lost; Christine Teneglia: one side yellow one side blue; Jill Moser, Nude Pallette; Kim Uchiyama, Interludes. SALEM ART WORKS 19 CARY LANE, SALEM, NY • 518-854-7674 INFO@SALEMARTWORKS.ORG Sculpture park, and cultural events, exhibitions, educational workshops, and artist programs.
LAUREN CLARK GALLERY 684 MAIN ST, GT. BARRINGTON, MA • 413-528-0432 LAUREN@LAURENCLARKFINEART.COM Regionally and internationally recognized artists of fine art and contemporary craft in all media. Also, custom framing
SANDISFIELD ARTS CENTER 5 HAMMERTOWN RD, SANDISFIELD, MA • 413-258-4100 HTTP://SANDISFIELDARTSCENTER.ORG/ Thru Aug 22: Light Tells the Story by Mel Feldman
MATT CHINIAN STUDIO/GALLERY 138 W. MAIN ST #1011, CAMBRIDGE, NY • 518-708-0759 HTTP://WWW. MATTCHINIAN.COM/ Art collection of local painter, plein air landscape, taking photos while painting. NORTH
SCHANTZ GALLERIES CONTEMPORARY GLASS ART 3 ELM ST, STOCKBRIDGE, STOCKBRIDGE, MA • 413-298-3044 / SCHANTZGALLERIES.COM OPEN BY APPOINTMENT Exhibiting works by 60 artists
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SPENCERTOWN ACADEMY 790 ROUTE 203, PO BOX 80, SPENCERTOWN, NY • 518-392-3693 info@spencertownacademy.org Aug 14-Sept 19: Still Life: Flowers, Fruits & Foods in Repose ST. FRANCIS GALLERY 1370 PLEASANT ST. ROUTE 102, SOUTH LEE, MA Ongoing exhibit.
DANCE JACOB’S PILLOW DANCE FESTIVAL 258 GEORGE CARTER RD, BECKET, MA • 413-243-0745 / jacobspillow.org Aug 13 - 15: Cirque Barcode & Acting for Climate Montréal
Events SUMMER ARTS AND CRAFTS IN STOCKBRIDGE Sat Aug 21 - 22: Head for Main Street Stockbridge, MA for the Stockbridge Summer Arts and Crafts Show. 85 jury-selected artists and artisans will display their work ranging from paintings to ceramics, fiberware to glass blowing.
TALKS and Lectures THE MOUNT 2 PLUNKETT ST, LENOX, MA • 413-551-5111 HTTP://WWW.EDITHWHARTON.ORG/ Aug 16, 4pm; Aug 17, 11am: Debby Applegate, Madam: The Life of Polly Adler, Icon of the Jazz Age; Aug 23, 4:00pm: Lisa Napoli, Susan, Linda, Nina, and Cokie: The Extraordinary Story of the Founding Mothers of NPR Aug 24, 11:00am: Journalist Lisa Napoli will
share the captivating stories of these four women, their deep and enduring friendships, and the trail they blazed to becoming icons. Julia Sweig, Lady Bird Johnson: Hiding in Plain Sight. Aug 30, 4pm, Au 31, 11am: Biographer Julia Sweig will discuss her bestselling book, which is a commanding portrait of Lady Bird Johnson, and a reevaluation of the profound yet underappreciated impact the First Lady’s political instincts had on LBJ’s presidency.
THEATER BiNDLESTIFF FAMILY CIRKUS • 212-726-1935 info@bindlestiff.org Aug 20: Dutchmen’s Landing Park, Catskill, NY; Aug 21: Hudson H.S. Athletic Fields,Hudson, NY: See complete schedule on website Innovative collection of mobile performance stages, bringing world-class circus talent to the BARRINGTON STAGE COMPANY 30 UNION, PITTSFIELD, MA • 413-236-8888 BARRINGTONSTAGECO.ORG July 30-Aug 22; Andy Warhol in Iran, Aug 15. SHAKESPEARE & COMPANY 70 KEMBLE ST, LENOX, MA • 413-637-3353 SHAKESPEARE.ORG July 2-Aug 28: King Lear; Jul. 30-Aug. 22: ART by Yasmina Reza; Sep. 10-Oct. 03 hang by debbie tucker green
MUSIC BECKET ART CENTER 7 BROOKER HILL RD, BECKET, MA Aug 21: The Kashmir Souls BERKSHIRE BUSK! JULY 2 - SEPT 4, FRIDAY AN SATURDAY NIGHTS, 6-8:30PM Berkshire Busk! is a new 10-weekend summer event in Great Barrington, MA, where street performers (“buskers”) will perform in designated areas in the early evenings of Friday and Saturday. The locations span one end of downtown to the other, and we invite you to experience a new kind of immersive arts experience. The buskers we are inviting to participate will be diverse in age, race, gender, skill, and genre -- from jazz, rock and folk bands, to classical music, spoken word, dance, jugglers and more. BERKSHIRE OPERA FESTIVAL MAHAIWE PERFORMING ARTS CENTER 14 CASTLE ST, GT BARRINGTON, MA Aug 21, 1 / Aug 24 & 27, 7:30pm: Verdi’s Falstaff
BERKSHIRE THEATRE GROUP 6 EAST ST, STOCKBRIDGE, MA • 413-997-4444 HTTPS://WWW.BERKSHIRETHEATREGROUP.ORG Aug 27, 7pm: Nina Simone: Four Women Nina Simone: Four Women imagines a conversation, often through music, between Simone and three African-American women, set in the fragments of a shattered world. Tony and Grammy Award Nominee Valisia LeKae (Broadway: Motown The Musical will perform as Nina Simone. HELSINKI HUDSON 405 COLUMBIA ST, HUDSON, NY INFO@HELSINKIHUDSON.COM • 518-828-4800 Helsinki Open Mic, every Tues 7-11 Sept 18, 9pm: Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys MASS MOCA 1040 MASS MOCA WAY, NORTH ADAMS, MA / • 413-662-2111 / MASSMOCA.ORG Aug 22, 8pm: The Roots; Sept 24-26: FreshGrass Festival 2o21 NEW MARLBOROUGH VILLAGE ASSOCIATION 154 HARTSVILLE-NEW MARLBOROUGH RD, NEW MARLBOROUGH, MA • 413-229-2785 NEW MARLBOROUGH.ORG Aug 28, 4:30: Pianist Simone Dinnerstein; A Program of Couperin, Schumann, Glass, and Satie. Sepet 11, 4:30pm: Star Performers from Shakespeare and Company with Joan Ackerman: Staged reading of Joan Ackerman’s Ice Glen; Sept 18: Pianist Jeewon Park, Cellist, Edward Arron and Narrator Ben Luxon; A program of Beethoven, Barber, Beach, and Schubert. Sept 25, 4:30: Magician Carl Seiger: “Clearly Invisible... Magic Up Close” An interactive performance combining illusion, jazz, and storytelling TANGLEWOOD 297 WEST ST, LENOX, MA • 617-266-1200 TANGLEWOOD.ORG Aug 28: John Legend, Sat. 7-9pm; James Taylor, Aug 31, 8pm.
MUSEUMS CHESTERWOOD CHESTERWOOD.ORG 4 WILLIAMSVILLE RD, STOCKBRIDGE, MA • 413-298-3578 Aug 27, 4-5pm: Join sculptor John Van Alstine for a walking tour of his outdoor sculpture exhibition followed by a reception on the Studio piazza. This is a special free event.
Effervescent, Harold Grinspoon, Stainless steel, acrylic and wood NORMAN ROCKWELL MUSEUM 9 RTE 183, STOCKBRIDGE, MA / NRM.ORG 413-298-4100 Juried Exhibition:Land of Enchantment A Fantastical Outdoor SculptureExhibit July 10 - October 31, 2021
CLARK ART INSTITUTE 225 SOUTH ST, WILLIAMSTOWN, MA • 413-458-2303 / CLARKART.EDU Groundwork, thru Oct. 17, outdoor exhibit; Erin Shirreff, Remainders, thru Jan 2, 2022; Nikolai Astrup: Visions of Norway, thru Sept 19. MASS MOCA 1040 MASS MOCA WAY, NORTH ADAMS, MA • 413-662-2111 / MASSMOCA.ORG James Turrell, Nicholas Mosse and William Burke, Lapsed Quaker Ware, thru Oct 22; Glenn Kaino, In the Light of A Shadow, Thru sept 5, 2022; Richard Nielsen, thru 21; Northern Berkshire Art Outside, now on view, and much more, check out the website. NORMAN ROCKWELL MUSEUM 9 RTE 183, STOCKBRIDGE, MA / NRM.ORG • 413-298-4100 Enchanted: A History of Fantasy Illustration, June 12-Oct 31 (online) Visit website for details on guide lines for visits to the museum
Send your calendar listing to artfulmind@yahoo.com Deadline is the 5th of the month prior to production.
THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 3
Carolyn Newberger DRAWING from LIFE: THE NUDE as MIRROR and MUSE Galatea Fine Arts, Boston, MA October 1 - 31, 2021 First Friday Reception: October 1, 6 - 8pm
460B Harrison Ave., #B-6 Boston, MA 617-542-1500 www.galateafineart.com
cnewberger@me.com www.carolynnewberger.com 617-877-5672
Woman with Red Hair 2019 watercolor and charcoal 22 x 15 inches
Mark Mellinger Paintings - Collage - Construction
Hell and Heaven In Old New York, 2020 collage on canvas 12x12 inches
100 North St Pittsfield #322 4 • AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER2021 THE ARTFUL MIND
914. 260. 7413
markmellinger680@gmail.com
MATT CHINIAN American Social Realism
#1625 Madison Ave. 2020 11x12
Contact /studio visits: mattchinian@gmail.com THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 5
THE ARTFUL MIND LOOKS LIKE THERE’S SOME VEGGIES IN THE ART GARDEN!!!!!!!
AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 ARTS CALENDAR AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER ...4 ART STUDIOS TO VISIT ...8 VIRTUAL GALLERY FINE ART AND PHOTOGRAPHY GALLERY ...12 REGINA SCULLY / VISUAL ARTIST INTERVIEW BY H CANDEE ...22 UPDATE WITH ARTIST NINA INTERVIEW BY H. CANDEE ...32
LIPKOWITZ
UPDATE WITH SCULPTOR ROBERT WILK INTERVIEW BY H. CANDEE ...36 UPDATE WITH ARTIST CAROLYN INTERVIEW BY H. CANDEE ...42 RICHARD BRITELL / FICTION
SOMETHING FOR OVER THE COUCH
FRONT ST. GALLERY
M. ABRAMS
CHAPTER 3
...48
Publisher / Harryet Candee Copy Editor / Marguerite Bride Third Eye / Jeff Bynack Advertising and Graphic Design / Harryet Candee Contributing Writers Richard Britell / Mike Cobb Photographers Edward Acker / Tasja Keetman ADVERTISING RATES f413 - 645 - 4114
KATE KNAPP
Painting classes on Monday and Wednesday mornings 10-1pm at the studio in Housatonic and Thursday mornings 10am - 1pm out in the field. Also available for private critiques. Open to all. Please come paint with us! Gallery hours: Open by chance and by appointment anytime 413. 274. 6607 (gallery) 413. 429. 7141 (cell) 413. 528. 9546 (home) www.kateknappartist.com
Front Street, Housatonic, MA
artfulmind@yahoo.com issuu.com FB Open Group: ARTFUL GALLERY for artful minds The Artful Mind Box 985
Great Barrington, MA 01230
YFI: ©Copyright laws in effect throughout The Artful Mind for logo & all graphics including text material. Copyright laws for photographers and writers throughout The Artful Mind. Permission to reprint is required in all instances. In any case the issue does not appear on the stands as planned due to unforeseeable circumstances beyond our control, advertisers will be compensated on a one to one basis. All commentaries by writers are not necessarily the opinion of the publisher and take no responsibility for their facts and opinions.
6 • AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 THE ARTFUL MIND
Nina Lipkowitz
The Light Was Caled Day and the Dark Was Called Night 36” x 24” | Mixed Media on Canvas
Meditations in the Time of a Pandemic 510 Warren Street Gallery 510 Warren St., Hudson, NY 12534 Hours: Friday & Saturday 12 - 6, Sunday 12 - 5 ninalipkowitz.com
MARY DAVIDSON
ninalipkowitz@gmail.com
robert wilk
Stamped Abstract Series #23 Acrylic 40 x 32 inches
wwwdavidsondesigncompany.net Studio appointments: Call 1-413-528-6945 Keith and Mary original artwork for sale Studio/gallery, South Egremont, MA
red/precarious.
urbanite theatre, sarasota, florida
rwsculpture.com THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 7
ART studios
to visit
In and around the Berkshires
MARY DAVIDSON www.davidsondesigncompany.net Studio appointments: Call 1-413-528-6945 Keith and Mary original artwork for sale. Studio/ gallery, South Egremont, MA.
CHRISTOPHER R. MALCOMSON 302 530 7160. TEXT, PHONE OR EMAIL TO ARRANGE A VISIT. CHRISMALCOMSON@MAC.COM WWW.CHRISMALCOMSON.COM
MATT CHINIAN Contact /studio visits: mattchinian@gmail.com
8 • AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 THE ARTFUL MIND
GHETTA HIRSCH www.ghetta-hirsch.squarespace.com Instagram@ghettahirschpaintings ghettagh@gmail.com Please text or call 413-281-0626
CAROLYN M. ABRAMS Www.carolynabrams.com Brunswick,NY Open by appointment or by chance
So much to do this season! One great suggestion is to visit an artist at their studio. Become submerged into their world and see how they create art. Get inspired! Enjoy!
VIRGINIA BRADLEY virgbradley57@gmail.com
virginiabradley.com THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 9
Art Walk 2020
Photo credit for these photos: Deirdre McKenna
Director Jennifer Nacht in front of Lenox Chamber
Art Walk 2020, Laura Parks Dobbs Studio 21
Dan O’Connor tent at Art Walk
LENOX ART WALK SEPTEMBER 18 - 19 2021 TH
Something exciting is in the air for Lenox, Massachusetts this coming September! I had the opportunity to speak with Jennifer Nacht, Executive DIrector of the Lenox Chamber of Commerce, owner of The Scoop, the popular local ice cream shop, about the exciting Lenox Art Walk event planned for this fall. I asked her about the connection Lenox has with the visual arts, and she answered, “Lenox is designated as a Cultural District. As a community, we are centered around the arts. We are very supportive of artists in all venues and feel that an bring together an
Arts Festival is a good fit for Lenox. We have many galleries and artists in and around Lenox and having a festival to celebrate is important for the community.” Some of the artists slated for the Lenox Art Walk are Andrew Souvjani‐ Photographic mixed media; Dave Ryan‐ Petrified wood working; Chris Wakefield‐ Woodturning; Derek Mirabilio‐ Jewelry. Jennifer says the expected amount of art‐ ists participating will be 40 to 50 in total for the two‐day event. Still to be announced is the live music venue and food venders, but for sure, says Jennifer, there will be ample parking in and
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around town for all that come to the Lenox Art Walk this year. Jennifer added, “It’s a nice event that is well liked by the artists who come to partici‐ pate and the Lenox merchants as well. The attendees like the fact that artists are set up all throughout the downtown area, making it a great was to meander through the town.” The Fall Art Walk will be held Saturday, 9/18, 10am-5pm and Sunday 9/19 11am-4pm. LENOX.ORG/LENOX-ART-WALK-2021
Pleasant Valley Wildlife Sanctuary | Lenox, Massachusetts presents
Two Perspectives on the Natural World: Paintings by
Ghetta Hirsch and Carolyn Newberger
September Forest 2019 | Watercolor, 5 1/2 x 16 inches
Pike’s Pond | 2019 Oil on Canvas 18 x 24 inches
September 18 - October 31, 2021 Opening Reception: September 25, 4 -7pm Located in the barn at Pleasant Valley Wildlife Sanctuary 472 West Mountain Road, Lenox, Massachusetts THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 11
VIRTUAL ART GALLERY FINE ART AND PHOTOGRAPHY August into September Artists: CLAUDIA d’ ALESSANDRO CAROLYN NEWBERGER MARK MELLINGER CAROLYN M. ABRAMS BRUCE PANOCK
You may find one of these artists have just what you are looking for... For art sales please contact the artist directly. To show your art on a gallery wall: email: artfulmind@yahoo.com Visit our popular group on FaceBool: ART GALLERY for Artful Minds
12 • AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 THE ARTFUL MIND
CLAUDIA d’ALESSANDRO
Monument Mountain Sunrise
Sea and Sky
Sunset Layers
Sunset Dining
"A is for August: Abundance, Aborning beauty, Ablush, in Almost summer's end." All works are 24x36 inches, on Canvas and cost $299.
https://www.dalessandrophotography.com 413.717-1534 THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 13
Study in Red, Watercolor, 22 x 15” $2400.
Man Asleep, Watercolor, 11 x 15”
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$1200.
CAROLYN NEWBERGER
Blue Nude, Watercolor and Charcoal, 24 x 18 $1400.”
CONTACT: www.carolynnewberger.com cnewberger@me.com 617-877-5672 Commissions Upon Request Leap of Faith, Watercolor and Charcoal, 24 x 18” $1400.
THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 15
MARK MELLINGER
Cartoon Clouds Acrylic on Canvas, 12 x 12" 2021 $170 Unnatural Stillness Acrylic on Canvas, 24 x 30" 2021 $300
Lipstick Landscape Acrylic on Canvas. 12 x 12" 2021 $450
Subterranean Pyroclasm Acrylic on Canvas, 60 x 48" 2020 $4500
CONTACT:
914-260-7413 markmellinger680@gmail.com 16 • AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 THE ARTFUL MIND
CAROLYN M. ABRAMS
A Soft Place to Land Soul Sisters
Soulful
These works of art were created with Oil and Cold Wax. The Kiss
Studio open by appointment or chance.
Please contact artist for details on purchasing these works of art at: Www.carolynabrams.com http://www.healing-power-of-art.org/carolyn-mabrams/ Www.facebook.com/CarolynmAbramsArt THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 17
Searching Wandering
Abstract Trees in a Crowd
For this body of work, everything starts with the search for shapes and patterns in the landscape. When I get back to the computer I then mask out what doesn’t add to the subject. This could take days of effort. When the shapes and patterns have revealed themselves, Then I begin thinking about the background, the colors and the textures. It all evolves….or fails magnificently. —Bruce Panock 18 • AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 THE ARTFUL MIND
BRUCE PANOCK
Isolation, Beauty, Loss
Separation Reaching
Each image is part of a limited edition. There are several sizes available. Each piece is priced according to size. Images are unframed and printed on Hahnemuhle archival papers.
CONTACT: www.panockphotography.com bruce@panockphotography.com 917-287-8589 THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 19
A STUDY IN SILENCE WATERCOLOR AND CHARCOAL
CAROLYN NEWBERGER #1758 CUMBY’S GREENWICH 2021 13 X 14”
MATT CHINIAN I am a realist. I paint what I see and depict places and objects with asimple understanding of light and shadow. My subjects are taken from daily life, things I see in passing, things I’m drawn to; they are commonly overlooked. I try to unlock patterns and relationships that depict their beauty and uniqueness. I do not seek to judge but offer up these images for your consideration. mattchinian.com
BOBBY MILLER
Carolyn Newberger is an award-winning artist and writer whose love of the figure is a natural extension of a career in psychology. Her concern for people and their challenges informs her art, whether it be in the studio with a model or in the concert hall capturing a musician or dancer in performance. Her drawings express the essence of her subjects, with their rhythm, flow, character and intensity. Carolyn Newberger - www.carolynnewberger.com
Art is unquestionably one of the purest and highest elements in human happiness. It trains the mind through the eye, and the eye through the mind. As the sun colours flowers, so does art colour life. ― John Lubbock
My teacher, master photographer Lisette Model, taught me that the secret behind a great portrait is the relationship between the photographer and his subject and the artistic capture of the moment. In my studio in Great Barrington, I do hair, make-up, styling, lighting and photography, thereby creating a finished portrait that tells a story even in its simplicity. I believe in incorporating both the classic tools of the camera and newer technologies like Photoshop. In that way my portraits correct the small flaws that nature has bestowed on us. I create images that show us not only as who we are but who we can be as well. So, if you feel daring and inspired to have a portrait that defines you at your very best, I encourage you to come sit before my camera. Bobby Miller Studio, 22 Elm St, Gt Barrington 508-237-9585. By Appointment Only.
Marilyn Cavallari
Orange Sunset, 24 x 30”
Original Oil Paintings marilynmjc@gmail.com 413 458-4087 802 379-0759 website marilyncavallari.com 20 •AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 THE ARTFUL MIND
by Bobby Miller GALLERY WALK WITH THE ARTIST SATURDAY AUGUST 14 | 6 - 9PM Exhibition on View 12pm - 5pm Thursday - Monday through August 30
529 Warren Street, Hudson, NY
212. 227. 2400 | ArtseeHudson.com THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 21
REGINA SCULLY VISUAL ARTIST INTERVIEW BY HARRYET CANDEE PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF ARTIST
Regina, your paintings are beautiful. For me, they each depict different worlds you travel to and explore, a brave pioneer bringing back information on faraway worlds. Is this how you see them as well? REGINA: Yes, exactly. The idea of traveling while standing still has always intrigued me. Painting is a wonderful vehicle for this. Once you get inside a painting, there are so many possibilities to explore and interesting accidental spaces and vignettes to discover both while creating the piece and later in viewing it. I have always taken solace in the fact that I can travel a lot in my mind and in my art. My paintings as personal journeys to exotic worlds. They are all improvisational. I always start the painting in a different way than I have before….and a dialogue begins. I don’t know yet if the painting will start to hum and rise in volume, and if the painting and I will find res-
PHOTOGRAPHY OF ART IMAGES BY GARY GITTELSON
olution and magic together in the end. But I hope we will, and I coax the painting throughout the long process to develop and evolve to this end. Can you give an interpretation of your work? I am looking at Inner Journey, one of your works on paper. REGINA: The titles of my series give a good overall idea about my work. My first serious solo exhibition was in New Orleans in 2008 and titled, Excavations. After Excavations came Navigations, Passages, Horizons, Inner Journeys, and I am currently still working with Mindscapes. In essence, my paintings are about taking a journey and exploring both the painting and oneself. The concept of taking a journey through a painting was central to Chinese painting centuries ago. Without getting too ac-
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ademic, I would like to mention the book, Introduction to Chinese Art, where Michael Sullivan discusses landscape as the “opening of a door.” He discusses how taking a break during the day to contemplate and enter a painted landscape in the mind’s eye, was recognized as “a source of spiritual solace and refreshment.” While early western landscape painting used linear perspective and exercised ideas of power over space, Eastern landscape involved a spiritual contemplation of nature from afar to create a sense of vastness in the world. This was the subject of my thesis in graduate school, and I take great inspiration from this idea -that a contemplative spiritual approach to painting allows for exploration of a landscape that is reflective in some way of the viewer’s own mind. I also explored this concept when developing my exhibition at the New Orleans Museum of
Inner Journey 20, 2019, acrylic on Stonehenge paper, 22 x 30 inches, private collection
Art with the Curator of Asian Art, Lisa Rotondo-McCord. In preparation for the show, we spent months looking specifically at Japanese landscapes. The exhibition consisted of my paintings displayed alongside Japanese landscape paintings from NOMA and a private collection. How does your process change when you are painting on paper versus painting on canvas? REGINA: There is a delicacy to cloth stretched on wood, but an even greater delicacy to paper. On paper, most marks cannot be “erased.” It is a more immediate and finalized type of markmaking. Suddenly deciding to make a rhythm of orange marks in the open sky at the top of a painting can be wiped off quickly if it doesn’t look good. On paper, the mark is more committed,
so it can all feel more dangerous and edgier when working. At the same time, you can have a stack of paper by your side and freely make marks and freely experiment because the paper is more disposable in the process than a beautiful canvas, which is built from wood, stretched with cloth, and quadruple primed and sanded, before it is ready to work on. Like all mediums, both surfaces have their challenges when trying to create life from inanimate material. It is an alchemical process really. A woman visiting my studio once told me that it must take a lot of courage to paint, and I agree with her. With your art, you give a gift to viewers, is that something you agree with? All art is a gift. When viewers come to a piece of art with an open mind and heart, they are given something which conjures up some part
of themselves they may not have been in touch with. It can be a way for one consciousness to communicate with another without using words. Art in general is a language of the unconscious that can be understood in some way by all people. Personally, I think my paintings conjure up emotions and memories of places where the viewer may have visited or dreamed of visiting. And this is like a gift. There is a lyricism woven through my paintings that has a joyful element; there is also a sense of longing--of the human condition--which is full of both joy and sorrow. I truly feel that my art could be a gift when a group of Alzheimer’s patients on a tour of The New Orleans Museum of Art were greatly moved and responsive to a painting of mine in their collection, Cosmographia. Continued on next page...
THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 23
REGINA SCULLY
Entrances, 2020, Acrylic and polymer clay sculptures on linen on wood panel, 48 x 60 inches, on view at Octavia Art Gallery, New Orleans
That means you have a great imagination that helps you to communicating visual ideas and to feel free to express yourself as a creative individual? If I could, I would live in my imagination all the time! Seriously though, I’ve always enjoyed how my imagination allows me see figures out of the corner of my eye, or faces in mounds of cloth or piles of trash. I love it when my eyes “play tricks” on me, when, for example, in the distant wavy heat, I may think I see an old carnival which is really only a series of gas stations and tents selling fireworks. Wearing glasses for distance is helpful with this, and I like to take them off so things become a little blurry and I can see figures and objects emerge from the landscape when I walk. When I paint, I am painting what I see emerge from the colors and environments I have laid out on the canvas. What role does your intuition play in your creative moments? 24 • AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021
I think intuition is a gateway into the imagination. The challenge is to learn how to work with intuition, how to trust it and have faith in it. Ultimately, I believe that creating art is a spiritual act that involves courage, trust, faith, and belief. It’s a constant challenge to approach my work with this in mind and to let go of all judgement and all that I think I “know.” As a colorist, you work with a pallette of colors that will work with and be combined with other skills needed to gain depth, fluidity and perception. How do you balance and juggle all of these necessary jobs? The color, atmosphere, and content all come together at the same time. The colors play a big role in creating the atmosphere in the painting. I appreciate complex color situations, and I like to use lots of colors in the paintings. I recently had over 30 colors on my palette as I was finishing Mindscape 32. It is a lot to manage especially at the end, when solidifying all the specific colors and choreographing how they
THE ARTFUL MIND
all work together in the painting. An intimate question I hope you will answer: what thoughts go through your mind before you touch the canvas? When I get into the studio, I am preparing myself to work on a big puzzle. First, I am taking note of all the little things that I want to adjust and fix in the painting. I often make lists like “make fence stronger by yellow stars” and “make arch stronger at bottom over writing lady,” etc. At the same time, I am trying to let go and allow my intuition to tell me what to do next. When I am in that balanced place, between knowing and not-knowing, it almost becomes automatic. It is like a knowledgeable intuition that takes over. A certain brush calls out to be used, and areas of the painting want attention and I follow the colors I see in my head that want to be used. Continued on next page...
Cosmographia, 2016, acrylic on canvas, 60 x 72 inches, Collection of New Orleans Museum of Art, New Orleans
Origin of Dreams, 2017, acrylic on canvas, 39 x 64 inches, on view at Canyon Ranch, Lenox, MA THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 25
REGINA SCULLY
Mindscape 32, 2021, acrylic on canvas, 48 x 60 inches, on view at Octavia Art Gallery, New Orleans
I live with my paintings and I have many paintings going at the same time. Each one has its own timing to emerge completed from the studio. The two large paintings I recently completed each have a long story. One was started in 2018 and the other in 2016. In each case, I liked the painting but could not figure out how to resolve it, so I put it away. When I brought the paintings out years later I was up to the challenge, and realized they were both delving into something that I had developed in other paintings and understood now. You have had a number of public solo art exhibits at great galleries including the New Orleans Museum of Art. So I wonder since each location has its own demands, how do you go about putting together a solo show? When I have an upcoming exhibition, it is all I think about. The paintings that are already in progress take on a buzz and I start new canvases, keeping in mind the number of pieces and sizes I’ll need for the show. I generally
have all of the pieces going at the same time, and they begin to talk to each other in my studio. Concepts about the exhibition start to form and I write down words and titles and ideas as I’m working. There is a great energy and adrenaline that fuels the whole experience. There is a magic that happens when I finish each painting, a final conversation, where everything feels solid…and very good. I need to hear that click at the end. I can often remember the last mark I put on each painting. The exhibitions at my galleries (Octavia Art Gallery in New Orleans and C24 Gallery in New York City) as well as the one at New Orleans Museum of Art, were all planned about a year in advance. Sometimes there’s more than one solo exhibition in a particular year to prepare for, as well as art fairs and group exhibitions. How does your present day art making differ from the art you did when you finished college and started walking the walk
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of an artist? In 2005, after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, a city I had just moved to from New York, my work changed a great deal. Up until then my paintings focused on the figure in an interior or exterior space. They were abstract figures, very psychological and large in the composition. After Katrina, I stayed in Mobile, AL at the old family house, Termite Hall. I took trips to New Orleans to help friends and family clear the devastation and took a series of photos of abandoned neighborhoods with debris everywhere, strewn across lawns and coming out of windows. Bicycles were up in trees, and rooftops were on the ground with staircases that reached up to nothing. Everything was turned upside down and inside out; reality had become abstract. I did paintings using my photos for inspiration and relinquished the figure. Lots of different terrains and abstract landscapes began to emerge, and I started exploring and building these spaces on the canvas.
Mindscape 25, 2019, acrylic on canvas, 60 x 72 inches, on view at World Trade Center, Tower 7, New York
(Termite Hall—I love that name!)...Regina, of all the artists that you have been inspired by, tell us who has been on the top of that list and why? Cecily Brown and Phillip Guston, Bruegel, Bosch, and Eva Hesse just to name a few. Julie Mehretu is an amazing painter whose work I follow. She was actually at RISD in the graduate painting department when I was there as an undergrad. I took a class on Van Gogh in college. I had already studied his letters to Theo. His incredible passion for painting is infectious. The way he used paint, so definitively and passionately, has always made me feel intense emotions. His paintings vibrate with life bursting through. When we get through a year like 2020, what can you say you have learned, and is it reflective in your eyes as you paint today? To be honest, I have learned even more about what this world can throw at you. I was living in New York City when 9/11 happened and
then I moved to New Orleans in 2003, two summers before Hurricane Katrina. I have experienced destruction and horror on a grand scale, and so during COVID, I did what I always do, paint and survive. I was thinking about COVID when I began making hundreds of body parts to incorporate into my paintings last year. Would there be a turning point for you when you see a new style coming forth and emerging from within? Do you allow it in or, do you try to stay consistent to what you have been doing all along? I welcome anything new that wants to come into my work. I have lots of pieces in progress that have broken into new territories but are not ready to fully emerge. I have small sculptures which will become something one day too. I particularly love going to see an artist’s retrospective, because it shows all of the different evolutions, both small and large in an artist’s journey.
In terms of artists’ supplies, like your paints for example, would you share with us your recommendations on your favorite materials? Your question immediately makes me think of the joy of receiving a fresh order of art supplies on the doorstep. I painted in oils for fifteen years, with Old Holland paint, until I switched to acrylic paint in 2008. I wanted to be able to pile layers on the canvas without waiting for the paint to dry or worrying about cracking. They make wonderful acrylic paint now, and my favorite is Guerra Paint in New York. Guerra sells pigment dispersions and mediums so you can make your own highly pigmented paint in any color and consistency. I keep a notebook of all the new colors I mix so I am able to duplicate them if needed. I also use Old Holland acrylic paint and Golden paint. Using quality materials is important to the integrity of the work and allows me to rest easy at night, knowing that the colors I Continued on next page...
THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 27
REGINA SCULLY
Mindscape 18, 2019, acrylic on canvas, 24 x 72 inches, private collection
Mindscape 20, 2019, acrylic on canvas, 24 x 72 inches, on view at Canyon Ranch, Lenox, MA
use are lightfast, the linen or canvas is a strong weave, and the stretchers are solidly built. On a side note question, I wonder, what keeps you occupied when you are not in your studio painting up a universe? I like taking long weekends to visit the beach and spending time with good friends. I started writing poetry again during COVID. I also like practicing the violin, collecting dolls, and metalsmithing. Oh, Violin! ...We are continuously learning about ourselves and the world every day. As we know, art is a great gift. I would ask you, if not for art, then what would take its place? I think it would be jewelry-making. I made my first silver ring with a tiger’s eye stone in the back of the art room with a propane torch in high school. I was the only student who wanted to work with metal and my art teacher, Judith
Saunders, put something together with some charcoal blocks so I could learn. I still wear that ring today. If I did not work in the visual arts, then I would be a writer like my sister, Helen Scully, or a musician, like my brother Francis Scully. We are so good at problem solving and taking on new challenges. For you, what do you dare to venture into and explore away from the studio? What is your next mountain you need to cross about? Do you see a clear path? I need to find a house and studio by the ocean. I love the ocean and grew up near Virginia Beach and the Chesapeake Bay. For the past six years, I have attended the Hermitage Artist Retreat in Manasota Key, FL. Every time I have gone to work by the ocean, I’ve felt balanced and free and my work has always evolved in new, exciting directions.
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What part of your life was most profound in regards to your artistic life? That would have to be summers as a child spent at my mother’s family home in Mobile, AL. It is a historical house built in 1851 and has been in my family since 1919. It is known as Termite Hall, and properly, as the GreeneMarston Home. My grandmother was a selftaught artist and was more interested in making sculptures at the kitchen table than cooking, cleaning, or doing any typical grand-motherly things. She called the house her “Walden” and she would walk through it every day and talk about the house and all the objects in it as if they were alive. She and I would sit for hours, making the characters from the Wizard of Oz or whatever came to mind that day. We always started with brown paper bags and scotch tape. Then we would use paper-mache, macramé hair and found objects that we painted or carved and added to the piece. There were miniature vignettes set up around the house. Hal-
Scully working her color palette
loween and Christmas creations stayed out all year, and ghost stories were prevalent. Termite Hall was a fantasy holiday playground as a child. It was enough to fuel my imagination for a lifetime and most importantly, it blurred the lines between reality and fantasy. As an adult, I still go there to visit. Though my grandmother is no longer present, my aunt and cousins are there, and it will always be a touchstone of love and creativity. Tell us about your solo exhibit Lost and Found last year at Octavia Art Gallery in New Orleans. In life, there are moments of feeling vulnerable and broken as well as times when we put ourselves back together and heal. I felt a great loss last year after my best friend passed away at the beginning of COVID. Along with the isolation of the pandemic and the horrifying images in the media, I began making miniature sculptures of arms and different body parts.
I incorporated these sculptures into my paintings and tried to think of the small colored sculptures as strokes of paint. I have worked in different sculptural mediums throughout the years and it was cathartic to bring this element into the 2-dimensional painted surface. To see more of your art, can you tell us where is the best place to look? My web site address is reginascully.com where you see images of all of my paintings and where you can find my CV and contact information for my galleries. I am on social media and can be found on Facebook and Instagram. There are also a couple of videos on YouTube where I discuss my work. I am represented by Octavia Art Gallery in New Orleans and C24 Gallery in New York City. I am also delighted to have a great selection of paintings currently on view at Canyon Ranch in Lenox, MA.
Regina, to conclude this wonderful interview with you, please throw us one of your most meaningful quotes you have in your mental files? There is a beautiful quote from Pablo Neruda that I love: “I need the sea because it teaches me.”
Thank you!
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FRONT ROW TO AUGUST
MINDSCAPE 32
MARGUERITE BRIDE
REGINA SCULLY
COMMISSIONS
Regina Scully lives in New Orleans, Louisiana and was born in Norfolk, Virginia. She received her BFA in Painting from Rhode Island School of Design and her MFA in Painting from University of New Orleans. A recipient of the Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation Grant Award in 2017, Scully has exhibited nationally and internationally and had a solo exhibition at the New Orleans Museum of Art in 2017. She was awarded an Artist Residency at the Hermitage Artist Retreat and has been invited back every year to work since 2016. Scully’s paintings are in private and public collections including 7 World Trade Center, the Microsoft Art Collection, the Frederick R. Weisman Art Foundation Collection, and the New Orleans Museum of Art. Scully’s paintings have been in two group exhibitions this spring and summer following her solo exhibition at Octavia Art Gallery in September/October of last year. C24 Gallery recently created and released an online viewing room of her paintings in July. Coming up, Scully’s paintings will be on view with Octavia Art Gallery at the Hamptons Fine Art Fair, New York, September 2-5, 2021. She also has work in a group exhibition, The Emotional Brain, at Carroll Gallery, Tulane University, New Orleans, August 23– Sept. 30. A selection of her paintings is currently on display and can be seen by guests at Canyon Ranch in Lenox, MA. An inventory of her paintings can be seen at any time by going to C24 Gallery in NYC or to Octavia Art Gallery in New Orleans. Regina Scully – follow/send message on Instagram (@regina.scully )and Facebook; www.reginascully.com. She can also be contacted through her galleries and through The Artful Mind magazine.
Is there a special occasion in your future? Anniversary? Wedding? Graduation? Retirement? Selling a home and downsizing? A custom watercolor painting of a wedding venue, a home or other special location is a treasured gift. Now is a great time to commission a house portrait or business or your favorite scene captured in a watercolor. Paintings (or even a personalized gift certificate, then I work directly with the recipient) make a cherished and personal gift for weddings, retirement, new home, old home, anniversaries…..any occasion is special. Commission work is always welcome. And businesses get to use their painting in promotional purposes as well. A very personal type of commission that has been becoming more popular….paintings of your wedding venue (church or other stunning setting, for example, the “Mount”). Or a “special” location that is meaningful to the bride and groom. Perhaps a gift certificate to the bride and groom for a painting of a special scene from their honeymoon? Visit my website for info about an alternative wedding guest book as well. Be in touch …it is guaranteed to be a fun adventure! Marguerite Bride – Home Studio at 46 Glory Drive, Pittsfield, Massachusetts by appointment only. Call 413-841-1659 or 413-442-7718; margebride-paintings.com; margebride@aol.com; Facebook: Marguerite Bride Watercolors.
“Don’t think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it’s good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art.” – Andy Warhol
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CLAUDIA d’ALESSANDRO A is for August. It is also for Abounding beauty, Aborning and Ablush. It is the season of maturity, of ripened fruit and swelling grains. August is nature’s Abundance on display - in all her finery and fullness - even as summer is Almost over. While August’s colors seem deeper and even the skies more dramatic, the days are noticeably shorter. Hot, thick air begins to give way to an occasional nightly chill, and the first hints of color tint leaf edges. While there may be no richer time in New England, August signals the beginning of summer’s end, of summer vacation, perhaps a return to school or work. In its final days August sets the stage for the turning of the leaves and autumn’s harvests which will mark the end of the growing season. While this is what happens at August’s end, there is still time to savor the last of the season’s warmth and richness. As each season has a lesson which applies to the human condition, August reminds us to seize and enjoy the days of plenty, to bask in warmth and be grateful for the gifts that Nature gives us. Nature’s images remind me of the magnificent beauty that surrounds us - the mighty power of the natural world which we inhabit. Air, earth and water serve as my canvas. I hope that you will share my appreciation for summertime’s ‘A is for August’. “Claudia’s photography touches our souls with deep joy!” ~ CHR “She sees with her eyes and feels with her heart.” ~ DKAH For more information on purchasing these, or other prints, - please email me at: cdalessandro26@gmail.com, - visit me at https://www.dalessandrophotography.com, or - follow me on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/cdalessandrophotography/ and on Instagram as: dalessandronatura. Don’t forget to mention The Artful Mind for Preferred Customer pricing! Cheers to all for a safe, healthy and inspiring late summer!
KATE KNAPP
FRONT ST. GALLERY CATENA 12, OIL ON CANVAS, 20 X 16”
VIRGINIA BRADLEY CATENA 12 THE SEA Pablo Neruda, On the Blue Shore of Silence (a passage) “the pulse that rose and fell in its abyss, the cracking of the blue cold, the gradual wearing away of the star, the soft unfolding of the wave squandering snow with its foam, the quiet power out there, sure as a stone shrine in the depths, replaced my world in which were growing stubborn sorrow, gathering oblivion, and my life changed suddenly: as I became part of its pure movement.”
Pastels, oils, acrylics and watercolors…abstract and representational…..landscapes, still lifes and portraits….a unique variety of painting technique and styles….you will be transported to another world and see things in a way you never have before…. join us and experience something different. Painting classes continue on Monday and Wednesday mornings 10-1:30pm at the studio and Thursday mornings out in the field. These classes are open to all...come to one or come again if it works for you. All levels and materials welcome. Private critiques available. Classes at Front Street are for those wishing to learn, those who just want to be involved in the pure enjoyment of art, and/or those who have some experience under their belt. Front Street, Housatonic, MA. Gallery open by appointment or chance anytime. 413-5289546 at home or 413-429-7141 (cell) www.kateknappartist.com
As COVID began to lift in March I was vaccinated and reunited with my beloved Caribbean Sea. It was a relief to be submerged in the turquoise waters for endless hours - lost in oblivion and searching for the unknown. As Neruda states “I became part of its pure movement”. Catena 8 -12 were begun in my Playa Santa Studio. They were searching for the “interconnected moments” that held us together in suspension during the COVID Pandemic. The paintings continued their adventure after they arrived in my Great Barrington Studio. The combination of the sea and the weeks of rainy Berkshire weather resulted in a series of playful yet meditative images that carry a sea of mystery as you glimpse into their world. Virginia Bradley - virgbradley57@gmail.com, www.virginiabradley.com, 302-540-3565.
“There are no rules. That is how art is born, how breakthroughs happen. Go against the rules or ignore the rules. That is what invention is about.” – Helen Frankenthaler
FRAGILITY OILS/COLD WAX 8 X 8” FRAMED IN BLACK WOOD FRAME
CAROLYN M. ABRAMS Carolyn Abrams grew up in Brunswick, NY well known for its rolling hills and amazing light and sunsets. Her work is an exploration of the wisdom of art that she finds as a passionate artist. Intuition has always guided her in her exploration of the spiritual and physical worlds. An enthusiastic learner, new techniques and unique art materials drive her work to best express this passion for creativity in her ethereal and peaceful natureinspired paintings. Most recently her work with oils and cold wax have provided the perfect medium for expression. From the natural world that surrounds the area in which she lives, to the bell that is rung by a lyric or poem, each work reveals the elements of impressionism and abstraction. Feelings of hope and harmony are ever present in her work which attracts many of her collectors to follow her on her journey. Carolyn M. Abrams www.carolynabrams.com; Facebook www.facebook.com/CarolynMAbramsArt
robert wilk
Love/red.
Flying Horse Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit
rwsculpture.com THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 31
Day 144-146, 2020 From Nina Lipkowitz’s January 2021 show, Meditations in the Time of the Pandemic, Watercolor, pen and ink, torn paper, 24x18”
UPDATE WITH ARTIST
NINA LIPKOWITZ Interview by Harryet Candee I know you are creating a body of new artwork I would love to hear about. What makes this work different or similar from previous work you have done? Nina Lipkowitz: When I look back over my life and especially my life as an artist I see how connected it all is. I minored in sculpture in college and my earliest work was done in stone; both marble and alabaster. Following the birth of my son in 1975 I became a potter and ran and taught at the West Side YMCA in Manhattan. In 1990, I left the world of crafts and clay and worked as a guide and educator at the American Museum of Natural History in NYC for 10 years while waiting for inspiration as to what I should do
Photographs courtesy of Artist
next. It took a while but after moving to the Berkshires 15+ years ago I have been teaching yoga and painting in watercolor, oil and acrylics on canvas and paper. As you know I also spent several years painting on my iPad. I have always been fascinated by circles, spirals and colors. (see images). My life has actually been a series of never ending circles and spirals. Much more than an artist, I consider myself an explorer. I often set myself assignments and ask myself “what if?” Are you feeling this may be just a stepping stone, or do you see yourself committing to what you are now doing? Maybe you will say,
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I don't know. In which case, I would ask you if you feel a sense of newness and freedom? In every way I am committed to evolving. Nothing is static and neither is my work. The only thing that I am certain of that I will always be evolving and changing. The show you had in July was at 510 Warren Street Gallery in Hudson, NY. What was involved in terms of challenges and theme? One of my main challenges during this year was that due to scheduling changes caused by the pandemic I would be having two shows within 6 months (January and July, 2021) and I realized that I wanted to mark the changes with a new
Nina Lipkowitz Where Does the Moon Go? Mixed Media on Canvas 24x18”
body of work but the question was how to do it and what would to do? A bit crazy no? This new show which was up for the month of July is called- “After the Year of Living Dangerously: What’s Next?”. The show it followed was called “Meditations in the Time of a Pandemic”. The work shown in January began on March 12, 2020 when John and I locked down for the pandemic. Each painting was numbered with the day count beginning a few days after lock down day, March 12, 2020. During that year I kept a written journal. This daily work allowed me to stay grounded in each day and kept me from projecting into what I saw as a very unknown and frightening future. For me the initial year of the pandemic as ending in March, 2021 after the vaccine became available and the fear began to abate and the world felt like it was beginning to open up. In addition to knowing that I had another show coming in 6 months I felt ready to challenge myself by trying to continue in watercolor and ink but using canvas instead of paper. I set that as my assignment, to find out- Could it be accomplished? It was something I had never seen or worked in. Wa-
tercolor moves on paper in a very different way than it moves on canvas. I coated the canvas with a watercolor ground which allowed me to start my paintings with watercolor paints since that was the language I was comfortable with. I began adding inks, acrylics and mixed media; mostly torn and cut papers made from mulberry pulp with elements of gold and silver leaf. I realized that the layering effects on canvas were very different and less spontaneous then on paper but in some ways very similar in feeling to my iPad paintings. Instead of one painting a day I would work for days, weeks and in some cases months on each piece. Hudson is a very exciting place, its evolving all the time. What are your thoughts about Warren Street Gallery? I feel so fortunate to be a part of 510 Warren Street Gallery in Hudson, NY. Hudson has evolved and become more and more exciting during the time we have been there. We celebrated our 10th anniversary last October. Being a member of an artist owned gallery is incredible. It allows me to curate my own shows. I decide what I am going to show and how I am
going to show it. We seem to have weathered the pandemic very well. We have an incredibly talented and diverse group of artists which over the years have changed and grown in scope and numbers. Kate Knapp, the gallery director has managed to give the gallery a very special vision. 510 Warren Street Gallery is always on the look out for new artists so if you are interested in becoming a part of it please contact us by email: 510warrenstgallery@gmail.com You have done an amazing body of work related to, and in honor of your father and his journey through WWII. Have you been adding to it at all with new ideas and exploration? Maybe, you find it very contemplative and private now? Can you also, for readers unfamiliar with this work of yours, explain what this is all about? I think that you are referring to my show from 2018, “Battle Fatigue” which was inspired by a scrap book my father and mother put together after he returned from WWII. He was an officer with Patton’s Third Army for 2 years and helped liberate Ohrdruf, the first concentration camp Continued on next page...
THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 33
NINA LIPKOWITZ
Lt. Polkowitz From the Show Battle Fatigue, 2018, Photo transfer and acrylic on canvas, 24x18”
Nina and her iPad work, direct descendants from working in pottery and the ancestors of her new abstact work
Always Trust Your Cape Portrait from Ireland, Halloween, 2019, acrylic on canvas, 36x36” Nina’s work when Covid Lockdown hit.
liberated by the US. Not only was this body or work a way to honor him but it was a way to heal what had been an often confusing and complicated relationship with this man who suffered from untreated PTSD. That work also on canvas used photo transfer images from his scrapbook. I have not continued with this work. I consider it complete although I am toying with figuring out how to include photo transfers in my new work. Another challenge I look forward to exploring. I know you had an amazing time in Ireland, before Covid. Please tell us what you brought home with you in terms of experience and memories of this magical land? This is a great question. This trip to Ireland was
incredible and inspirational. Although I have no Irish ties I was enchanted by the people, the music and the land. I came home in November 2019 ready to work on a new show which would hang at the gallery in Hudson in November, 2020. (This is the show that was postponed until January, 2021) I began working on a series of portraits and was considering adding some landscape paintings. When Covid hit in March I no longer had any desire to create this body of work. I had completed several paintings which I had hung in a small show for the month of February. The gallery closed for 4 months during that time and stayed up on the walls basically sight unseen until last July, when we decided to reopen the gallery with all Covid protocols in place.
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Are you thinking of new travel plans on the horizon? It may be a while, yes, but, where might you be interested in going when we are all in the clear? For now, staying in the Berkshires, going in the New York City from time to time and staying healthy seems like a huge accomplishment. Definitely no major trips in the near future. Nina, how has your life changed, been altered, been touched by the Pandemic? What might you have learned from it? In March 2020 when I experienced my complete Covid, fear-based meltdown I was terrified of what would become of us. I had little faith that my husband John and I would survive this terrible plague. Being forced to isolate and leave
Nina Liplowitz, My Ladder From the show, After the Year of Living Dangerously: What’s Next? Mixed media on canvas 24x18”
Nina Lipkowitz, Day into Night From the show, After the Year of Living Dangerously: What’s Next? Mixed media on canvas, 24x18”
everything that seemed like our “normal” life was frightening. How would we manage? How would we spend our days without our normal routines. Fortunately I mentioned all of this to Dave Halley, an amazing healer who I’ve worked with in the past and he asked if I would like to do a healing session with him over the phone. I trust Dave and although I had never done anything like this before and it turns out neither had he- Dave worked his magic (reiki and I don’t know what else he did) over the phone. After that one session I was able to enter my studio, organize and clear the space which allowed whatever was next to flow through… and what appeared next were these meditative watercolor abstracts. I did at least one painting a day and sometimes two or three. Each one was
titled with the day count which continued up to day 365. The calm and comfort and grounding these brought me during this terrible time was nothing short of miraculous. The work flowed out of me with no planning or thinking. They were truly meditations in motion. I think that I have learned how truly resilient and strong I am. Instead of folding and curling up into a ball, which is what I wanted to do I got help. I certainly watched a lot of movies during this last 16 months but I also did a lot of hiking, something I have always wanted to do. I’ve learned about our trails, waterfalls, beaver ponds, plants and mushrooms. All of this saved me and made me stronger in every way. You have asked me about my basic nature. I am lucky to be curious and optimistic.
Nina, every time I see you, you have this happy smile on your face. It is a pleasure to talk with you. Can you share with us simply, what you think is on the rise in terms of the Art world? I have absolutely no idea. I’m hoping that people continue to find their creative souls and explore them. Life is too short to have to consider where it’s all headed. For me it’s a fulltime job just staying in the moment.
Thank you!
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LOVE/Red
UPDATE WITH SCULPTOR
ROBERT WILK Interview by Harryet Candee You're always keeping busy with creating sculpture, sending me and others humorous and enlightening emails and just being in the moment. How has this past year been for you? What have you been mindful of that may be new to you? Immortality. I'M Reminded of how Woody Allen once responded to a question about how he would like to achieve immortality, he answered, "By not dying". It's hard to disagree with that, but some people have achieved the next best thing, by keeping "alive" in achieving it in a unique, memorable way. This "second tier of immortality" has been awarded to The World's Most Brilliant People, who have created something so incredibly wonderful, that, in effect, they're still "alive" ... like Shakespeare, or the great Polish scientist, Madame Sklodowska Curie (google it), or, in my field, Michelangelo. Well, I can't help but realize 36 • AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 THE ARTFUL MIND
Photographs courtesy of Artist I'm not in that rarefied atmosphere. However, in a modest way I'd like to "keep alive" for my friends and others by writing the memoirs of my most adventurous, fun, and wildly fortunate life. I've been working for about 10 years on "A Vineyard in Venice", referring to my home until recently in Venezia, a 15th century palazzo that had a huge garden and a long, long pergola of fragolino grapes, which produced roughly 70 liters of wine. I decided that was a "vineyard"! I'm sure no one can doubt that, right? Are you working on new sculpture ideas? Oh, indeed ... the world's first Pop Up Sculpture. And I already have a sponsor. for it. I've always loved mobiles, but, let's face it, Calder already owns that. Intrigued with "sculpture that moves", I dreamed of something
that would move more than a mobile. In my work it would open as you pass it, it would open, and then close when you moved on. (photos on right) When are you planning to come back to the Berkshires? We miss you! And I know how much you love Tanglewood and summer stock. I hope later in the summer for a couple weeks. Can't wait! Happily, theatre, ballet and opera are starting to reopen here in Sarasota. Extraordinary quality, too! The Sarasota Ballet was at Jacob's Pillow a couple years ago, with great reviews from The New York Times. Are your sculptures on view in the Berkshires this summer? I just have one in the sculpture show at the Sandisfield Art Center. All my other pieces are in private collections. Taking Love/red for example, explain what elements in this piece for you were successful and satisfying? What brought about the thought of making this beautiful and minimalistic sculpture? What did you enjoy most about creating it? I loved doing something really BIG and challenged by figuring out a construction that would make it easy to transport from the Berkshire to near Boston. So it was made in two pieces. What fun it was!
New work: Pop-Up sculpture by Robert Wilk
Red and blue and yellow -- why these primary colors? Why not others? Why do these colors work for you? Where did the inspiration originate from? Simplicity. And primary colors are powerful. It complements the minimalist forms I create. When people ask what my medium is, I say, COLOR. The material is secondary, usually chosen for practical reasons. Over the years you have travelled extensively, and lived in Venice for 16 years until rather recently. Can you tell us about what it was like there for you, how you lived, what you did, what you remember and loved about Venice life? Was it at all related to the magnificent art to behold? I chose and loved Venice because it's a totally original creation ..... unique beyond words. (And no stupid cars, which I hate.) Plus lots of dolce vita! From the beginning there in 1994 I first created a special kind of "cooking school", called ROBERTO'S ITALIAN TABLE/Culinary & Cultural Holidays in Italy, weeklong programs based at the great Orient Express Hotels in Venice, Florence, Rome and Portofino. It really took off and got wonderful reviews in The Sunday Times in London, Le Monde in Paris, and New York Magazine, as well as several papers in Tokyo, where I had lived previously for 25 years as a Marketing Consultant to foreign companies. (But that's another story!) What is your most favorite thing to do? I know, drinking Prosecco at a cafe and having interesting conversations. Continued on next page.... THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 37
ROBERT WILK
How LOVE/Red was constructed and made by Robert Wilk...Started with ideas on paper, often used.
Kiss / Impending BEFORE
The two pieces were then made into aluminum and painted red.
Kiss / Impending INSTALLED!
The two pieces were slipped into each other by five terrific guys and installed in place. 38 • AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 THE ARTFUL MIND
Flashes/Red/Yellow/Blue Origami Table/Yellow
BEFORE: Ménage à Trois.
I love to daydream. I guess that's where my "inspiration" comes from. Like "out of nowhere"! I can sit for hours at a cafe thinking, dreaming, sketching, imagining, and getting really "into it" with each new glass of Prosecco. I find bubbles work. I hope you still have great encounters with people you find interesting. And now that COVID may be at its end, the good times may actually be starting slowly again. What is on your list of things you are planning to do that you had to hold off on? How did it affect your artistic work? Travel, of course. But differently from my youthful, super-energetic ways of yesteryear. I now long to be with people rather than to be "seeing things". So cruises are good. The transatlantic QM2 is classy in the Noel Coward sort of way, black tie for dinner, impressive cultural programs, in addition to the fun, outrageous shows. I love it. And it offers a peaceful 7 days to write, which I do a lot of these days. That's how I've been travelling between the two continents for over 30 years! I've met
Slice/RED Private collection, Sarasota, Florida
Robert Wilk stands beside his sculpture. Ménage à Trois. Private Collection.
some great people,whom I still keep in touch with. New friends are good! I know how much you love Opera. What sculpture of yours that you have created brings a smile to your face and possibly the echoes and sound of a great diva for you? Well, to start with, Eartha Kitt, the first goddess in my life when I was about 15. Brilliant woman. The Andrews Sisters fit in there as well. My Polish family often danced to the Beer Barrel Polka during the Sunday Polish Music broadcast. If you had the chance to put a sculpture up in the Sistine chapel, what would be the idea you would come up with? OY! Lighting, with James Turrell. Thank you! THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 39
KATHI RILEY LICENSED MASSAGE THERAPIST Kathi Riley, LMT is a Licensed Massage Therapist who uses the energetic systems in and around the body to heal common aches and pains from the holistic viewpoint, bringing harmony to body, mind and spirit. Energy medicine naturally calms the nervous system, releases tension and activates your healing throughout your body. Some of the common ailments that respond well to this work are bone misalignment, muscle tension and range of motion issues. It is also beneficial for recovering from the stress of big changes such as divorce, life stage transitions or the loss of your loved one. Kathi Riley at Rhythms Massage and Energy Work Lenox Commons, 55 Pittsfield Road, Lenox. Bookings are by appointment only. Call or text 413-822-2292. www.RhythmsMassage.net.
TERREL BROUSSARD FOOD AS MEDICINE In last month’s column, I mentioned the need to be persistent and consistent with certain foods and herbs in order for them to have an effect on the human body. Once accumulated these nutrients can have an anabolic reaction, leading to the growth of healthy tissues and positive changes in the body. Similarly, unhealthy foods and practices accumulated by the body can lead to negative changes. As a student of herbal medicine, I remember taking a walk through the neighborhoods of Silver City, New Mexico with a teacher who was introducing us to different plants that were growing through cracks in the pavement, randomly and wildly climbing fences, overtaking abandoned yards, and pretty much thriving in any place that humans allowed. These were referred to as weeds by most, however, my instructor made it clear that the plants he referred to should be revered as medicine. Milk thistle is a perfect example of one per-
40 • AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 THE ARTFUL MIND
son’s poison being another person’s medicine. It is considered a noxious weed because it can kill cattle if eaten in large amounts, however, when ingested by humans over long periods of time, it has been proven to protect the liver and is known to have positive effects on the heart, skin, and kidneys, as well as aiding digestion. The key to milk thistle’s magic is a constituent known as silymarin. And like with every magic trick, the beauty (or in this case, the value) is not in what you’re doing, but how you’re doing it. The most effective way to extract silymarin from milk thistle seed is with alcohol. My process is to collect organic milk thistle seed and extract its medicine using organic alcohol. Once this is done, I remove the alcohol and replace it with organic vegetable glycerin. My final product is an organic, glycerin-based milk thistle tincture. When producing herbal medicine, I try to use organic or wild-crafted products whenever possible. I feel it is also important to eliminate the ingestion of alcohol by substituting it with glycerin when it “makes sense”, for instance with milk thistle and other formulas, like my Immuno Umph!, Relax and Recover, and Lion’s Mane. In this day and age, we are conditioned to reach for immediate gratification. Vitality is not achieved in this way. It is a journey. One that can start in your own kitchen. Ayurvedic philosophy is the oldest form of practiced medicine in the world, and many of its remedies can be found in the kitchen, growing in your own backyard, or even, growing between the cracks of pavement. Be well and heal thyself! Please see our ad in this issue! Terrel Broussard- Ayurvedic Practitioner, Herbalist, Bodyworker; 413-329-5440
UPDATE WITH ARTIST
CAROLYN M. ABRAMS Interview by Harryet Candee
Carolyn, what news do you have to share on your discoveries in art making over the past year? What exploratory roads have you went down that you enjoyed and learned more about yourself? Well Harryet, I found great joy in learning to master the art of oils and cold wax. That was my most stunning discovery. It seemed to meld all that I have learned over the years into one medium that truly expressed myself. As you can see in “Winter’s Glow” I was able to achieve an ethereal and atmospheric feeling by letting the medium guide me. I still love other mediums and mixing them together such as in “Purple Lake” but oils and cold was really resonated with me in a way no other med has over the last forty years. I’ve also learned to work more in a series. I have not been generally inclined to do so but
Photographs courtesy of Artist
have found the benefits of working on several works in the same palette or theme to be helpful in tapping into creativity. I learned to never stop learning! Because just around the corner could be something spectacular that I never thought of. Has your color palette changed at all, being that maybe your mood has altered over this past year? I have always been in love with neutral earthy muted shades but this year I discovered turquoise most especially Pthalo Turquoise on the artist’s palette. There is so much you can do with it on a limited palette with other colors such as Quinacridone Gold or Magenta that the range of emotion you get can be quite moving. So while we are all breaking out of the limiting COVID mode I have been moving into work-
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ing with limited palettes and getting to know them better. I created a series of Vessels in this palette of which “Abundance”and “Blue Vessel” are a part. During this past year, how did you find means to show your art to the public? We all had to find new routes in terms of surviving as artists! I spent quite a bit of time revamping my website, going through many old works and refining my work down to what I am presently working on. Doing this propelled me to apply to various online and in person shows as well as getting to know social media better. I have created a monthly newsletter to connect with art friends. It’s usually a reflection on how my ordinary life connects with my art life. Anyone can sign up to receive it through my website.
Carolyn M. Abrams, Purple Lake
Blue Vessel
Carolyn M. Abrams, Winter’s Glow
Being part of several online exhibits and galleries like The Healing Power of Arts and Artists as well as the Guild of Berkshire Artists has afforded me to reach an audience I would not reach on my own. I have also enjoyed being part of an “art tribe” facilitated by an artist in the UK and have made many friends and contacts through this network. So the internet certainly had its benefits this year! I am pleased to say “Illuminate Fire” was juried into the Made in NY 2021 exhibit at the Schweinfurth Arts Center in Auburn, NY and my work sold in the first few days! So what I learned is you must put yourself out there. It can be daunting but well worth it. I believe art has been growing in terms of new appreciation all around us. Have you discovered a satisfying new venue during
Covid and lockdown? I am so pleased to have discovered the Guild of Berkshire Artists. Through them I have met and enjoyed many art experiences I would not have otherwise have known about. They are a welcoming group, working tirelessly for the arts.. They even talked me into doing a creative process demo which I would never have done without their encouragement. I joined the guild in January 2020 but because of COVID have not met any of the artists only through ZOOM until recently. What other time in your life would you say is comparable to what we have gone through with the Pandemic? Personally I would have to say I went through a stressful life event in 2004. Those times had the same feel of isolation, worry, anxiety and
fear as the pandemic. I dove into art at that time with the same zeal as I did this time and it didn’t fail me. There is no better prescription for healing than art….and prayer. I painted several paintings then and now which express these emotions that gave me inspiration and hope for the future. I hope it made an impact on others as well. “Morning Has Broken” was one of those works. Can you tell us what it has been like to have an Open Studio? What do you have to prepare in order to make it work successfully? In past years I would have an Open Studio every now and then. I would go to great lengths to label and prepare all my work, price, clean, select, create, market etc. It was a lot of work. I was not part of a larger studio tour so Continued on next page...
THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 43
CAROLYN M. ABRAMS
Illuminate Fire
Morning Has Broken
Abundance Untitled
had to promote it through various means. This year thanks to your prompting, Harryet, I just hung out my shingle, put out a few well placed signs, put on my apron and just worked. Best decision! People came to see what was on the easel and ask questions about my work. I could show them what I was working on and explain the attributes of the medium and actually enjoyed it very much. The best part was meeting neighbors who didn’t know I was here and even sold a few pieces! So I believe in order to be successful I just need to be myself and share my work and process. My hope is someone will be inspired to be creative themselves. And the work will find its way to who it is meant to be with.
Carolyn, whats up next for you? What would you like to see happen in terms of your art making, and your personal spiritual self? One of the experiences being in an art guild has offered to me is the plein air sessions that they provide seven days a week in various locations in the beautiful Berkshires. I am a studio painter. I have everything at my fingertips in my studio. So packing up and learning to work out on location has been a challenge. And because much of my work is intuitive, capturing the landscape abstractly and intuitively has been both a joy and a challenge. And there is nothing better for the spirit than being out in nature! So it’s a win -win for my art making and my spiritual self!
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And crazy as we all are, what is the first thing you desired and ran to joyously that you were not able to over the Pandemic time? Well first and most of all my family and friends, especially my 100 year old mom who has been in a nursing home. And then I’d have to say meeting people out without their masks. It’s wonderful to see everyone’s face and smiles! Thank you, Harryet, for allowing me to be part of your visual gallery and your very reflective interview! Thank you!
BERKSHIRE DIGITAL Since opening in 2005, Berkshire Digital has done fine art printing for artists and photographers. Giclée prints can be made in many different sizes from 5”x7” to 42”x 80” on a variety of archival paper choices. Berkshire Digital was featured in last Summer’s issue of PDN magazine in an article about fine art printing. See the entire article on the BerkshireDigital.com website. Berkshire Digital does accurate hi-res photoreproductions of paintings and illustrations that can be used for Giclée prints, books, magazines, brochures, cards and websites. “Fred Collins couldn’t have been more professional or more enjoyable to work with. He came to my studio, set everything up, and did a beautiful job in photographing a ton of paintings carefully, efficiently, and so accurately. It’s such a great feeling to know I have these beautiful, useful files on hand anytime I need them. I wish I’d called Fred years ago.” ---- Ann Getsinger We also offer restoration and repair of damaged or faded photographs. A complete overview of services offered, along with pricing, can be seen on the web at BerkshireDigital.com Another service offered is portraits of artists in their studios, or wherever they would like, for use in magazines, as the author’s picture in a book, websites or cards. See samples of artist portraits on our website. The owner, Fred Collins, has been a commercial and fine art photographer for over 30 years having had studios in Boston, Stamford, and the Berkshires. He offers over 25 years of experience with Photoshop, enabling retouching, restoration and enhancement to prints and digital files. The studio is located in Mt Washington but drop-off and pick-up is available through Frames On Wheels, 84 Railroad Street in Great Barrington, MA (413) 528-0997 and Gilded Moon Framing, 17 John Street in Millerton, NY (518) 789-3428. Berkshire Digital - 413 644-9663, or go online to www.BerkshireDigital.com
LOBSTER QUADRILLE 2018 ACRYLIC ON CANVAS, 20 X 20” END OF THE SLOPE
MARK MELLINGER
BRUCE PANOCK
ABSURDIST ARTIST STATEMENT
PHOTOGRAPHY
My work explores the interconnectedness of Bauhausian sensibilities and Trobriand Island chants. With influences as diverse as Noble Sissle and Shemp Howard, new insights are created from both mundane and transcendant dialogues. Ever since I was a child I have been disturbed by the essential ephemarality of space/time. What starts out as circumlocutory vision soon becomes corrupted into a hegemony of greed, leaving only a sense of ennui and little chance of a new paradigm. As spatial miasmas become transformed through emergent Unabhängigkeitserklärungen, the viewer is left with a catafalque for the prognostication of our future. www.markmellingerart.com markmellinger680@gmail.com
I have been a student of photography for more than 20 years, though most intently for the last five years. I am primarily a landscape photographer. Recently my photographic voice has migrated to the creation of work with reference to other art forms, notably encaustic painting and ancient Chinese and Japanese brush painting and woodblock art. My intention is to create with viewer a moment of pause and reflection; a moment to digest the image and find their own story in the art. Each image is part of a limited edition. There are several sizes available. Each piece is priced according to size. Images are unframed and printed on Hahnemuhle archival papers. Bruce Panock - bruce@panockphotography.com
Life is sometimes hard. Things go wrong, in life and in love and in busi‐ ness and in friendship and in health and in all other ways that life can go wrong. And when things get tough, this is what you should do. Make good art. ― Neil Gaiman
robert wilk
Ménage à Trois.
Private Collection.
rwsculpture.com THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 45
ELIXIR Greetings friends of Elixir! What an incredible monsoon season we had. I am still drying out my cellar, but honestly also enjoying the full singing waters in the river that flows behind my home, Konkapot Cottage. I am writing this on the night of the July full moon, and what a beauty she was, rising up, a rosy golden globe of light, over the lake as I took my evening walk. The moon has always aroused curiosity and a sense of mystery. Its influence on the ocean tides has long been known, as well as its influence on people’s emotions. This July moon was named by different indigenous tribes, the Hay Moon, the Thunder Moon, the Summer Moon, and the Buck Moon. The Chinese call this the Hungry Ghost Moon, and believe that during this moon, those who have crossed over the veil, come back to the place they used to inhabit, often with some mischief. The Celts have a few names for this July moon as well…Moon of Claiming, the Herb Moon, the Mead Moon. Other favorites I found whilst digging around were, Pagan named, the Rose Moon,
and the Faeries name, the Dancing Delight Moon. In the herbal world, some of us refer to this as the Mugwort Moon. Mugwort, (Artemisia vulgaris) is abundant and ready to harvest now and throughout history, it has been believed that mugwort’s properties grow in strength along with the moon’s phases. Mugwort is known to promote dreams of clarity and of the natural world. It also tends to make people feel more ethereal. A bitter herb, mugwort is an aid to digestion and a liver tonic, as well as a mild sedative. Just for fun, on the next full moon, if you can find some mugwort, enjoy a cup of its soothing tea and maybe sleep with a handful of its leaves under your pillow. You never know what may be revealed!! Other herbs to enjoy this summer are Lavender, (Lavandula angustifolia), which is very soothing as a tea before bed, in a bath, or as a delicious addition to summer salads; Rosemary, (Rosmarinus officinalis), an anti-inflammatory and memory tonic, always a refreshing addition to the summer potato salads, and Lemon Balm, (Melissa officinalis) for lessening anxiety, soothing digestion and relieving insomnia. It makes a delicious, chilled tea on hot summer days! Have you eaten your flowers today? Nasturtium, Borage, Calendula and so many others are in abundance now, each with their own healing benefits and delicious character …Try them on green and fresh fruit salads! For more information on what to eat and why, contact Elixir for nutritional /lifestyle consultations, private cooking, and instruction on all things healing through herbs, teas, organic whole plant-based foods, and local wild foods. “August of another summer, and once again, I am drinking the sun, and the lilies again are spread across the water.” – Mary Oliver. Elixir - email: organictearoom@gmail.com, www.elixirgb.com, instagram: elixir tearoom, fb: elixir
OIL PAINTING | PINK SUNSET
BIG BLUE SKY 18 X 24
MARILYN CAVILLARI Every day a new vision produces a new painting" I am a contemporary landscape artist working in oils. I paint daily with several paintings going at the same time. I have been in several major galleries over the last eleven years, as well as opening up four pop up galleries in Manchester, VT and Williamstown. I work with very vibrant colors yet viewers often tell me my paintings are very calming. Grateful to the universe for giving me this gift. Contact Marilyn at: 413 458-4087 802 3790759 website marilyncavallari.com marilynmjc@gmail.com
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Art is unquestionable one of the purest and highest elements in human happiness. It trains the mind through the eye, and the eye through the mind. As the sun colours flowers, so does art colour life. —John Lubbock
www.elixirgb.com
ELEANOR LORD
Landscape in pastel
www.Eleanorlord.com THE ARTFUL MIND AUGUST INTO SEPTEMBER 2021 • 47
Something For Over The Couch PART 3
“The Visit” Why would some substitute art teacher in my high school think that art was “the most important subject we would ever be fortunate enough to study?” I had no idea, but it occurred to me that perhaps she might be able to tell me how to flatten my hopelessly warped painting. I hope that you remember that I had completed a commission painting for my newly married older brother, to go over his couch, but I was reluctant to even show him the painting because it was so hopelessly warped. When class ended I waited until everyone had filed out of the room, and then approached her desk. She was turned away from me and was pushing a number of items into her bag. I waited at the desk, but without turning around she asked me a question. “Why are you painting watercolors? Why not use the crayons like everybody else?” I had no idea how to answer this slightly insulting question so I had to ignore it and just stood there waiting for her to turn around. When she did, I told her about my warped painting. “What are the dimensions?” “Fifty-four or about that by eighteen or twenty.” “So, you are talking about a real painting,” she said, as if to herself. “And it’s vertical.” This statement I did not understand, and I began to think I was entering some confusing maze, but I answered that it was “a horizontal painting, a commission painting for over my brother’s couch, because my brother is married, and living in an apartment on Oneida Square over the bookstore, the triangle bookstore on the corner… across from the monument, near the museum.” I was nervous, and became more and more nervous standing there, but couldn’t think of any explanation for my anxiety, which increased every second. “Your painting is a commissioned painting, not a commission painting, and its measurements are eighteen or twenty by fifty-four, because with paintings you always put the vertical dimension first.” Suddenly I lost my temper and my face began to feel strangely hot. I said, “No, my painting is a commission painting and it is horizontal and measures fiftyfour by eighteen, and you can...” She stood up, leaned toward me and said, “And I can what?” And then she started to laugh, right in my face. Still laughing, she sat back down at the desk, took out a slip of paper from her bag and wrote some-
thing on it, then handing it to me she said, “This is my address. It’s in New Hartford. Bring the painting to my house Saturday morning, and we will see about how to fix the warp of your commission painting. I left the art room, walked down the hall and through the double doors into the stairwell, then went down to the first landing and stopped, unable to go on. I held the slip of paper in my hand with the substitute's address. Nothing in my life to that moment prepared me for what this appointment might suggest. The prospect of going to this unknown woman’s house on a Saturday morning seemed more like a plan to commit a crime than anything else. No students went to teachers’ houses, ever. I think it happened one time, and it was in the paper. Someone was arrested for something and had to go to jail. But I simply refused to think about the significance of the invitation, and a simpler quandary arose. How was I going to get there? The substitute lived in the village of New Hartford, where all the rich families lived. New Hartford had its own high school, and the kids from N.H.H. had nothing to do with the students in my high school. My city had two high schools, one for those going to college, and another for those going to prison or reform school. The reform school boys always beat my school at football, but my school always beat New Hartford. That's how it was, and that’s how it had always been. I had to go to New Hartford with my painting on Saturday morning. I could take the bus, but it seemed impossible, carrying a big painting onto a bus. I wanted to drive my mother’s car, because I had my learner’s permit. I was allowed to drive her car for a few hours on Saturday afternoon, but only after finishing an endless series of chores which she planned out in advance. Over time, this list of chores had expanded until it was almost impossible to complete it before late in the afternoon. Nevertheless, I put up with my mother’s exploitation of my desire to drive because of the discovery of a curious fear that tormented her, and limited her tyranny over me. At a certain point, unable to stand doing endless chores, I took the learner’s permit out of my wallet and said, “I’m going to tear this thing up, because I don’t want to learn to drive, if you want to know the truth.” “That would not be normal,” she said. Not normal? This question of what was normal had been bothering my mom ever since I started doing paintings in the attic. She would say to me, “Are you still doing those paintings? “Are you still going up into the attic to do those paintings? This was a wonderful discovery; my mother’s fear of my not being normal could be manipulated to marvelous effect, and I did manipulate her. The learner’s permit could be taken out of the pocket and placed on the table like the ace of spades, if ever force became necessary in dealing with her. The question of why driving or painting pictures had anything to do with what was considered ‘normal’ did not even cross my mind at the time. It was just a lucky curiosity, and not an albatross suddenly discovered attached to my neck and destined to accompany me through life. But you have to forgive me for confessing this to you, because I had no idea it was manipulation. I wouldn’t even realize for another twenty years that I was being manipulative, and what fears of hers were being exploited, for that matter.
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So when Saturday morning rolled around I simply refused to do any chores at all and told my mother about going to see the substitute art teacher because she was going to show me how to flatten the painting I had done for my brother. My mother did not understand a word of my statement. Nothing about it seemed even possible. For a while she sat across from me at the kitchen table, silent and wondering, and then slowly something began to flicker in the back part of her left eye and she said, “Is it that substitute?” “What substitute?” “The art and music substitute that got Rocky Malatesta expelled from Proctor.” Proctor was the high school for the juvenile delinquents. I admitted that the art teacher who had volunteered to flatten the painting was a substitute, but about Rocky Malatesta I knew nothing. This Rocky was one of my distant supposed cousins, one of my Italian Catholic relatives who went to Proctor High and had been arrested for something. Then my Mother started telling me a story, becoming more and more inflamed as she spoke. “This woman, this substitute, I heard about her from someone who works at Proctor. She went to teach the music class and the kids there would not sing. She gave them, ‘Saints Go Marching In.’ Some of the girls sang, but the boys laughed at them so the girls shut up. So the substitute called the principal and the whole class was expelled.” “That’s a lot of phony baloney, Mom,” I said. “Nobody but Rocky was expelled, and it was for giving the finger to the substitute.” As I said this, my mother’s face assumed that expression people have when they know they are lying and get caught. I can’t describe it, but perhaps you know what I mean. Since I was determined to drive the car to New Hartford, I took the car keys from their hook by the phone and said, “She’s going to fix Jimmy’s painting for me, and I’ll be back in a few hours and do all the chores if it takes till tomorrow.” And so it came to pass that I drove my mom’s old 1955 Pontiac up to New Hartford, and parked in front of what I now know to be a Tudor style mansion. It was set back from the street about half a football field. The walk up to the door was an incline, and so when I reached the portico of the entrance I was a little out of breath. I didn’t want to ring the doorbell trying to catch my breath, so I stood there for a few seconds trying to calm down. All along, up to the point of standing on the porch, I had been trying to imagine what the substitute would be like in her house on a Saturday morning. Would she be in a dress like at school, sitting in the kitchen drinking coffee? The thing I did not consider was, what might her husband be like? This question asserted itself before I could ring the doorbell, because I heard a man’s voice on the other side of the door. He was giving instructions to someone in another room in an impatient tone, and from somewhere in the distance came a faint sarcastic reply. I became physically unable to ring the bell. I tried but my arm seemed to be having a stroke. Finally I managed to ring it as the door opened. It was opened by a tall thin man with a freeze-dried face, in an expensive suit, who looked at me, turned and shouted, “The boy who cuts the lawn is here.”
AT
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EDWARD ACKER PHOTOGRAPHER
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