THE ARTFUL MIND
BILLY KEANE
Photograph by Bobby Miller
THE ARTFUL MIND
AUGUST 2024
MUSIC & ART — THATS WHAT IT’S ABOUT!
CALENDAR OF EVENTS ...4
Interview with BILL TAYLOR
COMPOSER | FARMER| MUSICIAN | PERMACULTURIST ...16
Interview with BILLY KEANE
MUSICIAN | VOCALIST | SONGWRITER
Cover and Inside Photograph by Bobby Miller and other photographs courtesy of the Artist ...26
Plein Air-ing in Frayssinet, France
S.R. AIKEN Berkshire Resident and Artist ...38
RICHARD BRITELL | FICTION “Fox Grapes” from the Series Stories for Children...47
MINING MY LIFE. DIARIES OF JANE GENNARO ... 52
Publisher Harryet Candee
Copy Editor Marguerite Bride
Third Eye Jeff Bynack
Distribution Ruby Aver
Contributing Photographers
Edward Acker Tasja Keetman Bobby Miller
Contributing Writers
Richard Britell Jane Gennaro
Advertising / Editorial inquiries and Subscriptions by mail: 413 - 645 - 4114 artfulmind@yahoo.com
Read the online version: ISSUU.COM
FB: ARTFUL MIND GALLERY for Artful Minds 23
THE ARTFUL MIND PO Box 985 Great Barrington, MA 01230
HAND
OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
Mary Gauthier with Guest: Jaimee Harris
Thursday, September 26, 7:30pm Spencertown Academy Arts Center 790 Rte 203, Spencertown, NY 514-392-3693 info@spencertownacademy.org
Art
510 WARREN STREET GALLERY
510 Warren st, Hudson NY 518-822-0510 / 510warrenstgallery@gmail.com
Featured artists each month.
ART ON MAIN GALLERY
38 Main st, West Stockbridge, MA www.berkshireartists.org
Several member shows lined up from August 1September 8 including artists Don Sexton, Karen Carmean, Natalie Tyler, Julie Wosk, Richard Lerman, Christian Dewailly and Celia Kahn. Gallery hours are Thurs - Sun 11 - 4 pm. Work includes paintings and glass works.
BECKET ARTS CENTER
7 Brooker Hill Rd, Becket , MA 413-623-6635 office@becketartscenter.org
First Members Show through Aug 4; Aug 9, 5 - 7pm: Poster Winner, Joan Rooks - Solo Exhibit; Through Aug 18: Paw Prints, exhibit featuring a collection of works related to PAW PRINTS.
BERKSHIRE BOTANICAL GARDEN
5 West Stockbridge Rd, Stockbridge, MA 413-298-3926 BerkshireBotanical.org
June 1 through Oct. 6 (outdoor sculpture exhibit); Aug. 10 through Oct. 6 (indoor exhibition) Todd McGrain,“The Lost Bird Project” Opening reception Aug. 10, 5 - 7pm
BERKSHIRE MUSEUM
39 South St, Pittsfield, MA
Through Sept 18: Black Woman as MUSE: Exhibition by Jerry Taliaferro
BERNAY FINE ART
296 Main st Gt Barrington, MA 413-645-3421
Aug 17: Stop Making Sense: Noah Post, Deborah Zlotsky, Will Hutnik and Kit Warren
CLOCK TOWER ARTISTS’ STUDIOS & GALLERY www.ArtintheBerkshires.com
See full schedule on their website. The Clock Tower Artists is a collective of working artists in the heart of
Amy Podmore: Audience
On view August 3, 2024
2016-present’ Plaster casts from the interior of baskets, motors, mixed media
MASS MoCA
1040 Mass MoCA WAY, North Adams, MA 413-662-2111 info@massmoca.org
Pittsfield, located in the beautiful Berkshires - a cultural destination in the hills of Western Massachusetts. The artist studios are on the 3rd floor of the Clock Tower Business Center, where many open studios and art events are held
GALLERY NORTH
9 Eagle St, North Adams, MA 802-379-0759
A fine art gallery featuring contemplative, exciting, and affordable art by Marilyn Cavallari, Ghetta Hirsch, Sean McCusker and Mallory Rich.
FENNIMORE ART MUSEUM
5798 State Highway 80, Cooperstown, NY info@fenireart.org www.fenimoreartmuseum.org
Bob Dylan Remastered: Drawings from the Road, thru Sept 15; Marc Hom: Reframed, Thru Sept 2; Banksy: The Haight Street Rat:, thru Sept 8
KAREN J. ANDREWS / INNER VISION STUDIO
2 Furnace R, W. Stockbridge, MA
413-212-1394 / innervision-studio.com
Visit the Art Gallery and Studio. Watercolorist and photographer
LAUREN CLARK FINE ART
CHILD + CLARK
684 Main St, Gt Barrington, MA
Lauren@LaurenClarkFIneArt.com
Fine art, glass, sculpture and paintings
Through Aug 5: Elijah River Dion: Restless, Irritable, and Discontent; Childs+Clark Gallery presents “Six of Seven”, with fresh art, glass, and sculpture.
MAD ROSE GALLERY
5916 N Elm Ave, Millerton, NY
Photography / Fine Art
Aug 1 - 30: Kerry Madigan. New Works
PAMELA SALISBURY GALLERY
362 1/2 Warren St, Hudson, NY
July 27 - Aug 25: Valerie Hammond, Holly Hughes, Kathy Osborn, Geoffrey Young
SANDISFIELD ARTS CENTER
HAmmertown Rd, Sandisfield, MA
www.sandisfieldartcenter.org
THrough August 11, "UnEarthed" a 3 Dimensional
Guillaume Lethière
June 15 - October 14, 2024
Born in Sainte-Anne, Guadeloupe, Guillaume Lethière (1760–1832) was a key figure in French painting during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.
The Clark Museum
225 South St, Williamstown, MA clarkart.edu
Show featuring the works of Natalie Tyler, Margie Skaggs, Gail Gelburd, Caryn King, Nancy Silkey, Sarah Konstam, Milena Cerna, Erika Crofut!
SOHN FINE ART
69 Church St, Lenox, MA 413-551-7353 info@sohnfineart.com
Upcoming TBA : Creatures of curiosity: Jeff Robb, JP Terlizzi, Hans Withoos
SUSAN ELEY FINE ART
433 Warren St., Hudson, NY
July 5 - Aug 18: Simple Gifts: Rachel Burgess
THE CORNWALL LIBRARY
30 Pine st, Cornwall, CT 860-672-6874
July 20-Aug 22: Ken MacLean, New Work. Celebrating the artist’s transition from architect to artist with a display of impressive abstract watercolor paintings.
TURNPARK ART SPACE
2 Moscow Rd, West Stockbridge, MA
July 13 - Sept 8: Roberley Bell: Finding Form: drawings and small sculpture: Roberley Bell’s drawings, prints and sculptures study the role of the observer, seeing and recording the natural world around us.
Theater
MAC-HAYDN THEATRE
1925 NY-203, Chatham NY 518-392-9292
Aug 1-11: All Shook Up; Aug 15-Sept1: Something Rotten!; Sept 5-15: The Fantasticks
SHAKESPEARE & COMPANY
70 Kemble St, Lenox, MA 413-637-3353 shakespeare.org
July 13 - Aug 18: The Comedy of Errors; July 25Aug 25: The Islanders; Aug 30 - Oct 13: Three Tall Persian Women; Dec 13-15: Emma
TIME & SPACE LTD
434 Columbia Street, Hudson, NY 518-822-8100 fyi@timeandsace.org
Aug 3, 7pm - Aug 4, 4pm, Aug 30, 7pm: Performance Special Event: KNICK KNACKS by Linda Mussman: Based on a text written in 2019 by Linda
Woman Leaning on a Portfolio, Oil on canvas
Understories
August 17 - Oct 12
Understories, a group exhibition of painting and mixed-media works by Anne Francey, Allyson Levy, Eileen Murphy, Rinal Parikh, Ragellah Rourke and Annika Tucksmith. In the upstairs gallery, there will be a solo show of new paintings by David Konigsberg. Artist reception on August 17 from 5-7pm
Carrie Haddad Gallery
622 Warren St, Hudson NY info@carriehaddadgallery.com
Mussmann A Mussmann / Bruce Production, in collaboration with the 2024 Hudson Eye Festival
Music
BACH TO ROCK
Church on The Hill, Lenox
Saturdays: August 31, September 28 at 7pm | A Journey through the generations & genres of music that bring people together in the Berkshires. Ivan creates a memorable evening of music, stories & smiles with original interpretations of great music performed in the Berkshires from 1950 to 2024.
BERKSHIRE OPERA FESTIVAL
Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, 14 Castle St, Gt Barrington, MA
Aug 24, 1pm; Aug 27, 7:30pm; Aug 30, 7:30pm: Faust, Composer: Charles Gounod; Conductor: Brian Garman, Stage Director: Jonathon Loy
EGREMONT BARN
17 Main st, South Egremont, MA theegremontbarn.com (Full schedule)
Aug 16, 7:30: Music. Billy Keane
KNESSET ISRAEL www.knessetisrael.org
Monday, August 18, 7:15pm: Klezmer Company Jazz Orchestra, Aaron Kula, Director. A “genre bending” group, doing both traditional and jazz Klezmer music
ST. JAMES PLACE
352 Main st, Gt Barrington, MA 413-528-1996 sjp@saintjamesplace.net
Aug 23 - 24: MPZ Productions presents A Jewish Journey Through Broadway. Part 1 1920-1980 honors those amazing Jewish composers who helped transform American musical theater through their beloved songs and shows.
Film
IMAGES CINEMA
50 Spring st, Williamstown MA 413-458-1039
Aug 24 - 25: Shaun The Sheep Movie, 2015
August 2024
Music Mountain Festival: Daedalus Quartet
August 11, 3 - 5pm
Andrew DAVIS Deep Summer Folklore, Niloufar NOURBAKHSH Logic Run WildBéla BARTOK String Quartet #4 Maurice RAVEL String Quartet in F Major Music Mountain
225 Music Mountain Rd, Falls Village, CT musicmountain.org
VILLALOBOS BROTHERS
September 28, 7:30pm
The Villalobos Brothers are a Grammywinning, violin-wielding, family band that has been recognized as one of the foremost Contemporary Mexican ensembles in the world. Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center 14 Castle St, Gt Barrington MA mahaiwe.org
Rinal Parikh April Showers, 2021
Erika Larskaya
"As an abstract artist, I search for ways to represent the invisible, subtle, and unexpressed. I am driven to lay out fleeting and intangible experiences on physical surfaces". —Erika Larskaya
Erika Larskaya Studio at 79 Main St. Torrington, CT www.erikalarskaya.art
Untitled, 12” x12” Acrylic on canvas
PROVINCETOWN, BIKERS AT NIGHT
KAREN ANDREWS
Karen J. Andrews has been photographing and painting for over 35 years. Her subject matter covers a huge range because as a prolific photographer, she had collected an enormous library of images from which to paint.
She loves to “capture the fleeting beauty of the moment.” The above painting is a typical street scene from Provincetown, MA, taken over 12 years ago, although the painting was done quite recently.
“I feel like life is always speaking to me through the things I see… I want to open people up to their inner vision.”
Inner Vision Studio is the name of Karen’s personal gallery space, located on her property in West Stockbridge/Richmond. There visitors can see the depth and breadth of her work. People usually find something to fall in love with and take home.
The studio will be open most weekends as well as many weekdays throughout the season. Visitors are advised to call ahead to make sure she can greet them.
Karen has also had fun creating beautiful, affordable functional art products out of her watercolors: placemats, charcuterie boards, aprons, scarves, yoga pants and more. All sizes and patterns of her fine and functional artwork are available online at InnerVision-Studio.com.
Karen is also available for commissioned portraits from photographs: houses, loved ones or perhaps a watercolor of a favorite photo.
Karen J. Andrews413-212-1394
karen@innervision-studio.com InnerVision-Studio.com
STEPHAN MARC KLEIN
I have been sketching and making art on and off since my undergraduate education as an architect in the late 1950s. What interests me at present about creating art, besides the shear visceral pleasure of making things, of putting pencil or pen or brush or all of them to paper, of manipulating images on the computer, and of making models, is the aesthetic tension generated in the borderlands between the abstract and the representational, between uniqueness and reproduction, and between analog and digital processes. I am also interested in art that engages the social, the political and the visual. Since my wife, artist Anna Oliver, and I made our home in the Berkshires six years ago, I have been entranced by its beauty. My work is, in part, a visual rhapsody to the area.
Stephan Marc Kleinstephanmarcklein.com, smk8378@gmail.com
RICHARD NELSON
I did an awful lot of drawing in a short amount of time, so I think I’ve blown off my steam after suppressing it for almost 40 years for work. Now that I’ve more or less said my piece visually, it’s time to concentrate on music. And once again I’m having to relearn how to play the guitar. The neuropathy in my left hand has made this an interesting process. Interestingly my re-ignition of the desire to play and its subsequent development is mirroring my re-learning to draw process.
I’m taking a slightly different approach, but I won’t bore you with that story, but things are opening up and I’m finding myself able to do things I never could before. Confidence is a new sensation to me, my father convinced me I had no talent and just looking for an easy ride through life. Well, Pop , that certainly was not the case! For me it’s akin to playing the blues, without a bedrock of life experience, good and bad, my need to create is finding its language. Who’da thunk?
Richard Nelson @ nojrevned@hotmail.com
JOHN HUFFAKER Sculptor
“There is no must in art because art is free.”
—Wassily Kandinsky
BERKSHIRE DIGITAL
Since opening in 2005, Berkshire Digital has done Giclée prints/fine art printing and accurate photo-reproductions of paintings, illustrations and photographs.
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 Photo District News magazine in an article about fine art printing. See the entire article on the BerkshireDigital.com website.
Berkshire Digital does accurate photo-reproductions 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 did a beautiful job in photographing 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
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 Digital413-644-9663, or go online to www.BerkshireDigital.com
“It is not the language of painters but the language of nature which one should listen to, thefeeling for the things themselves, for reality, is more important than the feeling for pictures.”
—Vincent
Van Gogh
LESLEE CARSEWELL
My artwork, be it photography, painting or collage embraces a very simple notion: how best to break up space to achieve more serendipity and greater intuition on the page. Though simple in theory, this is not so easy to achieve. I work to make use of both positive and negative space to create interest, lyricism, elegance, and ambiguity. Each element informs the whole. This whole, with luck, is filled with an air of intrigue. Breaking up space to me has a direct correlation to music. Rhythm, texture, points of emphasis and silence all play their parts. Music that inspires me includes solo piano work by Debussy, Ravel, Mompou and of course, Schubert and Beethoven.
Working with limited and unadorned materials, I enhance the initial compositions with color, subtle but emphatic line work and texture. For me, painting abstractly removes restraints. I find the simplicity of line and subsequent forming of shapes quietly liberating.
Lastly, I want my work to feel crafted, the artist’s hand in every endeavor.
Leslee Carsewell413.229.0155 / 413.854.5757
lcarsewellart@icloud.com
TW MCCLELLAND & DAUGHTERS CREATIVE FINE JEWELRY
Tim McClelland is a fine jeweler in Great Barrington, MA known for his 20+ years as the creative hands and mind behind McTeigue & McClelland Jewelers. He has been practicing the art of jewelry making for more than 50 years. Engagement rings from his Wildflower Collection are worn by editors of Vogue, Vanity Fair, W, Town & Country, Martha Stewart Weddings, and acclaimed by many more. TWM original pieces have graced the red carpets of the Oscars and Cannes.
Tim uses ancient and traditional jewelry making techniques to bring to life timeless, inspired jewelry. His work is known the world over by jewelry connoisseurs and those who seek out originality, beauty and quality. In his designs Tim is inspired by nature, humor, light, balance, and the materials themselves. He uses his work to create a joyful expression in a tiny space. Most importantly Tim hopes to be of service to his community and customers.
Beginning this Autumn the TWM atelier doors will open to the public, Thurs., Fri, Sat, 11 - 5pm! Please join our mailing list via twmcclelland.com for an invite to the opening.
Contact us directly about all things jewelry at info@twmcclelland.com or 413-654-3399. Follow along on Instagram and Pinterest at @twmcclelland
CARTE NO. 1
ECCLECTIC ART
ARCADIAN SHOP LENOX, MA.
RESIDENCE LENOX, MA.
BILL TAYLOR
COMPOSER | FARMER | MUSICIAN | PERMACULTURIST
Interviewed
by Harryet Candee Photographs Courtesy of the Artist
“What is going on in the world, with ‘people’ of all species, and in my heart and mind, requires that I answer with commitment and compassion in everything I say and do.”
Harryet Candee: Why do I feel reminiscent of Igor Stravinsky's Rite of Spring when hearing your original music?
Bill Taylor: I have never been told my music is like Rite of Spring. But I immediately see the validity of your comparison and am honored to be so compared. I can answer this in several ways. Like Stravinsky's in that piece, my music combines lyricism and dissonance to tell a story. Usually, when I write a piece, I have an image or story. Sometimes, it is just a picture of a forest, beluga whales, or a river, and the piece has one or two short sections that are my response to that still or snippet of a movie. Other pieces take on a topic with many parts, whether a wildfire my wife Jaye and I experienced, the rise of fascism, or the contrast between different kinds of farming. These larger works tend to have multiple sections and
moods with different rhythms. For me, Stravinsky's piece is forever entwined with the history of the Earth, thanks to the 1940 animation film Fantasia. A similar dynamic comes with the Spring of the year, the most dynamic and varied season, with a history of rituals, and this is what Stravinsky had in mind when crafting it as ballet music.
You recently participated in the Mostly Modern Festival at Skidmore College, an international festival celebrating modern music, including 20th—and 21st-century classics. Tell us about your experience and what it was all about.
BT: There are close to thirty composers, many dozens of musicians (instrumentalists and singers), several conductors, plus faculty in each area. Works from each composer get a perform-
ance by a chamber ensemble - up to six members of the American Modern Ensemble or AME, a brass quintet, a pianist and singer, or a fourth option that varies each year – such as a trio or quartet. Half the composers also get a reading of up to eight minutes of an orchestral piece. My application was too late this year to get a reading, but last year, I had a concerto movement read, and the pianist was superb. They only got fifteen minutes to read and do a run-through, but she obviously had spent time learning it and had asked me what I wanted to convey. While students at the festival, the orchestra members were skilled musicians, and professionals were sitting in the first chair for most of the instruments, so they did a respectable job.
In September, we get recordings to use but not sell. Then there are lessons with five or six pro-
Photograph by Jaye Alison Moscariello
fessional composers, workshops from technical aspects (writing for brass, harp, percussion), how composers work, ways musicians and composers find opportunities, and the craft of composing. In addition to the performance and reading, there are chances to have other works performed in chamber concerts. This year, eighty or more pieces were proposed, and the MMF committee had to limit the ones performed; they were good about ensuring each composer got at least one piece in a chamber concert. The musicians also played works from other modern composers. These chamber performances were a third chance to have our music played. For the main two, composers send in scores and parts in advance for their world premieres and readings and bring professionally bound music for them. I was thrilled to be among so many musicmakers. The food at Skidmore is varied, and there are plenty of healthy and vegan options. There are beautiful woods to walk in nearby, and the different mineral springs are within walking distance. Zankel Hall is an excellent performance space, and there were concerts or readings almost every night, as well as plenty of practice rooms.
What impressed you about this year's fellow musicians and composers?
BT: Well, it is international and diverse. Student composers aged twenty to seventy-one and student conductors were from Turkey, Canada, Mexico, Australia, Germany, Great Britain, Morocco, Israel, and the US. There were works based on different rhythms, tonalities or lack of a tonal center, and sharing of resources. The variety of styles and rhythms of music and the excellent organization of the festival, now in its 5th year (but only the third in a row because COVID meant no festival in 2020 or 2021), made it very enjoyable. I think the Patersons, Robert and Victoria, and other staff have honed it, and I heard from many composers that it's their favorite festival. I've only been to this one, but several others are worldwide. Generally, it is a very congenial sharing in a world that can be very competitive.
While I occasionally felt competitive myself, everyone, including me, was able and encouraged to help one another up our game. At a rehearsal of the AME piece I wrote, Normalizing Evil, depicting life under a dictatorship, the oboist Keve Wilson suggested they walk off toward the end. Everyone liked the idea, and cellist Dave Eggars even laid down while playing his final notes. The conductor, Dan Lubin, then pointed at the audience, an improvised gesture he chose. I had marked a last measure after the piece ended "November 5, 2024". So the message could be "It's up to you" or "You are next." This kind of creativity permeated the festival. The atmosphere the organizers created made us all step up to cooperation, and the love of music and the respect of different voices made the festival a very positive experience. Some composers participated in an "Exquisite Corpse" composition: we wrote a few measures of piano music and passed the last measure onto another composer to do the same. We ended up with thirteen segments that fit together
pretty well, with the personality of each composer. The exact process is sometimes used for drawing or writing a story. One of the composer faculty members suggested that idea, and several composers responded positively. I take credit for starting the ball rolling.
"Eire Alive" is a piece of music you have composed. Can you tell us about this piece?
BT: I sent examples of my music to several or-
chestras. Torrington Symphony was very receptive, and Stockbridge Sinfonia expressed interest in it. I think Sinfonia will be a program for some of my music in the future. In late 2022, Maurice Steinberg at Torrington Symphony asked me to write an Irish-inspired piece for their March 17, 2023 concert. I enjoyed the music of Clannad and The Chieftains and was happy to take this on in an orchestral setting. I looked up Irish history in Continued on next page....
Bill’s chamber composition scores Photograph by Jaye Alison Moscariello
Wikipedia and made a broad-brush version with music, a "history of Ireland in 8 minutes". Coincidentally, I was at a church service in Sandisfield (usually, I play at West Stockbridge Village Congregational Church, but they were on a pause that Sunday) and learned that the words to the hymn Be Thou My Vision are attributed to Saint Patrick, so I decided to use that theme as one of several in the piece. Maurice helped me with some aspects of orchestral writing as I had written for a chamber orchestra with only one part for each wind or brass instrument, and there were a few on each. The harp and pennywhistle feature prominently, and a soprano, Sybil Chamberlain, sang some words I incorporated into the score, both Be Thou My Vision in modern Irish and the last two stanzas of a William Butler Yeats poem near the end to indicate the inclusivity of modern Ireland. I created some idiomatic Irish-sounding themes and rhythms, had fun varying them, and interweaved them with the hymn tune Slane, which was added much later than the ancient text. The piece starts with a sunrise-like entry of the musicians mimicking the overtone series of ancient instruments (which has some notes outside the twelve-tone scale; I was not demanding perfect matching of those "off" pitches but would like to when it gets played again) and ends on a hopeful note in the relatively tolerant society of modern Ireland.
What instruments are you most proficient in playing? Which one of them helps you best when in composing mode?
BT: I mostly play piano. I have dabbled in conga and small percussion and had a Maui Zaphoon (like a clarinet but just a few holes like a recorder). Composer faculty member Stephen Cabell pointed out the importance of stepping away from the computer-synthesized instruments by looking at the score I create and listening with my ear and imagination rather than the MIDI playback. He also suggested getting inexpensive instruments and trying them to get a better feel of writing for them and their peculiarities. Maybe that guitar Jaye's sister Silvia gave us needs to come out of the closet, although I have not written for it. A trip to a used musical instrument store may be included in the cards. Showing drafts to musicians can be helpful, as can asking them if the part is playable and idiomatic for that instrument. Many composers do that, including me. The harpist, Joe Rebman, was great at showing me things to improve in the part I wrote for him. There are also books on different ranges of each instrument's sound, different positions on string instruments, and nuances in technique for winds and brass. Still, experience would be a better teacher or spending time with instrumentalists.
What was it like being away from farm work
for three weeks?
BT: In a lot of ways- a relief. I could immerse myself in music. I could relax with a supportive partner and wife caring for the farm. She even visited a few times as the festival is less than two hours drive from home. I knew she was doing a weekly farmers' market and keeping things watered. Fortunately, there was enough rain, so there was not a lot of need to water, but a lot of mowing as the show tune June is Busting Out All Over is accurate. I did take some walks in the North Woods or into town when all the close work of music got too much, and I needed to clear my head. And I got an idea for a piece while walking in the woods!
Past experiences like the California fires must have changed your perspective on many things in life. Please talk about that a little so we can understand the intensity of that time for you. What came out of it all?
BT: First, art and music, of course, came out of it—also a deeper commitment to work to reverse climate change via our radio show and teaching. Native peoples managed the land with frequent low-level burning while fire suppression under European occupation has led along with climate change-amplified droughts to catastrophic wildfires. We experienced a few of those directly in 2017 and smoke from others nearby in the next
Bill and most of the composers Photograph Courtesy of the Artist
three years. The fire season expanded several months when I lived in Mendocino County (20032020).
In 2017, we had taken some interns to a concert next to where Jaye had a booth at an art show. We got frantic calls from neighbors, abandoned the concert and art show, and returned to find a wildfire had already passed through, and the local fire departments were saving our house and cabin. I had to shut off leaking pipes (hit by a dozer cutting firebreaks) from the upper pond while Jaye, following twenty minutes behind us, was prohibited from entering our road. I put out burning Hugelkulture beds (buried wood to be time-release fertility), but the wood had caught fire where bits of it stuck out and watered down burning areas of the garden and orchard. The orchard was completely burned along with our berries and the edges of the gardens, but all the buildings survived. Jaye was allowed up the next day, and we put out smokers all week. A week later, the fire rekindled on a ridge, and it took planes and helicopters carrying water and a ground crew to keep it from spreading to our neighbors. In August, my siblings came for a pre-planned reunion, which was good support, and one sister, Lucy, joined us to see the total solar eclipse in Oregon, a relief despite seeing some wildfires there. Unfortunately, a few months later, another fire kindled by electric wires toppled in a windstorm and burned six
homes on our mountain and hundreds of others in the north half of Redwood Valley. The same night, Santa Rosa and Napa County burned. We could stay and save our home thanks to the first fire, which consumed most of the fuel. The second fire was more stressful because so many we loved were without homes, and nine people were killed, including a dear friend. We helped as best we could with the Laura Nyro tribute concert and donations, and Jaye helped organize art shows and made a film she discussed in the June issue. I was asked to write a piece for a Fire Survivor Monologue performance and played it along with part of another piece during the performance. Later, the Ukiah Symphony played an orchestration of that piece, "October 89," which was used in Jaye's documentary film From the Ashes. As soon as the first fire and definitely after the second, we realized Jaye's sisters were NOT going to move to our mountain paradise, and we began to plan a move. First, I replanted the orchard, made some home improvements to get ready to sell, and then listed the property. It took a while as the drive up passed lots of burned Manzanita trees and scared out-ofarea people away. We received some PTSD counseling and went to Colombia for an artist/musician retreat where our host, trained in Anthroposophic massage, helped with the healing.
What are the differences and similarities between living in California and the Berkshires? What do you miss that does not exist here in Massachusetts?
BT: We are similarly rural, and there are plentiful local farms, even if not enough people are directly involved in growing food—the landscape's physical beauty and relatively dark night skies. The biggest difference is the brittle climate there and the softer one here. Brittle is how the summer there feels: no rain for months.
The music scene included one of my heroes, Paul McCandless, whom I was privileged to have on both my albums, Jaye as singer, and several others – jazz flautist George Husaruk, bassist Yanahay Hooper, and violinist Margie Rice. The Ukiah Symphony played my and three other local composers' works in "The Ink Ain't Dry" symposium concert in March 2019. With coming out of COVID, just this year, I have found some great wind musicians to play with, and we are having a concert at Sandisfield Arts Center on October 6, 2024, featuring some of my musical compositions and some classical pieces.
How does your music, with its natural rhythms and harmonies reflect your serious focus on organic agriculture? Does the process of farming influence your compositions or vice versa?
Continued on next page...
Regenerate, Heal, Cool (World Premiere) Music by Bill Taylor (YouTube) Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, NY June, 2023 AMERICAN MODERN ENSEMBLE
Sebastian Serrano-Ayala, conductor, Lindsey Goodman, flute, Tasha Warren, clarinet, Gina Cuffari, bassoon, JJ Johnson, viola, Jeff Campbell, bass, Amir Farid, piano. Photograph by: Aaron Houston and Pam Weiss, Arts Laureate
BT: They are what I go back and forth from and to. At times, I feel like two people. So, the music has a back-and-forth aspect to it. Every day, even if not composing, it is on my mind. When composing, there is a nagging of what needs to happen in the market garden. I read Acres USA magazine, which is the best source on current trends by pioneers in agriculture and methods of farming that improve human health, soil health, and the health of farmers. Farming can heal us or make us sick. It's really that simple AND that complex. Paying attention to what is going on with plants and animals on the farm and the microbial life can completely consume me. I will meander back to your question. My 2023 chamber piece "Regenerate, Heal, Cool" is the most literal influence. The first movement in a relentless 4/4 time conveys what happens when we attack the land to extract food. The second movement in 13/8 with a number of sub-meters conveys biodiversity and the dance of microbes, plants, and animals in a web of biodiversity. The rain soaks in instead of running off, bird calls have replaced the thrumping of tractors' plows and biocides that kill almost everything.
Lyrics like "Kill the Buggy NOW!", "Subsidize bad food" and "grow some cover crops," "plants exude that food" make sure the message gets through.
I don't know how composing influences farming. It feels more like how I shift focus while holding
the big picture in the background, going into farming and composting. While composing on the computer is seductive, with instant approximations of the sound of a cello, oboe, flute, and bass, making for instant gratification, the physicality of working out ideas on the piano is more deeply satisfying. But sometimes, the close work needs to be balanced with getting outside. The earth’s and plants’ smell brings satisfaction that writing and notating music can't match. So I need both – one drives me to the other. As satisfying as being in the garden is, no lasting semi-permanent creation arises. Nature bats last, and I am just part of a natural process of eating and defending. Music has the potential to last centuries (if printed on the right paper and if electronic documents actually endure); what happens if all the servers and computers do not survive? Also, music has a shared element of experience; farming feels more personal. While people eat what I grow, they only indirectly experience the process. I guess the same can be said of music: everyone has their own experience of meaning, although I am known as someone who writes program notes that exceed the word limit and need to be edited down, maybe like this long-winded answer.
Can you find a way to educate the readers on the difference between eating organic and commercialized foods? There are some rebellious
people out there who support both sides of this! Some people will never roam far away from Wonder Bread.
BT: I can go on and on about this. What Jaye and I do at the farmers' market is key for eaters who come to the market. Some come to get slight variants on the Standard American Diet (SAD) and reliance on pharmaceutical drugs. The West Stockbridge Farmers' Market is as diverse as the group of musicians and composers at Mostly Modern Festival. For readers, I recommend being adventurous and trying new things. We evolved to desire sweet, fat, and salt. These desires are better met with more flavor. Many cultivated vegetables have sacrificed flavor for shipability and lower growth cost (more water, less nutrients). So taste some wild plants in your area. Start your day with a green smoothie. I make one with just greens and avocado. Notice how you feel after different foods. If wild plants are not your thing, know each food is a drug. Squash makes us feel happier. So do cashews, although the sugar in them causes a reaction for me. We have different reactions to foods, so I can only suggest a few things that seem to help me be healthier. A thistle, lemon, and apple drink gives me and many others energy without the jitters and later letdown from coffee that leaves the body acidic. Acidifying foods like meat make us susceptible to cancer. Fresh vegetables and lemons are alkalizing, so the
Our dog Raisin with Paradise fire smoke descending, Nov. 2018 Photograph by: Bill Taylor
Asian idea of "a little bit of meat" makes sense to omnivores. People get used to less flavor. Chickens raised on pasture with access to bugs have much more flavor. Meat raised and finished on pasture has a better omega-3 to omega-6 ratio. Animals raised rotationally can improve the soil rather than degrade it. "It's not the cow, it's the how" is a slogan that rings true.
What from childhood still impacts and reinforces your belief system and philosophies to the present way you live your life?
BT: My godmother said I ate acorns when I was two, which is not the greatest thing if they were not leached first, so I was a foodie from the getgo. When I was three or four, I discovered mint in the backyard and sheep sorrel behind our stone wall in Connecticut shortly after, so I called it "sour mint." I loved salt and even ate the rock salt behind the town hall. I loved peanut butter and tried to make it with a mortar and pestle. Adventurous? I guess so. We moved to a place with an acre of old peach trees, and an early memory is of seeing my dad with a bushel basket on his head. One of my sisters, Charlotte, started digging a vegetable garden because Dad had one in the previous home's yard, so Dad had a big garden in the middle of that peach orchard and kept a few of the trees going. He was into the Rodale organic gardening movement and had an amazing asparagus
bed. He taught us about wild plants like purslane and lamb's quarters, which he called silverweed, and we ate them along with the vegetables. He taught persistence by building an underground "mole ditch" filled with stones to deter the moles and voles. He taught us piano until we were sixteen, and by then, I had continued until I was eighteen and went to college. His musical tastes were tonal, and he was not fond of dissonance. Towards the end of his life, I played a piece, Mendocino Coast Storm, which is dissonant and a bit like Prokofiev; I asked him what he thought, and he said, "I like the end," which was a resolution to the tonic. I learned from him how to read music and basic music theory, and my sister Hannah helped me with dynamics and how to make a piece convey more emotion.
What sparked your interest in NASA's Lucy mission? Tell us about this, please.
BT: I was an Astrophysics major at Princeton, and to this day, I read Sky and Telescope magazine to stay updated with the latest developments. At a virtual college reunion during COVID, someone mentioned the invitation to write music for the Lucy mission to the asteroids behind and in front of Jupiter. So, blending my background in music and astronomy, I wrote a two-minute piece for a string quartet and soprano sax. It had not been played; it just exists with virtual instruments,
and I presented it to fellow composers at this June's festival and got a few pointers on how to expand the piece. I had written it while I was pretty sick with Lyme, but the mission launched in October 2021, so I wanted to finish it despite my limited energy. The mission uses the Earth to boost its orbit with repeated flybys, so the music has fast and slow sections that roughly convey the spacecraft's speed. NASA gave a three-note motif to base the piece, which I used as written, then inverted and reversed to add interest, a trick composers have used for centuries.
What is most accessible and enjoyable that you share with people today besides music and food?
BT: Well, whenever stars or planets are visible, I will talk about them and astronomy in general. Also, I will find a way to get back to eating, health, and the beauty of the earth around us- animals and plants. I am a weather buff, too, and Jaye says I should get a job as a meteorologist because I am right 30% of the time��
How would you define paradise? What comes to mind, whether it's a place to live, study, or anything else?
BT: I work pretty hard and worry a fair amount, so doing nothing seems desirable, but after a few Continued on next page...
Bill At Sampoorna Yoga training, on Fort Lauderdale Beach, 2021. Photograph by Jaye Alison Moscariello
minutes, I want to get busy again. Paradise is a balance where I do not feel I am missing out. I often get less sleep because I do not want to miss anything, whether my to-do list or social opportunities at breakfast at the music festival or time with family or friends when I am staying at their place. So paradise would be not worrying but just enjoying the moment. I once did a nine-day Vipassana meditation retreat and learned how much misery the mind can create. I experienced a few seconds of total peace. Jaye and I took a two hundred-hour Sampoorna Yoga teacher training, and I do yoga daily outside of the growing season. When I focus on my body, I get some peace; at other times, I concern myself with what I need to do after yoga. In the West, especially in the US, there is a focus on doing and productivity, so I guess paradise would be not living for the next thing but just in this thing. Paradise is a state of mind, not a tropical beach, although one can have paradise there too. Certainly, having time for composing, being with friends or family, practicing piano, or being in the garden/farm can be more accessible when I put other concerns aside.
Sensing that you have pursued your passions, what else is on your list to master, discover, or understand?
BT: I still have a way to go about mastering or-
chestral writing. Many composers at the festival are getting master's or doctoral degrees in music, and my path has been more self-directed, with good coaching from those in the field. Incorporating more modern idioms and sounds in my pieces while maintaining my love of a good tune (several of the twenty-eight composers are of that mind also; others write cinematically, others in more pointillistic or, dissonant or challenging soundscapes). Composer Paul Moravec (The Shining opera composer) said this is the best time to be a composer because we have all the tools of the many past epochs of musical soundscapes; we are post-modern, post-atonal-centered, post-romantic, etcetera.
I look forward to playing more with that. I'd love to know about life elsewhere in the universe, which is part of my interest in astrophysics. The whole universe is alive, and that quest to understand is there. It hasn't made it into my music because it seems speculative, so another thing to discover is how to bring my thoughts about it into music. I speculate that the varying expansion rate of the universe is similar to how one breathes, and reducing it to an equation, whether linear, quadratic, or beyond, is a crude approximation. Anything attempting to depict God or the Great Spirit will also be very crude, so I have stayed with things that are easier to approximate with music.
After 2020, did you notice any significant change in people's beliefs about eating purely organic food? Given the urgent need for environmental modification, was this a turning point for your work, making it more serious and determined?
BT: We were still in California when the COVID lockdown came; we had bought our Berkshire home and planned to move in March but delayed that until May when things had calmed down. We were doing farmers' markets there and noticed more interest in them as people were afraid to go into a grocery store indoors, so our sales increased. It was more fear than belief, but I think it turned some people on to fresh, know-yourfarmer food. In the face of disease, interest in health has increased, but that has been on a slow rise as people consciously or unconsciously realize how toxic large-scale big ag food is. California had more going on in some ways, although the Berkshires were up there, too. However, with COVID, finding what was happening here took time. The non-GMO labeling has made people more aware, and controversies around the nature of COVID and how to deal with it have increased awareness, especially for people on the skepticalof-government side, but advertising has slowed any progress. The steady progress of the Bio-Nutrient Food Association's meter to measure nu-
Bill, Solar Oven, Geodesic Dome Greenhouse, 2024
Bill checking the peaches, 2024
trients of different foods (carrots vary by a factor of twenty!) has unlocked some unexpected results. Time from harvest to table is a big deal, and it turned out that fast-turnover markets' produce scored higher than slow, whether organic or not. Fresh and not organic can sometimes be more nutritious than old organic. Organic is, however, better for the land, soil life, and farmer health, so I stay away from non-organic even if fresh. Organic and fresh is the best way to go, including farmers I know who, like us, are not certified but use ecological and non-biocide (biocide= herbicides, fungicides, pesticides) practices. I am about as determined as before; people seem to be reverting to pre-COVID behaviors to some extent.
What are you rebellious about, and how do you fight for that good cause?
BT: Supporting regenerative fresh food and those who grow it for climate, health, and justice. Jaye and I hosted A Farm and Garden Show on WBCR-LP Great Barrington and used to on KZYX in Mendocino County starting in 2012. Every month, we interview a pioneer in regenerative or permaculture farming or a local hero. Getting my music out is a way to connect people with a healthier planet and a diversion from the rapacious consumerism that is destroying it, or at least the ability of many species to survive and
thrive. It is double-edged because even virtual or real music consumption negatively impacts consuming resources, even as it enlightens. I serve on our Sandisfield Planning Board, and it is a slow process to bring our town into resilience and even to get agreement on some ways to do that, but it is a learning experience.
Earlier in life in Boston, I lobbied for bicycle legislation, and much of what we wanted- space on the roads, parking, etc.- has happened, although its use is only moderately greater than in the 1990s. Living in the country, I primarily drive; at least we have electric cars, but their downside is the mining to create the batteries. I support efforts to make them more regenerative, but even now, I think they are an improvement over internal combustion cars and share with people how fun they are to drive with fewer repair needs and lower costs. With solar panels, we generate more than enough to keep them charged (the same mining downside applies to them but also to other means of power generation). So, I talk about those issues whenever I can.
Also in Boston, I founded EarthWorks Projects ("Food and Clean Air for the 21st Century") from 1989 to 2010. When it ceased operation, several other organizations adopted its urban orchard sites. We created an Outdoor Classroom program at public schools in underserved areas of the city.
We taught adult training classes at orchard sites, housing projects, community gardens, and urban wilds. I am happy to share how we did it with anyone wanting to start this in their city or town.
Sharing your life with Jaye must be exhilarating and fulfilling. There is so much to learn from each other. How do you both support each other's visions?
BT: Yikes, she supports mine better than I support hers. I have mentioned her a few times, And there is so much more: editing one another's writings, her helping with lyrics to my song Nature's Dream, lending her ear to my music to suggest improvements, running the farm while I was at "music sleepaway camp," helping me look more professional, doing the artwork for both albums, taking care of our interns when we were on the larger California farm. Occasionally, I comment on a painting of hers when asked. We go to each other's openings and performances, and she is the only person I have not thought the grass could be greener than anyone else. That is magical!
www.touchtheearthmusic.com
Bill weeding, 2024.... These photographs by Jaye Alison Moscariello
Acrylic and collage on board. 24"x 24-1/2". 2023
VOCALIST /
/ SONGWRITER
BILLY KEANE
MUSICIAN
Photograph by Bobby Miller
Harryet Candee: Billy, your journey from Australia to Connecticut and eventually to Pittsfield in the Berkshires fascinates me. What do you see when you look back?
Billy Keane: All experiences, unique or otherwise, influence a creative process. Mine is everchanging, sometimes closer at hand and sometimes hidden around a corner somewhere. I've lived in the places you mention and many others in between, and each of those times of my life has contributed to the things I've written and how I've expressed them musically.
Could you go into some of the early experiences that sparked your love for music and how they have contributed to your life?
BK: The farther along I get in life and my musical career, the more I recognize how divergent, particular, and various our motivations can be for creating art of any kind, and music in particular. I was very young when I began singing and creating music, and it came from the desire to express big feelings. So, for me, it was living first, feeling first, and then music second, as an expression of what I was feeling. I think there are many reasons and ways to create, but this is still the way that feels most true and authentic to me. I try to live as deeply as I can, stretching to the fullest extent of my boundaries and then farther, and when the living experience settles into a cohesive feeling or emotion, I try to write to that. Sometimes
it works, sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes, it connects with other people and recalls their own lived experiences. This is a special thing to me, and I suppose this connection lies at the heart of why I keep trying to do what I do and share it as readily as possible.
When it comes to composing music, does inspiration come to you on demand, or does it stem from life experiences, challenges, or simply pure emotion, or perhaps all of the above?
BK: Although I have composed in the past, as an act of creation that takes place mostly in my head or at a piano, I wouldn't call myself a composer. I usually consider composing and songwriting to be different acts. I reserve the term "composer" for folks significantly more knowledgeable, trained, and accomplished than I am. But when I create a piece of music that feels more like a composition than a song, I think it comes from those places you've mentioned. It isn't "on demand," per se, or inspiration isn't, anyway. Inspiration is more of a wafting thing for me; it chooses its own time and path. I can try to catch it, and I make that mistake all the time, like spotting a falling leaf and trying to chase it down and snatch it out of the air, but often that results in missing it entirely, missing other opportunities in the meantime, or crushing it in my grasping clenches should I happen to get my hands on it. Usually, I'm better served by relaxing into whatever mo-
ment I'm in, trusting that one of those leaves will eventually wind up in my lap or be near enough at hand to pick up through working the craft. When inspiration does come, yes, I think you're right that it is the result of experience, regardless of the tone, timbre, or outcome of that experience. I try to encompass a range of those things in my music and songs. I may not meet the mark, but my intent is to write in such a way as to evoke those multitudes of contrasting colors that make up the full spectrum of whatever feelings were manifest through a given experience.
What do you think most people are curious about when they first meet you?
BK: That's an interesting question! I really couldn't say. I have been referred to as being eccentric quite a few times, which I take as a compliment and which I presume implies some behavior on my part that they find curious (re: weird). However, I think I'm more interested and curious about the people I meet than I am about what they find curious about me. When people find out I don't have a TV, for instance, they seem very curious.
However, what brings me a lot of joy is finding myself in a position where I can ask a stranger questions about their life and then look around for a bench to rest on when I realize that they're going to answer those questions in detail.
Continued on next page...
Interview by Harryet Candee Cover and Inside Photographs by Bobby Miller & also Courtesy of the Artist
Still YouTube: Billy Keane and The Waking Dream, Live at Bousquet Mountain, 2022 David Tanklefsky on guitar, Miles Lally on Bass and Brian Kantor on drums. Filmed and produced by George and LIin Cox (Outpost productions).
Connecting with other musicians can alter one’s musical development. Are there any musicians in particular that have influenced your musical journey?
BK: You're absolutely right; connecting with other musicians is very important for musical development. If I'm honest, I realize I haven't done nearly enough of that over the years. For whatever reason, or every which reason, I never made the move to a music center like Nashville or NYC or LA, when one can expect to meet immense amounts of talent, have your butt kicked a bit, and have those parts of you tested and bent and worked until they're made stronger, more resilient, and more capable of creating the work you want to create. Yet still, and right here in the Berkshires and in the many other places I've found myself performing or writing, I've had plenty of wonderful, beautifully talented, and dedicated musicians
in my life who had pushed me, and taught me, supported me, and spoke truth to me when I needed it. Chris Merenda comes to mind immediately; he's a local guy with a global career and a humble character but with a seemingly unquenchable thirst for writing, living, and committing himself to the craft of writing and performance. There have been too many amazing musicians in my life to count off, but Chris is really an inspiration in so many ways, and I'm a better songwriter for listening to his music and forgetting to perform with him so often for so many years.
As far as spirituality and the impact of music, what has deeply moved your soul?
BK: I can feel my soul dance when I hear authentic music, in whatever form it takes. And I think soul dancing is a spiritual thing. It's also a bodily
thing, but as I've expressed regarding the four noble truths, I'm not one for separating into pieces that could be appreciated as something greater than the parts. In other words, I don't think my soul moves BECAUSE of music necessarily, but it moves with music because of music's ability to come as near as possible to that cosmic connection that some of us feel at the root of our living. So, for me, spirituality, music, and soul may as well be synonyms.
These days, I often contemplate the notion that all things, all experiences, are sacred. I'm not sure that in a world with infinite causes and infinite effects, I could or would want to distinguish between what is sacred and what is not as long as it's true. So, there it is another circuitous, unnecessarily long-winded answer. If I sense the authenticity of a thing, it feels sacred, and my soul dances, and sometimes that dance is a jig, and sometimes it's a rending, but either way, it's moving.
I gotta just ask you—do you like Johnny Cash's music?
BK: I do, indeed.
Exploring the gamut of musical paths shows creativity and development. Can you share the different directions you've pursued and the successes and lessons learned from each?
BK: I began songwriting as a practice sometime in middle school, inspired by artists like Cat Stevens and Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, James
Billy Keane Band Photo by Dylan Law
Taylor, and Bob Dylan. My audience probably would most recognize this background when they come to my shows. However, my first deep connections with music were developed through classical pieces, sacred vocal music, and genres of that ilk.
I sang for many years as part of an acclaimed youth vocal group and was lucky to attend a public school with some tough and talented choir and band instructors. I was accepted to attend the Berklee School of Music out of high school. I think they offered me a spot in the spring if I could hone my theory chops a bit, but I opted not to go. Had I attended, however, my focus would have been film scoring because I was enraptured with composing for film, as I still am. I love the multimedia nature of it. Many years later, thanks to the invitation of a professor who had become acquainted with my folk music, I was able to attend the "evening division" program for a semester of Intro to Composition at Juilliard, which was incredibly inspiring, expansive, and allowed me to effectively notate a series of pieces that had otherwise, due to a lack of compositional literacy, been destined to live in my mind simply.
I've learned many lessons from all of these various directions, but primarily, I've learned over and over again that your creative ideas are worth developing. They're worth the hard work it takes to hone them into something truly reflective of what you are trying to express, which leads them into creation in the first place. Your artistic and creative ambitions are worth the challenge, de-
spair, dedication, and doubts; they're worth all of it, and indeed, they deserve the effort it takes to learn how to bring them into the world, incarnate, real, and tangible. Without craft, ideas simply live in the realm of potentiality. Dedicating oneself to the craft, therefore, getting one's hands dirty, becomes an integral part, no lesser or greater than inspiration and talent, of creating and working towards your own vision of what artistic success looks like.
What's essential for you to keep your life balanced and healthy?
BK: Maintaining my sobriety from alcohol is paramount. As is keeping physically active, running, biking, doing pushups, and that kind of thing. Eating as healthy as I can (though I LOVE an ice cream every now and again). Maintaining my relationship with nature and energizing my spiritual connection with the cosmos is very important to me in all the ways we can do those sorts of things. And yes, writing and performing are integral aspects of who I am, so ensuring that I build my life around an environment of creativity is important for maintaining balance and health. And, of course, if I become obsessive, if I've spent three hours banging my head against a line or a progression that just isn't working, taking time away from creativity, or at least a particular version, is important.
What is one of the Noble Truths from Buddhism that gives you strength?
BK: I'm not sure that I would be able to name one without also naming the others. Suffering, the cause of suffering, the end of suffering, and the path that leads to the end of suffering – taken individually, it's not clear to me that they would still bear the same level of truth, and therefore, I'm not sure they would provide the understanding or strength they can provide, without their contextual placement within the full scope of the cycle. In my modest experience, Buddism is full of lists: Four things here, eight things there, cycles, lists, and enumerations. We can pick some of those and choose what's most relevant to us at a given time. The four noble truths, though - and keep in mind I know very little about the Buddhist religion, so please take this with a grain of salt - provide strength to me through their inherent connection with each other in how they describe the true human living experience.
Billy, your unwavering dedication to remaining as original as possible in a music industry filled with countless musicians is truly admirable. It's like being bounced around in a pinball machine, hitting the bumpers, but you keep moving forward to become even more authentic and original. Could you share more about this journey and how you maintain your unique voice?
BK: Thank you for such a kindly worded question. And again, you're right; it is a tough industry, filled to the brim and overflowing. That said, Continued on next page...
YouTube still: It’s Okay To Lose Your Way, Billy Keane, Live Acoustic, Written and performed by Billy Keane. Live in studio (Johnny Irion's house in The Berkshires) March of 2022 Filmed by Dylan Law of Bottle Tree Pictures
I've never really been at the center of it, or even on the periphery of it, from an industry standpoint. I mean it truly when I say that it is my fans, my audience, these incredibly supportive folks who recognize the vision, who connect with my music and, like yourself, reach out to express that connection, who keep me going, and from which almost every opportunity I've been afforded has come. The "industry," as it were, has done very little, if anything at all, in expressing an interest in what I've been up to or supporting that journey in any way.
Interestingly, this has proven to be an incredibly powerful gift for me. Honestly, for almost a decade, in many ways, I gave up on pursuing my songwriting and performing career. It felt as if I had no path forward, and frankly, I was finding myself more often than not with nothing in my bank account, no attention to my music, and no prospects for ways in which that might change. Every time I encountered "the industry" in one form or another, I was let down, and being a sensitive fellow, I allowed that to taint my own impression of what I was doing.
I drank heavily for many years, depressed, deeply, walking paths that I knew weren't my own. But, as you might be guessing, these experiences also worked their way into my songs, and from those places of darkness, I found myself tumbling out into moments of utter, sheer, and boundless clarity, feelings of freedom, and happiness. Being ignored by the industry allows one the opportunity to do whatever the f*ck one wants, with no pre-
conceived notion or expectation, except to create that which feels the most true and the most real. It's a bit like not being invited to the fancy pool party, so instead, you drive to the beach with some friends and go skinny dipping. I'll choose the latter any day.
There are many beautifully original artists who are also industry favorites, stars, folks I look up to and whose music I am entirely in love with, some friends of mine even. My path wasn't that, isn't that, but I've never really been one to walk a straight line anyway. It's the scenic routes that fill my heart, that make my soul dance, and that keep me original.
What strength do you need to bring out in yourself, especially if you are shy, in order to get on a stage and to make music videos? Some people are naturally born with this kinda’ outgoingness ability, but it requires practice and confidence.
BK: Well, I think you've nailed it, actually. You simply need to practice. Practice being on stage just as you practice performing. Again, you're worth it. Some people are born with the ability to feel comfortable on stage, but even those folks need to practice ACTUALLY being on stage. Your job on stage is to create and hold space for your audience in whatever capacity most authentically aligns with what you're trying to do. It's entirely okay and beautiful to be a shy person, even to be a shy person on stage, and to express that authentically and naturally. However, authen-
tic and natural expression in front of a crowd requires practice. So, ya know, go do it! I believe in you, person out there, who feels compelled to perform! But maybe make sure you know why you're doing it and what you're trying to do. Be intentional about it, ya know? Don't waste anyone's time by being unprepared or unprofessional, but don't try to waste your authenticity by attempting to conform to someone else's image of what artistry or music should look, feel, or sound like.
Billy, tell us about one of your solo debuts on stage, please.
BK: I have been performing on stage since I was five or six years old, mainly within the context of a choir. I have always been comfortable on stage, though I recall the first time I performed as a "singer-songwriter," just a young kid and his guitar at an open mic. I covered James Taylor's Sweet Baby James. I may have told him this story once. I sang one of my tunes, I think, in front of the small open mic crowd; I must have been twelve or so then. And I launched into Sweet Baby James and almost immediately forgot the lyrics. I was mortified. The crowd picked up where I left off, and we got through the song together. Interestingly, though we might think we feel comfortable on stage, our bodies might have a different idea altogether. Our minds might start racing, we breathe heavily, and we make quick, anxious movements. I learned fairly early on that as well as being practiced and prepared, of course, for the
YouTube still shot: Billy Keane singing FIre and Rain by James Taylor with The Whiskey Treaty Roadshow, Dec 10, 2017
set, we also need to identify these bodily feelings, which are the result of nerves, and work to calm them so that we might sink more fully into ourselves, to be as clear a vessel as possible through which the music can flow. Slow, deep breaths, both before the show and on stage. Slow movements, slower than we think they should be. I also learned a lot of this as a professional deep-sea diver. Our bodies hold stress and nerves even if we feel comfortable. Show preparation for me includes ensuring that my body is calm, in addition to my mind.
I'm interested in the challenges musicians encounter when performing together in a band or an orchestra in this unison state of mind. What are the constant challenges performers and musicians must face every time?
BK: I'm not sure I'd consider musical collaborations to be challenges, as much as they are opportunities. The best conversations happen when we engage thoughtfully with each other in an effort to listen and learn, rather than when we insist on driving home our own points or perspectives. A conversation is a dance of communication, and I think of performing with my band, The Waking Dream, in this way. Each musician has a voice, a method, and an intention. The idea, as I see it, is to approach a performance in a way that allows each of those voices to come through when they feel called by creating space for it, holding space for it, within the contextual parameters of the song specifically, and the show in general. Space is a beautiful thing, both in conversation and in per-
formance. It isn't always appropriate to rush in and fill it for the sake of it. Curating an environment in which each participant, having honed their craft over many years, having developed their unique voice, having recognized how they fit into the whole of the sound, can then contribute sonically in a way that most effectively expresses the sound of their soul, this is very important to me. Performing with a band, working together to achieve a common goal, is a real honor and opportunity to create something beautiful and powerful, if temporary and fleeting.
When playing the guitar, what skills do you focus on to create the best harmonious conditions?
BK: Finger plucking vs. strumming or irregular tunings vs. standard tuning are ways I might attempt to accommodate the mood or timbre of a
song through compelling or unique guitar arrangements. Like anything, those things all need to be practiced before they align in the way you want them to align.
Do you ever find inspiration for composing music based on dreams or nightmares?
BK: Not often, but yes, I have woken up several times with songs in my head, which I assume I had been dreaming about beforehand. "Bathing in the Light" is an example of my last studio record. The song's first line is, "I heard you call my name in the middle of the night. Oh, I'd do anything, babe, to make sure that you're alright". That happened, and then I woke up and wrote the song. I'll also be releasing a song called "Just Before The Morning" in a few weeks, or maybe it will already be released by the time this article comes out. Continued on next page....
Billy Keane. Photograph by Dylan Law
Again, I woke up with the tune in my mind and with a text from a friend at 3 am or so, struggling with the state of the world. It was in a dream state of some kind in which I wrote that song.
Does this sound familiar to you— When you're down and troubled and need some love and care? In what ways do you resonate with these lyrics by James Taylor?
BK: Carol King wrote those lyrics, though, of course, James recorded the tune as well and made a hit out of it. Of course, they resonate with me, as with everyone in the world.
There's a beautiful simplicity to many of those pop-folk tunes of the seventies, and You've Got a Friend is a perfect example. I think I attempt to emulate that style of writing. I love a good storytelling folk song that is specific and layered with detail and expresses a profound emotional timbre through its scenery, setting, and narrative. Though really, many of my favorite songs can evoke that same compassionate connection with simple, straightforward expression. Bill Withers is another writer who can simply and humbly write the perfect line, an arrow shot into the bullseye of our living experience.
Where do you sense the music industry is headed, and are you jumping on the bandwagon in any way you feel is necessary? What plans do you have moving forward?
BK: Oh goodness, I have no idea. Truly. I don't
know where the industry is at, let alone where it's going. My plan is simple, though. I am releasing singles at the moment, and frankly, they seem to be doing quite well in terms of organic streams. Just a week and a half ago, I released a live track I recorded last year called "Front Porch Swing" as part of a recording residency through the Freshgrass organization, and it's already been streamed almost 10,000 times. That's without any industry input at all. That feels pretty great to know that folks are listening and enjoying it to that extent without being told to by "the industry". So, I'll keep making music (I am writing a lot again these days, after having spent the last year and a half completing a Bachelor's Degree in Contemplative Psychology, which was taking most of my creative attention), I'll keep making records, hopefully, another full studio record soon, and I'll keep playing shows. I'm a simple guy, and I just really love making and performing music. So, I'll keep doing that.
At home, as artists, we cherish our private space where we create, rest, eat, swim, and more. How would you describe your livingspace?
BK: I live and write in a little cottage I had renovated here in Lenox through a rehab loan from the bank. She's about 1,000 square feet. I try not to keep many things here beyond basic furniture, books, instruments, and various pieces of art, plants, or things I've been given. It's important
for my process always to have instruments on hand, reduce distractions, and maintain a tidy and open living space within which I can attempt to chisel out some new material and keep engaged with the old stuff.
I am not organized by nature, so I try to ensure that my working and living environments are as free of unnecessary clutter or distractions as possible. Hence, there is a lack of television over here. It's not that I don't enjoy distraction; I enjoy it way too much. I've learned that I need to simply remove it from my life so that I can more readily focus on those things that are most important to me.
When you reminisce, where do you find your most comforting memories take you? You are young, and your memories shape your personality and character on and off stage. In what ways might you find that to be true or false?
Well, at thirty-seven, I'm not often referred to as "young" anymore, but I do appreciate that perspective. I feel young sometimes. I also feel old sometimes. Some of my friends refer to me as the grandpa of the group. I find that my personality and character, which is most authentic to me, is exactly what I try to bring on stage. I thoroughly enjoy musicians or artists, or actors for that matter, who curate a persona, some kind of artistic alias, and perform under that moniker. That's just not what I do. My whole thing, my "act," for lack of a better term, is that I'm not acting. I'm simply
YouTube still shot: Billy Keane & The Waking Dream, Fresh Flowers, LIVE 4.1.22, The Egremont Barn, Egremont, MA. shot and cut by Nick Keene and recorded by Anthony Bonneville
“This was, if not the first time I performed with this incredible lineup, certainly among the first of those times. David Tanklefsky (from The Whiskey Treaty and a talented songwriter in his own right) on electric lead, Brian Kantor (who has toured with The Fruit Bats among many many others) on the kit and Miles Lally (a Berkshires legend, hailing from LA and NYC) on bass. It was an honor when these fellas agreed to go along for this wild ride - the beginnings of my solo project. It was a revelation to perform with them.” — Billy Keane
doing my thing, as I always do it. That's what works best for me and allows me to connect with my audience most readily. Sometimes, I might tell stories or anecdotes for half the performance, especially if I'm playing an acoustic solo show. Sometimes I don't talk at all. Reminiscence memories surely come into play both in terms of what I'm saying, how I'm saying it, and how I'm feeling. But so does the immediate present. If I've been struggling in some capacity, the show will reflect that. Not in a way that makes it somehow less compelling or fulfilling for the audience, ideally, but simply in a way that is most appropriate to the reality of my being. Correspondingly, if I've spent a day at the river feeling particularly calm and heady, the show will reflect that as well.
Who in your life at this time provides amazing love and keeps you grounded when needed?
BK: My new partner, Claire, my first in many years, has been an amazing source of groundedness and loving supportiveness. Claire is the kind of person who hikes barefoot in summer dresses, swims out to the middle of the lake, and dives down to the bottom. She isn't here with me at the moment, but I bet wherever she is, she's smiling into the day, her wavy brown hair is in a perfect state of charming dishelvedness, and her feet are bare and in the grass. Her shoulders are tanned dark, and her hands are working the peel of a mango. It's cloudy here today. Maybe it's
raining where she is. If it is, she's sure to be dancing in it.
Where have you toured that has given you the best diverse cultural experiences? Do you tour internationally?
BK: I have yet to have that opportunity, though goodness, I'd sure love to someday. I've toured all over the USA, and we certainly have immensely diverse cultures to explore. I've always loved performing in California. I really enjoy getting down south. I love all my audiences here in New England. Really, I feel grateful to perform anywhere, and because my career has been a modest one, I'm just always humbled by any opportunity to perform for anyone who connects with what I'm doing.
I'm thirty-seven years old, and I've been performing for most of my life. I've been incredibly blessed to have received so much support over the years in terms of profoundly positive audience reception, but I can honestly say that I'm still always surprised, gratefully surprised, when anyone comes up to me after a show, talking about how much they enjoyed it.
What song have you written and played that captures a similar mood and is one of your favorite mainstays? Where can we catch one of your live performances?
Although I incorporated some setting and scenery into this song, when I wrote "Bathing in the
Light," I attempted to distill a similar "it's okay" vibe into a simple phrase. "Even in desperate times of struggle, when I ain't got spirit left to fight, even running in circles, you're still bathing in the light." This is one of my favorite songs that I've written, and thankfully, it also has become one of my audiences' favorite songs over the last year since I released it on my record "Oh These Days" back in September. You can find that record, and all my other stuff, on any streaming outlets, such as Spotify, Apple, and all of the above. You can also buy the physical records, and t-shirts for that matter, from my online store at www.BillyKeane.com . My tour schedule is up there as well, and hopefully, your readers will come out to some shows this summer. I'll be performing solo at the Egremont Barn in mid-August, which would be a great one to go to. Some other local stuff, too. The best way to stay in touch with me is through Instagram or @billykeaneofficial. And I hope you do, and I hope your readers do! It's such an honor to have the opportunity to perform for folks, and it's such a special thing when I hear from my audience through my website or Instagram.
YouTube still shot: Plenty Other Reasons - By Billy Keane Released - 4/22/22 (Earth Day) Produced by Billy Keane and Marc Seedorf. Recorded at Ghost Hit Studios
From album: Too Much To Let It Go - releasing 8/19/22 Video Conceived of, Directed by, and filmed by George Cox (Outpost Studios)
Video produced by Lin Cox (Outpost Studios)
RICHARD TALBERT
I am an Abstract Surrealist Painter and Architect. I’m also Celebrating the 100-year centennial of Surrealism.
The mixed media piece above, Saw Grass, is part of a large series of images from an installation piece about The Everglades National Park (U.S. National Park Service) after Hurricane Andrew hit South Florida in August 1992.
My paintings and architecture address the complexities of form and space in a rectangular format. These forms are defined spaces and conscious “transformations” of transparent planes. Sometimes these abstract images of vision are distortions and trigger an insubordinate sense of color. As a Public Muralist, my work can be provocative as well as reflective of my daily surroundings. Yet, I am always conscious of Current American Landscape Painting, the Great Mexican Muralists of the 1940’s as well as Ancient Peruvian Textiles.
One man exhibitions include: Gallery Des Artistes, 533 Clematis Street, West Palm Beach, Florida, 33401. Bonwit Teller & Co., Atrium Gallery, Bal Harbour Shops, 9700 Collins Avenue, Bal Harbour Shops and Indoor/Outdoor Shopping Mall, Bal Harbour, Florida. 33154. Richard TalbertMy Lenox Studio is open by appointment: 413-347-3888 richtalbert1@gmail.com, Website: richardtalbertdesign.com
CANDACE EATON
SALLY TISKA RICE BERKSHIRE ROLLING HILLS
Born and raised in the captivating Berkshires, Sally Tiska Rice possesses artistic prowess that breathes life into her canvases. As a versatile multi-media artist, Sally seamlessly employs a tapestry of techniques, working in acrylics, watercolors, oil paints, pastels, collages containing botanicals and mixed media elements. Her creative spirit draws inspiration from the idyllic surroundings of her rural hometown, where she resides with her husband Mark and cherished pets.
“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
"My main page in this issue shows one of my earlier paintings that I returned to recently and brought out the colors around the obelisk to reflect the Ukrainian situation and democracy in general, which is at its’ most threatened in decades again… I realize most of my work tends to be reflective of our political & social situations which are addressed in my American Icon & Archetype series whereas my Jazz series which burst forth with the pulse of life, love and the freedom from isolation through connection with the Other. My fairly recent move to the Berkshires full time has been a time of transition; while I miss my spacious top floor loft, I now am in the process of creating a new studio here in my large cave of a basement space. Newer works are brewing which I hope to share in the upcoming months with The Artful Mind readers. Again, I feel it necessary to express my need to be free of “brands” and continue to be true to my muse who has more than one voice and vision."
Candace Eatoncandaceeatonstudio@gmail.com
Sally's artistic process is a dance of spontaneity and intention. With each stroke of her brush, she composes artwork that reflects her unique perspective. Beyond her personal creations, Sally also welcomes commissioned projects, turning heartfelt visions into tangible realities. Whether it's capturing the essence of individuals, beloved pets, cherished homes, or sacred churches, she pours her soul into each personalized masterpiece.
Sally's talent has garnered recognition both nationally and internationally. Her career includes a remarkable 25-year tenure at Crane Co., where she lent her hand-painted finesse to crafting exquisite stationery. Sally is a member of the Clock Tower Artists of Pittsfield, Massachusetts, the Guild of Berkshire Artists, the Berkshire Art Association, and the Becket Arts Center. Follow on YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram.
Sally’s work is on the gallery walls of the Clock Tower, Open Monday-Friday 9:00-5:00 pm for self-guided tours.
Also, 51 Park Restaurant & Tavern in Lee, MA Berkshire Rolling Hills Art, 75 South Church St, 3rd Floor, Studio 302, Pittsfield, MA. 413-4468469.
SallyTiskaRice@gmail.com www.sallytiskarice.com https://www.facebook.com/artistsallytiskarice Fine Art Prints (Pixels), Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok
SAW GRASS
GLADIOLA TIPS WATERCOLOR ON COLD PRESS PAPER
AMERICAN SCHOOL GIRL
ELIZABETH CASSIDY
What if Love is the answer?
I created Little Love Letters: A Peaceful Revolution in 2016. These small cards have my art and messages of love and acceptance on them. They have been mailed to our local and international volunteers who have left over 70,000 cards in different public places for someone to find and know that they matter.
My cards are all about creating a peaceful revolution. My hope is that people will feel a little love when they find a card. I have had people write to me saying that the right card showed up for them at the right time.
These cards are what someone described as “magical.” If you would like to join this peaceful revolution, please go to my website, and look for info under, “Social Impact.”
We can make a difference. We need to make a difference. The world needs a little more love. elizabeth cassidy studio workswww:elizabethcassidystudioworks.com
CARLOS CAICEDO ABSTRACT AND CONCEPTUAL PHOTOGRAPHY
CARTER
“The artist's world is limitless. It can be foundanywhere, far from where he lives or a few feet away. It is always on his doorstep.”
—Paul Strand
Carlos’ award-winning graphic work has been shown throughout the United States from Alaska to New York and South America. Museums include Museo La Tertulia in Cali, Colombia, The Anchorage Art Museum in Alaska, The Waterloo Arts Center in Iowa, The Ft. Wayne Museum in Indiana, The Springfield Art Museum in Missouri and the Housatonic Museum of Art in Connecticut. In 2008 he was invited to participate in the Florence Biennale of Contemporary Art in Italy. His work includes drawings, watercolor and acrylic paintings, and photography. During the last few years, he has concentrated on exploring photography as an art form. Since 2019 he has won multiple Silver and Gold awards for his photo work with paper by the well-known international publication Graphis. In the same consecutive years, he was honored with two Gold medals and two Best Of Show for his photography series using pencils as a subject, by Trierenberg Super Circuit in Austria, the largest photo art contest in the world. One of his latest works features a multi-award animated short video based on his pencils, called “Doodle”, produced with a team led by his son Mo. Some of his photography work can be seen at https://500px.com/p/carloscaicedo1?view=photos, where he has over 75,000 followers. His page has had nearly 20 million visits in the last nine years. Carlos moved from Colombia to the United States in 1981.
As per the Art Critic Charles Giuliano, "The quality of the work is readily self-evident and deservedly the recipient of numerous awards."
Carlos CaicedoEclipse Mill Loft 306, 243 Union St., North Adams, MA carlosart.net carloscedo@yahoo.com https://www.legaleriste.com/19/carlos.caicedo
ARTFULMIND
SHOWING AT THE CAHOON MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART THROUGH SEPTEMBER 15
Finalist World of Wearable Art 2024
Deborah H. Carter is a multi-media artist from Lenox, MA, who creates upcycled sustainable wearable art. Her couture pieces are constructed from post-consumer waste such as food packaging, wine corks, cardboard, books, wire, plastic, and other discarded items and thrifted wares. She manipulates the color, shape, and texture of her materials to compel us to question our assumptions of beauty and worth and ultimately reconsider our habits and attitudes about waste and consumerism.
A sewing enthusiast since the age of 8, Deborah first learned her craft by creating clothing with her mother and grandmothers. Her passion took hold as she began to design and sew apparel and accessories. After graduating with a degree in fashion design from Parsons School of Design in New York City, she worked as a women’s sportswear designer on Seventh Avenue.
Deborah’s art has been exhibited in galleries and art spaces around the US. She was one of 30 designers selected to showcase her work at the FS2020 Fashion Show annually at the University of Saint Andrews, Scotland. She has featured in the Spring 2023 What Women Create magazine.
Deborah H Carter has been featured in the Berkshire Magazine, What Women Create magazine and was a finalist in the World of WearableArt competition in Wellington, New Zealand 2023.
Deborah H Carter413-441-3220, Clock Tower Artists 75 S. Church St., Studio 315, 3rd floor. Pittsfield, Massachusetts
Instagram: @deborah_h_carter
Debhcarter@yahoo.com
@YAHOO.COM
DEBORAH H.
@DEBORAH H CARTER CORK DRESS MODEL: LEAL CARTER
Plein Air-ing in Frayssinet, France. 2024
S.R. AIKEN Berkshire Resident and Artist
Bergers des Lavandes at Causses in the Lot region on a day of quiet skies and muted colors, one of the excursions I was able to access! Pictured is a gouache plein air painting I made there.
These were taken the same evening with the light soaking into the stone buildings, and turning the clouds, orange, pink and yellow. The sheep coming towards us to visit completed the fairy tale atmosphere…they were very friendly, and the whole herd would follow the leader so hundreds of sheep would come following the leader with the bell around his neck!
The gardens all around the convent or joined to one another through winding paths of foliage and flowers. This lemon tree overlook the Koi pond where the sounds of the frogs grew so loud that periodically the staff would move some of them down to the river to have some quiet at night!
I waited all winter for the painting trip to the countryside of south west France in early June. My friend joined me and other artists for a stay in Frayssinet at a 17th century convent, in a tiny village of beautiful old stone residences that glowed with the light in the mornings and evenings. This area is five-six hours southwest of Paris, near Toulouse. Despite becoming ill the day after arrival, I did have moments to deeply enjoy the colors, scents, and constant beauty all around, and took many photos on short walks to remember the feelings evoked in this medieval place. I am happy to share some of these, and even one (only one!) plein air started on my first day in the gardens, before illness struck. —S.R. Aiken G
Visiting Les Jardins D’eau was surprisingly peaceful, as it is a popular spot with gardens around water gardens, echoing Monet’s lovely gardens at Giverny
Pictured are the green gates to the entrance of the kitchen garden from the narrow road. “Green Door” is a painting I began my first day in the gardens before illness struck, with light shining through the garden shed from the window on the far side. I wanted to capture that magical feeling of the place.
BRIDE COMMISSIONED WATERCOLORS
If you have a special occasion in your future, consider commemorating it with a painting. A new home? An old home that you are leaving? A unique vacation scene? It is nice to create longlasting memories with a painting. A custom watercolor painting of a wedding venue, a home or other meaningful location is always a treasured gift for any occasion. Commission work is always welcome.
Marguerite Bride –413-841-1659; margebride-paintings.com; margebride@aol.com; Facebook: Marguerite Bride Watercolors
KEITH DAVIDSON
A native of the Berkshires, Keith has been painting for the last 20 years, motivated by the natural beauty of his surrounding environment. Keith shares a studio with his wife Mary, at their home in South Egremont.
Keith Davidson will be showing work at New Marlborough Meeting House Gallery exhibit— Farm and Table, July 26—August 25. Reception Friday July 26, 5-7 pm. 154 Hartsville New Marlborough Road, New Marlborough, MA
Keith Davidson413-717-2152
kjdavidsongio@aol.com www.davidsondesigncompany.net
ARTFULMIND@YAHOO.COM
MARY DAVIDSON
This body of artwork, “My New Hat Series” presents colorful, geometric, large scale feminine forms, that are mysterious, bold, dramatic, captivating and complex. The many elegant, amorphic, intricate shapes which flow through out, keep the eyes moving. These playful, dynamic, creative works, give the viewer a chance to pause, lifting your spirit to a happy place.
Stamped Abstract Series #35 is my latest work. Mary Davidson will be showing her work at New Marlborough Meeting House Gallery exhibit—Farm and Table, July 26—August 25. Reception Friday July 26, 5-7 pm. 154 Hartsville New Marlborough Road, New Marlborough, MA
Mary Davidsonmdavidsongio@aol.com www.davidsondesigncompany.net
STAMPED ABSTRACT SERIES #35
Violin & Music Symbol Keyring
Deirdre Flynn Sullivan
Soul Love is a Wilderness
Soul Love is a Wilderness
I keep telling you I'm fearless
A leopard leaping full of song
I keep telling you it's a wild cry
Dreams with angels beating wings
I keep telling you it's unbidden
Flights like birds in a moon-soaked sky
I keep telling you, though you don't listen
This passion keeps me singing
Without it, I would die.
~ Deirdre Flynn Sullivan, 2014
Leaping Full of Song ~ Deirdre Flynn Sullivan 6/24/20
rdaver2@gmail.com Instagram: rdaver2. Housatonic Studio open by appointment: 413-854-7007
www.sallytiskarice.com sallytiskarice@gmail.com
INFRASTRUCTURE. CONSTRUCTION OF CAST IRON AND MARBLE. 16” X 10” X 8”
MARK MELLINGER
My two careers, art and psychoanalysis, concern what can be said and what remains mute. In painting, collage and constructions of wood and iron I’m interested in the eloquence of the materials.
Avoiding a recognizable style in favor of experimentation, I explore the possibilities of the media. Our world and culture are dissolving. Art can create precious islands of meaning and joy.
Mark will be showing his work at Hotel on North, February 2 - March 31, 2024, 297 North St., Pittsfield, MA 01201
Mark V. Mellinger, Ph.D.914-260-7413, 75 S Church St, Pittsfield MA, instagram@mellinger3301
RUBY AVER STREET ZEN
Growing up on the Southside of Chicago in the 60s was a history rich and troubled time. As a youth, playing in the streets demanded grit. Teaching Tai chi for the last 30 years requires a Zen state of mind. My paintings come from this quiet place that exhibit the rich grit of my youth . Movement, shape and color dominate, spontaneously combining raw as well as delicate impulses.
Ruby AverHousatonic Studio open by appointment: 413-854-7007, rdaver2@gmail.com, Instagram: rdaver2
FRONT STREET GALLERY
LANDSCAPE, 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
BRANCHES AND BARS
BRUCE PANOCK
I am a visual artist. I use photography as a platform for my art. I have been a student of photography for more than 20 years, though most intently for the last five years. I find the core elements of my art the landscape photographer.
Recently much my art employs 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 the 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 PanockPanockphotography.com / bruce@panockphotography.com / Instagram @brucepanock
ELEANOR LORD
UNVEILING, ACRYLIC ON CANVAS 24” X 30”
Pastel by Eleanor Lord
RICHARD TALBERT
Abstract Landscape #9, Acrylic on Canvas, 2020, 14” x 16”.
Richard Talbert's paintings and architecture address the complexities of form and space in a rectangular format. These forms are defined spaces and conscious "transformations" of transparent planes. These abstract images of vision are distortions and trigger an insubordinate sense of color. As a public muralist, Talbert's work can be provocative as well as reflective of daily surroundings. The mixed media piece above, Abstract Landscape #9 is a part of a series of landscapes painted in Cape Ann and Gloucester Massachusetts, USA from 2015 to 2020.
Email: Richtalbert1@gmail.com
My Lenox Studio is open by appointment. 413.347.3888 richtalbert1@gmail.com website: richardtalbertdesign.com
Little Love letters: A Peaceful Revolution
I created Little Love Letters: A Peaceful Revolution in 2016. These small cards were created using my art and messages of love and acceptance. They have been mailed to our local and international volunteers who leave them in public places, in a greeting card, or have handed a card to someone who needs to be seen and heard.
These cards are what someone described as “magical.” I agree. So many people get these cards at the right time in their lives.
If you would like to join this peaceful revolution, please go to my website, and look for info under, “Social Impact.”
I hope you will join us. The world needs a little more love, empathy and acceptance.
www.elizabethcassidystudioworks.com
elizabeth cassidy studio works
JESS FREY
July and August at Stockbridge Coffee and Tea 6 Elm Street, Stockbridge Mass.
Thresholds- Mixed Media on canvas with wood frame 21x17
Fox Grapes FROM THE SERIES
“Stories For Children”
Rowena, the children’s twelfth chicken, was lost for three days. She became lost because she flew over the fence in the chicken yard by accident. She decided to go for a walk. She had never been on the other side of the fence before, and had often wondered about the things that could be seen in the distance.
She could see the lake, but did not know what a lake was. She could see that there were ducks standing around the lake, but she did not know what ducks were, to say nothing of the mountains in the distance. She walked down a path towards the lake, stopping every few steps to look at things she had never seen before. She looked at an acorn and wondered what it was and how it came to be sitting in the path. She saw ants and a spider, and then stopped to examine some grapes that were hanging in clusters from a tree branch.
The grapes she was looking at were very small, and are called “Fox grapes,” and at that time of year, which was September, they were perfectly ripe. People do not eat fox grapes, but foxes like them, and so it was not surprising that Rowena came across a fox under the tree branch, who had been eating grapes all morning long.
The fox, whose name was Samson, was wearing a fur coat and pants with white edging, and a pair of white boots, also made of fur, at least that is what Rowena thought, having never seen a fox before.
At that moment Rowena was in great danger, and if it had been a different time of day, or a different month in the year, she would have never been able to complete her walk, and never would have come home again, except for one thing, and that one thing was; the fox had a terrible stomach ache.
The fox, seeing the chicken, jumped up from where he was sitting under the fox grape vines and introduced himself, saying, “Good day to you chicken, what might you be doing outside of your chicken coop?” And Rowena replied, “I flew out quite by accident, and now I am going for a walk.”
“I have been here all morning eating these fox grapes, and now I am quite full. Do you eat these grapes?”
The fox inquired.
“No,” Rowena replied, “at least I’ve never tried; I eat seeds and corn, put down on the ground for me by the farmer’s children. Do you eat other things besides the fox grapes?”
“We foxes eat mice, rats and squirrels, and chipmunks when these fox grapes are not in season.” The fox said everything very slowly, and with long pauses
and deep breaths between his words, because his stomach hurt him so badly. He was leaning there against a tree with his feet crossed, and his left paw upon his stomach. With his right hand he stroked his forehead with a little rag.
“You should be very pleased with us foxes, Rowena,” the fox explained, “Because,” and then after a long pause and some deep breaths, he continued, “we eat all the little animals that are always stealing your food, and that you have to be constantly chasing away.”
It was true what the fox said, and Rowena also had the job of chasing away crows, and the crows, unlike the squirrels, refused to be chased away, and would sometimes even turn around and fight with the chickens over some little morsel lying on the ground. Although it was Rowena’s job to chase away the crows, she did not really mind them so much and had been heard to say, more than once, ‘Oh leave the crows alone, they probably think they are just hens like us, and don’t understand why we chase them away.’
Just then one of those crows landed in the branches of the tree directly above where Rowena and Sampson were talking. This crow's name was Jason, but he did not know his own name. Jason was the name the children at the farm had given to him, although they called all of the crows by that name as well. It was the same with the squirrels. All the squirrels were called Chuckie.
The children could really be forgiven for calling all the crows by the same name because in fact, I confess, I could not tell any two of them apart myself. I could not tell them apart unless one of them happened to be much bigger than another. Size differences were not lost on the children either, because they did refer to some crows as ‘Big Jasons,’ or ‘Little Jasons,’ but more elaborate distinctions they did not consider. Jason the Crow, had landed in the tree, but he was not content to sit still, but twice bounced up and down on his branch, and ruffled his wings. He cawed three times, looking this way and that in a disapproving and irritated way, as if something was bothering him; as if he could tell that something in the world was not quite right. But we really should not read too much into the actions of that particular crow, as their tribe has been known to act that way for many centuries now, and if one paid attention to their constant fretful warnings one would never get anything done because of the constant anxiety their behaviors might cause. Meanwhile poor Samson the Fox became more and more uncomfortable in his stomach, and finally he said to Rowena, “You are going to have to excuse me for a few minutes.” He then stepped quickly behind the tree he had been leaning on, and when he was out of sight, except for the tip of his tail, he got rid of almost all the fox grapes he had been eating from the early morning. Getting rid of the grapes that were in his stomach did not happen all at once however, but in three distinct episodes, and each of these grape removals was preceded by low moaning sounds and a kind of strangled, choking and gasping.
All Rowena was able to see as this painful event unfolded was the poor fox's tail which sometimes shook violently, and then again lay still on the ground.
Rowena felt a rush of sympathy for the fox, but could do nothing to help him, and the crow looked on with complete indifference. When Samson was done getting rid of his fox grapes, he came out from behind the tree looking quite sad.
“Are you feeling better now Mr. Fox,” Rowena asked, but he replied that he was no better at all and, “I Will never eat grapes again as long as I live,” he declared with conviction.
Just after Samson’s terrible experience, two foxes
who were Samson’s relatives came walking down the path in the woods. One’s name was Pipe, and the other was named Pockets. One was named Pipe because he smoked a pipe, and the other was named Pockets, because he always had his hands in his pockets.
The three foxes then got into an amiable conversation about things of concern to foxes, and for some reason they completely ignored Rowena. The three of them acted like Rowena was not even there, as if she was nonexistent. ‘Nonexistent,’ means that a thing does not exist, like sunglasses on the moon, or square tires on a car. But Rowena certainly did exist, although for how much longer, that was the question.
Rowena was a very polite chicken, and when she saw that she was not to be included in the conversation, she took a few steps back because she did not want to seem to be listening in. But the crow up in his tree listened to everything very carefully, turning his head to the side attentively, as if he was very concerned about what might be said.
When the foxes were done with their conversation they went on their way, but some distance down the path Pipe stopped for a moment, and calling to Samson from a distance he said, “By the way Sampson, what's for dinner tonight, and are we invited?” Then he laughed very loudly, and kept snickering to himself as he and his friend walked into the distance. Suddenly Rowena shivered all over and became very nervous. She did not know why exactly she felt nervous, and at the same moment the crow jumped up and down on his branch, and was incapable of sitting still, even for a minute.
Samson realized that he was going to be sick again very soon and, as before, he politely excused himself and went behind the tree. This episode behind the tree took considerably longer than before, and it was as if the grapes remaining in his stomach had made up their minds not to be evicted, as if they, all of them, had hired a lawyer to argue for their right to remain where they were. The lawyer for the grapes, striking a theatrical pose expounds, “”Note, ladies and gentlemen of the stomach, these grapes in question did not invade the fox, they did not enter into him by force, but by a very pleasant and amicable agreement, and with the complete consent of Mr. Samson Fox. But in the middle of the lawyer’s argument, the remaining grapes were suddenly evicted by force, although they hung on for dear life. All of them were evicted, along with their various furnishings, and household goods.
While this was going on Rowena stood quietly in the path, waiting for Samson's return, and thinking about squirrels. She thought about how when you frighten them they instantly run behind a tree. Once the squirrel is behind the tree they peek out to see if you are still looking for them. And with that thought in mind she slipped behind a tree that was nearby. When Samson reappeared he was amazed to find that Rowena was nowhere to be seen.
Why did Rowena hide behind the tree? It was because of the laughter of the foxes, and the talk of dinner. There is something frightening about laughter, the laughter of strangers, when you are by yourself in a wood.
Samson, thinking that Rowena had run for home, set out to catch her, as fast as he could run, and when he was out of sight Rowena resumed her walk in the direction of the lake. She did not know what the lake was, but she hoped to find out, and the crow followed her, up in the sky, keeping a lookout, unbeknownst to her.
—RICHARD BRITELL, JULY 2024
BRUCE LAIRD
I am an abstract artist whose two- and threedimensional works in mixed media reveal a fascination with geometry, color and juxtapositions. For me it is all about the work which provides surprising results, both playful and thought provoking.
From BCC to UMASS and later to Vermont College to earn my MFA Degree. I have taken many workshops through Art New England, at Bennington College, Hamilton College and an experimental workshop on cyanotypes recently at MCLA. Two international workshops in France and Italy also.
I am pleased to have a studio space with an exciting group of artists at the Clocktower Building in Pittsfield.
Bruce LairdClock Tower Business Center, Studio #307 75 South Church Street, Pittsfield, MA
JESS FREY BORN AGAIN
This creation comes in abstract textural layers using recycled paint, acrylic, ink and everyday found objects to portray the multi-dimensions of addiction, post traumatic growth, recovery and great voyages of Death, Birth, Love, God, Source, Spirit, Soul.
Each painting is accompanied by a poem, telling story, sharing experience and connecting word to visual art. Through the relationship between written and visual art, my hope is to illuminate an unfolding, a remembering and our forever continued journey of being Born Again – awakening, more free and alive.
Art will display July and August at Stockbridge Coffee and Tea 6 Elm St. Stockbridge, Massachusetts.
ERIKA LARSKAYA
Confinement and Breakaway examine the mental state of struggle to make sense of our environment, both physical and psychological. I incorporate childlike drawing to represent nonconformity; the unadulterated state before we get confined by rules, commitment, insecurities, and other “add-ons.”
“I distress and repair parts of the painting, as we do within ourselves. The drawings of floor plans and elevations, which I use as a starting point, create a sense of enclosure, which I expand by continuing the lines outward, breaking the structural pattern. This alters the sense of confinement, breaking away from the [rigid, static] norm”.
Erika Larskaya - https://www.erikalarskaya.art
Contact me: 413. 597. 1716. ghetta-hirsch.squarespace.com Ghettagh@gmail.com
FOUND FATHER, ACRYLIC ON CANVAS, 30" X 40" H
Ghetta Hirsch
THE GREAT SURRENDER
French Atlantic Pine
Joshua Redman
John McLaughlin
Angelique Francis
35 Acrylic on canvas 24”x 24” Abstract 36 Acrylic on canvas 24”x 24”
