THE SOURCE AND SOUL FOR PROMOTING THE ARTS SINCE 1994
MAY 2022
THE ARTFUL MIND
LONNY JARRETT An Integral Life Art, Music, Movement and Medicine
Cover photograph by Lonny Jarrett, Mount Greylock
PAT HOGAN
THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 IS ART NOT A LOVE AFFAIR WITH LIFE? SUSAN ELEY FINE ART, HUDSON TEXT BY LIZ LORENZ | INTERVIEW WITH SUSAN ELEY...8
KATHRYN LYNCH ARTIST INTERVIEW BY H. CANDEE ... 14 LONNY JARRETT AN INTEGRAL LIFE - ART, MUSIC, MOVEMENT, MEDICINE
INTERVIEW BY H. CANDEE PHOTOGRAPHY BY EDWARD ACKER...22 “Sweet Spring” Watercolor 14 x 10”
May 12 to June 19, 2022
VIRTUAL ART GALLERY ...28
FINE ART AND PHOTOGRAPHY BY ARTISTS FOR SALE
Opening Reception: May 21, 3 to 5 PM
POETRY N ART ...35
GALLERY NORTHEAST
ARTIST UPDATE LINDA KAYE-MOSES JEWELRY DESIGNER INTERVIEW BY H. CANDEE ...36
CONTEMPORARY REGIONAL IMPRESSIONISTIC ART Ruth Moore, Owner
12 BROAD STREET, KINDERHOOK, NEW YORK • 519. 697. 9984 gallerynortheast@gmail.com • gallerynortheast.com
CAROLYN KAY BRANCATO AUTHOR INTERVIEW BY H. CANDEE...42 RICHARD BRITELL | FICTION SOMETHING FOR OVER THE COUCH
CHAPTER 10
...48
Publisher Harryet Candee Copy Editor Marguerite Bride Third Eye Jeff Bynack Advertising and Graphic Design Harryet Candee Contributing Writers Richard Britell Liz Lorenz Photographers Edward Acker Tasja Keetman Bobby Miller ADVERTISING RATES 413 ‐ 645 ‐ 4114 artfulmind@yahoo.com issuu.com | Instagram FB Open Group: ART GALLERY for artful minds The Artful Mind Box 985 Great Barrington, MA 01230
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THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 3
CAROLYN NEWBERGER |
DANCING WITH THE ANCESTORS, KHARKIV
cnewberger@me.com
NEW WORK
MIXED MEDIA, WATERCOLOR, PASTEL, CHARCOAL, DECOUPAGE, 30 X 40 INCHES
www.carolynnewberger.com
6178775672
Mark Mellinger Paintings - Collage - Construction
100 North St Pittsfield #322 914. 260. 7413 markmellinger680@gmail.com
Subterranean mark gallery pr Pyroclasm. Acrylic on canvas 2018. 60" x 48"
THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 5
TAKE THE BERKSHIRES HOME WITH YOU
Lonny Jarrett Fine Art Photography Berkshirescenicphotography.com 413‐298‐4221 Lonny@berkshirescenicphotography.com
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LIANG WANG, OBOIST DREAMING OF JOHN HENRY. ACRYLIC 30" X 36", 2021
MARK MELLINGER ABSURDIST ARTIST STATEMENT
MATT CHINIAN PROSAIC REALISM TAMAR
ZORMAN, VIOLINIST
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS WITH MUSIC REEDS AND STRINGS CEWM presents “Reeds and Strings” – Mozart, Beethoven, Cimarosa, Britten and Tchaikovsky competition winning violinist Itamar Zorman, plus NY Philharmonic first chair oboist Liang Wang, performed Live at the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center in Great Barrington, MA, Sunday, May 29, at 4 PM. The organic voice of the oboe, a member of the woodwind family, meets kindred wood string instruments. First oboist of the New York Philharmonic leads the way from Mozart’s Oboe Quartet to Cimarosa’s Oboe Concerto and Benjamin Britten’s Six Metamorphoses after Ovid, a musical masterpiece that will be accompanied by images of historic paintings of the mythological tales. The Metamorphoses is Ovid’s longest extant work, a continuous epic poem in fifteen books. Based on the poetry of Hesiod and Callimachus, it features a collection of separate stories linked by the common theme of transformation. A tour de force for oboe players, the programmatic work is a refresher course in Roman mythology and a rare experience for listeners to enjoy the full range of the oboe—from seductive to weeping to simulating flying chariots and thunderbolts, fountains, and drunken feasts. Oboist Liang Wang is joined by violinists Itamar Zorman and Susan Heerema, violist Michael Strauss, and Close Encounters With Music artistic director and cellist Yehuda Hanani. Zorman, Strauss and Hanani also perform the Beethoven String Trio in C minor, written in his dramatic, misterioso key, with constant dialogue between minor and major, darkness and light. s also an actiClose Encounters With Music - 800-8430778; Web: cewm.org; cewmusic@aol.com
I am a prosaic realist. That means I paint what I see and depict places and objects without sentiment or romance. My subjects are taken from daily life, things I see in passing, things I’m drawn to; they are mundane and often overlooked. I unlock patterns and relationships and do not judge. I practice ruthless honesty, and let the paint be paint. Open studio May 14 and 15, cambridgevalleyart.org for info.
Visit: www.mattchinian.com
My work explores the interconnectedness of Bauhausian sensibilities and Trobriand Island chants. With influences as diverse as Noble Sissle and Shemp Howard, new insights are created from both mundane and transcendant dialogues. Ever since I was a child I have been disturbed by the essential ephemerality of space/time. What starts out as circumlocutory vision soon becomes corrupted into a hegemony of greed, leaving only a sense of ennui and little chance of a new paradigm. As spatial miasmas become transformed through emergent Unabhängigkeitserklärungen, the viewer is left with a catafalque for the prognostication of our future. markmellinger680@gmail.com
THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 7
Installation View: Flora Inhabited, featuring Angela A’Court and Ellen Hermanos, SEFA Hudson, 2022
SUSAN ELEY FINE ART, HUDSON A contemporary art gallery’s new adventures in Upstate New York Text by Liz Lorenz Interview with Susan Eley On the 400 block of Warren Street, there is a striking brick building with an arched doorway, a blue and white painted cornice, and two sprawling windows overlooking the passersby on the main artery of downtown Hudson, New York. Originally constructed in 1920, the ground floor of this space is now home to Susan Eley Fine Art (SEFA), a contemporary art gallery that has recently become an engaged participant and a true player within Upstate NY’s vibrant cultural scene. I first approached this distinguished yet charming facade in June 2020 for a job interview as Assistant Director of the new gallery. I had just graduated from the Center for Curatorial Studies at nearby Bard College. We were still overwhelmed by the early stages of the pandemic—when all was uncertain and, frankly, quite frightening on a most basic human level. When I was able to temporarily shift my focus from the immediate suffering and daily tragedies that we collectively experienced—I wondered what value my Masters degree in Curatorial Studies could actually possess. How could my hours spent in the library pouring over tomes of art theory possibly contribute to making our fraught world a more meaningful, equitable, and beautiful place? I found that answer at SEFA Hudson—renewing my idealism and reenergizing my belief in the power of sharing art with others: caring for our artists, welcoming diverse communities, and activating artworks to spark those internal experiences and interpersonal connections that, I believe, are essential elements of a fulfilling existence. Perhaps my feelings here were amplified by the fact that I was separated from my closest friends and family and unable to travel freely, even to NYC—but the Gallery became my friend, my passion project. Whether I was patching and painting the walls between exhibitions or writing press release text about an artist’s practice, SEFA Hudson was the motivation that got me through the pandemic fog. SEFA is the brainchild of Susan Eisner Eley, the founder and owner of the Gallery since the establishment of its first location in New York City in 2006. SEFA hosts a dynamic roster of American and international creators, and fo8 • MAY 2022 THE ARTFUL MIND
cuses on contemporary works in a range of media by emerging and mid-career artists. Initially, SEFA Hudson was intended to be a satellite space functioning as a six-month “pandemic pop-up” in Upstate NY—where the more spacious environment made it plausible to continue exhibiting art in a safe setting. Yet, from the outset, I was determined to help make the Hudson space a permanent second location for SEFA. Together, Susie and I began to immerse ourselves in the multifaceted Hudson Valley arts communities. We made a concerted effort to interface with local artists and audiences, and to not merely act as an “NYC transplant.” Since SEFA Hudson’s opening nearly two years ago, we have conducted studio visits with many area artists. Some of these conversations have materialized into exhibitions at the Gallery—for example, the presentation of wood sculptures by Joe Sultan who is based in Germantown, and the recent show pairing Sarah Lutz and Katharine Dufault, who Susie first met via our Hudson space. We routinely review portfolio submissions by artists and are always on the hunt for new talent. Susie and I have also built networks with a number of other galleries in the area, both professionally and personally. Along with D’Arcy Simpson Artworks and Window On Hudson, SEFA was a founding partner of 2econd Saturday Hudson Gallery Crawl, a local initiative where arts venues and select businesses commit to stay open late to welcome visitors on Warren Street. SEFA has participated as a headlining gallery in The Hudson Eye, an acclaimed festival for the visual and performing arts curated by Aaron Levi Garvey. Additionally, the Gallery is proud to be part of Upstate Art Weekend in May 2022. This event is curated by Helen Toomer to highlight the top museums, non-profits, and galleries in the greater Hudson Valley region. Indeed, it is fulfilling to reflect on SEFA Hudson’s achievements while writing here—from pandemic pop-up to permanent location, from guest to neighbor. Whether hanging a new exhibition or chatting with potential collectors, Susie and I constantly strive for the continued, thoughtful evolution of SEFA as a hub for supporting artists and for sharing art.
Liz Lorenz: As you know, it’s such a rewarding endeavor to work at Susan Eley Fine Art, Hudson. I can’t believe it has been almost two years now! I truly admire your commitment to establishing the Gallery in Upstate, both in its initial form—as a creative way to continue sharing art safely during the early phases of the pandemic—and now, as a permanent second location that works to increasingly engage with locals and visitors in the Hudson Valley region. To provide some additional context about your journey in the art world, perhaps we can start our discussion by moving back in time a bit. What inspired you to found SEFA in 2006? Susan Eley: I founded SEFA in New York City in 2006 with a mission to offer an alternative to the typical “white cube” gallery. Conceived as a salonstyle gallery, SEFA NYC is situated in a Victorian townhouse on the Upper West Side. Its interior features the original brick walls and fireplace, reflecting an organic aesthetic and creating an intimate space for visitors. SEFA exhibits a range of contemporary painters, sculptors, photographers, and printmakers from around the globe—primarily emerging and mid-career artists. Also, we have participated in art fairs in NYC, Miami, Houston, San Francisco, and Toronto. These larger gatherings of art enthusiasts are always an excellent way to make new connections, especially with people that I would not usually have the opportunity to meet, due to our NYC geography. LL: For you, what does it mean to have a gallery in this “salon-style” model? Specifically, I am thinking back to the tradition of Parisian salons at the turn of the century—notably Gertrude Stein’s mentorship and connoisseurship for artists and collectors alike. SE: At first, the salon-style methodology was my reaction to differentiate SEFA from all of the galleries that felt so cold and clinical: stark white walls; no one to greet you or to discuss the artworks with; basically, an uncomfortable feeling. For me, it’s so important to talk about the art and to foster dialogue between viewers and artworks. I structured SEFA to be both a more personable and socially engaged environment. In addition to its regular exhibition programming, SEFA has hosted artist talks, political fundraisers, literary and poetry salons, and panel discussions on a variety of cultural and political topics. I have curated shows to benefit the causes that I believe in, often raising funds for institutions and nonprofits. For example, in response to the Muslim Ban, SEFA NYC organized the exhibition Beyond the Ban whose sales helped support a humans rights oprganization in Iran. After the Parkland shooting, we presented portraits and interviews of survivors by Jeff Vespa and hosted a related panel, both benefiting a charity opposing gun violence in America. Thus, SEFA’s larger mission and regular programming
are a reflection of my values and an attestation to using art for social and activist purposes. LL: What are the particularities of working with these non-traditional physical spaces? How do you embrace the unique architecture of each Gallery? SE: It’s both a challenge and a benefit: the brick and fireplace in NYC; the windows, shelves, and columns in Hudson. As mentioned, SEFA NYC really evokes an intimate home space. Of course, as a former apartment, you can sense someone lived there before. The interior fuels ideas for collectors as they consider purchasing artworks—almost a preview that can be mirrored within their own homes. For Hudson, when I saw the space for the first time, I just knew this was the spot! We are literally at street level, allowing us to wave at people outside and invite them in. The artworks in the windows are illuminated throughout the night. In fact, I believe that the layout of the Hudson Gallery allows us to draw in so many new audiences—from locals to visiting collectors that we would not have met at our NYC space. There is a very different kind of networking that happens here in downtown, which works in tandem with our more intimate NYC space. LL: Is there a difference in your curatorial approach between the two spaces? Do you feel that you can take more risks in Hudson? SE: Yes, and that is also thanks to you pushing me to experiment more! For example—with exhibition pairings of artists that would not immediately seem related, but possess genuine connections upon further analysis, like Karin Bruckner and Charles Buckley; with exhibition design concepts and creating relationships in the physical layout of the hang, as in Saints and Sisters; and with fun new proposals, like producing custom wallpaper based on Angela A’Court’s work because her practice considers domesticity and decoration. There’s a lot of dynamism possible for the shows at SEFA Hudson, and I think such ideas keep our audiences interested and our artists inspired. LL: Now for a question that I’m sure many practicing artists are curious about—what do you look for when reviewing emerging artists whose work is new to you? Whether for an initial studio visit or for more serious consideration for an exhibition—what are the qualities that are important to you? SE: Since beginning my career as a gallerist, my principal motivation is to exhibit artists who make work that has been rendered with excellent technical skill and, most importantly, that expresses a unique vision of the world. I am always seeking that “Aha! moment.” When I find it, I know that this is an artist I want to explore further. Continued on next page...
Installation View: These In-Between Days, Rachelle Krieger, SEFA NYC, 2021
THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 22 • 9
Installation View: Counterbalance II, Liz Rundorff-Smith, SEFA Hudson, 2020
Often, this can be a very intuitive and personal feeling, yet it translates into confidence and knowledge as I dive deeper into their practices. The artwork I choose to hang on the walls in NYC and Hudson must reveal an aesthetic, a response or a way of thinking that I personally have never seen before. Also, the artists I work with are regular practitioners; they wake up every morning and make art. Thus, they demonstrate a consistent creative practice, as seen in Francie Hester’s “Daily Drawings” series and in James Isherwood’s landscapes that he is always eager to share with us to offer. If an artist can achieve this—and is professional, reliable and personable—there’s a fit for them with SEFA! LL: I have noticed that the majority of the artists on SEFA’s roster are women. Was this a strategic motivation from the beginning, or more of an organic evolution? SE: My roster and exhibitions have organically evolved to highlight female artists. While this was not a conscious strategy, I realize that I naturally connect with their creative approaches and interests—the stories that they tell. Additionally, there are thematic arcs within SEFA’s exhibition programming. Throughout the years, I have organized a number of shows that focus on ideas surrounding domesticity, home, and interiors—as well as the transformative power of the natural world—for example, Allison Green’s work. In fact, SEFA’s emphasis on female creators is a source of pride for me, especially as the gallery has always been female owned and operated. LL: Agreed! To me, it certainly seems like a holistic approach—the fact that your exhibitions frequently manifest such feminist values in a totally natural way. That is one of the aspects I most admire about your work as a curator and gallerist—as well as your sustained commitment to your artists. SE: I have worked with a number of my artists for many years now, such as
Angela A’Court, Francie Hester and, Allison Green. For me, it is a delight to establish these long-term relationships of creativity and care, and to foster their practices as their vision evolves. Additionally, SEFA engages with new artists through exhibitions like student-based shows and open-call juried shows—as well as with new collectors by making artworks accessible through our online selling platforms, Artsy and 1stDibs. LL: What advice do you have for folks that are new to collecting contemporary art? SE: Before you purchase a work of art, learn all that you can about the artist: comb their biographies and artist statements. Visit as many art fairs and galleries as you can to hone in on your own tastes and sensibilities. At the end of the day, buy art that you love and wish to live with—not as an investment—but as an object that will bring you joy. Of course, you can buy a work of art to place above your couch while still maintaining the integrity of the individual artworks. I don’t think these motivations are inherently at odds with each other, and I am happy when collectors come to me to find works to cherish on a daily basis in their homes. LL: I would love to speak further about SEFA’s future programming, both at the Hudson Gallery and beyond. Notably, we will be participating in the fair VOLTA 2022, which opens in late May in NYC. This is the first art fair that SEFA has participated in since the beginning of the pandemic. What are your thoughts on this year’s fair and the significance of it? SE: Certainly, this is an exciting event—a triumphant moment even! The 2020 edition of VOLTA was the last large public event that SEFA participated in before the “pandemic era” began. We presented a solo booth of works by Francie Hester—her 3-D vessels and wall sculptures. Then, basically a day after the fair ended in March 2020, everything shut down. Thus, in a way,
Installation View: Redefine, Francie Hester, SEFA Hudson, 2021
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VOLTA 2022 marks us coming full circle—especially in terms of meeting new collectors and showing new artworks to such a broad public. It is also a pleasure to re-enter the international art fair scene in our homebase of NYC, where we have an excellent network of support from long-term collectors, represented artists, and other Gallery friends. LL: SEFA’s booth features recent works, primarily paintings, by artist Rachelle Krieger. Could you further describe Krieger’s practice? SE: Currently based in Port Washington, NY, Rachelle had her first exhibition with SEFA in 2010. Since then, her work has been presented in a number of solo and group shows in both of our locations. To me, the great appeal of Krieger’s paintings is how her compositions dance on that sublime edge between abstraction and representation. Inspired by the surrounding landscape and the energy and cyclical events of the natural world—Rachelle’s imagery clearly evokes nature, from trees to wildflowers to swamps. Yet, her saturated colors and fantastical, even otherworldly, forms convey an aura of surreal abstraction. LL: And what specifically is Krieger planning to exhibit at VOLTA? SE: Rachelle is debuting new pieces from her series “These In-Between Days,” which she began during the pandemic. It consists of large-scale paintings and works on paper that are primarily rendered in acrylic, flashe and, spray paint. These exuberant abstractions pulse with motion and fluorescent hues. She builds up her pigments in multiple layers to create interweaving constellations of undulating shapes—transforming branches, leaves, rivers, suns. Additionally, our booth will feature a series of new ceramics that evoke similar forms to Krieger’s paintings. The ceramics are currently in-progress, and we are thrilled to first present them to the public at VOLTA! LL: Any thoughts about the future of Susan Eley Fine Art overall? SE: I suppose that I have always had an entrepreneurial streak, and so was born my eponymous contemporary art gallery sixteen years ago. For now, I am super excited to keep going and digging deeper into Hudson by interacting with our surrounding communities. Admittedly, the success of this space has given me the bug to keep expanding. In the future, there might even be a third location for SEFA—perhaps downtown in NYC, or a totally new place like Park City, UT or Sante Fe, NM. For now though, that’s still a question mark, and I am taking things one day at a time in order to best serve my current artists and clients. LL: It seems that your guiding force is your intuition. Would you agree with this assessment? SE: Yes, intuition is my rock. Yet, I would characterize it more precisely as intuition and instinct backed with knowledge and experience. Often, my moves as a gallerist are inspired by a gut feeling of “I want and need to do this.” If I had talked to too many people and listened to too many naysayers, SEFA would not be what it is now: a multi-city Gallery that works with emerging contemporary artists. Also, my approach reflects my former training as a professional ballet dancer: you have to master the techniques and have the knowledge, then you can add the creativity and emotion to it. LL: Finally, I would like to discuss this idea of the Gallery as a family, which I see as throughline in your approach. This collaborative, caring vibe rings true to me while working with you at SEFA. SE: Yes, I would agree with that assessment. In Hudson, there is an instant community if you are open to it and embrace it. As gallerists, we see each other's shows and send over clients. I really feel the support here. Interestingly, it is primarily a sharing between other women gallerists. There is definitely a collaborative and encouraging spirit with our neighbors, and I feel lucky to have found like-minded entrepreneurs whose goals I respect. There is a level of care amongst our Upstate friends that I truly appreciate, and they’re increasingly becoming an extended family—much like SEFA’s close relationships with all of our artists.
Installation View: Flora Inhabited, wallpaper by Angela A’Court, SEFA Hudson, 2022
Information Susan Eisner Eley is the Owner and Director of Susan Eley Fine Art, NYC and Hudson. Before founding her eponymous gallery in NYC in 2006, she was an editor and writer for national and regional publications featuring articles on fine art, dance, and travel. Eley worked in public relations and education at the Morgan Library & Museum in NYC and the Mayor's Art Commission of the City of New York; she interned at the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice, Italy. Eley is also a former professional ballet dancer with the Feld Ballet, NY. Eley has a BA in Art History from Brown University and an MA in Visual Arts Administration from New York University. Liz Lorenz is a curator and writer based in Upstate New York. She graduated from New York University in 2015 with a BA in Art History and French. In 2020, Lorenz received an MA from the Center for Curatorial Studies, Bard College, NY. At CCS, her Masters thesis focused on the application of contemporary queer feminist theories to reimagine the traditional Western art historical canon. Lorenz has worked and interned in museums and galleries since 2011—holding positions at Martos Gallery, NYC; The Studio Museum in Harlem, NYC; New Museum of Contemporary Art, NYC; Whitney Museum of American Art, NYC; and Palais de Tokyo, Paris. Currently, Lorenz is the Assistant Director of Susan Eley Fine Art, Hudson and has worked at the Gallery since its establishment in June 2020.
Susan Eley Fine Art, Hudson 433 Warren Street Hudson, NY, 12534 Thursday-Monday, 11AM-5PM susaneleyfineart.com Current & Upcoming Programming These In-Between Days: Rachelle Krieger - VOLTA New York Art Fair May 18th to May 22nd SPRUNG: Group Exhibition - SEFA NYC - On view through May 30th Malia’s Garden: Allison Green - SEFA Hudson - On view through June 19th Earthen Energies, Ancient Roots: Ashley Norwood Cooper & Jacqueline Shatz - SEFA Hudson - June 23rd to July 31st Featured Gallery in “Upstate Art Weekend” (curated by Helen Toomer) SEFA Hudson - July 22nd to July 24th All images Courtesy of the Artist and Susan Eley Fine Art THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 11
A PATH, WATERCOLOR 11” X 14”
JOE PARLETT, CLOUDSCAPE, 2017, INK ON PAPER, 30 X 22”
TURLEY GALLERY FLORESCENCE
CLARKSBURG STATE PARK, WATERCOLOR, 15” X 22”
ANDREA JOYCE FELDMAN
We had no shades on the windows. There was no one around to look in. The view changed with the seasons: new growth green in spring, hot summer - yellow and reds, full color in fall and the stark blacks and whites of winter. It’s summer as I write this. Massive pine trees stand quietly on guard, firmly rooted. The trees are so tall and stately. How does one capture the splendor and preciousness of this sketch? I paint, I scratch my head. Is the paper too small? How can I show how tall these trees really are? Finally, I see the answer. I rotate the paper to vertical. Perspective is everything. Andrea Feldman - Andreajoycefeldmanart.com, 413-655-7766.
“It is important to express oneself... provided the feelings are real and are taken from you own experience.” - Berthe Morisot
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Florescence is, a time of flowering, a period of great vigor, blooming, success and achievement, spring. Florescence is the way Leah Guadagnoli shapes her paintings and sculpts her surfaces. Florescence is Sarah E. Brook’s poetic verticality in How We Talk To Each Other When There is Enough. It is in the playful yet structured steel work of Alexi Antoniadis. It is embodied in Jordany Genao’s pieces, whether they allude to or actually, physically in bloom. Florescence is harnessed, framed and recontextualized in Martine Kaczynski’s Estate Corners in Yellow and Mauve, while it is lifted up to the sky and ethereally humanized in Gracelee Lawrence’s Lack of Permanent Connection. Amelia Toelke and Andrea Miller’s Underpin & Overcoat punctuate a quasi (non?) socio-political florescence while Emily Kiacz’s brushstrokes sweep elegantly beyond the shaped canvas’s edge. Florescence is feminized in radiator like, lipstick hued, strangely enticing sculptures by Alyssa McClenaghan. Florescence weaves in and out of Casey Jex Smith’s deep and intricately drawn worlds and is inherent throughout Joey Parlett’s investigations into otherworldly naturescapes. When choosing the artists for the inaugural exhibition, Florescence at Turley Gallery, I wanted to present a group of artists who personify the mission of the gallery. These 12 artists and the ones to follow all push the boundaries of their respective mediums and create work that is fresh, relevant and significant. The exhibit will run May 7 – June 19. Opening reception May 7, from 3-5 PM Turley Gallery 98 Green St., Hudson, NY Open Thursday–Sunday, 12–5 PM and by appointment; 518-212-7889, info@turley.gallery. Please visit www.turley.gallery for more information.
STAMPED ABSTRACT SERIES # 23
MARY DAVIDSON Mary Davidson has been painting on a regular basis for the last 16 years. Davidson’s paintings are a two-dimensional decorative visualization of line, color, design, shape, patterns, and stamping. As you begin to study the paintings, you will find the foreground and background tend to merge, with overlaid patterns. “I love the intense complexity and ambiguity of space and dimension.”. The effect can be startling: the longer you look at the piece, the more you see. With style more design than literal, she hopes to convey lightheartedness, playfulness and whimsey. “One of my favorite art teachers along the way used to say, ‘It is only a piece of paper and/or canvas. NO RULES’. Painting is a way to express my creativity. I always work in a series, which keeps me focused. I work with acrylic paint because it is so forgiving.” Davidson’s New Hat series consist of 70 paintings. “I start with a basic drawing, building with color and shape, coming to life with gesture and flow. As the title suggests, the hats are important, and the millinery designs emerge. There is much joy in their creation and my passion for playful designs is reinforced by their bright colors, linear rhythms and patterns leading our eyes around and through the painting. My newest series is even more abstract, with an even stronger emphasis on design. I do like to use stamping, along with painting, because I love the result. When I finish with a painting, I adhere the canvas with mat gel to gator board, creating a nice tight surface. My paintings are always framed.” In addition to an Associate Degree in Fashion Design from Newbury College in Boston, Davidson has taken many classes in drawing and painting, and participated in many art workshops. “I feel as though I have developed my own unique style at this point. I am a member of three local art clubs, along with two other clubs not so close to home.” Mary Davidson - PO Box 697, South Egremont, Massachusetts; 413-528-6945, Cell 1-413-717-2332; mdavidsongio@aol.com, marydavidson83155@gmail.com, www.davidsondesigncompany.net
STEVE PROCTER IN STUDIO
PARADISE CITY ARTS FESTIVAL
VIRGINIA BRADLEY
It’s Springtime in Paradise! The best way to spend your holiday weekend is in Northampton, the cultural heart of New England, at one of America’s most spectacular fairs of fine craft, painting and sculpture. The Paradise City Arts Festival (literally) rolls out the carpet for this season’s splendidly curated collection of hundreds of artists and fine craft makers, coming from every corner of the country. It’s three great days of astounding visual arts, eye-popping design, scrumptious food and, of course, great fun! It’s a short, lovely ride from the Berkshires for the chance to see the remarkable work and hear the stories of 220 extraordinary artists and makers. Yankee Magazine wrote “the Northampton visual arts scene explodes at the twice-yearly Paradise City Arts Festival, an extravaganza of 200-plus top-notch craftspeople and fine artists that’s been dazzling shoppers since 1995.” The festival is held inside three airy buildings connected by covered walkways, keeping patrons comfortable and protected, rain or shine. The 12,000 square-foot Dining Tent commands a grassy lawn surrounded by outdoor sculpture. With scores of brand-new artists, delicious food by local chefs, a craft cocktail bar and the sensational themed exhibit “Something Wild!”, attendees are kept entertained, enthralled and well fed all weekend long. Ceramic sculptor Stephen Procter demonstrates his huge talent making human-sized vessels, using two potter’s wheels. Watch as he throws and stacks sections, uses flame to stiffen the clay, and involves you in his decisions about form, proportion, and decoration. Shibumi Silk offers a fantastic hands-on experience in silk marbling techniques. Make your own patterned scarf using a rainbow of vibrant dyes! Alan and Rosemary Bennett, known for their life-sized, realistic renditions of fish and sea creatures, lead very popular clay sculpture workshops for children (and the young at heart). Paradise City Arts Festival, May 28, 29 & 30, at Northampton’s 3 County Fairgrounds, 54 Old Ferry Road off Rt. 9. For complete show and travel information, advance online tickets and discount admission coupons, visit www.paradisecityarts.com or call 800-511-9725.
The new Corallium Series is a celebration of the rejuvenated coral reefs in the Playa Santa Bay, in southwest Puerto Rico, where my Winter studio is located. Fifteen years ago, the reefs were almost completely dead due to pollution from raw sewage and boat traffic. In 2011 the Obama administration undertook a federal project to build a pumping station and a 5-mile sewer line from Ensenada to Playa Santa. Today the coral reefs are thriving. I swim and snorkel in them several times a day while I am in residence at my winter studio and am in awe of their beauty and miraculous nature every time. Coral reefs are some of the most diverse and valuable ecosystems on Earth. Coral reefs support more species per unit area than any other marine environment, including about 4,000 species of fish, 800 species of hard corals and hundreds of other species. Scientists estimate that there may be millions of undiscovered species of organisms living in and around reefs. This biodiversity is considered key to finding new medicines for the 21st century. Coral reef structures also buffer shorelines against 97 percent of the energy from waves, storms, and floods, helping to prevent loss of life, property damage, and erosion. When reefs are damaged or destroyed, the absence of this natural barrier can increase the damage to coastal communities from normal wave action and violent storms. The coral reefs protected Playa Santa during Hurricane Maria and there was minimal damage to the village. The Corallium series continues my exploration of alchemy utilizing oil paint and seawater on archival transparent film. The 95-degree Caribbean sun acts as catalyst to the ingredients and which then creates unusual surfaces reminiscent of coral. The images are composed of many thin layers of poured paint which are then edited by adding and subtracting into the surfaces. You are welcome to visit my Great Barrington studio in person or virtually. Virginia Bradley virginiabradleyart@gmail.com or cell 302-5403565; www.virginiabradley.com
CORALLIUM 1 12”X12” LOOKING UP, 2022, OIL AND COLD WAX MEDIUM ON WOOD PANEL
GHETTA HIRSCH ARTIST
What I appreciate as spring appears is the increase in light. It illuminates everything around us and if you look at our Berkshires you notice how this light adds contrast and depth to the landscape. First it changes the sky from a cool blue or grey to a brighter blue. As the day advances, you see happy, gentle yellows or warm oranges as well. It enters the landscape subtly, transforming our purple winter mountains in tones of pinks, pale ochres and birthing greens. When my walks take me to a higher ground, I look up or down and appreciate the different movements of the light in the spaces, foliage and forests. I can tell where there are pines, maples or birches by the way they suggest rather than impose their colors in early spring. I can tell where there might be a lower ground with a stream or a path by the darker tones. I can guess where that light has prompted earlier blossoming here or there in the valley by the definition in the colors. As I painted “Looking Up” I enjoyed sharing with you how the light enters the spaces and how it impacts the colors I perceive. Please enjoy my other pieces in the pages of this magazine, visit Southern Vermont Arts Center where I exhibit or ask for a tour of my home Studio. Ghetta Hirsch – call or text 413-597-1716 to visit; ghetta-hirsch.squarespace.com Instagram: ghettahirschpaintings
“You are smart, you are funny, you are more important than money. If I could have one wish, it is that your day be filled with bliss.” - Catherine Pulsifer
THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 13
Tug, Oil on canvas, 5’ x 7’
KATHRYN LYNCH Interview by Harryet Candee Harryet Candee: Private Public Gallery in Hudson is exhibiting your paintings right now. The show is called, Restless, and goes through the month of May. Here is a well described excerpt from the gallery’s press release about your work: “Lynch illuminates scenes that are both a metaphor and balm for the passing of time. Hovering between realism and abstraction she presents urban scenes that typically flash by in the corner of a commuter’s eye. Lynch’s canvases tap into the unconscious looking to reveal the solitary explorer in each of us. Like no other painter I know Lynch has been obsessed with her city - her New York is one of bright lights and traffic - high rise buildings, boats and bridges.” Kathryn, How did this show come about for you? I hear the building is very interesting. Kathryn Lynch: Chris Freeman bought an old synagogue and turned it into a gallery called Private Public Hudson, specifically to show largscale art. I met Chris through a super talented curator named Michael Klein, who I have worked with for years. Chris Freeman visited my studio, and picked out the works he wants to show, including large recently painted oil paintings and older works. 14 • MAY 2022 THE ARTFUL MIND
How would you describe some of the ways you see your art? Direct, immediate and current. …My paintings are accessible, perhaps due to their simplicity and directness. I don’t think of them as having an audience. I am always happy when someone responds to them, but It isn’t anything I ever think about. I paint because it makes sense to paint. It feels like common sense, painting. I think my pictures convey my love for the medium.
What are some of your initial goals when pondering a blank canvas? I start with an idea and after the initial few brush strokes the painting starts to take the lead and once that occurs anything can happen. I am not completely in control of the process. …A blank canvas has no meaning. I react quickly to its threat of nothingness. Once I start, the canvas takes on a life of its own, and becomes a set of challenges that I wrestle with.
Where do you paint, and what is your focus? I only paint in my studio, I love to make a mess. Subject matter is everywhere. I am drawn towards water, I like seeing the edge of land, boats, bridges, I also always want to be able to see the sun rise and set. I make a conscious effort to find the moon at night and gaze at stars when visible water, moon, sun, stars keep wonder alive.
What was it that inspired the desire to become an artist? Nothing else pulled me in. I have a magnetic attraction to paint. When I am in my studio, I feel like I am in the right place and where I should be. Per Kirkeby was the artist in residence while I was at Skowhegan in 1991. I love his paintings and his artist talk. He said he painted because behind every tree there was death. That made sense to me and is also why I paint. As a child, I was very aware of my imagination. I always wanted to live in a magical world…painting is the closest thing to magic I can come up with.
How do you go about finding a subject for a painting? Painting requires me to get out of the way. When I walk for subject matter, I leave myself behind, I leave looking for subject matter behind and walk with an invisible antenna that picks up shapes and light that I can use in my paintings.
Is oil your only painting medium you work in? Oil paints are muscular. You can manipulate and
Kathryn Lynch, SIrens, Oil on canvas, 53” x 48”
stretch out the pigment. It’s my first choice of a medium. Watercolors are delicate, it’s hard for me to use them as I am heavy handed. Acrylics tend to be flat in my hands, but it is fun changing around your mediums. In retrospect, how do you look at the ways your artistic life has evolved over the years? When I started painting I had very little money for art supplies, every time I sold a painting, I bought better supplies. Now I can have lots of paint and canvas around and I find that really helps my ability to keep working without running out of surfaces and paint. …In graduate school we had visiting artists and each artist would come in and say something different. It was there that I realized I was on my own. I had to be my own editor, no one could really teach me painting. Visiting museums and going to artists shows helps me paint, I can always take away something from a great painting. And, who is Kathryn Lynch? I am the Tug Boat that keeps showing up in my paintings. Can you reveal a secret to us about Kathryn?
I have an infrangible spirit. Where did you grow up? I grew up in Philadelphia. My formative years were spent in Germantown which was super liberal and diverse. I lived in an area filled with professors, artists and young people. My early memories are my clearest, they are textured. We lived on a block where all the backyards connected so you could go out your back door, meet other kids and play all day long with little supervision. The first time I saw a sunflower I ran home as I was convinced it meant there were giants close by, I was the youngest on the block and was often left behind with the adults. We got to know all our neighbors quickly and I could visit everyone easily. Living closely to so many people and their stories made me super aware of the time I was living in. What events took place in your life that reinforce and encourage you to paint; to keep going and not look back? My mother gave me a lot of love and very little discipline…my sister and I could skip school when we were super little if we went to the Philadelphia Museum of Art…my mother thought
you could learn more by visiting museums than you could at school. Philadelphia was a culturally rich city to grow up in. I had an excellent high school art teacher that inspired and encouraged me to continue taking art courses. Art has always been something I craved to be around. What thoughts and realizations do you have regarding your life as an artist? If you stay curious and interested in other people and the world around you then every day, is interesting. I find ordinary moments to hold the most surprises. This past summer I was selected to attend an Alumni Residency at Skowhegan, in Maine. The first time I went, I was insecure and felt like a branch on a tree blowing in the wind. When I returned, I was surprised by how sturdy I felt. Instead of the branch, I was the trunk of a tree. I realized I had become the artist I longed to be. It was truly rewarding to return to a place where I started out. Skowhegan is an incredible experience. A once-in-a-lifetime experience that I got to have twice. Have you had a ‘most memorable’ art exhibition experience, or are they all equally memorable to you? Continued on next page... THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 15
KATHRYN LYNCH
Kathryn Lynch, Yellow Cab, Oil on canvas, 20” x 18”?, 2022
Kathryn Lynch, Orange Boat, 2022, Oil on canvas, 60” x 48”
Exhibitions often represent years of work, and with every picture I know exactly what was happening during the time the picture was painted. All exhibitions are memorable because it’s a reason to gather your friends. I love people and am so happy we can visit each other again and have openings. Do you follow other artists? I scour the art world searching for really good painters. There are so many people right now making interesting work. I’m in love with many a dead painter: Goya, Guston, Neel. There are so many past and present painters I want to hang around. Kathryn, what are some galleries and museums you enjoy visiting? It all depends on who is showing where. I love wandering the Metropolitan Museum of Art and The Morgan Museum, again, it depends on specific shows. My favorite museum in Europe is the Prado, but I would go to any art museum in every country if I could. The Philadelphia Museum helped grow my interest in art as well as the Barnes Foundation. 16 • MAY 2022 THE ARTFUL MIND
What art show can you recall left a lasting impression on you? Alice Neel’s most recent show at the Met was beautifully curated. I was glad they showed her early work. Her landscapes and city scenes, her work is brilliant, honest and emotive. Her pictures are alive and do everything I want a painting to do. And where do you think the world is headed? I think we are where we were, we are still back in the stories I witnessed as a child. There is still racism, misery caused by war, pollution. Luckily there are still art supplies for sale, bookstores and hardware stores, museums, galleries and interesting and talented people everywhere. Do you have a favorite quote? Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz: “Never give up, Ojo, No one knows what’s going to happen next.” Glinda the good witch: “You always had the power, my dear, you just had to learn it for yourself.” “and all you have to do is follow the Yellow Brick Road”
I think the Wizard of Oz offers a lot of good. Wise advice for both, living and painting. What do you like to do on your free time? All my time is free because I spend all my time painting. I believe you veer away from the maddening crowds and like to paint from the gut, not caring too much of what others think. You paint free, with sheer enjoyment in each brush stroke. Sloppy, accurate, wild and tamed. I like what you said …sloppy, accurate, wild and tamed. Thank you. I hope my paintings add something positive to the world. Where can we see your paintings? Come see my work at Private Public Gallery, 530 Columbia Street, Hudson New York. The work will be there until May 22.
Thank you, Kathryn! Z
THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 17
DANCING WITH OUR ANCESTORS
CAROLYN NEWBERGER
During the past two months, I, as with many of you, feel drawn into and overwhelmed by the invasion of Ukraine. I also feel personally connected as Ukraine is the country of my maternal ancestors. Much of my work at this time expresses these feelings, especially through dancing figures who represent both resistance and cohesion. Carolyn Newberger - Cnewberger@me.com, 617-877-5672, www.carolynnewberger.com
18 • MAY 2022 THE ARTFUL MIND
ELIXIR Over the years people have suggested that I blog and I have at times considered it. I have been putting it off because well, everything has been said and done before, and I wasn’t sure I needed to add to the wordiness in this vast sea of information and ideas. Then I realized that although there is nothing new under the sun, the way in which one expresses it something varies and perhaps my way of expressing can inspire others as I have been inspired by blogs I have read and vlogs I have watched. To me it is of utmost importance that we inspire each other, to try new things, to expand our perspective, to reach beyond our comfort zone, to go as far and wide outside of ourselves and within.
Another reason I have shied away from blogging is because I have seen so much narcissism and superficiality throughout social media that I did not want to be a part of that. That said, I want the focus here to be, not me, but my life experiences as a way of connecting, to finding our commonality, the universal themes of life and our search for meaning here and beyond. The only way I can do this is to share my life with the reader/ observer not as a “look at me” but as an open window to my experiences that could perhaps be of help to the onlooker. As I am now an elder, I have a few areas of knowledge and experience that I know can be valuable to others and this is a way of reaching more people and to pass it on to the next generations. The topics covered will be very broad, as the scope of my interests is just that. Nutrition, cooking instruction & recipes, growing food, flowers & herbs, & foraging will of course lead the way, but literature, poetry, nature, music, art, crafting, philosophy, spirituality and all things that inspire will be explored. I am looking forward to developing a relationship with any & all who decide to come along on this adventure with me. After having a cafe for 7 years, I know that putting myself in the public “eye” can come with criticism. I will take that risk as I am not trying at all to portray myself as the authority on anything. I am a humble sojourner seeking the Truth just as we all are. I have behaved well and poorly in my life, I have done my best and my worst, all according to what level of consciousness I was in at any given time. Sadly, I have always learned the hard way, but I think that may be true for most. I have a strong remorse mechanism that keeps me in check and brings me back to the reality of “judge not lest ye be judged” which makes a larger space for forgiveness and compassion for others and myself. So I embark on this adventure as “an open book”. I am technologically challenged so please bear with me as I learn how to navigate this blogging & vlogging, in other words, please no flogging. The blog can be found on my website. Elixir - www.elixirgb.com, organictearoom@gmail.com, 413-644-8999.
Matt Chinian ANDREA JOYCE FELDMAN WATERCOLOR
Chinian, #1906 NAPA Greenwich, NY 12-19-21 14x16”
Dusk, Watercolor, 11 x 14”
Prosaic Realism Open studio May 14 and 15, cambridgevalleyart.org for info.
Visit: andreajoycefeldmanart.com
mattchinian.com
ELEANOR LORD
FRONT ST. GALLERY
Artist
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! Eleanor begins a new pastel landscape Front Street Gallery April 2022
Enjoy the Art, visit -
www.eleanorlord.com
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 THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 19
FRONT ST. GALLERY Pastels, oils, acrylics and watercolors…abstract and representational…..landscapes, still lifes and portraits….a unique variety of painting technique and styles….you will be transported to another world and see things in a way you never have before…. join us and experience something different. Painting classes continue on Monday and Wednesday mornings 10-1:30pm at the studio and Thursday mornings out in the field. These classes are open to all...come to one or come again if it works for you. All levels and materials welcome. Private critiques available. Classes at Front Street are for those wishing to learn, those who just want to be involved in the pure enjoyment of art, and/or those who have some experience under their belt. Front Street, Housatonic, MA. Gallery open by appointment or chance anytime. 413-5289546 at home or 413-429-7141 (cell) www.kateknappartist.com
20 • MAY 2022 THE ARTFUL MIND
MARY ANN YARMOSKY DINA MARTINA
BOBBY MILLER
PHOTOGRAPHER My teacher, master photographer Lisette Model, taught me that the secret behind a great portrait is the relationship between the photographer and his subject and the artistic capture of the moment. In my studio in Great Barrington, I do hair, make-up, styling, lighting and photography, thereby creating a finished portrait that tells a story even in its simplicity. I believe in incorporating both the classic tools of the camera and newer technologies like Photoshop. In that way my portraits correct the small flaws that nature has bestowed on us. I create images that show us not only as who we are but who we can be as well. So, if you feel daring and inspired to have a portrait that defines you at your very best, I encourage you to come sit before my camera. Bobby Miller Studio, 22 Elm St, Gt Barrington 508-237-9585. By Appointment Only.
When I first started painting, I was asked why I usually painted women. This simple question helped me to clarify. Why did I feel the need to paint at all and why did my subjects most often involve women? I have been blessed both professionally and personally to know many incredible women. Some have climbed the corporate ranks through hard work and tenacity, some have struggled as single parents barely making ends meet. Some have lost parents, spouses and even children and somehow, they keep moving forward with grace and dignity. The stories vary, but the inspiration remains. My paintings represent my curiosity about what makes each of us tick. What gives us the courage to move forward with faith and determination and yes, with love and compassion. It’s up to you to decide who my ladies are and what they are thinking. They only came to me with the first stroke of a brush and a little paint. I don’t know their stories or where they hale from. I only know that they now exist, and some will love them, and some will not. Such is the life of a woman. I have always had an artist’s heart and insights. I studied fashion design in Boston, worked for the Boston Opera Company designing costumes and later for Sardella of Newport in Newport, Rhode Island, where we designed and made clothes for Newport’s elite, outfits that were photographed for Vogue and National Geographic and were worn to events held at the cliff walk mansions and beyond. My artistic ability then was confined to fashion sketches, imagining how fabric could be transformed into something beautiful and intriguing and then sewing what I visualized into something wearable. Designing outfits and seeing them worn was a heady experience, dealing with the women for whom those outfits were designed and their spouses, was often a challenge since egos prevailed. MaryAnn Yarmosky - myarmosky@comcast.net, 413-441-6963, maryannyarmoskyeclecticart.com
Bruce Panock
Carolyn M Abrams
A Sense of Place, 11 x 14” on cradled panel oils/cold wax collage Carolyn M Abrams Art LINES AND SHAPES OF GRASSES
Atmospheric and Inspirational Art Brunswick New York
www.panockphotography.com bruce@panockphotography.com 917-287-8589
www.carolynabrams.com Studio visits welcome — Call for appointment
Ghetta Hirsch
Home Studio Visits by appoinment: 413. 597. 1716 ghetta-hirsch.squarespace.com
“Illusion” 12” x 12” Oil on canvas
THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 21
LONNY JARETT AN INTEGRAL LIFE ART, MUSIC, MOVEMENT AND MEDICINE Photography by Edward Acker Interview by Harryet Candee Harryet Candee: Hi Lonny. How are you today? Lonny Jarrett: I am fine Harryet, thank you for your time and engagement. Lonny, you have been living and working for quite some time in the Berkshires. How long has it been now? What originally brought you here? I moved to Lenox in May 1986 after graduating from acupuncture school. I loved the Berkshires since skiing here every winter when I was young. While in college I would frequently visit the Pillow, Shakespeare at the Mount, and the Music Inn. I’d also come out to swim in various quarries and hike. I was determined to settle here whatever it took and moved here as soon as I was able. I understand you have a background in training and studying of Chinese medicine. Where did you do most of your formal studies and training for this? I began my formal study of Chinese medicine in 1980, attained a Masters in neurobiology from the University of MI in 1983, and graduated from acupuncture school and moved to the Berkshires. I then apprenticed for ten years studying pulse 22 • MAY 2022 THE ARTFUL MIND
diagnosis with Dr. Leon Hammer who is renowned in the medicine. He is now 97 and still teaching and writing. The high school and college I went to did not have tests or grades and supported students to design their own curriculum. In high school, my courses included psychology, philosophy, comparative religious literature, consciousness studies, yoga, and science fiction—and I was totally engaged. It was rare that I was reading less than three books at a time. Most of what I read related to consciousness and its development. At 17 I took up the study of psychopharmacology a topic I studied through graduate school. Where did you grow up? What do you remember as being your most favorite of times spent with your family? What can you share with us about those early years? I grew up in Roslyn, Long Island with the rest of my family in the Bronx. My parents took my sister and I traveling all over the world camping, hiking, and on constant adventures. By the time I was 13, we had driven from Long Island to the volcanos outside of Mexico City camping, through the Canadian Rockies and the Western national parks, traveled across
Europe twice, including Northern Africa, Hawaii and Jamaica. I was raised in a rather unorthodox way and my parents had many interesting friends to say the least! My Father’s first cousin, Beverly Axelrod, was Eldridge Cleaver’s lover, and lawyer for both the Black Panthers, Jerry Rubin, and the American Indian Movement. What do you know about your family’s heritage? We came over from the Ukraine in the late 1800’s from Chernobyl, Kiev, and Odessa. Those who did not, met a terrible end. Sadly, we see this same conflict today. What special interests did you have that has been with you since childhood and remained into adulthood? From the earliest I can remember I’ve been interested in consciousness and medicine in relationship to consciousness. My mother was an avid reader and we had as extensive library in the house. I found translations of the Chinese classics including the Yijing, Laozi, Zhuangzi, as well as the Bhagavad Gita and the Vedas when I was 13 and began reading. In my 20s, I focused on inte-
Redshift with Lonny Jarrett (guitar), Zav Jarret (alto sax), Derrick Rogers (drums)
gral and transpersonal studies reading everything written by Ken Wilber, Jean Gebser and eventually, Tielhard de Chardin, Sri Aurobindo and all the process philosophers from Heraclitus forward. My first higher state experience of consciousness was hearing the first chord of Hard Days Night, by the Beatles, when I was six years old. In that moment, I began a lifelong love of the guitar. I’ve been playing in bands since about 1970. It is my great joy to now play and record with my son Zev who is a fantastically talented alto sax player. That’s how evolution works, you practice 54 years and you become good enough to play with 22-year-olds! I loved having photography lessons in summer camp as a kid and have grown more and more in love with that medium over the last decade. Are you currently playing music? I did get to listen to Love & Revolution—funky and cool music. I’ve been playing guitar for fifty-three years and occasionally feel I’m getting somewhere. To live in a century with Charlie Parker, Coltrane, Hendrix, Wes Montgomery and so many fabulously talented geniuses fosters a real sense of humility. I practice every day and absolutely love playing out though there are, sadly, increasingly less opportunities to do that. Photography comes naturally to me and I’ve had professional photographers give me great compliments on my work. Music, on the other hand has always been a struggle and I have gratitude for whatever degree of accomplishment I might have. During your growing years, what was one of your most interesting thoughts you had, and
still, have a strong connection with today? That consciousness is primary and irreducible and that knowing ourselves as consciousness is the ground of both understanding, and responding to, the human condition. Where have you traveled to that has made a profound impression on your views of the world? Driving to Mexico in 1965 as a 7-year-old I saw poverty at a level unlike anything I had seen traveling throughout the US. In those global trips with my family, I gained a world centric view coming to understand the relativity of cultural perspective beyond that of most of my pears. This made an impression on me regarding cultural diversity as well as the realization that we are all in this together. I’ve also been a meditator since 1972 and practiced qigong since 1980. These practices along with engagement with subtle medicines and several spiritual communities and teachers have also given me a unique depth of insight into the human condition Do you have a favorite place you like to go and simply enjoy in the Berkshires? My two favorite places in the Berkshires are the Astore Quarry in West Stockbridge and the upper part of East Road in Richmond which has one of the most beautiful sunrises and sunsets in the county. The quarry is an unspoiled place and gives the impression of a Daoist paradise being both pristine and quiet. I ride my mountain bike about two-hundred days a year and always passing East Road. I’m often there during sunup and sundown, and the light is just spectacular. It’s hard to aim a
camera at the Berkshires and take a bad photograph! When did you first realize you had a love for photography? When I was twenty-one, I was trained to a very high level in electronmicroscopy and in black and white photo processing. I had access to the finest darkroom equipment in the world and my love of photography grew from that. Where are you going with your new passion of fine art photography that you have acquired? In March 2020, to help me through lockdown, I purchased my first decent camera, a Nikon Z6 and worked in-depth, learning to edit photographs on the computer— a whole new world compared to the darkroom! I’ve also developed a passion for constructing composite photos of, shall we say, dreamtime images, and I’m excited about pursuing that. People’s positive responses to my photos and their requests to purchase my work have come as a pleasant surprise to me. To meet that interest, I opened my webpage “BerkshireScenicPhotography.com” and my work can be seen there. It’s an archive of our beautiful Berkshires! What important thought on photography has come to light for you? For me, photography is about perspective both in framing a shot, as well seeing and bringing out the light inherent in the subject. The practice of subtle medicine is also significantly about seeing the light in people, strengthening its presence, and removing obstacles to its expression. Whatever I engage with, be it medicine, music, or photograContinued on next page... THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 23
LONNY JARRETT
AN INTEGRAL LIFE ART, MUSIC, MOVEMENT AND MEDICINE
Photograph of Lonny Jarrett by Edward Acker
phy, my intention is based in this: I am inspired by the Bhodisattva vow extolling us that “no interaction should be insignificant.” I try to post beautiful photos most days to inspire people to find the light in self and other in a way that’s healing. To quote John Coltrane, “I want to be the force for the good.” Are there other photographers that you know of who might have been an inspiration to your work? To be honest, my main inspiration is the beautiful landscape painting of the Berkshire’s own Mary Sipp-Green. The light in her work is so stunning and I strive for a similar feel. She’s been a mentor of sorts and a great friend through the years. Your photographs are healing in many ways. They are lasting impressions of the beautiful Berkshires. What are your expectations for what you hope people get from seeing your work? Why thank you! There is so much beauty around us and we are so very blessed to live here in the beautiful Berkshires. It was my dream to move here when I was young, and I am thankful every day for the grace in having realized that desire. It is my wish that my work helps people to find the light in themselves, each other, and in all things. 24 • MAY THE ARTFUL MIND
What is it about Chinese medicine that fascinates you, and why did you choose to study it? I began training in judo when I was 10 and then started studying Shotokan karate when I was 18. I hold a 4th dan blackbelt in Tae Kwon Do and ran a school at Kripalu for 17 years. However, I don’t practice the hard styles anymore due to age and now focus on Pan Gu Shen Gong, which I also teach. Reading the Chinese philosophical texts from a young age combined with embodied practice of the martial arts laid the foundation for my love of Chinese medicine which is both a medical science as well as a poetic art of the human condition. I originally studied psychology in college but founded it too ephemeral. I worked for a year at the Belchertown State school when it was one of the last functioning mental institutions in the United States. Wanting to pursue something more concrete, I changed my major to neuroscience and spent my last year of college publishing research in developmental neurobiology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx. I then researched the higher order structure of DNA at Umass in Amherst, eventually receiving a full scholarship to the doctoral neuroscience program at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. While there, my interest in Chinese medicine continued to grow (I had discussed it as early as my college entrance essay in 1975).
My root motivation has always been the pursuit of the evolution of consciousness, and I had an epiphany one day while examining the brain of an embryonic axolotyl (salamander) in an electronmicroscope- “Neuroscience is not about consciousness, it’s about cells!” I recognized that to be whole, I needed to commit to Chinese medicine as my path. The pursuit of Chinese medicine has been the perfect synthesis of science, medicine, philosophy, alchemy, poetry, depth psychoanalysis, soul journeying, and spiritual development. I have found it utterly fulfilling and now after 37 years of practice and about 95,000 clinical sessions I feel I have a firm basis for learning it! There are huge vistas withing Chinese medicine left to explore and the ocean of its knowledge in vast and would take many lifetimes to embrace. Acupuncture, Chinese Medicine, Teaching, Healing, music, photography, martial artist, author… you are quite the Renaissance man. What is one philosophy you have about being able to develop and work with all you have acquired? For the sake of wholeness, it’s important that we continually develop all dimensions of the self, relationally, aesthetically, physically, emotionally, cognitively, and consciously and in the soul and spirit as well. Time and energy are our most pre-
Photographs by Lonny Jarrett
cious resources and I don’t waste either. In the end our cultivation isn’t for us, it’s for everything and everyone. I’ve always felt that wholesome development is an obligation and debt that we owe each other. Having said this I recognize that I’ve been quite privileged to have had the opportunity to develop these capacities. With acupuncture and Chinese Medicine being the forefront of your career for so long, I wonder, what one example of a particular theory and understanding do you bring to your practice? My new book, Deepening Perspectives on Chinese Medicine, is a 1000-page text looking at Chinese medicine as an integral science of human development. I consider it a great accomplishment to have had Ken Wilber, a leading philosopher and the most influential thinker in the field of transpersonal psychology, to have endorsed the work. I offer this perspective on body, psyche, and soul as a more humane approach to the human condition than is generally found in materialist culture. I recognize that the life force, the creative impulse, Eros, has a telos- a direction- toward the true, the good, and the beautiful. I understand medicine as the path of rectifying the body, mind, and soul, as vehicles for the sake of transmitting light, consciousness, spirit with increasingly fidelity. I endeavor to practice within the context of no
inherent limitation attempting to mitigate the influences of what is false, wrong, and untrue while supporting the expression of the upright influences which, in the context of the Eastern teachings, is essentially the authentic self or buddha nature. I understand symptoms in the vehicle of body/mind to be metaphors for the consequences of ignorance and/or misplaced attention. I endeavor to help the patient untie the knot at the root by making more wholesome choices, reframing dysfunctional interpretations of experience, and examining beliefs, behaviors, and the mechanism of meaning making in general. What do you help people with these days the most, and has it been as a result of COVID? I have a general practice and treat people with every kind of condition. My specific expertise is an authentic holistic and preventative approach with perhaps a specialty in conditions that fall under the umbrella of anxiety and depression. I offer this medicine as a more holistic and compassionate approach than is generally found in psychiatry whose focus is generally the repression of symptomatology (and for the very sick that can be the compassionate thing to do!) There are four tasks in the path of integral development, waking up, growing up, cleaning up, and showing up. I am most fulfilled in clinical practice when people engage in these ways.
You have written books that are considered to be like educational bibles in Chinese medicine. What lead to you write these books? Are you thinking of writing another book? I grew up reading the East Asian philosophical texts, meditating, doing qigong, and practicing martial arts. When I began the formal study of Chinese medicine in 1980, I encountered very little of the depth that I knew was present in the tradition. Acupuncture had fallen out of favor in China for over 100 years and had been revived by Mao’s declaration in 1958 (the year I was born!) that “Chinese Medicine is a great treasure-house! We must make all efforts to uncover it and raise its standards” according to the principles of dialectical materialism (Marxism). I was fortunate to study family lineages outside the context of Marxist state medicine. There were precious few English texts available when I began studying and my texts represent my endeavor to reenchant the med icine in an integral context that makes sense given the global reality of the 21st century. It isn’t merely “Chinese” medicine anymore, it’s now a world medicine, though I refer to it as “Chinese” to pay respect to its origins. I’ve written three texts that comprise over 2400 pages and forty plus articles. I feel that I’ve said what I need to say in the medicine and I’m looking forward to having more time to cultivate depth, compassion, music, and art. Continued on next page... THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 25
LONNY JARRETT
AN INTEGRAL LIFE ART, MUSIC, MOVEMENT AND MEDICINE
Lonny Jarrett, Acupunturist
Tae Kwon Do, what is the significance of this practice for you? Martial arts for me, was a way of honing discipline, keeping fit, and learning self-defense. I ran a school at Kripalu for seventeen years, in and there was quite a beautiful bond between myself and the students. I’ve always endeavored to empower people to build a greater integrity and teaching Tae Kwon Do was a good vehicle. These days I practice and teach Pan Gu Shen Gong, which is a heart-centered cultivational practice. Can you explain your thoughts on the Five Elements? As compared to Western medicine whose worldview is materialistic, reductionist, repressive and excels at critical care, Chinese medicine is synthetic, holistic, ceases repression, and excels at prevention and long-term management. Western science references observations to quantitative standards, and Chinese medicine to qualitative standards, of reference. The five-elements (Wuxing 五行) are one such standard of reference. The character Xing 行, often translated as “element” is better rendered as “transformation.” In Buddhism it signifies “samskara” or the conditioning of phenomenal experience. The five elements reference all gross-physical, subtle-psychic/soul, and very subtle spiritual ex26 •MAY 2022 THE ARTFUL MIND
pressions of Self to the yearly light cycle and change of seasons. Nobel prizes were handed out several years ago for “groundbreaking” research on the human biological clock, but the Chinese had mapped this all out extensively in the Han Dynasty, circa 500 BCE. When qi (energy) move outside of us there is weather and seasonal change, when it moves inside of us there are thoughts, feelings, emotions, and sensations. One root of illness is the habit of taking things we experience personally in a way that gives rise to a mythic, static, worldview. To understand a person’s constitutional type is to understand how they create and embody meaning in their life throughout all dimensions of the Self. The character xing 性 for “constitution” “the nature of the heart 心 from birth 生, also means “Buddha nature.” Constitutional Five-element medicine works to rectify constitutional weaknesses so that the authentic self can shine through. What is the meaning of yin and yang? Yin and yang are qualitative standards of reference at the root of all phenomena. They, like all dualities such as time & space, being & becoming, up & down, in & out, left & right, heaven & earth, consciousness & the unconscious, arise with mind. The characters themselves (yin 陰 and yang 陽) depict the shady and sunny side of a hill. Un-
Photograph by Edward Acker
derstanding their subtle movements allows us to discern the forces at work in producing any phenomena we might turn our attention to. What are proud of, and can take full credit for doing in your lifetime so far? I am proud to have had the opportunity to have served my patients and students these many years. I’m not sure anyone can take “full credit” for anything other than perhaps their own degree of developing integrity (or relative lack of it). Any success depends on factors beyond our control perhaps most notable of which is our collaboration with a subtle mystery. I find whatever measure of success I’ve had to a pleasant surprise and a blessing despite having worked single mindedly for it. What are your thoughts on where the world is going? There have always been two waves cresting in this world since the dawn of time. Things are relatively more serious today because for the first time in history humanity has the capacity to disrupt the biosphere enough to cause cataclysm for our species. I’m not optimistic, but I am hopeful, and determined, as I said, “To be the force for the good.”
Photographs by Lonny Jarrett
Who is Lonny Jarrett? Very much a work in progress. One who shows up more in a relational context than as an isolated self. I’m very much looking forward to moving beyond the individual clinical encounter to teaching larger audiences outside the context of Chinese medicine and finding out who I am there.
venues, so wondering, what is it you love to eat? Are we not blessed in the Berkshires with fine dining?! I’m a big fan of clean simple great tasting food (Shout out to Nancy Lee from Elixir!). Emilie and I very much enjoy going to Montreal and Quebec for world class tasting menus.
In what ways do you think you inspire people? I find authenticity to be the most inspiring thing in a person. I strive to speak directly from the depth of my own experience and am hopeful it is enough that some may find it inspiring.
Are you an animal lover? Absolutely! I am thrilled to sit at my desk and watch the owls, hawks, crows, foxes, deer, and bear in our woods. When I was young, I worked at the Northshore Science Museum on Long Island taking care of the reptiles. We lost our springer spaniel Benny after 13 years and I miss him daily. Animals are the best and, in that regard, I love scuba diving and snorkeling too and all the beautiful life in the ocean!
What challenges in your life have you found difficult, yet been able to manage and learn from? The challenge of having spent a lifetime constructing a self that I’ve since seen through as an illusion and the subsequent work of letting it go. The Berkshires is filled with amazing art in all
The passion and capacity of spirit to persevere in the face of inconceivable suffering. Can you give us your contact info for people to reach you? My art can be found at Berkshirescenicphotography.com My music at Loveandrevolution.com My work in consciousness and medicine at: LonnyJarrett.com My books at Spiritpathpress.com My online community at: Nourishingdestiny.com lonny@berkshirescenicphotography.com Thank you, Lonny! Z
From everything you have done and seen in your lifetime so far, what strikes you as most incredible? THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 27
VIRTUAL ART GALLERY BRUCE PANOCK GHETTA HIRSCH MARK MELLINGER CAROLYN NEWBERGER MARY ANN YARMOSKY
Bruce Panock
The Tree In The Dark
THE PRESENTATION OF ARTISTS WORK ON THE FOLLOWING PAGES EXHIBIT ART THAT CAN BE PURCHASED. CONTACT INFORMATION FOR ARTISTS CAN BE FOUND AT BOTTOM OF EACH PAGE. JOIN FACEBOOK: ART GALLERY FOR ARTFUL MINDS SEE: ISSUU.COM (LIVE LINKS TO ARTISTS WEBSITES) INQUIRE ABOUT WALL SPACE: ARTFULMIND@YAHOO.COM 28 • MAY 2022 THE ARTFUL MIND
BRUCE PANOCK
Home
War
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.
Abstract Roof
Visit Bruce Panock:
www.panockphotography.com bruce@panockphotography.com 917-287-8589
THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 29
GHETTA HIRSCH
“Promise” Oil and cold wax medium on wood panel, framed with black wood, 5 x 7” $295
“Red Top” Oil and cold wax medium on wood panel, framed with white wood, 6 x 6” $395
“Berkshire Soil” Oil on canvas framed with natural wood, 12 X 12” $595
VISIT GHETTA HIRSCH: Ghetta-Hirsch.squarespace.com Instagram@ghettahirschpaintings ghettagh@gmail.com Please text or call 413-597-1716 30 • MAY VIRTUAL GALLERY 2022 THE ARTFUL MIND
MARK MELLINGER
Mirage, Acrylic, 2022, 18 x 24”
Permafrost, Triptych, 2022, 64 x 70”
Contact Mark Mellinger:
914-260-7413 markmellinger680@gmail.com
THE ARTFUL MIND VIRTUAL GALLERY MAY 2022 • 31
MARY ANN YARMOSKY
Pride Acrylic on Canvas 18 X 24”
African Princess Acrylic on gesso board 8X10”
Boy Acrylic on Canvas framed 20”X26”
Visit: maryannyarmoskyeclecticart.com myarmosky@comcast.net • 413-441-6963 Face Book Instagram 32 • MAY VIRTUAL GALLERY 2022 THE ARTFUL MIND
CAROLYN NEWBERGER
Dancing with the Ancestors, Mixed media, 30 x 22”
On the Verge, Watercolor and collage, 30 x22”
In Time, Watercolor and collage, 22 x 30”
Visit Carolyn Newberger: www.carolynnewberger.com cnewberger@me.com 617-877-5672 THE ARTFUL MIND MAY VIRTUAL GALLERY 2022 • 33
ALLISON GREEN, MALIA’S GARDEN (2020), OIL ON CANVAS, 72” X 132”
COUNTRY ROAD, WATERCOLOR
MARGUERITE BRIDE SPRING-SUMMER SCHEDULE Here is where you can find my paintings for the next few months: “The Art of …” is a fine art and craft gallery located at 12 Housatonic St in Lenox. My original watercolors (framed and unframed), reproductions, and cards will be on display April 29 – June 9. For hours and event info, visit their FB page or theartogallery.com. “The Shop Around the Corner” is the newly refurbished shop in the Red Lion Inn in Stockbridge. They will carry some of my originals, matted reproductions and cards. Opening Memorial Day weekend. Hotel on North, 297 North Street, Pittsfield – “Cycle Therapy” - solo exhibit of 24 of my original “bicycle-focused” watercolors on paper and canvas. Exhibit runs June 3 – July 31. Opening reception on Friday, June 3, 5-8 PM. Preview on artist website….search on “Cycle Therapy”. Miraval Resorts – 18 original seascape watercolors. While this gallery is open only to guests staying at the resort, non-guests can view/purchase them. Go to my website and search on “Miraval”. This exhibit is ongoing through the fall. Hancock Shaker Village – the gift shop there carries HSV oriented paintings, reproductions and cards. A large collection of small baby animal watercolors too. “Jazz Visions” – original watercolors of jazz people, events, venues on paper and canvas, at 51 Park Restaurant & Tavern in Lee. Preview at margebride-paintings/jazz-visions. And don’t forget…any time is a great time to commission a house portrait or favorite scene you would like captured in a watercolor. Paintings (or even a personalized gift certificate, then I work directly with the recipient) make a cherished and personal gift for weddings, retirement, new home, old home, anniversaries…..any occasion is special. Commission work is always welcome. Marguerite Bride – Home Studio at 46 Glory Drive, Pittsfield, Massachusetts by appointment only. Call 413-841-1659 or 413-4427718; margebride-paintings.com; margebride@aol.com; Facebook: Marguerite Bride Watercolors.
34 • MAY 2022 THE ARTFUL MIND
WE ARE ONE, 9 X 12” CRADLED PANEL MIXED MEDIA/COLLAGE/OILS/COLD WAX MEDIIUM
CAROLYN ABRAMS THE HEALING POWER OF COLOR When I think or hear the word color I think of bright splashes of brilliant reds and oranges and dynamic blues and purples. But the truth is I am drawn to the subtle calming tones derived from those three famous primaries. It is in working with these tones in juxtaposition with the brightest of color that I express the deepest parts of my being. I find a kindred spirit in color which creates atmospheric healing for viewers as well as myself. I also find healing properties in the different techniques and mediums I use to process feelings and emotions such as in “A Sense of Place”. “We Are One” encompasses the circle as a symbol often found in many of my works to symbolize “unity”. Both works an immediate reaction to the devastation and horror in Ukraine. There is a definite and palpable transformation for me after working with color that is a healing for my soul. And it is always a hope that the viewer will experience a feeling of healing in their own way. According to Renee Phillips, curator of the Healing Power Of Arts organization’s “Healing Power of Color 2022” online exhibit, “Color affects our behaviors, moods, and thoughts. It has the ability to bring healing energy, soothe our frazzled nerves, motivate and empower us. In art the healing power of color is undeniable and farreaching. Color (or hue) may be the first creative element an artist chooses and often the most distinctive quality we may notice about their art. This exhibition, “The Healing Power of Color”, features extraordinary art by more than 100 artists from around the world who create art using color to heal themselves and/or the viewer.” All artists who submitted their entries were judged on their art, statement, creativity, technical skills and their overall artistic direction as shown on their websites. To view the entire exhibit of over 100 artists worldwide visit: https://www.healing-power-ofart.org/the-healing-power-of-color-exhibition2022/. Carolyn M Abrams - cabrams09@gmail.com.
ALLISON GREEN MALIA’S GARDEN
Susan Eley Fine Art is pleased to present a solo exhibition of new paintings by Allison Green, the first showcase of her work in the Gallery’s Hudson location. The exhibition will be on view April 28 - June 19, 2022, with an opening reception on Saturday, April 30th, 6-8 PM. Green is a master of capturing the botanical. She constructs lush and mystical universes in her canvases, which range from monumental multipanel pieces to intimately scaled studies. Relying on both horticultural research and personal observations, Green renders flora and fauna with precision and care. Yet, her works are not mere imitations of scientific diagrams of plant life, nor do they fall prey to the tropes and nostalgia of traditional landscape painting. Instead, they are portraits—Poppies, Stargazer Lilies, Orchids, Adam’s Needle Yucca. Each depiction of an individual plant or an interconnected ecosystem contains a language, a narrative. Green’s vibrant, atmospheric environments are deeply influenced by events in the artist’s own life. This enables her compositions to manifest broader truths about nature and humanity: qualities of interdependence and healing, cycles of regeneration and rebirth. Anchored by the epic painting Malia’s Garden, the exhibition at SEFA Hudson conjures a veritable garden for viewers. Shown together, Green’s new works highlight the aesthetic wonders of her subjects while simultaneously transcending their earthly roots to elicit potent internal experiences. Susan Eley Fine Art - 433 Warren Street, Hudson, NY, 12534; susaneleyfineart.com; susie@susaneleyfineart.com; 917-952-7641.
Get involved and be seen... Advertising rates & other info:
413.645.4114
THE ARTFUL MIND
poetry n art
3 Haiku Revolution 1969 I
It was a time , wow. It was a matter of truth. We believed it then.
II
There were flowers then, Peace and love And hope filled hearts And guns and bombs, pow!
III
It was a dream time. We were waiting to awaken. I am waiting still. —Bobby Miller
“Eclipse” 36” x 34” Acrylic on canvas
This Thing Called Spring This thing called Spring Wraps around the edge of the world, Dragging water and sun along with her, Trailing behind her, floating behind her, Massaging a misted earth (We hear her message) As she passes. This thing called Spring. This thing called Spring, Coats wet willow wands wine With questions witches cannot answer, As she begins her revelation, As she begins her older than old narration (We hear her tale) Of what will and what must. This thing called Spring. This thing called Spring, Holds until her floods bring riots Of crabapple and plum, and Green arrowed leaves let fly Yellow trumpets and violet hearts. She sings of elder fungi swelling grander than trees. (We hear her song) under the disturbed ground. This thing called Spring.
Certainty Winter solstice Moon eclipse Echoes the uncertainty That we feel The world slides Away into change Nothing solid to hold onto The only certainty My love For you —Chris Malcomson Decenber 2021
This thing called Spring, Plants her cold feet through memories of snow, Cruelly, slowly (We hear her toes suck mud). Until sun and water and grass and ferns And old red mushrooms Remind her that the world continues to roll and roll. She comes, sighs, and cannot hold. This thing called Spring.
—Linda Kaye-Moses
Andrea Joyce Feldman graces our pages with a great sense of humor and talent for cartooning and communication ideas.
THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 35
ARTIST UPDATE
LINDA KAYE-MOSES JEWELRY DESIGNER Interview by Harryet Candee Photography by Evan J. Soldinger
Harryet Candee: What
have you been
up to lately? Linda Kaye-Moses: Since we last spoke a few years ago, I’ve continued to work in my studio. Of course, during that time period, the pandemic eliminated the shows at which I had been exhibiting, but I still wanted to prepare for their eventual reinstatement. So, I kept at it, making a number of major neckpieces, and one major piece, that included a neckpiece, a pair of earrings, a ring, and a stab bound book, containing an original poem,“This Thing Called Spring”. I also worked on two (count ‘em, two) novels, and have been slogging through the process of finding an agent to walk me through the publishing world. I’ve been a bit busy. During the past several years, I have had work accepted in several major exhibitions, including: 2018 “Under Fire 2”, Enamel Guild Northeast, Krikorian Gallery, Worcester, MA. (an international exhibition of objets using vitreous enamels; 2020, Makers and Mentors: The Art and Life of Snow Farm, Fuller Craft Museum, featuring instructors who taught at Snow Farm; 36 •MAY 2022 THE ARTFUL MIND
The New England Craft Program over the course of its history. I taught there for 13 years (I was invited to show my Neckpiece and Enclosure, “Babl”, in this exhibition; 2022, “Superbly Sintered”, International conference exhibition; Association of Metal Clay Arts Worldwide (My neckpiece, “Les Fleurs de l’Age d’Or” was selected for this competitive exhibition); 2022, “Cell Full/Filled: Cloisonné as a Voice”, The Enamelist Society membership exhibition (My fibula, “Watching my Heart” was included in this exhibition). Most recently my neckpiece “Acilius Pied Alonge” was accepted in the upcoming August exhibition, “Alchemy 6”, an international exhibition curated by The Enamelist Society. Linda, yes, you have been quiet busy. How was your recent jewelry exhibit this past March with Paradise City Arts Festival in Marlborough, Massachusetts? There’s another one coming up in May, in Northampton— always fun to attend, and you will be there, as well. I have done every one of the Marlborough shows since they first began and I thrilled to say that this was the most successful one ever. The collectors
came and they brought home some of my most important pieces. It was so gratifying to know that they had been waiting out these difficult times, dreaming of coming back to this show and anticipating owning some of my work. I hear you revamped your exhibit booth to celebrate your return? I redid my booth many years ago to try to keep everything neutral, except the jewels. I felt bored, because I am a colorist, in my jewels and in my fiber art. After going through these very stressful few years, I made a decision that, when I showed up at the 2021 Northampton Paradise City Show, the booth would reflect my celebration of ‘being back”. Screw being cool, suave, and neutral—I loved being in that ‘room’ for the few days of both, the NoHo show and then, the Marlborough show. The crowd loved it— especially my collectors. And back in your studio, has there been anything new you have come up with that may have been a reaction, or result of COVID days?
The Thing Called Spring Neckpiece
Watching My Heart Brooch/Pendant
Photography on this page: Evan J. Soldinger
Enclosure and Neckpiece
As far as what I’ve been doing lately, I have been working hard to amalgamate traditional jewelry making techniques, powdered metallurgy (metal clay), andvitreous enameling in my pieces. And, one of my novels, that deals with craft artists and collectors at a mysterious craft fair as they come out of the pandemic and find a new way to be present in their worlds. During the pandemic, when the initial surge had calmed down, I planned to have a surgical procedure and, when I’ve gone through physical turning points in my life before, I always made a new piece for myself that became mandalas for healing. I did so in 2020. I made “Watching My Heart” a fibula brooch that I’ve worn almost every day since the surgery. I’m wondering, if I was to commission you to make a pair of earrings, how would you assess what is best for me? This is always fun for me. For a number of reasons. I get to learn a little bit more about my collector, because I ask them what is important for them in their lives. I refer to my jewels as an ex-
perience and I love to turn that around and experience who my collectors are. It’s one of the reasons that I prefer to sell my work directly to them, rather than working with gallerists. What sort of found objects do you work with? I have used antique lava cameos, antique boxes (to alter for my enclosures); antique compasses, shells, beetles, antique shards of Favrile Tiffany glass (donated by a friend), elements that I call oddments both antique and just old. I have a collection of small milagros from Mexico and Greece that have sometimes found their way into my work. What tool do you use to sign your name on a piece of jewelry? I hallmark my metal pieces with stamp with the initials LKM using a small steel stamp. I also mark them with quality stamps (.925, for sterling silver; FS, for fine silver; 14k or 18k for gold). For my enclosures/nesting cases, I sign them somewhere on them, with my full signature.
Tell us about your Nesting Cases and their significance they have for you? There is something intrigues me about small enclosures. Perhaps they represent a promise, the possibility of a hidden treasure, an object of power or delight. I make them because I want that possibility to inhabit my work (open this box and you might/will find your heart’s desire). Traditionally boxes were made as beautiful and/or powerful as their contents, and I work hard to make that so with my enclosures. How has being unruly, same as your Unruly jewels benefited you as an artist? I am unruly in the sense that I have a tendency to disregard the consequences of my decisions, both in my art and my life, with some serious mistakes at times as a result (oh well). However, this unruliness has resulted in a body of art that, over the course of my over four decades of making it, astonishes me with how I’ve corralled that unruliness. Since I’m primarily a self-taught maker, unruliness comes along for the ride. Because I Continued on next page... THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 •37
LINDA KAYE-MOSES JEWELRY DESIGNER
Artemisia Liberata Neckpiece
Arabesque Broccato Neckpiece
And Then She Flew Neckpiece
Wishing for April Fibula Linda Kaye-Moses, Artist Photography on this page: Evan J. Soldinger
38 • MAY 2022 THE ARTFUL MIND
Les Fleurs de l’Age d’or Neckpiece
have not had formal training, I, happily, am unrestricted in what I choose to make. I reach a decision about a piece I want to make and apply everything I’ve learned to that piece, and the re sult is that my unruliness works, most of the time. I mostly don’t play by the rules. I mostly don’t color within the lines. I hope to be that meme, of that little girl in the dance class who hangs upside down by her feet from the barre. You are the author of “Pure Silver Metal Clay Beads, and Roots, Stems, and Branches: A Recollection”. What can the reader expect when picking up this book to read? I was invited by a publisher to write Pure Silver Metal Clay Beads and it was my first, and currently my only, adventure with writing a full text on working with metal clay (which is also known as sintered metal or powdered metallurgy). The audience for this book are those who wish to learn how to work with the material, and is scaled with projects ranging from beginner to advanced. It’s still available in e-editions. Another book I wrote, “Roots, Stems, and Branches; A Recollection”, is a memoir for me to define, and others to discover, the answers to the questions my family, collectors and students have been asking me for many years. It has helped me to define the elements in my life that led me to making my work. There are always challenges for artists to take on. What are some some for you that will seem to never go away?
As far as challenges go, every time I sit down to make my art, I am challenging myself to find a new way to approach the materials I’m using. Why bother with manifesting something old and tired? Sometimes, it’s an unusual stone that is challenging, or a conceptual design challenge. The challenge behind everything I make is to remain true to my vision, my style, and remember why I want to make jewelry that is more than adornment. What are some other things in your life you enjoy doing? Do they have a common thread? There is no part of my life, from cooking to reading to writing, to making my jewels, to my fiber art work (knitting/crochet), to drawing, to playing piano, that doesn’t intersect with or inspire all the rest. A dear artist friend of mine who hated cooking, was inspired by the advice given her to think of cooking as arranging and choosing colors. It changed her life in the kitchen. Artists see, use, hold onto, everything, and that confluence eventually springs to life wherever appropriate. Art forms always inspire. In what ways do you find life to be fulfilling? I have been lucky to, and grateful for, 44 years of marriage with my dear spouse, Evan J. Soldinger, who, in addition to having the most generous of hearts, is a fine musician and a superb art photographer, and the photographer of all my work for all these years. My son, Adam and his wife Lisa Horvitz (a wonderful daughter-in-law) are a blessing in our lives. I have also felt fulfilled by
Photography: Evan J. Soldinger
having been able to make my work and have it be a support in my life. As Gertie said, Ya gotta have a room of your own, and my studio is not just a room of my own, but a place where I truly live, with music playing and tools in my hands. Do you have any suggestions on how to live a good life? Be unruly. Seek knowledge. Remember, we are all the stuff of cosmic stardust. Get excited about sundogs and rainbows. Take care of yourself and know your strengths, and go to them always. Be angry appropriately and be at peace with your weaknesses. Most importantly, make art, but make it unruly.—waste no time doing so. Where can we see your jewelry? I will be exhibiting my work at Paradise City Arts Festivals Northampton show May 28-30. Look for the bright colors of my booth #529. https://festivals.paradisecityarts.com/shows/north ampton-may-show Check out my website to see the work I will be bringing with me: lindakayemoses.com I have been invited to teach a three-day workshop class for The Enamelist Society Conference on Enameling on Metal Clay for beginner to advanced. Check out https://www.enamelistsociety.org/dir.cfm/Activities/Conference/ It’s at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in Gatlinburg, TN, August 9-10, and is open to nonmembers. Thank you, Linda! Z THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 39
THE VEIL
SERENITY, GOUACHE, 7 X 5”
BRUCE PANOCK
SHARON GUY
PHOTOGRAPHY
INSPIRED BY NATURE
I have been a student of photography for more than 20 years, though most intently for the last five years. I am primarily a landscape photographer. Recently my photographic voice has migrated to the creation of work with reference to other art forms, notably encaustic painting and ancient Chinese and Japanese brush painting and woodblock art. My intention is to create with viewer a moment of pause and reflection; a moment to digest the image and find their own story in the art. Each image is part of a limited edition. There are several sizes available. Each piece is priced according to size. Images are unframed and printed on Hahnemuhle archival papers. Bruce Panock bruce@panockphotography.com
My purpose as an artist is to connect with the healing power of the natural world and to encourage others to do the same. Nature is alive and infused with spirit. I constantly seek to reconnect with this spirit of nature through creating art. While I quietly observe and study land, water, and skies, the ordinary world around me is transformed by light and shadow into the sublime. I enjoy using an intuitive process while I play with the boundary between representation and abstraction. My work is in private collections in the United States and Canada. Visit: https://www.sharonguyart.com sharonguyart@gmail.com / 941-321-1218
BERKSHIRE DIGITAL Since opening in 2005, Berkshire Digital has done fine art printing for artists and photographers. Giclée prints can be made in many different sizes from 5”x7” to 42”x 80” on a variety of archival paper choices. Berkshire Digital was featured in PDN magazine in an article about fine art printing. See the entire article on the BerkshireDigital.com website. Berkshire Digital does accurate hi-res photoreproductions of paintings and illustrations that can be used for Giclée prints, books, magazines, brochures, cards and websites. “Fred Collins couldn’t have been more professional or more enjoyable to work with. He 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 Digital - 413 644-9663, www.BerkshireDigital.com.
“Whether you succeed or not is irrelevant, there is no such thing. Making your unknown known is the important thing.” – Georgia O’Keeffe
40 • MAY 2022 THE ARTFUL MIND
Deirdre Flynn Sullivan
A Kaleidoscope He knew me for my ruby boots, For the heart on my sleeve Embroidered like a tattoo. He loved my Americana smile, Bluebonnet eyes, and Apache legs, Swinging into rhythmic forms On western dance floors. There are songs Waiting to be sewn with Satin ribbons, Calico patterns, Saucy buttons, And broad stripes. In a dark attic He strums his guitar To the flamenco beat Of my sunlit longing And whistles his love Between arcs of light. —Deirdre Flynn Sullivan, 3/31/15 RED BOOTS: HE KNEW ME FOR MY WALK-Deirdre Flynn Sullivan, 2013
THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 41
CAROLYN KAY BRANCATO AUTHOR Interview by Harryet Candee
Harryet Candee: Carolyn, how did you get inspired to write your latest book, The Night Belongs to the Maquis? And, when you are writing, do you travel to a different place? Carolyn Kay Brancato: The inspiration for The Night Belongs to the Maquis came some years ago in an acting class at Ensemble Studio Theatre in NYC. We were asked to create a character then write a monologue for that person. I came up with a situation in which a nun, during WWII in France, was asked for sanctuary by a young German soldier who refused to commit Nazi atrocities. The “stakes” were high for her, since giving him sanctuary would endanger everyone in the church as well as the entire village. After I performed it, my instructor told me I should definitely pursue this dramatic story idea—which I did, first as a play, then more recently as a novel. A few weeks later, the New York Times happened to publish a travel section article about a small Southern French village called Foix, near the border with Spain. It was a critical hub of French Resistance (Maquis) activity to get downed WWII Allied pilots over the Pyrénées and out of France. I was so emotionally vested in the character I had just created that I immediately made plans to travel there later that year. I was fortunate to meet three members of the Resistance, one of whom was the leader of the circuit that got approximately 500 downed pilots and other agents out of France. He had been captured by the Gestapo and tortured by Klaus Barbie, and gave me a copy of his deposition in the Barbie trial in Lyon, asking me to tell his story. Although my novel is fiction, it’s based on true events and real-life people, dedicated to all those courageous enough to fight fascismpast and present. When I write, I completely submerge myself in each of my characters, as an actor would to prepare for a role on stage or screen. Not only do I visualize what they look like in the minutest detail, but I craft 42 • MAY 2022 THE ARTFUL MIND
their backstory, where they grew up, how they walk, how they eat, sleep, make love, dream, etc. Having quite literally traveled to this village, when I sat down to write, I surrounded myself with maps, journals I’d acquired, photos and other research materials. Then I go deep inside each of my characters’ heads—to find out what they’re thinking and feeling and even how they argue with each other. Often your characters develop minds of their own and do things to surprise you! What parts of this story did you find the most exciting in creating? When I write, I have all my research in the back of my mind, but then I just sit back and let my characters interact with each other. It’s thrilling to find out what they’ll do when I put them in impossible situations and then raise the stakes even more. Perhaps the most exciting part of writing this novel came toward the end, when I truly did not know how my heroine’s journey would end. Would she be reunited with her former lover or would he be killed by the Nazis? If he did survive, could they put his unsavory past aside or would they have to part? In order to be with him, would she renounce her sacred vows, taken when she thought he was dead? Would they come together to liberate Foix or would they fail in their mission? How many would die along the way? It was exciting to work out these nail-biting issues as I got deeper into the novel. Do you have an all-time favorite writer and book you treasure? I wouldn’t say I had one favorite writer or treasured book. I grew up with opera on the record player—Italian opera sung by such greats as Enrico Caruso. As you know, opera is one of the most dramatic and passionate forms of art. I was completely enthralled when my father and my aunt took me
not only to the Metropolitan Opera, which was pure magic, but also to thrilling more popular Broadway shows like My Fair Lady. My aunt and one of my uncles used to act out scenes from Shakespeare, and when I was twelve or so, I remember washing my imaginary blood-stained hands over and over after listening to her Lady Macbeth. If you were given the opportunity to live in a different time period in history, where would that be, and what life would you want to have? I would be a director/playwright living in London—anytime from Shakespeare to the present. You are presently living in the Berkshires. Tell us about what projects related to the Berkshires you have been inspired to take on? My husband, Howard Greenhalgh, and I moved here about eight years ago. At that time I was working as an economist in my “day-job” at a global not-for-profit company. I had taken a break from theatrical projects and was deeply involved in oil painting. In fact, we originally came up here to paint for two weeks, but ended up painting for one week and looking for a house the second week. After we moved, we were warmly welcomed by a wonderful group of artists and joined with them to found what has become the Guild of Berkshire Artists. We had belonged to a similar guild in the Annapolis, Maryland area, so we enjoyed getting this one off the ground in these exquisitely beautiful Berkshires. I subsequently met an editor, Diane O’Connell, who led writing retreats at the Kemble Inn in Lenox. I redirected my energies from oil painting to novel writing—primarily in order to more fully tell the story of my French Resistance heroes than I had been able to do in my previous playwriting pursuits. Diane subsequently became my editor and publisher at Station Square Media. I am aware of your involvement in the theatre, as a choreographer? Tell us about that. I was such a Tom-boy growing up that my parents made me take dance classes to learn a little grace. Well it stuck. I went from ballet, jazz and tap to directing and choreographing at theatres in the Washington D.C. area and New York City—all the while working at my day job. I also choreographed a jazz ballet for the D.C. City Ballet and was the choreographer for the dance sequence in the Francis Ford Coppola film Gardens of Stone. I continued to write and some of my plays were produced at the former John Houseman Theatre in NYC, at Steppenwolf in Chicago, and at the Church Street Theatre in Washington D.C. I hear you like to paint in oils. Tell us a little about your visual artistic side? Do you share your paintings or is it a private art for just you? Does it help with writing books? What was your artistic involvement in the covers of your books? Some years ago, I accompanied my husband on a painting vacation in Tuscany. He and the other artists were having entirely too much fun painting in the glorious vineyards of Italy during the day, then eating pasta and drinking wine from those same vineyards at night. So, I decided to learn more about painting by taking art classes in New York City and Scottsdale Arizona, as well as going on other plein air trips with him to France, Mallorca, and the Sierras in California. I find many similarities between painting and writing: (1) contrasting light and dark, to achieve dramatic effect; (2) getting the viewer to enter a painting and want to spend time there; and (3) influencing the emotions of the viewer through intensity of color, depth of paint application, and crafting of edges to emphasize the painting’s focal point. The goal of translating a two-dimensional surface into what you hope will visually become a threedimensional canvas is quite similar to writing: you start with a flat surface—your blank page—and you hope to create a fully realized novel of vibrant three-dimensionality. A few years back, I showed some of my mainly still-life and French Proven-
Stunning book jacket designed by Steven Plummer
cal landscapes at various Guild of Berkshire Artists shows at the West Stockbridge Historic Town Hall and at the Welles Gallery in the Lenox Library. As with painting, when I write, I constantly visualize my scenes. For example, I hope that my little village of Foix becomes for the reader another character, as you walk from the train station where the Germans deported the refugees, to the fountain the Nazis used for target practice, to the allimportant church of St. Volusien, where my heroine decides to pose as a nun to work in the Resistance. As for the covers of both my published novels, I believe a good cover not only gives the reader a thumb nail impression of what the book is about, but draws the reader into the story. I was fortunate that my publisher assigned the same talented designer, Steven Plummer, for each book. We had many productive discussions, as he came up with options reflecting my visions of both novels. I sent him photos of my French village and was thrilled when he incorporated the three identifying towers of the Château overlooking Foix. For The Circus Pig & the Kaiser, my husband contributed a marvelous painting of Sasha the Pig dressed in the Kaiser’s helmet for the first cover; when that cover was redesigned, his little pig was just too precious to lose, so we kept it on the spine! Growing into adulthood, were you affected by some world events that led to your interest in history and politics? Tell us about these years and what were you focusing on? Can you tell us a bit about your childhood as well? My father was a Flight Surgeon/Colonel in the Army-Air Corps during World War II. He and all six of his brothers, first generation Italians from Sicily, served in the war. My father was also stationed in Germany after the war when the Russians brought down the iron curtain.. His hatred of tyranny and love of democracy was so ingrained in our family that we all had to jump to attention whenever the Star Spangled Banner was played before a ball game on radio or TV. Continued on next page... THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 43
CAROLYN KAY BRANCATO AUTHOR My college years at Barnard, then living on the Upper West Side of Man- with CEOs and Boards of Directors in the U.S., Europe, India, the Middle hattan after graduation, additionally introduced me to many activist political East, Hong Kong, Singapore and China; I still run some corporate governmovements like the civil rights movement and the Anti-Vietnam War move- ance programs in Europe. My focus is to help corporate executives and ment. Censorship issues, in particular, have been a life-long interest and boards achieve ethical standards, good governance and transparency. Along the way, I was the Director of The Conference Board’s CommisI’m distressed that they’re coming to the fore once again in the movement to ban books and to make other destructive incursions into our First Amend- sion on Public Trust that investigated the Enron scandal and came up with ment liberties. recommendations for businesses to be better stewards of their capital, not I suppose the issue I feel most passionate about is the threat of fascism. only for the benefit of their investors but for society at large. My work in The idea for my first novel, The Circus Pig and the Kaiser, came when corporate governance, focusing not only on short-term earnings but on I was working as an economist with my mentor, the late Nobel Laureate longer-term corporate value creation, has contributed to companies’ adopWassily Leontief, and the subject of fascism and censorship arose in one of ting ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) standards that promote our conversations. He was born in the former Soviet Union and had been climate-change, diversity and gender equality, and more equitable work arrested by the precursor to the KGB for advocating academic freedom. He place practices. As satisfying as all these endeavors were, during all these was only allowed to leave the country because he was gravely ill. For- years, I would snatch time for my first love—theatre—to write on airplanes tunately, he recovered and developed the economic system of input-output and work in theatre as often as my schedule would allow. analysis, which traces all the inputs into each industry of an economy. (For example, the output of one car requires a series of inputs from other indus- What would you like to write next about? tries such as glass, rubber, aluminum, leather, etc.) Wassily worked with the I’m currently part of an innovative group of playwrights called “Berkshire Allies in WWII to identify that it was ball bearing factories that the Allies Voices,” which operates under the auspices of The Great Barrington Public should bomb to most effectively cripple the inputs to most of the industries Theatre. Its goal is to develop professional theatre projects written, acted creating German war machine products. and directed by Berkshires residents. I’m curWassily told me the true story of Vladimir rently workshopping a play about a young Durov, a Russian clown who taunted the warwoman investment banker trying to finance mongering Kaiser in 1907, prior to the buildup economic development in a favela (slum) in of the First World War. Durov dressed his Rio de Janeiro, but she’s coming up against unprized pig as the Kaiser, who wore an outsavory people and threatening obstacles. I rageously ostentatious uniform, and ordered guess I’m always tilting at windmills. Maybe I similarly elaborate uniforms for his troops, in should have a favorite book after all—Don order to gin up public support for the war. Quixote! Durov’s pig flipped a helmet onto her head, mocking the Kaiser, and Durov was arrested What resonates most with you about the for sedition. That’s all I needed to hear to incurrent political climate? spire me to write a play, and eventually a novel, In researching The Night Belongs to the MaCarolyn Kay Brancato, Still Life with Red Jug, Oil on Linen about that hilarious but dangerous act of defiquis, I learned that, after the Germans invaded ance in the face of tyranny! Poland and then broke through the Maginot Line to overrun northern France, more than six Have you come across different angles to parts of any of your two books million people from Belgium, the low-countries and northern France bethat you think about and would like to alter in some way, like the des- came refugees. They made their way in total misery to southern France. In tiny and fates of characters? 1940, the City of Toulouse, near my village of Foix, swelled from a popSomeone once suggested I write a sequel to The Night Belongs to the Ma- ulation of 200,000 to over one million in a matter of months. These refugees quis about the two children, Deborah and Elias, as they might have lived had lost their homes and everything they owned. They carried their meager their lives in Israel. But that always seemed like an anti-climax. As they say possessions and some even pushed their elderly in wheelbarrows, often in theatre, “leave ‘em wanting more.” strafed by German aircraft. In all my extensive research, with my intense visualizations, I never came close to imagining the chilling scenes we are Carolyn, can you share with us some thoughts and beliefs you have on witnessing every day on T.V., as millions of Ukrainians flee the horrific world affairs, the Arts, life in general? How have you contributed to Russian onslaught. If I could add anything to my novel, it would be to world affairs? amend my dedication, “to all those courageous enough to fight fascism… During college at Barnard, I was majoring in theatre, but didn’t have the past and present,” to add a salute to the heroic Ukrainian Resistance fighters money to go to graduate school. So I decided to change my major to Eco- of today. nomics, to support myself in a day job while I pursued theatre part time. I ended up getting a Ph.D. from NYU and loving the public interest work I Note: Berkshires author Carolyn Kay Brancato’s two novels are: “The Cirwas drawn into, including working as an environmental economist for the cus Pig & the Kaiser,” (available on Amazon at https://amzn.to/2GgWrRa) New York City Environmental Protection Administration. Decades ago, we and “The Night Belongs to the Maquis: A WWII Novel” (available on Amaidentified that plastics would do irreparable environmental harm and were zon at https://amzn.to/3pe4GFN). She will be reading from “The Night Besuccessful in getting polyvinyl liquor bottles banned. We also saved Storm longs to the Maquis” at the Lenox Library, Lenox Massachusetts at 3 pm King Mountain from becoming a Con Edison pumped storage plant. on May 3rd. This work led me to The Congressional Research Service in Washington D.C., where I analyzed leveraged buyouts and the mergers and acquisitions Thank you, Carolyn! movement of the 1980’s. In turn, this paved the way for my founding the Z Global Corporate Governance Research Center and Directors’ Institute at The Conference Board, a global not-for-profit think-tank established in 1916 to further the role of business in society. I traveled the world to work 44 • MAY 2022 THE ARTFUL MIND
CELLBLOCK VISIONS A.P.E. GALLERY Phyllis Kornfeld’s Cellblock Visions will be on exhibit May 7 – 29, 2022, at the A.P.E. Gallery in North Hampton. On Saturday, May 14, there will be an artist reception 3-5 pm with an artist talk at 4 pm. The artwork being exhibited at A.P.E. was created between 1983 and the present by incarcerated men and women across the country in those prisons and jails that offer classes led by artist/teachers and with limited access to art supplies. Phyllis Kornfeld has been working directly with these artists for over 39 years—in all levels of security from county jail to maximum security to death row. “These artists did their work with care and passion. Though inexperienced, they seemed to know what to do and how to do it, without instruction. They trusted something, an unseen
guide. The art is beautiful in its sincerity even where the truth is painful to see. Art has always had the power to transform lives.” Phyllis Kornfeld is the author of Cellblock Visions: Prison Art in America, Princeton University Press and is the founder of several public projects whereby prison artists donate their artwork to benefit people in need. The Envelope Project: Incarcerated Men and Women Making Art for a Cause sold hundreds of original pieces of envelope art at the Outsider Art Fair in NYC to benefit a children’s literacy nonprofit. Other publications include “Truth, Goodness, and Beautiful Art: Set Free in the Penitentiary,” for Art Education Beyond the Classroom, Palgrave MacMillan. Journal contributions include Encyclopedia of Southern Folk Art, Raw Vision: International Journal of Intuitive and Visionary Art, Mountain Record, Art and Antiques Magazine.
Phyllis Kornfeld lives in western Massachusetts and due to the Covid pandemic, is currently waiting to return to teaching at the Berkshire County House of Corrections. Artist Bio: Phyllis Kornfeld is the author of Cellblock Visions: Prison Art in America, Princeton University Press and is the founder of several public projects whereby prison artists donate their artwork to benefit people in need. The Envelope Project: Incarcerated Men and Women Making Art for a Cause sold hundreds of original pieces of envelope art at the Outsider Art Fair in NYC. to benefit a children’s literacy nonprofit. A.P.E. Ltd.- Available Potential Enterprises, Ltd., 126 Main Street, Northampton, Massachusetts; 413-586-5553; www.apearts.org
THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 45
FOOD AS MEDICINE This month’s topic will return to our five senses and their influences on the mind. I’ll also talk about the importance of maintaining clarity of mind via the process of cleansing the sense organs that are affiliated with the five senses - sight, sound, smell, taste and feel. These are the experiences which informs one’s brain. Sight. Our perception relies not only on what the structure of the eyeball is physically seeing, but our interpretation of that image. If one’s head is congested with mucus, our attention would typically be drawn to a runny nose or congested throat however, the eyes can also hold mucus. And for that matter the entire cranium could be congested, causing brain fog or cloudy eyes, both contributing to some degree of altered perceptions of reality.
46 • MAY 2022 THE ARTFUL MIND
Sound. The vibrational interpretation of a subject at hand. The brain interprets sound waves, which imprint on the mind …but what came first, the chicken or the egg? Does the sound imprint the image, or is the sound given an image? Whichever you choose, reality deems that you must first receive the vibration through the ear canal. There are conditions that could disturb or compete with the sound waves, such as, accumulated earwax and tinnitus (ringing in ears), which could influence and affect the interpretation. Smell. This sense, while supplying the brain with olfaction information, it also plays a part in taste. Which would explain why when our sinuses are full, the sense of taste may not be present. While there are several sinus cavities, the ethmoid sinuses could arguably be the most influential because of their proximity to the brain. An effective Ayurvedic cleansing technique, referred to as Shiro-Abhyanga-Nasya, focuses on flushing these sinuses, which results in amazing clarity of eyes and mind. Taste. There are 6 potential ways to inform the brain of taste: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, pungent, and astringent. Foods are also categorized as hot or cold, dry or unctuous, and light or heavy. On the surface, the sense of taste may appear to be only about our digestive pleasures, however, the foods we eat and their qualities play a major role in dictating how efficiently and effectively our di-
gestive system works. A cleansed palette can help guide us to proper digestion of food. Feel. Touch is the act of placing one’s fingers and palms on another person or thing to give information to the brain. But, it’s not that simple. Our interpretation of that information hinges on the input from our eyes, ears, nose, and tongue. Proper discernment, the ability to obtain accurate, sharpened perceptions can only be done when the five senses are in optimal working condition. Discernment is sometimes referred to as a hunch, intuition, a guess, a prediction, knowledge …in other words, a good thing. And how do we make a good thing better? We cleanse it. Please see our ad in this issue of the Artful Mind, and refer to our column in previous issues for more information on cleansing. Be well and heal thyself! Lakshmi’s Garden Terrel Broussard, Ayurvedic Practitioner, Herbalist, Bodyworker; 413-329-5440
MARY DAVIDSON
High Heels Series
www.davidsondesigncompany.net Studio appointments, please call 413-528-6945 KEITH AND MARY ORIGINAL ARTWORK FOR SALE STUDIO/GALLERY, SOUTH EGREMONT, MA
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Visit and enjoy— maryannyarmoskyeclecticart.com THE ARTFUL MIND MAY 2022 • 47
Something For Over The Couch PART 10 “The First Argument” That Saturday morning when I headed for my art teacher’s house I had an anxious feeling of uncertainty, and when I tell you of the disaster that befell me that day you will be sure to think that a lot of what I have said about my teacher, myself and her family was probably not true. My entire connection to their household was based on the excuse that I was the boy who cut the lawn, and now, for several weeks, I had been mowing grass on Saturday morning that did not need mowing. I was cutting grass so that after it was done I could sit in the kitchen in the afternoon and talk to my teacher, who had become, simply a close friend, and a mentor. But now what, was I going to be mowing the snow in December? But my connection to that family was more precarious than I realized as I walked up to their house with my bath mat naked lady art project under my arm. When I finished with the lawn I put the machine back in the garage and noticed three unfamiliar cars in the driveway, and then found some woman similar to Hanna in her kitchen involved in a conversation. For a second I felt deep resentment to find these women in what I considered my kitchen in my accustomed spot, but the absurdity of my indignation was so ridiculous that I just settled into a sudden despondency. Hanna introduced me as the lawn boy, who is, “A marvelous artist who is doing wonderful paintings for such a young boy.” This remark made me so angry I thought I would cry out in frustration, and then one of the women walked right up to me, and said to the others, “So, this is him.” Their plan I soon discovered was that they were going to play bridge on Saturday afternoons, and so, in conclusion, my charmed upper class life suddenly came to an end as if it had never happened. I excused myself and started to leave, but Hanna, seeing something rolled up under my arm, asked to see it. When I hesitated, the other visitors, seeing my confusion, excused themselves and went into the living room, where a card table had already been set up. I rolled the naked lady bath mat out on the kitchen table. There was a long, terrible silence. “Richard, what disgusting obscenity is this, why would you do such a thing?” “It’s a commission,” I said. “Are you going to put this over somebody’s couch?” She said, with no humor in her voice. Then she continued. “Who is it that is paying you to do this commission?” 48 • MAY 2022 THE ARTFUL MIND
“The barber that cuts my hair wants me to cut out this woman’s shape from the mat,” I answered, but seeing her revulsion, I too began to see that there was something not right about the idea. Now, however, having a clear picture of what I was doing and why, Hanna went into her dictatorial mode, a mode of behavior I now dimly remembered from her second day as our art teacher, when the class refused to do her homework assignment, because she was a substitute. “Take this monstrosity back to your barber and tell him that what he is doing borders on a crime, paying a minor to create an obscene image, is...what’s his name, where is his shop?” She went on in anger and said other things I can’t remember but suddenly and unexpectedly I began to defend myself. The fact that I spoke without even knowing what I was going to say may sound unlikely, even impossible, but the words were already in my head, the exact words Max her former husband had said to her, “It’s art, just art, a fiction, you…” but I could not bring myself to utter the word ‘moron.’ The Greek Chorus of the bridge players in the living room were, I imagine, listening to every word of that conversation, and though there was a tragic epiphany going on in the kitchen, they made no comment. I rolled up my obscene crime of a bath mat slowly and deliberately, and silently left the house by the kitchen door, and in parting closed the door carefully so as not to make the latch click. I closed the door silently, as an expression of the injury I had received. Perhaps you have received such an injury in your life; the kind that makes you think that all that went on before in your life was not only wrong, but also stupid. It’s a long downhill from the Wasserman house to the bus stop on Oneida Street, and from the house to the stop my mind was mute as I walked along. It was the sight of the bus in the distance that triggered the monologue in my mind that now began with the statement, “I’ve never seen any of those phonies on the bus, and I never will.” But my teacher and her family were not phonies and I knew it, it was just that the word ‘phony’ was often in my head at that time because I had recently finished reading Ruth’s copy of “The Catcher in the Rye.” This remark, in my mind, was followed, out loud by the reverse, “It is you yourself, that is the phony, thinking you are going to be some famous artist, sitting and talking with people where you have to pretend to understand what they are saying, pretending you know the names they mention. You should be ashamed of yourself, thinking because you mow some rich woman’s lawn you are part of her family. And now you treat your own Mother with contempt, because she happened to not know who Rothko is. And what would Dad have said about it? He would have said nothing at all. He would have rapped his knuckles on the top of his head and called me a hardhead, a knucklehead.” What happened next I am ashamed to tell you, but I cried for a long period of time, quieted down, and then cried again even louder till someone blew their horn, because I was standing in the street. I had decided to walk home and avoid the bus because it is embarrassing to get on a bus when you are in hysterics. Then came that moment of quiet resolve after a long and terrible cry, that calm mo-
ment, between suppressed sobs when you swear to yourself to never do something ever again, a promise ready to be broken at the first possible opportunity. I started walking home, and only got two blocks when out of the corner of my eye I saw the familiar shape of the red fender of the Thunderbird belonging to my teacher’s twin sons. Which son was driving I couldn’t tell, because they always looked like the same person to me. He gestured for me to get in, and I did, throwing the bath mat into the back seat. “My mother sent me to fetch you, I was on the way to your house.” I said nothing but did not particularly like the word ‘fetch.’ Hanna’s son seemed anxious to explain something to me, but had difficulty saying anything more than a few words, and then he would fall silent. As for me, I said nothing. I felt like an escaped convict. I was afraid I had triggered some nervous reaction in my teacher that might lead to a confrontation with Savi, my barber. How could anyone ever criticize Savi? He was just a simpleton of a barber, and an institution in my family. I cared nothing for Savi, but the truth was, I would have had to give up art and my art teacher if it came down to having some argument with Savi. We pulled into the driveway, and there was an apparition, Hanna’s husband, the Good Doctor himself was standing at the end of the driveway, next to the kitchen door. As soon as he saw the car he went into the house. He was sitting at the kitchen table when his son and I entered the house. The doctor also wanted to explain something to me, but thought better of it. Then he got up to leave, only saying, “She’ll be down in a minute.” Strangely there were no other cars in the drive, and the bridge players had departed. After a few minutes Hanna entered the kitchen and I could see that she had been crying about something, but what it was I had no idea, and had no interest in finding out. “Where’s the bath mat?” she inquired. “It’s in the back seat of the convertible.” I answered. “Go get it and bring it in here, we will need to figure out how to do the drawing head on, and not profile, profile is never going to work. Think about this, if you were going to be standing on a woman’s body, which would you prefer, to stand on her front, or on her side? On the front, obviously. Have you ever seen a naked woman’s body Richard?” she asked “No.” “Pictures?” “Not really.” “Well, wait a minute, and I will get the Janson Art history book and we will use a Greek marble torso, they are perfect, and are always minus the head, arms, and legs, just like we will need.” I thought to myself, “I wonder what Ruth will have to say about this, perhaps she can make sense out of it for me?” —Richard Britell Parts 1 through 9 at Spazifineart.com (short stories)
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