Witness
timeless beauty
and grace in those lines.
Wonder
at the hands
who rigged them.
Transport me
to the village
where fishermen sail.
Weathered hearts
gearing up
for each season.
Rigged
Tag: Menemsha
Tangled Up and Blues
Menemsha
paired down
to its essence.
Brilliant
raking sunlight
on a longline.
Pitted
pockets of rust
chipping through the years.
And all the elements of color
dripping their way
back to the sea.
Pointing the Way
If I had it to do over again
I’d probably be on board.
Feeding Jane’s Crow
Oh Jane…
So this painting is one of those collaborations
in which I play only a very minor part.
I really had nothing to do with this one.
Early on in the pandemic
Pat and Jane made a pact.
They would call each other
to check in almost daily
for support during the isolation of lockdown
her on her island
and Pat in her log cabin
and to provide at least one good belly laugh between them.
That conversation has been ongoing ever since
and it is honestly the highlight of my day
to come home and hear the latest story from Jane.
I secretly think they each go out of their way
to make stuff up just for the chuckles
but I’m here to witness that we, none of us,
would have made it through without that connection.
So Jane has this crow
which she feeds.
She reports that it visits each day
and goes so far as to follow her on her daily walks
through downtown Menemsha
and apparently gives her what for
if she forgets to offer up the daily snack.
One day Pat comes over to the studio in tears…
well actually every day Pat comes over in tears
which are mostly from laughing
at Jane’s stories.
Apparently Jane had set out a bag
with some sort of crumbs
for her crow.
It was a stormy day
and the wind
or possibly the crow
had blown the bag onto her roof.
Pat sternly warned Jane not to jolly well climb up there after it.
This is something you must remember
as her friends know
to warn Jane not to do.
Then they got to giggling about how Pat
suggested Jane get a tiny little umbrella
for the storm soaked crow
and they both lost it
which is why the tearful laughter in the studio
and
as ever
those cheeky Muses were in the corner
listening.
It was the work of a moment
to find a teacup from Oversouth
and the delicate whalebone handled parasol
had been perched on the top of a picture frame
hanging on the wall of the log cabin dining room
ever since Mr. Morse handed it to me on our last island goodbye.
I stripped away all but the tidal current from the basin
and then just stood aside.
There is personal meaning to the bling.
But that’s
personal.
Sail on Lady Jane
and your little crow too.
More Prints Available…
How are you all doing on this fine summer afternoon.
It’s cool here inside the studio, but outside the zinnias are loving them some hot and steamy temps.
I went around and picked a bucket of flowers for Herself to arrange the other day and spotted some swallowtail caterpillars chomping their way through the carrot patch.
It reminded me of this painting, The Reverie…
Which got me thinking about how I’ve been meaning to update the Print section with a few more paintings.
So, taking advantage of the air-conditioned office, I have just added 9 new ones to the page.
They kind of randomly populate the PRINTS page when I load them so I’ll let you see them here for review and for fun.
I’m still battling the learning curve of the new Gutenberg editing program and I can’t…as yet…figure out how to hyperlink each of the images below. But they do all appear on the Prints page so you can find the info there if you’ve a mind.
Stay safe and cool out there and watch for those butterflies.
The Morning Bell – Painter’s Notes
Morning again here in the studio.
Before today’s Painter’s Notes I want to give you a heads up…
There are just four more days until the Granary Gallery Show opens…
Though, as you well know by now, there will not be an “Opening Reception”…
the gallery is very much OPEN and the staff are doing an amazing job and going out of their way to make a safe and welcoming environment for people to get in touch with art.
Herself and I have created a video aptly titled…”Wish We Were There” …by way of letting our island community know we are there with them…at least in spirit. The gallery sent me a list of questions and Pat agreed to read them to me on camera and you can expect some frivolity ensued.
I’ll be posting that video here on the blog on Sunday Morning… we hope you’ll pour a cup of tea and join us for that short studio visit.
So…4 days and counting…
That leaves three paintings to go…and today…
we go back to Menemsha.
I’ve spent so many hours on this dock that this painting almost painted itself.
The Morning Bell – 24 x 30
One of my enduring memories of that most special
week we got to spend “living” in Menemsha
up there on Crick Hill
was wakening to the early morning
sounds of the harbor.
When the wind is right
you can hear the bouy bells
playing a rhythmic bass line
and the gulls picking out the melody
Before the charter engines
crank up you can still make out
the water lapping against the bigger boats
some ropes and chains a’ rattlin’
against the mighty masts
and…
If you’re really early enough…
the putt putt putter of Louie’s
trawler making her way out
for the first cast of the day.
So…
even though this particular painting
is righteously full
of the colors
that bring the harbor to life
for most artists
What I hear…
is just as evocative
as what you see.
Storm Study – Painter’s Notes
It’s an early start for me in the studio this morning…
but I want to take you to the end of another day…
last October…when the wind was raging
and the clouds were heavy and dark
and the sea was gathering it all in
Storm Study – 12 x 20
We kept chasing this sunset.
After we watched it move in
and over the Vanderhoop House
up on the hill
we thought it was spent.
Wanting to make our last night…last
we took the Moshup Trail
where the wind picked back up
and blew a sand devil across the road.
I turned around and the clouds
were on fire…so…
I parked at this trailhead
and taking one step out of the car
was blown back into my seat.
Undaunted..
I managed to make it half way up this dune
before my weak knees gave out
but not before I caught a glimpse
of what the sea had to say…
Right before
everything in the world
changed.
Aquinnah Sunset
This is the next painting in order of the way we spent our last night on the Vineyard last October…after Derby’s Wake we drove on up to Aquinnah to see if there was a sunset there…
Aquinnah Sunset – 20 x 30
Anyone who has spent time
on the island of Martha’s Vineyard
will know how dramatically
the quality of light
can change
in the blink of an eye.
Last year,
in what now seems like
emotional light years away,
we extended our annual fall visit
letting the island and our friends there
hold us a little longer
and a little closer
because we needed to be held.
On our last night
when up-island was as quiet as I’ve ever seen it
we sat in the car in Menemsha
saying our goodbyes to the harbor
we alone were there as the heavy clouds
were obscuring any promised sunset.
We decided to make the loop
out to Aquinnah
and as we came upon the lighthouse
and rounded the bend
the winds howled
and the heavens parted
for waves of color to break through.
Looking back…
From where we all are now…
I can seen how powerfully looming a harbinger
the raging…
and then clearing…
of that Nor’easter was.
We thought our world
had shifted something mighty back then…
And then…
the reckoning.
Painter’s Notes – 2
Next up for this year’s Granary Gallery show is…
Derby’s Wake – 16 x 20
Part of what makes October special
on Martha’s Vineyard
is the Derby.
Fishermen from all over the world
come to test their mettle
against each other
and the sea.
When the weather blows in stormy
as it did last year
and Nor’ easters backed up
one after the other
it was really exciting…
to grab a couple cups of chowder
at Larsen’s and drive up to the beach.
From that vantage you could
see the bravest amongst those shore rod and reelers
fighting the waves and wind
and feel all cozy and safe and warm
as you rooted for them to beat the odds.
On our last night on the island
we drove to Menemsha to say goodbye
and no one was home
we were the only ones in the parking lot
and this boat was the sole vessel afloat.
Turns out we were there at the exact moment
when all those fishermen were at the other end of the island
celebrating the victorious among them
at the awards ceremony.
So this is literally…
In the Derby’s Wake.
Painter’s Notes…now premiering on YouTube !!!
OK…
NOW I can finally tell you that I have finished all of the Painter’s Notes for this year’s Granary Gallery show and …. they are all up on my new YouTube channel.
I’m going to test a link here to see if it will take you there...click here.
Ok that seems to have worked…at least it does on my computer but please let me know if it’s not appearing on your end.
You can enter my name in a YouTube search and find them as well.
I’ve had some help along the way…thanks from my tech gurus Barbarella and Paul…and a whole lot of patience as I came home later and later each night…love ya babe…but for the most part, climbing this learning curve has been fun.
I’m going to publish them here on the blog as I have in the past but this year I’ll be including the brand spanking new video versions along with the traditional printed ones.
In the shameless self promotion department…if you like what you see they tell me it really makes a difference to hit that like button…and if you also click the subscribe link you will get notices of all future videos that I share. Bonus tip…there will be at least one more coming…a studio visit which Herself is already ironing her outfit for.
So we’ll start with the big one…Menemsha Morning (video link above)
This painting is
the culmination
of a dream I have had
for over 40 years.
To spend the night
and wake up
in the village
of Memensha.
Last year
that dream came true.
And every morning
for a week
I got to experience
for my creative soul
everything
magical
that harbor
has to offer.
It did not
disappoint.