Posted onMarch 24, 2024|Comments Off on Georgia O’Keeffe visits Birdseye this month
Cow skull. This is the largest one in my collection.The outside of my studio is decorated year round with my found collection of skulls.
Another famous artist visited our little library this month. After the exciting visit by Van Gogh last month, Georgia O’Keeffe thought she would pay a visit. She brought several of the skulls from her collection for the kids to use as subject matter. These included a cow skull, a fully-antlered buck skull, two antlerless deer skulls, and a bird skeleton. One of the boys in the class pointed out that the small deer skull was probably a baby as it had no teeth.
Two brothers working on their paintings. One is using the large deer skull with antlers and the other is referring to some O’Keeffe paintings in an art book.Discussing the branching of the antlers.
I thought the “ick” factor of the skulls would attract the kids…and it did although probably not as much as I anticipated. In this rural area, hunting is part of the culture and most kids are used to seeing or being around hunting and fishing. In fact, my sons both were required to take a hunting and boating class in seventh grade which makes sense.
Sketching your subject before you paint helps you to become familiar with all the shapes and shadows.
I showed the kids how the skulls were alike and different. They were allowed to examine them closely (they’d been cleaned with bleach water several times and were pretty old. I also suggested that they practice by making drawings of the subjects before they try to paint.
Discussing brush sizes. Each girl has selected the skull she wants to work from.Each child is encouraged to choose his or her own composition.Someone was interested in layers of fossils, and added a whole flock of crows later.
We discussed why O’Keeffe was attracted to bones and skulls when she lived in the desert southwest. And we also viewed some of her paintings, how she changed them or added to them. The kids were allowed to choose the the bones they wanted to work from and create their own compositions. One child chose to create an archeological dig of bones and fossils in layers.
The next class will be in early May and is open to ages 8 through 14. Contact the library to sign up for this free class. We will be making nature prints from real materials that we’ve gathered.
These two rascals appear every March around here. They always make me smile.
Today we celebrate St. Patrick’s day. Or, perhaps, some readers are regretting that they celebrated a little too much last night. Whatever your situation, you or probably someone you know is proudly wearing the green. We’re all a bit Irish today, aren’t we?
My mother was an English war bride. But what many people in the US don’t realize, that many English natives have Irish ancestry, too. While nearly five million Irish immigrated to the US during the Great Potato Famine and the years that followed, nearly one fourth of all Americans have some Irish background. That is a huge amount. No wonder we’re all celebrating.
My mother always kept some Irish traditions going. As kids, we always wore the green to avoid getting an Irish pinch on the special day. There was sure to be cabbage with our corned beef for supper. Maybe an old-fashioned pudding for dessert.
She kept the legends of leprechauns and brownies alive, and they would be blamed if the milk got spilled or a button fell off. I still like to carry on these family stories a bit myself. Years ago, I purchased this little pair of leprechauns and told my boys that they symbolize the mischievous characters around here. I always drag them out this time of year. Probably much to my sons’ annoyance but, well, it’s my choice.
This past weekend, my granddaughter built a little fairy hut for the leprechauns. Some twigs and sticks, leathery magnolia leaves and a seed pod, plus a snail shell and some green Irish moss. Funny how the little guys found their way outside to enjoy a pipe and ray of sunshine.
The two resident leprechauns enjoying a pipe and a bit o’ sun.
Let us all be proud of our heritage today and always. We all come from somewhere and bring our unique traditions, food, song and culture to this amazing melting pot. Enjoy your day. Watch out for pinches.
As I’ve mentioned in a previous post, this little library plays an important role in the community. As small as it is, it hosts a number of activities for patrons of all ages. All of these activities are FREE to attend although attendance may be limited due to space.
I brought in a few of my own sunflower paintings for some inspiration.
Recently I volunteered to teach a few children’s painting classes. The first of these classes was to learn about Vincent Van Gogh and to paint a picture in his style.
Although the class was limited, we had a nice turnout this week. I explained to the children a little about Vincent Van Gogh, who he was and why he was important. Also, they learned about his painting methods. Each table had several vases of sunflowers (faux) which the children were encouraged to choose what and how they wanted to paint. The library supplied all the art materials and even had little aprons just their size. They learned about mixing colors and how Van Gogh was known for his bold brush strokes.
Each child composed his or her own painting.Disposable palettes and tablecloths made clean up a snap.
All in all, it was a great group. I hope the kids had as much fun as I did.
Next month, we’re going to learn about Georgia O’Keeffe and her skull paintings. I’m bringing in a collection of real skulls (cow and deer) for them to use as subject matter.
Many thanks to AmyJo, the library branch manager, and other patrons who make programs like this possible. Public libraries are the best bargain around. What’s happening at your library?
The Singing Tree, acrylic on canvas with sterling silver gilding, 30 x 24, Kit Miracle
I have a singing tree in my front yard. Actually, right next to the house.
Oh, it’s not belting out O Sole Mio or anything like the latest rap. It’s more of a gentle, low key humming, singing really. The first time I heard it was when I was walking around the yard on a windy day. I kept looking around to see if anyone was there. It took me a while to realize that the sound was coming from a tree. The twisted branches were rubbing against each other, creating a sound.
Our house, like so many older homes in this part of the midwest, is surrounded by yard trees. These were planted decades ago to provide shade to houses in the heat of the summer, long before air conditioning. The trees nearest the house are all maples, mostly black or sugar maples. (Lovely colors in autumn.) Although we’ve lost some of the trees over the years, there are still enough to provide some shade.
The Singing Tree, original photoThe Singing Tree, black and white photo manipulation
Last spring I took a photography course. I was mostly interested in learning how to use the features of my cameras. Didn’t need much help with composition. One of our weekly assignments was to get out and film nature. The Singing Tree was one of my entries. After some computer manipulation, I did a very striking black and white, almost abstract. I was going to paint is as such, but then reverted to a muted impressionistic painting with added sterling silver gilding. I even added a maple leaf motif to the edges of the painting, in sterling silver, of course.
The Singing Tree, detail 1The singing Tree, detail 2The Singing Tree, edge with leaf motif in sterling silver
The whole painting has been sprayed with clear acrylic which prevents the sterling silver from tarnishing. Adding the gilding adds several more steps to the actual painting which slows the whole process.
As with the rest of the nation, we’ve been in a deep freeze here in the Midwest. This is especially annoying after the balmy holiday season at the end of December. My husband spends much of his time cutting and splitting firewood, moving wood, throwing it in the basement, feeding the impossible iron beast to keep us toasty at night. Yes, we have a gas furnace but he just sees dollar signs floating out the chimney when we turn it on.
I have spent most of my time moving between the house and my studio. Feed the birds, take out the trash, take the dog for a short walk rather than our usual ramble. Dang, that icy wind blows right through several layers of clothing, coats and socks. Let’s just say, I’m happy to hole up in the house with a book, take a nap, and veg out.
But…I did make one of my goals this year (see recent post about goals and resolutions) to attend at least one live performance a month, and visit one gallery or museum monthly, too. This isn’t too hard to accomplish, even in this rural area. There is always something to do.
This weekend I had tickets to attend a backstage performance by Julian Gargiulo, a talented world-class pianist with an amazing sense of humor. He is also known as the Pianist with the Hair. A look at his photos will explain that description. The Backstage series is the smallest one at about 100 seats and the audience sits onstage with the artists. Very intimate and great for showing off the marvelous Boesendorfer Imperial Grand piano. We always try to have at least one pianist per year and often more.
When I was Director of the Jasper Arts Center (now retired), it was my job to present candidates for performances to the entertainment committee, keeping in mind our budget and a diversity of performers for our audience. One way I did that was to attend the big arts presenters’ conference in New York every January. Yes, January. Here I met with hundreds of agents and representatives for various performing artists. Obviously the big names didn’t do showcases, but many of the other performers did. Most showcases were held right in the mid-town Hilton but others were scattered throughout the city. This was an exhausting week with some events starting at breakfast and many running past midnight. I would take my scheduling book, circle the performers I was interested in learning more about, and make appointments with their booking agents. Sometimes I would need tickets to certain showcases so I would have to arrange for those, too.
Julian Gargiulo performing at Carnegie Hall
I was very fortunate that Julian’s agent invited me to attend his performance at Carnegie Hall which is just blocks from the hotel. When I saw him perform, he was so talented but extremely personable, too. I met him later at the agent’s booth. We weren’t able to get him for the following season, but a few seasons later, we booked him for our stage as well as some educational performances for the schools.
Julian and me in 2018Me and Julian after the performance January 2024
So this weekend I got out of my snug little huddle on the sofa and dragged myself into the arts center to see Julian for the third time. He’s added more to his performance, including a new digital real-time view of his keyboard work. Telling amusing stories about his kids and introducing his father who was accompanying him on this tour. I bought a new CD after the show and asked for a photo. He actually remembered me! Which was so nice of him to say. I’ve been retired from the performing arts business for several years now, but I’m still a huge fan and supporter. Despite the dreadfully cold weather, I am so glad that I made the effort to get out for some live entertainment. It’s just too easy to remain a slug at home. I hope you all can get out to support the arts in your area. There is probably much more going on than you realize. You don’t know what you’re missing.
About two thirds of all American households have at least one pet. We have had many and various pets over the years, often more than one at a time. Dogs, cats, a bird, chickens, fish, frogs and toads, snakes, tortoises, snails, crabs, and those are just those I can remember off hand. Some only stay awhile but some have lived here for years, like our previous cat who lived to age twenty-two. And she was an outdoor cat, too. Currently we have two pets, a lively border collie (high energy, very smart but also stubborn), and Leo the cat who has appeared in previous postings.
Leo was a gift from my son who had a litter of strays delivered in the window well of his house. I wasn’t really interested in another pet at the time, but he’s definitely grown on us. He’s an indoor/outdoor cat and has grown to be a pretty big boy from the tiny kitten we adopted. He sleeps all day in his special spot and prowls around outdoors all night. And he’s always ready to explore his food bowl but won’t touch any people food or live prey. All food must come from a box or a can. A teense spoiled but really, how much can one cat eat?
Earlier this week I noticed that he didn’t seem his usual self. He was slinking around the house, hiding under the furniture. Just acting different. Then he began yowling. So I took him to the vet and they quickly diagnosed him with a UTI, in this case, crystals forming in the bladder. That’s a little bit personal but I don’t think he’ll read this. A little minor surgery and a few days at the vet’s for some care. I picked him up yesterday with heavy rain and wind gusts heading our way. He yowled all the way home.
It’s funny how quiet and empty the house felt with one little fur boy absent. Even my husband noticed the difference. Those of you who have pets know what a hole they leave when they’re not around.
Anyway, everything seems to be on the mend. Although Leo definitely does not like the new food that was prescribed. He’s been outside a few times but with the artic air rolling in, seems content to sleep in the warm cellar (or on my lap).
So that’s what is happening on the home front here in the deep freeze. Hug your pets for me. We all could use a little TLC now and again.
Leo taking center stage in the middle of the living room.
So how are those new year’s resolutions working out for you? How did you do with keeping them last year?
Statistics show that about 1/3 of all adults in the US make resolutions. Statistics also show that 23% will give up their resolutions after the first week. And only 8% will keep them all year. I think I read that bit last year which may have influenced my list of resolutions that I made this year.
Actually, I prefer to call them goals. That sounds like something to aim for, not just I resolve to do such and such this year. Maybe that’s splitting hairs but whatever works, I always say.
Unfortunately, as with most people, I tend to want to fix everything at the same time. Lose weight, get more exercise, eat better, etc. We all know how that goes. I find better results if I stick with fewer goals than to tackle too many at once.
One of my goals last year was to not buy any books. That doesn’t make the top ten in resolutions, but is certainly needs consideration in my case. I have a wide range of interests and love books of all kinds. But…they do take up a good amount of room. And they’re heavy, very heavy if you have to move. Also, they’re visible proof of where I spend my money. New clothes? Nah. New books? Oh, yes, please!
Most of the books that I buy are non-fiction. I always justify my purchases in that they are actually reference materials, I can learn something from them, I might need to know this stuff later. What if the internet goes down and I’m left with only my personal library? You can recognize a true addict by the excuses they make. I even buy a lot of used books, many times for such low prices that I can’t pass up the good deal. (See what I mean?)
So, I’m mostly proud to say that I stuck with my goal to not buy any books last year. At least until July when I had a little melt down when I took my granddaughter to the bookstore. That doesn’t mean that I didn’t read; I just resisted buying the books. I’m fortunate that I have a fairly good library system which supports my reading habit. Also, I’ve made very good use of the two electronic systems that they belong to where I can borrow nearly anything from books to music, videos to movies. Too much, actually.
But back to the no buying book resolution, er, umm, goal. I got back on the wagon…mostly. I did have a few slip-ups with buying some used books online. Although I’m very proud to report that I went into the local bookstore to shop for Christmas presents for others and did NOT buy a single book for myself. That wouldn’t have happened in the previous years. Magazines don’t count, do they?
So how did you do with your resolutions last year? I did manage to add more fruits and veggies to my diet. And walked more (with the help of the dog.) Cleaned out a few attics but not all of them. Some of the other goals are being recycled for 2024. No sense in getting crazy about improvements, is there? We’ll just see what I can stick with this year. I haven’t given up ice cream yet.
Making cookies seems to be a holiday tradition for most households this time of year. We’re no exception. My husband channels his Italian roots and tackles making a variety of biscotti based on his mother’s hand-written recipe. Although she focused on the traditional anise seed and toasted almond cookies, he has expanded the variety that comes out of our kitchen enormously. This includes a variety of nuts, flavors, and dried fruit. Coffee and chocolate, anyone? Yumm.
In past years, he would begin making biscotti weeks in advance. They’re such a dry cookie that they seem to keep forever, that is, if we don’t eat them. However, we’ve had to cut back our production, primarily due to the increase in cost of ingredients, and especially the higher cost of shipping to our friends and relatives. So we thought that we’d share the recipe, a little updated, but anyone can follow this. Just allow some time.
We use all real butter and eggs, real nuts, dried fruit, chocolate, anise seed and vanilla. The recipe shown here is toasted almonds and Craisins, with white almond bark icing.
In a large mixing bowl, cream the following
1 cup butter, softened
2 cups sugar
6 eggs
Add 2 tbsp anise seed
2 tbsp anise flavoring but my husband uses vanilla instead
Set aside for a moment. In a smaller bowl, mix the dry ingredients together, sift
6 cups flour
1 tsp salt
6 tsp baking powder (that would be 2 tablespoons)
Have 1 cup almonds toasted and broken up or whatever other nuts you intend to use, ready to add.
About 1 cup of dried fruit (Craisins, dried cherries), or mini chocolate chips, etc. Maybe some orange or lemon zest, finely ground coffee, etc. Just don’t add so much that the dough becomes too moist or heavy. You want a dry dough.
Then begin to add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, about a third at a time. His favorite tool is the plastic bowl scraper. You can add the nuts and fruit about half way. Keep adding all the dry ingredients. It will be a pretty stiff dough but don’t add any more liquid.
Divide the dough into four sections then place on cookie sheets covered with parchment paper. Shape into rolls and flatten. (See photo.) They’ll end up about 10 inches long and 4 or 5 inches wide. They will raise in the oven.
Bake at 325 for 15 minutes, reverse pans and cook until lightly brown. They’ll be a little bit soft but not much. After they cool on the pans until you can handle them, slice about ¾ inch wide in diagonals (see photo). Then bake for another 20 minutes to toast or until done.
Bring them out and let them cool on the pan.
When they are cool, then prepare the icing. I like white or chocolate almond bark, melted and drizzled over the cookies. Sometimes both. Sometimes dipped one end in chocolate. Sometimes make a powder sugar/lemon juice icing.
You will need four squares of white almond bark in a 2 cup Pyrex measuring cup. Melt in the microwave about 1 minute and 20 seconds on medium. Pull out, start breaking up the lumps with a fork and stirring around. The heat from the cup melts the icing. Put back in the microwave about another minute. Then pull out and stir rapidly to continue melting the almond bark.
Here you have to be very quick to drizzle the icing over the cookies from the tines of the fork. You can add a contrasting layer of icing (say dark chocolate) in a different direction. DO NOT ADD ANY LIQUID TO THE MELTED ALMOND BARK. It will create a mess. DO NOT OVERCOOK THE ALMOND BARK. It will burn.
When the cookies have totally cooled, store them in a lidded container. They should last for a long time but we don’t really know. They’re usually all gone before they have a chance to get stale.
Some of my favorite combinations of flavors are:
Traditional, anise seed and toasted almond
Craisins and almonds
Dried cherries and walnuts
Mini chocolate chips and coffee (grounds, tbsp)
Lemon and toasted almond
Chocolate chips and orange rind
Use your imagination. Please send photos if you decide to make this recipe. Santa will be very happy.
The original hand-written recipe
PS, my husband says that if they don’t turn out exactly right, get back with us and he’ll try to help you fix it.
Posted onDecember 3, 2023|Comments Off on Pen and ink, sketches and drawings
This week I’ve been fooling around with some pen and ink artwork. If it’s a sketch, then it’s looser. If it’s a drawing, then it’s more formal. That is not an official designation, just my own idea.
Birdseye Branch Library, pen and ink, Kit Miracle This one is plain but I actually colored in the Christmas wreath with a touch of red and green on the samples that I printed for the library.
So about a week ago, I thought I’d do a drawing of the library for the library. This is the little Birdseye Library which was featured in a post a few months back. I thought a pen and ink drawing which they could reproduce and sell as note cards would help them raise some funds. Most people can afford a package of cards for $15 without too much of a stretch. As with a previous painting I did of the library, I gave them the reproduction rights. They would handle all the printing, selling, etc. They can put the image on T-shirts, bags, cards, whatever. I hope it helps.
I’ve enjoyed creating pen and ink sketches for about 40 years. I find them very relaxing and will often just doodle while watching TV or sitting outside. Some of the images of buildings and structures are more formal, but most of the landscapes are pretty loose.
The old bank building and other stores, Birdseye, Indiana, pen and ink. Kit MiracleInman Episcopal Church, first church in Birdseye, Indiana, Pen and ink drawing, Kit Miracle
This week I did five sketches. In addition to the little library, I did a drawing of the first church in Birdseye and an old bank building in the small downtown area. The little church was from a very old photo that someone supplied me. But the downtown buildings were from some of my own photos. I have boxes of old pictures. Many have turned out to be good recordings of places and buildings which no longer exist.
The Crabapple tree. Pen and ink, watercolor. Kit MiracleA Quiet Place to Rest, pen and ink, watercolor, Kit Miracle
Finally, I sketched a couple of trees. An old crabapple which the grandson loves to climb. And a dogwood by the herb bed which shelters a bench, perfect for taking a break from yardwork. I have added a couple of touches of color in the form a cardinal pair. This is done after the image has been printed on heavy card stock in black and white. I’m turning this one into our Christmas card this year. So it’s part print and part original.
Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and all that jazz. Take a moment to enjoy some nature and get a breath of fresh air.
I'm a professional artist, retired director of a performing arts center, bona fide book addict, and enjoy the quiet life...most of the time. I'd love to hear from you or get your ideas for future posts. Come back soon!
I'm a professional artist, retired director of a performing arts center, bona fide book addict, and enjoy the quiet life...most of the time. I'd love to hear from you or get your ideas for future posts. Come back soon!
my90acres 