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Truly my friends have a lovely back yard, , .
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Help an Artist Get To His Show. . .

Some readers of this blog may already know that I am scheduled for an exhibition of my work in May at the Monkitree Gallery in Gardiner, Maine.

The gallery is the brainchild of a dear, long time friend Clare and her partner Peter. They personally requested that I be the first artist to exhibit at the space for the grand opening event and I was accepted gladly. I am certain that The Monkitree Gallery will be a smashing success and an exciting and beneficial addition to the charming and historic downtown Gardiner. . .

However – a bit of a reality check now formulates. This particular artist ( that would be me) needs to find ways to fund as much of this trip as possible so that he can actually make it to Maine for this exhibit!

This recession has been particularly hard hitting on those of us who make our living in the arts. So – I’m shamelessly asking for your help. . .

In a non-traditional way, when you make a donation to the “Help Send Michael To Maine Campaign) you are helping to support the arts by helping to support a real honest-to-god live artist well as the opening of a new gallery during a recession.

You can read the compelling details (and make an open ended donation to the cause) by clicking here: www.itsbymichael.com/maine.html .

Pollen + Black car =

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A perk. . .

One great reason to live in Delaware on a Tuesday. . .
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Happy Easter all -

Wow. This has been one lovely Easter day here on the coast. Sunny, 74, and pristine blue sky equals perfection in my book.

My partner and I just returned from a glorious gourmet brunch buffet at Victoria’s restaurant by the ocean were we unashamedly ate like two gluttons. But, the buffet is truly spectacular with an amazing array of dishes (which may be seen here - http://www.boardwalkplaza.com/holiday_menus.htm).

Plus – you couldn’t get a better view as George’s BlackBerry photo proves.  

Oddly – the restaurant looks deserted here – but that’s only because he aimed over the heads of patrons, of which there were many. I have a feeling we’ll be back here again next Easter.

Next on the agenda – it’s off to the cinema to see Roman Polanski’s latest - “The Ghost Writer”. It’s getting rave reviews and I’m very excited about seeing it. Say what you will about Polanski  - a polarizing figure to say the least – but his work is pure genius. He is one of my favorite directors and certainly, in a popular opinion that I happen to share, one of the best of all time.

Easter

What Easter is complete without a stroll on the beach?
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Have a Big Easter Weekend All. . .

6 Billion Dollars a Year – wow.

I knew that art theft was a big business, but I didn’t know that it was that big. According to Christopher A. Marinello, the general counsel and worldwide recoveries manager of the Art Loss Register, art theft is a six-billion dollar a year industry.

You can read about some famous cases of art theft here - “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_theft#Famous_cases_of_art_theft”.

Fortunately, at least in this story, two New York art dealers where lucky. . .

http://www.artsjournal.com/realcleararts/2010/03/art-theft-recoveries.html

What I find amazing is that the majority of this stolen art, must be, just by the nature of art itself, in private collections somewhere around the world (more likely than not in the collections of some rather nefarious and very wealthy people) or stashed away in some  clandestine wear house or hiding place. It’s a sad thought tightly wrapped in a package of greed and arrogance. . .

Because it's Friday. . .

It's Friday and I have started the day with some more Photoshop surreal imagery to kick of the weekend. Enjoy. . .

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Amazingly, these tulips, which I bought last Friday have hardly faded at all. Hmm. . .
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Watch your step. . .

Simply because I was in the mood to have some fun on Photoshop this morning. . .

Last Supper – SUPER Sized

I found this intriguing article from the LA Times about how the portions of food depicted in artistic renderings of the last supper over the last 1,000 years have grown tremendously. . .

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-sci-last-supper23-2010mar23,0,7531075.story

The story made me wonder just how many renditions of the last supper were out there in the world and I made a rather surprising discovery - when you place the words "last supper" in Google's image search, you get 1,170,000 results (over 3 million if you omit the quotation marks). This resulted in a "huh, who knew?" moment for me. While a large percentage of the results are of DaVinci's uber-famous version, there are many that are offer a wide, unique, and wonderfully creative variation on his theme so to speak and several that offer a completely different view altogether.

Once I gave it a bit of thought, it made perfect sense that there would be so many different versions created over the millennium. The artistic interpretation of events based upon stories (particularly those steeped in religious or spiritual themes) have served as fodder for the visually creative amongst us for as long as such tomes have been in existence.

Here is just a small sampling of what's out there which I found of particular interest. . .

Battle Star Galactica

Alix Beaujour

Star Wars by Eric Deschamps

Popeye’s Last Supper by ATLbladerunner

The Lego Last Supper

Simon Ushakov circa 1645

I could on and on. . .

Go wear or drink something green!

I have quite a bit of Irish blood in my veins making St. Patrick’s day quite a day of celebration, cultural, and national pride. So happy Lá Fhéile Pádraig all!

Help keep art in NJ public schools!

A very dear friend of mine and a brilliant art teacher, Karen Kiick, sent me out an email over the weekend of utmost importance regarding future of public education in New Jersey.

When I state that Karen is a brilliant art teacher (as well as artist) I don't say that lightly. Karen was a 2009 HS Division Award recipient by The Art Educators of New Jersey. She was also the 2005-2006 Camden County Teacher of the Year and a 2006 Geraldine R. Dodge Teacher Fellowship recipient. In 2005, she received the Governor’s Award for Excellence in Arts Education, was recognized as a Master Teacher by The Art Educators of New Jersey and received a Frederick L. Hipp Grant from The New Jersey Education Association. In 2000, she was awarded with a Geraldine R. Dodge Artist Initiative Grant. Karen speaks nationally on issues pertinent to the arts and public education.

Rather impressive eh?

I beseech of you to read the message and sign the digital petition by clicking on the link. As an artists and sometimes arts educator myself, I can't stress enough the importance of this. Also, in my opinion, whether you live in NJ or not is of no importance - please sign the petition. There is strength in numbers!

Here is the message:

Hello friends,
I am writing with a genuine concern for the future of public education in the state of New Jersey. Many of you, all connected to New Jersey in some way, even if only through me, can do your part.

Governor Christie is attempting to 'fix' the state's financial problems through massive cuts to education and other state funded organizations. State mandated cuts to my district alone could be over $3,800,000.00. While other New Jersey school districts may be affected to varying degrees, mine is being gutted.

Currently, to meet the governor's demands, the proposed cuts to Haddon Township High School, where I teach, are over $777,000.00. Twenty-five teachers in my district (8 in my HS) stand to lose their jobs and our high school art program will likely be reduced from 9 classes to 3. The 3D program that I spent the past 14 years creating will not exist.

Like most educators, I agree that a broken system needs to be fixed and that state budgets need to be balanced. However, our state government has not even engaged its teachers in a conversation that allows us to solve this problem in a way that does not hurt our children and our schools. Instead, we are being bulldozed and regarded as the enemy. Governor Christie is trying to sway public opinion against educators and convince the general public that teachers are the problem. His shock and awe strategies have all occurred alarmingly fast, and if allowed to proceed unchallenged, will destroy the quality programs we have worked so hard to create.

If you support public education and feel compelled to support it in New Jersey, please consider visiting the website below and signing a petition. This site also states facts and statistics about the success of New Jersey schools. As the petition says, "New Jersey's public schools are among the best in the nation. Reckless funding cuts will hurt our schools and our students' ability to learn. There are better ways to balance the budget. The last thing New Jersey should do is risk our quality public schools." Governor Christie makes his budget address on Tuesday, so please don't delay.

http://www.njkidsandfamilies.org/petition/


Thanks for your time and if you want, please share this request with your own mailing list.
Best,
Karen


If you'd like to read a short example of how our governor regards teachers, please read this article from a local, weekly magazine. The last few lines are the real zinger.
http://theretrospect.com/default.asp?sourceid=&smenu=1&twindow=Default&mad=No&sdetail=2307&wpage=1&skeyword=&sidate=&ccat=&ccatm=&restate=&restatus=&reoption=&retype=&repmin=&repmax=&rebed=&rebath=&subname=&pform=&sc=1155&hn=theretrospect&he=.com

If you'd like to see some examples of what high school students create in my classes, please visit:
http://www.karenkiick.com/
http://naea.digication.com/karenkiick/Welcome/published
http://www.kiickstart.com/

Pogo Mix.

I came across these online by chance and I'm so glad I did. They are the works of an Australian artist who goes by the name of Pogo and I think they are simply brilliant.

You can find much more by and about this artist at http://www.pogomix.net/.

Mind Games. . .

A dear friend of recently sent me an intriguing email with the title “Cool List!”. Within in I found a link to an article titled, “50 Things we know now that we didn't know this time last year”.

They list really did contain some fascinating items and I was glad to have read it, but one entry in particular really caused a double take. It was item number 12 which read “Scientists have discovered how to scan brain activity and convert what people are seeing or remembering into crude video images.”

“Hold on.”, I said aloud. “How did I miss that one last year?”

Immediately, Orwellian and unsettling imagery came into my head of glassy eyed, mouth gaping, drooling citizens hard-wired into sinister looking government controlled dream and thought recording machines (distressingly similar to something from Natalie Wood’s final film - “Brainstorm”).

But then, after I cast the reactionary and paranoid thoughts aside, I started to think more about the statement and the possible meaning of such a discovery – especially as an artist and visual communicator - as well as future uses.

First, some background information on the project from a very well written (at least in my non-neuroscientist based opinion) source http://www.theness.com/neurologicablog/?p=440.

According to the article, this technology is easily in it’s infancy producing only fuzzy, low resolution imagery after a very controlled setting. Nevertheless, (and you can read the details in the article above) I find the whole concept fascinating on so many levels that I simply don’t have the time needed to cover them all this morning.

But I will leave you with this non-traditional concept – if neuroscientist have created programs that can crudely decipher pre-existing brain waves, and please pardon my layperson’s handling of this, meaning brainwaves that they did not create – only found and “tuned” into. Then, doesn't that at least theoretically open the door for the possible viability of such presently unexplained phenomena of psychic messaging, empathic ability, psychometry and much more?

Ultimately, we, and indeed everything that we can know, are nothing more than a seemingly never ending ocean of pulsating energy. If a computer can be created to reconstruct imagery after decoding a person’s brainwaves than why can’t the human brain – the greatest computer in the known universe, do the same thing?

Pardon the cliché, but it does make the mind wonder. . .

By the way, the link to the list that started it all is here - http://www.att.net/s/editorial.dll?eetype=Article&eeid=7020757&render=y&Table=&ch=ne

Shutter Island

Last night, I had the pleasure of watching film master directorMartin Scorsese’s latest cinema treat, “Shutter Island”.

"Shutter Island" is the story of two U.S. marshals, Teddy Daniels (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Chuck Aule (Mark Ruffalo), who are summoned to a remote and barren island off the coast of Massachusetts to investigate the mysterious disappearance of a murderess from the island’s fortress-like hospital for the criminally insane. A period psychological thriller, S.I. offers a wonderfully spine-tingling and twisted ride on an unstable “mental” roller coaster composed of jagged metal, dim shadows, rust, cobwebs, fire and ice.

With an ensemble cast consisting of Leonardo Di Caprio, Ben Kingsley, Michelle Williams, Mark Ruffalo with a few outstanding and surprising cameos tossed into the mix, S.I. will supply you with enough “who done it” moments and “reality check” back flips to keep you guessing, and anticipating, to the last scene.

While not one of Scorsese’s best films - and a bit on the long side at 2.5 hours- (I can think of at least two scenes that could have been cut from the film without compromising the story line), the film is magnificently photographed and the acting, particularly DiCaprio, is top-notch. I can easily see him being nominated for an Oscar for this performance, should it stay within the Academy’s memory banks for that amount of time. 

Currently, the film has a 67% ranking on www.rottentomatoes.com ( http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1198124-shutter_island/) and I suggest that you check out that link for detailed information.

By the way, the dream sequences are phenomenal and, in the opinion of this visual artist, some of the best work of that nature that I have seen, perhaps ever.

And remember, everything in this film is a clue.

Hate email. . .

Without going into much detail, over the weekend, I received a "hate email" from an irate artist in response to a comment that I made regarding her art that I posted on an online art critique forum from six years ago. . .

That's right - Six. Years. Ago.

It took quite a bit of brainstorming at 6 AM to remember just what this person was referring to, but I found it. It was from an online visual art collective that I joined many years ago. While I was once quite active in the group, it's been quite some time since I've engaged in anything there over the last few years other than a quick and occasional check in. But her name was vaguely familiar, and with a few clicks in the search engine, I located her and the now, at least when it comes to the web, ancient post.

Amazingly, it really wasn't even a critique of her work as much as it was an admonishment. This artist took it upon herself to post an image of her work (which really was quite terrible) and then proceeded to give it a 10 rating (the highest) as well as a glorious comment about the work. She finished off the review by signing another person's name.

Uh huh.

I won't give her name or the name of the site - but I will say that her "painting" was intended to be a portrait of Cleopatra apparently engaged in some sort of "walk like an Egyptian" dance. She had also glued fake jewels and some gold lame material to the image as if it were a dress of some sort. Snickering aside, the work was truly wretched and looked like something that a 2nd grade student would bring home in exchange for sweet motherly praise and a cookie.

At the time, 6 years ago mind you, I was very involved with this artists' portal and took the critiques rather seriously as many of the artists used them as educational tools. Seeing that an artist felt the need to post it and then give it the highest rating available, at the time, really got my goat so to speak.

The work, which had been posted for quite some time prior to her self-critique, had received no comment at all from anyone. In my opinion, that was quite possibly due to the fact that no one could find anything positive to say about it in the forum.

So, the artist, clearly desperate for some attention or praise for her work, freakishly posted some for herself.

My response to that was

"Please correct me if I am wrong, but did you just give YOURSELF a 10 rating on this and sign it with some other name?

I'm not saying that is the case (though it does appear to be),however, if it is, it is not only quite dishonorable, it flies in the face of everything that this Critic's Corner is about.

Please convince us that this is not the case or admit the error in judgment and save your honor as an artist."


Was I too harsh? Perhaps, but if so, tough. If an artist really wants to create work and display it in public, do so, but have the balls to deal with the consequences or get out of the studio. Also, if an artist is so desperate to have someone acknowledge their work as substantial to the point that they fabricate their own spectacular praise, well, then - perhaps they should drop the brush and pick up a microphone en route to the next American Idol auditions where lack of talent seems to be glorified in an "emperor's-new-clothesesque" orgy of self adoration on a continuous basis.

To be fair, the artist did ask me in the email if I were a moron not to see that what she was posting was a quote from a collector praising her work (regardless of the fact that she placed no quotations around the quote or even suggested in the post that she was posting someone else's review).

I still stand by my original observation that she did something stupid and was caught with her hand in the painterly cookie jar so to speak. Oddly enough, she could have easliy cleared up the issue with an explanitory response post at least with a "I'm sorry, I misunderstood the process here" slant to it - but she didn't.

Rather, she waited 6 years to send me a 4 paragraph hate email in the middle of the night.

I can only assume that she must have freed herself from her restraints, chewed through the walls of her padded cell, and made it to the office computer in the middle of the night to do so. . .

The Crowd

Fortunately for me, Turner Classic Movies aired the masterful 1928 silent classic, “The Crowd” last night. Unfamiliar with the film and on a  whim strengthened by curiosity, I decided to watch it.

Cinema wise, it was one of the best decisions that I have made in a long time.

Recognized as one of the finest examples of American silent film and masterfully directed by screen legend King Vidor, “The Crowd” centers on ambitious but undisciplined New York City office worker John Sims (played by James Murray) who meets and marries Mary (Eleanor Boardman).

They start a family, struggle to cope with marital stress, financial setbacks, and tragedy, all while lost amid the anonymous, pitiless throngs of the big city.

Sound bleak? Well, yes, ultimately, it is – but it is so much more than one story of shattered dreams. It is also a heart wrenching story of endearing love, and visual parable against vanity, folly, and arrogance, a visually historic documentary of class struggle and the gritty urban life of living in New York City in the 1920’s and more.

All of this packed into 90 minutes and without words. Amazingly, King Vidor pulls it off in spades creating a film that, even after close to 80 years, is still prescient in meaning and scope.

(King Vidor)

Not only are the performances absolutely top notch ( it’s easy to forget that this is a pre-sound film as the actors seem much more natural than in their portrayals than most silent films and frequently, you are able to read the lips which gives an even deeper nuances into the characterizations.)

And, visually, there are certain scenes that are just stunning and King Vidor paved the way for modern American cinematography, It’s easy to understand after watching this mesmerizing film why it was chosen in 1989, to be one of the first 25 films to be selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

There is a phenomenal blog entry on the details of this film here http://silent-volume.blogspot.com/2009/12/crowd-1928.html which I highly recommend if interested.

But I couldn’t finish this entry without mentioning the fascinating back story of the leading actor in “The Crowd”, James Murray.

Stunningly handsome and naturally talented, Murray was lured into show business while working as a doorman at the Capitol Theater on Broadway and 51st Street (where ''The Crowd'' later opened). In the 1920s he hitchhiked to Hollywood from the Bronx, New York to try to succeed as an actor. After several years of work, mostly as an extra, with little hope of a starring role, he was "discovered" by director King Vidor, who saw Murray walking by on the MGM lot. Vidor was about to begin work on a new film and thought Murray might look right for the lead. Murray, however, failed to show up for the meeting he arranged with Vidor, apparently thinking it to be a joke. Vidor subsequently tracked him down, and Murray's performance in The Crowd was lauded by both the critics and the public. Before his work in The Crowd, Murray had starred alongside Joan Crawford in Rose-Marie in 1928.

Despite success in subsequent MGM films such as Lon Chaney's Thunder, Murray's life soon took a turn for the tragic that eerily mirrored his role in The Crowd. Excessive drinking led to a scarcity of roles, and by 1934 he was panhandling on the street. In an instance of extreme coincidence, he tried panhandling a man who turned out to be King Vidor. Vidor offered Murray a role in his upcoming film, Our Daily Bread, but Murray turned it down, deeming it an act of pity. Decades later, Vidor was still so haunted by Murray's tragic decline that he wrote an unrealized screenplay about his life, "The Actor".

In 1936, Murray drowned after falling from the string-piece of a pier into the Hudson River. The medical examiner determined that the cause was asphyxia by submersion, without ruling on whether it was an accident or suicide.^[1] He was interred at the Calvary Cemetery in Woodside, Queens, New York. At the time of his death he was married to actress Marion Sayers.

Now that, my devotees, is irony pure and simple. In closing, let me suggest that if you ever happen to find the opportunity of watching this masterpiece, take it. My experience has catapulted this film to the number one spot of my personal list of all time favorite silent classics knocking down Metropolis, Greed, The Battleship Potemkin, and a few others down a few notches. And that, wasn’t an easy thing to do.

I love Paris in the winter when it drizzles. . .

Truthfully, I have never experienced as much snow in my life as I have experienced over the last 3 weeks. The massive amount, now being officially documented as the heftiest snowfall in the area's recorded history, was rare enough for the mid-atlantic region and particularly rare for this part of Delaware as we are usually exempt from snow of any accumulation due to our proximity to the shore.

I won't go into details of the wintry deluge as there are plenty of other blogs and media resources for that - and frankly, after living through the thick of it, I find even blogging about it tiresome to say the least.

What I did find of interest - Paris, one of my favorite places in the world. It just so happened that two of my Netflix.com rentals that managed to arrive in my box just prior to the week long weather related stoppage of any of my mail had one thing in common - Paris.

Thankfully, as I did not lose power as many did in my area, I discovered a great way to pass the hours while stuck inside as the wild and wintry winds whip about the way, is to watch films - Preferably with a jug or two of red wine.

One of these films, a sublime work of art directed by the genius filmmaker and co- founders of the French New Wave François Truffaut, was titled "The 400 Blows".

This film is a true gem. While you may find all of the details listed on the wikipedia.com link above, let me say that personally, this masterpiece contains all of the absolute ingredients needed to create a perfect film experience. Believable, compelling, and likable characters that and storyline, wonderful performances, stunning cinematography ( which now after 50 years also has the added essence of being historic as well), and of course - Paris.

In the film, 13 year old troubled youth Antoine Doinel ends choosing to live on the streets of Paris rather than continue attending class in his oppressive school or living in the cramped apartment that he shares with his disinterested, vain and ultimately selfish mother and his bumbling, heavy handed stepfather.

I won't go into details, but take it for granted that his decision ends up being life-changing offering him a definitely hard knock path to follow.

Interestingly enough, the English title is a straight translation of the French, but misses its meaning, as the French title refers to the expression "faire les quatre cents coups", which means "to raise hell". On the first American prints, subtitler and dubber Noelle Gilmore gave the film the title Wild Oats, but the distributor did not like that title, and reverted it to The 400 Blows.

The actor, played by 15 year old Jean-Pierre Léaud is a screen revelation. Truffaut's decision to cast him was pure genius. In the film, there is a compelling scene where Antoine is being interviewed by a social worker of sorts and he is presented with a string of personal questions about his past. I read after watching the film, that that particular scene was actually Jean-Pierre's screen test and Truffaut was so moved by it and so certain that he was the perfect fellow for the role, the he incorporated the scene into the film itself.

I'll save my review of my second Paris themed film, the erotically charged, sexually explicit, yet ultimately yawn producing "The Dreamers" for another day. Rest assured that if you're looking for the authentic French New Wave film experience, rent "The 400 Blows", better yet, make it a double feature and add Godard's classic, "Breathless" to the mix.

But first, toss on your beret, dangle a thick cut cigarette from your lower lip, and grab a cheap jug of red wine. . . because it's going to take a few trips around the old Eiffel Tower for this snow to melt. . .

From the mouth of babes. . .

I must share a fascinating story with a 125 year history that I have managed to become a key player in involving the photograph of a little girl named Lydia.

About four years ago, a close friend of mine rented a retail space in on old street front building in a small town in New Jersey where I was living at the time.

For many years at that location, stood a rather disheveled curio-consignment shop. The shop, which seemed to grow more and more chaotic with passing each year, eventually proved too much for the aging tenant and the space was rented to my friend who used it as a storefront for showcasing his hand painted furniture and faux painting business.

While renovating the space into his new storefront, my friend and his wife experienced some rather unusual occurrences that most would describe as a “haunting”. Several times, rocking chairs on display would begin quickly rocking back and forth on their own accord with no breeze to cause it as would the doors to the rooms and cabinets. I personally witnessed a heavily closed door – complete with a clicking sound of a turned doorknob mind you, creakily and steadily open as if being slowly pulled by something mischievous only to be slammed shut with a wildly loud bang.

The most disconcerting occurrences according to my friend however, were the loud moan and growling like sounds and scattering footsteps noises that seemed to emit, from no other place of course, then the dark and windowless basement. . .

As far as I can remember, there were no light fixtures of any kind in the basement keeping it dark as a cave at all times. Personally, having seen my fair share of things that go bump in the night, I couldn’t imagine descending down the rickety, wooden stairs which disappeared into nothing but cold, inky darkness. However, one day, my brave friend had had enough. He grabbed a flashlight, clenched his teeth, and went for it.

The basement, he discovered, was empty – all except for the upper corner of an old photograph that he noticed in the beam of his flashlight that was sticking up from between a crevice in the old wooden floor.

It was a photograph of Lydia. Lydia Bishop Maiden to be exact. . .

Not long after his discovery, while I was visiting his shop one afternoon, my friend kindly gave me the photograph as a gift. He knew that I collected antique photographs and that I use them frequently in my work or model paintings after the subjects of them.

I thought it was a very lovely photograph of a well dressed Victorian era little girl of perhaps 2 or 3 years old. After he told me the story of how he came about it, I became even more enamored with with the little cardboard backed bit of history.

While the original photograph had faded noticeably over the years with a bit of tattering on the lower edge (the above work is a version that I restored in Photoshop), it was still in relatively very good condition and I welcomed it into my collection.

I recognized the photo as a “cabinet card” which was a late 19th century form of studio photography that was wildly popular in the post Civil War United States until being replaced by the even more popular brownie camera. I was also particularly taken with the back of the photograph.

Someone, over the last 125 years or so, had written the name “Lydia Bishop Maiden” in pencil above a beautiful and flourished photographic studio and emblem.

Eventually, I discovered that the name of the photographer who took the image was W.G. Entrekin who had a studio at 4384 Main Street in Manayunk, Pennsylvania which is right outside of Philadelphia. According to information that I found on this wonderful site http://craigcamera.com/dag/, Entrekin learned photography in 1856 before traveling for some time with a gallery on wheels. In 1861 he was employed by the Army of the Potomac. After the Civil War, he established galleries at Manayunk, Norristown and Philadelphia, Pa. and he was also credited with the invention of the Entrekin Burnisher for photography.

To an antique photography lover like myself, this information proved fascinating. So, excited by my new addition, I took the photograph of the young Lydia into my collection, scanned it, digitally restored it in Photoshop and posted it along with my findings on my flickr.com account.

After I estimated the photo to have been taken in the late 1880’s/early 90’s based upon Lydia’s clothing and other visual clues and posted the image, I placed it with my collection of hundreds of other antique and vintage photographs and, quite frankly, forgot about it.

Two years pass.

Then, quite unexpectedly, I received the most interesting email that read. . .

“I have been researching my wife's family and stumbled across the Lydia May photo. Lydia is my wife's Great Grandmother. Lydia married WM, who had FM, then FM, my father in law, who is 80 years old. We would love to hear about the photograph.”

Initially, I couldn’t figure out what he was referring to as the email came to me from a form on my web site http://www.sprouseart.com/, and I’ve no antique photos posted there. Eventually, I brushed away the cobwebs from my memory and found the reference point on my flickr.com account.

Still not quite certain that this was the same Lydia (after all, there was no “May” listed on my photograph), I emailed him my story of how I had come across the image and the history that I had been able to piece together from it. I then received this response. . .

“That is a great story and back ground. To give you some background Lydia May Bishop was born May 4th, 1882 in Manayunk and lived there until she died in 1944 at the age of 62 and was buried in Westminster Cemetery, PA. So your estimate on dates, giving she looks to be ~2 years old, this would have been taken around 1884, so you are on the money. I have her father as John Bishop who died in Philadelphia, but I do not have any other details on him. Lydia married William Henry Maiden from Madeley Wood, England in 1905 at the age of 23. She had 5 children, all died starting from 1989 to finally EBM died in Florida in 2006 at the age of 96. Her oldest child FJM Sr. had four children, F. Jr. being the oldest and my father in law, and then his 3 sisters, all still living and all born in Manayunk.
I don’t know how her ghost was relocated to Haddon Ave., guess I have some digging to do. I do know she had a sister-in-law, RJM, died right around the corner in Haddonfield, which is where we live now. That would be my best guess at how the picture moved to NJ.
After college at West Chester, my father-in–law got a job teaching in Stratford, New Jersey where he met RH and had 3 children, my wife being one of them.”

And that is how I became, in my opinion, a key player in the full 125 year circle return of this photograph of Lydia May Bishop Maiden to her family.

The fellow that contacted me (I replaced any prevalent names with initials in the snippets above) asked in a gentle manner if I would be at all interested in selling him the photograph. I responded with a “no”, but I did inform him that I would gladly give him the photograph in the same way that it was given to me.

I feel that in this manner I am but a link in a long and magical chain centered around a small and delicate antique photograph of a beautiful child that somehow managed to survive 125 years that, quite literally perhaps, cried out in the darkness in order to be returned to the family that she created so many years ago.

I can live with that decision quite happily.

I can’t remember if the possibly paranormal activity in my friend’s shop ceased after his discovery of the photo, but I do know that I had no such issues after it was placed in my care.

And I can’t imagine that her descendants will either. . .

And now the morning news. . .

I usually never do this, but as I was sipping my morning coffee, I clicked on the news. The brilliant Tom Tomorrow has majestically expressed my sentiments exactly in the cartoon panel above.

Within 5 minutes during a switch or two between the major news networks, I saw that a group of American, Baptist, religious zealots have been arrested in Haiti for kidnapping. They tried to mask their bourgeois arrogance through piety and the statement that “God instructed them” to go there and start grabbing undocumented children at random to take back the the good ole’ USA. It didn’t seem to matter that at least one third (so far) of the 30+ children that they “rescued” weren’t orphaned at all. Even though these non-orphaned children were actually crying and begging the do-gooders to phone their parents at the phone numbers that they had supplied, their laments fell on the deaf ears of the self-appointed rescuers. Their hearing had no doubt been compromised by the loud voice of their God whispering instructions to them. I hope their God has the number of a good attorney. . .

And then of course came the usual “let’s all be frightened” commercials instructing me as to why I should be frightened by the possibility of contracting the flu, of having a heart attack, of not being able to get it up, and much more.

And then, once I heard the CNN morning anchor say with a straight face to an Obama administration financial spokesperson that there are parts of the country where residents would argue that “making $250,000 a year does make them middle class” I turned off the news, walked over to the window, and quietly finished my coffee while watching a flock of geese silently fly through a pristine sky over the recent blanket of snow that was being lit by the golden hues of a rising sun. . .

Heatchcliff and Cathy

I'm snowed in and watching the end of "Wuthering Heights" on Turner Classic Movies staring Laurence Olivier & Merle Oberon from 1939. It's been several years since I've seen it.



While a fantastic film, I just can't get over how ultimately selfish Heathcliff and Cathy are regardless of their tragic love. They simply didn't seem to care who they took down with them . . .

Quake's toll on Haitian art, heritage and income - CNN.com

Yet another chapter of the devastating loss in Haiti. . .

Quake's toll on Haitian art, heritage and income - CNN.com

Come to the light. . .

‘Poltergeist’ actress Zelda Rubinstein dies at 76 - Celebrities- msnbc.com

Healing Thoughts. . .

I have been a fan of the amazing Phoebe Snow for so many years that I can't keep track. One of my favorite Snow tunes is "Harpo's Blues". It's all at once sexy, summery, sultry and sweet. It goes great with a glass of wine, a warm, July, Saturday afternoon, a front porch swing, and the soft scent of something distant and freshly bloomed being gently lifted by a languid breeze and landing like a mist across your face. . .



I was a bit taken aback when I learned from my friend Cyd that Phoebe had suffered a brain hemorrhage on Tuesday, January 19, and has since undergone life-saving emergency surgery. More here - http://phoebesnow.com/

I intend to send healing thoughts her way and ask that you do the same as well.

I Wanna Hold Your Hand. . .

I found it of interest on this Monday, January 25th, that it was on this day in 1964 that The Beatles got their first number one with "I Want To Hold Your Hand" on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

And the rest, as they say, is history. . .

Sprouse and Fashion - a rebirth?

Some of you may remember the 1980's fashion superstar icon Stephen Sprouse. . .



What you may not know is that in the early 1990's I discovered - on a fluke - that he and I were distant cousins. Of course, we had never met (again - "distant" cousins) and no one, with the exceptions of friends and family members, was familiar with my work then.

In any case, I thought it was a nifty fact that there was a fellow artist (he was also a very successful painter) who had made a huge name for himself with clients and friends like Debbie Harry, Billy Idol, Andy Warhol and more, who also happened to have my same last name and, somewhere down the line, same ancestral roots.

Once I learned of the connection however, I oddly never really mentioned the fact very often. It just seemed like one of those items that was somewhat personal and fun to hold on to without much ado. Occasionally, as the gallery and my work became more well established in DC, I would get asked the question by knowing patrons, "Are you related to Stephen Sprouse?" I would answer truthfully with a "Yes. But we're distantly related and have never met". This inevitably would always be followed up with a "that's cool" moment and then a move on to some other topic.

I was fine with that for quite some time really. But then one day after the gallery had been around for several years and I was much more established I had a brainstorm - "Why don't I just contact him and offer him an exhibit? I mean, were both artists and we're cousins for God's sake. The worse that could happen would be that he would say no."

It was a nothing ventured nothing gained moment and I went for it.

Surprisingly, it didn't take long. Of course, this was pre-9/11 and perhaps people wouldn't be so willing to exchange information now, but basically, within an hour after making my decision and after making a few phone calls, I found myself leaving a voice mail on Stephen Sprouse's answering machine. Truth be told, to this day I can't remember how I got his number or who gave it to me. I think one call I made was to the Andy Warhol Institute, but it's hazy now.

It all seems very surreal now, but my message was short and sweet. I identified myself, mentioned that he and I were distant cousins, that I was also an artist who owned and curated a successful contemporary art gallery in Washington, DC , that I was interested in giving him an exhibit, left my contact information and then hung up the phone.

Two days later he called me back.

We had a very nice, though initially slightly awkward conversation. He was amazed that I was able to get his number so easily and he asked me how had I managed to do so. I explained my process and he laughed stating that I was either very lucky, very persistent, or both. I told him I was both. He told me that he had looked at the web site for the gallery and that he liked what he had seen. He also liked my work and he mentioned, after seeing my photo on my site, that he thought that he and I looked like we could be related. He was very relaxed and friendly sounding.

He told me that he was interested in an exhibit and asked me a few technical questions about the space and mentioned something about having to have his assistant begin some process of some sort. In any case, we had a total of about three phone conversations to discuss the potential exhibit, but the details remained vague and nothing came from it. After our last phone conversation, there were no more. At the time, I wasn't quite sure what the reason was as it seemed that all was going well. But, for some reason, my inner voice suggested that I not pursue it opting rather to wait and see if he would reinstate the idea.

I never heard from him again and simply continued on with my activities. It wasn't until about a year or two after our conversations that I learned that he had died of lung cancer - something that he had managed to keep well hidden from those in his circle. And truth be told, he may have been ill the entire time that he and I were conversing. I'll never know.

I felt a slight pain of loss after hearing the news. I can't say that I really knew or was close to him, after all, we had only shared a few phone conversations, but I had created this idea in my head because of our connection, that suddenly would no longer be accessible. It was as if a short term muse had appeared, burned brightly, and then vanished. A tether had been cut and what was released on the other end would never return again. . .

The only reason I recalled this story from close to 10 years ago now is that I ran across the following online once again after seeing it for the first time a few months ago while engaged in some research on links to my work. The connection between "fashion" and "Sprouse" and this time - my work - brought my little story of my brush with my famous and distant relative back to me.

I'm still not quite sure what polyvore.com is about, (they refer to themselves as the "web's largest fashion community") but I think, it's a site for budding fashion designers, art directors, or people enthralled with fashion in general.



Now, normally, I'm not too thrilled when people use my work willy-nilly without going through the proper channels (speaking as someone who has had my work appear without my permission on the side of florist delivery vans and in high-end style and interior design magazine advertisements promoting multi-million dollar condos also in NYC) but I liked this one.

It seems that Georgina has put together a complete outfit based upon the color scheme from a very popular painting of mine I created a few years back entitled "Memory". That painting, in and of itself, has a very interesting history to it, which I will post at some point in the future. . .

Tick, tick, tick. . .

"Cause To Fade"
acrylic and vintage mixed-media on canvas
12" x 24"
2007

Happy Friday! This is just a reminder that there is still work available at dramatically low prices on my Year End Sprouseart FINE ART SALE page! Take the work above for example. When this sale ends at the end of the month - these works are returning to gallery prices. Tick, tick, tick. . .

The politics of facebook. . . .

I learned of the results of the Massachusetts Senate race late last night before going to bed. The last thing I did before hitting the pillow was to glance at my facebook page. Already the posts had begun either damning the results or praising them.

It was then that I made an observation that was slightly epiphanous ; I had friends, some of whom I have known for years and for whom I care a great deal, that didn't vote like as I do! Of course, I say this with a humorous twist. I know that it is impossible to know and befriend as many people as I have over the years without accepting within them a wide range of differences from myself and each other. Frankly, I enjoy the diversity and would have it no other way.

Facebook presents the unique opportunity to see posts from friends chronologically as they appear one over the other. So even though I knew and appreciated the fact that not all of my friends share the same political viewpoint as me, I had never really seen it laid out before me almost spreadsheet style to appreciate on a larger scale. Before, I always accepted the fact of difference on an individual basis - my friend Joe thinks this way, my friend Jane thinks that way.

And this is where I had my slightly epiphanous moment - seeing the evidence laid out before me in my browser made me appreciate my friends even more. I felt some frosted part of my heart begin to melt where I had not noticed ice before. I understood that the aspects of these individuals that I cherished outweighed the differences between us. Of course, I have always known this, but seeing it in an environment weaved through my hundreds of facebook friends rewired my thinking a bit.

Now, make no mistake, I'm not planning on changing my views with a pollyannaish "maybe they're right and I'm wrong" notion (the majority of my facebook friends share my same or similar political ideals) and I am steadfastly confident with my choices. And even though one of the valuable lessons that I have learned over the years as I grow older is that I usually- not always mind you- but as a general rule, shy away from discussing issues of politics, religion and sexuality unless I am completely sure that the person I am speaking with is compatible with such (notice I did not say that they had to share my views - they need only to be open to a conversation without overreacting) , I feel more liberated and secure with my own choices because there is a flip side to the coin. If I have accepted that they don't share my views and am OK with that, then they have done the same for me.

Part of a facebook post from a wonderful childhood friend of mine regarding recent politics simply and elegantly read, "I didn't break it, I cannot fix it, I have to let it go." It seemed Zen its simplicity and clarity.

I'll let you figure out how she votes. . .

Happy Birthday Cézanne. . .

One of my favorite painters, Paul Cézanne, was born on this day in 1839.


The Drinker
Oil on canvas
18 x 14 3/4 in. (45.7 x 37.5 cm)
The Barnes Foundation, Merion, Pennsylvania


Wikipedia states that Cézanne "laid the foundations of the transition from the 19th century conception of artistic endeavour to a new and radically different world of art in the 20th century. Cézanne can be said to form the bridge between late 19th century Impressionism and the early 20th century's new line of artistic enquiry, Cubism. The line attributed to both Matisse and Picasso that Cézanne "is the father of us all" cannot be easily dismissed."

Last Spring, thanks to my extraordinary friend Jacquie, I had the phenomenal experience of spending the Easter afternoon visiting the Barnes Foundation in Merion (a community contiguous to Philadelphia). The Barnes Foundation hosts the largest collection of impressionistic painting in the world worth an estimated 6 billion dollars including 181 paintings by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, 69 by Paul Cézanne, and 59 by Henri Matisse, as well as numerous other masters, including George de Chirico, Paul Gauguin, El Greco, Francisco Goya, Edouard Manet, Amedeo Modigliani, Jean Hugo, Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso, Maurice Utrillo, Vincent Van Gogh, Maurice Prendergast, and a variety of African and early American primitive artworks.

Truly, it was an amazing experience as it was my first visit there. I highly suggest that if the opportunity arises for you to visit this amazing collection in this breathtakingly beautiful house, that you do so - especially before the collection moves in 2012 to its new, and controversial, location. . .

A gleeful arts education?

After watching a rather forgettable Golden Globes presentation last night, I find myself stuck on a phrase mentioned by on of the producers of the program "Glee" (Best television series – comedy or musical - which I found a laughable decision I might add). While I can't remember the exact phrase, or the name of the fellow who said it, he in effect stated that he was thankful to be connected to a show that stressed "the importance of an arts education".

And that is what caused me to lift my gaze from my keyboard with an accompanying eyebrow raise and slight twist of the chin last night and what has sent me atop my digital soap box this Monday morning. . .

It's not that I have a problem with the importance of an arts education - not by any means. As a visual artist, I have always been keenly aware of that issue. I have also worked as an arts educator in the public school system and have very close friends who do the same - some of whom have won national recognition for such.

So - let me be the first to tell you in case you were unaware - "Glee" is about as close in its portrayal of "real life" high school as "Hogan's Heros" was to its portrayal of a German WWII prisoner of war camp.


(with thanks to slade1955)

Glee offers its interpretation of a present day high school via a collection of 20 something year old actors playing a group of 15 to 17 year olds who seem to spend the majority of their school day either practicing for the Glee Club, or in football practice, or cheerleading practice. During these practice sessions, they have the ability to sound vry similar to top-notch studio recording session artists or pop start sensations. When they actually perform, which is frequently, they reproduce the same sound - though even more polished - as well as a mix of wildly expensive costumes with stage production set pieces and lighting.


(above - actor Mark Salling - 27 in reality - portrays 17 year old Puck on Glee)

The entire cast - even the ones who are not supposed to be attractive - are extremely attractive. Though they do seem to have a nice mix of culturally and sexually diverse students (one student - Artie - who is portrayed as being wheelchair bound - is played by the non-disabled in reality, 21 year old Kevin McHale).

But before I am labeled a cynic by readers, I do understand that this is about "acting" and entertainment. I've been involved with theatre (both professionally and with community groups) for over 25 years.

My question is this - if producers of television programs can feel grateful for working on fantasy/artificial shows about promoting the arts in high school when accepting a Golden Globe award for doing such - wouldn't they feel even better if they helped to produce a "reality show" that actually documents the uphill battle that arts educators in this country have to face each time they step into a classroom?

Why not feature teachers struggling with and frustrated by dwindling school arts budgets and antiquated equipment rather than "make believe" glee clubs where Broadway style sets, costumes, and backup musicians appear at the snap of a jazz hand gloved finger?

Also, why are the Visual Arts never made a focus of this popular entertainment? How about a dark comedy entitled "High School Art Honor Society" where young adults portraying minors whip out deftly painted masterpieces in in between make out sessions, eye makeup applications and and texting spasms?

I have to wonder if shows like Glee club may actually be doing damage to legitimate school arts based groups when potentially eager students show up at auditions with visions of sugarplums and recording contracts dancing through their heads. The sad reality of arts education in today's public school system is that it is still woefully underfunded and wildly under appreciated.

I don't think I have ever had a conversation with a public school based arts educator who has not had to purchase supplies for their class out of their own pockets. Recently, during a conversation at the school where I was teaching which had just been built at a cost of several million dollars with the visual arts instructor, I had mentioned how surprised I was too see how small and under-equpied that arts room was considering how grandiose other aspects of this shiny new building were.

With a knowing look and a weary eye, she quietly informed me that it was still a matter of funding and positioning on the totem pole of importance. I could do little at that point but shake my head as I looked around this small and under equipped space with the realization that it was hardly any different than the art class room that I studied in when I was in High School.

I graduated 27 years ago. . .

The Metropolitan Museum Of Art

For some unknown reason, it has been quite some time since I last visited the web site for the Met. It was a wonderful experience. It's beautiful and classically designed. My appreciation for the exquisite aesthetic aside however, my favorite part is the searchable Collection Database. While they don't have every work from their collection of over 2 million online, they do have over 140,000. Once you pull the work up, you can zoom in into some surprisingly intense detail, plus they also document the work's provenance - which I've always found fascinating.

For example, you can learn that Pablo Picasso's "Girl Reading At A Table" (a 1934 portrait of his mistress Marie-Thérèse Walter) was given by the artist to Peter Watson of London in 1939 - 1945/6). From there it appears in the collection of Mr. and Mrs. Samuel A. Marx, Chicago (1945/6 - 1964); then Mrs. Florene M. Schoenborn (widow of Samuel A. Marx), New York (1964 - 1996) and then to the Met.

The Amazing Carole. . .

with thanks to flickr member John McNab

Today, on the 68th anniversary of her death, I have to wonder whether or not anyone under the age of 25 would even know who Carole Lombard was. A 33 year old superstar at the time of her death in a tragic airplane crash near Las Vegas (all on board, including her mother perished in the wreck), her beauty was legendary as her screen performances and her unpretentious off-screen personality, well known earthy sense of humor and blue language made her adored by any who worked with her.

Several years ago, I painted a small portrait of her of which I was very fond . . .



It was purchased by a now deceased friend. I believe he left it to someone I don't know in his will, so I have no idea where she may be now. Of course, art, like everything else, from beautiful actresses to tiny butterflies have a "shelf life". The beauty in that truism is that no really knows when that is. Educated guesses aside, all that remains after that awareness sets in is the simplistic joy of right now - and that is often what great art is all about.