Art – Romance from the Heartland

Time for Nostalgia?

December 9, 2022December 7, 2022 ellenparkerwrites

December:

A month often filled with celebration and parties.

The final month of the calendar year. (In the West.)

An ideal time to assess the past and plan the future.

As I select and assemble jigsaw puzzles, I suspect the artists for these projects dive deep into nostalgia. How else to explain the prevalence of horses and horse-drawn vehicles. Often the emphasis is on rural or small-town life. In a cleaned-up idealized form.

Oh, I appreciate they have an assignment to follow. They need to put a lot of different elements into a small space. Most manage to keep it colorful and hide a few little items a person doesn’t notice when they pull the box off the shelf. Have you assembled a puzzle this year?

In COMFORT ZONE, a sweet romance set in St. Louis, the hero designs puzzles — but not the picture kind.

For more information or to buy for your Kindle, click here: https://amzn.to/2ZvL0Av

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Feast or Fun

October 30, 2020October 25, 2020 ellenparkerwrites

What’s your first thought?

Let’s see…two cups of cooked pumpkin per pie equals…?

Or are you eager to pull out the knife and turn into a sculpture?

Perhaps paints to demonstrate your abilities in a different way?

However, you decide to deal with a pumpkin this season — I’ll leave you with the thought of ABUNDANCE — hundreds of pumpkins — so many in a season of plenty that we can turn them into temporary works of art and still have pie for supper.

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Unexpected Pairing

August 11, 2020August 8, 2020 ellenparkerwrites

Glass: fused sand manipulated, shaped, and refined by man.

Plants: living entities drawing nourishment from the earth.

At first thought, these two appear on opposite ends of a spectrum. In many ways they are. Yet…

Glass cranes among the water lettuce makes a beautiful scene.

2020 — the Year We Stayed Home — makes me grateful for the photos taken during multiple trips to local attractions such as the Botanical Garden.

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Shimmering Wonder

August 4, 2020August 1, 2020 ellenparkerwrites

Thunderbird. Firebird. Phoenix.

A legend of rising out of the ashes to new heights and glory.

The theme has been repeated over cultures and centuries. It has inspired music and art. Ohh — some of the art is glorious.

Created in glass and metal, this bird rises amidst tropical foliage.

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Mom…Mom!

April 17, 2020April 10, 2020 ellenparkerwrites

Did I do it right? Is it done? Can I do it again?

Mom — watch this! Mom — it worked!

Parents, especially mothers, should be able to relate to all of the above phrases. When we had a toddler in the house it was easy to lose count of the number of times I heard — Me do it!

And he did. Sometimes. Part-way. With odd results.

Mom. Mom! Watch this!

Why do I suspect the designer of this sculpture was a parent?

I wonder if he had “help” with this portion.

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Shiny Holiday Coat

December 6, 2019December 2, 2019 ellenparkerwrites

Deer hunting season ended in this state recently. For some, this is the most important time of the year — often finishing within a few days of Thanksgiving.

Yum, yum — venison roast. (No, like beef, venison is best aged. Consider it for Christmas dinner — not Thanksgiving.)

Not all deer were in danger. Take this oversized fellow, for example.

Deer hunting season for this shiny fellow is spent indoors — my guess would be in warehouse storage. He’s a holiday special. Gets a person to slow down and take a look as they drive past on the street. Hey — look here! This motel and restaurant is in the holiday spirit.

I’ll give him the highest marks possible for gaining attention.

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On the Lawn

July 12, 2019July 12, 2019 ellenparkerwrites

To steal a phrase from a sweatshirt: EARTH without ART is EH.

Art takes many forms: movies, plays, books, photos, and sculpture to name a few. From simple lines or the familiar phrases of a nursery rhyme the world of art expands to large, intricate works.

Recently I stepped out the back door of a familiar St. Louis institution and discovered a few examples of art too large to be confined within normal walls.

She sits and thinks while the wind ruffles her hair.

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Bonus Art Show

May 17, 2019May 8, 2019 ellenparkerwrites

Libraries hold more than books. They even contain more than the extended list of magazines, music CD’s, and movies which many people would tack on behind books. (Or maybe in front.)

People — employees and patrons — also populate the library building. Numbers depend on the size of the library.

And some libraries hold surprises. The day I visited the library in a mid-size Wisconsin city — I was donating books — I went to the upstairs level and browsed in an art show.

Talented hands to craft any item in this display.

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Temporary Greeter

April 19, 2019March 22, 2019 ellenparkerwrites

Tourist attraction. Local attraction. Research facility. Open air delight.

The Garden.

I’ve heard, and used, most of these to describe The Missouri Botanical Garden.

Regular followers of this blog are aware that I visit often and dot this space with photos from those visits.

One of the many things I like about my visits? Each one is different. There is always something new, or perhaps I see a plant at a different stage of development, or in a new light.

The staff works hard to make some of this happen. They erect seasonal items to enhance the plantings. Often these have a theme — sometimes connected to a festival.

This handsome fellow welcomed visitors during the Chinese Lantern Festival several years ago.