Calendar Art

One of the things I love about the beginning of a year is the calendars. Calendars come in all shapes and sizes, all types and an amazing array of colors and styles. If you want a calendar of a particular thing or animal or person, chances are you can find it at your local Wal Mart or grocery store.



Calendar art is one of the most affordable ways of putting art in your home. I've highlighted a calendar before that was done by
Miss Wheelchair Utah 2005, who draws amazing cute stick figures with her limited mobility. There is everything from cartoon stuff including Peanuts, For Better or For Worse, Dilbert, Maxine (which was a personal favorite for last year, all my co-workers would come see what each month had to say),



to art gallery calendars, promoting their shows.


But beware...the price tag is reflective of what's inside, and you have to think about how much you want to pay to keep track of the days of the year. That peanuts calendar I've got up above? It's for sale on Amazon for over $50! You have to be a true collector to want to pay those prices.

Many famous artists have calendars of their work put together so that you can get copies of the prints without paying the price to frame. Although, I'm sure you could frame them when you were finished with the calendar. ;) James Christensen an artist I've commented on before, has started doing calendars. This is from the one for this year.


I love looking at calendars. When I went to Hawaii a year and a half ago (man, it's been that long???)I brought back calendars for everyone. I kept it above my desk to remind me and when the end of December came, I had a hard time taking it down. It felt like an era was gone and I wanted to go back and get another...

Photography ones are excellent for keeping areas in mind, for being inspired and for promoting an area.

There are religious calendars (such as ones with the temples on them). There are sports calendars. Just about anything you can think of can be made up into a calendar. It doesn't mean it's always art.


So what tickles your fancy? Does your family lean toward the comical or the serene? Artistic or thoughtful? Our family calendar is usually simple -- a plain wall thing that we buy where ever we can find it the cheapest, because all we do is write all over it. Then there is the free one from the Credit Union that has the gorgeous photography and we put that one up mainly for the pictures.



My daughters buy what interests them that year. This year, my oldest bought one that has dragon art on it. Oh yeah...feel the power...grin. Last year it was puppies -- I decided to ignore the hint, we have cats. Lots of them.

My husband has a Dilbert Calendar on his desk. I have Anne Geddes on my computer at work, but it's not the kind of calendar you can write anything on.

So what do you use your calendars for? Do you write all over them like we do, or do you gaze at the pictures and imagine yourself there?



I figure I could put together my own calendar with the illustrations I did for Sorry, the Stork Takes No Returns. If anyone is interested, feel free to email me and I'll send you one -- only $8 each! It's a bargain! grin.



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Art Galleries, Theaters and Opera, oh my!

In my quest for knowledge about all things art, I have come to realize that sometimes we have to take the initiative. If we sit at home and wish for something beautiful to burst in upon us, it's not going to come (unless you're a writer working on an idea, or a painter).

Along with that, if we're bored, there's no one but ourselves to blame. There is so much of life and art around us, we have simply to step up.

In doing a quick search at Deseret News site for art galleries, I discovered there was a whole page with listing for current showings at galleries in the Salt Lake area. In fact, there are four pages of listings. It boggles the mind. The painting at the top is "Tracks in the Sand" by John Stout, and will be on display at Art at the Main through Feb. 14. I've mentioned art galleries and museums as great ways of exposing yourself to art and teaching your children as well. You'll have to look up times and costs, though I think most galleries are free -- they're trying to sell the paintings...lol.

Then I spotted an announcement that the Salt Lake City Ballet company is making it's debut performance. The company is the performance branch of the Salt Lake City Conservatory school. I thought that was kind of cool. I didn't even realize we had a ballet school here in Utah. I'm totally out of the loop, I can tell. I asked my daughter if she knew there was a ballet school in Utah, and she said she thought there was, but she didn't know where. I guess I'm not the only one -- although, perhaps that doesn't count since she's related to me and I would be the one to tell her...


They'll be performing something called "At Capacity" which sounds interesting. If you are in the mood for ballet, that would be the place to go.


And last (but certainly not least, and no -- the fat lady ain't singing yet...) the opera. I have yet to actually go see an opera in person, though there have been several I've wanted to see. The one playing in Salt Lake right now is Puccini's "La Boheme". The only time I've heard of this opera before was in the movie Kate and Leopold... Since it was used to show one man's lack of knowledge and another man's superiority, I wasn't sure I wanted to see it. The description sounds intriguing though it's another depressing tragedy. What is it about these things that they have to have people die in them?

Anyway --

Life is full of art, if you but take a step out to find it. It's getting close to the month of February, which is going to be a wonderful month of love and art...
Enjoy!

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Family Unity

Once in a while, my family likes to play a game of RISK. Sometimes we'll even get a game of Monopoly going. But we only play these games when we have loads of time. We haven't played in a long time, and my daughter gave us a new RISK game for Christmas that the children have been bugging us to play.

I suggested yesterday, that since today is a holiday and none of us have work or school, last night would be a good night to play a long game like RISK or Monopoly. (I am RARELY the one to suggest such a thing, as I am not a night owl anymore.) Needless to say they were a little shocked...but they jumped on it and decided they wanted to play RISK.

We haven't played it in SO long, at least I haven't. We have the computer version which is much faster to play...lol. Anyway, we waited till about 9:30 -- thinking my oldest son would show up to play, but he didn't and we gave up on him and started. We got my brother-in-law to play as well, and I teamed up with my hubby so there were six of us playing.

It was actually one of the best times we've had as a group. My second oldest son lost first, and I was afraid we'd have a temper show, but I suggested he have a cookie (we'd made cookies to eat while we played) and everyone busted up laughing. I was proud of him.

My youngest was the next one to loose, and he wasn't as good about it. It's funny how everyone has a hard time losing. In playing games, or in many things in life, you have to have a winner or a looser. It's just the way things are geared. Sometimes there can be more than one winner, but there is always a looser.

I think how we loose is sometimes as important as how we win. There is an art to being graceful in interpersonal behavior. We've tried to teach our children to be good sports, but it doesn't always take. Sometimes it takes maturing. Our 18 year old still has a hard time loosing -- even though he protests that he's fine.

We ended up at 2 am, with just the three of us left. My hubby and brother-in-law were almost the same size armies, and my oldest daughter was in between. I gave up -- that's a little late for me. I kissed him good night and crawled into bed.

My hubby told me in the morning that they stayed up till 3 am and we won! I guess he turned in all his cards and the exchange was up to 60 armies, and that put him at 100 -- my brother-in law quickly decided that there was no way he wanted to spend an hour tossing dice to loose, so he conceded the game.

My point is, that for the first time in a long time, we played a game that pretty much the whole family was involved in and enjoyed playing together. We usually play games on Sunday because that's the only day that everyone is home together in the afternoon and has time.

Another game we got for Christmas that we've discovered we really like, is called Catch Phrase. It's kind of like the old game Password, but better, and it's been fun to see the generation gap with some of the phrases we have to describe without using the words. We kind of forced my autistic son to join the game -- he usually won't play -- an he even enjoyed it. He actually guessed some of the clues.

Do you have a game night? If not, I would recommend starting one. It's great family fun! Listening to yourldsradio.com is also a great way to have background music for the game time.


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Parades: Art is Mobile

As I mentioned in earlier posts, we were able to watch the Rose Parade on New Years Day. The Rose Parade has to be my number one favorite parade! I love the flowers and I've always wished I could see it up close. Well, I got my wish.

It was a lot of effort to get our seats, but we were able to sit right on the curb -- it was fantastic. My oldest two sons would probably say it wasn't worth a 4 hour sleep night, but they liked it too. We owe them for our spots, because they helped save the space during the night. We dropped them off at 1:30, and didn't get back to the hotel till almost 2:30. In the AM. sigh.

Anyway -- it was cool. I've always wondered who thinks up what to put on these floats. I'm not talking about the them of the parade, which was "Hat's Off to Entertainment", I'm talking about how they decorate them. In case you're not familiar with it, the whole point of the Rose Parade is that everything you put on the outside of the float -- everything that is SEEN -- has to be organic. We saw everything from fruit to seeds and beans and whole plants. It was amazing.

What boggled my mind was the variety of plants. Who knew there were so many different kinds of plants, and that they were available to be purchased? I would imagine there has to be whole committees for these things, overseeing the organizing, purchasing, volunteering, etc. for each float. We heard that one float, the one depicting India, or India's Bollywood, cost over $50,000. That's a lot of money for one float.


And the man hours! Do you realize that these floats are not started being decorated until the weekend before New Years? The framework and everything is done, but the flowers and all are done by hundreds of volunteers who come from as far as the east coast to work on these things. We met one who was staying at our hotel that had come out Sunday night to join friends that had come out on Friday. They have been doing this for eight years. I call that amazing dedication.

I'm sure most of them think they are contributing to art.

Because these floats are simply amazing. After watching it for years on television and getting that one angled view of it, I was thrilled to be able to see the floats on Friday afterward. They have them on display for three days, and it's amazing to see them up close, and see that they used seed for this, or corn husks for that. Through the camera lens, they look so much different.

They range from true art,

to the silly.

But all of it is flowers or plants. Isn't it just astounding?

I think of the person who looks at the design and says, "hey, I think we can use this plant, or this seed. What about those strange looking flowers they grow down in South America?" I mean, nothing is outside the realm of possibility.



In this one, if you look close you can see the woman who is inside the flower dress. The dress is actually flowers! It was another gorgeous float.

In this one, for China, there was this gorgeous macaw. Of course the parade had all the usual bands and horses, but I'm going to cover the horses on my next blog. This one is dedicated to flowers -- one of Heavenly Father's loveliest creations.

Simply amazing.

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Amusement Parks Rule

Anyone who has lived in Utah for any length of time has undoubtedly visited the states prime amusement park, Lagoon. I first visited it when I moved here in 1978, and thought it was pretty fun. I ended up working there that summer and the next summer, but two summers in a row was enough. They had started changing things, and it wasn't as fun.

I came from amusement park capitol, California. I supposed other states might have plenty, but California has it's entertainment. I grew up in the bay area, and we had Great America, which was a Warner Brothers park. It was great fun, and I went there whenever I could wrangle someone to take me.

I've also been to Knottsberry Farm, but that's not known so much for being an amusement park as it is a producers of great jams...grin...at least to people that live outside the state. When I went there, the new ride Montezuma's Revenge had just opened, and it was one of the first roller coasters that went totally upside down. It was basically just a loop, you went forward through it, then backward. It was great for those of us who had never experienced that before. Once was enough though... They also had a great ride with parachutes. They had baskets that you stood up in, and then were pulled up and dropped. It was scary! I'd like to take my hubby there because it's characters are the Peanuts characters, and he collects anything and all things Peanuts.

But when I was growing up, it was always Disneyland. I went a couple of times before moving to Utah, but as I mentioned in my last post, I really don't remember it being that big of a deal. Everyone else always seemed to have fun, but perhaps they had more money to spend...grin.

When I was in college, we did a student trip where we went on a three day weekend by bus. We spent one day at Disneyland, one day at Knotts Berry, and one day at the beach. It was fantastic, and I remember we were crazy at Disneyland. Space Mountain was a new ride, and since we'd gone in the middle of February, there was no one there. We were able to get off and run to get right back on -- something totally unheard of today. It was chilly, but we didn't care, we were college kids loose in a kids playground.

As I've grown into adulthood, I've gone through different stages of feeling about amusement parks. There is a whole cycle, you see, of liking them, appreciating them, hating them, and wishing they'd all go away because all they want is your money.

While that's what keeps them in business, and why they all went into business in the first place, I think Disneyland is one place that doesn't make it feel as if that's the only reason they exist. I honored Walt Disney in my last post, and I wanted to highlight the park today. I realize there are many Disneyland parks around the world now, and I have a neighbor that's been to almost all of them. She wants to go to the one in Paris now -- she's going to the Tokyo one in February with her daughter and hubby. Initially I figured she was just a little fanatical about things, and figured she could have her passion.

I now understand some of it a little. There is just a feeling about the park. The ambiance, the look, the way life seems to look a little brighter and things don't seem so dark. There is an art to running a successful amusement park. If it's really tacky and run down, you might still make some money but no one is going to come back. I'll best most people go to Disneyland more than once in their lifetime. It's one of those bucket lists some people have -- Visit Disneyland. Granted, it is geared toward little children, but I found a lot of grownups there without little kids.

But most of all, it was the reluctance to leave. The first day we went, we were so tired by the end, that I couldn't wait to get back to the hotel room. It was the first boring New Years we've ever participated in -- my hubby didn't even wake up to drink sparkling apple juice with me, poor man. But I knew we were going back. I knew if we missed something, we could catch it the next time.

Our second day (the last day) I knew we had to try and do everything we'd missed and wanted to do. There was a little more pressure, but we weren't as tired or burned out and were reluctant to leave. I remember walking down the main street toward the entrance as we were leaving, wishing I could take a sharp video of all the images so I could look back on them later. I took a last shot of us in front of the huge Christmas tree that my husband said would have worked in the movie, The Grinch.
It was a fun photo, but now we can't find the picture. Heartbreak. sigh.

Anyway -- there is something of magic in the feeling. The magic of Disney.

It's art in the creative imaginative form.

If you ever get the opportunity to experience it (without young children in tow or you really won't truly appreciate it...grin) take the chance. You'll never forget it.

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The Wonder of Disney

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I got to spend the week after Christmas in California. My family and I went to Disneyland for New Years Eve (WAY CROWDED!!) and then watched the Rose Parade in person on New Years Day. It was great fun, and if you haven't had the chance to see Disneyland dressed for Christmas, you really should go. (I know, that's easier said than done for most of us who count the pennies.)

Anyway, the trip gave me lots of material for blogs, and that's what your going to be hearing about for probably the next month! This first one, I wanted to talk about Walt Disney a little bit.


This man was truly ahead of his time. Disneyland was the first amusement park in the world! I never knew that. There is a web site that has lots of information on Mr. Disney, with a section full of quotes he said during his life. I'm going to share some of them through this blog. The first one (since I went there) is about Disneyland:

"To all that come to this happy place: welcome. Disneyland is your land. Here age relives fond memories of the past, and here youth may savor the challenge and promise of the future. Disneyland is dedicated to the ideals, the dreams, and the hard facts that have created America... with hope that it will be a source of joy and inspiration to all the world."

I have been to Disneyland before, but for some reason, I hadn't fully appreciated it. Perhaps I have a different perspective now, but for whatever the reason, I was really impressed. My son, when we were finished watching a fireworks/water show special called "Fantasmic" (which was basically a combination of Fantasia and several other Disney movies -- really amazing being shown on water sprays) turned to me and said, "That's what Disneyland is all about. Imagination."

He's right. Mr. Disney wanted to foster the imagination of all, the creative ability in all of us. He helped found a school in California, the California Institute of the Arts. This is a quote about the school:

"I want people to graduate from there really able to do things. I don't want a lot of theorists. I want to have a school that turns out people that know all the facts of filmaking, I want them to be capable of doing anything needed to make a film-photograph it, direct it, design it, animate it, record it, whatever. That's what I want. Heck, I've hired theorists, and they don't have any knowledge I can use. I want to have everyone in that school come out capable of going in and doing a job. These dilettantes who come out with pseudo-knowledge, they give me a pain. I want it so if an actor is needed, they can get an actor right out of school. If a musician is needed, they can go to the music department and find a musicians who can compose music."

I think in today's world of so many computers and electronic media, sometimes our imagination takes back stage to what is happening. Our children don't spend much time outside playing, thinking up games, imagining a world. They spend more time in front of TV, video games, or computer screens.

Personally, our children didn't have access to video games until last summer, and then it has been extremely limited. We fostered their imagination, their creativity. (Well, as much as I could...I'm not saying I'm perfect.) I was thrilled to see my son recognize that there was merit in imagination and the fostering of it.

Art is based on imagination and the ability to create. Most of us have some kind of ability within us to do something -- we just have to find out what it is.

"When you're curious, you find lots of interesting things to do. And one thing it takes to accomplish something is courage."

The more I read about the man, and the more I see what he accomplished, the more impressed I become. I realize he wasn't perfect -- but he sure did a lot to promote artistic endeavor even if it was in the entertainment field.

"Movies can and do have tremendous influence in shaping young lives in the realm of entertainment towards the ideals and objectives of normal adulthood."

If only more people understood that thought. And, the moral obligations that follow. It reminds me of the outtakes from Pirates of the Caribbean. There's a scene where Jack Sparrow is talking with the guy from the West Indies Trading Company, and they make a mistake. He swears, but they bleep it out and Johnny Depp tells him, "You can't swear in a Disney film, mate."

"Laughter is America's most important export."

If only everyone felt that way. It would be a far cleaner and kinder world.

Thanks Walt, for what you did to further imagination and dreams of old and young.

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New Years Thoughts

I don't like making New Year resolutions. I am not one for making goals, because I don't tend to keep them, just like I don't keep my resolutions (generally). I do like making a decision that I'm going to make a change, and then following through with it. That's how I got myself to brush my teeth regularly, and say my personal prayers every morning and night.

So, I avoid the whole new years thing like the plague. But this year, a friend posted an idea about things accomplished during the past year, so I'm thinking I want to do that. Kind of the whole positive reinforcement thing...grin. I liked her spin on things, but I guess I'll have to come up with my own...

The thing is, upon pondering the idea, I'm not sure I accomplished very much.

1. Participated in Nano again -- finished before the deadline.
2. Finished the nano write from 2007.
3. Made homemade marinara for the first time, from tomatoes from our garden.
4. Made homemade salsa from our garden.
5. Painted a painting for the county fair and got 2nd place.
6. Joined a critique group.
7. Painted my front room.
8. Gained back most of the 20 lbs I lost last year...sigh.
9. Survived my son going to basic and being gone for 5 months (precursor to mission -- dang it's gonna be hard)
10. Didn't kill or maim any of my children. (and while it sounds bad, believe me -- it's a temptation some days)
11. Survived our daughter's boyfriend going back to prison (AGAIN) and the resulting emotional roller coaster. (only 10 more times...?)

There are some things I want to do this year, so lets see if I can put them in a semblance of order.

1. Finish nano write from 2008.
2. Submit at least 12 items to a publisher.
3. Paint the rest of the 12 days of Christmas.
4. Paint and submit to the State Fair and win a 3rd place...
5. Submit as illustrator to LDS publishers.
6. Get my house in order.
7. Do better on our food storage.
8. Loose the pounds I gained and loose more.
9. Keep my children out of the ER. (second year in a row!! I know, now I've jinxed it.)
10. Keep coming up with blog ideas....lol

oh well...I guess that's about all I can come up with. Keep in mind that these are NOT goals...just thoughts about what I'd like to accomplish this year. I know -- I know it won't happen if I don't plan for it.

A New Year, A New Artist and More...

Well...there is so much to cover, so much to do, "So little to do, so much time," as Willy Wonka would say -- "Scratch that, reverse."

We returned last night from California after a wonderful week of Disneyland and the Rose Parade. I have a couple of blogs I'll be writing to cover them and the amazing world we live in -- but today, I wanted to highlight an artist who is trying to promote himself.

David Bowman. I love his art work and wanted to share it with you. He was holding a contest where you could get a free print, but unfortunately, it ended today. I figured you would still appreciate his work, and so I'm sharing three of my favorite pieces of his here.

From his website:
David Bowman: has had a passion for art ever since he could pick up a pencil. He loves creating images of the Savior that inspire and uplift. Along with his Christian fine art, David has also written and illustrated a series of scripture storybooks for children titled "Who's Your Hero". Check out his website at www.bowman-art.com to see more of his precious art.


"Innocence"
The Savior tells us we need to become as little children to inherit the kingdom of God. I've often wondered what it is about little children Jesus loves most, and I think its their innocence. They are clean slates, seeing the world and others through untarnished eyes. Their hearts are pure, without the baggage of cynicism and self-doubt. In this piece, I've tried to imagine how a child would act upon meeting the Master for the first time. Without reservation or inhibition, I think he would simply want to play with Him. He would be at complete ease, allowing his pure little heart to soak in the love and laughter of His pure, infinite heart. Its no wonder Christ delights in these little ones and sets them up to be our examples.


"Security"
One of the greatest human needs is a sense of security. In all aspects of life, we naturally gravitate towards anything that makes us feel safe. In this piece, I wanted to convey a sense of complete peace and calm like only the Savior can provide. It's a security that allows us to rest assured, without fear or worry, when we put ourselves trustingly in His arms. Little children have that inherent kind of trust in their parents, so it's fitting that the man and girl who modeled for "Security" are actually father and daughter. They generated the exact feel I was looking for.


"My Child"
This piece conveys an intimate, up-close-and-personal feeling of the Savior's love. Notice how all the lines draw your attention and point towards Jesus' face in the center. I chose the name "My Child" because the only thing that could compare (even remotely) to Christ's compassion for us is the love of a parent for his/her child. This image is also intended to put things in perspective. Above all, we are God's children first. He allows us the privelege of experiencing parenthood for ourselves and we are entrusted to be the mothers and fathers of His children here on earth.

Isn't his work just amazing? I am constantly amazed at the gifts and talent to be found and shared with others. I hope you'll go to his website and look through his other works -- he really has done a good job.

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A Child's Wonder

I work in special education so I see many different ways of teaching. I don't teach, so it feels like a load off my shoulders, but I often mingle with those who do.

In December we had an inservice meeting where the guest speaker was a woman who runs a preschool in California. I don't want to give names or go into who she is, suffice to say she's had enough experience teaching toddlers and getting to understand them than I've ever dreamed of.

The experience of listening to her and her son-in-law was very rewarding, and I came away with many thoughts. The main one that stuck with me was when she talked about art and children. She stated that so many schools take the things out of the teaching paradigm that are what children need to learn and to grow. Many of them take out art and social interaction. She said that we've become an in-door society, but that's another subject.

I felt her ideas about art and the development in children bore mentioning as we talk and explore art.

Many teachers have a very structured classroom. The projects are dictated, and the supplies limited. They instruct the children to copy whatever is being done for the day. There is little room for those who do not follow what the teacher wants them to do.

This stifles their imagination in a way -- and I've always felt this, before I listened to the speaker. But, she pointed out that most of a child's learning is in one side of the brain when they are young, and in another when they are older. Forcing them to learn to read when they are young, basically handicaps them when they get older -- this according to her.

It made me feel better that none of mine really liked to read until they were in Jr High...grin.

Anyway, we were discussing art.

Have you ever noticed that details are not often what is important in a child's world? What is important are the major things they feel and see. People holding hands...animals that are happy and have all their limbs...or more than four. Rich colors, although not necessarily the colors you would pick. Their imaginations are boundless in how they see the world.

As we grow, for some reason, we loose some of that. Perhaps we retain our imaginations in our reading, but we loose some originality. It makes it harder to understand the child and their mind. We have a more difficult time reaching them, or being able to teach at a level they understand, because our minds are much more cluttered.

In this month of newness, January of 2009, perhaps we can all take a fresh look at the world around us. See it with new and hopeful eyes. Children have a hope we could only wish for, a faith that is inspiring to all. We need to seek it and bring it into our lives every day.

Find a child and discover the world through their eyes. It's art in it's purest form.

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