Nellie Mae Rowe - Remarkable!

I don't recall how I came across Nellie Mae Rowe; sure I was searching for one thing or another. But the vibrancy of her and her art just jumped off the screen for me.  A life-taught artist from Fayette County, Georgia; born on a farm in 1900. She had quite a life travel and went from that farm to the Smithsonian Museum.  

You can read a lot about her life and work, such as at Wikipedia,  but my favorite piece is this one at SoulsRunDeep, where she tells her story in the her own words.

Among the many photos of her, I was most drawn to this one of her standing outside her door and had a wonderful time highlighting and altering it and finding elements from Nellie's work to dance in my collage.  It was a delight feeling simpatico with her and inspired by her.  Thanks Miss Nellie.

Nellie Mae collage

Till another time.

Family Memories

My wonderful Dad, Anthony, passed on July 5 many years ago and my lovely sister, Jacqui, my only sibling, left us on July 11 just three years ago. So now they both resonate in the month of July; bringing memories of them forward, most present.

They shared a strength for living; living life as it came at you. They both had their lives changed by an accident and by illness and yet, they made the most of being alive; even though they suffered losses of what they could do and difference from how they had been.  They kept a sense of humor; albeit a bit dark at times.

They were kind and caring through all that happened to them. They were brave. They were not eager to leave, even as their bodies were most challenged, but slipped away when it came time.  We found they had gently left us and we were not really ready. But then, there isn't really any 'ready'.

Jacqui Rose - She's in the Stars

Sisters

Anthony Vincent

Till another time.

Urban Woods and Sad Hope

I seem to have two versions of my 'Regional' collages.  The outer landscape regions, based literally on the local area and the architecture and the inner regions, emerging from my own interior landscape and the mystical, totemic ones I'm attracted to and resonate with.

Urban Woods was anchored in the image of the woman; her dark cap brought crow feathers to mind. The context I found her in had nothing to do with woods, but the intense dark green of  her dress and her stance, evoked for me the sense of trees and crows; urban woods, not pastoral.

Urban Woods collage

Sad Hope carries just that. A sense of sadness, a touch of worry and overwhelm, with an element of hope that things will move on, a hint of transformation; sheltered from the rain.

Sad Hope Collage

 

My astrologer sister, Jacqui, often commented on the many 'two aspects' I have in my life; some seemingly paradoxical.  She said it was because I was born at  High Noon on a Full Moon. Sure, I'll got with that. It's in the stars.  Or maybe it's just art.

 

 Till  next time.

 

Bye they way, I appreciate the lovely comments I receive about my posts.  I have tried numerous times to get them to populate into the blog space, but so far I've not been successful. But they are forwarded to my email. They often light up my inbox.  Thank you.

All Around Town

My love of what I call 'regional' collage, collage anchored in photographs of buildings and place,  certainly thrives in my town, Waynesboro, Virginia. 

The WayneTheatre was the focus of a fantastic renovation, which turned this vintage theatre into a place for live theatre, music,  film, art and more.

The 'TimeLine' on their website tells the story. The Wayne opened on January 18, 1926, with plans to be a vaudeville/movie house. It advertised itself as the 'finest theatre in the Shenandoah Valley.' It had an orchestra pit with organ, and a small 'Wayne Orchestra' entertained the audience before the program. In 1929, the Wayne installed a 'talking machine' by RCA which allowed the Wayne to show talkies.

In 1999, the owners closed the theatre and deeded the structure to the city of Waynesboro. In 2000, to prevent the demolishing of the Wayne, a group of citizens incorporated the Wayne Theatre Alliance with the goal of renovating the theatre. On March 1, 2016, the Wayne Theatre, historically restored, artistically updated and technologically current, opened to the public as a performing arts center.

Some of the elements in this collage echo the Wayne's journey - from Theda Bara to Johnny Ray. Others are just for fun or caught my eye.

Welcome to the Wayne Theatre collage

                            

 

Wayne Theatre circa 1940

                                    

Waynesboro has also become know for it's plethora of murals. Many are the work of  Nils Westergard and are a major inspiration for me.  This mural on the wall of the Waynesboro Family Y always gives me great pleasure. It is so filled with love in the eyes of the father with his daughter at the Pool.  The Y is near an entrance to the Waynesboro Greenway walk path, where my husband and I walk most days; so it is an almost daily delight.

 

Father and Daughter Love At the Y collage

       

                                                        

Till next time!

More Crow Tarot

When I first posted 'Crow Girl Tarot'  [3/29/24 post], Rose Guterbock, artist extraordinaire, commented that I should do a tarot series. Tarot cards carry meaning and the specific symbolism of each image in this series have yet to reveal themselves to me.  So for now, they are in the realm of your own free-association.

I came across the yellow feather in my images, so my theme of Crow colors continued. The bold yellow moves me.

Yellow Crow Tarot

White Crow Tarot evolved out of a prompt for the May members gallery at Shenandoah Valley Art Center -  SVACart.com.   I think of them as Crow Sisters.

White Crow Tarot collage

For the gallery show, I added an embellished mat; a theme I am enjoying thanks to my good friend Deb Booth, who passed on a supply to me.

White Crow Collage with Embellished Mat

Apparently, the Multiverse has decided it's time for more Tarot in my life, as I recently inherited a vast collection of Tarot cards from my dear friend Michael, who died in December.  A journey awaits me.

Till another time.

Frida with Billie and Tom is in the neighborhood

It's always a bit of fun for me when I am drawn to include known figures in my work.  People who inspire and intrigue me. They bring such a pop of energy.  Sometimes they are anchor of the piece and other times they are just the perfect flourish, the perfect fit.

I came across the Frida Kahlo and Billie Holiday images the same day. They sat there on my desktop and eventually leapt into this collage. I find them most compatible.  The golden dress woman is Louise Brooks, a silent screen star who also had a strong presence.  I especially like Frida in her suited attire. The women with her were her sisters.

Frida and Billie collage

Waynesboro, Virginia, my town, has a great collection of muraled walls. I came across this one recently.  Tom Waits seemed to hold and echo the mural energy just right.

The artist is  Nils Westergard, a well known muralist and we in Waynesboro are fortunate to have other murals by him as well. He calls the mural Commerce Street mural  'After'.

Tom Waits on Commerce Street collage
Waynesboro, Virginia  Series

As always, thanks for looking!

Till next time.

Crow Girl Tarot!

I was in a 'Crow' mood and decided to make a contemporary Crow girl.  I was drawn to heavy boots and a dark dress, a little bit Goth,  and after a bit our Crow girl here emerged.  The moody, somewhat mysterious background reminded me of a Tarot card and here we are.

Crow Girl Tarot collage

For our upcoming Member Show at the Shenandoah Valley Art Center - SVAC - I decided to  embellish the collage and mat. I was delighted to find among my bits and pieces the black crow pin which perfectly echoed the two crows in the collage and the perfect sparkly fabric to make the amplified skirt. 

Crow Girl Tarot collage embellished
11x14 frame

Till another time.

Spring! and Crow Woman With Daffodils

Happy Spring!  Happy Equinox! Welcome the change! The Emergence!

I created this Fairy archetype a couple years ago.  I call her Nix and she embodies my totems of Crow and Hare. Since then she's become my symbol of the seasons.  At another time in my life, I had a large plastic goose lamp that sat in the living room window.  I used to dress it for the seasons with hats and things I made. Alas, no pictures of the goose, but here I am, still dressing things for the season.

Spring Fairy Nix collage

It's my birthday this month and not surprisingly, I do a birthday collage each year and yes, usually including Crows.  Daffodils are my favorite flower and the yellow chair is a homage to Frida Kahlo, who sits on a yellow chair in one of my favorite paintings, 'Self Portrait with Cropped Hair'.

Crow Woman With Daffodils collage

Self Portrait With Cropped Hair
Frida Kahlo 1940

Till next time!

Savannah 2024 Last call. Flowered 'Girls' and their houses

This is my final post from my Winter in Savannah.  I took the photos of both the lovely homes featured in these two collages on different days.  One phots was in my 'possible' folder and the other caught my attention and I went to work on it soon after I got the photo. When I looked in my 'Blog- Collages To Post' folder, I discovered they carried a similar vibe, even though they were not done at the same time.  The houses knew who and what they wanted. 

Yesterday, I walked on the street where the houses are and discovered they were neighbors - almost next door to each other! - one house between them.  I love life's little synchronicities. 

Twin Porches Savannah collage

Flowered Girls at Round House collage
Savannah Series

This is a photo of the houses on Whitaker Street, facing Forsyth Park.

Thank you for sharing my travels with me.  

Till next time.

Car Guys and the Elegant Lady - Savannah

 These two collages have very different feels, but they are both inspired by the buildings of Savannah and have characters from another era.

Not sure if the Car Spa is still an operating business, but it did have a couple cars parked in the side lot, including the old 'Beamer' featured here. 

CarSpa Savannah collage

The golden yellow doors of this building caught my eye again and again. But our elegant lady claims all the focus. 

Madame Hyacinth in Yellow collage
Savannah series

Till another time.