April 2022
During an online meeting with residents of Hope Village, one of the ministries of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Olympia, Washington, a design was developed that would be:
welcoming, bright, and inclusive,
to encourage all new residents with the successes of former residents.
In April, with the help of numerous volunteers of all ages from WPC, Hope Village and the greater Olympia community, these scenes on the Hope Village Office and Community Center were painted!
There has been a lot to notice in nature in recent days.
For kids of all ages, it’s hard to beat Mo Willems’ three-week series of Lunch Doodles with Mo Willems. As Artist-in-Residence at the Kennedy Center this year, little did he know he would be working from HIS residence. Developed especially to help kids cope with social distancing, it offers precious and insightful glimpses into the world of a kids’ book author and illustrator.
Another resource for practicing (or those who want to be practicing) artists:
During social distancing Nicholas Wilton is offering weekly time to make art and hear from artist-friends of his near and far. It’s low-key, interesting, and inspiring to see what other folks are doing. https://workshop.art2life.com/kitchen-table-art-project-2020/
Thanks to Jayna Zweiman, the Welcome Blanket project is ongoing: https://www.welcomeblanket.org/. During the corona virus pandemic, Welcome Blanket has spawned Masks For Humanity: https://www.welcomeblanket.org/blog/2020/3/25/masks-for-humanity-we-need-your-help-to-help-others – an opportunity to make masks and get them to people requesting them. I sent a batch to a midwifery center in Lynden, WA and immediately heard back from them. Thanks for requesting them, Moonbelly Midwifery! Others went to assorted folks in Seattle, Tacoma, and Prescott, AZ.
Welcome Blankets connects art institutions with refugee resettlement groups. Many times, refugee resettlement agencies don’t have the ability to process hundreds of individual gifts, and Welcome Blankets’ deliberate process of collecting, cataloging, packing, confirming, and shipping helps these great organizations prepare and gift these potential heirlooms.
This week, International Rescue Committee (IRC), reached out to Welcome Blankets and asked for 1,000 blankets of welcome to give as soon as possible to incoming recently-released asylum seekers.
The beginnings of exquisite beauty.
I attended a fabulous workshop in Burnaby, British Columbia last weekend led by author and designer Eric Broug. If you don’t know of him or his books or work, look him up! http://broug.com/
An inspiring article and book for those who have ever wanted to explore colors made from nature. Hard not to think of this in Autumn!
I’ve painted both dogs and cats in the past year (see Gallery for one example, “At home.”) This week’s New Yorker cover by Mark Ulriksen resonates: the water, relaxed pose, sleeping eyes, and shiny, wet nose. For more on this and other NYer covers see: https://www.newyorker.com/culture/cover-story/cover-story-2018-07-09
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Thanks to Shoreline Arts Festival, June 23rd and 24th! This year 25% of my profits from the Shoreline Arts Festival will be donated to ROOTS Young Adult Shelter in the University District. http://www.rootsinfo.org/. It was a good two days and inspiring to meet other artists, see longtime friends and all the folks who appreciate art.
A special call-out to two fabulous festival neighbors:
Angelica Sta. Teresa – see: https://shop.angelst.net/ She’ll be at the Renegade Craft Fair July 21st and 22nd in Magnuson Park. Angelica creates exquisite hand-dyed scarves, leggings, and tops.
AND
Brian from Fairview Lake Studio. See: https://www.fairviewlakestudios.com/find-us.html for a list of upcoming shows and festivals. Beautiful, useable ceramic pieces.
LaylaElisArts 