Waves of flowing green....

In case anyone missed it, here's Maya Lin's interpretation of waves at Storm King, which is an amazing New York estate filled with world class sculpture. She is widely known for her Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, DC and her Civil Rights sculpture in Montgomery, Alabama. She's a Yale graduate and her aunt was the first female architect in China. Breathtaking and serene.

A Life of Visionary Collage, Ann Irwin

Ann Irwin, by all accounts, was a woman who chose to live, love, and create art, under the most challenging circumstances. She battled chronic lung disease and other health issues, but worked on her art constantly. Even towards the end of her battle, she managed, with a 54 foot long cord to her oxygen supply, to still work in her beloved garden, and create eloquent colleges and quilts in her basement studio. According to her husband, Roy, she utilized old books, fabric, and found objects. "Ann created a large body of art (over 400 pieces) rich in a deep personal mythology of whimsical images of birds, houses, trees, and flowers." She often incorporated the printed word in her works, "not to be read, rather for tonality". "She asked her paper, foil, and twigs to function as a silent prayer, to anchor the dreamy images, to keep them real and material." Ann's work was shown in both museum settings and regional shows. I present here, three wonderful examples of her work. The piece I call "Starry Night with Matzoh" is one of my favorites. I thank Roy Zipris, Ann's husband, for bringing her extraordinary work to my attention. I recently visited the Museum of Modern Art to see collages and constructions. Ann Irwin's work would have been a perfect fit. Click on the title of this blog and you will come to a flickr page of more images. Enjoy!

Daniel Farber, self-taught photographer

His business was leather, but his love was photography. On his gravestone are the words "Nature is my God" and his camera is carved over the shoulder of his marker, as if resting there a moment. Daniel Farber's works are in the permanent collection of 123 museums world wide, and he had numerous one man shows. Although he was self-taught, his "Reflections" show received rave reviews at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NY, as did his "Early American Gravestones" show at the AMFA and at Yale. When the Boston Aquarium opened, his stunning slides of reflections in water were mounted in their entry and his unforgettable macro images of flowers grace the walls of the Decorative and Fine Art division of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. He was published in American Heritage, Popular Photography, Modern Photography, and Country Beautiful magazines, as well as on many classical record album covers. He was a prodigious photographer whose work is still widely collected. More than 1,400 dye transfer color prints, 34,000 gelatin silver prints, and 14,000 negatives produced by him are in the collections of U.S. museums and institutions. He was also one hell of a gardener, and one of my favorite uncles! Vintage images and his book, "Reflections of a Trail Taken" are available through this gallery.

Recycled Metal Sculpture, Outsider Art

This is a large sculpture, under production, by one of the most gifted artists in CT. It's made entirely from recycled metal automotive parts, and a third side, which will complete the triangle, will wrap around the edges using a compass for a theme. Joe DeMarco also created the life-sized moose and horse which were posted earlier in the life of this blog, and his work never ceases to amaze. His property is filled with old trucks, cars and busses which, along with treasures unearthed in junk yards, serve as fodder for his art. This gallery owns a large work, similar to this piece, and it was placed at the front of the property as a sort of gift to the neighborhood. Everyone under ten loved it, the adult's were a little more reserved! Several unknown someone's, immune to the joys of art, came one night with a truck and a chain (the work called "Collection" weighs at least half a ton) and they dragged it down, along with several basketball hoops, set up by neighbors for their kids. Makes you wonder what's going through some people's heads! It took a month to right the sculpture and move it about 60 feet back from the road, so as not to tempt the idiots who tried to destroy it.