in the garden - managing expectations

Japanese eggplant

Providence, RI

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In the garden my mother was a strict realist. 

Whenever she would plant something she would blow it a kiss and say, 

"Good luck. If it lives.... it lives. If it dies.... it dies."

I am trying to channel that sentiment.

Herbs - no problem. All seem to flourish.

Japanese eggplant - Harvested one, 2 more on the plant and a few additional flowers look promising.

Onions - Harvested at least 8 so far. They are now curing. More to come.

Tomatoes - Nothing ripe yet althou there are at least 3 - 4 tomatoes on each of the plants. 

I am hopeful.

Cucumbers

Providence, RI

Cucumbers - Harvested one. There are currently some new tiny babies .... but the current rains and lack of sunshine seem to have stopped all growth. I have concerns.

Female squash blossom with "baby"

Providence, RI

Patty Pan Squash - Okay, big learning curve on these. Last month saw sooooo many blossoms - but they kept falling off. Every day I would pick up 10 or more and yet no fruit! 

Finally read about the difference between male and female blossoms - duh!

Seems that the female blossoms take a long time to actually arrive at the party..... the males get there early to attract the bees.

So after weeks of worry, checking my blossoms every morning to see if a female had arrived, and wondering if I would need to hand pollinate - I suddenly found one "with child"!

At this point I have 4 patty pan squash......

Patty Pan Squash

Providence, RI

Pumpkins - Well those female blossoms still have not arrived! The stems of the plants look like something is eating away at them..... like a lack of nourishment. The soil? Ants? Missing mineral?

My dreams of a new pumpkin patch are seeming thwarted........

However, I live in hope. 

And try not to cost average each tiny vegetable that I harvest from my little garden in the city.

on the street - a weekend in the country

Naumkeag

Stockbridge, MA

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Being in the mountains is both exhilarating and calming.  The majesty of the hills and the spectacular vistas are a feast for your eyes and your heart races along with awe. Yet, at the same time, the palette of a million greens and the soft infinity of rolling peaks calms one's spirit. 

It is a very healthy place to be.

We spent an afternoon at Mass MoCA in North Adams, MA with Tyler and Amy. We had gone there specifically to see the Darren Waterston installation, "Filthy Lucre" which was fascinating in both it's vision and it's commentary. Most likely because of "Ivanov",  the beauty/discord of "unsustainable opulence" rang out loud and clear! 

It is interesting when one notices a synergy of themes reoccurring in one's own life.....

All of us were enthralled by another artist/exhibit as well; Izhar Patkin, "The Wandering Veil".  There was a series of rooms filled with wall size paintings (14x22x28) done in ink on layers of pleated tulle!

Couldn't figure out how he did them.... printed? airbrush/stencil? Wow.

They were magical! 

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Tim and I then headed to Stockbridge, MA for an few days. We visited Naumkeag, a 48 acre gilded age estate built in 1885 and owned by the Choate family. The surviving daughter, Mabel, donated it to the Trustees of Reservations in 1959. The landscaping and gardens are spectacular - a culmination of over 30 years of work by the landscape architect, Fletcher Steele who was truly ahead of his time. By using the land itself and various architectural elements he defines the space and creates a wonderfully tranquil environment. 

It was a very overcast morning yet we wandered through the gardens for hours. Each of us finding our own paths of beauty.

It was here - at Naumkeag - in the bedroom of Mabel Choate, facing the Oak Lawn that Tim and I received a FaceTime call from Tyler and Amy giving us the news of their engagement!

Luckily, there were no others around and the docent was kind enough to let us enjoy the moment.

As the brochure says -

"preserving the aura of good times and gracious living."

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We saw a beautiful and extremely well sung production of "A Little Night Music" at the Berkshire Theatre Festival, costumes designed by our good friend, David Murin. (!) 

Had a relaxing dinner and evening with him as well. So fun to meet up with old friends and share a table, great food, and - always - lots of laughter! 

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Whenever we get in the car and travel, even short distances, to explore either new or familiar places we always find ourselves talking again about our old GMC motorhome or our (wish we did not sell) Roadtrek. 

We must look down the road and listen to our hearts.

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south end of Naumkeag 

Stockbridge, MA

at table - an engagement

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our favorite people

somewhere in the Berkshires

July 12, 2014

the day before their engagement

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It is actually quite fitting that Tyler proposed to Amy after making her breakfast on Sunday morning. I don't know what he served but I'm sure it was delicious and was made with special care - especially that morning.

Everyone gets comfortable and relaxes when there is good food to share.  

Good Food + Love = Lasting Memories

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We could not have asked for a better son and are so happy that he found the perfect complement in Amy. (whom we just happen to adore as well!!)

Here's to all the wonderful memories they will create over a lifetime! 

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in the studio - calm before the storm

Fireworks

India Point Park

Providence, RI

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There is a lull between when you hear a firework being set off and it actually exploding. A brief stillness connecting the ground with the trajectory and then, finally, it reaches the right altitude 

and

 BANG.  

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I am currently in that kind of lull, that quiet moment when everything has been put into motion and one waits for it to actually begin. Two weeks till we start building the costumes, 3 weeks till rehearsals start.

Sketches are done, all copies have been made for the costume

shop, the fabric is bought, lists are made.......

And now I worry. 

A lot.

Second guessing; will it work? is it too bold? is it not bold enough? is the palette too tight? 

is my vision clear? does it need to be clear?

Ugh!!!

Obviously, I need to let it go for the next few weeks and focus elsewhere.

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Having cleaned my studio of everything to do with the play (at least until Aug 4th) 

I am now trying to immerse myself again in my art work. Feed the mind. 

Looking thru my sketchbooks for ideas and pulling out and re-connecting 

with unfinished experiments. 

It's a puzzle to unlock.

Then it will be a puzzle to create.

I also worked on my Gallery page. 

I grouped the art work into categories - Past Work, Portraits, Stitched - with each 

having their own page. 

I also added the start of an artist's statement ...... or maybe it's the whole thing.

Don't know.

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in the garden - just flowers and more

Ahhh - a welcome to summer and all that it brings.

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Florida Sunflowers

grown by my good friend Janet! 

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more of those amazing Sunflowers!

You are a sunflower, my friend!

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Iris and Peonies from my garden.

Finally the sun came out and the iris and the peonies were the first to show up! 

Both are so fleeting in their bloom that I always cut a lot of them to have in the house to enjoy.

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Pink Peonies

Had an amazing crop of peonies this season - both deep pink and a very pale pink. 

For 3 weeks straight I had vases in every room filled with them.

They are so beautiful and their scent is sweet and filled with summer.

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Blue Hydrangea

Nothing says New England, and Cape Cod, more than a hydrangea to me. 

I planted this one last year after we moved in and it is coming along beautifully. I added 2 more this spring and hope for 

more blooms next year. 

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White Speedwell

These are so delicate and pretty and, along with the purple Salvia, they are magnets for bees!

I think next year I am going to put some of these in right next to the vegetables .......

a little extra help with pollination would not be a bad thing!

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White Hydrangea

I inherited a large one of these with the house last year and I divided it into 3 - all of which have almost doubled in size.

I also added another late in the summer. Hydrangeas are so continually prolific adding color and texture to the garden all summer long. 

And I still have some of last years' blooms dried and sitting in a vase on top of the refrigerator.

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The lilies - both the Daylily and Lilium varieties - have just begun to bloom along with the Shasta Daisies, Cone Flowers, and Astilbe. 

All of these will continue blooming throughout the season.

By July they should all be joined by the rest of the players; the flowering Hostas, Lianthus, Sedum, Coreopsis, Butterfly Bush, and Rose of Sharon.

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And lest we forget the veggies!

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Cipollini  Onions

This is my first time with onions and I am trying both Cipollini and one called South Carolina Sweets.

So far... so good.

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Pumpkins to be

Yes, ever since my "accidental" pumpkin patch (in Columbus, OH) I have been a fan and wanting to try it again.

So here we go...... Dried the seeds from my Halloween pumpkins last year and we currently have @ 10 healthy plants and lots of blossoms (hoping those bees find those blossoms)! I also planted Long Pie Pumpkin (also from seeds I had dried) which are currently looking just as good. 

I may have another urban pumpkin patch on my hands.

If so - we luckily have lots of children in the neighborhood and they can come pick their own Jack-O-Lantern.

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Also growing well in the garden is patty pan squash, cucumbers, tomatoes (in pots on the deck), Japanese eggplant, 

and lots of herbs.

and, of course, the gardener.

Providence, RI

June, 2014

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within the familiar - back in the saddle

Prop at Trinity Rep warehouse

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No turning back. 
I'm really doing it again! 
And - it actually feels GREAT!!

Six weeks until rehearsals begin for "Ivanov" and I am deep into my research, pulling costumes from the warehouse and theatre, fabric shopping, thrift store hunting, sketching and re-sketching. 
Repeat. 
Some characters seem very well defined in my mind while others are still searching for the "hook" I need in order to allow them to dwell in the world I am creating.  
And it needs to be consistent and have the right balance so that they can all share the space.
It is a world/time that is of it's own making- The male and female silhouettes are based in the early 1890's, definitely European, vaguely Russian, but ....... 
there is a real contemporary edge to all of it. 

"let it incubate
sprawl
be ungainly, misshapen ...
then it will emerge."


It feels so good to be back working with the words of a text. I LOVE delving into characters - listening for the character's voice, trying to understand what makes them tick. The playwright is telling us a story and the characters create that story. My job is to give the audience the visual clues that help them understand each character, how they relate to each other and all the nuance in between. 
I'm having such a good time!!!!!

Not to say that I am not having moments of indecision, fear, inadequacy, etc, etc.  But that usually accompanies any new project - no matter how many have preceded it. So all the sleepless nights and over-thinking seem quite normal at this point.
The sketches (for costumes that will need to be built from scratch) need to be ready in 4 weeks so that the shop can begin all patterns. 

Once rehearsals start we can then begin fittings and, of course, there will be changes and adjustments. There are still open questions that will not be resolved until rehearsals commence - such as the new prologue being added and what that will need in terms of costuming, how the contemporary music being written for the piece will be incorporated, and some other staging issues that we foresee.

Truthfully, that is the beauty and joy of working on the stage -
in the moment, as a community, for a purpose.

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Costumes at Trinity Rep warehouse

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in the studio - a first and a first!

Look Out

antique maps, thread, pencil on paper

8” x 10”

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I finally bit the bullet and entered a juried art show.......

Thrilled to have had both pieces accepted and overjoyed that "Look Out" has sold !!!!

Working on the nerve, and more art pieces, to enter more shows. 

One step at a time.

Hoping that I can get to Cape Cod at some point in June to see the show  -  and maybe add in a visit to see friends, eat oysters, visit the outer cape, eat oysters......

“Call Me Ishmael”

Cotuit Center for the Arts

May 21 - June 29

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Among Islands

antique maps, tracing paper, thread, pencil on paper

13” x 16”

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