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Welcome to the second issue of Lion’s Paw!
                                                                                                                                                                                                Archive
In this issue…
    -         New Works – on exhibit at Del Ray Artisans’ gallery - closing reception July 26
    -          More New-Home News – a far-out new home for the cards and journals 
    -         Creativity Spark – talking to yourself 
    -         Nature Speaks – ticket to a crow bath
    -         The Gold Mine – poets’ paradise; gaga over GoggleWorks
    -         Quote of the Moment – think peace

New Works – on exhibit at Del Ray Artisans’ gallery...

As many of you know by now, I was fortunate to have three pieces of art accepted into the Del Ray Artisans 'Enduring Nude' show. They are on exhibit only through July 26 at their gallery in Alexandria, Va. A closing reception with music, wine, food and auction of select yet-unsold pieces will be held on Saturday, July 26, from 7 to 10pm. 

Each of my three works is a unique collage as stylized depiction of the human form. The largest piece, Natural Landscape, could be called "the human form as mountain range." Pieced together entirely from old maps, the prone figure lies on a field of road-mapped and country-bordered green, with sea blue and white collaged above her as the sky. (See partial closeup image on left.)

It's Your Own Music depicts a dancer caught mid-twirl from the back, the figure composed of curving blocks of old sheet music and imported and other decorative papers, on a background of antique player-piano scroll paper layed over other papers, in an overall color scheme of black, cream, gold and red. [This one sold opening night – though still available for viewing through the 26^th.]

The smallest of the three, Afraid of the Dark, features a handwriting-laden semi-gloss paper cut-out of a fetal-positioned female form, contained within a small "cage" of burlap mesh, against a black, faintly ink-stained background resembling a deep night sky.

See these three collages live at the Del Ray Artisans gallery now through July 26. For directions, visit http://www.thedelrayartisans.org/.  Note to all my local and traveling friends – I’d love to see you at the closing event!  Meanwhile, images are now posted online here.

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More New-Home News – a far-out new home for the cards and journals...

Last issue announced the new Northern Virginia home for my handmade journals and cards – Impulsive Gallery.  More good news — the haiku-origami greeting cards and both lines of journals are now also carried outside of Northern Virginia – at Zig Zag, in The Plains.

So, if you’re near the Washington Beltway, stop by Impulsive, and if you’re out in the beautiful countryside of Fauquier County, stop by Zig Zag, right on quaint downtown Main Street in The Plains, Va.  Both Impulsive and Zig Zag carry a delightful selection of art and fine crafts – lots of fun and fascinating ideas for gifts for friends and loved ones… or for yourself!

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Creativity Spark – talking to yourself...  
When was the last time you wrote a letter to yourself? How about a letter to your past self or your future self? Here’s a creative journaling idea, with two options – pick one, or do both, or give it your own slant:

• Write a letter to the past you – the you as a child – at some special turning point in your early life. Tell the past you how much you learned from him or her, how much you got out of your early experiences together, how far you’ve come. Be specific. What kind of “character-building” troubles or traumas did you endure, or instigate, as a child? How did that impact the you of today? For example, a childhood of many moves can intensify a love of home & hearth or inspire a wanderlust that keeps you passionately pursuing new horizons. Or, a lack of attention might result in a gloriously independent nature or an unusually deep appreciation for attentive friends and family… or both!  What has the past you taught the you of today?
• Write a letter to the future you. Remind your future self of all you’re beginning to accomplish to create the you of tomorrow – the future achievements being built on the hopes and dreams of now. How do you see yourself in a year? five years? ten years? What would you like your future self to know? What would you like to explain to the self you will grow into about the plans you have now for that future version of you? What do you think you’ll achieve in any given time to come? What will you be congratulating yourself for somewhere down the path past tomorrow?

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Nature Speaks – ticket to a crow bath...
Have you ever seen a crow with a bath toy?

The crows that visit my tiny backyard wildlife habitat are a bit big to be treating the bird bath as a communal hot tub. But they persist, splashing about, leaving little water for the smaller birds. Most times I tolerate them, but they drive me nuttier than a squirrel in winter.

But there is one crow I adore.

Gabby, a big beautiful American Crow that lives at the Wild Bird Center in Burke, Va.—where I buy bird and critter food—has given me an opportunity to appreciate crows even beyond everything I’ve read about their intelligence and social skills. And the chance to interact directly with this wild bird is priceless.

When she’s in an affectionate mood, she’ll jut her shiny black beak through a square wire opening in the roomy cage she calls home, begging for me to rub her soft head with my finger, then she'll coo and caw so intently it’s like a meow.  In a playful mood, she’ll amuse customers with a musical performance by pecking at the bells and balls hanging in an upper corner of her cage, or she'll spend endless time pushing a plastic cash-register tape core through the wire, often surprising an unsuspecting customer walking by.

In the years I’ve been visiting Gabby, I was only just recently around for “bath time.”  I’ve watched sparrows, wrens, cardinals and even doves frolic in my backyard bird bath, but none of their antics compared with the self-indulgent silliness of Gabby’s water-romp.  She splash-jumped smack into the center of her bath tub as soon as it was delivered to the bottom of her cage. She flapped around much like any bird in a bath but with a larger-than-life vigor -- quite a performance!+

The highlight of Gabby’s bath?... Remember that plastic spool she had clutched in her beak and poked through the wire squares of her cage?  She grasped it in her beak and then tossed it with a flip of her head into the tub of water. As it splashed and bobbed up, Gabby pecked at it, shoving it underwater again, until it once again surfaced, when she’d poke at it again, catch it in her beak and flip it up again, watch it splash, poke, toss, splash… and on and on… like a child playing with a bath toy.  

Such a delight... a front-row seat to the carefree frolicking of such a big beautiful bird!  I was still mesmerized even after she stopped playing and flexed her elegant wings to dry and groom.

Wildlife bonus!... Check out my newest backyard buddy -- the lateset addition to my little wildlife habitat -- who's definitely not camera-shy!  This little cottontail first visited en route from one neighbor's grassy backyard to another, leisurely hippity-hopping across my deck. Next time I spotted him, he was checking out my chipmunk feeder and munching some kind of green growth on the ground beneath the biggest bird feeder. He seemed to be making good progress too... maybe I should name him Mini-Vac.  No? Other suggestions?   

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The Gold Mine –
Poets’ paradise...

Looking for a wedding poem? or patriotic poetry? how about a poem honoring mothers?  The Web site of the Academy of American Poets (http://www.poets.org/) is a bottomless well of metaphors and imagery, and one of my favorite features is their Poems for Every Occasion page.  Wishing someone wellness, declaring love, saying goodbye… you’ll find a poem for nearly every event and emotion you could conjure, even poems about work.  I’m far from the first to muse on the woes of a poet working an office job. For similar amusement, check out John Ashbury’s poem, “The Instruction Manual.”

Dream of publishing your poems one day? Read an excellent set of writing & publishing FAQs.  Also on the site you’ll find discussion forums, resources for teachers, captivating and useful essays on writing, a calendar of poetry events, a great poetry glossary, links to other resources and more.  No, I’m not featured on their Web site or getting a commission on newsletter sign-ups… just passing on the scoop about a great Web site.  Enjoy!

Gaga over GoggleWorks...
I recently spent a long weekend in Reading, Pa., the driving event an artists reception at the Outsider Folk Art Gallery. The gallery, featuring the exhibit Internal Guidance Systems, is located the GoggleWorks Center for the Arts in downtown Reading. Originally constructed in 1871, this huge art center derives its name from its history as the first U.S. factory to manufacture optical glass for lenses in reading glasses and safety goggles. The plant eventually closed in 2002, and the City of Reading soon began plans to convert the complex into its current arts and cultural center.

If you're ever near Reading, head downtown and check it out.  It is huge -- five floors of artist studios, classrooms, galleries, even a cafe and a movie theatre. You could easily spend a couple full days there, but I managed to squeeze in quite a bit in one afternoon... even made some new friends.  If you make it up to the fifth floor, be sure to stop by the Outsider Folk Art Gallery and say hello to Emily.
   

On the way back home, I stopped at Longwood Gardens to explore their treehouse exhibit -- what fun! -- three very different styles, all beautifully blending with nature.  The one pictured at left (and on right, with me on treetop porch) actually looked quite livable.  I asked about the rent but then realized I'd probably have to chop wood for a living or become a forest ranger.  Hmmm... the latter really doesn't sound so bad.  Check back next issue........





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