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Posts Tagged ‘books’

Recently, a friend invited me to join her for an “art-in,” and there she provided me with paper, pens and watercolors and encouraged me to paint whatever came to mind.  I decided to paint what I call a little somerset sky.

a somerset sky

a somerset sky

Its origin is this:  Of late, W. Somerset Maugham’s  Of Human Bondage has found its way into my hands, and there is a particular color-filled passage that I return to.  It is near the end of the book.  After an eventful night, Philip Carey, the main character …

“He leaned against the parapet and looked toward the morning.  At that hour the great city was like a city of the dead. The sky was cloudless, but the stars were dim at the approach of day; there was a light mist on the river, and the great buildings on the north side were like palaces in an enchanted island.  … It was all of an unearthly violet, troubling somehow and awe-inspiring; but quickly everything grew pale, and cold, and grey.  Then the sun rose, a ray of yellow gold stole across the sky, and the sky was iridescent .”

Thanks, Carol, for the opportunity to put brush to paper.  More about Carol’s beautiful artwork later this summer.

Have a good day, folks. 😉

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Lucy Schildkret Dawidowicz

Lucy Schildkret Dawidowicz

As part of my research with the Interlude series, I’ve been reading the memoir, From That Place and Time, by Lucy S. Dawidowicz. The narrative focuses on the period 1938-1947, and the author’s time spent pre-war in Vilna, Poland, studying at the Yiddish Scientific Institute (YIVO) and then her later post-war work to identify the remains of the YIVO library.  The Interlude series is my attempt to share some of what I’ve learned in my walk through history via the life of Joseph Anthony Horne.  The paths of Ms. Dawidowicz and Mr. Horne cross in 1947 in the German city of Offenbach at the Offenbach Archival Depot.  More details to follow in the next Interlude, coming soon.

 

 

 

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When I wrote the photo essay Branching Thoughts at the end of last year for Creativity-Portal.com I made some promises that I actually wasn’t sure I was going to keep, about being disciplined and stop putting off until tomorrow what I could conceivably do today.  I love trees. I’ve always written about trees and once I picked up a camera I began photographing them, especially the branches.  I’ve finally put together a big book of branches, a 108-page collection of images taken across Massachusetts.  It is available as a soft cover book or PDF for $8.95.  Click on any of the images below to check it out.

Branches Cover by Cynthia Staples

Branches Cover by Cynthia Staples

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This is a limited edition book created for a few folk who made our recent stay in Dublin, Ireland so lovely.  It can take a lot of energy to welcome strangers into your home and treat them like family, which is exactly what one couple did.  And it can take a lot of energy to welcome visitors from around the world to your home country and make sure those visitors experience a sense of place, which is exactly what conference organizers managed to do.  Once they have books in hands, I hope they enjoy the images that could not have been compiled without their generosity, good-spirits and great walking maps.  Thank you. 😉

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… but i am happy to be home. Plus we returned just in time to attend a book festival in Boston. No books were bought but I did have the pleasure of meeting some of the people behind 21st Editions, The Art of the Book.  As a press that uniquely marries fine art photography with poetry, it is my dream publisher.  They produce works primarily acquired by libraries and museums.  As I told one of the staff, the newsletter they send out to subscribers is quite inspiring. I’ve been especially fascinated by the short videos produced to highlight upcoming titles.  When asked what I liked about them, I shared that it was the audio element added to the mix of words and images.  Below is one of my favorites — images of 21st Editions books with a poem read by poet John Wood.  Enjoy.

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As a child, I loved all literary critters from Stuart Little to Wilbur in Charlotte’s Web.  I also loved the feisty young heroes in books like Little House on the Prairie, The Black Stallion, The Secret Garden, The Swiss Family Robinson and so many more.   I wanted to be those young people and see the places described in those literary worlds.  Those young people and those stories helped to shape my initial views of my country, the world, and of myself.  I think I turned out okay. 😉  But I do recognize as writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie asserts in the following TED presentation how stories — or the communication of “a single story” — can have unexpected consequences at many levels.  In her eloquence on a thought-provoking topic, she raises both my awareness as reader and writer.  I hope you have a chance to view.

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Have you read Ray Bradbury’s The Pedestrian?  I had not until today.  Out loud.  Quite moving.  Amazing how some stories remain timeless, isn’t it? I also chanced upon the following video, a six minute and forty-four second student production based on the 1951 short story.  The dialogue is in German but if you do not speak German, I think the scenery and music are powerful enough.   See what you think when you have a chance.

The original short story:  The Pedestrian by Ray Bradbury

The YouTube video: http://youtu.be/t3qZsXStnlw

The Wiki summary (with some quotes by Bradbury): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pedestrian

 

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Reading Emily Toth’s The Public Library Was My Bookstore just reinforced for me that there is no greater public institution than the public library.  As a child in Lynchburg, Virgnia, the public library was one of the few places my mother would allow my younger brother and I to walk by ourselves.  When we were older, and our young niece and nephew would visit for the summer, we would literally carry them piggyback to the library to keep them entertained.  My nephew who is now 30 with a child of his own still remembers those rides.  Once I moved to the Boston area, one of my homes away from home quickly became the Boston Public Library.

If you are ever in Boston, please visit the main branch located on Boylston Street in Copley Square.  It was the country’s first public library and remains one of its most important.  It is an expansive structure that has evolved over time.  In the “old part” you will find some of the most beautiful and unique art of John Singer Sargent.  In the “new part” you will find the books and there amidst the shelves and sitting at the tables you will find the mix of Boston’s humanity – young mothers with children, high school students studying (kind of), college students researching, business people escaping the office for a bit, the homeless resting, people learning English with tutors, tourists snapping photos (without flash), and everything and everyone in between.  It is an experience.

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One of the best job experiences I ever had was working with middle school students as part of an after school writing program.  The children usually engaged in an outdoor activity and then they wrote about the experience.  One of the indoor rainy day activities was to present the children with a folder of images.  Each child selected a photograph that moved him or her in some way.  It was always amazing to read what they wrote.  Their imagination and creativity inspires me to this day.  That’s why I was excited to be part of the book project, Reflect & Write.  I’m honored to have two of my poems included among the nearly 300 poems, photographs and quotations composing this wonderful resource designed to help prompt children to put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboards and touch screens).  Via this link you can take a peek inside the book and see if it is a resource that might be useful for stirring the creativity of the young people in your life.

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A friend just shared the extended trailer for the movie Cloud Atlas, based on the novel by David Mitchell. After only thirty seconds of viewing, I knew the trailer was all the excuse I needed to share some cloud photos. Mostly taken in the Greater Boston area.  Enjoy!

As for that trailer, if you’d like to view for yourself, just click here.  A bit long but darned inspiring.  So, while my creative procrastination most recently was photographing a plum, I think today it will most certainly be an afternoon walk with my camera pointed at the sky.  Hmmm, that’s probably why my family worries about me when I’m crossing the road. 😉

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