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Collingswood Second Saturday

2011-09-10T02:47:35Z

Collingswood Second Saturday Event

     Hopefully, weather permitting, I will be displaying paintings at this event in Collingswood, NJ, on Haddon Avenue.

     I participated in this event in July of this year. It was a beautifully humid, summer evening. The atmosphere was fantastic. Across the two lane avenue from where I set up my display was a band of four or five young people. They could not have been older than 20 or 21 years old. They played some of my jazz favorites. I thought how fortunate I was to listen to their music all evening.

     The Collingswood Second Saturday starts at 6:00 PM and lasts until 9:00 PM. The people are very friendly, inquisitive about the art, and come out ready to have a good time enjoying the musical and visual arts and the food the restaurants offer.  The other artists are inspiring. I saw paintings of different mediums and styles, drawings; (You must see drawings by Michele Foster-Lucas!!), and jewelery...And I only walked one block! I could not stray far from my own paintings. There are boutique shops and restaurants that line this avenue. I applaud the organizing committee in Collingswood; as it says on their Facebook page, the Collingswood Second Saturday Team, for their efforts. I especailly applaud them for their appreciation of the arts and the willingness to create a way so art can be accessible and enjoyed.

     As the daylight was leaving, streams of lights cris-crossed the street above our heads. The sidewalks were crowded.  The artists were packing up, but there were sights and sounds of people laughing, music; telling signs that the jovial atmosphere was going to remain after we, the artist, packed up and were gone. Collingswood's Second Saturday has a lot to offer for those who enjoy the arts, dining, and good company.

    Come and enjoy Collingswood's Second Saturday. Look for me and my original paintings.
I look forward to meeting you.

Poems are Like Paintings

2011-07-05T03:14:47Z

I am an artist, obviously a visual artist, but I am going to talk to you about poetry. To me, a poem is like a painting. If there is an art form I love aside from painting, it is poetry; the verbal visual. I must admit though, music is my life partner. Everything goes with music. And, no, I do not mean the other way around - music goes with everything. Music is the central element. Everything goes with music. Umm…Let’s move on.

A poem is like a painting in the sense that a poem can create a vision of a moment in time inside the mind of the reader. The poet builds the poem around an emotion, most often love, hurt, or hate. The reader’s emotions traverse the structure of the poem. Visions sneaking in with every line read. The one word lines adding potency to the verbal visual. Sometimes the poems pace is slow, dangling the words through to the end until the reader is anticipatory in feeling because of the slow, deliberate pace. But the picture has been formed the verbal visual has been reached. The idea has been conveyed. The words have been displayed for the reader. It is left up to the reader to take the journey, to interpret, to visualize.

A poem touches the heart, inspires feelings, gives way to new ways of thinking; connects to new and old ways of feeling. The poet’s words become power by pulling the reader in to the moment. We give in willingly; sometimes unwillingly. The moment is cathartic. The medicine is pure. The journey, if a poem is good and true, is a type of cleansing that leaves the physical untouched, but the emotional, and maybe even the spiritual, in meaningful contemplation.. As does a good painting.

A painting, meaning an original painting, one we find that draws us, we find ourselves trying to engross every nano “meter” with our eyes, at the same time engulfing the painting as a whole. We stare, we think with our eyes, but we have stopped moving, then we begin to move to see the painting from every possible angle. We are entranced, abandoning all else for the moment. We are touched and the emotions from that touch are hard to immediately explain, so verbal sounds abound. “Ooh.” Wow.“” “Look at that” “ How did…? Then we are calm letting the feelings overcome and still us for a moment. We are memorizing. A camera shot is not good enough; even so, we take the picture. We want to remember as much of the painting, the brush stokes, the paint textures, the colors, the tones, the movement, the expression, the mood, as we can, and take it with us. Keep the feeling with us as long as possible. Hold the feeling close to our hearts. Just like when reading a good poem.

Which is better? Paintings or poetry? Visual or verbal? These questions should not be answered. Why should one form of art be considered “better” than the another form of art? We must have both painting and poetry. Emotionally we are multifaceted. Our senses need nurturing, healing, jolting, to be used. Feeling the visual, seeing the written, hearing the musical. Or is it seeing the visual, feeling the written…..my point exactly!

Thank you King David, Langston Hughes, Claude McKay, Gwendolyn Bennett, Maya Angelou; so, so many to name for the written word. Who would you name? Who has spoken to your spirit?

Thank you to all the lyrical poets, as well.

…And thank you to my husband for poems that are now buried in my drawer, which he gave to me during the young days of our relationship.

Thank you, Poets.

And thank you to one of my daughters, a poet herself. Here is one of her poems she has allowed me to share.

I guess I wasn’t worth enough to begin with.

I guess I wasn’t cool enough, either.

I guess I wasn’t funny enough,

Or, I wasn’t smart enough.

Good enough.

Or pretty enough.

And I guess I never was enough.

And I guess I’ll never be enough.

Well, guess what?

Enough is enough!

　

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
As for me, back to painting….!

Class of 2020, maybe....

2011-03-20T00:18:00Z

First, thank you to everyone who has commented on my blog and my website. I really appreciate your comments and your encouragement. I have not kept up with blog entries as I would have liked to do. There is a very exciting reason …..

This self taught artist has started school. Art and design school. One of the best art and design schools in the country. At age 53, I thought if I am to go back to school that it should be one of the best schools; the experience should serve my time well. I discovered myself as an artist when I was in my late 30's. Painting grew from a pleasant experience to a sanctuary, and is shifting into something within that sanctuary that I do not think should be caged into a limiting definition other than called a remarkable experience. Given the choice, this is absolutely the thing I would do for the rest of my life.

I am not going to school to change myself, my artist self. I have come to a point where learning more about art in a multi-disciplinary setting will only enhance my artist self. I have so many interests in art, so little time to manage all of these ideas, and I lack the appropriate resources. I am hoping what I learn in school will help me to organize those ideas in ways that will support my efforts in using my art and knowledge to enrich the lives of other people. To me , that would be a marvelously purpose filled journey with a most gratifying outcome. You know? Time well spent.

So, as it goes….. I am 53, studying for my BFA - Bachelor of Fine Arts - part time. Maybe I will graduate in 6 years, 7 years, or 10 years. I am old enough now to know to enjoy the journey, and insure by my actions that this journey is a purposeful journey. Live in the moment. Most definitely keep the long term in view, but for me at 53, I am going to find joy in the artistic challenge of the moment! Artistically, I am still a youngster asking the questions.

Next post: My visit to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.

My Zazzle Store is Open!

2010-09-09T02:10:00Z

I am really excited to have found a site that I can create products with all of these paintings I have painted over the last fifteen years. This is fun! It is exciting and just a bit thrilling to see the items produced using images of my paintings.  If you review the "Buy" page on this website you will see some examples of the product designs. Now, when someone asks me about obtaining a print of my work, I can offer them a quality product!! At last!!!

At the time of this writing, I am offering prints, canvas prints, and tote bags. I am working on a lot more designs. So, visit my store, https:\\www.zazzle.com\debralynnart*.   Visit often. Since my store is new, I am still building and designing the product line.

Thank you to everyone who has ever offered me any amount of encouragement with my painting.  Your encouragement has meant so very much to me.

God bless.

First entry

2010-05-30T02:07:00Z

My first painting was on poster board. You know. The poster board used for grade school projects.

This is my second painting.

Acrylic on board, 12" x 15".

This is my third painting.
Acylic on board. 16" x 20"'

My work has been termed primitive or naïve. Being oblivious to the world of a proper art education, I was naïve and felt a little insulted that my work was being called naïve, and primitive. Here I am an African American woman who is doing art work that is being called primitive. Primitive to me was a non-complementary description of a people who are uneducated. But, there are many means of education, especially in different cultures.

My old family Thorndike Barnhart - The World Book Dictionary' s definition of primitive is as a noun, "an artist belonging to an early period, especially before the Renaissance." That is not me. The next definition says, "an artist who does not use the techniques of perspective, shading, or the like in painting. " and "a picture painted by such artists." The same dictionary has the definition for the word "naïve" as, "simple in nature; like a child; not sophisticated; artless".

True, I do not have a formal art education. So all kinds of questions began to twirl in my mind...Should I be painting? Should I be showing what I paint? Should I have an expectation that people will buy my paintings? Should I have an expectation that my paintings are worth being seen? Should I obtain an art degree? Am I worthy? What is art and who says what is art? Should I be dictated by the traditional rules of what is art? If I can not, and/or do not want to create in the traditional sense should I consider being called an artist? What is the purpose of my art anyway? More importantly, what is the purpose of me creating my art? Why has the Creator made me one of His vessels in this way? Some questions are answers to others.

Fortunately, and rightfully, Outsider art has become highly valued and acceptance has somewhat been given by the traditional art world.

My paintings have also been categorized as Outsider art. Of course, that is the overall term for naïve or primitive art by self taught artists with no formal art education, and other artists who have an art education and create in this style. I am better able to accept this term. I can embrace this categorization. Although I am self-taught, art degreeless, naïve in art education, and my work may well be primitive, or fresh; the importance here is that you get to decide if these things are true. You get to decide if you like my art, and if any of these terms or labels really matter in your judgment. Now, there's the fun!

Check out some of the Outsider artists and websites that feature Outsider artists. Search "Outsider artists or galleries". Have fun!

Welcome

2009-12-27T01:47:42Z

Welcome to my blog. Please check back soon for new entries.