Bellying Up

Do not quit. You see, the most constant state of an artist is uncertainty. You must face confusion, self-questioning, dilemma. Only amateurs are confident . . . be prepared to live with the fear of failure all your life. –William Ormond Mitchell The toughest patch of uncertainty in this artist’s life is usually those few […]

Deep Season

A Charm I have a twin who bears my name; Bears it about with him in shame; Who goes a way I would not go; Has knowledge of things I would not know; When I was brave he was afraid; He told the truth, I lied; What’s sweet to me tastes bitter to him; My […]

Pamela Farrell on Revealing

Lacuna 73, by Pamela Farrell (image courtesy of Pamela Farrell) I recently made contact with Pamela Farrell, an artist, blogger and psychotherapist. Her rich and lush paintings, mostly done in encaustic, caught my eye immediately. And it was through Pam that I was first introduced to another worthwhile art blog, Color Chunks. Here is a […]

The Terror of Waking

Three Days of Forest, a River, Free The dogs have nothing better to do than bark; duty’s whistle slings a bright cord around their throats. I’ll stand here all night if need be, no more real than a tree when no moon shines. The terror of waking is a trust drawn out unbearably until nothing, […]

Schooled by Sand

I just returned from three days in Maine. My friend Katie is part of a family that has been going to the same hidden spot–Maine’s largest stretch of undeveloped shoreline–for four generations, and it is through her that I came to know and love this exquisitely unpopulated, shimmeringly pristine beach. Everything here revolves around the […]