Month: September 2022

The Grand Theatre Watercolor Painting By The GYPSY

The Artist Life: The Grand

Art Takes On Many Forms. Some Art Creates Magic Memories.

Once upon a time there was a quaint little village called Topeka in an enchanted land known as Kansas.

The village of Topeka was not remarkable as villages go. The native Topekan’s were friendly people who took care of the needs of their village. Working hard from sunrise to sunset the people of the village had little to entertain them.

One day a powerful Magician visited the village and saw that the hard working Topekan’s needed some way to relax and re-energize their spirit. Picking a large Sunflower from a local field the Magician waved it in the air and in the middle of the village appeared a Grand Palace; a magical and wondrous place.

Brightly colored carpets led to sparkling glass and chrome counters which displayed the most wonderful treats the villagers have ever seen. There were Sweets and Sours, Corn Light as Air and Drinks in all Colors of the Rainbow, Ice that had been Creamed and Beans of Jelly were the delights that the Villagers could partake in.

Within its blue walls lit by orange lights the Topeka Villagers could relax in cool darkness on velvet thrones. Within the soothing shadows the Magician would shine his lantern on velvety, gold gilded curtains that reached to a ceiling so high above that the top of it could barely be seen by the Topekan’s below. And as the lantern illuminated the Grand Curtain it would slowly part and reveal behind it’s secret folds a silvery land wherein the most talented of performers dwelled. There were Nuns who Sang, Eunuchs who Jest, Spies who Dance and Cowboys who Croon. There were Monsters and Madmen, Bears and Mermaids, Kings and Queens, Hero’s and Villains and all would entertain for a small offering of only a couple of shinning tokens.

For years this Magical Grand Palace gave the Villagers of Topeka in the land of Kansas a place to escape and renew their soul yet time moves on and the Magician grew old. For you see the magician stayed young from feeding on the energy of the laughter, the tears, the ooh’s and the ah’s, thrills and chills. Yet the villagers of Topeka forgot to feed the Magician.
As the Magician withered away and died so too did the Grand Palace until one day all the magic disappeared and so did the place that had captured that magic.

The villagers of Topeka scarce noticed that the marvelous Grand Palace was disappearing until it was gone. Then, on that day that the last brick of the magical place was wiped from the earth forever they bemoaned the loss, swearing to never let another Palace as Grand as that one had been disappear from the village ever again.

So it is that the resourceful Topekans strive to keep another Magical Palace alive for within it’s walls lives a strange and rare creature known as a Jayhawk. The villagers have learned that to keep the magic alive you must feed the creator of the spell and they have vowed to feed the Jayhawk.

Yet never again will there be a Palace as Grand as that which was lost to all except those that remember the magic it shared.

-The GYPSY-

Once Upon A Fence Watercolor Painting By The GYPSY

The Artist Life: Autumn Has Arrived

I LOVE FALL

As An Artist I Am In My Element

I have always loved the Fall Season. There is so much about it to love. The feel of the air. The smell of the vegetation as it draws itself into sleep for the winter. The taste of drinks and foods that say Autumn is here and the colors; oh those glorious colors.

I was born in the Fall Season but I do not think that is why I love fall. I am sure some Psychiatrist would disagree if he had me on his couch. Fortunately I am not neurotic enough to need a therapist digging into my psyche… I can dig into my own psyche, My mind, the mind of a Scorpio, can at times be a scary thing and that’s why Autumn is important to me.

The bright colors of Autumn push the dark within my mind back into the corners where the darkness belongs. Life weighs heavy on my artist soul and Autumn lifts that weight as my artist pallet again translates the season onto the canvas of my art and my life.

Some of what I create this Fall will be done within the Free Art Classes I am giving on Facebook Live every Wednesday. In that way I can share my love of the season with others, But some of my Autumn Art will be done within the darkness of the night in the wee hours of the morning. As I sit at my table inside my warm, cozy home by the fireplace and create the colorful images of Autumn while the wood nymphs’ frolic outside my window in the cool air kicking up the fallen leaves.

What colorful pieces of art will I catch this season with my camera that I can later translate onto paper and canvas? Who knows? What I do know is that whatever I create it will be glorious and uplift my heart and soul.

The GYPSY

Yeso, New Mexico Watercolor Painting By The GYPSY

The Artist Life: Things To Know About Ghost Towns

Ghost Towns Offer Unlimited Creative Opportunities For The Artist and Photographer

Yeso, New Mexica Ghost Town Photograph

Yeso, New Mexico Watercolor Painting By The GYPSY

VISITING A GHOST TOWN CAN INSPIRE YET YOU MUST SHOW RESPECT

I have always had a fascination with ghost towns. I have a deep desire to know their story. How was the town born? What was it like in it’s prime? What caused it to die? And why does it’s ghost linger on long after the town is gone?

As an artist my eye sees beyond the decay. I see the remaining color, the shapes and the textures. Oh those textures! I smell the scents of the town; secret deep scents that still linger long after the last barber gave his last shave. Long after the last Thanksgiving Turkey was cooked. Those scents linger within the rotting wood and crumbling stone. But most importantly I hear the stories the town has to tell and as I listen I reach out my hand and capture those stories.

Sometimes I do it with photography, sometimes with the written word and sometimes with paint but always with the respect that the town earned and deserves. I love ghost towns and I really can’t say why beyond the artistic opportunity that they afford me. Maybe there is something deeper in my psyche that knows that long after I have become a ghost these “Villages of the Lost”, though ghosts themselves, will still be visible to generations to come.

THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT GHOST TOWNS

If you are artistically drawn to visit and capture the stories of ghost towns there are a few important things and rules that should be observed. First and foremost is remember; though it may be a ghost town there may still be living people that call it home. Also though a property may be abandoned does not mean that it is unowned. Do not intrude or trespass! Let’s examine Ghost Towns and how you can show proper respect.

VILLAGES OF THE LOST

A “Ghost Town” is any community that is either abandoned, whose main industry that kept the town vital has ceased to exist or whose population and community infrastructure has declined to a level that recovery into a thriving community is highly improbable. There are three types of Ghost Towns: completely deserted ghost towns; towns with a minimal population; and still-thriving towns.

Philip Varney, the author of several popular Ghost Town books defines what to look for in Ghost Town:

  1. Scattered rubble or site where nature has reclaimed the land
  2. Roofless buildings or partially demolished buildings
  3. Boarded up or abandoned buildings, no population
  4. A community with many abandoned buildings and a small population of residents
  5. Historic community or town, functional, but much smaller than in its boom years
  6. A restored town, state park, or replica of an old town, community or fort

GHOST TOWN CODE OF ETHICS:
The following partially taken and modified by Kathy Weiser/Legends of America from Gary Speck’s Ghost Town Ethics, Ghost Town USA

I WILL NOT
1. Destroy, damage or deface any buildings or other structures.
2. Disturb any structures that are locked or appear to be occupied.
3. Remove anything from the site other than obvious trash such as candy wrappers, soft drink cans, etc.
4. Enter a site that is posted as “No Trespassing” without permission.
5. Take in a metal detector without the permission of the owner. These are often the badge of a vandal to local residents.

I WILL
1. Observe all rules and regulations be they local, state, or national.
2. Camp and make fires only in designated safe locations.
3. Leave the land and vegetation as it is.
4. Fill all holes or excavations I make.
5. Remove and properly dispose of any trash I find, and will not litter.
6. Respect the rights and property of landowners, leave gates as found, and obey all posted signs.
7. Appreciate and protect this nation’s ghost towns and the heritage they represent.
8. Always conduct myself in a manner that is courteous and polite, and always show consideration for others.

Visiting Ghost Towns can always be fun and educational as long as they and the people that have called and may still call them home are respected.

I hope this has given you some inspiration to explore and artistically capture a ghost town or abandoned structure near you. I would love to see your creations. Please join our Facebook Group The Artist Life Creations and share your art and stories.