Emelyn's Ashes

At the foundation pouring for the first floor studio, I found a small film canister to place some of mom's ashes into. When the cement was just right I pushed it down until it was level with the cement, in an area which will be the front left corner of dad's main studio work area floor. On top of this canister of Emelyn's ashes, I placed a small talavera tile brought back from our trip last February to San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. San Miguel is an artist town full of creative people, many of them Americans who winter in it's mountain plateau weather - warm during the day and cool every night. I had heard of San Miguel for years and always had wanted to go. After Doug and I spent 2 weeks there, visiting American artist friends who now have homes there and choose to live there either full time or for the winter, we learned that mom also had a desire to travel and take classes in San Miguel. While reading through mom's sketchbooks last summer, I found lots of information about traveling to San Miguel and thought it fitting to honor her desire to be connected to such a place with a ceramic tile to mark her now forever presence in the new studio building. I had the opportunity to spend this past Christmas again in San Miguel de Allende, and traveled with more of her ashes, placing some around the city, at both art schools and out in Pozos, a wonderful abandoned 1500's mining town about an hours drive from SMA.
Emelyn, I thank you for your wisdom, energy, strength, and precious time devoted to preserving family resources. Your concerned diligence made this building possible for dad to move under our care and continue to work within the creative realm. I miss you mom.

I love this shot at our driveway of the moon with really wild clouds, shot using Subaru headlights. Our house is on the left and the driveway swings around up the left into our dooryard.

This is the TSS system that is now all underground. It is made of foam insulated panels and 14-18" of spray expanding foam. After it was all put together, it was lined then filled with tubing, a storage tank, and sand making it solid and well insulated. All this is now has been back filled and is underground. The solar panels will feed into this system, as well as our GARN wood boiler which is heating our home, and dad's new building. The storage from this tank will be able to heat the super insulated building for about a month and a half in winter, giving us the flexibility to travel away from home/studio if needed.

Sorry folks, that it has been months since I have posted in this blog. The building has consumed our time as it progresses. Progress is the key word here. The foundation was poured back on October 9 and then the floor on November 24, 2009. We added a small canister of (my mom)Emelyn's ashes to the foundation corner which will be in Dad's studio, and placed a small Talevera tile from San Miguel de Allende on top of the canister, and also spread some ashes over the pour after it was finished. The TSS (thermal storage solutions) pit for an ECX vault (Environmental Climate Exchange) was dug to the left of the photo above. The size of storage is 1800 cubic feet. It is designed to store underground the heat from the wood boiler and solar panels.

November 24, 2009 Emelyn's ashes

Emelyn's ashes in a container set under a tile that Doug and I brought back from San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato, Mexico. This seems a bit fitting since mom had always wanted to go to San Miguel, I found references to San Miguel in her sketchbook writings - where to stay, the Instituto and Belles Arts and where to take classes, etc. Fleta's paw prints added for protection of her ashes, always aware she will spend hours in the studio once finished. Albeit backwards to the wall once the walls are put up, this corner is in my dad's studio, under the windows and is a safe spot to occupy. It is also on the south brook side of the building. Minutes later, I spread some more ashes over the concrete on the living space side of the building. I am guessing that we will place more of mom's ashes around as the building comes together. This building would not have happened if it was not for my mom, always creative, always encouraging my dad's creativity and always looking out for the best in life. Her work and her legacy is one to reflect upon and continue, creatively in this new space. Thanks Mom and Dad! I am so happy that Dad's building is coming along and am looking forward to dad in the studio again.

"Journey & Transition" Exhibition closes at White Water Gallery

The two person exhibition "Journey & Transition" has just closed as the gallery season itself closes at White Water Gallery in East Hardwick, Vermont. The gallery will re-open in Spring when the weather gets warmer. I have moved the work out of the gallery, and am looking forward to moving the pieces into the new studio. For now many of the pieces return to the walls of my home, comfortable to occupy the walls where some of them have lived for years. My space becomes once again familiar, each piece has it's place and serves as constant inspiration, comfort and visual feast.

The foundation walls are up on the building that is my dad's living and studio space, and my studio.
I am still packing up the old studio and my tools and materials - the yearly ritual to preserve liquids from freezing and everything else being ransacked by mice. One year they ate my metallic Sennielier oil pastels, the expensive ones!!! Why they would be possessed to chew oil impregnated with metals is beyond me. What stays in the building goes into mouse proof tubs, and I am hapy to think that this yearly ritual, and my stopping production of artwork over the winter season, will end with the new studio space, and begin with work continuing over every season. What joy in that thought.

It snowed this morning, a beautiful reminder of the season to come. I love the fall colors with the contrast of snow - oranges and yellows with the dark bark and softened delineations of line and form. By mid morning the snow was gone, melted in a mist of rainy wet hills, beyond my vision of fog and damp cool air. Last night V shaped squiggly lines of geese could be seen and heard overhead. Fall.

More Photo's from "Journey & Transition" at White Water Gallery