Monday, October 28, 2019

Artotes: For the Birds

Bird of a Different Color  Laurie Fox Pessemier  Acrylic/Paper  15 x 25"  41 x 63cm  160.00

Fall Leaves Ronzoni  Laurie Fox Pessemier  Acrylic/canvas  12 x 12; 30 x 30cm  175

Migrating Birds   Laurie Fox Pessemier   Acrylic/wood  7 x 13"  17 x 33

Playing Cards in Luxembourg Gardens, Fall     Blair Pessemier  Acrylic/canvas panel 12 x 12  30 x 30cm  225.00


Searching for Treasure   Laurie Fox Pessemier  Acrylic/wood  7 x 13  17 x 33 cm  160.00


Fall in the Luxembourg Gardens Laurie Fox Pessemier  Acrylic/canvas  9.5 x 13"  24 x 33cm  225.00

I painted outdoors in Rocca Malatina on Monday.  We’re having an unusually warm period here – last year at this time it snowed.  This year, the leaves are simply fantastic:  reds like crazy.   Harika loves these sunny mornings– when we go for walks she runs and jumps and rolls in the grass.

I found a birds nest this week.  I am always looking for things on the street:  inspiring things.  Really, the birds do the same thing:  they find a piece of twig, twine and an odd feather, and weave it all together to call home.   Since we got the new locking garbage cans in Rocca Malatina, I can’t just open the lid anymore and look in.  I used to find the BEST stuff: a floor lamp; glass demijohns I feature as green glass bubbles in my yard; a hardly broken dish that makes a good prop; twelve champagne glasses; a full, sealed bottle of whiskey.  Now one must have a card to open the dumpster, and it registers how many times you use it – over 30 a year and you are charged extra.   2019: the year the dumpsters closed.

One of the chickens got out of the yard this morning, and we found it on our walk home.  Harika was able to use her herding skills to get it into the yard.  We’ve had a decline in the fowl population – the polecat (weasel) got three the other night.  On our way home from dinner at 10PM, we saw him run across the street into the yard.  I can’t let Harika out in the dark.

There have been hundreds of birds in the big cypress tree nearby, getting ready for the flight south.  The tree is alive with chirping, every morning, all day, save for when they all take off and “murmur”, a giant flock flying in unison, together.  Their movements create waves, wriggling snakes, whirlpools, clouds.

We have a terrific singing bird near our front porch right now.  Yesterday, when an obnoxious internet ad commenced with birdsong, the bird outside sang back.  It was quite touching, something so personal and lovely responding to what I perceived as just awful.

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