the artful mind artzine august issue 2013 issuu com

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THE ARTFUL MIND August 2013 Monthly Berkshire Artzine Since 1994 KINUKO Y. CRAFT Contemporary Painter and Illustrator Photography by Sabine Vollmer von Falken

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The Artful Mind artzine, August issue 2013...featuring Kinuko Y. Craft, Illustrator and Contemporary Painter. Calendar of events, astrology by Eric Francis, press releases, SImply Sahsa, Stephen Dietemann, and RIchard Britell, and so much more!

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THE ARTFUL MINDAugust 2013 Monthly Berkshire Artzine Since 1994

KINUKO Y. CRAFTContemporary Painter and IllustratorPhotography by Sabine Vollmer von Falken

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OPENING RECEPTION AUGUST 17 • 5 to 7

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THE ARTFULMIND AUGUST 2013 •1

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2 • August 2013 The ArTful Mind

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THE ARTFULMIND AUGUST 2013 •3

museums & galleries510 WARREN STREET GALLERYhudson, nY • 518-822-0510recent Paintings by linda Clayton, "BeinG in The MYS-TerY", Aug 2-25

ALLIUM RESTAURANT And GAllerY42 railroad St, Gt Barrington, MA • 413-528-2118 /opentable.comAllium will feature the selected works from Berkshire-based artistSean riley beginning Tuesday, May 21. riley will be showing anew body of work that includes paintings on panel as well asdyed-paper collages. These colorful works evoke certain qualitiesof fabric and use patterns that fold in upon themselves in origami-like fashions that give rise to a tension between flat and three-di-mensional space.

A.P.E GALLERYnorthampton, MA • 413-529-1895A PriZe eVerY TiMe!Sally Curcio, Amy Johnquest, AnnelaPrade Seuthe. September 6th thru 29th, 2013

BERKSHIRE ART GALLERY80 railroad St, Gt Barrington, MA • 528-2690www.berkshireartgallery.com19th and early 20th Century American & european art and sculp-ture, contemporary artists

CATA CATA GALLERY70 railrd. St. Gt. Barrington, MASolo exhibit of work by Berkshire artist Pat hogan from August15 through August 29. The public is invited to a reception August17 from 5 to 7 pm.

FRONT STREET GALLERYfront St., housatonic, MA • 413-274-6607 / 413-528-9546, orcell at 413-429-7141housatonic Gallery for students and artists. featuring watercolorsby Kate Knapp (Saturday and Sunday 12-5pm or by appointment)

GALLERY 25311 north Street, Pittsfield, Studio #9 • 413-442-7718, or 413-841-1659 • margebride-paintings.com/ [email protected] exhibit of watercolors by Marguerite Bride entitled “Pass-ports during the entire month of August; an opening reception willbe held on friday, August 2 from 5-8 pm. (by appointment only)

GOOD PURPOSE GALLERY40 Main Street, lee, MA / www.goodpurpose.org A retrospective, showcasing John K. lawson’s recent and previ-ous works of art will be on display til September 2.

JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER OF AMHERST742 Main St., Amherst, MA • 413-549-5115Gallery: no One is home: Barcodes, Suburbia and the holocaust.Simone Alter Muri and harriet Graicerstein. Mother - daughtercollaboration. Aug - Oct 25

NEUMANN FINE ART65 Cold Water St., hillsdale, nY • www.neumannfineart.comOpening July 6th and running through September 2nd will featuretwo painters, Ken Young and Jeffrey l. neumann

NORMAN ROCKWELL MUSEUMrte 183, Stockbridge, MA .8 413-298-4100Snow White and The Seven dwarfs: The Creation of a Classic.Thru Oct 27. enjoy this mischievous and unique retelling of theclassic Snow White tale by Adam Gidwitz, bestselling author ofin a Glass Grimly and A Tale of dark and Grimm. Book signingto follow. Maya and Beyond:An evening with Jarvis rockwellThursday, August 15, 5:30 p.m.

ART ON MAINTHE GALLERY AT BARNBROOK REALTY271 Main Street, Great Barrington, MA. • ruth Kolbert’s studio413-229-0380 / rkolbert [email protected]

exhibit by ruth Kolbert, "friends, Artists and Special Places:new Paintings” from June 29 to August 29.

OXBOW GALLERY275 Pleasant Street, northampton, MA • 413-586-6300 www.oxbowgallery.orgPainters Mark Soderling and liz Wilson, thru Sept. 1

R&F ENCAUSTICS845 Ten Broeck Avenue, Kingston, nYa solo exhibition of paintings by Visiting Artist, Gregory Wrightentitled, forces. This exhibition will be on view from August 3rdthrough September 21st,

SCHANTZ GALLERIES3 elm St, Stockbridge, MA • 413-298-3044 www.schantzgalleries.com. A destination for those seeking premier artists working in glass.(11 - 5 daily)

SYBIL PERRYThe GAllerY AT KinderhOOK GrOuP19 Main Street (route 41), Salisbury, CT Savor the Seasons,” a solo exhibition of new landscape paintingsby Sybil Perry, Cornwall artist, will be on view at The Gallery atKinderhook Group in Salisbury from August 1 to August 31.

ST. FRANCIS GALLERY1370 Pleasant St, rte 102, lee, MA • 413-717-5199“Freedom of Expression”, June 28 - August 12. Closed Weekendof August 17; PrinT and PASTe: Aug 23-Sept 30, reception:Aug 31, 3-6pm; COlOr and line, Oct 4 - nov 18, reception:Oct 12, 3-6pm. inSPirATiOn of the SPiriT, nov 22 - Jan 6,reception dec 7, 3-6pm

THE HARRISON GALLERY39 Spring Street, Williamstown, MAJane Bloodgood-Abrams, Aug 3 - 31

THE WELLES GALLERY @THE LENOX LIBRARY18 Main st, lenox, MA • 413-637-2630Art exhibit: The Art of Sol Schwartz. Over 60 paintings, drawingsand artists’ proofs, thru Aug 11.

THE STERLING AND FRANCINE CLARK INSTITUTE255 South St. Williamstown, MA150th anniversary of edvard Munch's birth with a screening of"Munch 150," part of the "exhibition: Great Art on Screen" se-ries.

UNIVERSITY ART MUSEUMAlbany, nY / www.albany.edu/museumSummer exhibitions at the university Art Museum feature Sculp-ture, drawing, and Video.William lamson: A Certain Slant oflight / Michelle Segre: Antecedents of the Astra hamster, June27 through September 14

music/theatre“GLORY”, THE CIVIL WAR WORLDPittsfield Cemetery, 203 Wahconah St., Pittsfield, MA"Glory," The Civil War World of Pittsfield is a new historic Pitts-field play by Sally filkins, author of "The Melville Trilogy." Theplay, presented by VOiCeS Theater Company, in collaborationwith Berkshire historical Society.

JACOBS PILLOW DANCE - TED SHAWN THEATRE358 George Carter road - Becket, MA • 413-243-9919

KENDALL STUDIO THEATERMt. holyoke College, South hadley, MAAug 9, Aug 10, 8pm: Blind dreAMerSensemble-created physical theatre with song, text and live music

MASS MoCA1040 Mass MoCA Way - north Adams, MA • 413-662-2111July 11: learn how the experience of Kidspace exhibiting artistroger Shimomura in a World War ii Japanese-American intern-

ment camp influenced his pop-art style imagery. The work andthemes of this nationally recognized, prolific artist will make fora lively discussion.

SALLY-JANE HEIT’S VAUDEVILLE The Guthrie Center, 2 Van deusenville rd., Great Barrington;413-528-1955 / www.guthriecenter.org/ www.sallyjaneheit.comSally-Jane heit will return for her 4th Annual Benefit Perform-ance at the Guthrie Center on August 17 at 7 pm. This year she’llbring something entirely new to the stage, or entirely old depend-ing how you look at it: Vaudeville – A Valentine to an Old TheatreArt form

TANNERY POND CONCERTSnew lebanon, nY • 888-820-1696www.tannerypondconcerts.org / [email protected] 17, 8pm: Vassily Primakov, piano; natalia lavrova, piano;Sept 7, 8pm: Parnas Piano Trio; Sept 21: Brentano String Quar-tet

5TH ANNUAL WORDXWORD FESTIVALPittsfield, 10 a.m. - Midnight • wxw365.orgThe 5th Annual WordXWord festival takes place August 11-17,2013 in Pittsfield. Some of the biggest names in poetry will beparticipating all week: Jon Sands, robbie Q Telfer, Cristin O'-Keefe Aptowicz and Adam falkner,among others. Go to forthe daily schedule of events.

workshopsBERKSHIRE BOTANICAL GARDENS5 West Stockbridge road, Stockbridge, MA Botanical illustration: drawing fruits and flowers with ColoredPencil (Wednesday, Thursday and friday, August 14, 15 and 16,10am - 4pm). Standing Stones in the GardenStone-Carving Workshop with Karin Sprague (Thursday, August15, 10am - 5pm)

BERKSHIRE WRITERS ROOM WORKSHOPPittsfield, MA • 413-842-5014 / [email protected] workshops will be offered at the lichtenstein Center for theArts throughout the summer.

SABINE VOLLMER VON FALKNERPhOTOGrAPhiC WOrKShOP • 413-298-4933 www.sabinephotoart.com, [email protected] liGhT WiTh A CriTiCAl eYe dates: September 21and 22, 2013.

festivals / events22ND ANNUAL STOCKBRIDGE SUMMER ARTS & CRAFT SHOWStockbridge, MA • Stockbridge. [email protected] Stockbridge Summer Arts and Crafts Show, now in its twentyfirst year, will be held August 17 and 18 on 50 Main Street,

filmIMAGES CINEMA Williamstown, MA • www.imagescinema.orgThursday, 8/8, 7pm: The Way Way Back, 9pm: The Way WayBack

FITCHBURG ART MUSEUM25 Merriam Parkway, fitchburg, MA / www.fitchburgmuseum.orgWorld Premier, Wed, Aug 14, 8pm: At the Sommerville Theatrein Somerville, MA.: Q and A with former fitchburg Art Museumdirector Peter Timms and film director emily driscoll

Send in your calendar submissions by August 10th for the September issue of The Artful Mind artzine!

H

CALENDAR OF ARTFUL EVENTS

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4 • August 2013 The ArTful Mind

1370 Pleasant St, Rte. 102, Lee, MA

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6 • August 2013 The ArTful Mind

THE ARTFUL MINDartzineJuly 2013

Kinuko Y. Craft /Contemporary Painter and illustratorPhotography by Sabine Vollmer von Falken

Page 14

KAREN J. ANDREWSinner ViSiOn STudiO

inner Vision Studio is back in business. doors will re-openon Sat, June 29, 1-5 pm and will be open a total of 5 weekendsthroughout the summer. Visitors are always welcome to callahead to arrange a private studio visit.

i am a watercolor painter and a photographer, and eachmedium enhances my ability to see what’s in front of me.Sometimes i combine them in unusual ways. i try to express themagic of the visual world, those moments of opening into thespirit underlying what is seen.

“Your photographs made everyday things magical. Thankyou for sharing the “real world” as seen through the lens ofyour camera.” - D. H.

it’s such a privilege having my own gallery space, as it allowsme to interact with art lovers and art buyers first hand. i cantalk about what inspired me to do a particular piece, or answerany questions about technique, approach or subject matter. Thebest thing is that i am free to make and exhibit whatever is cur-rently exciting to me, be it watercolor paintings, landscape pho-tographs or abstract drawing. i’m not limited by a gallery’sdictates.

i exhibit original watercolors and drawings; photographs inall sizes (4”x6” to 3’ x 4’); and giclee prints. One of my spe-cialties is helping people select a variety of work to decoratetheir second home, or to bring back a souvenir of the rich, Berk-shire landscape.

“I’m amazed at your ability to capture, form, movement andemotion. I was absolutely stopped by your watercolors in orderto allow a wave of emotions.” - J. M.

i encourage you to come visit the gallery on your way toTanglewood or whenever you are traveling through the Stock-bridge area. My customers tell me that another advantage is thatmy prices are very affordable for the value they get. There is nogallery mark-up here.

Inner Vision Studio is located just one mile north of WestStockbridge village, taking Swamp Rd, left on Cone Hill, 2nd lefton Furnace Rd. We’re also on the web: innerVision-Studio.com,or call ahead for a private studio visit: 413-232-4027

THE MUSIC STOREThe Music Store offers music lovers and musicians of all

ages and abilities a myriad of musical instruments, accessoriesand gifts that will help them join in the chorus of Berkshire liv-ing. Acclaimed as one of the area’s best music stores, The MusicStore specializes in fine, folk and unusual musical instruments,accessories, supplies and music motif gifts. Music lovers andprofessional and amateur musicians alike will find an excitingarray of both new and used name-brand and hand-made instru-ments, extraordinary folk instruments and one of the northeast’sfinest selections of strings and reeds.

Music Store customers enjoy fine luthier handmade classicalguitars, the peerless irish Avalon steel string guitars, Breedlove, the Baden Pantheon uSA guitars, as well as guitars from otherfine lines including Alvarez, Avalon, Composite Acoustic,fender, Prestige, dBZ, luna, recording King and Takamine.Acoustic and electric guitars from entry to professional level in-struments are available. famous names including consignmentguitars and basses join less-well-known brands which appeal tothose seeking high quality but are on tight budgets, providingany guitarist a tempting cornucopia of playing possibilities.

unusual instruments are also available, including the locallyhand-made Sonic Boxes, lovely and unique Cigar Box Guitarsand diddly-Bows, by our very own dr. easy. Come in and meethim! We also carry the Sheffield-made and internationallyadored fluke and flea ukeleles and the peerless and lovelyStockbridge-made Serenity bamboo and walking stick flutes.new and used student orchestral and band instruments are avail-able, including violins from $159 to $3000. An extensive arrayof international strings and reeds provides choices for the neweststudent to the symphonic performer. Children’s instruments, aswell as a fine line of international percussion including Middleeastern and handmade African instruments along with manychoices of industry standard drum heads, stands, and sticks, aswell as tuners, forks and metronomes can be found as well.

All new instruments are backed by The Music Store’s lifetimewarranty which provides free set-up and adjustments on any newinstrument sold.

And of course expert luthiery at excellent prices, as well asauthorized repairs on lowden and Takamine guitars, is providedby Sean Barry for those whose stringed instruments need repair,

Those in search of the perfect present for music lovers willfind a treasure trove of gift favorites such as bumper stickers(“driver Singing,” “Go home and Practice,” Tune it or die” andmore), tee shirts, caps, scarves, miniature musical instrumentsand instrument magnets, music motif mugs, socks, totes and ties.Small bronze and metal musician statues and cuddly ‘Musiclover’ stuffed animals, lapel pins and earrings add additionalpossibilities to gift giving customers.

A proud server of the community for over eleven years, TheMusic Store’s warm and friendly staff are available for help intuning, stringing or instrument repair. help in choosing tuners,capos, mutes shoulder rests and strings is as happily given ashelp in selecting instruments themselves. Since our mission isto support and encourage our musical community, consultationand advice are always free. Professional musicians seeking thefinest or unusual strings or accessories are welcome to call inadvance. We will make every effort to satisfy the need!for capos to kazoos, guiros to congas, rainsticks to rosin, bowsto bodhrans, mandolins to microphones, reeds to rods, Strats tostands, local artist’s Cds and harmonicas to picture frames andmusic motif ornaments, instruments and more, The Music Storeis the place to be.

The Music Store, 87 Railroad Street, Great Barrington, MA,open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 10 to 5, and on Sundaysfrom 12 to 5. Call 413-528-2460 or visit themusicstoreplus.com

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dAffOdilS BY KAren J. AndreWS

Art speaks in many languages

A Drawing Tradition Eunice Agar ... 11

Planet Waves AUGUST Eric Francis ... 12

Kinuko Y. CraftContemporary Painter and illustrator

Harryet Candee ...14

The Dennis Bezanowitz Coffee House CommissionRichard Britell ... 18

Simply Sasha Sasha Seymour...... 19

Architecture & Arcadia Stephen Dietemann..... 19

Contributing Writers and Monthly Columnists Eunice Agar, Richard Britell Stephen Gerard Dietemann Eric Francis, Sasha Seymour

Photographers Stephen Donaldson, Lee Everett, Jane Feldman,

Sabine Vollmer von Falken, Cassandra Sohn

Publisher Harryet Candee

Copy Editor Marguerite Bride

Proofreader Amy Tanner

Advertising and Graphic Design Harryet Candee

Box 985, Great Barrington, MA [email protected]

issuu.com/theartfulmindartzine

413-528-5628

All submissions for September due :: August 17, 2013 (email or call)

FYI: ©Copyright laws in effect throughout The Artful Mind for logo & all graph-ics including text material. Copyright laws for photographers and writersthroughout The Artful Mind. Permission to reprint is required in all instances.In any case the issue does not appear on the stands as planned due to unforesee-able circumstances beyond our control, advertisers will be compensated on aone to one basis. Disclaimer rights available upon request. Serving the Artcommunity with the intention of enhancing communication and sharing positivecreativity in all aspects of our lives.

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FRONT STREET GALLERYKATe KnAPP

Pastels, oils, acrylics and watercolors…..abstract and repre-sentational…..landscapes, still lifes and portraits….a unique va-riety of painting technique and styles….you will be transportedto another world and see things in a way you never have be-fore…. join us and experience something different.

Painting classes continue on Monday and Wednesday morn-ings 10-1:30pm at the studio and Thursday mornings out in thefield. These classes are open to all...come to one or come againif it works for you. All levels and materials welcome.

Classes at front Street are for those wishing to learn, thosewho just want to be involved in the pure enjoyment of art,and/or those who have some experience under their belt.

A teacher for many years, Kate Knapp has a keen sense ofeach student’s artistic needs to take a step beyond. Perfect set-ting for setting up still lifes; lighting and space are excellent.

Kate Knapp’s paintings are also on display at 510 WarrenSt. Gallery in hudson, nY. Please stop by to see all the manyworks of art by exceptional artists.

Coming soon to front Street Gallery – Front Street Gallery– Front Street, Housatonic, MA. Gallery open by appointmentor chance. 413-528-9546 or 413-429-7141 (cell).... NEWS!!Seeking live models for evening drawing classes... Please call for info!

ARTS ET INDUSTRIEBirdS, BuGS & BOTAnY™

it was the Age of discovery & the era of enlightenment.exploration around the world in the 17th, 18th & 19th cen-turies fueled a fascination with Botany, natural history &flora. emissaries fanned out across the globe gatheringspecimens of exotic flowers & fauna to be catalogued bypreeminent naturalists & bound into grand volumes. forthese great books brilliant illustrations were drawn & carvedinto copper plates, hand-printed & individually colored bysome of the most excellent artists of all time.

These magnificent original prints will be the focus of Artet industrie’s spring exhibition at the Great Barrington TrainStation, entitled BirdS, BuGS & BOTAnY™.

featured will be selected works from some of the greatestBotanical illustrators of the Golden Age of Botany, includ-ing early hand-colored flower engravings by Sydenham ed-wards for Curtis’s Botanical Magazine from the 1780’sforward, Stipple-engravings By Pierre J.f. Turpin forChaumeton’s 1815 flore Medicale, rare contemporaneousexamples by ‘The raphael of flowers’ Pierre-Joseph red-outé, spectacular hand-colored orchids by John nugent fitchfor robert Warner’s 1882 The Orchid Album, lavish litho-graphs from van houtte’s mid-19th c. flore des Serres andothers.

Also featured will be select original J.J. Audubon hand-colored bird-prints from his 1840 Octavo edition of TheBirds of America together with full-size re-creations of theoriginal havell engravings from the rare Amsterdam edi-tion, as well as wonderful works from Shaw & nodder’s1790-1814 naturalist’s Miscellany,stunning engravings of shells, incredi-ble early renderings of butterflies,moths, bees & spiders.

All these & many more will be pre-sented together with a selection of finereproductions on Greeting Cards, Gi-clees & scarves at our newest locationnext to the Farmer’s Market at the OldGreat Barrington Train Station.

MARGUERITE BRIDEWATerCOlOrS

PASSPOrTS, a solo exhibit of watercolors will continue atGallery 25 until August 31. This show is a nostalgic watercolorjourney through many of the artist’s favorite places away fromthe Berkshires, most requiring a passport. The paintings in thisexhibit were influenced by travels to italy, Montreal, Paris, ire-land, and england. in addition there will be a selection of fineart reproductions and note cards of scenes from other distant lo-cales as well.

Gallery 25 is located at 25 union Street, Pittsfield, acrossthe street from Barrington Stage. hours are 12 noon - 5 pmThursday - Saturday or by appointment with the artist. Thegallery is usually open one hour before Barrington Stage per-formances during the summer for light refreshments before theshow; often the artist will be present.

hOuSe POrTrAiTS, a solo exhibit at the KinderhookGroup realty office at 137 north Street in Pittsfield will openSeptember 6 and run through the entire month of September.This show will display a wide array of the different types ofhouse portraits one can commission. The artist will be presentduring the reception to discuss the process and will providehandouts and information as well. Artist reception will be heldon friday, September 6, 5 – 8 pm, in conjunction with Pitts-field’s first fridays Artswalk. Maps are available at all partici-pating venues.

Marguerite Bride, NUarts Studios, 311 North Street, Pitts-field, Studio #9, by appointment. Call 413-442-7718, or 413-841-1659 (cell); website: margebride-paintings.com email:[email protected]

MArGueriTe Bridered BOWl WiTh eGG PlAnTS, KATe KnAPP

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8• August 2013 The ArTful Mind

PAT HOGANWATerWOrKS

The CATA Gallery will feature a solo exhibit of work by Berk-shire artist Pat hogan from August 15 through August 29. The pub-lic is invited to a reception August 17 from 5 to 7 pm.

Waterworks is a retrospective of paintings created over twentyyears in the Berkshires and includes traditional watercolors andabstract acrylics. hogan finds endless inspiration and beauty in thehills, rivers and back yards of Western Massachusetts .

new work, reflecting a new passion and finesse, features a col-lection of watercolor portraits and figures in charcoal.

hogan, a veteran teacher, offers instruction on Mondays yearround and occasional weekend workshops. The Monday studentsare painters whose experience ranges from beginner to profes-sional. hogan is also a passionate supporter and faculty memberof CATA, Community Access to the Arts. in this role, she teachesartists with disabilities from whom she learns something wonder-ful every day.

CATA Gallery at 70 Railroad Street, Great Barrington. Artistcontact: [email protected], pathogan.com

SALLY-JANE HEIT’SVAUDEVILLE

The GuThrie CenTerSally-Jane heit will return for her 4th Annual Benefit Per-

formance at the Guthrie Center on August 17 at 7 pm. This yearshe’ll bring something entirely new to the stage, or entirely olddepending how you look at it: Vaudeville – A Valentine to anOld Theatre Art form. Sally-Jane fell in love with vaudevillewhen, as a young child her mother would bring her to vaudevilleperformances performed between the movies at theatres in newYork. By the time she embarked on her long career in theatre,television, and movies, vaudeville was dead. She says, “Beforeit was eaten alive by television, Vaudeville was the place anyonewith a dream could test their wings.”

Over a span of decades performing on stages and screens ofevery kind, Sally-Jane has gathered, written, and performed avariety of comedy sketches and songs. Originals, unfamiliar butmemorable published songs, and familiar favorites are allhoused in her own theatrical trunk. On August 17 she will openthat trunk to pay homage to a by-gone era that birthed some ofthe greatest stars, songwriters, animal handlers, producers, andwriters in show business, including Al Jolson, fanny Brice, JackBenny, George Burns, and Sarah Bernhardt. in classic vaude-ville tradition, the show will include a variety of acts. She’ll in-troduce her grandson, eli Catlin who “sings the blues channelingMuddy Waters”. her longtime friend and musical partner, uelWade will accompany her on piano. A few other surprises willalso make their way into the performance. This Vaudevillecomes complete with the famous “hook”, of course only to beused at the discretion of the star.

A dessert and champagne reception with the artist will fol-low the performance. Tickets for Vaudeville: A Valentine to an

Old Theatre Art form are $25 and can be purchased bycalling The Guthrie Center.

The Guthrie Center, 2 Van Deusenville Rd., Great Bar-rington; 413-528-1955, www.guthriecenter.org. More in-formation on Sally-Jane Heit at www.sallyjaneheit.com

SYBIL PERRYSAVOr The SeASOnS

“Savor the Seasons,” a solo exhibition of new landscape paint-ings by Sybil Perry, Cornwall artist, will be on view at TheGallery at Kinderhook Group in Salisbury from August 1 to Au-gust 31. On Saturday, August 3rd from 4-6pm there will be a re-ception, an artist’s talk and wine and hors d’oeuvres. The publicis cordially invited to attend.

The exhibition features over twenty new paintings of land-scapes. The artist explains, “i feel a deep personal connection tothe land and the natural world, and find continual inspiration re-turning again and again to distant fields, woods, sparkling lakewater and clouds. i want to capture the air, the light—- the par-ticular mystery of it. i am celebrating the many seasons we areso fortunate to experience in this northwest Corner.

The artist has been drawing and painting all her life but shediscovered pastels only six years ago. drawing with such purepigment is so immediately satisfying that she has given her oilsaway to a friend. it was the right decision. After 25 years ofpainting professionally, with her work included in museum,gallery, and juried exhibitions, this is the medium she’s passionateabout.

The Gallery at Kinderhook Group, 19 Main Street (Route 41),Salisbury, CT For hours and information, contact the Galleryat Kinderhook Group at 860-435-0700 or the artist at 860-672-1434, email: [email protected]. To view the exhibition on-line, visit: www.sybilmperry.com and “New Work.”

PAT hOGAn

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The ArTful Mind AuGuST 2013 • 9

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10 • August 2013 The ArTful Mind

TeMPTATiOn PiAnO, JOhn K. lAWSOn

SABINE PHOTO ARTThe Artful Mind showcases sabine’s work since 1994, the

very beginning of the monthly Berkshire Artzine. Still young at20 something, sabine’s studio has become a brand for contem-porary, unobtrusive, relaxed photography in the europeanstyle.  did you have a “sabine” experience? it might be just thetime for you to book your first sitting.

every master of photography has a gift for seeing the worldin a particular way. hers are picking the subject matters, the sub-tleties of lighting and the nuance of background, also her eye fordetail which concludes to the result of timeless imagery.

Assignments are tailored to meet her client’s needs- a remem-brance for a special event of a life time or a logo image to createan authentic professional online presence. it is to no surprise thatshe is a sought-after documentary and editorial photographerwith the talent of bringing introspective to the art of people pho-tography. She is the interviewer, provoker and image-maker.

Photographic workshops are scheduled for this late summer: VIEW LIGHT WITH A CRITICAL EYE

explore the beautiful light of the Berkshires by taking a week-end photography workshop. in this workshop participants learnhow natural light can create drama. designed for serious learnerswho are interested in improving their artistic eye. All participantsare asked to bring a digital Slr camera. event dates: September21 and 22, 2013.Photo Art and Book Signing by appointment

“WOOdlAnd STYle” and “Shell ChiC”, published byStorey Publishing, author Marlene h. Marshall, all photographyby sabine can be purchased from your nearby book stores. Signedfine art prints are directly available through sabine’s studio.

Sabine is a member of The American Society of Media Pho-tographers asmp. The international Center of Photography iCPand the Wedding Photojournalist Association, WPJA.

For more info please contact Sabine Vollmer von Falken Pho-tography Studio www.sabinephotoart.com, [email protected], tel. 413-298-4933.

GOOD PURPOSE GALLERYJOhn K. lAWSOn

A solo exhibit, A retrospective, showcasing John K. law-son’s recent and previous works of art will be on display at GoodPurpose Gallery in lee, until September 2.

John K. lawson was born in Birmingham, england, in 1962and raised mostly in the countryside until his family moved toSouth london when he was a young teenager. he first came toAmerica on a student exchange program in engineering atlouisiana State university in Baton rouge. There his artisticabilities were encouraged, and he returned to england two yearslater to concentrate on landscape painting.

eventually, lawson was drawn back to the deep South, andsoon became part of an underground art culture in new Orleansthat included working in tattoo, T-shirt and mural designs longbefore these mediums became mainstream. lawson also becameknown for his unique drawing style and creations using discardedMardi Gras beads. he covered mannequins, pianos, and drumswith intricate bead work, including a fifty-three-foot-long bartop at the notorious artists’ haven, the Audubon hotel.

Since hurricane Katrina, lawson divides his time betweenstudios in new York City and Great Barrington.

Good Purpose Gallery will also present an Artist’s Poetryreading – friday, August 30, 5:30-7:30 pm.

Good Purpose Gallery, 40 Main Street, Lee, MA. Visitwww.goodpurpose.org for more information. Gallery Hours:8:30-4:30 Mon, Wed, Thurs; 9-5 Fri-Sat; 9-3 Sunday.

CONSCIOUS EXERCISEFOR ARTISTS

ShArOn Trueregular exercise is an essential component of optimal health

and functioning. Conscious exercise with Sharon True, ownerof WholePerson Movement, takes exercise to a whole new level.in the personalized one-on-one workouts she creates in her Pi-lates studio she guides her clients to become masters of their ownbody movement. They learn to become conscious of the innerexperience and process of doing an exercise, as well as of its pre-cise outer form. Conscious exercise workouts stretch andstrengthen muscles, promote concentration, reduce stress, anddeepen understanding of the body.

Who needs Conscious exercise? Artists whose art-makingprocess involves doing painful repetitive movements are onegroup of people who can benefit from True’s Conscious exerciseapproach to Pilates workouts. for them, True teaches specifictherapeutic exercises that promote comfort and healing, andcoaches them in finding internal support and other strategies forreducing pain when creating in their art form.

More broadly, Conscious exercise empowers people to makethe most of the body they have. This includes individuals whocurrently enjoy active lifestyles, such as performers, athletes,gardeners, and those who love all the outdoor activities that theBerkshires has to offer, as well as those who want to maintain orimprove their physical fitness through a challenging Pilatesworkout. it also includes individuals who are confronted withimpediments to their enjoyment of movement, such as injury orchronic pain, stiffness, difficulties with balance and coordination,or lack of body confidence. True welcomes the opportunity tofind a way to help your body function at its best, no matter what

age or condition it is in now.True is a registered somatic movement

therapist, certified laban movement ana-lyst, and a certified Pilates instructor. Mostrecently she has completed training as a Pfi-lates™ (Pelvic floor Pilates) instructor toenable her to assist her clients to improveand potentially cure pelvic floor disorderssuch as incontinence. She has been teachingPilates-based workouts for over 15 years,first at Canyon ranch in the Berkshires andthen in her own fully-equipped Pilates stu-dio in Great Barrington. These years ofteaching, together with her commitment tocontinuing her own education, give clientsthe benefit of a vast array of experience toeffectively address their goals and con-cerns. She is an expert partner and guide inthe discovery of an exercise program thatworks and is a pleasure to do.

Act now to start making the most of thebody you have with a Conscious Exerciseworkout. Contact Sharon True at [email protected] or phone 413-528-2465, 9 AM-9 PM.

A drAWinG TrAdiTiOn

ShArOn True On PilATeS APPArATuS

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By eunice Agar

There are many extraordinary artists who have spenta lifetime doing representational drawing from the figure,and schools like the Art Student's league of new York,founded in l875, and the national Academy of design,have always had outstanding realists on their faculties.however, starting in the l950's and even earlier, repre-sentational drawing was not in fashion in avant-garde cir-cles. There is even a story from the l980's, possiblyapocryphal, that one art school eliminated drawing fromit's curriculum, but a group of students persuaded a sym-pathetic faculty member to teach drawing after hourswhen the school was technically closed. Gradually, overtime, the art world has become more eclectic, less doc-trinaire, more interesting so that today artists workingevery conceivable style and medium are exhibited inmajor galleries and discussed in the art press.

last spring the St. Francis Gallery in lee presenteda group show, “Go figure,” of sixteen Berkshire Countyartists who use the figure for painting, drawing, photog-raphy, printmaking and sculpture done with straight re-alism, expressionism combining line and wash, and bothgeometric and painterly abstraction. Monica Miller'stwo six-foot life-size drawings took months to completeand contrast with rapidly developed expressive work byfrances Pelligrino and Suzette Alsop, abstractions bydan Brody, and pen and ink drawings by linda Baker-Cimini. There was also sculpture by Paula Stern, draw-ings by John henry Cox. Monica Miller's drawings areon permanent exhibit.

The exhibit illustrates the fact that for many artistsdrawing from the figure is not just a question of intro-ductory training at the beginning of a career. it is an on-going practice considered essential to a thoroughunderstanding of line and form in space which can then

be applied to their work in any style or medium. Artistsin Berkshire County are fortune to have available openstudios where they can work independently from amodel as well take formal courses as readily as in newYork City. IS183 Art School of the Berkshires, located

in the interlaken section of Stockbridge off routel83, has had an open studio on Monday nightsfrom six to nine ever since it's founding in 1991.Jeffrey Kramer, who does expressive drawingscombining line and color, has been a regular therefor many years. The school also offers formal fig-ure drawing courses both in interlaken and at itsextension at the little red Schoolhouse inWilliamstown. Berkshire Community College has a figure

drawing course at its Pittsfield campus, and formany years Mario Calouri ran an open studiowith a model at the lichtenstein Center for theArts, also in Pittsfield.

in South County the newly relocated Renais-sance Art School at Jenifer house Commons inGreat Barrington offers courses in figure drawing.in the Sheffield Library, harvey Kimmelmanhas set up an open studio with a model that meetson Wednesday nights from five to seven. robinBlumenthal, a regular there, does large expressivedrawings that emphasize form and contour.The Opera House in hudson, nY periodically

has a series of open studios on Sunday mornings.for many years Stanley Maltzman has run anopen studio in the Greenville library Gallery inGreenville, nY.

recently “Arts Alive,” published by theGreene County Council on the Arts in Catskill,nY., featured an article on plans for a new schoolfor the visual arts scheduled to open this Septem-

ber at the Old Schoolhouse in harlemville nearhawthorne Valley School. That too may provide a venuefor an independent studio. for information, contact theChatham Bookstore. h

The ArTful Mind AuGuST 2013 • 11

A drAWinG TrAdiTiOn

ROBIN BLUMENTHAL

jEFFREY KRAMER

MONICA MILLER

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Aries (March 20-April 19)Since the last time Jupiter was in Cancer, we’ve become sur-rounded by a ‘national security state’, designed to defend usagainst enemies who don’t exist. everything about your chart sug-gests you consider the theme of your need to defend yourself,why you might do so, and against whom. What i see is that you’retrying to integrate some aspect of yourself you’ve been in denialof, some wild, expressive aspect of who you are that looks likeit’s been buried in your psyche. You don’t need to defend your-self; i suggest you express yourself. The question is, do you feelsafe enough to do that? if you don’t, the answer is not more re-sistance, or pushing back against anything that threatens you. Theway forward involves courage. it’s closer than you think.

Taurus (April 19-May 20)remember, it’s not really lovemaking if you fold your clothesfirst. As a Taurus, you have your own ways of taking risks. Oneinvolves thinking through every detail until there is no chance forspontaneity. Another involves not thinking at all. There are spacesto explore that are less frustrating and more fulfilling than thesetwo polarities. it’s enough to know you want to do something,and ro be aware there’s a risk in everything — especially mattersof the heart. Make peace with the risk factor. Then it’ll be easierto make contact with the creative factor: your ability to think onyour feet in any situation. Trust that and you’ll worry less andhave considerably more fun.

Gemini (May 20-June 21)Keep your focus on what is important to you, and how it factorsinto every facet of your life. i am often amazed at the extent towhich people omit the importance of their own values, whetherin relationships or in their work. There is a matter involving theway your parents influenced your attitude about money and yourability to act on what is most meaningful to you. Mercury sta-

tioning direct this past weekend looked like a revolution, whereyou throw off the influences of people who have no business run-ning your life and could not care less about what you actuallyfeel; this is a revolution driven by a discovery of your passionand the resulting drive to be free.

Cancer (June 21-July 22)Many planets are focused on your sign right now, painting a scenethat shows you unearthing long-denied aspects of your being. Thefeelings involved are encrypted on some of your deepest psycho-logical levels. They represent things that make contemporary peo-ple most nervous — our deepest desires, fears, needs, pain we’vedenied, what we feel ashamed of. Yet these feelings are where wehold the power we so often say we want to make contact with.One aspect of your astrology is magnifying all this and making itclear what you’ve been holding onto. Another factor is an openingfor a dialog with yourself: the ability to be vividly honest. Worrynot what other people might think. This is not about your rela-tionships; it’s about healing and growing into your relationshipto yourself.

Leo (July 22-Aug. 23)The Sun entered your sign in grand style this year, just hours be-fore Monday’s Aquarius full Moon. Prior to that you may havefelt like you were in some kind of psychic or emotional morass.Struggling or resisting does not help; i suggest you conserve yourenergy, find the most efficient ways to do things, then actuallyfollow the plan. Avoid anything that seems to be taking too mucheffort; it’ll be easier once the Sun has ingressed your sign and theMoon reaches full phase (Monday). That means planning formodest achievements until then, taking the care to analyze yourmethods and your approaches and to actually notice where yourenergy is going, where it’s being wasted and where it’s gettingresults. This is extremely valuable information.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22)Sometimes when i write about being clear in one’scommunication, i forget how much people struggle toexpress themselves, and how daring it can feel. i forgethow little effort some people put into listening, evenwhen something directly impacts them. i put all thisto you now. if you want to get anywhere, you must beclear with yourself, with others, and you must truly lis-ten to what is said to you. This may require extra pa-tience, insisting others both be clear and have patience,and willingness to know what is actually true for youand for others without going into denial. in our worldthat is asking a lot. But it’s not a lot if it’s the onlything standing between you and progress.

Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23)There is something specific on your mind. You haven’tfigured out what it is yet, but it’s there, nagging youto pay attention. You’re trying to keep a secret fromyourself. Yet it looks like something you dearly wantto reveal — not just to yourself but to others. You seemon the verge of discovery. here’s the catch: As fast asyou discover what this thing is, you might forget, oryou might decide it’s too personal to consider for long,or to even consider revealing to others. Yet that doesnot make it less important, helpful or meaningful. isuggest the moment you discover what this is, write itdown. Then read it and elaborate and make sure thatyou remember.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-nov. 22)More than anything i see you struggling to have awider perspective. if you want to do that, you need anaccurate assessment of how wide your current per-spective is. Since that measure is subjective, andyou’re in your own mind, this is not easy to deduce.

i suggest doing some comparison-shopping. Set aside, temporar-ily, any tendencies toward jealousy; that just gets in the way. Thenconsider the viewpoints of people you know have a broader,deeper, more creative approach to life than you do. Consider peo-ple who apply more imagination than you do. notice what they’redoing and how they’re doing it — then consider your life in thatstyle. if you feel panicky, that’s a hint you’re going in the rightdirection.

Sagittarius (nov. 22-dec. 22)if you’re going to explore your passion, desire or your need tosurrender, choose someone who is either a match for your energyor has a lot more mojo than you do. Then, bring yourself fullyinto the situation. Allow yourself to participate. Set aside yourusual approach-avoid routine; remember how long you’ve waitedto let go of all this energy you’re holding onto. in case you’retempted to keep holding on, ask yourself how that’s serving you— even if that ‘service’ is negative. There’s a long list of possi-bilities, and it would be excellent if you were really familiar withthis material. There are many more reasons why you will be hap-pier if you uncork the bottle and let yourself breathe, feel and spillover your brim.

Capricorn (dec. 22-Jan. 20)Are there enough influences in our society designed to make usparanoid? i suggest you filter them out for a while, and invest en-ergy in people and activities that cultivate positive responses inyou. use discernment, because not everyone who seems positivereally is; you will be able to tell by your emotional response. Yetyou may also discover just how much negativity, fear, hostilityand corruption there is. What you’re faced with is a spiritual ques-tion of how you want these things to influence you. The externalfactors are there. Your mission is to determine how you respondto your environment and who and what you allow closer to you.discernment is the key. This will require vigilance and care, anda commitment to love and life.

Aquarius (Jan. 20-feb. 19)Old astrology books remind Aquarians to fill their urn beforeladling out the water to others. This is spiritual healing 101. Thereis some good logic to this, including the fact that when you’renourished, prepared and alert, you will be more helpful in theprocess of assisting or serving others. That is the message of yourcharts now. Get yourself oriented in your physical space, whichseems to have undergone changes lately. Make sure you havewhatever you need. Get your work organized to the level whereyou know what to do and when to do it. This will create bound-aries to work within. Over the next few days, make sure you takeplenty of time to yourself. Set aside obligations to others. Get restand drink water.

Pisces (feb. 19-March 20)This is the boldest and most confident i’ve ever seen a Pisceschart. Therefore if you’re not feeling good, you need to makesome basic adjustments. One is to set aside your fears. As a Piscesyou’re more aware than anyone that all things are possible. Theword confidence means ‘with faith’, and i suggest you find thatwithin yourself. it won’t be difficult, and one success will buildon another. if you’re not the outgoing type, now is the time topractice. Go to the point where you feel a little pushy or likeyou’re winning people over with your charm and the force of yourpersonality. Trust that your ideas probably are the best ones in theneighborhood, and remind yourself often about all you’ve accom-plished. The best is yet to come.

Read Eric Francis daily at PlanetWaves.net

Planet Waves August 2013 by Eric Francis

PhOTOGrAPhYWWW.JAnefeldMAn.COM

[email protected]

JAne feldMAn

12 • August 2013 The ArTful Mind

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ST. FRANCIS GALLERYThe wealth of the Berkshires is clearly evident in the most

recent show, “expressions of freedom” which will continue intomid August. Blessed. With artists who have a strong desire toexpress themselves in unique ways, this collection of works aredominated by the creative endeavors of the late ernest Chase.his spirit infuses the gallery with a range of expression that enor-mously diverse from furniture and lamps to sculpture enclosedin cases that themselves alone are works of art. his assemblageand “primitive” creations both inspires and amuse. his paintingshave depth that is both sensitive and mysterious as well as ex-quisite.

Complimenting Chases’ wide range are works by other localestablished and emerging artists. denise Chandler’s photo-graphic explorations invite the viewer to explore the worldaround them in unique and beautiful ways. Jim Singelis has themost powerful and emotional canvases the gallery has seen andthey are halting and arresting as well as majestic. Scott Taylor’smoving expressions help carry the theme of this exhibit alongwith Carole hyatt’s sensitive and provocative assemblages thatlike his previous works and make strong statements. Bruce Mc-donald’s etching and large oils and watercolors also echo the is-sues of our times sharing space with a large almost sculpturedcanvas by leo Mazzeo’s “perseverance.”

Sharon Vidal’s Polaroid manipulations and artful recreationsare eagerly collected by gallery visitors. Annie laurie’s magicalpastels express our connectedness and interwoven lives. And, asusual Paula Stern has added more to her collection of sculptureswhich have homes in Jacob’s Pillow and Shakespeare and Com-pany. finally, Gareth Sandler’s glass, which glows with beautifuland is both functional and sculptural.

All of these creations will soon be eclipsed by a new show ofcollage artists to begin August 23rd. These rather large selectionsof well-known Berkshires Artisans continues to demonstrate thewealth of talent that is hidden in the Berkshire hills.The gallery will provide many beautiful ways that collage has

become a most wonderful art form and has a depth and range ofexpression that is amazingly creative.

The St. Francis Gallery is located on Rte. 102, Pleasant St,South Lee, MA., 413-717-5199. Open Friday-Monday 11 -5:30pm

IS183ART SCHOOL OF THE BERKSHIRES

SuMMer SCheduleiS183, Art School of the Berkshires, encourages eVerYOne

in Berkshire County to explore their creativity with one ofiS183’s weekend workshops, studio classes or, for the youngerset, summer camps.  from beginners interested in learning a newskill to experienced artists looking for a tune up, iS183’s varietyof  media- drawing, ceramics, photography, etching and paintingare just a few of the options – offer something for everyone.Classes, workshops and camps are scheduled throughout Julyand August at both our Williamstown and Stockbridge locations.

for beginning artists, iS183 offers introductory courses (alsohelpful for more experienced artists who need to refresh theirskills) in many different media.  in just a weekend, The funda-mentals of drawing: A Gateway to the Creation of fine Art inStockbridge on July 27 and 28, will give budding artists a solidfoundation in this essential skill.  Working on the potter’s wheelis an art form that many people find intriguing; newcomers canexplore this form of ceramics with intro to Wheelworking, a twoday workshop in Stockbridge on August 10 and 11.  All basicwheelworking techniques will be explored in this beginningcourse.  Techniques in Gouache Painting, a two day workshopin Williamstown on August 10 and 11, teaches beginning and in-termediate students the basics of gouache and oil painting:  draw-ing, composition and color mixing.  Some workshops that iS183offers are appropriate for all skill levels.  etching and Monoprintintensive in Pittsfield provides artists of all skill levels instructionin a variety of etching techniques.

iS183 has creative opportunities for children (aged 3 throughhigh school) with summer art and theatre camps in Williamstownand Stockbridge through August 23rd.  At the art camps – eacheither one or two weeks long -  creative activity is balanced be-tween inside and outside pursuits, all under the guidance of ex-perienced faculty artists.  Art camps are filling up fast; to registerfor a camp or a workshop – or for more information about anyof iS183’s offerings, visit iS183’s website or call.

iS183 Art School of the Berkshires is a not-for-profit com-munity art school whose mission is to encourage people of allages, means and skill levels to enrich their lives through hands-on experience in the visual arts.  iS183 of-fers year-round programs in ceramics,painting, drawing, fiber arts, sculpture, an-imation, mixed media, photography, col-lage, jewelry and more for children, teensand adults—at locations throughout Berk-shire County through collaborative part-nerships with schools and other culturalorganizations.  Programs are offered day-time, evenings and weekends, for all lev-els—from the absolute beginner to theprofessional artist. 

IS183 Art School, PO Box 1400, 13Willard Hill Road, Stockbridge Mass. Visitwww.is183.org, or call 413-298-5252, ext.100 or email [email protected]

The ArTful Mind AuGuST 2013 • 13

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14 • August 2013 The ArTful Mind

Harryet Candee: Who in your life was your inspiration for enteringthe world of fantasy and storytelling through art? Kinuko Y. Craft: i think i was born with a certain set of receptorsfor fondness of myth, legend, and fairy tales. The house i grew upin was filled with books of all kinds, on all sorts of subjects suchas children’s stories, science, biology and mythology. There weremy father’s picture books that he had when he was in grade school.There were also the children’s picture books of my older sister, andmy Grandfather’s set of books about art of the world which coveredboth western and eastern art. As a preschooler i found allof these mesmerizing. You could say i was almost literallyborn into the middle of them. All of them had plates of fab-ulous fine art and illustrations. But early on, i was most at-tracted to italian renaissance work. They were intricate,complex, very enigmatic storytelling pieces.

After i started school and finally learned how to read, idiscovered comic books. That was my second awakening.i devoured them like some ogre with an insatiable appetite.After the comic book attack, the libraries of the schools iattended provided all i needed. i read virtually everything icould get my hands on. Books were fuel to my imagination.i think i was just really lucky to be in the right places at theright time. fortunately, no one ever attempted to changehow i and my head were wired.

There isn’t any one person who was an inspiration to me.however, it was homer’s iliad and Odyssey that truly ig-nited my imagination, setting off fireworks in my head likethe 4th of July.

Are there times when you think to yourself, and wonder howyou got to the place you are now with your art? What wasthe road like for you that you travelled on to get there?Kinuko: i’m not quite sure i know how to answer your ques-tion. i don’t have a habit of looking back to plan the future.i am just as sort-of babe in wonderland. it has simply beenan experience. The person i was in the past is different fromthe one i am now and had different experiences. The onething that has been a constant for me is that i am very muchattracted by anything beautiful (subjectively). Painting hasbeen my chosen method for chasing this abstract, vague andelusive thing ever since my earliest memories. Whatever

skills i needed to realize what was in my head i picked up and triedto perfect as i went along.

How did ‘fantasy’ take precedence over other venues of art you mayhave experimented with?Kinuko: i like to stay in the land of dreams. The more the worldbecomes violent, obscene and ugly the more i need to shut it offand stay in my never-never land to keep my balance and to survivein this world.

When you see your empty painting panel or blank paper surface,smooth as glass looking up at you, what are the first things that gothrough your mind? How do you first begin to sculpt a commissionfor a book cover, or poster?Kinuko: The images are already embedded there, asking me to un-cover them and make them visible. My job is to figure out andsearch for what it is that is in there waiting to be found. i createand discard many ideas, often times involving dozens of drawings,moving pieces around till the image begins to become visible. fi-nally at some point, after many ideas and drawings are rejected,something finally falls into place like the last piece of a jig sawpuzzle.

Has your training in art school been a big help to you or wouldyou say, it has a lot more to do with a gift that you have?Kinuko: Both here in the u.S. and in Japan, art schools gave metime to adjust the perspective of my life. They gave me a chance togrow up and understand about myself.

Does your art overlap, intertwine, crisscross, mingle, whatever youwould call it, with a personal religious or spiritual belief? I thinkit’s a blessing you can envision ideas in your head, and then getthem out on which ever material you choose.Kinuko: i am a very neutral being. i am interested in and curiousabout many aspects of life, But i, myself flow with whatever theuniverse directs.

Are you ever surprised how a painting/illustration turns out foryou? Kinuko: no. My thoughts never stray away very far once my focusis set. But if you ask me which of my paintings is my best one, myanswer will always be “My next.”

How does your inner disciplinary system work in your favor? Areyou easy on yourself with art making? Or are you very intense andfocused on not straying from your primary goal for a piece?Kinuko: i don’t really have an inner disciplinary system. Mainly iam just obsessed with what i do.

What is your main medium you use? And paper?Kinuko: i paint on Clayboard, a glass smooth gesso board made byAmpersand. After the drawing is transferred to the surface, i layout broad tones of color in thin watercolor washes. The surface isthen covered with a thinned-out coating of Gamblin’s Galkyd toeven out the surface, which then is over painted in oil colors usingseries 7 Windsor newton size 1 to 00 watercolor brushes.

Do you ever work from photographs?Kinuko: Yes, i often hire professional artist’s models to posefor me and take photos for reference. Occasionally i willcome across the fleeting being that artists call a Muse. if iam lucky, i can catch them to ask them to pose for me be-fore they are gone forever.

I find it amazing that you have collaborated with your hus-band and daughter on projects. Can you tell me aboutsome of them, and what it was like to work with close fam-ily members?Kinuko: it was mainly out of convenience because theywere here. i can complain, nag and beg them to see myway. My husband is a very competent graphicdesigner/writer who enjoyed the work and is highly sup-portive of mine. he and i grew up in similar worlds aes-thetically--the worlds of fine-art, literature, fairytales andclassic picture books. he also a stickler for accurate colorreproduction and has created all of the high resolution filesmy work is reproduced from for many years.

Kinuko, have you always worked in color? You need tohave two sets of knowledge going on: color and design. Isit easier to illustrate in black and white?Kinuko: To me, color is everything. i see things in coloreven when they are black and white. however i have neverthought things are easier just because they are monochro-matic.

Do you think you make things happen because of some cre-ative visualization techniques you may be aware of thatyou possess? Kinuko: i don’t think i possess anything special and mag-ical that happens automatically. i would be ecstatic if anidea would pour out every time like turning on water

KINUKO Y. CRAFTCONTEMPORARY PAINTER &ILLUSTRATOR

Interview by Harryet Candee Photographs of Kinuko by Sabine Vollmer von Falken

Medusa FOR AFA GALLERY BY KINUKO Y. CRAFT

PHOTO: SABINE VOLLMER VON FALKEN

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The ArTful Mind AuGuST 2013 • 15

faucet, but i have to work and think very diligently to come up withan idea. it must be an answer uniquely my own to the solution iam seeking. it’s just plain hard work.

What is the most beautiful thing you have ever seen in your entirelife thus far? Do you tend to draw it many times? Kinuko: it was the aurora borealis i first saw sometime in the1970’s. lying on my back, above me was the most magnificentdisplay of a fathomless green chiffon silk-like curtain billowing asif in a breeze. i was totally mesmerized by it and yes, i have triedto paint it from time to time.

Kinuko, can you paint us a picture of your most memorable timein your life? Perhaps, in Japan, or here, or somewhere!Kinuko: That would be in my pre-school days. i didn’t go to kinder-garten because i hated the naps and the green vegetable soup. itwas a time of ultimate freedom. i walked around in the forests be-hind my house that my family owned. i played around with mydog who was a huge Akita. i stole my sisters crayons while shewas in school and drew on everything i could find. no one com-plained, or more likely, i just developed a habit of selective hearing.

How does your fantasy artwork connect with science fiction?Kinuko: fantasy and Science fiction are very close and sometimesintertwine. They are both imagined places and beings, set in a dif-ferent place and time.

When you are standing for the first time in front of a new class,about to give a workshop, how do you start? What is your intro-duction like?Kinuko: i don’t really think about it. i’ve done quite a few lectureson my work, but haven’t really given a workshop—or maybe justforgot that i did. Mahlon (who is also my business partner) usuallyputs together a presentation in Keynote for me. i just show up anddo an impromptu show and tell, then answer questions.

How is your workshops summarized at the end? What sort of end-

ing do you give your students? What do you say to them before theyleave you?Kinuko: That the ability to draw well as an artist is the key to every-thing. i would also tell them to use their own imagination.

If you were to get your Masters, or Doctorate, what would the focusbe for you that you would get the most out of?Kinuko: i left the School of the Art institute of Chicago 6 monthsshort of obtaining my master’s degree because i realized that inever wanted to teach. As a goal it seemed empty to me when all iwanted was to begin my career as an artist—if i may call it that—as many in the art world deem what i do to be a lesser form of art.

i am only here, as we all are, for a brief moment in time. i do ex-actly what is interesting to me and to my sensibilities as an artist.Whether what i do is art or not in some other person’s view is notreally important to me.

What is your most favorite part of history for you? Kinuko: The Trojan War. i would like to know what really hap-pened--if helen and Paris really existed. Or was the invasion justfor gaining the wealth of others. To answer your question, it doesn’treflect on my art at all.

Why is art history important for you, and how do you use it? Tellme how the Pre-Raphaelites or, say DaVinci influences your style?Kinuko: Truly remarkable works of art were created in the past.My interests started with the renaissance, and then graduallymoved to the flemish painters, northern european art, the worksof 17th century french painters, the Pre-raphaelites and the Sym-bolists. Then i always come back to daVinci and the eternal beautyin his work. They stimulate my creativity, and rekindle my passionto search for my own sense of beauty.

What is the most mysterious and interesting subject you like to pon-der upon when your brain is free to roam?Kinuko: helen of Troy—the face that launched a thousand ships.

How well we love our animals. Kinuko, do you find that you andyour dog have a strong communication with each other? Howmight that be possible? What are your thoughts on the animal world, and how do you relate to them when it comes to illustratinga book cover for, say The Black Swan, or, Bear, Wolfe and Mouse?What is most important to observe?Kinuko: i sometimes think that other species understand what i amlooking for better. My paintings function as a diary for me. i paintmy plants and creatures into the painting i have been working onat the time. The love i have for my German Shepherd Wolfgang is

Continued on next page...

KinuKO Y CrAfT PhOTO: SABine VOllMer VOn fAlKen

CInderella BY KINUKO Y. CRAFT

Gabriel BY KINUKO Y. CRAFT

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16 • August 2013 The ArTful Mind iSSuu.COM / [email protected]

identical to the love i have for my husband Mahlon. They are re-sponsible for my psychological wellbeing and allow me to have anundisturbed relationship with my work. But my need for Wolfgangis more primordial. i feel i must have him to be a complete beingand to fill a need for constant communication through him to an-other species to walk my way through this life. There is this needin me to be to be connected the entire the natural world—with otherspecies, plants and animals and he helps with that.

Who are your favorite creatures that are filled with good energy?Kinuko: My favorite things filled with good energy are plants andanimals.

What is the illustration market like these days for those exiting col-lege and beginning to do the pound the pavement with portfoliomode? Do you have any advice?

Kinuko: no matter what tools artists end up using, they should beable to draw well because it is the gateway to being able to expressan idea visually. Good ideas and the ability to express them two di-mensionally on paper or in digital form are the essential tools to bean artist. however, they are also the only tools an artist can’t buyat an art supply store.

The market for illustration as i used to know it barely exists.But i also believe that as one door closes for one kind of skill set,another door will open for those whose skills are appropriate forit.

Does it really all start in your mind’s eye, Kinuko? Or does it startwith a pencil and paper and whatever magically comes out?Kinuko: nothing happens magically. everyone must be inventiveand creative. Good ideas, the ability to express them visually andsound judgment are also essential tools. And make sure your ideas

are uniquely your own.What was your most favorite project, and, upcoming for you – whatwill you be looking forward to with your art?Kinuko: My most favorite project will always my next one. i havebeen working on Beauty and the Beast for harperCollins since lastyear—a contract i took many years ago. i have 7 paintings left andso far each has taken about a month and a half or more due to their

complexity. it has to be finished by June 1st of next year (or soonerMahlon says before we run out of money) however, i feel that imust say that i am the luckiest and happiest person in the world. ihave had enormous enjoyment and high expectations for this proj-ect. it takes me away from our troubled world to a place i can livein at least until its’ done next year. What i will be doing after thatis hard to say, but AfA Gallery in new York City has offered me ashow whenever i have created enough new work for one. There isalso another book project waiting for me if i wish to complete it.

Thank you, Kinuko!

KinuKO Y. CrAfT / COnTeMPOrArY PAinTer & illuSTrATOr

The Bell at Sealey Head AND Divided Crown BY KINUKO Y. CRAFT

Thomas the Rhymer AND Grail of Summer Stars BY KINUKO Y. CRAFT

Baba Yaga and Vasalisa the Brave BY KINUKO Y. CRAFT

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The ArTful Mind AuGuST 2013 • 17

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18 • August 2013 The ArTful Mind

The Dennis Bezanowitz CoffeeHouse Commission

An excerpt from the blog, “No Cure for the Medieval Mind”

by Richard Britell

The entire time we were talking about dr. Buboni’s childhood,the cleaning lady who called herself Aunt Jemima, the night staffperson at the hospital, was listening intently to the conversation.i was surprised at this. it seemed to me that a cleaning lady fromsome third world country would have little interest in art or arthistory but i was wrong. “Tell me Professor Buboni dear,” AuntJemima said, “what ever happened to the boy who could drawdonald duck, did he become a great artist when he grew up, andgo to work for disney land?”

“far from it,” said Buboni. “The boy who could draw donaldduck did go on to become an artist when he grew up, but we allknew things would not turn out well for him back in grade school.The problem with him was that he had no appreciation of his tal-ent. his name was dennis Bezanowitz.”

even though dennis could draw all the disney characters with

his eyes shut, his great ambition in life was to be a professionalbaseball player. Specifically, he wanted to be a pitcher for the Yan-kees. for him this was not just a daydream, but something heworked at with great determination.

dennis set up a target on the chain link fence at the border ofour playing field, and all summer long the sound of his baseballhitting the fence over and over would ring out from morning untilnight, as he practiced his pitching, in anticipation of getting intothe big leagues. But things did not go well for him. The year wewent on to high school, he tried out for the school’s baseball team,but the coach rejected him. Practicing more and with greater de-termination was not an option, because that was all he ever didanyway.

for several weeks dennis was rather depressed, but then onenight he broke into the coach’s house and trashed all the furniture,and spray painted things on the walls while the coach was outhaving dinner. When the coach came home he found dennis inthe middle of an epileptic seizure. The coach did not presscharges, but dennis had to spend a few weeks under observationin a hospital.

The combination of his rejection from the team and theepilepsy resulted in dennis giving up any desire to be a pitcherfor the Yankees. he drifted through high school without any pur-pose except that he was constantly requested to do artwork forvarious high school events, since he was the only one among uswho could draw. dennis did the decorations for the prom; he didall the lettering for diplomas, and every year he had to createcountless posters and advertisements with images and letteringfor various campaigns when the students ran for office to the stu-dent council or for class president.

in his senior year he discovered the painting “Christina’sWorld,” by Andrew Wyeth and this transformed his life. not sincehis days throwing baseballs at the playground fence and dreamingof being a pitcher for the Yankees was he so motivated. he wentto the art supply store and purchased his first triple-0 paint brush,and twelve different shades of brown paint.

in his last year of high school he began to do highly detailedwatercolors of birds, and it became his specialty. he would spendmany hours putting in all the tiny lines of the feathers, and some-times these watercolors were purchased by hunting magazines,and used in their advertisements. i went off to college, and hestarted working days at a fast food restaurant.

it was 1962, a different world and time. i was at nYu as a lib-eral arts major and i often went to shows at the galleries. Out inthe street were ban-the-bomb protesters, in Penn Central raggedmen held up signs telling us the end of the world was coming,Kennedy was president, Warhol was showing his soup can paint-ings, Kline and Pollock were famous and dead already, but wheni went back home for vacation, everything was unchanged as ifset in stone.

everything was the same in my hometown in 1962, except for

one thing: somebody was planning to open a coffee shop down-town. it would be our first. We all felt this was very important butwe did not know exactly why. everyone back from college thatnew Year was anxious for it to open so we could go there andorder our first espresso. it was necessary to have an old sweatshirt.One had to be reading certain sorts of books.

The Catcher In The Rye would not do in 1962, and we werenot interested in Lord Of The Flies either. What was necessarywas Andre Gide, or Camus. When i went to the coffee shop thefirst time i was reading The Stranger. The coffee shop was in aspace i knew well, a big cellar room that formerly had been a bar-bershop, but the barber had died a year before. everything waspainted black and white, including the furniture.

The owner of the coffee shop was anxious to complete his in-terior decoration with some paintings, and sat down with mybrother and i and asked if we knew any local artists who wouldlike to do some commissions. What the coffee shop owner wantedwas some large abstract paintings that would look like the worksof franz Kline he had seen in a museum somewhere. he thoughthis could be done very cheaply, as he had some black and whitepaint left over from painting the coffee shop, and there were alsosome large pieces of masonite left over from replacing the floor.Thirty-five dollars a picture was what he had in mind.

Both my brother and i immediately suggested dennisBezanowitz, the boy who could draw donald duck so well, to dothe job. even though dennis was concentrating on portraits ofbirds and animals, we could think of no one else, because he wasthe only one in our graduating class who had been interested inart.

i knew all about those big abstract paintings since i was goingto school in new York back then, so i got a book out of the library,i think the title was The Meaning Of Modern Art, and went to paya visit to dennis and see if he would do the painting commission.

The boy who could draw donald duck was still living withhis parents that winter of 1962, and his room had been made intoa small studio. he had a hand made easel next to a table coveredwith paints and brushes, and on a canvas was a half-finished paint-ing of a mallard duck. i had never seen a work in progress before,and was struck by its odd appearance.

The top of the picture was complete down to the very finestdetail, and the bottom of the canvas was blank except for a fewindistinct pencil lines. The brown tones of the feathers looked per-fect but the green band on the neck was the wrong green, and hadbeen scrubbed out and was being repainted. in front of the paint-ing was a gigantic magnifying glass on a pivot, through which thedetails were magnified and distorted.

dennis immediately started to apologize for the green on themallard’s neck saying, “i can’t get the green right, i have rubbedit out over and over again, i am going to try sap green next, thethalo is too acid.” On the walls of his studio room were numerousposters all of the work of Andrew Wyeth; i began to have an un-easy feeling about the commission.

SHARON TRUE, M.A., C.M.A., R.S.M.T.Somatic Movement Therapist and

Certified Pilates and Pfilates (Pelvic Floor Pilates) Instructor

Private, Conscious Exercise Workouts for all ages and abilities featuring fully-equipped Pilates studio in a quiet, country setting in Great Barrington

Pilates and Pfilates™ classes offeredat Kilpatrick Athletic Center (KAC)

at Simon’s Rock College and other locations

Contact Sharon for current [email protected]

413.528.2465

TM

MUSIC and MORE 2013 FestivalComing up in August

Aug. 24 The Daedalus Quartet. Min-Young Kim and Matilda Kaul, violins; Jes-sica Thompson, viola; Thomas Kraines, cello, perform string quartets by Schul-hoff, Beethoven, Schubert and Smetana. $25; $20 for NMVA members. Reservetickets at [email protected], or (413) 229-2785.

Aug. 31 “Shall We Gather at the River?” A sampling of Connecticut Yankee com-poser Charles Ives’ rich repertoire of vocal and instrumental works. DeborahRentz-Moore, mezzo soprano; Donald Berman, piano; Daniel Stepner, violin.Pre-concert Talk at 3:30 p.m. $25; $20 for NMVA members. Reserve tickets [email protected], or (413) 229-2785.rington. $25; $20 for NMVA members. Reserve tickets at [email protected] (413) 229-2785.

Music and More, founded and directed by Harold Lewin and sponsored by theNew Marlborough Village Association, is marking its 22nd year as a late-summerdestination for world-class chamber music, jazz, theatrical and literary eventsin historic New Marlborough. Performances are on Saturdays at 4:30 p.m., fromAug. 3 through Oct. 5. For Music and More event information visit musicand-moreberkshires.org.

To join NMVA, visit newmarlborough.org, or call 413.229-2785

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The ArTful Mind AuGuST 2013 •19

When i was 12 years old my family moved from Big flats,new York, to Sao Paulo, Brazil. it is a big understatement tosay that this was a seismic shift for me. upstate new York wasfamiliar, economically balanced, puritan, traditional Americanand, if i had to associate a color with it, it would be gray.

Sao Paulo was loud, boisterous, rich and poor, life and death,sexual at its core, truly multi-cultural (before that term was inthe common parlance) and if i had to associate a color with it iswould be crimson red.

it is worth recalling that at that time change was occurringthroughout the world: the end of colonial empires and the emer-gence of newly liberated nations, the emergence of a globaleconomy, the dread of sudden nuclear annihilation, and, ofcourse, the British invasion. it would be difficult to come ofage to a better sound track, but to have all this happening at thesame time was a bit of overload.

economically, we were also suddenly rich, at least by the up-state new York standards we had previously known. livingwith us on our ‘compound’ in the suburbs of Sao Paulo (by theway: Sao Paulo was already a gigantic city in 1965, and is nowmore populous than new York City and its environs) were achauffer and a maid, and our ‘gardens’ were tended by a gar-dener frequently.

What was immediately evident, even to a boy of 12, was thelarge economic gap between the rich and the poor everywherein Brazil. i had never seen people literally living in boxes onthe street, and the sight confused and disturbed me greatly. Thebodies of people killed in traffic accidents were sometimes wereleft by the side of the road until claimed. Often these bodieswere the center of Voodoo ceremonies; that was certainly un-common in upstate new York. i said i could see the wealth gap,

but it took one day after school with a bunch of friends to trulyunderstand what it meant.

The American School we attended was at the top of a smallhill surrounded by jungle and it was quite far from the city. Oneday after school about eight of us, all boys, decided to stay forthe late bus. That gave us time to hang around and eat ice cream,two of our favorite activities. This time, however, we decideden masse to check out the area outside the school grounds. Wewalked to the end of the surrounding playgrounds and then a bitfurther until we came to a cliff. far below were the tops of theubiquitous palm trees which created a thick cover over theground below. We didn’t want to attempt the descent so, as boysare wont to do, we decided to throw stones over the cliff to seewho could throw the farthest. After a few stones were hurled,we thought we heard sound from below, muffled screams, angryand frightened. Amazingly, this didn’t stop us from continuingto throw.

Suddenly, and apparently coming out of nowhere, we weresurrounded by native boys with weapons including sling shotsand sticks. We were frightened; despite our still shaky Por-tuguese, we slowly understood that these boys, and their fami-lies, lived in the jungle below. for our part, it was impossibleto imagine anyone living in such a place. i later learned thatmany of the country’s poor lived in mud huts, without electricityor running water. it was not uncommon for children to choketo death from a tape worm coming up through their mouths oradults from expanding neck goiters.

eventually one of us was shot – not seriously — by one ofthe boy with a sling shot and we all ran for the nearby safety ofthe American School. We decided to come back the next weekwith our own weapons – our father’s pistols – but that, thank-

fully, never happened. i can’t speak for the other boys there at the time, but i learned

at that moment that the world was much more complex — andinequitable — than i could have imagined the year before. it isa extremely useful lesson. if more of us were to learn it, perhapsthe impulse to war would be tempered and the understandingthat there are consequences to any violence – physical, economic— would be finally understood. Substitute high tech bombs forthe stones we threw as boys into the jungle below in 1965 andperhaps we would understand better why some in the world‘hate’ us.

~Stephen Gerard Dietemann Architect AiA

Simply Sasha by Sasha Seymour

Keeping it Green and LocalA good friend of ours Rich Ciotola, is a local  farmer whose vegetables are naturally grown right here

in the Berkshires (his friends call him Farmer Rich*). We decided that we wanted to purchase vegetablesdirectly from him (talk about farm to table!) because we knew they would be of the highest quality.  I started researching different recipes that would compliment all these colorful wonderful veggies, and I wanted to share this one with all of you Artfully Minded folks! Keep this dish in the fridge, and eat it with carrots or chips for a light meal or a snack. It is sure to be a family fav!

We feel pretty lucky to live in an area where we are able to buy local produce from a friend, and to know that it was grown with Love. Thank you Farmer Rich!

1 16 oz. tub of low fat cottage cheese1 cup of chopped tomatoesRed, orange and yellow peppers, chopped to make one cup3 large scallions2 cloves minced garlic1 jalapeno pepper, chopped1/4 chopped fresh cilantro1 tsp Worcestershire sauce1 tsp cuminsalt and pepper to taste

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and refrigerate for a few hours or overnight. experiment withdifferent vegetables! have fun and enjoy!

*farmer rich’s vegetables are naturally grown without the use of chemical fertilizers or pesticides. rich islocated at Pumpkin hollow farm and at foggy river farm, and he can be contacted by phone at 413-717-1735 or via email at [email protected]!

Architecture &ArcadiaStephen Gerard Dietemann

The Architecture of Understanding

Berkshire Jewish Film FestivalPITTSFIELD – Congregation Knesset Israel’s 27th

Annual Berkshire Jewish Film Festival through August19. All films are shown at Duffin Theater, Lenox Memorial High School, 197 East St. in Lenox, MA.

Aug. 12, 4pm: The First Fagin (Australia, 2012)Aug. 12, 8pm: *The Gatekeeper (Israel, 2012)Aug. 19, 4pm: *Hanna Arendt (Germany, 2012)Aug. 19, 8pm: When Comedy Went To School

(USA, 2013)(*SUBTITLES)

The Berkshire Jewish Film Festival is supported in part by agrant from The Jewish Arts and Culture Initiative of the HaroldGrinspoon Foundation and Greylock Federal Credit Union.

For more information, call (413) 445-4872.

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FRONT STREET GALLERY

July begins a new show - Recent Works by Kate Knapp, opening July 13, 10 – 6pm.

Painting Classes on Monday and Wednesday mornings 10 - 1pm at the Studio and Thursday mornings 10am - 1pm out in the field. Open to all.

413-274-6607 413-429-7141 (cell) 413-528-9546Gallery Hours: Saturday and Sunday 12-5 or by appointmentFRONT STREET, downtown HOUSATONIC, MA

Kate Knapp, Garden Bench, 36 x 36”