Faces of January 12

Some very much unfinished 2010 business. It's days before the first anniversary of the earthquake in Haiti. Things are really bad. Everyone can do something. If you can do a little more, there are Haitian artists ready to sell you some fabulous paintings & drawings. (photograph of Patricia Brintle charcoal Faces of January 12 - #2 via MedaliaArt. More Haitian art for sale, here.)

ciao-meow/GG Holiday Central

Monet's Debt to Flowers

I perhaps owe having become a painter to flowers.--Claude Monet

Happy birthday to Claude Monet (1840). For some helpful travel information about, thoughts on, & photographs of Monet's garden at Giverny, visit The Clever Pup's Paris Notebook. She was there just last month & has the best ideas about how to visit Paris. Hint: Wear rose-colored glasses only part of the time or you will miss out. (Poplar (Autumn) series via here)

We're off to walk through some autumnal garden scenes, as well. Have a great Sunday.

ciao-bonjour-meow/GGCM

The Waiting...

...is the hardest part.

ciao-fume-meow/GG Voter Central

(image via Mary Cassatt - The Complete Works)

Cape Cod Morning

GG Central is under-the-weather & so we'll post just a little bit through month's end & then take a summer break.*

We're in a birthday acknowledgment mood--it makes things easier, yes. So today, it is Edward Hopper (1882-1967), American painter. This is Cape Cod Morning (1950), in the collection at the Smithsonian's American Art Museum. American Art's nicely done An Edward Hopper Scrapbook & Artcyclopedia's page on Hopper painting holdings world-wide.

ciao-arty-meow/GGCM

*Before we take a break, all information regarding Darfur Baskets & their acquisition-by-you will be posted on the front page.

[Cape Cod Morning image via Smithsonian]

Olivia's Help the Gulf Wildlife Project

From the National Audubon Society's blog The Perch (by Julie Leibach)

After hearing about the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, 11-year-old (as of this Friday) Olivia Bouler was devastated—and determined to act. She and her parents brainstormed ways to help, and it dawned on her: “I have a little artistic talent,” she says modestly. So she began sending original bird illustrations to donors who contribute to oil spill relief efforts.(rest of article)

Please help Olivia & the National Audubon Society help the birds of the Gulf. Go here to see more of Olivia's paintings . What wonderful girl (& talented artist).

GG & her editor

[Plover, tern by Olivia Bouler. Brown pelican, by Olivia Bouler. The original is hanging in the National Audubon Society's headquarters in New York City. All rights reserved.]

Art Changes Lives - Ask Tom Block

"There is within these peoples' souls a tremendous amount of beauty and [conviction] that they can actually make a difference.." - Tom Block, artist & activist

We're gearing up at GG Central for the big festival in our neighborhood. Here are some Tom Block paintings & they have changed lives. (Not just those who bought the paintings, silly!) Here is a press account of his first meeting with one of his subjects.

We're so proud of Tom, yes. He is the producer of this weekend's Human Rights Art Festival sponsored by Amnesty International & also a local member of the Takoma Park-Silver Spring #297 local AIUSA group. Tom has worked long & hard (with many others, to them next week, you know who you are) to bring this off. Human rights activists are no easier to herd than any other group of people. Do not despair about the dark nature of Tom's work; you'll notice the bright color he uses--this is not incidental.

ciao-peace-meow/GG's editor

[images by Tom Block/all rights reserved/used with permission of artist]

Tuesday at the Phillips with GG

GG is having a righteous rumpus. Her feline heart is set on becoming a patroness of the arts, particularly at the Phillips Collection. The day may come when we'll have to rent the café & throw her a big party. The Phillips Collection was voted Washington's best museum AND art gallery by City Paper readers recently. Some young'uns--the hordes of mid-20s-30ish folks recently descended upon our city--think they discovered it. Au contraire, nos amis. (Though we're happy to have you on board.)

The Phillips was a hang-out for GG's editor when she was still an official teenager, recently returned from France. "Meet you under the Matisse" meant she could be found sitting on a lumpy bottle-green velvet sofa in the music room (under a Matisse). We'd love to see GG sleeping on that sofa; we miss it terribly--including the lumps. The jewel-box space has become too manicured for our taste; but like an old friend--you still love them, even with (too much) Botox.

Some favorite paintings at the Collection are by Bonnard. Above, The Palm & La Côte d'Azur, respectively. The museum goer (looking just like GG's editor) is by Nina Leen. She's trying to divine from an egg-shaped objet d'art, "What will the Easter Bunny bring GG?"

ciao-meow/GG's art curator & party planner

[Bonnard images via artchive.com & Nina Leen photograph via LIFE archives]

The Plum Plum

Even though GG is a feline, one of her favorite people is a very Clever Pup. Big news: The Clever Pup's artistry is available via her new shop The Plum Plum. See here for a hint about the name if you're in a fog. (We were & it's one of our favorite novels & film! Evidently, we need to do more crosswords.) Anyway, GG Central awaits an order of The Plum Tarts & we're quite interested in the new notebooks as well. Everything is very well-priced & there's more to come.

Yesterday while marketing, we looked at cards & pretty journals for this month's birthdays in GG World. They were quite nice but nowhere near as lovely those above (& they were twice the price, too). Congratulations to our pal, C-Pup!

ciao-woof-meow/GG & her editor

[collage of images from The Plum Plum/The Clever Pup-used by kind permission/all rights reserved]

Yéle Haiti - Week's End

Yéle Haiti has announced a partnership among several organizations, including AmeriCares, called Haiti Earthquake Alliance. This is to avoid duplication of effort. Here is text from today's website (Friday, 15 January):

"Yéle Haiti has pulled together a group of like minded organizations and first responders in order to help coordinate the delivery of emergency services and materials needed by victims of the earthquake in Haiti. Each or the organizations will undertake their own fundraising and on-the-ground operations, but have agreed to share resources, collaborate when it makes sense and avoid duplication....Just formed in the last day, the Alliance has already pulled together four airlifts of medical supplies, food and other emergency supplies – along with teams of doctors. These airlifts will go out beginning Saturday. Keep checking back to this website for details."

GG Central asks that you continue to support your favorite organizations. Do not fall prey to scams. Do not open e-mail from sources you do not know. Doctors Without Borders is a good place to start as well; more on them next week. Today they are expanding surgical facilities on-the-ground.

We like to highlight Wyclef Jean's Yéle Haiti because it is very important that Haitian citizens are involved in development & rebuilding--real rebuilding-of their country. There were concrete efforts, planning, & progress being made. Many people do not know this fact. We are already hearing uninformed people criticizing Haiti. Not helpful, people. If you want to be involved for the long haul, please visit the William J. Clinton Foundation.

[GG collage from photographs courtesy of Mia Farrow & Haitian paintings by P. Brantle & Valmidor via American University & MedaliaArt--also raising money for earthquake aid]

Wandering in Sicily - Week's End

On a rock in San Vito, Sicily (Inspired by Caspar David Friedrich's 'Wanderer über dem Nebelmeer' painting*) By the lovely & generous Giampaolo Macorig, see here for the original format. Have a great weekend!

ciao-meow, GG/The Mgmt

[*the German painting is in the Hamburger Kunsthalle at http://www.hamburger-kunsthalle.de/start/en_start.html.]

GG Distressed at July Mess - Week's End

Update: Friday, 10 July 2009. Editorial decision to slap a 'week's end' on this post for sake of sanity & order. There's a lovely new-to-us item for bidding over at Made4Aid. GG is no help at all. She awaits a package delivery of toys & accessories (cherry blossom harness & matching lead) & so is disinterested in her editor's distress. She also has taken to hiding our keys. Seriously. Have a lovely weekend. We hope to be back before Monday.

This is only so Pablo doesn't stand on the beach one more day (see Tuesday post). Sunburn, you know. Seriously, this repeat-with-update is somewhat distressing. We're in similar shape as last August's post. Things are becoming more organized but...

Why this particular (embarrassing) post? We renewed our Phillips Collection (lower right sidebar) membership & rejoice. The purchase of two Prismacolor pens made the week, perhaps the month. You can always go to Made4Aid or Darfur Peace & Development Organization. If you went to both, that would be grand. [Note: left out pitiful thumbnail of Van Gogh painting mentioned below.]

Avanti!

From 24 August 2008, GG: Forgive Our Mess post

OOF!

Even en vacances, there is work to be done. While GG & her editor move things around the site, please do forgive the mess. GG's editor cannot readily locate her box(es) of Rembrandt pastels, inks, & Prismacolor pencils to illustrate this dire situation. GG's editorial judgment is to post some lovely images by van Gogh & Fantin-Latour, & spare ourselves embarrassment. It's bad enough leaving a mess floating in the ether. Aieeee!

Ciao, nos amis!

xoxo, GG

Wednesday at the Phillips with GG, reprise

[originally posted--with more links than necessary--on 22 October 2008]

GG longs to see the real The Boating Party. She'll have to sneak in because her editor is way too busy to take her. GG is taken with the story of her editor's Boating Party costume party many years ago. And with that, we must take our leave. Do visit the Phillips Collection web site in the right side-bar, it's lovely.

GG is organizing a weekly salon as threatened this past summer...details forthcoming on her foray into café society.(She's already redecorating the apartment in her little feline mind. Great idea--now she can get a job.)

Ciao-meow, nos amis! GG Central Mgmt.

Backyards, Brooklyn

The title of this painting by Ogden M. Pleissner (American, 1905-1983), painted in 1932. This is a detail from our 2007 Metropolitan Museum of Art agenda, New York, New York. Given to GG's editor by a dear friend. Many wonderful images, all owned by the Met. We overlook a weeping cherry, a tiny finger of Rock Creek Park in the urban jungle. The tree in the painting looks like a tulip tree.

Mostly posting images for the next few days as computer troubles continue. Real cherry blossoms beckon., too. (We are in Washington, after all.) Please visit humanitarian sites on this page & elsewhere. Some sorely-needed good news: yesterday late afternoon, some members of the Enough Project met with President Obama & new U.S. Special Envoy to Sudan, Gen. Scott Gration. Here is the link. Keep up the pressure.

ciao-meow/GG/mgmt

Venetian Window

Love, love, love window shots, paintings. From within or without. Matisse, Bonnard, come to mind immediately. This is another lovely shot by Allison Lince-Bentley, from her Venice series. Gorgeous colors.