NAN SANDERS POKERWINSKI
  • Home
  • Media
  • About
  • Contact
  • MANGO RASH
  • Blog
  • EVENTS
  • Journalism
  • Photography
  • Buy Books
  • Collages

HeartWood
A blog about cultivating
creativity, connection and contentment
wherever you are

(Not the) Last Wednesday Wisdom for June 2019

6/19/2019

10 Comments

 
I realize it's not the last Wednesday of the month, but I haven't done one of these compilations in quite a while, and I blew right past last month's bonus Wednesday, when I fully intended to post something extra. So I owe you! Besides, I've been finding some good stuff that I really want to share.

​So here you go . . . 
We tend to think of consciousness as skin bound, brain tethered. However, in nature we can sense something vaster--and that something larger senses us. And from here our perception and understanding transforms. We start to think from this bigger perspective.
-- Mark Coleman, Mindful magazine, April 2019
Picture
I'd sooner exchange ideas with the birds on earth than learn to carry on intergalactic communications with some obscure race of humanoids on a satellite planet from the world of Betelgeuse. First things first.
-- Edward Abbey, "The First Morning," Desert Solitaire: A Season in the Wilderness
Picture
Bees teach us so many lessons. When they take all this nectar from the tree, does that deprive the tree of anything? No, it enhances it. And when you give your time and energy to helping someone, does it deplete your skills? No, it gives you something to be proud of.
-- Brother Blaise Heuke, "The Beauty of a Bee," AARP The Magazine,  
Picture
Live with unremitting alertness.
-- Joseph Campbell
Picture
[W]ith art comes empathy. It allows us to look through some else's eyes and know their strivings and struggles. It expands the moral imagination and makes it impossible to accept the dehumanization of others. When we are without art, we are a diminished people--myopic, unlearned and cruel.
-- Dave Eggers, The New York Times, June 29, 2018
Picture
Authorship is a solitary business, always coming down to a writer and a blank page, but inevitably it becomes a social act as well, because the book is inextricably part of the world. It finds readers, it begins a conversation, it tells a kind of truth that can't be told in any other way--or else it fails to do that.
James Gleick, Authors Guild Bulletin, Spring-Summer 2018
Picture
But here's the thing: Humans are not what we do. Humans are everything we do, and feel, and think, with a dash of stardust thrown in. The same is true for writers.
-- Lenore Myka, "When to ignore good advice," Poets & Writers magazine, Sept/Oct 2018
Picture
You need to let the little things that would ordinarily bore you suddenly thrill you.
-- Andy Warhol
Picture
Life is a great bundle of little things.
-- Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr.
Picture
For a long time, I was looking for happiness from success. Now I am looking for success from happiness.
-- Kathryn Budig, Yoga Journal, August 2018
10 Comments

An Artful Start to Summer

6/5/2019

12 Comments

 
​What signals the beginning of summer to you? Do you wait for the calendar to tell you it’s officially begun, or do you declare it underway once you’ve planted a flat of annuals, fired up the grill, or popped open a beer on the back porch?
PictureRay checks out a woodworker's wares
​

​For me, those are all sure signs, but what really kicks off summer is the first festival of the season. Around here, that’s the Newaygo Arts & Crafts Festival, held over the Memorial holiday weekend.

​​Some years the festival is better than others (with my definition of “better” based on an index I derive through complex calculations weighted heavily by the ratio of actual artisans and crafters to booths occupied by gutter-guard salespeople and chiropractors).
Picture
Lots of artsy and crafty folks this year
​This year, I have to say, the festival was outstanding. Not only were there lots of vendors offering interesting wares, there was also a new addition, “Let’s Art Newaygo!”, that I hope will become a regular feature of the annual celebration. This juried art show and competition showcased the work of twenty-two artists, displayed in thirteen businesses throughout Newaygo. You could think of it as a smaller-scale ArtPrize, the Grand Rapids extravaganza of the arts that draws hundreds of thousands of visitors.
Picture
Picture book illustrator Lori McElrath-Eslick entered this painting, titled "Our Dog," in the Let's Art Newaygo competition
PictureI always welcome an excuse to stroll around downtown Newaygo on a sunny day


​​I spent a blissful couple of hours strolling around Newaygo, checking out the works of art. Then I headed back to the River Country Chamber of Commerce booth in Brooks Park to cast my vote in the People’s Choice competition. (Read on to find out which pieces were selected by the judges and the People’s Choice voters.)

PictureSherri Russell's mixed-media collage, titled "Lake Fish Spawning," was created entirely out of recycled materials, including beverage and cat-food cans
​

​I was fascinated to see the variety of materials and techniques the artists used. There were paintings, photographs, sculptures of metal and wood, stained glass windows, and multi-media works. Several artists made creative use of recycled or repurposed materials, which added interest. 

​I could go on and on, but words don’t do justice, so I’ll let you take a look at  more of the art. And if you’re in the Newaygo area, you don’t have to settle for pictures—the works will be on display through June 10, and printed guides to their locations are available at local businesses and libraries.
Picture
Part of the fun was seeing art displayed alongside merchandise in Newaygo shops. Here's Lori McElrath-Eslick's painting at New Ewe Yarn & Quilt Shoppe
Picture
Nancy Markosky calls this jewelry collection "Out of the Ruins." She created the pieces from pure copper, distressed using acid and heat, and hand-set the agate, turquoise and amazonite stones. The work is displayed at Sui Generis Home Furniture.
Picture
Mark Andrews's photograph, "Electric Forest," can be seen at 37 North. (Isn't it cool how the colors in the photograph, taken at Twinwood Lake, echo the colors of the clothing, shoes, and even the kayaks in the background? Not intentional, I'm sure, but a happy coincidence.)
Picture
Shari Werner's stained glass piece, "Rising Among the Reeds," won third place from both the judges and the People's Choice voters.
Picture
This artisan leather bag on display at Sui Generis Home Furniture, was made by Roxanne Middleton
Picture
Woodworker Mike Borkowski created this fish, titled "Hank," from some two hundred pieces of wood and copper scraps. The piece won second place in People's Choice.
Picture
Gail Howarth's photograph, "Magical Creatures," displayed at 37 North, reflects her passion for nature.
Picture
"A Fish Called Lelia," by Jeremiah Corrigan, won first place in People's Choice and second place from the judges.
Picture
Lelia flashes a winning smile.
Picture
The judges awarded first place to Dawn Campbell for this evening dress made of tobacco leaves and displayed at--where else--Indian River Tobacco Traders.
12 Comments
    Picture
    Written from the heart,
    from the heart of the woods
    Read the introduction to HeartWood here.

    Subscribe to HeartWood

    Available now!

    Picture
    Check with your favorite bookseller or order from the BUY BOOKS page on this website.
    Get updates on Mango Rash
    BUY MANGO RASH

    Author

    Nan Sanders Pokerwinski, a former journalist, writes memoir and personal essays, makes collages and likes to play outside. She lives in West Michigan with her husband, Ray.

    Archives

    February 2025
    January 2025
    December 2024
    April 2022
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016

    Categories

    All
    Art
    Better Living
    Books
    Community
    Creativity
    Events
    Explorations
    Food
    Gardens
    Guest Posts
    Health
    Inspiration
    Last Wednesday Wisdom
    Local Artists
    Mecosta County
    Montcalm County
    Music
    Muskegon County
    Nature
    Newaygo County
    Oceana County
    People
    Photography
    Pure Michigan
    Reflection
    Return To Paradise
    Samoa
    Writing

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly
  • Home
  • Media
  • About
  • Contact
  • MANGO RASH
  • Blog
  • EVENTS
  • Journalism
  • Photography
  • Buy Books
  • Collages