Thursday's Treasures: Art

     

For this treasure post that I am mostly writing for my kiddos, I am sharing my dabbling in art. I heard someone say this in a teacher workshop once when trying to choose a favorite subject.... "I am the jack of all trades, but the master of none." I immediately popped up to look over because that is me. I have so many likes and am eclectic in many ways. The one thing I like that probably never wavers is traditional home decor with a wee bit of country for whimsey, but country can be cluttered in my own home and that drives me nutty, so mostly traditional. This jack of all trades thing explains my choice of favorite subject as I can make a case for all of them and my choice of reading material which is all over the place.

How did my venture into art go? Great, but again not a master. It all started around 7th-8th grade when I broke it to mom that I would NOT be taking any more piano lessons. Now, I was absolutely positive I wasn't going back, but you never told Mother no, so I presented her with a well thought out plan of how I had no real talent in it and the teacher recognized it and it was agreed upon by us both. I promised to continue practicing, but that I could only read notes. I heard nothing and was never going to go past a certain level. I kept my word and dabbled in piano playing on many days without the stress of going to an awful lesson. 

Then my mother went to some meeting at a ladies house at church and discovered that she taught art lessons in her private studio out past her garage. Her wheels began to spin and so art lessons began. If I remember correctly, I took art for 2 years and I really liked it although there was no doubt in my mind that I was again mediocre and that there was REAL talent in the room. I was always ok with that. I worked hard at everything I did and excelled enough to be recognized for hard work, but I was never really talented at anything. I think it is still the same today. Jack of trades...master of none. That is not all bad. I think it makes for well rounded if you really want to know!

The woman, Mrs. Gillis that taught the art lessons in her home took a shine to me and we became good buddies. She is a huge part of my faith story, but that would be another story. 

The way it went down in her studio was that there were kids all around doing different things and she would get you started on something you were interested in and you would work on that project until completion. She liked for you to complete your masterpiece and then she showcased it by having her husband frame it.

     

My second project was the oil still life you see above. What you can't see behind this framed still life is a blue ribbon. Yep, you read that right - a blue ribbon. 

Mrs. Gillis had an art show each year at the public library there in Brewton...might I digress another moment and tell you how much this girl loved the library. We moved to Brewton from the woods right outside there when I started 6th grade and it was my first experience with a real library. I had gone to a rural school with a book mobile which I can tell you now was amazing too, but a real walk in library where you could browse and touch the books to your heart's content was so special. I would have Mom drop me off every week and tell her to go run errands while I browsed. I was an avid reader and it was just so special. OK, back to the art show. 

She would have the local junior college art teacher come and judge the material giving ribbons to each medium of work. I remember as my mother and I entered the library to see the art show thinking that I hoped my work didn't look too dorky up next to the older kids' works. I had a charcoal drawing which had been my first work and the one above there since I had only been going to lessons awhile. I think Mrs. Gillis might have helped on the apple in the charcoal. I knew there were really talented kids in the class, but remember my teacher had taken a shine to me and just seemed to like me a lot. She gave lots of encouragement.

I walked down an aisle or two and then I spotted the blue ribbon. I was speechless. For a moment in time I could only be happy and proud and Mrs. Gillis was right behind me to share in it all. Then Mother.    

I was soaking up this moment when I spied Jack who was older and so very talented. The kind of talent that you take out a canvas and whip up goodness without even thinking. He didn't say one mean word, but his face said it all. How could some little middle schooler get first place in this category with that. He was devastated. My happy moment kind of dimmed. 

There is a photograph with me standing my first place painting. I am not knee deep in photo albums, but more like chin deep right now. I actually think that album is mom's assisted living apartment so maybe one day I will remember to take a picture of me back then and post at a later time.

The thing is I didn't feel any animosity towards Jack for his facial expression. I understood! He was way more talented than me. In this one and only painting I had gotten the color mixing right ---maybe needed a little help with the shapes, but I had learned to mix colors and shade which I still use to this day in things. An art teacher just noticed that and like a teacher recognized it. 

I did go another year before Mrs. Gillis decided to hang up teaching herself. I painted the landscape that hangs in our Auburn house. I don't have a great picture of it, but it is one I also love and am proud of. 

I painted a pair of spaniel pups in a basket that my aunt has at her house. They are definitely amateur hour because I could NOT paint the eyes. My last thing was the magnolia that I wrestled away from Mom when we moved in to our current house. It is done in oil pastels which may have been my favorite medium. 

I never did any formal art again, not even in high school when they began to offer art as an elective. I think I had told myself there wouldn't be a Mrs. Gillis lifting me up, but rather just a busy teacher looking at the really gifted kids. I think I understood that too. 

I have always loved art, but I don't think I am missing anything (jack of ALL trades). I kept the oil pastels and used them to make some wonderful bulletin boards. I took pictures of things and blew them up using the overhead projector and colored them in with those oil pastels and shaded them just right. Then I would run them through the laminator and that would blend them even more with the heat. See, I did use the talent. 

The charcoal and the oil painting have been at Mom's house for decades, but they have now come home with me. I have to find a place for the charcoal piece...for now, the closet will have to be its home. I did learn to sign my name small by the end:) 

And this explains why there is a 1st place Blue ribbon taped to the back of the oil painting.  I am proud of it and sorry that Jack didn't get the recognition he deserved, but I am sure there was a lesson in there somewhere and with his talent I have no doubt he got plenty of recognition down the road.