A Few Bird Photos from My Saturday

My oldest son gave me his old Canon Rebel to use and yesterday I took a deep breath and started using it for the first time. I am a little intimidated by the sheer number of things I can do with this camera compared with my point and shoot.

I must have taken 100 photos and there are only four that are worth sharing. :)


I shared last week that we have a Western Scrub Jay building a nest in our front yard. I was able to capture him gathering some twigs for the nest as he flew from the backyard to the front yard about fifty times.


Here is another jay in the feeder. I love the way his tail feathers are all folded up in this photo. He really is the King of this particular feeder. He spends a great deal of his time chasing the little birds out of the way.


Here is a junco who managed to get his share of dinner before the jay swooped in and scared him away. The juncos are not particular about which feeder they eat in or under. I like the way you can see all his different colors of feathers in this photo.


One last photo of one of our resident juncos. He is so cut all puffed up and sitting on the branch of our sweet gum tree.

My goal is to work with the Canon a little each day so that I gain some confidence.

Stay tuned.....

Vintage Bikes

An incredible collection of more than 100 vintage bikes, gathered over several years by it's Pamplona owner were auctioned yesterday.
Some looked as though they had just been rescued from a war site, others were sparkling and shiny and looked ready to race.
Not that I know a lot about bikes but still I was impressed.
Take a look at the auctioneers site if you want to know all those detailed things I can't answer.

Weekend Video

It was fun to turn on the t.v. and find a pop video that makes so many references to contemporary art. See how many you can count.

Piccadilly Circus

Famous for its statue of Eros, but if you look up you will see the three golden swimmers diving from the building.
The contrast of the deco statues against the large advertising screen is truly London.

Owen Jones and Mexican Ornament

Illustration: Mexican Ornament from Owen Jones The Grammar of Ornament, 1856.

Perhaps one of the seemingly oddest incorporations in Owen Jones The Grammar of Ornament published in 1856 was that of Mexican ornament. Interestingly, but perhaps puzzlingly, Jones placed his illustrations towards what he called Mexican ornament within the chapter dealing with Greek ornament. It seems as if Jones had little or no real concrete information regarding Mexican decorative effects and techniques and had trouble finding a fitting place in his book for the subject. That he felt the need to include any information at all on the subject is credit to Jones.

The illustrations which only take up one black and white page in Jones The Grammar of Ornament, where all other decorative cultural work was produced in glorious and luxurious colour, was derived from illustrations seen on various ceramic works found at the British Museum. Jones placed this page within the chapter dealing with Greek ornamentation because he felt that there were certain similarities between the patternwork of the two cultures. 

This in no way implies that Jones at any time dealt with the possibility that Mexican or Greek cultures were ever in contact with each other. Theories such as this and many more that were even less conceivable were rife throughout the Victorian era and were indeed still being put forward as viable explanations well into the twentieth century. Jones found it interesting that different cultures could arrive at some similar forms of decoration and ornamentation. That he thought it was either purely coincidence or perhaps even part of a more basic human understanding of the rules of pattern and decoration, was the position that Jones took towards the origins of most of the forms of decoration that he came across around the planet, admittedly mostly seen within the confines of London museums.

It would appear that Jones would have been keen to have explored and expanded a section on Mexican ornament, even though at the time there was some confusion in Europe as to what was actually meant by Mexican. Work was still very much in progress towards the disentangling of all the numerous peoples, history and empires of Central America. Jones would have been aware of the American explorer John Stephens and the British illustrator Frederick Catherwood and the books published in the early 1840s concerning their explorations in Mexico. Why Jones did not include and incorporate some of the illustrations and elements of these books is unclear. It may well have been a simple matter of copyright, or the fact that there was clearly so little information available in which Jones felt that he could place any critical trust. Perhaps Jones felt he was on potentially unsure ground concerning a culture, and indeed more a patchwork of cultures, that Europe at the time still knew little if anything of substance concerning this area of the planet and the history of its decoration and ornament.

Whatever the reason, by including at least an element concerning the decorative and ornamental history of Central America, Jones was placing an emphasis, however small, on an area of the world that was to eventually significantly expand the vocabulary of human decorative arts.

Further reading links:
Grammar of Ornament: A Monumental Work of Art
Incidents of Travel in Yucatan, Vols. I and II
Incidents of Travel in Central America, Chiapas, and Yucatan (Volume 2)
Aztec and Mexican Indian Desig (International Design Library)
The Pre-Columbian Painting Murals of the Mesoamerica: Murals of the Mesoamerica
Aztec Art
Aztec Designs (Design Library)
The Art of Mesoamerica: From Olmec to Aztec (World of Art)
The Art & Architecture of the Aztec & Maya: An illustrated encyclopedia of the buildings, sculptures and art of the peoples of Mesoamerica, with over ... of ancient Mexico and central America
The Codex Borgia: A Full-Color Restoration of the Ancient Mexican Manuscript
Design Motifs of Ancient Mexico CD-ROM and Book (Dover Electronic Clip Art)
Pre-Columbian Art
Arts and Crafts of the Aztecs and Maya (Arts & Crafts of the Ancient World)
Art of Aztec Mexico: Treasures of Tenochtitlan
Maya Art and Architecture (World of Art)
Courtly Art of the Ancient Maya
Art of the Maya Scribe
Painting the Maya Universe: Royal Ceramics of the Classic Period (Duke University Museum of Art)

Winter Creative Nature Study

I knew it would happen at some point. I have started to get email telling me that you can't do the week's challenge because you have too much snow or it is too cold.

I know that the conditions in parts of the country are not ideal for many of the particular challenges I have posted in this series. Please try to remember that I write the challenges weeks ahead of time and that there are many, many participants from all over the world. I can't tailor every challenge to every location.

Please know that you are not left high and dry.

On the Handbook of Nature Study blog, in the right sidebar, there are literally dozens of Outdoor Hour Challenges to choose from. Please feel free to pick and choose and adapt any challenge that will give you some inspiration for your weekly nature study. If you get my blog entries as email, you will need to click over to the blog to see the long list of challenges on the sidebar. There is no particular time limit on any of the challenges and you may use them at any time and post on Mr. Linky and/or submit your entry to the Outdoor Hour Challenge Blog Carnival.

The complete Winter Wednesday Series from last year is listed on the sidebar. Even if you don't have the Discover Nature in Winter book, I provide in each challenge a simple activity for you to try.

Winter Wednesday #1: Finding Winter Colors
Winter Wednesday #2: Filtering Snow and Measuring Melted Snow
Winter Wednesday #3: Observe the winter night sky
Winter Wednesday #4 and #5: Tree observations-which can even be done from a window
Winter Wednesday #8: Watch birds from your window.
Winter Wednesday #9: Look for mammal tracks in the snow.

Remember as always that a successful Outdoor Hour Challenge is just to spend some time each week outside. It can be just a few minutes when the weather breaks and you can bundle up and take a stomp in the snow. There does not need to be anything more than getting outside if that is all that is going to happen this week. The aim of the Outdoor Hour Challenge is to challenge you to spend a few minutes with your children outside to see what you can see. If is a mountain of snow, great. If it is a frozen world, great. That is winter nature study in much of the world and it can be a beautiful experience.

I know the frustration of getting little ones all dressed in coats, hats, mittens, and boots only to have them want to come right back inside, but it is worth the effort. My children remember fondly the days we suited up for an outdoor trek after a big snow. They remember the hot cocoa afterward as well. It is not all about formal nature study.

It is about building relationships with the world outdoors and with each other.

If you need additional inspiration, stay tuned for Monday's Outdoor Hour Challenge Blog Carnival. You are going to be so encouraged to try some winter nature study after seeing all the great examples from families who live all over the world.

Win a pair of tickets to see Father of My Children - Winner of Cannes' Un Certain Regard

In the spirit of keeping our eyes peeled for what's happening in the arts world, we've just organised a fantastic prize for one lucky reader! As you know, if you read this blog regularly, I see the arts as interdisciplinary, flitting between the gallery, cinema and theatre. I have a serious commitment to film, and so, I was delighted to find out the one of Cannes' prize winning films (Un Certain Regard), Father of My Children would be opening nationwide from 5th March.



To celebrate the March 5th release of Le père de mes enfants/Father of my Children - We have a pair of tickets available to attend a Q&A screening on 3rd March with Director, Mia Hansen-Love.

The preview screening for the gentle drama, Father of my Children, will be held at the Cine Lumiere, London. The event will begin with a champagne reception at 7:30pm and will then be followed by the film’s screening at 8:30pm. After the screening the guests and winners will be invited to stay for an opportunity to put their questions about Father of My Children to the film’s director Mia Hansen-Love.

Father of My Children concentrates on Grégoire (de Lencquesaing) a happily married father of three and an independent film producer who somehow manages to juggle the never-ending demands of his company with his domestic responsibilities. Glued to his mobile and chain-smoking his way through meetings and crises, he maintains his sense of humour despite the incessant demands of his work. In addition to massaging artistic egos and keeping one step ahead of his bank, he reluctantly joins the family on an Italian holiday, but on his return, Grégoire finds he can no longer maintain any sane work/life balance. Wonderfully reminiscent of Truffaut’s Day for Night in it’s evocation of the world of European cinema.

For your chance to win just answer the following question:
What is the name of the director and film, who's featured in the current issue of Aesthetica Magazine?

Please send your answers to Alexis Smith at office@aestheticamagazine.com with Father of My Children marked in the subject line. Please send by 12pm, Tuesday 2 March. All correct entries will be added to prize draw and the winner selected at random.

Good luck!

Outdoor Hour Challenge: Winter Series #8 One Small Square-Winter Study

Outdoor Hour Challenge
Winter Series #8 One Small Square-Winter
(See also Outdoor Hour Challenge #9)


Outdoor Hour Time:
Gather:
Yarn
Scissors
Ruler
Four rocks
Optional: small garden trowel and magnifying lens

Measure off one square somewhere out in your yard or near-by park. I prefer to do this somewhere I can dig up a few inches of soil and not get into trouble. Use your ruler to place rocks in a one foot square plot. Use the yarn to mark off the edges of your square.

Now the challenge comes in. See how many different things you can find in your square. Now that it is winter, you may need to dig a little snow up to see if there is anything hidden in the snow or under the snow. If there are leaves, lift them up and see what is underneath. If there are rocks or gravel, scrape them aside and see what is underneath. If there is grass and you have permission, use your trowel to dig up a few inches under the grass, moving it carefully to the side to replace when you are done observing. Use your hand lens if you have one along with you on your challenge. If you would like more information on square foot nature study, you can click over to my Squidoo Lens: Square Foot Nature Study.

Follow-Up Activity:
After your outdoor time, take a few minutes to discuss what you found in your small square. Make note of any items you want to research further.

“Make the lesson an investigation and make the pupils feel that they are investigators…….The ‘leading thought’ embodies some of the points which should be in the teacher’s mind while giving the lesson; it should not be read or declared to the pupils……..The outlines for observations herein given by no means cover all of the observations possible; they are meant to suggest to the teacher observations of her own, rather than to be followed slavishly….If the questions do not inspire the child to investigate, they are useless.”
Handbook of Nature Study

Give an opportunity for a nature journal entry. If you used your hand lens during this week’s challenge, encourage your child to draw something they saw that you would not normally see like a small insect, worm, or seed. Your child could also make a list of things that were found in the small square in addition to the drawing. You can use the provided notebook page in the Winter Series ebook, a blank notebook page from the sidebar of my blog, or your nature journal for your observations.


One time we did a really big square in the woods and we kept the yarn up for a complete year. We would go back and make observations in each season. I would highly recommend this activity if you have a place you can mark for a whole year.


If you would like all the Winter Series Challenges in one book, I have an ebook gathered for you to purchase for your convenience. The ebook also contains art and music appreciation plans for the winter months as well. Please see this entry for more details:
Winter Nature Study Ebook Now for Sale. You can also purchase just a set of custom notebook page for the Winter Series Challenges by following the link above.

Make sure to come back and enter your blog entry for this challenge in Mr. Linky.

Barb-Harmony Art Mom

Raincoat Day

A perfect day for camera raincoat, dozens of umbrellas to battle with in the streets.
Is it just me or has anyone else noticed that umbrellas are getting bigger, especially in small spaces.

From my iPhone

Harry Benson at his opening at Tomas Maier in Miami.

I'll be the first to admit that the quality of iPhone pictures is at best passable, but this is far outweighed by the convenience of always having a camera with you. Otherwise I wouldn't have been able to capture my old friend Harry Benson at his recent Miami opening at Tomas Maier's Miami store.

For those not in the know, Tomas Maier is the photography-loving creative director of Bottega Veneta - and rightfully considered one of the best designers around. In addition to overseeing B.V., Maier produces his own limited line of vacation-y accessories which he shows in the coolest shops you've seen - a shack off the Montauk Highway, a 2nd floor walk up hidden off Worth Avenue in Palm Beach, and a two story building in Miami's design district where he mixes up photography, art books, accessories by people he admires, and his own designs.

Anyway, Maier and Benson became friendly resulting in the Miami show of some of Harry's classic black and whites. Interestingly in light of the previous post on happiness - unlike most photojournalists Benson's pictures tend to record the light rather than the dark side of life as you will see in the selection below. For those lucky enough to be anywhere near Miami the show is up through March 1.

Muhammed Ali

James Brown and friends.

Mia Farrow and Frank Sinatra at Truman Capote's Black and White ball.

Dolly Parton

A few other recent iPhone snaps illustrating the difference between New York and Florida

Palm Beach

New York

Palm Beach humor.

New York humor.

Tour of My Early Spring Garden Today

I thought you might like a little tour of my early spring garden since the rain stopped last night and the sun is out this morning. Everything is a little damp from the rain still.

The tulips are all up and promising to give a colorful display very soon. This was my purple garden last year but I added a few new tulip colors so it will be a surprise when they bloom.


I honestly can't remember this flower from last year, but it is bursting with oranges and greens in the far corner of the garden.


There is an explosion of primroses under my other birdbath. These were transplanted from Amanda's garden box last year and they love this spot in the garden.


Ahhhh....this means it really is almost spring here in our neck of the woods. The grape hyacinths are blooming in all their purple glory. Now if I can just keep my boys from mowing them down along with the grass.


Little tiny flowers...can't remember the name of this one....are blooming if you keep your eyes focused for the pretty periwinkle color.


My daffodil patch is ever so close to blooming and since it is by my mailbox, I can see it every day as I collect the mail.


Everyone who reads my blog with any regularity knows that I have a "thing" for lavender. This year our plants promise to give us a beautiful show of color and fragrance. The hummingbirds have already spotted these blooms and in the early morning I have seen them out here sipping at the flowers.


I learned something this year quite by chance. I left my broccoli plants in the ground and in a few pots all winter and this is what happened....beautiful yellow flowers. The hummingbirds have been in these blooms as well. I think next year I will leave a whole bunch of broccoli plants in the ground because they make really pretty blooming plants.


I would call this a true *spring green*. The moss growing between the bricks in my little arbor is thick and soft.


We have a new development in the front yard. We noticed today that the Scrub jays are building another nest in our magnolia tree. They fly back and forth with little twigs....hundreds of times over the course of the day so far. They are very busy. If they succeed in building their nest, this will be the third year in a row in this particular tree.

Hope you enjoyed my little tour and if it is cold and you are having winter weather today, I hope it cheered you up.

Barb-Harmony Art Mom