Artists and Christmas Cards

I was going through an old basket of items from my Father’s childhood looking for a particular old letter my dad wrote to his mom one summer while he was staying with his grandmother. He calls himself Sammy in the letter and my brother was amused. I was going to do something creative with it and give it to him for Christmas. I never found the letter he wanted but I did find some old vintage cards. One was a Christmas card. It was a small work of adorable art.

I got to thinking about the artists behind these cards and so I started hunting for vintage Christmas cards where the artist could be identified.

                      Ellen Clapsaddle she has signed the card on the bottom left and it went to print that way. 

This week enjoy Artists and Christmas Cards! 

The Art of Christmas Morning

Christmas Morning.

We wait for it all year with excitement, anticipation, anxiety, dread, fear, joy, hope and over a thousand other emotions and thoughts.

Things march across my mind. Will there be snow? Will Santa stop by?  Are my girls going to get along or emotionally bash each other as sister can so expertly do? Will I have enough Champagne? (For my secret stash in my room as well as the family.) Will my cat stay trapped in the right bedroom so she has access to the litter box?

This week we look at Christmas Morning.

                                                         Henry Mosler - Christmas Morning

I will confess I am a little sad it will soon all be over.

Ornament Reflection

As I was waiting for inspiration to land on my shoulder and whisper in my ear I was looking at my Christmas tree.

Some ornaments are frosty, matte, 

sparkling like a disco ball. 

Some are crystal stars,

 glittering pine cones

 and a few have a mirror like sheen. I could see myself in reflection.

There it is, she whispered. Find artists who have painted a Christmas ornament and included a reflection.

This week I present Ornament Reflection.

Enjoy!

Journey To Bethlehem

Caesar has ordered a census. Everyone twelve years or older must go to their city of origin to register and pay taxes.

                                                 A painting of Bethlehem by Vasily Polenov, 1882

Joseph is descended from the line of David and so he must go to Bethlehem. His very,  pregnant fiance Mary is also from the line of David so she must also go to Bethlehem.  They live in Narzareth, Bethlehem is over 65 miles away. It will take five days to walk the distance. 

                                 Bethlehem
The terrain is a varied landscape, hills, forests, valleys where  lions, bear and boar roam freely . Bandits and robbers would have been lying in wait, ready to grab at any of the passing people traveling by. 

This week enjoy Journey To Bethlehem.

Bringing Home the Tree

Every year, when we were not living half-way around the world, we would go to my Granny’s house for Thanksgiving.  My Grandpa grew Christmas trees on several of his acres. 

We would always go out on Sunday after lunch and cut one down to take home.

Driving the winding roads of West Virginia back to our home with a tree securely tethered to our car roof was an adventure all by itself. Stopping every so often so my parents could re-secure the ropes, watching stray branches flap around outside our window and cheering my dad on as he bundled the tree in through the back door.

Putting up my tree today has me thinking about that wonderful tradition and memory of my childhood.  I have chopped down and dragged out my own trees several times in my adult life creating adventures for my own children.

As you reflect on some of your own Christmas Tree adventures enjoy this week’s Bringing Home the Tree.

We Are Talking Turkey

This week, the week of Thanksgiving I have devoted to paintings of turkeys.

While we may find it a delicious entrée for a Thanksgiving feast the number of artists who have painted this …. Uh….. Colorful bird are few.

                                                                      The Birds of America by John James Audubon

Turkeys are native to the Americas so seeing one in 1423 in Holland was not likely.

An ancient breed of turkey hangs in a larder in this 1566 century painting by Flemish master Joachim Beuckelaer.

The first turkey was introduced to England in 1550 by Sir William Strickland of Boynton and when he was granted a Coat of Arms it included “turkey-cock in his pride proper”.

Enjoy some Turkey!

Howdy Pilgrim

Pilgrim – A person who journeys to a scared place for religious reasons

Since people (the Pilgrims) made a journey and landed in America to pursue their religion, does that make America a sacred place?

Pilgrim comes from the Latin word peregrinus which translates traveler, someone from afar, who is going on a journey, pilgrimage.

In many faiths like those of the, ancient Egyptians, Persians, 

Pilgrims pray at the Ka'bah in the Great Mosque in Makkah. The painting, dated 1442, is by the Persian artist Bihzad.

and Chinese to name a few it was a common practice to make a pilgrimage.  In Hebrew history pilgrims traveled to Shiloh and Jerusalem while in the Middle Ages Christians made a pilgrimage to Rome.

                                        The Pilgrims Meet Pope Cyriac before the Walls of Rome - Vittore Carpaccio

The saga of the Pilgrims who came to America began with a group of religious dissidents who were being persecuted for their different religious beliefs.

Robert W. Weir - This painting depicts the Pilgrims on the deck of the ship Speedwell on July 22, 1620, before they departed from Delfs Haven, Holland, for North America, where they sought religious freedom.

The passengers of those first 4 ships were called “First Comers”. It was not until the early 1800s that they became known as Pilgrims.

This week say “Howdy Pilgrim!”