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| Brooklyn Bridge, A.J., 1960 |
“What
a strange thing is memory, and hope; one looks backward, the other
forward. The one is of Today; the other is
the Tomorrow. Memory is history recorded
in our brain, memory is a painter, it paints pictures of the past and of the day." Grandma Moses.
If
you don’t know the name, you oughta look her up. I was five when Mom and Dad took us to an
exhibition of her art in NYC; I found the old brochures at Mom’s last summer,
but what the hell can you remember at 5?
Snippets of images; a large room full of people looking at stuff I was
too short to see. My line of sight was
more likely…
Never
mind. But there must have been something
which triggered an early attachment to this great woman. Perhaps my parents reminding me that anything
is possible; look at G. M., also known as the Painting Farmwife, who had
her first exhibition at age 80.
“At
an age when most people think only of retirement, Mrs. Moses acquired the
ability to paint pictures which are known and sought eagerly by thousands of
people throughout the length and breadth of our land.” Then-New York Governor Nelson A.
Rockefeller, proclaiming September 7, 1960 as Grandma Moses Day.
How
come we never got that day offa school?*
Wouldn’t a yearly reminder of such an inspiring role model help later in
life when people begin to believe their time and/or talents are used up? Not
me, no Sirree. People remark on my optimism
even when things are rotten. Certainly this
little exhibition fifty-odd years ago must have helped. Re-read her words, then go out and get
inspired to tackle something you didn’t think possible. If you’d told me at 5 that I’d be winning
painting awards when I got older, I’d probably have said, “Just like Gramma M.”
It's officially Summertime, and even if we still must work there's the kid inside yelling,
Play Time! Thank the Druids.
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