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How To Beat the Bull

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“No matter what your problems are —it’s just like going out and facing that bull every day:  Look at what you’re up against, and figure out a way to make it work.” —Gary Leffew, Champion Bull Rider

We face many life challenges, big and small;  consequently, there are many advisors, coaches, experts and various motivational guides offering advice on how to make a success of it all.  You may have noticed, social media is full of it.  But, really nothing beats the shared wisdom gained from personal experience, and sometimes the very best advice comes from an unexpected source, like a skateboarder, shipyard welder, yo-yoer, or rodeo cowboy. Spend less than 10 minutes with Gary Leffew and learn what it takes to be a success in bull riding and all other endeavors.  (Hint: It’s a mental game.)

“The Bull Rider”, is a short film from “I Am Los Angeles”, directed by Joris Debeij, featuring Gary Leffew, PRCA World Champion Bull Rider and member of the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame.

The taming of bulls has ancient roots that have been traced to a Bronze Age civilization of the Aegean islands (2600 BC – 1100 BC), and bull riding developed from a 16th century ranch skill competition known as ‘Jaripeo’ among the haciendas of Central and Southern Mexico where a rider rode a bull to death much like is done in bull fighting.  It eventually changed to the traditional charreada sporting event, ‘Jineteo de Toro’, where the rider attempts to ride the bull until it tires and stops bucking.

The Arti of Bullfighting
Νο. 24: El mismo Ceballos montado sobre otro toro quiebra rejones en la plaza de Madrid (1816), Public Domain, Francisco Goya (1746 -1828), via Wikimedia Commons

No. 24 (The Same Ceballos Mounted on Another Bull Breaks Short Spears in the Ring at Madrid) is from a series of 33 prints “La Tauromaquia” (The Bullfight) created by Francisco Goya using techniques of etching and aquatint.  The scenes depicted in the series focus on the violence, rituals and styles of 19th century bullfighting.  A portfolio of these works of art is currently located at the National Gallery of Art.

The Most Dangerous 8 Seconds in Sports 

“Everything’s in slow motion.  He’s floating in the air, and it’s just weightless.” — Cody Campbell

The modern rodeo sport of bull riding requires a rider to stay mounted on a bucking bull for a specific period of time.  In the ‘American style’, both rider and bull are scored by judges, and the rider must hold onto the bull rope (fiber rope wrapped around the chest of the bull) with one hand for eight seconds and not touch the bull with the free hand.  It’s been referred to as the most dangerous eight seconds in sports.

 

 

Information/Resources:
Gary Leffew’s Bull Riding School – for all ages and levels of bull riders
Professional Bull Riders, Inc.  Touring Schedule
Event Schedule, Bull Riders Canada, Inc.
Professional Bull Riders – Australia Schedule 
Charreada Event Schedule, Asociacion de Charros de San Antonio
“Facing the Bull:  The Most Dangerous Eight Seconds in Sports”, by Zoltan Istvan, National Geographic News (February 25, 2004)
American Veterinary Medical Association News, The Bovine Athlete by R. Scott Nolan (July 18, 2012)
The Jackie Robinson of Rodeo by Christian Wallace, Texas Monthly (July 2018) – Fifty years ago, Myrtis Dightman broke the color barrier in professional rodeo and became one of the best bull riders who ever lived.

 

The equestrian sport of cutting evolved from the special skills of 19th century cowboys and their horses working cattle ranches in the American WestCutting Horse Competition
Horse & rider teams compete in a rodeo sport that began in the American West
Watch LIVE & FREE, but OK if you miss the live stream broadcast because there are video recordings of the competition to watch.

 

 

Surfing the Great Lakes is not easy, but also no impossible.You’ll find more inspiration from the stories told by this diverse group of pathfinders on the video bio- documentary channel “Life Inspired“.

 

 

 

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“How to Beat the Bull” is an edited version of an article originally published on the “Zblog” by Zeester Media LLC.

Feature photo is courtesy of Adam Morse/Unsplash CC0

Ephemeral Art

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“Building a sandcastle is ‘about capturing a moment’ amidst the forces of nature.” — Renzo Piano 

 

How to build a sandcastle with a few simple tools and a basic structural and sculpting techniques
Photo: Flickr user, Amanda B, CC BY 2.0

The first references to sandcastle building on a beach go as far back as the 19th century.  Since that time, the love of sandcastles has grown worldwide to include all ages as it remains the perfect beach activity for creatives, and the sculptures have progressed from small to massive, simple to complex art forms.

Building beautiful sandcastles requires simple tools, a few structural and sculpting basics, and understanding it’s all about having fun in the moment.

 

Here are a few sandcastle building tips for the beginner:

First, there’s an art to sandcastle construction, and success takes patience and practice. [See ‘How To’ information and free video lessons listed further down this page.]  You must also understand and accept that a sandcastle is a temporary structure, and it’s destruction is part of the creative process.  So, don’t forget to take a few photos and enjoy the moment.

Get Help.  It can get hot on the beach, and those buckets of sand and water are heavier than you might think; therefore, you may need friends and family to help with the heavy lifting.

Plan.  Sketch out your castle design before getting started. Gather up the tools (basics: buckets, shovels, spray bottle, mason’s trowels and artist’s palette knives)

Sand Quality.  The best sand for building is fine-grained because it can be tightly compacted. If the sand is course, full of shells or debris, you’ll have stability problems trying to build the castle up high or at a steep angle.

Location.  Watch the waves, and find a tide schedule.  Try to build your sandcastle above high tide to save it from early destruction.

Building.  Fill a bucket with very wet sand.  Pound the top, and carefully lift it straight up (no twisting or tilting).  Push sand up around the castle foundation at an angle for added support.

Cracks.  Patch them up right away by packing them with more wet sand, and reduce the structural stress by slicing off some of the top and/or sides with a trowel.

Carving.  Use various tools and your imagination to create windows, doors, and steps. Start from the top down. Keep the sandcastle moist by spritzing with water using a spray bottle.

Decorate.  Make your palace special.  Search the beach for bits and pieces that can be used to decorate the sandcastle or collected for a separate art project.

Get Inspired.  Attend sandcastle/sand sculpting festivals and competitions as a spectator or participant. [See short list of events we’ve discovered at the bottom of this page for information.]

 

How to build a unique drip sandcastle using dribbling technique
Matt Kaliner, CC BY-NC 2.0

 

A ‘drip castle’ is a variation of the traditional sandcastle, created by dripping a slurry mix of sand and water from a fist (the technique is sometimes referred to as “dribbling”).  In the short video, King of the Castle, Matt Kaliner, university sociology lecturer & sand sculpting hobbyist, demonstrates the dribbling technique while building his weird and wonderful sculptural sandcastles.

 

 

‘How To’ Information/Resources:

Basics for the Beginner  Jenny Rossen, a professional sand sculptor and artist, explains the basics of sandcastle construction in a short video.

How to Build a Sandcastle  In 8 video lessons, expert/international champion sandcastle builder, Mark Venit, explains each step in the process of building a grand castle in the sand.

How To Build a Sand Sculpture – choosing a good sand, building forms, and best sculpting tools

Blueprints Before High Tide:  An architect explains the perfect sandcastle (Heard on NPR Weekend Edition Saturday ,August 1, 2015)

Sandcastle and Sculpting Festivals and Competitions:

Major Sand Sculpting Events Around The World – Discover exhibitions and competitions in Australia, India, Indonesia, Portugal, USA and more!

US Sand Sculpting Challenge and 3D Art Expo – Called the most creative atmosphere in the world, World Master Sand Sculptors come from all over the world to compete at this event.  Entertainment, Food & Activities (Labor Day weekend 2019) Broadway Pier and Pavilion, San Diego, California

Weston Sand Sculpture Festival – Something for Everyone!  Marine Parade, Weston-super-Mare BS23 1BE, UK

Neptune’s International Sand Sculpting Championship – Virginia Beach, Virginia (September 27 – October 6, 2019) festival, competition, clinics

Sandcastle Days – South Padre Island, Texas October 3 – 6, 2019 (Admission FREE) demonstrations, competition & lessons

American Sandsculpting Championships – Fort Meyers Beach, Florida. For more than 30 years, held the last 2 weeks of November. (Free Lessons)

International Sand Art Competition – Key West, Florida 

The Siesta Key Crystal Classic – Siesta Key, Florida, November 15 – 18, 2019 (Free Lessons)

Texas SandFest – Port Aransas, Texas, April 26 – 28, 2019 (Rain or Shine) festival & competition

Cannon Beach Sandcastle Festival & Contest – Cannon Beach, Oregon, June 7-9, 2019

Hampton Beach Master Sand Sculpting Classic – Hampton Beach, New Hampshire, June 2019 (dates to be confirmed) Free Lessons

Blue Water SandFest – Port Huron, Michigan, July 2019 (dates to be confirmed) Free Lessons

Revere Beach Art Festival (September 15, 2018) & International Sand Sculpting Festival (July 2019, dates to be confirmed) Revere Beach, Massachusetts

 

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Feature photo by Benjamin Carlson/Unsplash CC0

Upsurge

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“When it all comes together… it’s like, man, this is the moment.” — Ray Collins

In the water, Ray Collins creates works of art with his camera, and cinematographer/photographer, Armand Dijicks, brings Collins’ seascape photographs to life in the short video, The Infinite Now, by transforming the stills into cinemagraphs.  It’s a view of the ocean you’ve never seen before— beautiful and mesmerizing.  Cinemagraphs create the illusion of motion by applying image editing software to composite a series of still photographs into sequential frames.

 

 

The Ocean is an essential life force, and we must stop its destructionLove the Ocean?  See & Learn more On2In2™ ⇒   Underwater Discoveries    Saving Our Ocean      Cranking Surf

 

 

Ray Collins started out his working life in a coal mine, and has become an internationally acclaimed, award-winning ocean photographer.  In the short video, Sea Stills produced by Malibu Media, Ray describes his inspiration and technique in capturing moments of water and light in a wave.

 

 

Information/Resources:
Armand Dijicks (online courses, video tutorials and ebooks available)
Photographer Ray Collins  (info on photos and book ‘Found at Sea’)

 

Video and live stream lectures and lessons offer helpful advice from camera pros on how to take better photographsMore FREE To WATCH, and Learn from the best photographers
→  Watch: Photography video channel for inspiration and → Pro Photo Tips for how-to-tips and advice

 

 

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Feature photo is a screen shot taken from Ray Collins video, Sea Stills

Art Underwater

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“For Art may err, but Nature cannot miss.” — John Dryden, The Cock and the Fox

Underwater public arts projects created by the visionary Jason deCaires Taylor are not just unique exhibition spaces for divers and snorkelers to enjoy.  They’re also examples of successful marine conservation efforts as the sculptures serve as habitats for all sorts of sea life which transform Taylor’s work into living, constantly evolving art that inspires an appreciation for the natural beauty of the mysterious world underwater.  This video takes you there.

He had a very big idea — create giant cement sculptures and place them on the ocean floor in areas with barren sea beds.  Then, in 2006, Jason deCaires Taylor founded and created the world’s first underwater sculpture park off the west coast of Grenada in the West Indies.  It was a great success, and has been listed as one of the Top 25 Wonders of the World by National Geographic.  In 2009, he co-founded an underwater sculpture museum, Museo Subacuático de Arte (MUSA), that includes a collection of over 500 of his art works in the waters of Cancun, Isla Mujeres and Punta Nizuc, Mexico. More underwater sculpture gardens followed in the Bahamas and Spain, and he’s currently working on a new project in the Maldives.  In this TED Talk, Taylor shares his story and breathtakingly beautiful photography.

 

 Jason DeCaires Taylor talk is courtesy of TED, CC BY – NC – ND 4.0 International

 

Information/Resources:
Gallery: The sculpture garden at the bottom of the sea, by Kate Torgovnick May, Ted.com blog article (December 23, 2015)
Locations Map of the underwater sculpture exhibits around the world (Jason DeCaires Taylor Projects)
(listed as one of the Top 25 Wonders of the World by National Geographic)
Bahamas Reef Environment Education Foundation (BREEF) Sir Nicholas Nuttall Coral Reef Sculpture Garden  (Included in the sculpture garden is, Ocean Atlas, a young Bahamian girl who appears to be holding up the ocean, and at 60 tons/18 ft tall, it’s the largest underwater sculpture in the world.)
Museo Subacuático de Arte (MUSA), Museum of art under the waters of Cancun, Isla Mujeres and Punta Nizuc (Viewing via glass bottom boat, scuba and snorkeling)
Museo Atlántico, Located near the south coast of Lanzarote, in the Bahía de Las Coloradas, Spain
Alluvia, Sculpture lies at bottom of the river Stour running through city of Canterbury in Kent, UK
Pemuteran Temple Garden (statues of Buddha, Ganesha, Turtles behind an ornate Balinese gateway, constructed as one of three Bali Reef Foundation/Australian Aid funded projects)

 

There's much to discover underwaterDive In2 deep waters and explore the otherworldly beauty of ocean life  Watch:  Underwater Discoveries, an On2In2™ collection of short videos, Free-to-Watch, On-Demand  

 

BIG, POWERFUL (sometimes dangerous), and a beautiful BLUE, the Ocean does more than its share to sustain life on Planet Earth.  Saving Our Ocean

 

 

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Feature photo is a screen shot taken from the Jason DeCaires Taylor Ted Talk video

Lost in Wars

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“The sun has gone
A long time ago
We’re waiting for the dawn
That will never show
Our hearts are getting hard
Souls covered by scars
We are made of stars
But we are lost in wars”

                                                                                                       —  Battle Beast, Lost in Wars

 

2nd LT John Robert Holt, Jr (1978-2009) was a graduate of Luther Burbank High School in San Antonio, Texas and the University of Texas – San Antonio.  He served as a US Army combat medic in Iraq, and was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal.

In the short video documentary, Vincent Valdez:  Excerpts for John, produced by filmmakers, Mark and Angela Walley, Vincent tells the story of his friendship with John Holt while he works to create a memorial to John and all the soldiers ‘lost in the fog of war’.

San Antonio native, Vincent Valdez, is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design, and a recipient of the Joan Mitchell Foundation Grant for Painters and Sculptors.  He focuses his creative work on cultural and historical themes with contemporary portrayals of human struggle, loss, sacrifice, war and injustice.  In recognition of excellence in the arts, Valdez was designated a ‘Texas State Artist’ in 2015 by the Texas State Legislature.  Exhibitions and collections include:  Museum of Fine Arts Houston, The Ford Foundation, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, The National Portrait Gallery, Blanton Museum of Art, Parsons Paris, Bullock Texas State History Museum, OSDE Buenos Aires, the McNay Art Museum and Southwest School of Art.  [Vincent Valdez website →here]

John, oil-on-canvas by Vincent Valdez, 2010-2012.  It’s an intimate portrait of Vincent’s friend “in the midst of battle, an explosion and billowing smoke behind him, his eyes focused on an ominous sight that is invisible to the viewer and that anticipates John’s demise.” (Taina Caragol, co-curator, The Face of Battle: Americans at War)

Excerpts for John (2012) depicts the unfolding sequence of events and emotions Vincent Valdez experienced during his friend’s military funeral in a series of paintings created as an homage to Lieutenant Holt and “a eulogy for those who can’t find their way home”.

Information/Resources:

After more than a decade of war in the Middle East, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has become a critical health concern among American war veterans as the number of veterans seeking help for PTSD has dramatically increased and an estimated 18-22 veterans die from suicide each day.*

Soldiers of Conscience, Q&A What is PTSD & how to get help, PBS (October 2008)
PTSD Treatment for Veterans (treatment options & barriers to care) article by Miriam Reisman, NCBI, US National Library of Medicine (October 2016)*
National Center for PTSD:  US Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Families United: PTSD healing resources and helpful reference materials for veterans & families

 

In this collection of video documentaries, artists reveal thoughts and feelings about their work and living a creative life.Artists reveal thoughts and feelings about their work
and living a creative life in “Creative Perspectives”,
an On2In2™ collection of videos– FREE To WATCH, On-Demand

 

 

 

 

Go to next → Watch:  Introspection, an On2In2™ collection of videos featuring personal reflections on life that will move and inspire you — FREE To WATCH, On-Demand

 

 

 

 

 

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Feature photo is a screen shot taken from the video, Vincent Valdez:  Excerpts for John, produced by Walley Films

Art Transforming Trash

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[su_quote cite=”Richard Lang”]The opposite of beauty is not ugly… it’s indifference.[/su_quote]

 

[su_dropcap]T[/su_dropcap]here are many complex issues involved in the elimination of pollutants from the environment, but there’s at least one problem easy to identify and understand — trash.  Take just one walk on a beach, and you’ll quickly see the ugly truth.

More than 8 million tons of plastic makes its way into the Ocean each year, and the stuff doesn’t go-away or disappear.  Just one plastic bag takes 1,000 years to decompose.  Much of this garbage can be seen floating on top of the ocean surface.  Between California and Hawaii, the “Great Pacific Garbage Patch” is more than double the size of Texas, and it’s just one of many similar floating debris patches.

Ray Ives, a retired Royal Marine and commercial diver, saw even more during his 40+ years of deep sea diving,……“You can’t believe some of the things people dump in the sea.  It’s like the biggest rubbish dump in the world”.

Artists are using their creative talents in amazing ways to help make positive change as their works of art bring attention to the plastic pollution problem the world faces and inspire all of us to “rethink plastic”.

Gyrecraft is a short film about crafting objects at sea, in the past with whale’s teeth and in the future with plastics collected from Ocean waters.

Studio Swine went on a 1,000 nautical mile journey through the North Atlantic Gyre, from the Azores to the Canaries, collecting plastics as they sailed.  (The North Atlantic Gyre is one of five large systems of circulating ocean currents.  The vortex of currents traps man-made marine debris into a large, dense floating debris zone called  the ‘North Atlantic Garbage Patch’.)  Using a specially designed ‘Solar Extruder’ machine, the plastic pieces collected during the trip were melted on board ship with heat from the Sun, creating a ‘sea plastic’ material used to create art works.

 

In the short video, Sea Chair, watch as a stool is built on a boat from the plastic collected in a fisherman’s nets.

 

Since 1999, Richard and Judith Selby Lang have been visiting a special spot at Kehoe Beach at the Point Reyes National Seashore in Northern California, collecting plastics that have washed up on shore. The Lang’s then take their treasures home, wash and sort the items, and create works of art.  Over the years, they’ve collected tons of the stuff, learned a lot about ocean pollution, and discovered each little bit of found plastic has an interesting story to tell and provides an insight into human culture.

 

Aurora Robson is a multi-media artist known for her work with waste materials, and the founding artist of Project Vortex a collective of creatives who work with plastic debris as a medium and support organizational efforts to reduce the amount of plastic littering the oceans and shorelines of the world. She has said the intention of her art is “to take something negative, try to change the direction it’s going, and turn it into something positive”.

 

Inspired to create your own “environmental art”, but not sure how to start?  David Edgar creates marine life art forms from plastic bottles, and his instructional fish project video is a how-to guide for beginners. In the demonstration, you’ll learn that creating a sculpture requires scissors and a couple of simple tools, and reshaping plastic can be accomplish with heat from a hair dryer.  Really, the possibilities are endless because unfortunately, so is the trash.

 

Information/Resources:

Point Reyes National Seashore  Point Reyes is a peninsula surrounded on three sides by the Pacific Ocean, supporting a large diversity of species throughout the food chain and ecosystem.

One Plastic Beach  The Lang’s offer workshops, presentations, art sales, commercial and residential artwork commissions

Aurora Robson  See more art and media

Project Vortex is an international collective of artists, designers and architects creating art works with plastic debris in support of projects that intercept plastic waste in innovative ways and help water cleanup efforts.

Healthy Seas – a joint venture of non-government organizations and businesses dedicated to cleaning ocean of litter and recycling it into new products such as socks, swimwear, textiles and carpets.

International Coastal Cleanup Day is celebrated annually the third Saturday in September.
(Save the Date:  September 21, 2019)

Plastic Oceans Foundation – a non-profit organization with a mission to engage people through education and media projects, campaigns and global partnerships

Underwater sculpture museums contain breathtaking works of art that seek to encourage environmental awareness and appreciate the breathtaking natural beauty of the underwater world.You’ll be surprised to see what lies
beneath the waves – Art Underwater 

 

 

The Ocean is an essential life force, and we must stop its destructionOur Oceans are suffering from many decades of
abuse and neglect, but each of us
has the power to help heal it 

 

 

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Feature photo is courtesy of Free Stock Pro/Pexels CC0

Beautiful & Fascinating

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[su_dropcap]T[/su_dropcap]he memory of my grandmother, an avid ‘up-cycler’, carefully cutting off buttons from the family’s time-worn clothes and saving both the buttons and fabric for future use, is what probably inspired me to hold onto buttons.  Kept in a zip storage bag, my eclectic assortment has grown slowly over the years — It isn’t a large or valuable collection.  In fact, many of the buttons are quite ordinary, but they are uniquely mine, taken from my wardrobe, and they’ve become a collection of memories as well as a personal style timeline.  I’ve also used some of the buttons for arts and crafts projects, and they’ve often come in handy for button replacement.

[su_quote cite=”Herbert de Givenchy, Introduction to Boutons by Loïc Allio (2001) “]Le bouton est non seulement indispensable, mais capable d’enjoliver un vêtement, de le personnaliser et de lui apporter la touche finale.* [/su_quote]  *The button is not only indispensable, but capable of beautifying a piece of clothing, of personalizing it and giving it the final touch. (Translation by Caroline Baumann, Director of Cooper Hewitt Museum)

Buttons have been placed on clothing as ornamentation for thousands of years, and crafted in a variety of ways by artisans and artists or manufactured in low and high-tech factories from every imaginable material, making these small objects significant in fields of decorative arts and design, fashion, visual art, and arts and crafts as well as archeology and materials technology.

Beautiful and Fascinating!  Long admired for the artistry as well as historical value, button collecting began centuries ago and is still a popular hobby today.  The photo gallery below includes just a few examples from extraordinary button collections.

 

 

See More Glass Buttons (1700–1951, American or European) from the Hanna S. Kohn Collection, The Metropolitan Museum of Art
→ Gallery 1
→ Gallery 2
→ Gallery 3

See More Wood Buttons (1900-20, American or European) from the Hanna S. Kohn Collection, The Metropolitan Museum of Art
→ Gallery 4

The Cooper Hewitt button collection is amazing, and available to view online → HERE

Inspired Button Art – “I hold the button to my ear and it whispers to me, “I want to be…..” Augusto Esquivel creates sculptures from buttons, and he shares his work and creative process → Augusto Mucho Gusto website

Button Jacket by Kenneth D. King

Kenneth D. King created this stunning jacket using some of the 75 pounds of antique uniform buttons he inherited. [Pinterest pin “Using Buttons As Embellishment” by Threads Magazine]

 

 

 

 

   

Information/Resources:
Button Society Websites & Contacts – List of button society websites and contacts by country and US states
Button, Button, We’ve Got the Button(s)! by Margery Masinter (Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum, Buttons: In the Collection of the Cooper Hewitt Museum by Carl Christian Dauterman (The Smithsonian’s National Museum of Design, 1982)
Hammond-Turner & Sons – Button Galleries – an online museum displaying buttons manufactured by Hammond Turner & Sons (and related companies), button makers of Birmingham (and Manchester), England.  Created by Lesley Close, a descendant of one of the owners of the company.
The Waterbury Button Museum – More than 3,000 buttons are on permanent display in the Button Gallery of the Mattatuck Museum, Waterbury, Connecticut
Déboutonner la mode (Unbutton Fashion), Les Arts Décoratifs exhibit presentation
Boutons, Decorative Arts Museum (Les Arts Décoratifs), Paris, France
Lucie Rie: Ceramics & Buttons Exhibit (22 June 2018 – 12 May 2019, Centre of Ceramic Art at York Art Gallery, UK
European Fashion Project – Buttons, Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Keep Homestead Museum – Button Collection, Monson, Massachusetts – The vast collection is exhibited on a rotating basis, but on permanent display is a wonderful collection of mosaic buttons.

 

Button Button: Identification and Price Guide* is a well-organized guide recommended by the Button Society as a book that every button collector and dealer should own.

 

 

 

Buttons: The Collector’s Guide to Selecting, Restoring, and Enjoying New and Vintage Buttons* shows and describes fabric, metal, glass, ceramic, enamel, plastic, and uniform buttons along with the history of buttons.

 

 

 

Buttons by Diana Epstein and Millicent Safro* looks at the authors’ collections of buttons, describing their history and value as art.

 

 

 

 

Creating art with buttons is a fun arts and crafts project.
ⓒ Button Art by Zola Zeester

FREE To WATCH: Collector Confessions – A diverse group of engaging collectors tell their stories about lifelong passions for objects. [Videos on Demand]

 

 

 

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*Zeester Media LLC may receive a small commission for a book purchase you make via a link within this page.  This in no way affects the price you pay for the purchase.
Feature photo “My Button Collection” © Zeester Media LLC, 2015-18

Rubber Band Art

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Noticing the jar of multi-colored rubber bands in the kitchen, a friend asked me, “What are you going to do with them?”

There really was no answer.  In fact, it’s not at all understandable why someone would save rubber bands, except they seem impossible to throw away and occasionally the odd one or two will come in handy for bundling up or repairing something.  And, really….they are everywhere. Even the broccoli and celery at the grocery are bundled together with a colorful rubber band, and all must be saved and collected, perhaps protecting the environment in some small way or (most likely) a kooky obsession.

People using rubber goes way back.  The Aztecs and Mayans used natural rubber products and mixed latex and other materials as early as 1600 B.C.;  however, the process of “vulcanization”, the chemical process of converting natural rubber into a more durable product, was not developed until the 19th century.  Stephen Perry, a British businessman and inventor, received a patent for the rubber band in England more than 170 years ago.

 

Rubber band balls are the simplest form of rubber band art

 

Today, rubber bands (aka elastic bands, laggy bands, gum bands, and elastics) are made of either synthetic rubber or natural rubber (latex) taken from the sap of rubber trees, and there are many types, sizes and versatile household, office and industrial uses as well as uniquely creative uses for the rubber band.

 

The biggest rubber band ball

For example, everybody likes making rubber band balls.  It takes patience and a lot of rubber bands to get things rolling, but not fine crafting skills, and it’s fun to have on your desk to bounce around the office.

A man named Joel Waul from Florida is credited by Guinness World Records as the builder of the largest rubber band ball (aka “Megaton”). Consisting of 700,000 rubber bands, it measured 6′ 7″ high, 25′ 4″ in diameter, and weighed 9,032 lb.

 

 

Creative rubber band chair is art you can use.

 

Megaton is certainly impressive as is Preston Moeller’s cool rubber band chair which earned him first place in 2011 at the Appalachian State University 6th Annual Chair Design competition.  A great example of functional “rubber band” art and creative design using unconventional materials.

 

 

 

Those achievements are inspiring, but also a bit beyond ordinary skills and require a huge supply of big rubber bands.   Thinking smaller scale, the idea for an art project began to develop—–create colorful vases by simply wrapping rubber bands around glassware, one at a time.  It was fun and easy (no glue or special tools required), and the pieces are fairly durable except the rubber bands will deteriorate when exposed to heat or sunlight, requiring repairs and replacements.

The rubber band art vases and jars are pretty as well as handy to have around the house and office, and they’ve been put to good use as flower vases and planters as well as holders for organizing pencils & pens, utensils, odds & ends, and…. more rubber bands!  People are always amazed when told the flower vase they are admiring is decorated with rubber bands, and the possibilities are endless as are the design variations. 

 

 

Finally, there’s an answer to that provocative question —“What are you going to do with them?”  Try it, and have some fun with your own project.

 

Creative collage made with recycled plastics: Find your passion and the joy of creating a work of art here at On2In2™
Controlled Chaos by Zola ©2018 Zeester Media LLC

There’s inspiration here — Art Transforming Trash shows you the many ways to create beautiful art from plastics discarded and found.   

 

 

 

 

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Please share your ideas and creations with On2In2™, and join the conversation via “Engage“.  Would love to hear all about the fun you’re having.  

 

 

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Feature photo of rubber bands by Bill Ebbesen CC BY-SA 3.0
Rubber band ball and art images from the Zeester photo studio CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Information Resource:  Wikipedia (Vulcanization, Rubber Band)

Exploring Yountville

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Yountville, California is one of my favorite places on Earth.  Have visited many times, but I was also lucky enough to live there in 2011 and really explore.  It’s a beautiful small town (population < 3,000) in Napa Valley, about an hour north of San Francisco on CA 29.  Known today for its world class restaurants, luxury hotels and inns, the friendly residents and small town feel are, in my opinion, Yountville’s greatest assets, and there are plenty of things to see and do free-of-charge.  Yountville also has an interesting history that goes back 160 years.

“In such a place I should love to live and die.“—George C. Yount

George Calvert Yount, a Missouri farmer, made his way to California in 1831 working as a fur trapper, and in 1836, he received the Mexican land grant “Rancho Caymus” (11,887 acres located in present day Napa Valley, including the areas in and around Yountville, Oakville and Rutherford).  Yount planted on the property Mission (or Criolla) grape vines bought from General Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo of Sonoma, and built a cabin and grist-mill, becoming the first permanent Euro-American settler in Napa Valley.  A village, now known as Yountville, was established in 1855.  It became a municipality in 1965.

Just Let It Happen 

Yountville is a great “walk around wine tasting” town.  It’s a little more than a mile long with lots to see and plenty of spots to enjoy, making it the perfect place to spend a day exploring at a leisurely ‘stop & smell the roses’ (& the wine) pace with no specific agenda or scheduled tour stops.

Chandon Winery is a good place to starting the day wine tasting in Yountville
Map of Yountville

Walking up and down Washington Street, you’ll find along the way a number of wine tasting rooms, each unique in its offerings and experience.  Therefore, lots of good options for you to discover. Below is a list of Zola’s favorite Yountville wine tasting sites, recommended for either the wine or the setting, and in many cases–both, because there’s no bad wine in Yountville.

The Favorites

♥  CHANDON WINERY  It’s always good to start (or end) of a day of wine tasting with a sparkling cold glass at Chandon, located at the southwest end of Yountville — a beautiful place with 360 views.  It’s an easy, short hike from downtown Yountville.  Get there by taking California Drive under the highway overpass and across the railroad tracks, then turn right up through the vineyards on Domain Chandon Road.  You can hang out or look around, all with a glass of champagne.  Life is very good at Chandon.

♥  MA(i)SONRY  In February 2019, Ma(i)sonry reopened as part of RH Yountville, a first-of-its-kind integration of food, wine, art and design . You can enjoy a glass of wine in the historic Ma(i)sonry building, beautifully transformed into a two-story wine vault, or sample tastings of premium, limited production wines and champagnes from some of Napa Valley’s top small producers in the trellis-covered outdoor living rooms.

♥  BEAU VIGNE  The wines from this small, family winery are extraordinary.  You’ll fall in love quickly.

♥  HILL FAMILY ESTATE  Located at the corner of Mulberry and Washington streets, this charming tasting room is filled with an eclectic assortment of antiques and collectibles, and the top-quality wines are crafted from the grapes grown by the Hill family.  You’ll enjoy the visit.

♥  HOPE & GRACE  Easy to miss this one as it’s a small tasting room hidden in the courtyard of a small shopping complex (next door to Bouchon), but don’t pass it by.  Hope & Grace wines are wonderful.

♥  CORNERSTONE  There’s so much more to wine at the Cornerstone tasting room because there is so much to learn from the well-informed, friendly staff about food & wine pairings and the wines of Napa Valley.  A chance to taste test the interactions of flavor and texture with impressive wines.

♥  V WINE CELLAR  This place is like the best-ever wine shop, both quality and quantity.  You’ll be tempted to browse the shelves for hours.  The staff is happy to answer questions and help you locate that hard to find special bottle for dinner.

♥  ROBERT SINSKEY VINEYARDS   Although it’s really too far to walk to Sinskey on Silverado Trail from downtown Yountville unless you’re up for a hike (also no side walk), it’s a quick 5-10 minute drive or you can bike down Yountville Cross Road.  I always go for the Pinot Blanc (a long time favorite), but always enjoy the variety of tastings (with food pairings) and discovering something new to love.       

More to Explore:

•  The Art Walk – The installation of outdoor sculptures makes a walking tour of Yountville even finer. (Doesn’t cost a dime to look)

•  The lovely French Laundry garden is located across the street from the restaurant (6640 Washington Street).  Never will you see more beautiful veggie plantings or exotic looking chickens! (No charge to visit & look around)

•  Located at the end of Lincoln Avenue (near the small Yountville Park) is the historic “George C. Yount Pioneer Cemetery and Ancient Indian Burial Grounds”.  It’s fascinating, and open to the public (No Charge)

•  Vineyards surround the town and provide scenic views for an easy hike (FREE)  

•  Many of the Yountville restaurants and hotels have daily happy hour special offerings, and that makes for the perfect budget-friendly last stop before dinner.  Check out the menus when walking to see happy hour offerings, prices and times.

Special Events:

Art, Sip & Stroll  Yountville celebrates ‘Art in April’ every year with a FREE ART EVENT featuring close to 50 artists of varying mediums, live music and craft beer & wine (of course).  It all starts at the Napa Valley Museum where you can walk or board one of the shuttles to Washington Street for a stroll up and down the town center visiting artists, gallery exhibits, shops, tasting rooms, and restaurants as well as enjoy live music.

Bastille Day in Yountville – Traditionally on July 14, Bouchon Bistro & Bakery celebrate ‘La Fête Nationale’ with the people of Yountville at a small outdoor event featuring music, food and wine.  [Travel Tip:  There are many hard to resist baked goods and breads offered at Bouchon Bakery, and do not miss a chance to experience morning coffee and croissant on the small outdoor patio.]

There are dozens more special events, celebrations and parties going on in Yountville throughout the year.  Check out the events calendar and find your fun → HERE

 

Because there is so much more to see and do, please share your wine tasting discoveries with us —- Sign up via the “Engage” page, and join your friends at The Flabby Wine Club.

 

 

 

 

Sancerre grapes close to harvestFor the love of Sancerre from the Loire Valley,
a short history of the wine and list of On2In2™ favorites

 

 

 

Information/References:
Napa:  The Story of an American Eden, by James Conway* – a best seller, and captivating read on the history of Napa Valley, the people and families behind Napa’s wine making industry, and the stories of fortunes made and lost.  *Zeester Media LLC may receive a small commission for a book purchase you make via the link within this page. This in no way affects the price you pay for the purchase.
Wikipedia:  George Calvert Yount
About Yountville, The Town of Yountville website   
Explore Yountville – Where to stay, dine, shop and taste (Yountville Chamber of Commerce)

 

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Chrysanthemum

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Across a waste of moorland, bleak and bear,
A lonely bird is flying, calling low—
The last of all the feathered host to go,
And loth to leave still lingers, calling, there
Within my silent garden-passes, where
The flowers are withered that in summer blow,
I walk with murmuring ghosts, that to and fro
Sway gently in the chill November air;

When, lo! I mark a little way apart
The sovereign glory of this waning year
 That now, alone, unheralded hath come,
In gorgeous robes — alas, my fickle heart
Forgets the dead, and laughs that she is here,
The royal queen of fall, Chrysanthemum.

“Chrysanthemum” by Albert Bigelow Paine (Rhymes by Two Friends, 1893)

 

Júhuā 

Chrysanthemum was first cultivated as a flowering herb in China more than 3,000 years ago, and is a symbolic and therapeutic element of Chinese and East Asia traditions, culture and art.

Chrysanthemum is one of the Four Gentlemen of Chinese art

Chinese scholars and poets frequently praise the chrysanthemum in ancient writings as a noble flower of elegance and strength, beautifully flowering during the cold days of autumn and early winter. It’s also designated as one of the Four Gentlemen, or Noble Ones, four plants depicted in Chinese art ‘bird and flower’ painting as far back as the Song dynasty (960 -1279), and later used by other artists in East Asia to represent the four seasons: orchid (spring); bamboo (summer); chrysanthemum (autumn); and plum blossom (winter).

 

Chrysanthemum tea was first drunk in Chinese Song dynasty, and still enjoyed todayDrinking chrysanthemum tea also dates back to the Chinese Song dynasty, and is still enjoyed today.  It has a delicate floral aroma and light, refreshing taste, and is typically prepared by steeping dried flowers of Chrysanthemum morifolium or Chrysanthemum indicum in hot water, with sugar often added, and sometimes wolfberries (goji).  The teapot of chrysanthemum flowers is customarily refilled with hot water several times during tea drinking, lightening the flavor and potency of the tea with each serving. While drinking chrysanthemum tea is believed to have cleansing and special healing properties, its effectiveness is uncertain, and it can cause side effects in some people.  Therefore, best to consult your doctor before indulging.  If you are allergic to ragweed, pregnant or nursing, avoid chrysanthemum tea and any type of supplement containing the flower.

 

Information/Resources:
You’ll find more history of chrysanthemum as well as planting/gardening information, tips and resources on the National Chrysanthemum Society (USA) website.
Be Careful – Chrysanthemums are toxic to dogs, cats and horses (Learn more about toxic plants ASPCA website)
General informational resource:  Wikipedia – Chrysanthemum

Watch the blooming of Spring flowers close-up in time-lapse videoSee Spring Flowers blooming – right before your eyes

 

 

 

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Football mums feature photo is courtesy of Erol Ahmed/StockSnap CC0
Chrysanthemum (1722-1735) Xian’e Changchun Album by Giuseppe Castiglione/Wikimedia PD Chrysanthemum tea photo courtesy of Ornella Binni/StockSnap CC0

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