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July 21,2024

I’m very happy to report that my granddaughter, Emily Vittitow, has produced a book of poetry, butcher, seamstress, gardener, nearly at the same time I completed Guam and Other Islands: A Miscellany. “After a yearslong hiatus from writing poetry, Emily wrote butcher, seamstress, gardener, during a tumultuous period in her life in 2023; She pared down close to a hundred poems to the 42 contained in this collection. butcher, seamstress, gardener will take you through the poet’s journey as she struggles with her health, questions the life she’s built, and, ultimately, works to forgive herself and move forward.”

Her book of poems is available on Amazon.

June 25, 2024

Guam and Other Islands: A Miscellany is finally published, a collection of over 20 woodcuts drawn from travel photos and short writing pieces (essay, poem, flash fiction/nonfiction, collage) that reflect my island life over many years. I’m very happy with the results. Working with Lulu.com, I went through several revisions before it seemed right. You can nab your print copy online through them for 6.95 plus shipping. I’m very unhappy with the ebook formatted like a crazy nightmare, so don’t even go there!

Now what? I think I will continue writing short pieces, but when I’ve time away from daily life and political activism in the coming months, I’m going to work on monoprints augmented with all manner of things. I miss getting my hands in paint and glue. Back to work!

August 12, 2023

Too busy living to stop and post a note? It happens often! But to remark on two events that filled the creative basket a bit, I delighted yesterday afternoon in a presentation at the University of Oklahoma, FLUX, by the Central Oklahoma Ballet Theatre, which added to my conviction that the grafting of one art form upon another is something the time calls for. In particular, Puddlewonderful was inspired by E.E. Cummings’ poem of the same name, and the spoken word rhythms meshed beautifully with the music and dance. A second choreography was based on The Yellow Wallpaper, by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, and the artful movements, costuming, and music brought the poor demented narrator alive.

Bathed in these riches, my friend and I spent a happy hour at the Fred Jones Museum viewing Yellowstone in Color: Thomas Moran and Louis Prang Print the West, a special exhibition of chromolithographs produced by their collaboration in 1876. These 15 chromolithographs of the newly created Yellowstone Park are still considered the finest ever produced. The color is breathtaking, and the exhibition nicely balanced between the practical printing arts and the prints themselves. It was a great refuge from the 110 degree heat outside.

July 19, 2023

Such a delight to be working these past few weeks on woodblock designs and carving— I’m looking forward to producing a book of flash fiction/poetry accompanied by the woodcut prints. I envision the book perhaps 8 x 8” in size with a soft paperback cover, its central theme the exploration of islands where I have lived and visited as they have appeared in my recent poems and journal entries.. Part of the delight of the process is wondering what the finished product will look like. The concept of islands in general brings forth all sorts of philosophical ideas abounding in Western culture. Hopefully, the book will be underway in a month or so

Purchase FIRECRACKER PAPERBACK and FIRECRACKER EBOOK at these links.

Firecracker, a juvenile novel suitable for grades 4-6. Abbie Thirstein (Frecracker) is forced to move from her grandparents’ farm to Norman, Oklahoma, because her father is now working for the US Navy. Her quick temper gets her into constant trouble. She hates the town and fears 7th grade in a new school. She encounters an unknown enemy and nearly dies in a flood, but learns how to survive in spite of the troubles of World War II (1944) society. In PAPERBACK. In EBOOK.

BOOK ONLINE JUNE 19, 2023

It’s been a mighty struggle and steep learning curve, but I’m happy to report that my juvenile novel, Firecracker, is about to hit the scene. The paperback copy is being published by Lulu.com and is now available. Draft2Digital is publishing the Ebook, launch date next Monday, June 19th. A huge thank you to Cleo Vastardis, who masterminded the formatting of the print book—what a genius! (And she’s still talking to me!). More about the book’s story, set in WWII Norman, OK later.

Steamroller Woodcut Ready to Go!

The Artspace Steamroller event each April is a crazy amalgamation of vendors, artists, food, crazy people running around, and the big thing—-a steamroller pressing out prints on woodcuts spread down the street. After seeing this twice, I couldn’t wait to try it myself and learned a LOT the past 6 weeks, figuring out how to turn out a decent block that would respond to inking. Today, I turned the block over to Artspace and will enjoy all that occurs on April 22nd. Keep the date in mind—it’s a special scene for all ages and talents. Below are pics of the inked block, and the drying rack containing the first sample print. All woodblocks can be printed for you that day for a modest fee. Enjoy.

Revamp!

After a tortuous week of bumbling around, I’ve mostly finished the revamp of the website. Verified by Google, and perhaps indexed correctly, I’m at about 90%. I managed to dump my main gallery and although I’ve resorted that, it’s minus captions for the time being. I’ve added a page of experimental art pieces, and a page to post short pieces of writiing. Please forgive the errors and misdirections. Experiment a bit and you’ll find most of it I think. Thanks for checking me out. There’s an email link on the home page if you want to communicate. Happy St. Paddy’s Day!

January 17, 2023. -

January 17, 2023 - How time flies! I’ve had a great time over the past few months working on Adobe InDesign projects with the help of expert friends Cleo and Ellen, trying to put Firecracker, my juvenile novel out into the world and trying to design a new project that will combine art and writing in some sort of interesting mishmash!

After a month-long show of abstract acrylics at the Norman Westside Library, I entered a print, “Phone Call,” at the Paseo Art Center (sold) and they’ve accepted “Air,” a 20 x 20 abstract multimedia for their member show starting February 3, 2023. All good news. It’s fun to talk to people about what you’ve done and listen to their ideas about it.

The Norman Depot has put on a monthlong Emerging Artist show starting last Friday the 13th! Good luck for me, though, because they included three of my abstracts, two monotypes with Inks, and one multimedia called “Hidden Woman.”

I’m thinking of ways to do more monotypes—I’m highly entertained by the process, and also am zeroing in on another venture, something mostly two-dimensional, but in a slightly raised frame to accommodate collage items. Hope I get to it soon.

Finally, after several years of watching the Artspace (Oklahoma City) Steamroller event, I’ve enrolled it myself! I have all my tools and supplies in hand and can’t wait to design and start carving the woodblock that will be “Printed” by the street steamroller pressing it into the pavement. Wow - no time to rest. There is so much I want to do and the days are just too short (especially when I want my noon “creative time” nap! Looking forward to seeing all of you around town. Be safe, healthy, happy, and peaceful!

September 15, 2022

Just a brief note - I’m very pleased to have a piece appearing in the Oklahoma City Metro Literacy Coalition Artists for Literacy Show coming up the end of this month. The exhibit, which opens September 29th at the Art Hall, 519 NW 23rd St., Oklahoma City, promotes conversations on literacy and its importance. “I Can Read,” a watercolor and inks work on paper, reveals the moment when I first actually “read” something, translated those black squiggly lines on the page into words. It was a magical moment. Take a look at the gallery to see this little piece that I hope conveys the moment that the world open for that small reader.

July 29, 2022 - At the Philbrook, Tulsa, OK

Review of Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera, and Mexican Modernism exhibit at the Philbrook, Tulsa, OK

“Kahlo was a master of writing her own personal myth and her self-portraits were a vital part of that process,” says an exhibit note. The exhibit pays tribute to the Mexican Modernist Movement and the part Kahlo and Rivera played in it, but the overwhelming emotional impact of the exhibit is the mythic Frida, the woman whose greatest work of art was herself.  We walk away, forgetting everyone else’s name and face, minor players in her triumphant possession of the present moment. We turn away from Rivera to gaze upon her miscarriage sketch, we watch him watch her create a portrait wherein she will eventually put him on her forehead, tangling vines running from her head. She even decorates her braces and casts with fanciful flowers and designs—she paints upon her body an image of her very soul. The exhibit notes are clear and useful, the flow of art, photos, and artifacts engaging. We are left with a clear vision of a forceful life explored to its limits—Frieda triumphant. Don’t miss it.