Happy NABIS DAY!

I saw a tattered handbill on a lightpost and it took me back to a hot day last July. On this very pole, from the same bus, I'd spotted it (in a more intact version) and its announcement of NABIS DAY. I was so excited! I have little enough in common with the young local artists of SoMa (the South Main area), but evidently they shared my enthusiasm for the early 20th century artists called The Nabis (said to mean "prophets" in Hebrew).

In our long-gone travelling days, JT and I saw a marvelous exhibit of les Nabis at the Grand Palais in Paris. I'm so glad he insisted that we splurge on the exhibit publication (adding another 10 pounds to our take-home luggage of French books and art supplies).


These artists resonate strongly with me -- particularly Bonnard for his gorgeous colours and Vuillard for the feel of his interiors and his use of patterns. One of my all-time favorite paintings is the latter's "Garden at Vaucresson" -- which stands seven feet high!

Some time after our trip, I couldn't resist playing with a much smaller version of garden tangle, with our cabin in the background and what we call "JT's Red Weed" in the starring role. Here's "Garden at Cloudburst," circa 2000.


Recently a simpatico friend, knowing my newfound enthusiasm for The Group of Seven, sent me a card with J.E.H. MacDonald's "Tangled Garden." Obviously, this is a deep-rooted (!) theme for me -- and not just because this year's wet weather has limited my weeding time and the yard is now a jungle. Maybe before summer's end, I'll make something more of all this, both in the garden and in the studio.

Oh, and meanwhile, back at NABIS DAY. That July morning last year when I hopped off the bus, I scooted back to check out the details. It turned out that the poster's corner had been torn off and what I hadn't been able to see from a distance was that it advertised a summer event sponsored by the Legalize Marijuana movement: CANNABIS DAY.