The powers of green observation

Hello CoReaders!  It has been way too long since I've posted and just as long since I've carved out the time to practice my skills of observation.  Fortunately, I took a walk in a highly observable place today that was inviting to the senses and I found myself looking at a familiar site in new ways.

I never used to believe writing teachers who said things about the importance of observation--it seemed too, well, obvious.  Look at things.  Right?  But now, I Get It.  Certainly a big part of this is attributable to the book this bookclub is about, but the writing angle of it was brought into focus to me through an audio experience.  I have been listening to author Rick Bragg read his book My Southern Journey and as I headed back to my car after the walk I'm about to show you and started anticipating re-starting the audio book, it jolted it my head that one of the reasons I like his writing so much is that he is telling me what he sees--I can imagine the cars, the people, the food, the places he describes.  Observation.  Description.  Ah, the rare and satisfying feeling of ideas clicking together in my head and Making Sense for a change instead of thoughts just bouncing around my head.

So today I treated myself to a walk in Palo Alto's Gamble Garden.  I was eager to see what was blooming but by the end of my walk I was more enraptured with green leaves and stems than blossoms.  Of course, you must pay attention when a rhododendron greets you so gloriously.

I loitered happily in the rose garden and couldn't believe the number of buds on the rosebushes.  And suddenly I thought that I didn't mind the roses were in bud form--to look at the shape of the buds and how they fan out or stand like upsidedown chandeliers was very pleasing.

I used to race through gardens focusing on just the plumage, the blossoms, the bright colors.  But today I started paying attention to the shades and shapes of green.  Think about the word green--if I say "green" to you, what is the first thing that comes to mind?  Is it green grass?  Is it a wall painted green?  What is your go to green?

Here is some geometric green.  What is even happening with these lines and shapes and shadows???

What about green leaves that have a touch of red in them that is reflected in the flower buds?

Is this the most delicious flavor of green if you are a hungry caterpillar?

Why do I find hydrangeas so comforting?  Is it because of the immediately recognizable form, or because the flowers always like a sugar confection?  Is it the soft green of the leaves that is so flattering to the petals?

I'm going to dig around in my art supply stash and paint/draw a colorwheel of green!  I invite you to go find green and show/tell me about it!  What are all the words for green you know?  How do you say green in another language you know?

I leave you with a final image--it nicely sums up my evolving skill in using observation to see more of the beauty in this world.

Choose your object

Dear CoReaders,

Besides the cheerful distractions of the holidays, I had found an effective way to procrastinate on the next assignment, the second assignment on page 19th, looking at something that doesn't change. Corita recommends "something that doesn't change--a soda bottle is fine." Well, there are cider and wine bottles aplenty in my kitchen, but was I was stubbornly wanting to do this exercise with a specific object I had in mind but that wasn't easily at hand. In fit of "organizing" I had put away several of the smaller but not necessary objects floating around the kitchen, including one little cream colored pitcher I had found at a yard sale a few years ago, well at least five years ago. It has a tiny chip on one side but has a wonderful shape and I was hung up on using it for this activity. Finally finding some resolve in myself this morning, I dragged the stepstool around the kitchen and dug into high reaches of cabinets until this little treasure revealed itself again.

Why does fifteen minutes sound like such a long time? Fifteen minutes of concentration in a day of 24 hours. So, I allowed myself some classical music on the radio and a cup of tea, then set the timer. And as in the first exercise, once I let my eyes take over and look slowly in, across, and all over the small pitcher, the time slid by. One of the reasons I had specifically wanted this little object is because of the layering of coloring that has taken place in the glaze of this item--it might originally have begun its life as a solid cream color, but there is really a lot happening in terms of color and texture in this little gem.  Tiny clear crackles but also changes of color in the material, either from wear, exposure to water or sun, however it has happened I wanted to take the time to really look at the multiple layers of color in this object.  

Will you join me this week in choosing an object to view for 15 minutes a day and share your observations?

Cheerfully yours, The Bookcharmer

Experience

Hello CoReaders!

Today I write to invite you to share your experience so far with Learning by Heart.  What did you do when you got a copy?  Did you skim through it, did you flip it over and read some of the quotes on the back?  Are you reading in sections or straight through?

I am reading in sections, just to get a sense of all the different projects, but this week I did "start" more formally with the activities on pages 18 and 19.  I started my sense diary by listing sounds I hear in the morning.  (The moist sound of the can of cat food being opened, the metal lid making a soft swish as it is pulled away.  My neighbor's large truck engine growling into action.) I also experienced two of the assignments with markedly different levels of progress.

I chose 7:45 a.m. as my time to observe the shadows in a room for 5 minutes.  I sat in our living room, which gets the morning light through the bay window.  I did have to sit with my back to the window at first so I wouldn't be distracted by the birds visiting the feeder and bird bath.  I was happily surprised to discern the different levels of shadow, the deep shadows cast by base of the floor lamp against the wall and the paler shadows of the leaves diffused by the window.  This "assignment" turned into a wonderful way to begin each day this week and I think I'll continue it for awhile.  The most surprising moment was on Tuesday morning when the clouds shifted, the room darkened and the shadows intensified and it was if I was in a completely different room.

Attempting the second exercise on page 19, looking at a non changing object for 15 minutes, was so much harder that I have to start over.  I started with a metal water container I keep on the nightstand.  I was tired after 10 minutes, I couldn't look at it any more!  Was it the harsh overhead light making the metal glare?  Was it the combination of the black top and orange bottle that was too much to view up close?  I don't know.  I use this thing everyday--it is impervious to being knocked over by the cat, has a slim profile so it tucks in nicely in between the books and other stuff on the bedside table, I can grasp it while not being completely awake, take a sip, then set it down and fall back asleep...so why did my eyes hurt after looking at for 10 minutes?  I'll try it again in a different light or pick another object.

Today, what I've been waiting for all week, I will sit in my cherished backyard and look at a tree for an hour.  I'm excited just thinking about this.  I had thought I would choose the lemon tree, which has recently had a professional pruning and looks marvelous, but my eyes have been drawn all week to the huge shaggy weeping elm that soars upwards from my neighbors yard. It is a squirrel highway, the songbirds preferred perch for being close to the feeder, a majestic tree.

I titled this post "experience" because I'm gathering from this book the importance of and the possibility through practice of being able to articulate and communicate experience, to have my senses and awareness in coordination to be present enough to be able to communicate an experience.  Experience is also one of my favorite words, I love the i before e'ness of it, like a piece of softly sparkly jewelry.

What parts are you reading?  Have you tried one of the activities yet?  If you want to share your experience or invite your fellow CoReaders to join you in one, in person or online or through the mail, do it!

Cheerful greetings from the Bookcharmer.

Learning to Look

Hello CoReaders!

How many of you have got hold of a copy of Learning By Heart?   I was happy to see some posts on twitter and get some facebook messages saying you had the book or had a plan to get a copy.  How far along are you in reading it?

How are you reading it?  I'm still in the early chapters, with little dives into the later sections.

I'm starting a sense diary, just grabbed an empty notebook I had at home.  The first entry I made was a list of sounds I heard this morning.

I'm starting the assignment of looking at shadows.  At 7:45, I sat and looked at the shadows in my living room.  I think this is the first time I've really looked at shadows.  It was fun to look at the wispy, spiraling shadows of the tree branches blowing in the wind and the dark rich shadow lines cast by the lamp and a picture frame.  Finally, I noticed my own shadow and waved to myself.  Will I notice the same things tomorrow?

The next activity on page 19 is to look at something that doesn't change and observe it carefully.  I will do this tonight at the end of the day.  What will I chose?  My beloved travel mug that is my daily companion?  The metal water container I keep on the nightstand?  I feel like choosing some sort of container for liquid so I can think about depth.

I'm continuing to think about some easy ways to connect with you on other social media platforms.  What do you think of the hashtags CoReader and CoReading?  Just a little play on Collaboratively Reading Corita.

Post your thoughts, your activities, your ideas about the book here!

Rebecca

Here we go!!!!

Dear friends,

Earlier this month I saw the exhibit Someday is Now:  the Art of Corita Kent at the Pasadena Museum of Art.  On coming back home, I ordered a copy of the book Learning by Heart, the book co-written by Corita and Jan Steward.

It is so inspiring that my mind is still whirring at almost 5 a.m. pacific time, and its been whirring since 1:40.  This is most unusual behavior for your Bookcharmer, as I am what is known as a "good sleeper."

I will write more coherently about what I have in mind for this book club, but it starts with this:

get the book.  Start with your library of course, and if you decide you want your own copy, search this ISBN 9781581156478 in your favorite independent book supplier, start with http://www.indiebound.org/ but also check out abebooks or alibris if you want a used copy.

Then, read!  Think about what art projects you want to try.  We can try them on a schedule, or do them in any order you want.  We'll think up some useful hashtags so we can post images and thoughts on social media so we can see what our experiments produce.  Maybe we'll schedule a twitter chat, a google hangout, or even an in person meeting.

If anyone happens to be in the SoCal area, do get over to the Pasadena Museum of California Art, as the Someday is Now exhibit is only up through the end of October!!!  Here's the scoop on place and times:  http://pmcaonline.org/exhibitions/someday-is-now-the-art-of-corita-kent/

There is so much to talk about in this book:  teaching, creativity, materials, and looking.  The assignments that have you practice observing are very compelling to me right now as I feel like I'm in constant visual overload and want to learn to slow and harness the the way I experience visual information.  That is probably my biggest goal in experiencing the art assignments.

So let's get started.  Get the book!!!