Painting The Woods

"When first-time author and artist Deborah Paris stepped into Lennox Woods, an old-growth southern hardwood forest in the Pineywoods of northeast Texas, she felt a disruption that was both spatial and temporal. Walking the remnants of an old wagon trail past ancient stands of pine, white oak, elm, hickory, sweetgum, maple, hornbeam, and red oak, she felt drawn into a reverie that took her back to "the beginning, both physically and metaphorically." Paris soon came to realize that Lennox Woods was actually more like a time machine-one that could go both backward and forward-granting glimpses of the past, present, and future while offering a fresh vision of the landscape. " Painting the Woods: Nature, Memory, and Metaphor" explores the experience of landscape through the lens of art and art-making. It is a place-based meditation on nature, art, memory, and time, grounded in Paris's experiences over the course of a year in Lennox Woods. Her account unfolds through the twin arcs of the changing seasons and her creative process as a landscape painter. In the tradition of Annie Dillard's Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, narrative passages interweave with observations about the natural history of Lennox Woods, its flora and fauna, art history, the science of memory, Transcendentalist philosophy, the role of metaphor in creative work, and even loop quantum gravity theory. Each chapter explores a different aspect of the forest and a different step in the art-making process, illuminating our connection to the natural world through language, comprehension of time, and visual depictions of the landscape. The complex layers of the forest and Paris's journey through it emerge as metaphors for the larger themes of the book, just as the natural world underpins the art-making drawn from it. Like the trail that winds through Lennox Woods, memory and time intertwine to provide a path for understanding nature, art, and our relationship to both and as a means to explore larger questions and themes"--

Portraits from the Woods is a pictorial record in multiple takes of a singular journey through Norman Reedus' experience of darkness and light. It will become clear early in this wholly fresh body of work that these photographic images are as likely to propose questions as provide answers. This book is a collection of raw, grainy, offkey photos that Norman has regurgitated for our bemusement and twisted pleasure.Norman Reedus is a master of the unlikely the eccentric, the uncooked. He loves to indulge his eye in all manner of improbable and fractured camera moments. Portraits from the Woods takes the viewer on some very strange trips into a subterranean world where there is no judgment. What you get is raw, unplacated Norman behind his natural and delightful charm. This book can't help to push your envelope.

Take an entertaining and educational tour of the four seasons and observe the many delightful mysteries of nature. Perfect for colorists of all ages. Captions.

Watercolour offers great potential for expression. Its fluidity, full colour range, generous spread and variety of marks can portray a likeness, a response, a feeling - even the notions of time and speed. This book is a practical guide to watercolour painting and more. It explains the importance of colour, tone, shape, texture and scale through exercises and shared techniques, but it also encourages the artist to express sensations and ideas in watercolour - and by exploring the joy of the medium, to develop handling skills, confidence and a unique painting 'voice'. Includes: getting started; materials, fundamentals and mark-making; ideas to trigger the imagination for developing personal style; a variety of images to inspire and encourage; and help and advice throughout to practice new skills and gain confidence with a medium that has the potential magnificence of a 'full orchestra', yet can be slipped into the pocket. Lavishly illustrated with 259 colour photographs.

On the brink of middle age, Marilyn and Jack Woods do a one-eighty, leaving their world of big city radio and broadcasting to embark on a new adventure with the purchase of a Southern California farm. As they struggle over the two decades that follow, they experience losses, failures, and stunning successes while crafting a life among orange groves, lavender fields, and vineyards in San Diego County. Until Jack's devastating, unexpected death leaves Marilyn alone with a shattered dream. She must now, on her own, reclaim the inspiration and internal fortitude that symbolized their country life together. Stumbling to find her way forward, Marilyn creates a portrait of the grief, joy, courage and hope of a life lived boldly. Her story is an ode to the solace that can be found in nature and art. It will inspire readers to embark on quiet adventures of their own.