Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Legend Of The Bluebonnet, WTTW Art, and Fine Art America



Getiing Pokey and TacoBelle all groomed and legal for their departure to the States in a couple of weeks. That, and a jillion things to do leads me to blog on the run. Hopefully, what's left of my sanity will follow along.



"Legend Of The Bluebonnet"



My home state of Texas (to which I will be returning part-time in May) has had it's share of droughts and wildfires in some parts. Where my sister lives, in the hill country above Austin, it had been so dry that you could pour a glass of water, and it'd be evaporated by the time you got it to your mouth. That was several weeks ago, and they have had a little rain relief since then. But, in the worst of it, my sister sent me "The Legend of The Bluebonnet" and told me I should do a painting about it. I did and that's it above.
My great, great, great aunt was Cynthia An
n Parker, mother of Quanah Parker. She was the little girl that was kidnapped when the Comanches raided Fort Parker in Texas. She was raised by the Comanches, became married to Chief Nokona, gve birth to Quanah Parker, and refused to return to the White Man community when given the opportunity. It's an interesting story. And so is "The Legend Of The Bluebonnet"...which I have presented below....

After a long drought had devastated the land, The Great Spirit told the Comanche people that they must make a burnt offering of their most valued possession. The chief's little daughter knew what her sacrifice must be. She held in her hands her beloved doll, with's its beautiful blue feathers that come from the bird that goes "Jay, Jay".
When everyone had gone to sleep, she crept from her tipi, and, using a coal, started a fire. She held up her doll, and asked The Great Spirit to accept it. She gently laid her precious doll in the fire, and watched with tears as the greedy flames consumed its body and the wondrous blue feathers. After the ashes had cooled, she gathered them up, and, turnin
g to the four winds, let them blow gracefully from her fingers.
In the morning, the tribe awakened to find the barren land covered with a blanket of blue flowers. The land became green and
lush again, and the little girl who was most unselfish of all was given the name "One Who Dearly Loves Her People". Each spring, in memory of the little girl's sacrifice, The Great Spirit blesses the land with the beautiful blue flowers named Bluebonnets.

WINDOWS TO THE WORDS ART UPDATE


"Kinda Like Falling in Love"
Dana Cooper


A sample of the art displayed on WTTW Art is this one by Dana Cooper. I picked one at random to display, because it would have been rough to choose...they're all great. Participating artists so far..... Dominique Eichi, Deb Kierce, Dana Cooper, Maria (Pencil Sanity), Sheila Tajima, Lauren Mauer, and David Larson Evans.



FINE ART AMERICA

I love to paint. Whenever I finish a piece, I show it to Pokey and TacoBelle. They say "Fine and dandy, but what's for supper?". Most of us like to sell some of our work, but with the state of the economy and having to compete with Pizza Hut, Tommy Hilfiger and IPod, it can be tough. I'm exploring all venues. Aside from my Yimi site (which I'm shutting down) I'm on Yessy Art, Artists Rising and ArtFlock. Not great success. Sunday a friend of mine from Bocas E-Mailed and told me to check out Fine Art America. I did and was super impressed. I established a blog and gallery and have had many nice comments. And it is easy to navigate and construct, and seems to be ideal for sales. We'll see. You can see for yourself by clicking on the Logo.
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See ya down the road.....James

15 comments:

  1. I LOVE THE BLUEBONNET PAINTING - NO WONDER IT IS THE STATE FLOWER OF TEXAS - FIELDS OF BLUEBONNETS AND INDIAN PAINT BRUSHES ARE SO BEAUTIFUL - PICTURE TAKING TIME NOW.

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  2. James, what an amazing story and how cool that you have such a rich family history. We finally got some rain here, so I am hoping the bluebonnets will be there to greet you when you arrive. We miss you here in Texas. Howard Pee Pugpants will leave a soft pillow out for Pokey and TacoBelle in case you are traversing through Flower Mound.
    Dana's painting is amazing! so much life in so few strokes. She is a master.
    hugs from the homestate...

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  3. Love that bluebonnet painting and story!

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  4. Your bluebonnet painting and the story are beautiful! The bluebonnets are starting to bloom up here in Dallas.

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  5. Hey, James...Please check out my blog. I have something for you.

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  6. Hi James.
    Fantastic painting and story of bluebonnet! What an interesting family history you have! Love this post!

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  7. Hi James
    Oh we loved your painting so much- it just reached out to us! The the story- I would love for it to go on and on! I felt like I could have been in that tipi! Such a wonderful story and of your family heritage. I do not blame her for not wanting to leave her people- when the opportunity was there.
    Dana's painting is just beautiful!
    thanks for sharring
    love
    tweedles

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  8. Very nice painting James. Glad to hear you'll be getting to visit your home state soon.

    I checked out your fine art america site and it looks great! Very professional.

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  9. Hi, James. I love the Legend of the Blue Bonnet, and your beautiful illustration. Hope you and Pokey and Taco Bell have safe travels. Do they let you sit with them in 1st class? : - ) Liz

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  10. Wonderful painting and story, James!

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  11. James, Salute to your spirit...Lovely Creativity...BTW James, I have started a new blog dedicated to my sketch work — Art on Sketchbook

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  12. I love stories like this James. It brings lands from across the water, much closer. And now I know what a Bluebonnet is! And what an amazing painting. Also love Dana Cooper's work. Have a safe trip to your old home state.

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  13. Words OR paint, you create a beautiful image. Your new gallery looks great, James. I hope you own a laptop so you can keep up with your daily poetry during your travels:)

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  14. you have cool,pretty,amazing art

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