In 2000 my divorce from my first wife, Kathy, was final. In 2003 I started dating Linda. In between I dated. Recently I scanned my sketchbooks from 2000 to 2003 and found these drawings of women I dated (or met in anticipation of maybe dating) during that time. Almost, but not all, of these were the result of online dating. Many people tell horror stories of online dating but with few exceptions my experience was overwhelmingly positive. None of them turned out to be who I was fated to marry but the women I met were smart, kind, sensitive, aware, interesting, attractive and wonderful. I learned a lot from that time and those relationships, even if it was just one date in some cases, and going through that made me confident when I finally found Linda, that she was the right one for me!
Linda attended a conference at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas and I tagged along because why not. I did what I usually do when traveling and that is get up early, get a coffee and pastry and do some drawing. I was on my own the last 2 days while she attended the conference so I spent some time at the pool and drew there as well. I also found a great opportunity during lunch at a noodle place.
I took the opportunity to draw in my big sketchbook and use my copic Gasenfude brush, which is very much like using a sumi brush. The one exception is the ‘Early Morning Coffee with Phone’ which is with my regular Copic pen and in my smaller sketchbook.
People often ask me how long it takes me to do drawings like these. On average each drawing took about an hour to an hour and a half, except for the one in the smaller sketchbook. Beside each drawing but one is a photograph of the scene itself. These were taken after doing the drawing so the original people have often changed positions or left completely and have been replaced by others.
One of the interesting things about this type of drawing is whether the person I am drawing realizes they are being drawn. I try to be discreet enough so they aren’t conscious of me drawing but sometimes it happens that they notice. ‘Alone at the Pool’ is an example. I had just started drawing her head when she seemed to be aware of me drawing her. I wasn’t sure but I didn’t want her to be uncomfortable so I directed my attention to drawing the surrounding structures and scene. She soon forgot about me and by the time I came back to her she had moved into a completely different position and I had to make up most of her body. It turned out I sort of blew it and had drawn a structure where her feet should be, as you can see.
Long before Covid struck I was drawing masked people. It first started with beauty masks that people put on. I guess my wife must have done it a few times and I thought it looked really cool, I don’t remember for sure. But I know that ever since I’ve loved the image of a woman with a beauty mask on. Somewhere along the way I started drawing faces with patterns on them, like ‘plaid person peering’ and recognized that as another type of mask. Back in the 80s and 90s I was doing a lot of figure drawing, either in the classes I was teaching or on my own. I got bored with just drawing the figure so I started playing around with layering translucent clothing on top of the body, mostly just to see if I could develop the skill to do it. But that lead to me thinking about covering and uncovering one’s body with clothing and that led in turn to the idea of a mask on one’s face.
The first time I drew a person with an actual mask on was when I moved to Oklahoma. I got a new dentist, Dr. Laura Murcko, and we hit it off. I always bring my sketchbook to my appointments and at one point, after she had given my novacaine and we had a few minutes before it set in, I asked her if I could draw her and since she had her mask on that is how I started the drawing. I did just a quick sketch then did the rest later. I don’t know if I ever showed it to her because she moved away shortly thereafter.
I would occasionally draw someone with a mask, like my daughter when she was going to a masquerade ball, but for the most part if I drew someone with a mask, it was a made up image, at least the mask part was, like the church image. I really did draw the violinist but of course she did not have a beauty mask on at the time.
Of course then came Covid and there were people all around with masks on.
Back in the 1980s I was drawing in a sketchbook just as I am today. But back then I didn’t have any fancy pens, I just had regular black ball point pens. The good part of that is I could almost always guarantee I could find a pen if I needed to. The bad part…well, now that I look back on these drawings I am not sure there was a bad part. The cool thing about ball point pens is it isn’t all or nothing like my Copic ink pens are. I could press soft and get a soft line or hard to get a more solid line. That allowed for an ability to subtle shading that my Copic pens don’t allow. Maybe I will go back to the ball point, who knows!
I am not in contact with any of these people any longer. I often wonder what they look like now and think it would be fun to go back and draw them 30-40 years later! If you happen to know any of them, let them know their portrait from long ago is online.
These drawings were either done at Cabrillo College or Mission College where I taught, Eulipia Restaurant where I worked, Westminster Presbyterian Church or Asbury Methodist Church where I attended.
Because I draw in church I sometimes find myself drawing a bible story. As should be obvious, I don’t try to hew close to any literal accuracy. I do this for two reasons, first I don’t think the literalness of the bible stories is anywhere near the most important element. In fact, in many, if not most cases, I think a literal interpretation blinds oneself to the lessons the stories are meant to impart. And second, I am just too creative to worry about it while I am in the middle of drawing.
Here are some New Testament stories with the exception of the first one which is Ms. Eve from the Old Testament
EVE WITH GLASSES
Eve with Glasses
Eve wasn’t real. Neither was Adam. They were created to teach about how and why humans could be bad. It was a so so explanation for a while but then we got smarter and realized we shouldn’t go blaming Eve for anything. I mean, who puts a beautiful fruit tree in the middle of a garden and then tells the people not to eat from it with no explanation as to why? In the end I believe she was just a curious woman who wasn’t afraid to try new things.
JESUS, MARY and JOSEPH
Jesus, Mary and Joseph
The story goes that Mary and Joseph had a run of really bad luck and ended up having to have their first child on a bunch of straw surrounded by cows. But I don’t draw cows so well so they are surrounded by a dog and a cat instead, which I can draw pretty well. I drew them in the middle of the path because you know how pregnancies go, the kid is going to come out when it’s going to come out.
THE BAD CHICK
The Bad Chick
The story here is that a bunch of religious control freaks brought this woman to Jesus as a test. They told him she had sex and not with her husband and that meant she should be stoned, and not in the good way. If Jesus said, ‘Fine, go ahead and stone her.’ then he would lose a lot of followers who saw him as a champion of sinners. If he said, ‘Nope, don’t do it.’ Then they could claim he wasn’t obeying Judaic Law and have him thrown in jail as a false teacher. So he, being the wily dude that he was, sat down, scrawled around in the dirt for a while then said ‘Hey, if you don’t have any sin yourself, go ahead, stone her.’ This was a problem because then they would be setting themselves up to be perfect and to not need the law, which would not be a good look for them. So they all went away grumbling to themselves until it was just Jesus and this woman hanging around. He then simply told her she was free to go but best to not sin anymore. He didn’t say anything more but I suspect he might have added, ‘because if you get caught again I may not be around to push back against these idiots and then what will you do? Oh, and prostitution is demeaning and dangerous so come join our group instead if you want. We’ll feed and clothe you and you will be safe.’
THE EAR CHOPPER AND THE NAKED RUNNER
The Ear Chopper and the Naked Runner
This story usually is all about Peter, a guy always seeming to be itching for a fight, getting in an actual fight. A fight so bad he actually cut off a guy’s ear. Of course the bible doesn’t actually say it was Peter but we all know Peter and he definitely has an ear chopper vibe about him. Jesus was being arrested at the time and whoever it was was thinking they were all going to fight to keep that from happening so he struck the first blow and plop, there went the poor centurion’s ear. Jesus stepped in and stopped any more violence by touching the guy’s ear and making it not chopped off and both sides calmed down. Miracles will do that to a crowd. But there is another part of this story that never gets talked about in church, probably because it involves a naked person, which is never something the church wants to talk about.
Anyway, in the Gospel of Mark 14:51 there is an addendum to this story. “A young man, wearing nothing but a linen garment, was following Jesus. When they seized him,he fled naked, leaving his garment behind.” I decided that I would illustrate that along with the ear chop. Any excuse for me to draw a naked person, ya know?
THE CRUCIFIXION
The Crucifixion
Nothing funny about this one. Jesus and two other guys are nailed to three crosses and left to die in the brutal, hot sun. The centurions mock him, beat him, smash thorns down over his head and spear him in the side. And they throw lots to see who gets his clothes. Brutal all around. Brutal for Jesus but brutal for his mom and followers (mostly women) who stayed around when he was arrested, tried and convicted and then went with him as he climbed up to Golgotha to be executed. His male followers, by the way, had all fled from the Garden the night before and were nowhere to be seen. It all around sucked.
REMOVING THE NAILS
This isn’t in the bible stories but the nails had to be taken out somehow by someone so I thought I would illustrate it. Since it was the women who went with him from the cross to the tomb I figure it had to be one of those women who took the nails out. Most likely it was one of the three Marys, either his mother Mary, his disciple Mary Magdalene or Mary his friend (and sister of Martha). Whoever did it, it had to be a horrible job that would scar the person forever.
Removing the Nails
THE RESURRECTION
Mary Magdelene at the Tomb
Once again, it’s the women who are essential to the story. Jesus was crucified on Friday which meant they couldn’t ritually cleanse and prepare the body for proper burial until after Sabbath, which would be Sunday Morning. John says it was Mary Magdalene all by herself who came and saw the tomb was empty. Matthew says it was Mary and the other Mary who came and was surprised to find the tomb empty. Mark says it was 3 women, Mary, Mary and Salome, who arrived to find it empty. And Luke says it was a group of women who arrived to find it empty.
Three Women at the Tomb
However it happened the story is the tomb was empty and Jesus was resurrected from the dead. Little did these women know what would come of this story.
Doubting Thomas
Doubting Thomas
Different Apostles have different personalities that come out in these stories. One of the best in my view is Thomas, who then and forever more became the patron saint of doubters (no, I don’t know if he really is that, but he should be). Why? Because he didn’t believe the other disciples when they said they had seen Jesus alive after he had died. Thomas did what any self-respecting skeptic would do and said, ‘Nope, sorry. Ain’t believin’ that whopper of a tale. Let me see him and put my finger in that nasty stab wound in his side that shoulda killed him. Then I will believe.’ So the story goes that that is exactly what happened soon thereafter. It had to have been pretty gruesome I am sure but it convinced Thomas and it couldn’t have hurt Jesus any worse than the original stab wound. Would you be a skeptic who needed to see, or would you not need proof, faith being enough?
There are tons of other stories of course but this is what you got for now. What do you think?
I love drawing pregnant people. I don’t get the chance to draw them from life very often but I make them up regularly in my sketchbook. Obviously the round shape of the belly is a perfect design element because of it’s shape but it’s so much more than that. One of the main reason is that it often is a decisive way to avoid sexualizing someone. I don’t mean that women who are pregnant aren’t sexually attractive. What I mean is that seeing pregnancy in art forces the viewer to look at something besides sexuality. The preeminent message of the pregnant image is about motherhood, family, children.
It’s can also be about pain, discomfort, confusion, fear, the future. The future is implicit in pregnancy because a child is due. It is also about the future of the mother and all the questions that go along with her having a new role, a new body transition, and new place in the world. For all those reasons I like playing with the maternal image.
Here are two galleries of paintings. The first is of clothed women and abstract spiral bodies. The second is of nudes.
Do you have one that stands out to you? Let me know what you think.
Artists I Love – Figures from the LACMA Permanent Collection
When we vacationed in LA in the summer of 2024 I knew I wanted to see the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). It was one of my favorite museums when I was growing up in LA and when I lived there again as a young adult. The main reason I wanted to go was because of a special exhibition of Ed Ruscha’s lifetime of work. He is among the top artists in my life. You can see why in the post, ‘Artists I Love: Ed Ruscha‘ from 2015. The images in that post were from a retrospective of his work at the Denver Museum of Art and covers most of what was in the LACMA exhibition.
I didn’t know what I would find in the permanent collection but was very pleasantly surprised. I easily took over 100 photographs of the art in that collection and obviously had to edit it down. No surprise, I found the figurative theme most interesting. This selection is centered in the Expressionist paintings of the early 20th century. The paintings that are not in that movement either lead the way into the expressive use of form and color the expressionists are known for or show the lasting affect expressionism had on painting later in the century.
As anyone who has followed me for any time knows, I draw in church. I Became a Christian in 1976 and I think the earliest drawing I have from church is probably from about 1979. I continue to this day 45 years later.
This selection is from a bible that was given to me by a Pastor friend back in 1997. I drew in it from 1997 to1998. I didn’t draw over actual scriptural text, only over the opinion pages or blank areas. I liked having the text show through, sometimes because it helped inform the image and sometimes because it was a non sequitur to the image. Either way it adds interest to the image.
Part One is of people I have drawn with thoughts they may be thinking. Sometimes the thoughts may have stemmed from whatever the pastor was preaching about but often times it was just my imagination of what someone is thinking, unrelated to anything else.
Let me know if you have a favorite or if an image brings up some interesting thoughts of your own.
My wife and I went on vacation last week. We had airline vouchers we had to use by mid-June but we procrastinated deciding where to go because we couldn’t agree on a place. Finally it was getting down to it and we were talking about various place in California. Both places in California that we discussed had relatives we would either stay with or visit and as much as we love them we wanted this to be a ‘just us’ escape. Finally Linda said, How about LA? I said, sounds great! I was raised there so going back is always fun so off we went.
Each morning I got up early and walked a few blocks to Caffe Luxxe, a cool little spot on Montana Ave in Santa Monica near the ocean. I would get myself a Cafe Mocha and sit down to draw in my large sketchbook. It was fun because the same crowd was there most mornings and I got to know them and the staff. There were a lot of people in puffy coats and leggings!
When we left we sat at the departure gate for quite a while so I brought out my small sketchbook and did some quick drawings of those around me. During the flight I ink painted one of the drawings and gave her a thought that I saw reflected in her look.
I haven’t decided if I will paint the three cafe drawings but if I do I will edit this post and include those versions as well.
Click on a drawing to see it full size and scroll to see the rest.
The Impressionist Revolution – From Monet to Matisse
Selections from the Dallas Museum of Art Special Exhibitions
Not an Apple
A few weeks ago a friend of mine who was trying to make a political statement online showed an apple with accompanying text saying “This is a watermelon. If you see an apple it’s because you are a right wing conspiracy theorist.” The inference being it should be obvious to everyone it is an apple, not a watermelon, and those who think it’s a watermelon are being deceived by the main stream media. I called her out on this post, not only because I disagreed with her politics, but because she herself began by believing a lie. She said it was an apple. It was not an apple, it was a photograph of an apple.
An Impression
Simple as it may be, this is a mistake many people make about art as well and this was the delusion from which the Impressionists set out to free themselves. No longer were they going to create something that was built on a lie. They were no longer going to try to convince their audience the painting before them was actually the person, place or thing. They would paint in such a way that everyone would know it was not the real thing but a creative representation made with brushstrokes of paint on a two-dimensional surface. It was an impression. It was the most radical idea in the history of painting up to that point and it turned the art world upside down as a result. For many decades they were not accepted, they were even hated, because they broke a sacred illusion that had lived in art for hundreds of years, the illusion of reality.
The Geniuses
Here are 10 examples of paintings by some of the great impressionists and those that came them; the post-impressionists, the pointillists, and others. Take a look at the whole painting then at the close up showing the actual paint strokes. If you have a large screen view it on that. They were geniuses of the first order and the magic is real.
‘Wow, it looks just like a photograph!’ school of adoration
When you look at art in the future hopefully you will be less enamored with the ‘Wow, it looks just like a photograph!’ school of adoration. It isn’t the height of skill to be able to do that actually. Anyone can learn how, I know because I taught drawing for a decade and had students who couldn’t draw a stick figure render incredibly life-like drawings at the end because their skills improved. But the best of my students weren’t the ones who could do that. The best were the ones who had something interesting to say. They had a unique way of seeing and creating and their artwork reflected that. That, to me, is the sign of a true artist.
I draw in church and often it’s the back of the person in front of me. I have also drawn the backs of people in auditoriums, airline terminals, meeting rooms, waiting rooms and coffee houses. But it’s in church that I will most likely find the person facing away. In these cases I take advantage of the challenge. The challenge of drawing hair (never an easy thing), but even more so, of drawing personality without a face. That is hard. And the definition of success in that endeavor is different than if I have a full set of facial features to clue you into what the person is feeling or thinking.
I think of it as the difference between music with lyrics (facial features) to tell you what it’s about and instrumental music (no facial features) where you aren’t told something explicitly, but indirectly. In that case the music becomes much more individual, with interpretations not helped or impeded by word definitions. Having said that I don’t always obey the rule. I may not show a face but I sometimes I have thought bubbles that tell what the person is thinking.
While most of the drawings I do in public are of just one person there are plenty of times when I am able to draw more than one. I usually won’t attempt this unless I feel I have ample time to compose a more complex image and I have some assurance they will stay in place long enough. As with any live drawing, sometimes it works out, some times it doesn’t. There are many drawings I have of multiple people but in most they are all just sitting, not necessarily engaging with each other. It often is just 2 separate portraits that happen to be on the same page. But that isn’t the case with people who are talking to one another.
It’s a delicate process to create an image where it appears people are actually talking to one another. Obviously there is the task of drawing the mouth so it looks like it’s saying something but that isn’t always essential. Finding a non-verbal gesture that may indicate something, like a question, an exclamation or an attitude, can sometimes be even better than a mouth being open.
This selection of 10 goes all the way back to 1987. At that time I worked at Eulipia Restaurant in San Jose, California. I would often bring my sketchbook in my backpack because after work we would often decompress by sitting around the bar. Having my sketchbook with me meant I could draw while we relaxed. At that time I was drawing with a simple ball point pen, my only requirement being that it be black ink instead of blue.
The rest of these drawings were done with a Copic ink pen first then painted with Copic ink markers and in some cases Montana Acrylic paint markers.
Some of the best models are those who are engrossed in something. And nothing engrosses 21st century humans like their phones. I take my sketchbook almost everywhere because if nothing else, I can guarantee that I will find someone on their phone. I don’t often ask permission in this situation since they are absorbed in something. But whenever possible I will show them the drawing afterwards and connect with them so they can see it when it is finished.
Someone on their phone is also a perfect opportunity to create a story by adding in thought or word bubbles. These I make up completely and don’t have anything to do with the real person. It’s just an idea I had based on the drawing and what I imagined they could be thinking about.
These drawings are from Sketchbooks starting around 2010 or so, when the iphone made extended phone usage much more prevalent.
I have been continuing to scan my sketchbooks. Each sketchbook has a unique focus due to its own properties of size, paper quality, etc. It also has to do with what I was doing at the time. This sketchbook has a lot of live drawings of people in public settings. I was spending time in coffee houses because I was live streaming regularly on the Periscope app and this was a fun and interesting way to engage my audience. The camera would be pointed at me and my drawing so I could talk while they saw my drawing appear. I would sometimes end the video with me going over the meet the subject of my drawing and introduce them as well.
These are a selection from my 2015-2017 sketchbook.
I’ve been scanning my sketchbooks this year and recently scanned one from 2000-2002. There were a number of drawings of people on planes or about to get on one. Planes and waiting rooms are wonderful places to people draw and I always make sure I have my sketchbook with me when I travel for that exact reason.
In some cases I met these people, found out their name and a small portion of their story. Some knew I was drawing them, like Jess the flight attendant. She was sitting staring down the aisle late at night and it was kind of hard to miss me drawing since I was the probably the only person with a light on in the cabin. Other times I am observing, taking in not just the face but the whole environment, like in ‘A Passenger’s Story’, which really more my story of what is happening all around her rather than what she is thinking. And then again I am often just imagining what someone might be thinking based on just a brief conversation like in ‘Cate Wishing’ or on nothing at all, like in ‘I Hope He’s Nice’.
Click on any image to start a slide show. Let me know what you think, do you have a favorite?
These images weren’t first created with apartment buildings in mind. It was after they were done that I started to see personalities and interactions, conflict and companionship, connections and structure and found the tie-in to close living. Click any image to see the slide show.
Typically when I am creating a design on my ipad I start with a line or a shape and let it tell me what the next line or shape should be. I eventually discern a pattern and will build on it until I am happy. It sounds funny but I know I am done with a piece, on paper, canvas or screen, when I feel happy. By that I mean it feels like it is what it is supposed to be. There is no time frame for this, it can take minutes or it can take years. My digital work doesn’t usually take very long but I do have drawings and paintings from the ’80s and ’90s that I have taken out of a drawer and started to work on again, finally finishing them 30 to 40 years later.
16 years ago today I posted the first napkin to my new blog ‘The Napkin Dad Daily’. In December of 2023, A few months ago, I posted a newly drawn napkin.
And 25 Years AGO…
The first one I ever drew was in 1998. That makes 25 years of drawing on napkins and being the Napkin Dad. Not a bad streak if you ask me.
I guess that’s why they call it ‘wishful thinking’, right?
How do your wishes and desires influence what you think is real?
“I can promise you that women working together – linked, informed and educated – can bring peace and prosperity to this forsaken planet.” – Isabel Allende
When I think about the Middle East recently I keep thinking about how powerless so many women must feel as they watch their world being destroyed. They have their differing opinions and beliefs but I believe their pain makes them much more alike than their religion and background make them different. Because of that I am confident of the same thing Allende is. I don’t know the solution to all these issues. But I believe the women of the region are more likely to find the answers than the men are. I can think of no better place and time than here and now to have women in charge instead of men.
This is the first napkin I have drawn in at least 2 years, since the live streaming app Periscope closed down. I am not sure why I started it, probably just because the napkin was handy and I felt like doodling a bit. It turned into a new addition to a long running series I have of mermaids. There are links to the rest below the drawing.
As many of you know, I draw in church. When I lived in Tulsa the person I drew at church most often was the pianist. We sat in just the right location to get a good view of her so she was a ready subject. When we moved to Texas and found a church the orchestra was behind a low wall so I didn’t have a good view of them. However, I did have a good view of the singers who led the worship. Next thing you know I was drawing a lot of people with microphones. Most of the time I would actually not draw them while they were standing up in front. I would look at them while they sang, memorize certain things about how they stood, held the microphone, what they wore, etc. Then while the sermon was being preached I would start the drawing with that person in mind. I didn’t worry about being accurate, it was just a place to start on the page.
‘The Mottled Woman’, ink on paper, 2022
Sometimes I think of something the person is saying or thinking, other times I don’t.
‘The Colors and the Grays’, ink on paper, 2023
Singing Apples, Thinking Oranges
At the Edge
The one thing that occurs to me again and again, especially in Christian circles, is how different what we say is from what we think.
‘The Sea Angel’, ink on paper, 2022
Some people are able to rise above. Not many, but some.
‘Cathie Hill Singing’, ink on paper, 2023
My sister-in-law singing at her outdoor church in Colorado.
‘Eve with Singing Snake’, ink on paper, 2022
What if the snake had listened to Eve instead of the other way around?
‘The Singer and the Pain’, ink on paper, 2022
The thing is, people say things often because they believe it convinces others of who they are. But if you are around someone long enough their actions say who they are not their words and no one is fooled.
‘Interview with a Meteorite’, ink on paper, 2023
The drawing attention to disasters all around the world, the big crazy ones, is often a tool by which we hide our own disasters from ourselves and others.
‘Halo of Guilt’, ink on paper, 2023
Being a saint is as much a curse as it is a blessing. You know you did barely anything to deserve the accolade and yet you can’t escape it. BTW, I do not know this from first hand experience.
‘The Show’, ink on paper, 2023
The voice speaks but it is the hand that proves who you are.
I am starting a new series, ‘Authors I Love’, a companion to my ongoing series ‘Artists I Love’.
OLD AND NEW
I love reading big old books. The longer and older the better. Why? For one reason, it allows me to travel. I was explaining this idea to my wife today after I finished ‘Middlemarch’ written in the 1870s by George Eliot (Mary Ann Evans). She asked if it made me want to live in the Victorian era in Great Britain. I said, yes and no. Yes, because reading the book was like traveling to a different time. You know how when you go to a new place you see so many things that are familiar but not? There are buildings like at home, but different. Food like at home, but different. Humans like home, but different. The same is true of literature from the past. It is familiar but different. Then again, no. In Middlemarch the language is so rich and vocabulary so extensive that it is like going where they speak English in such an unfamiliar way that you feel like you are hearing it for the first time. Not old from a different era, but new, like a revelation of what could be.
Selected Works by George Eliot
MIDDLEMARCH
‘A Study of Provincial Life’ is the subtitle of the book. And indeed the story is about the goings on in the provincial town of Middlemarch in England in the early to mid 1800s, right in the heart of the Victorian era. The story starts and ends with Dorethea, an intelligent and unique woman who wants to do good in the world. Her only avenue for this it seems is to find a husband who is contributing to the betterment of the world in a big way and help him in that task. She does find this man and fully expects her marriage will lead to the future she envisions for herself. It does not go according to plan.
Eliot sculpture in her hometown of Nuneaton, UK. The town also has a hospital, hospice and school named after her.
Meanwhile, others in Middlemarch are trying to make their way in the world, either through marriage, if they are a woman, or in the church, business, politics, farming or other areas of commerce if they are a man. Much of the story revolves around women both pushing their way into areas that typically are the realm of men and demurring to the men and staying in the background. I said ‘both’ instead of ‘either’ because all the women do both. The tension of who they want to be and who they feel restrained to be is palpable in every chapter and drives much of the novel.
It is also about young people chaffing at the bit of tradition and ‘the way things are done’. Pushing up against that is the height of bad manners and a number of the younger characters suffer career and life setbacks because of their attempting to move forward in science, medicine, politics, society and religion.
Middlemarch book cover illustration
I love her crafting of words to create character, mood, environment and more. Here is an example –
“She was glowing from her morning toilette as only healthful youth can glow; there was gem-like brightness on her coiled hair and in her hazel eyes; there was warm red life in her lips; her throat had a breathing whiteness above the differing white of the fur which itself seemed to wind about her neck and cling down her blue-gray pelisse with a tenderness gathered from her own, a sentient commingled innocence which kept its loveliness against the crystalline purity of the outdoor snow.”
Middlemarch book cover illustration
And here is another, this one delving into the psyche of humanity.
“She sat tonight revolving, as she was wont, the scenes of the day, her lips often curling with amusement at the oddities to which her fancy added fresh drollery: people were so ridiculous with their illusions, carrying their fools’ caps unawares, thinking their own lies opaque while everybody else’s were transparent, making themselves exceptions to everything, as if when all the world looked yellow under a lap they alone were rosy.”
You can find more quotes at the end of this post.
Here is a link to a more thorough and thoughtful appreciation than I can give. The Genius of Middlemarch
Hand cast of Eliot’s hand
Eliot, being one of the most famous writers of her era, had a death hand cast made instead of a death mask to honor and highlight her accomplishments as an author.
Here is a photo of her. She looks surprisingly like Oscar Wilde, don’t you think?
George Eliot
Oscar Wilde
SILAS MARNER
I have heard the name most of my life. I knew he was a victorian character but I wouldn’t have been able to tell you if he was created by Dickens or Dickensen or any other author. Once I got this book I knew of course. I bought it to read Middlemarch and it wasn’t planning on reading any of the other stories, at least not right away. But I was not ready to be done with Eliot and I have always wanted to know who Silas Marner was in literary history so now was my opportunity to find out.
from 1985 film
The full title of the book, ‘Silas Marner – The Weaver of Raveloe’, tells you who he is, at least professionally. Like Middlemarch this book shows a slice of provincial life, but with the focus on one particular character. Marner is a solitary man living along on the edge of town. He weaves linen that he then sells through various stores or directly to some of the wealthier women. He is seen as an eccentric man with whom good society would not entertain a relationship. They would however buy his product as he is a meticulous weaver who does excellent work.
book illustration
He saves his gold coins religiously and obsessively counts them at night. Through a series of horrible circumstances he has those coins stolen from him. He, nor anyone else, knows who stole the coins. Meanwhile through another series of horrible circumstances he becomes the caretaker of a baby who is not yet able to walk.
book illustration
This conjunction of loss and gain is at the heart of the story and at the heart of Marner’s transformation within himself and within the community. There are good and bad people throughout but in all cases the personalities are complex and subtle, rich characters who are not cliche cut-outs of virtue or vice.
book cover illustration
The story is ultimately uplifting and inspiring but it is never cloying or pandering. It’s a great place to start reading to get an appreciation for Eliot’s work.
from 1916 film
Once again she has some astute quotes that show her insight into human nature.
“A dull mind, once arriving at an inference that flatters a desire, is rarely able to retain the impression that the notion from which the inference started was purely problematic.”
“The yoke a man creates for himself by wrongdoing will breed hate in the kindliest nature.”
Brother Jacob
I thought this was probably about a monk but it wasn’t. It is a short story about a greedy man, David Faux, who steals from his family and sets off overseas to seek his fame and fortune as a confectioner. He leaves behind a brother who is an ‘idiot’ (Eliot’s term, not mine). I think now he would be seen as neurodivergent, perhaps with Down Syndrome. The story then fast forwards many years and David reappears under another name in a nearby village where he runs a successful confectionary shop. His bright future in marriage and business is dependent on it never being found out his real name and place in the world. Suffice it to say this does not go according to plan.
One of the best plot devices Eliot uses is the man who has it all planned vs the messiness and unpredictability of real life. While she allows it to happen to most everyone in all her stories, it is especially satisfying when it is combined with the underlying moral failures of a character.
The Lifted Veil
This amazing short story is a departure for Eliot in that it is about the supernatural. The protagonist finds he is able to hear peoples’ inner thoughts. Everyone that is but his brother’s fiance, on whom he has a crush. His mind has to imagine what she is thinking and because he is completely enamored of her he creates a deep and rich inner thought life for her. That drives him into even deeper love.
The story is about what happens when he no longer has to see her from a distance and suddenly is able to hear her thoughts as well. Are his hopeful conjectures of her deep inner life proven true or are they dashed? It’s worth reading to find out.
More Middlemarch Quotes
“No evil dooms us hopelessly except the evil we love, and desire to continue in, and make no effort to escape from.”
“But this vague conviction of indeterminable guilt…had for the general mind all the superior power of mystery over fact. Everybody liked better to conjecture how the thing was, than simply to know it; for conjecture soon became more confident than knowledge, and had a more liberal allowance for the incompatible.”
“A man vows, and yet will not cast away the means of breaking his vow. Is it that he distinctly means to break it? Not at all; but the desires which tend to break it are at work in him dimly, and make their way into his imagination, and relax his muscles in the very moments when he is telling himself over again the reasons for his vow.”
“Fear is stronger than the calculations of probabilities.”
“If youth is the season of hope, it is often so only in the sense that our elders are hopeful about us; for no age is so apt as youth to think it’s emotions, partings, and resolves are the last of their kind. Each crisis seems final, simply because it is new.”
“But even while we are talking and meditation about the earth’s orbit and the solar system, what we feel and adjust our movements to is the stable earth and the changing day.”
“For the egoism which enters into our theories does not affect their sincerity; rather, the more our egoism is satisfied, the more robust is our belief.”
“Men outlive their love, but they don’t outlive the consequences of their recklessness.”
“Few things hold the perceptions more thoroughly captive than anxiety about what we have got to say.”
“I have always been thinking of the different ways in which Christianity is taught, and whenever I find one way that makes it a wider blessing than any other, I cling to that as the truest – I mean that which takes in the most good of all kinds, and brings in the most people as sharers in it. It is surely better to pardon too much than to condemn too much.”
“There is nothing more thoroughly rotten than making people believe that society can be cured by a political hocus-pocus.”
“Will not a tiny speck very close to our vision blot out the glory of the world, and leave only a margin by which we see the blot? I know no speck so troublesome as self.”
“The truth is the hardest missile one can be pelted with.”
“Philanthropist: a man whose charity increases directly as the square of the distance.”
“Her blindness to whatever did not lie in her own pure purpose carried her safely by the side of precipices where vision would have been perilous with fear.”
“When gratitude has become a matter of reasoning there are many ways of escaping from its bonds.”
“Solomon’s Proverbs, I think, have omitted to say, that as the sore palate findeth grit, so an uneasy consciousness heareth innuendoes.”
“Selfish people always think their own discomfort of more importance than anything else in the world.”
“There is no religion to hinder a man from believing the best of a young fellow, when you don’t know worse. It seems to me it would be a poor sort of religion to put a spoke in his wheel by refusing to say you don’t believe such harm of him as you’ve got no good reason to believe.”
“We mortals, men and women, devour many a disappointment between breakfast and dinnertime; keep back the tears and look a little pale about the lips, and in answer to inquiries say, “Oh, nothing!” Pride helps us; and pride is not a bad thing when it only urges us to hide our own hurts – not to hurt others.”
I saw a quote from Einstein the other day. Now, I don’t necessarily believe he actually said it, since a gazillion quotes are said to be from him that aren’t, but it doesn’t really matter. The quote is this: “Possessions, outward success, publicity, luxury…to me these have always been contemptible. I believe that a simple and unassuming manner of life is best for everyone, best for both the body and the mind.”
I disagree with it for a few reasons. One is nothing is ever ‘best for everyone’.
Form
Two, beauty (or form if you will) matters. It’s not immaterial or without merit to have something be pleasing or interesting to the senses. A great illustration of this is seen in this interaction from the movie, ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ where a young woman is given a lesson in how her purely functional, non-luxurious sweater actually has its roots in choices made at the top end of fashion luxury. Take a look.
Form and Function
The quote I chose allows for both form (beauty) and function (usefulness) to have it’s place in our lives. If we focus on those two things, both equally valid, we can actually live a good life.
Quote by William Morris, 1834 – 1896, English writer, designer and artist. A founding participant in the ‘Arts and Crafts’ movement.
I am republishing this from 14 years ago today. The quote is still true. I feel like I have progressed some since then. Not completely but I feel I am a more trustworthy person than I was in 2009. Why do I think that? Because I have tried to practiced it. That is the only way anyone gets better at anything. If you don’t practice it repeatedly, you’ll never become it.
Original text – I am basically preaching to myself this week. This isn’t because I am not a trusting person, I am. More than most probably. I assume the best of intentions, I assume people will do what they say they are going to do. It doesn’t always happen, but I would rather get burned once in a while and be a trusting person than always be safe but have to trust no one.
Why I do need to hear this stuff about trust is because I am always needing to work on being a more trustworthy person. I think I am better than some, not as good as others. But I am not as trustworthy as I would always like to be. It’s a process of doing the right thing, the good thing, the promised thing, again and again and again. It takes patience and discipline, knowing boundaries and constantly remembering what I have promised.
I suppose most of us struggle with it, at least I hope I am not alone with it, am I?
I recently finished a sketchbook. It’s a weird thing to finish a sketchbook. I always feel like a relationship is ending. The feel, paper, size, look are all unique. How it takes ink, how I hold it, how it fits as I go somewhere is different with each sketchbook. Some allow me to draw inconspicuously while others are too big to hide. Some say ‘hippie natural’ while others say ‘serious conformist artist’.
But most importantly, what I draw in it is different based on all those things. Some lend themselves to drawing live while others tend to move me to draw purely imaginative images. It isn’t exclusive, I draw live and imaginatively in every sketchbook but there is an inclination depending on the book.
Here are some from a sketchbook that lent itself to a lot of imaginative drawing. I chose recent paintings that include polka dots or other type of recurring pattern on the clothing. I often do this so as to give definition to a form or to define a something as in front of or behind something else. They also include a lot of people holding microphones. That is because I often start the drawing in church, lightly memorizing the person on stage during the singing, then drawing a version of that person once the sermon starts.
Enjoy and let me know what you think. Do you have a favorite?
This summer I went to visit my daughter Rebekah and her family in Virginia. I was particularly excited to spend time with my 10 year old granddaughter, Vivian. The first day we went museum hopping in Washington, DC. We spent time seeing selections from the National Portrait Gallery, the National Gallery of Art and The National Archives. Vivian was a trooper, walking over 9 1/2 miles that day with nary a peep. Bribing her with Boba Tea at the end helped.
The first four shown here are from an exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery called ‘BRAVO!” which highlighted people in the entertainment industry over the decades. I was particularly taken by these paintings of women and their stories of overcoming strong obstacles to achieve their goals. The fifth, ‘Amarilla’, was elsewhere in the museum but I really liked it so I included it.
