This fall Friends of the Columbus Metropolitan Library challenged 17 crazy talented local artists and me to take books no longer in the library’s collection and to make new creations from them. This show is ridiculously good and I’m not saying that just because I’m apart of it. A couple of my art buds who were also participating shared some of our “in progress” work, and let me tell you it was amazing to see how folks figured out how to utilize an old book.
I did a two dimensional painting which I titled ” Possessing the Secret of Joy” after the title of and Alice Walker novel (one of my favorites books in my 20’s). The image is of a woman reading to a child. Her hair is composed of well over a hundred of hand rolled paper beads. The painting references my own connection to my children through reading. Reading aloud to my children has been one of the most enjoyable aspects of parenting for me. My kids and I have read hundreds of books and are regular (just about weekly) visitors to the Main Library. Through my kids I have rediscovered some amazing children’s books and consider myself a connoisseur of children’s literature.
