This past week my garden has burst with color. After months of living within a subdued landscape that quietly displayed spare beauty in the structure of trees, accented with the muted tones of last year’s dropped foliage, it’s pure joy to become re-immersed in full-on color!

Most artists I know are gardeners, and vice versa — although I wonder, do gardeners think of themselves as artists? They should; we share a love of color, form, texture and pattern, and of course a willingness to accept the challenge of arranging all those elements within a composition. This past post about Vermont artist David Stearns’ beautiful garden is a case in point.

The overlap between the two disciplines is deeply ingrained for many of us. I have written in countless artist statements how formal Japanese gardens have been a huge inspiration to me, not just in their physical attributes, but in the way they direct one’s attention and how they make one feel while wandering along their paths. I continue to aspire toward that ability to say more with less in my own work.

But for now, I am just soaking up the pure lushness of this year’s new growth and am grateful to live where the seasons vary so strongly that as each one arrives we are ready and glad for the change.

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Two treasured books on my shelf, each an inspiration, are ZEN|FLOWERS: contemplation through creativity by Harumi Nishi and The Flower Recipe Book: 100 Magical, Sculptural, Seasonal Arrangements by Alethea Harampolis and Jill Rizzo. They straddle the line between art and flora and offer a new way to think about both, together.

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Happily, this past weekend I heard back from Arthur Schaller, the collage artist I wrote about last week, with permission to post images of his work. Here’s a quick taste that will hopefully entice you to see the work in person if you can get to the Vermont Supreme Court gallery before the end of June.

© Arthur Schaller

© Arthur Schaller

© Arthur Schaller

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And finally, I am honored to have been asked to be in Across Roads Center for the Arts’  “Artist Spotlight” this month. The interview is available to be read here.