KICKOFF CELEBRATION FOR THE HUNTINGTON'S CENTENIAL CELEBRATION AND OF COURSE, MORE CAKE

Friday, October 4, 2019

KICKOFF CELEBRATION FOR THE HUNTINGTON'S CENTENIAL CELEBRATION AND OF COURSE, MORE CAKE

One of the highlights of September was the grand kickoff for The Huntington Centennial Celebration. Amy and I were greeted by Karen R. Lawrence, President of The Huntington Library, Art Museum and Garden.

I guess orange is the new 'red' carpet! 😂

Adorable Cris Lutz led us to all sorts of drinks and nibbles before the program.

Amy spotted awesome Tim Lindsay from Robinson Gardens.

After the program there was so much delicious food!

I have to tell you Chef Roy Choi, one of the speakers, is the nicest guy on planet earth!

Seeing Jim Folsom is always a joy! I love remembering how he asked me to teach Brush painting in '94 when the classroom was the garage where the Boone Gallery is now and the botanical staff worked out of trailers!

O.K. so cake time. Maria celebrated Nikka's birthday...

Next Amy treated for Nikka's birthday at The Front Yard but they are both so camera shy...it's really funny!

I love the bike in front of the little store there...Some things just make one happy!

Amy, Nikka and I went to the press night for John Leguzamo's brilliant 'Latin History for Morons'. It was fabulous...don't miss it!

But first we had taco's and nacho's on the plaza just around the corner from the Ahmanson. Sooooo good!

The Center Theatre Group had a donor event at the Bel Air Country Club.

Amy & I got to hear the Season Preview....

Along with being treated to a marvelous brunch!

Thank you Center Theatre Group for the delightful goodie bag...I especially loved the little animal!

Afterwards we went to Neiman Marcus for some fun! There was a new fragrance display for Kilian on the first floor.

Sweet Patricia came over and we had so much fun...Kita adores her!

Somewhere she found the King of Rubber Duckies and I went crazy over it!

Thanks Tony for Walking the Princess!

Great fun seeing the reproductions of my latest Ink series...

As always, the class at The Huntington was inspiring and so much fun!

There's always excitement at the Nan Rae Studio! 😂 Thanks Po Chu for the fun photo.

Two engines, the fire captain and eight firemen came to rescue two students who 'thought' they were trapped in the elevator. Fact...they had not closed the safety doors properly and were still on the ground floor!

All's well that ends well!

Make sure you see the 'Nineteen Nineteen' exhibit at The Huntington. It's in the Boone Gallery.

I found the exhibit extremely informative and very moving. It's wonderfully curated, covering all the amazing world events of 1919 along with the founding of The Huntington. This is a major part of the Centennial Celebration!

Laurie Pie and I went to Din Tai Fung for dinner....

...and then it was on to see 'The Goldfinch'. I started the book ages ago and now hope I'll finish it!

Carol Soucek King, dear friend and amazing woman planned a perfect luncheon at The Jonathan Club celebrating my mother's birthday. Thoughtful Carol brought so many precious photos and even the remembrance gift Lissi Kaplan created for mom's 100th!

WOW, Carol even brought my book, 'The Ch'i of the Brush'! Thank you dear Carol for such a beautiful day!

The photos are of the Medal of Honor recipients who were staying at the Jonathan Club that day!

On to Jim Folsom's brilliant monthly class in Botany Bay at The Huntington. Do yourself a favor and attend one to spark a whole new world of learning and fascination.

After class it was time for dinner with the lovebirds, Ralph and Kathy. They are soooo adorable!

These are just a few of the things that sparked joy for me in September. One of the loveliest will have a blog of it's own! How about you. What brings you joy?

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Introduction

There is no avoiding the pull of the internet, the blogs, the YouTube imaginings. It's as if we're all 'On the Road' with Jack Kerouac each in our own world of meanderings. When we tell someone to 'get a life' it might be a bit difficult when you're dragged into other people's 24/7.

I've come to realize two foundational principals, there are no accidents and everyone has a purpose. More and more I'm desiring everyone to come into a full realization of their purpose as we all find our way on this little jewel of a planet.

For me, as a professional 'Western style artist', I stumbled into Chinese Brush Painting after a trip in 1980 to Monet's home/garden. Seeing all of his collection of Japanese woodblock prints was an ahh haa moment for me and when I returned to the States I started painting in the Chinese manner and never looked back. The first year was extremely painful for me as I felt that I should be able to master the technique since I was a 'trained' artist. Not a chance ... that just gets in your way.

Now, after teaching close to 3,000 students and having my book 'The Ch'i of the Brush' published by Watson Guptill, I can say that every one of my students does better their first day than I did my first year! Why? Because I insist that they leave their critical parent outside and just enjoy the journey, respecting the work that they do. I never let anyone throw anything away because that just ingrains frustration and defeat.

We really only begin to learn when we stop and figure out how to 'save' a painting. It works every time.I am so proud of my students, their receptivity and eagerness to express themselves is a continuing blessing for me.So, back to finding your purpose. Perhaps it starts with realizing 'it's not about me'. It so easy to want our needs met and to filter everything thru this attitude. When we realize that we're here to be of benefit to every life that we touch the universe really provides the ways and means.

The best part is that it's really exciting to not have yourself on your mind all the time!I'm re-reading a wonderful book about authenticity and in my next meandering I'll tell you about it. In the meantime I'd love to hear about your journey and am here to answer any and all questions about Chinese Brush Painting.