Friday, July 18, 2008 by Donna.

A bit of whimsy and so much more. Jana Williams is a visual artist living in Clayton, NC with her husband and 3 children.  She also loves to paint furniture and re-use what others discard and share’s her talent with others.

For more information and to view Jana’s work visit her at http://www.abitofwhimsy.com or email her at Jana@abitofwhimsy.com

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Sunday, July 13, 2008 by Donna.

I do a lot of research on the web and also get alerts from Google. In tonight’s Google alert there was a blog post on the top with the words Rome, NY in the description. Now to most that would mean absolutely nothing, but to me it did. You see I’m from Rome, New York and of course I had to click on the link.

The link led me to Pamela Walker Hart. Pamela is originally from Florida, but her husband is from Schenectady NY and I don’t know why they moved to Rome, but I thought you would enjoy her art. She is a Watercolorists and a writer. She has published a book as well ”Mother Wisdom.”

“Regardless of whether an individual piece reads as landscape, figurative, or abstract, the subject of my work is always the same: Life Itself. ”

I guess my home town has something to offer after all. But I always new the green hills, clear blue waters and country had a lot to offer. I just didn’t know what until I left and grew older. Maybe one day I will be able to go back and spend the rest of my days - in the hills I spent my summers in - drawing, painting and building ceramic pieces. It is a goal to work towards. I still have family there, so maybe you can go home again.

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Sunday, July 13, 2008 by Donna.

So far I have been posting about “Artist”, but as we all know, there are a number of different mediums in the art world. Literature is another art and Margaret Maron does it well, great, fantastic…..sorry, can’t think of a word that describes her writing and describes it well.

Maron is a native Tar Heel. Born and raised in NC and now lives in Johnston County. I have read a number of her books in the Deborah Knotts series and I look forward to her new book “Death’s Half Acre” begin released in August 20th. If you live int he area, she will be at a few local spots for a reading and signing.

To read more about Maron and were she will be at, visit her new site at http://www.margaretmaron.com/ and to read an excerpt from her new book http://www.margaretmaron.com/WebletDsHA.

So, curl up with a good book on a rainy night and make a new friend.

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Tuesday, July 1, 2008 by Donna.

Are there any Pastelist or wanna-be’s out there. Thought you may be interested in this demo from Pastel Journal.

Online Pastel Demo 

If the link no longer works, you can down load a PRINTED version.

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