Category Archives: Crone as art critic

Playing at Watercolor painting.

Posted on October 20, 2012 by

My Tuesday night painting class finishes next week and I don’t know what I will do without it. It brings a joy that I don’t ever remember feeling in art class where the emphasis was all on faithful reproduction through … Continue reading →

Posted in Crone as art critic, Culture with the Crone, You can take the Crone out of Ireland | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Can you tell what it is yet?

Posted on September 25, 2012 by

I think I will become a conceptual artist, modeling myself on Sol LeWitt.  I got the idea at tonight’s watercolor class where the teacher talked about LeWitt and his wall drawings. The wall drawings, although the brain child of LeWitt, where … Continue reading →

Posted in Blarney Family, Crone as art critic, Culture with the Crone | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Pastels at Dawn–and most other times of the day and night

Posted on July 10, 2012 by

Visitors to Northern Ireland this month should plan to visit Castle Espie in Co. Down where, in addition to the wild birds of the wetlands; a wonderful cafe (lasagne and chips/fries and no shortage of tray bakes); and a great shop, … Continue reading →

Posted in Blarney Family, Crone as art critic, Culture with the Crone | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Have you no James Galway?

Posted on July 1, 2012 by

The rain started just about the same time as the show. Eighteen thousand people had been given free tickets. Only those of us who were related to someone involved in the production actually used them, turning out on a cold, … Continue reading →

Posted in Crone as art critic, Culture with the Crone, dancing, weather | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

You couldn’t dream it up

Posted on January 19, 2012 by

“I never had a rodent of any kind before” said the girl with the blue quiff ” and I always thought squirrels would be stand offish” . Reasonable assumption: after all, rats can be very remote, and hamsters are notoriously … Continue reading →

Posted in Crone as art critic, Crone in America, Culture with the Crone | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Start Up That Trades in Surprises and Smiles

Posted on January 14, 2012 by

I write in praise of Umbabox, a DC area startup company which takes you back to a time when you looked forwarded to seeing the mailman. Each month, for a small subscription, Umbabox will send you a present–a box filled … Continue reading →

Posted in Crone as art critic, Culture with the Crone, Customer service, Entrepreneurial Flair | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Clean Pot, Dirty Pot: The Joy of Painting

Posted on July 25, 2011 by

I don’t care how dismissive my family is ( sister re last week’s efforts:”Oh Dear!”  Father on the same subject: “You’re very abstract” in a tone that suggested this was not a plus) watercolor painting is my new hobby. It’s highly … Continue reading →

Posted in Crone as art critic, Culture with the Crone, Dangerous Obsessions, Fat Camp | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Beautiful, strong, proud and black

Posted on July 21, 2011 by

I wish I could commission Kehinde Wiley to paint a portrait of my son. It is not until you see one of Wiley’s paintings that you realize that you almost never see portraits of young black men. Photos yes—either in gritty … Continue reading →

Posted in Crone as art critic, Culture with the Crone, Gangsta Hansel & Ghetto Gretel, The Traveling Crone | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Shielded from the sordid perils of actual existence

Posted on July 18, 2011 by

There are people in my family who are regularly praised for their artistic talent, and I am not one of them. Nonetheless, I am very pleased with my efforts in watercolor class and found that, absent the involvement of brush-wielding blood relatives, … Continue reading →

Posted in Crone as art critic, Culture with the Crone, Fat Camp | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Keeping my mind off food

Posted on July 17, 2011 by

The sun puts in a full day’s work at this time of year in North Carolina. The constant glare makes it hard to take good photos. After the service this morning at Duke University Chapel the sky was jigsaw blue, … Continue reading →

Posted in Crone as art critic, Crone in America, Culture with the Crone, diet, Exercise, fat, Fat Camp, food, friendship, garden, itchy ankle, The Traveling Crone | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment