art can be fun

When my own thinking takes too serious a turn I just need to look at the work of artists like Beryl Cook to remember that we want to enjoy life as well as change some things about it. Beryl was shunned by the "important" galleries, but her work, if not her name, is known far and wide, and sells for huge prices to her loyal fans.

I first met Beryl's art in a book about five years ago, although I had previously enjoyed her cards without thinking too much about the artist. I love the way she captured slices of the ordinary, warming them, enjoying them, commenting but not judging, it seems to me.

Beryl's art (2 minute video with voice-over).

If you have a spare 9 minutes, I recommend watching this... warms your heart just listening to her. Beryl Cook Culture Show interview, 2006. (ps, can't find this again... hope you saw it before it disappeared).

Thankyou, Beryl, for the fun. I'll bet you were a fun lady to know too.

***

There was a patch in my life when I pictured my old age as being the eccentric old lady living on a hill, having planted myself in with trees that added to my mystery and hid me from prying eyes. Children would come to listen, spell-bound, as I invented stories and illustrated them. I would be surrounded by cats, black ones of course.

I didn't picture olive trees and a mutt named Zacchi. The rest of it seems to be evolving...