HELLO!

I found this article written by Deanne Fitzpatrick, The Beauty Around Us, Rug hooking and the powers of observation. In it she offers this insight, “I know my power as an artist is to watch and observe. It is your power too. If you want to reflect the life around you in your rugs, then you must observe life as if it were a movie that you love. You have to pick up on each detail, all the subtleties and you have to make note of them.”

I am not an artist. My creative gifts are confined to the spoken word. But as the old saying goes, “I knows what I likes…” When it comes to paintings I lean to realism and impressionism. I also like folk art and rug hooking. The latter interest began with a visit to Amherst. Kim’s old friend Terry introduced us to his sister Donna Farrell. Her work, then, focused on reclamation wool, she would take material thrown away by others and create a rug hooking to match the vision of the customer. I had a friend then who had two young boys. Donna made a fetching display of all four members of that household, all using discarded wool. I was “hooked”, pardon the pun. I never go to rug hooking festivals or art shows, my interest is specific to images that remind me of what Deanne calls, “my powers of observation”. Over the last 35 years I have collected enough pieces to fill one wall in our home, downstairs where I watch television.

I am not sure what these rug hookings say about my tastes in this art form, but every one of the pieces is a reminder to me of something I once saw, except for the red pony, I have no idea what I kept that, it was about to be thrown away at a church sale, the price was 25 cents. Today at Time Out for Crafts I was sharing the story of my first piece, a gift from Ted Ferguson (an elderly woman). Ted lived with her daughter Edie and son-in-law Bill (our Shirley’s first cousin). I would visit them often, when I served the Port Morien congregation, St. John’s church. I often told Ted how much I loved her work. On my last day she gave it to me (it’s the one with flowers that looks like a stained-glass window, next to the dandelions piece). The three puffins were given to me as a gift when I served as a student minister in Harrington Harbour Quebec. Judi Fishman, born and raised in Dartmouth, made me the dandelion and donkey/star rug hookings. They were specific to my ministry at Bethany United.

The power of observation remains. It is reinforced by the art we love.

Peace, Kevin