Birthday Art "Polka" from Nancy Bell Scott

[Thom Courcelle]

I celebrated another year around the Sun recently, and mailart pal Nancy Bell Scott honored the occasion with a most magnificent example of her artistry... She had actually sent me a personal electronic message with the image first...so it was a total surprise to receive the ACTUAL ARTWORK in the mail THE VERY NEXT DAY!!

Above is the image that Nancy took of her own work and sent electronically...and which came out much more vibrant than the darker winter-light picture that I took of the piece. There is always so much detail and substance in Nancy's pieces, and I always imagine her "falling" into her work in utter concentration...or like a meditation...which is what I think producing art is like when we are in "flow," or in our groove, or absorbed by the work. Honestly, I don't know how she does it; I just know that I love it.

As Nancy notes, we are indeed in the midst of a kind of "polka" or dance in the United States. I sometimes wonder if it is more like a tarantella...where the dancer expends so much energy in the dance that she expires at the end of her exertions.

But the colorfulness of this piece reminds me, too, of the diversity of people that exist here, and the joyousness of colorful stick dances in Alpine and Basque countries, as well. Those dances are representative of ritual weapon dances—of battles and fighting—but in the end everyone celebrates with food and drink together.

Nancy is so prolific with her artistic practice that usually her notecards, notepaper and envelopes are full of her paint and experimentation as well.  Below is the backside of the note she included with her birthday art piece—it is made from a recycled page of an antiquated book...

My mother always says, "Never disparage getting older; it is a privilege denied to many." Truer words were never spoke. This birthday I suppose I am grateful because it means I've had yet another year to appreciate Nancy's brilliant artwork, and the art of a whole community of brilliant artists!  Thanks, Nancy, for your generosity and gift!

[Nancy Bell Scott]

Thank YOU, Thom. I appreciate and often learn a lot from your blogs and unique + learned perspective, and here it happens again. (I just found this now, Jan. 20, after not being online much.) You're most welcome, my friend.