"You are Invited," Atlantic City Boardwalk Art Show

Stop by and say Hi.  Fun day for everyone!
Painter, G. Matthew Dixon is sharing his booth with me at the Atlantic City Boardwalk Art Show.  Check out his paintings: at http://www.jestergraphix.net/SME2014/
The artwork I will be showing are my hand painted porcelain tiles.  They look great framed or on an easel. Check them out on my Etsy shop: https://www.etsy.com/shop/SilkScarvesJoanReese?section_id=13776732&ref=shopsection_leftnav_6

The Atlantic City Arts Commission and The Noyes Museum of Art of Richard Stockton College present the Atlantic City Boardwalk Art Show, a revival of the tradition of Boardwalk art shows, which will include artists from various mediums and genres, including painters, jazz music, sculptors, theater shows, interactive art, pottery and more. Free.
A reception celebrating the Boardwalk Art Show will be held 5:00-7:00 p.m. Friday, Sept. 5 at the Noyes Art Garage, where participating artists and sponsors will enjoy light refreshments and have a meet and greet prior to the show. Free
http://artsgarageac.com/tenants/

Martha's Vineyard rated **** for Picturesque Beauty

For a long time I've wanted to go to Cape Cod and visit Martha's Vineyard. It was well worth the trip.

I never expected such beauty in one place, this has to be one of the most Picturesque places in U.S.A.  No wonder so many celebrities & famous people come here. I would move here & die happy if I could. If you don't see anything else be sure to see the Aquinnah Cliffs. They are absolutely spectacular. There is a great view of them from the lighthouse and from above but to truly see the beauty and the best colors; walk down on the beach that passes right by them. The range of colors in these clay cliffs is so interesting and vibrant. It is time well spent just to walk down the stretch of beach and find a rock to sit on for a bit to enjoy the view of the cliffs and the sound of the sea and the peaceful beauty that is there. If you appreciate nature and natural beauty it is a sight not to miss.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martha's_Vineyard

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Tourism-g29528-Martha_s_Vineyard_Massachusetts-Vacations.html

http://marthas-vineyard.com

http://www.capecodchamber.org/what-to-do

Asbury Park, New Jersey and Ocean Grove: the perfect weekend getaway

Whenever,  I crave beautiful, peaceful surroundings I stay at a Victorian bed-and-breakfast in Ocean Grove, New Jersey.  It is only one and a half hours from New York City by train or bus but it is a complete world of difference.  There is no alcohol served in Ocean Grove and all the land is owned by the church. They have a cathedral that sits 1000 people;in the summer they have famous music groups that perform. Ministers travel from all parts of the country to give a sermon on Sundays.                  http://www.oceangrovenj.com

When, I want great restaurants, a movie theater, art galleries, wild entertainment, I jump on my bike and ride a few hundred feet and I am in Asbury Park.  So, for me staying in Ocean Grove next to Asbury Park is having the best of both worlds. http://asburyparkwaterfront.com/events.php

Rocketsband Rocks Out On Atlantic City Boardwalk

Atlantic City has something for everyone!

http://www.atlanticcitynj.com

     A beautiful full moon shone over the Atlantic Ocean reflecting on the Atlantic City boardwalk. In front of the famous Convention Center where they hold the Miss American Pageants; a stage is erected for free evening concerts.  It was total enjoyment watching and hearing the Rockets perform. A very exciting, electrifying, talented band who got everyone up and dancing:  check out this video.
     The Rockets have performed multiple times on National Television; VH1, CBS as well as performed the National Anthem for the Flyers, Phillies and 76ers. The notoriety the media has affixed on The Rockets has made them a household name on the east coast. The Rockets 2013 are a 6 piece rhythm machine with multiple front people. Jay Thomas, Derek Petaccio, Chris Taylor and Joey D lead the band with tremendous vocals and an exhaustive stage show while each play guitar also; Simon Wernovsky on drums, Christian Lynch on bass and Pete Macartney on lead guitar and vocals.

                                                               http://rocketsband.com

Inspirational Saying for Today

Please share, if you would like to send someone you care about a special blessing.

http://joan-reese.artistwebsites.com/featured/3-inspirational-saying-joan-reese.html?newartwork=true

Pocono Mountain Air is like Drinking Fresh Cold Lemonade!

Several summers, I spent teaching arts and crafts at a children's camp in the Pocono Mountains.  At the time, I had a motorcycle and I loved driving all the back roads; especially at sundown.  I never forgot the fresh smell of the wooded air and the sounds of the birds and other animals rambling through the woods. While in the Poconos, I discovered I loved kayaking; and had great fun floating down the Delaware River in the summer sun.  Last week I spent a few days there reconnecting with nature, it was great!  http://www.800poconos.com

If you ever complained about how hard your job is you really need to take the coal mining tour in Scranton PA.  It was the most humbling experience of my life. I wish every school age child could understand how difficult it was to be a coal miner. http://www.lackawannacounty.org/index.php/attractions/coal-mine

An Act Of Kindness is Priceless!

Everyone in life faces hardships. At one of these times in my life when I felt like I was alone in the middle of a ocean storm being pulled down under the waves and about to drown; someone tossed me a lifesaver in the form of a Philly pretzel. I'm sure this man didn't think twice about his act of kindness but I've thought about him over the years and he's been in my prayers ever since.

Pretzel Man

by Joan Reese

"Fresh Pretzel, Get Your Fresh Pretzel!

Punchclock people

Rush across cobblestone streets

Lined with trolley tracks.

William Penn perches atop City Hall.

Reading want ads on a damp wooden bench.

Stuffed belongings

In mother's "telling" birthday gift

Two blue suitcases.

Left home, never going back!

Felt like just another plate

At the kitchen table.

Sofasurfing at seventeen.

"Fresh Pretzel, Get Your Fresh Pretzel!"

A voice in my ear,

The Pretzel Man smiling,

"Young Lady you look like you need

A fresh pretzel today."

He gave me one,

Smeared with yellow mustard

Just the way I like it.

"Have a good day," he says.

Punchclock people

Rush across cobblestone streets

Lined with trolley tracks.

Pretzel Man hawking,

"Fresh Pretzel, Get Your Fresh Pretzel!"

Bagpipes@ McSorley's Bar

While watching TV in my 7th Street apartment in the East Village, I heard the sound of bagpipes.  It was a familiar sound coming from the oldest Irish Ale House in New York City, "McSorley's."

I grabbed my camera and shot this video to give you an idea why people from all over this world visit McSorley's when they are in NYC.

http://www.mcsorleysnewyork.comf

Took this photo on Veterans Day 2013.
McSorley's Old Ale House has been a gathering place, a watering hole, the subject of art and literature and even a supreme court controversy. Established in 1854 - McSorley's can boast of being New York City's oldest continuously operated saloon. Everyone from Abe Lincoln to John Lennon have passed thru Mcsorley's swinging doors. Woody Guthrie inspired the union movement from a table in the front - guitar in hand, while civil rights attorney's Faith Seidenberg and Karen DeCrow had to take their case to the Supreme Court to gain access. Women were finally allowed access to McSorley�s in 1970! Enter the sawdust strewn floors and history patched walls for a trip back through time. Share the McSorley's experience with the spirits of 150 years!

http://joan-reese.artistwebsites.com/featured/mcsorleys-old-ale-house-joan-reese.html

Time Mends a Broken Heart

This is a photograph of the heart sculpture that is on the Atlantic City boardwalk. I finally came across words that I felt added my feelings about the photograph.

Heartwalk is made up of wooden planks salvaged from four boardwalks in New Jersey and New York after they were damaged by Hurricane Sandy in 2012 - one of them being Atlantic City's own Boardwalk. The other wood is from Sea Girt, in Monmouth County, and Long Beach and the Rockaways, in New York.
Heartwalk was originally designed for an annual Valentine's Day heart competition in New York's Times Square - and the piece, by Brooklyn's SITU Studio, won the 2013 contest over designs from about 10 other finalists.

Heartwalk, which has an internal-lighting system to light it up red at night, went from Times Square to public displays in Brooklyn and Queens before it found its permanent home in Atlantic City late last year.
http://joan-reese.artistwebsites.com/featured/2-inspirational-saying-joan-reese.html

Smokey Mountains Seen Through my Camera.

Chinatown, New York is about a 10 minute walk from where I live in the East Village. I always check the weather and when there's a few good days coming up, I sign up for a tour that's leaving Chinatown.  One of my passions is taking photographs while I'm traveling. My last  trip was to the Smokey Mountains: I took about 3000 photos. For more information on the places I photographed go to my travel page on my blog.

"Cleo" Lady of Magic

Poem inspired by a mystical lady in my life.

ICED

Poem by Joan Reese

Lady of magic, Aunt Cleo

worked her charms the best!

Talismans and love potions

brought wandering husbands home.

Neighborhood believers

appeared when rent was due

buying lucky numbers

before they laid their bets.

At the drivein movie,

Bev, a class senior, caught 

me kissing her boyfriend 

in the back seat of his Chevy.

Bev swore to even the score,

by spreading dirty rumors.

Aunt Cleo heard me crying,

"Not to worry, I'll stop her." 

With Bev's class photo,

her name written in red,

submerged in ice water,

Aunt Cleo lit a blue candle chanting,

"In doing this I freeze

Bev's anger and hold it still.

As the mighty oceans flow,

let there be goodwill!"

I smiled to myself

when seeing Bev in school,

knowing that in our freezer

Aunt Cleo's magic froze Bev's fury still.

Words to Live By

East Village Motto

http://joan-reese.artistwebsites.com/featured/inspiration-saying-june-14-joan-reese.htm

Amazing Underground Waterfall

On my recent trip to the Smoky Mountains in  Tennessee I visited Ruby Falls. Ruby Falls, a thundering 145-foot waterfall is located deep within Lookout Mountain and has been thrilling visitors for over 80 years. Entertaining hosts take you into the cavern by elevator and lead you along a paved, level pathway. Thrill to the unique formations and the sheer beauty of the sparkling waterfall on this fun-filled and educational visit. They have a mountainside deck with a panoramic view of Chattanooga and the Tennessee Valley below. — at Ruby Falls.

                     http://joan-reese.artistwebsites.com/featured/ruby-falls-tennessee-valley-usa-joan-reese.html

Jersey Devil Clammers

At the north end of Absecon Island, where Clam Creek meets Absecon Inlet, lies one of Atlantic City's little known treasures: Historic Gardner's Basin.  Gardner's Basin is home to some serious commercial fishing boats,  where 70% of the clams served in chowder throughout the United States are fished. While watching the clam boats and the hard working men who with their nets dredge the sea; the sound of a bell clanging, inspired me to write this poem.

http://joan-reese.artistwebsites.com/featured/jersey-devil-clam-boat-joan-reese.html

The Dock

Afternoon storm,

Moored boats, bells;

Clang like wind chimes.

"Count your Blessings"

http://joan-reese.artistwebsites.com/featured/2-inspirational-saying-joan-reese.html?newartwork=true

Pigeon Madness

Walking through Washington Square Park I saw a  life like  puppet interacting with the pigeons in the park.  Behind him sitting on the park bench is the real Pigeon Man of Washington Square Park who every day sits in the same spot and feeds hundreds of pigeons. He is a fixture in the park as are many other colorful characters that make up Greenwich Village.

Robin Frohardt is multidisciplinary artist and designer living in working in Brooklyn NY.

'The Pigeoning' is a full-length live performance that uses bunraku puppetry, video and original music to explore the ideas of obsessive compulsion, safety, and order in the context of the end of the world. The story is told through the main character, Frank, a bunraku-style puppet working in an office in the early 80's who is absorbed and ultimately transformed by his pigeon obsession.

http://www.here.org/resident-artists/project/the-pigeoning/

Painting of Edgar Allan Poe's, "Annabel Lee"

                         One of my favorite poems is "Annabel Lee"by Edgar Allan Poe. 

After visting his cottage in Bronx, I intuitively  painted "Annabel Lee."

Edgar Allan Poe spent the last years of his life, from 1846 to 1849, in The Bronx at Poe Cottage. 

A small wooden farmhouse built about 1812, the cottage once commanded unobstructed vistas over the rolling Bronx hills to the shores of Long Island.  It was a bucolic setting in which the great writer penned many of his most enduring poetical works, including “Annabel Lee,” “The Bells” and "Eureka." Poe's young wife Virginia died of tuberculoses in the house. She was the love of his life and he never recovered from the lost.  I feel the poem, "Annabel Lee" expresses the love he and his wife shared.                   http://www.bronxhistoricalsociety.org/poecottage.html

http://joan-reese.artistwebsites.com/featured/annebel-lee-joan-reese.html?newartwork=true

Annabel Lee

BY EDGAR ALLAN POE

It was many and many a year ago,

   In a kingdom by the sea,

That a maiden there lived whom you may know

   By the name of Annabel Lee;

And this maiden she lived with no other thought

   Than to love and be loved by me.

Inspirational Saying For Today

http://joan-reese.artistwebsites.com/featured/inspirational-saying-may-2-2014-joan-reese.html

The Varmints are Coming!

My favorite memories are the times spent with my grandparents in their two-story brick rowhouse in the Kensington section of Philadelphia. Across the street was the neighborhood kid's hangout: John's candy store. For five cents you could sit at the marble counter and John would fix you a fountain soda with your favorite syrup; mine was vanilla. He had a large assortment of penny candy, we took our time choosing. My grand mom would give me $.25 and send me the John's with a porcelain bowl for scoops of Breyers Vanilla Fudge and Cherry Vanilla ice cream. Happily my brother and I ate the ice cream while watching grand mom's black-and-white television that only had four channels.  Friday was my favorite day in the week  because we could go to the corner fried fish store and either get a Fishcake for $.15 or a Crabcake for $.25.  I loved the crab cakes the best and to this day it is one of my favorite foods.  What I enjoyed the most was listening to my grandfather tell stories, it seemed like he could spin them out of air.            " Oscar Birth" 1930         Poem written by Joan Reese

OSCAR BIRTH

1907- 1970

"The Varmints are coming! The Varmints are coming!

They want your money and your drink,"

Peeking through the venetian blinds, Grand pop Birth declared,

Drinking boiler makers, shouting  "They're out there!"

Did ya know, I captained the Titanic before she sinks?"

Drinking boiler makers, shouting  “I don't care!"

Grand pop captured Al Capone and put him in jail.

Beer man delivers twice a week  

Grand pop's  drink’n buddy's the parish priest.

Father O'Connor and Grand pop toasting: "May you be forty years 

In heaven before the devil knows you're dead."

We sat in amazement as our grandfather spun his tales.

Grand pop rode with Colonel Custer,

Dodging bullets to deliver the mail.

Peeking through the venetian blinds, Grand pop Birth declared:

The Varmints are coming! The Varmints are coming!

When I die, giv’em drink."

High Energy Street Dancers, NYC

Union Square, NYC.  Dancers and musicians.

Inspirational Saying for Today

New York City In Motion March,2014

Daytime candid photo's of downtown east side New Yorkers living their everyday lives. Photo's taken from east 28th street,The Bowery,  Chinatown and the Lower East Side.

Inspirational Saying for Today

http://joan-reese.artistwebsites.com/featured/inspirational-saying-joan-reese.htm

Atlantic City's Windy Sea

March 2014, I find it mesmerizing watching the crashing ocean on the rocks.  The wooden posts that supported the boardwalk before Storm Sandy look like naked soldiers that lost the battle with the sea.

My mother said before she departed

St. Patricks day is next week and it was my mother's favorite holiday. I wrote this poem in her honor and chose this painting to represent the poem. We had a wonderful conversation a week before she passed. I carry her words with me. As I get older I realize each day is a gift. I try to live each day as though it is my last.http://joan-reese.artistwebsites.com/featured/straits-of-dover-joan-reese.html

My mother said before she departed, Sitting in her garden among red clover; “Snap your fingers and it is over!” “Life is like a sailboat in waters, uncharted, Some rough, some calm,” moreover; My mother said before she departed. “The best you can be is good hearted, Carefully walk; Straits of Dover, Snap your fingers and it is over!” Words of wisdom my mother imparted, “No one lives forever,” moreover, “Snap your fingers, and it is over! ’’ My mother said before she departed.