Returning to Art - Deb Funk

Deb Funk has lived in Manchester with her family for 13 years. The proud mother of 4 and "Gramzi" to two grandsons, she is now enjoying more time to devote to her artwork.

Annual Christmas tree lot, corner of Salmon & Elm Streets, Manchester.

On Cape Cod, Acrylic

Hiking in Wisconsin, Watercolor

           Grandmother at Nauset Beach
                       Acrylic

Murals in Downtown Manchester

Mural located on Mechanic Street near the YMCA by artist Anthony Williams. Photo by John Mitchell. (Just click on the photo to enlarge it, press Esc key to go back to the text.)

Anthony Williams supervised the artists who painted these murals in Cat Alley, Manchester, NH.  Pan photo by Lance Quenneville.

If you know of any other building owners in the downtown who would like to have a mural painted on their building, please contact FOA. We have artists!

We have a date for our reception for the first Families in Transition project (canvases painted for the women's residence).  If you would like to be on the evite list, please send an e-mail to treasurer, Linda Feinberg,  and ask to be added to the list.  The reception will be on Tuesday, December 17, 2013 from 4:00-5:00 pm.

Our weekend painters

Some of our members participated in the Art in Action event in Londonderry, NH over the weekend. This was held in two different buildings, Mack’s Apples and Shady Hill Nursery.

On the left:  Frank Moulin and some of his beautiful watercolors.

Debbie Curtin looked like she was having fun talking to everyone.

Anthony Williams (our vice president) and author Joe Smiga enjoyed their conversation too.  These photos were taken in the greenhouse by our treasurer, Linda Feinberg.

Some of Anthony's paintings.

And a reminder: Our second project with Families in Transition is going forward and we have six artists committed to paint.  We have one more canvas available.  This will be similar to our last project with FIT except that we will be painting the canvases for their men’s residence this time.  Contact treasurer Linda Feinberg if you would like more information.



Update: 11/12/13: the last canvas has been spoken for. Please contact Linda if you would like to be on the list for the next project.

Poetry is art too

Pearls   By John Mitchell

And what I sought,
you were,
a few times;
as green islands
are glimpsed
from a schooner.
Like seafaring friends
we greeted those moments--
grabbed at them--
hugging--
joy in our eyes.
Trices of worth!
made of white sand;
lapped with
warm sea waves.
But, we were
Polynesians
finding rare pearls,
many empty dives
came between.

John Mitchell jacatols1@hotmail.com

John is one of the founding members of Friends of Art Manchester and is an excellent photographer. You can see some of his work on this site.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

November again

the trail is blanketed with leaves

as I follow the dog around the pond

dull yellows and browns

no longer the brilliant reds

like the burning bush by our house

the acorns have finally finished dropping

on the wooden deck

startling me with their loud noise

the mums are withering

the garden bare

a few herbs hanging on

to grow again in spring

the first snow was early this year

and melted quickly

the nights are frosty

and we cuddle under a warm quilt

in the evening I take out

yarn and knitting needles

another pair of mittens

for a daughter far away

reminding me of mother

and her granny squares

my weekly phone calls

now with my children

as hers used to be with me

seasons change

each with its own beauty

the earth rests, then renews

November again

©Linda H. Feinberg   

I wrote this one many years ago. We no longer have a dog, but I still walk around the pond and still love the changing of the seasons. I have more poems on my personal blog. Select the category “poems” to filter it. I am one of the founding members of this group and its treasurer. I have been writing poems for over 30 years, but my books are currently out of print. lhfeinberg@yahoo.com

Artists Demos & Local Craft Shows

See artists demonstrating their work in the annual fall Art in Action in Londonderry. Mack's Apples is opening up their farmstand and Shady Hill just up the street will have their greenhouse wide open for this weekend event. Anthony Williams, Frank Moulin, Debbie Curtin and many others will be set up and ready to rock and roll out some new work! Check it out!

Saturday, November 9^th in Manchester

Our treasurer, Linda Feinberg and her husband, writer Joe Smiga, will be sharing a table at the Brookside Congregational Church annual craft fair.  The church is located on Elm Street in Manchester, two blocks north of Webster Street.  The fair is on Saturday, November 9^th  from 9:00 – 3:00 and you will find many gift ideas as well as some delicious bakery items. Stop by and check out the artwork, books & crafts.

Final Paintings for Families in Transition Project

Carolina Chauvette painted this beautiful butterfly for our project with Families in Transition.  

The final paintings have been delivered to FIT and we are waiting for them to notify us when they will be having a reception so we can enjoy seeing all the paintings hanging on the walls of the residence.

An interesting mandala by Paul Davidson. Acrylic painting 16” X 20”.

We will be having a meeting on Wednesday evening, October 23^rd and hope to pick our next project at that time. If you need more information, contact our treasurer or president. Contact information

The Art of the Portrait by Deb Curtin

When I started my very first job out of college as a layout artist for a newspaper in Massachusetts, I learned on the job and became proficient over time. I left that job after only three years knowing I needed to move on to other possibilities in the art world. Today I can look back and see quite the interesting art path I have travelled. I always felt drawn to doing more art and have never stopped. To me growing and learning through artistic opportunities makes for a more varied palette of skills. 

When we moved to New Hampshire, I found a job working for a local printer. I had a baby daughter to care for so this mom and pop place was a good fit. The Adult Evening program in town offered a drawing class and The New Hampshire Art Institute offered a colored pencil drawing class during the year. I said 'why not?' Keep up and keep going, that's my motto. This time in my art life led me to an interesting challenge. My boss asked me to paint or draw a house portrait of his family's lovely old-style Cape. In  the barter (we decided to make it one), I needed a piece of furniture stripped and refinished which he agreed to do. I completed the house portrait and he restored my family heirloom. (I think he put in more time and sweat for sure!)

This first portrait started a path to more portraits after putting a small ad in the local paper. Every house portrait and some other unique portrait collaborations has had a neat story. I delved into people portraits with some apprehension but figured out my style and went with it. Each of these also has a story. These few I'll share with you.

#1 - Michael

This portrait was commissioned by the grandparents as one of their two grandchildren. I was given a picture of Michael and knew immediately he needed a haircut and a proper shirt. Done.

#2 - Lauren

Lauren was in a bathing suit and her hair was wet in the photo I received of her from the grandparents. So, I dried her hair and then styled it. A floral dress was given to me to have her wear in the portrait. No problem. I asked daughter #3 who was about the same age as Lauren to put the dress on and model for me. It worked.

#3 - Jordan

I wanted to thank a co-worker of mine who helped me immensely when I started a new job. I chose one of Jordan's favorite fairy tales and used Tinker Bell to personalize the portrait.

My advice is don't stop what YOU are doing! Keep the pen, pencil, brush, chalk, charcoal, paint, and fingers moving on the paper, canvas, board, wall etc. Look for those opportunities to 'just do it'.

Contact information:

Deb Curtin

debcurtin5@gmail.com
603 432-8143

Thank you, Deb, for this inspiring blog post. If you would like to submit a guest blog post, please e-mail it to treasurer, Linda Feinberg, lhfeinberg@myfairpoint.net