in the backyard

(McCall's Garden Book, circa 1967)

Inspirations have been gathered, ideas have been planted, and the arrival of a warm Minnesota June brings seedlings of hope and anticipation in the fruitfulness of communities new and old. A certain dapper gentlemen/jack-of-all-trades has asked me to contribute to this, as he seeks to strengthen our community through a series of happenings in the months to come. Exciting things are about to happen in the backyard! Please do check it out.

In other news, my backyard has just expanded! Soon, I'll be embarking on a grand adventure West, to begin work/play at this magical place. There are many new neighbors I've yet to meet. Stay tuned...

adventuring

(Hikers pause at Glacier Point. Ektacolor photograph by Ansel Adams, c. 1959)

"As a young person I had no clear perception of my future–I only knew that my professional career depended on my energy, self-criticism, discipline, and a permanent desire to learn."

–Josef Müller-Brockmann

Summer has arrived. Let the adventuring and learning begin! There is much discovery on the horizon.

pocketbook press presents

Pocketbook Press politely presents....The Bear Came Over the Mountain, by wordsmith extraordinaire Alice Munro.

This is the first release by Pocketbook Press, a humble publishing project that seeks to promote the simple joys of print and the written word through limited edition booklets carefully curated by its founder, Aimee Gauthier (that's me!)

If any creative soul out there would be interested in collaborating on future editions, it would be an honor. Please let me know!

an awesome book!

An awesome book for an awesome cause by an awesome dude! Brilliant.

let the object talk

(object of curiosity. found 04.12.10)

Yesterday eve I had the privilege of attending a lecture by Edith Ackermann at the Walker Art Center. It was an evening of inspiration and enchantment––and filled me with an unexplainable sense of hope.

The world will be bright if we continue to be curious––finding joy in the mundane, and embracing the levity of our imaginations. The world will be bright if we take cues from our children, and remember to play!

Read Edith's interview with the Walker here.

an audacity to imagine

I've come to realize that there's nothing wrong with acting a wee bit childish.

the conversation stops

"Because socializing doesn't scale. Once a group reaches a certain size, each participant starts to feel anonymous again, and the person they're following––who once seemed proximal, like a friend––now seems larger than life and remote.'They feel they can't possibly be the person who's going to make the useful contribution,' Evans says. So the conversation stops..." (read more here!)

Sorry I've been away, secretly relishing in my obscurity, finding strength and inspiration in the disconnect. There is magic that happens in a more-real life, in the play of words exchanged face-to-face, in the quiet of a breezy afternoon with a book, in the joy of collaboration and craft.

Let's start this conversation, anew...

into white

The triumphant crunch of crystals beneath my feet, the exhuberance of a steadfast pup some steps ahead, the liberation that comes with those few first inhalations of fresh air...these form the minutiae of starting anew.

Lately I've felt as fragile as spun sugar, like the lucid geometries of ice collecting into snow. The syrup boils over. Slows, sputters, and stops. Yet in these fantastic moments of recovery, lost in a fitful hibernation of plum-fairy dreams, I've rediscovered the magic of a sky so big and so blue...Look up! It is there.

I do not have a notion now, of the nature of the blogosphere. I wonder, what else is there worth telling. I question, who is listening? Much work will be done, with room for friends and fun, and in the interim, perhaps this space should be silent.

Here's to a New Year of looking outwards and upwards! There is much work to do.

(listen to woods)

easy as pie

Vermont Apple Pie, from a 1956 newspaper clipping I discovered tucked inside the pages of a cookbook purchased years ago. I made two pies late last night; only one made it successfully out of the oven. But messes in the kitchen should always be laughed off, one pie will be enough, and I am so thankful to share a bounty of yum with a cherished assortment of family & friends.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

at the seaside

A recent afternoon was spent in the rare book room at Powell's City of Books in Portland, OR. There were many treasures to be found, including this children's classic from 1932––Katy Kruse at the Seaside, by Eleanor Farjean. I am quite enamored by these peculiar little illustrations. Are they hand-colored photographs of dolls? I couldn't find much information after some internet sleuthing––perhaps further proof of this title's rarity.