These are interesting times.
Artwork
Weekly Sketch: I is for Infection
Categories: Artwork, Covid-19, Health, Weekly Sketch
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Adventures in Nepal VIII: Annapurna Natural History Museum
Good morning, Parljorling Camp!
Good morning, picturesque sheep!
I mistakenly posted bad info earlier about the recipients of the cameras and photography lessons. One of them is a Tibetan student, the other is a Nepali student. My apologies for the error.
The fourth and final class took place at the Annapurna Natural History Museum at Pokhara’s Prithivi Narayan Campus.
Ominous foreshadowing: this was January 21, the day the first case of Covid-19 was announced in the US. At that time the virus had made its way into the daily news cycles, but it was still mostly viewed as a China issue rather than a global problem. We thought we would see a handful of cases in other countries and then it would be contained and eliminated.
Anyway, Emma and Elizabeth collected the students and off they went.
Pretty view from the college campus.
Pretty sweet front door!
Elizabeth says the museums in Nepal are light on taxidermy and heavy on sculptures and painted images.
Lots and lots of birds and insects, though.
Their “lifelike” taxidermy displays are kind of terrifying/hilarious.
After the museum, back to town for lunch.
To be continued!
Categories: Animals, Artwork, Cats, Covid-19, Friends, Holidays, kids, Life, Nepal, Travel, Wildlife
Tags: Annapurna Natural History Museum, Prithivi Narayan Campus
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Weekly Sketch: H is for Horned Lizard
My creative energy is running low this week. Here is a well-intentioned but unfinished attempt at a Horned Lizard that turned out to be way more textury than I had patience for.
Categories: Animal Alphabet, Animals, Artwork, Weekly Sketch, Wildlife
Tags: Horned Lizard
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Weekly Sketch: Saraswati
Another busy week, another unfinished sketch. This was going to be a drawing of the little Saraswati figure that Emma got for Elizabeth in Nepal, a gift of creative energy. Saraswati is the Hindu goddess of knowledge, music, art, wisdom and learning.
The original:
This was the same day that Elizabeth bought the beautiful rainbow sweater/jacket.
I love that sweater so much.
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On the subject of art, I’ve been thinking about the corporate logos that Nepalis paint all over everything, and I have a theory. Disclaimer: I know almost nothing about Nepali culture or religion, this is just a thought that came to me.
It kind of makes sense, in a polytheistic culture that celebrates a full spectrum of energies, that they might celebrate the life-changing power of oil by painting the Castrol Oil logo on a Ganesha shrine. Or that in such a bright, vibrant culture, they might honor the transformative effects of commercial paint by adding the Berger Paints logo to a colorful gateway. Or that a recreational boat rental company might invoke the exhilarating thrill of chocolate by putting the Kit Kat logo on its boats. I like the idea that they might be calling up the energy of a specific product by putting its logo on their stuff.
Anyway, it’s just a theory. If any experts on Nepali culture want to chime in, I’d love to hear from someone knowledgeable.
Weekly Sketch: Eeyore Statue
I had a busy week and not much time to draw, so here’s a quick sketch of the Eeyore Statue in Eastwoods Park:
For scale:
The plaque reads: “This statue commemorates the original Eeyore’s Birthday Party held in Eastwoods Park in May 1964 and is dedicated to Prof. James Ayers, Lloyd W. Birdwell, Jr. and Jean Craver, whose inspiration began a unique Austin tradition. March 2007.”
Eeyore’s Birthday Party outgrew Eastwoods Park in 1974 and is now celebrated at Pease Park. It’s a big event every year. Costumes, drum circles, drugs, good times.
Categories: Animals, Artwork, Celebrations, Weekly Sketch
Tags: Eastwood’s Park, Eeyore Statue
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An Invincible Summer 