Although I’ve dabbled in drawing, beadwork, basket-weaving, and a few other artistic disciplines, I’m definitely more comfortable with photography and the written word. So, I’m fascinated by those who can create art from an ordinary object – even those who craft silly Key West souvenirs from coconuts. On my last trip to the Florida Keys, I was tickled by a particular vendor cart in Mallory Square, where a whole plethora of coconut figurines was on display.
Coconut pirates (of varying hues) hung beneath the roof of the cart, while the bin below teemed with more civilized coconut people, from professors...
...to mother-baby pairings.Looking at such clever coconut creations, I so wish that I had the ability to craft something from seemingly nothing. Ice sculptures, ornate sandcastles, and sidewalk chalk paintings make me equally envious – despite the fact that their beauty, their very existence, is ever ephemeral.
What ability – artistic or otherwise – do you wish you possessed that you currently don’t?
P.S. Coconut pirates so enthrall me that I even featured one on Come In Character today. Come over and share your thoughts – if you’re so inclined.
13 comments:
Love the mama and the baby! :O)
Those are so fun! I wish I could be a sculptor or a painter or just have an ounce of visual artistic talent. Stick figures and flowers are about all I can handle :)
Susan - Yeah, as souvenirs go, I think they're pretty cool, too. If I remember right, the tops even come off - so you can hold stuff in them. Functional artwork!
Diane - I like the mommy and baby, too. There are even some mommies with two babies, one on each side. Like some strange Key West version of Madonna and Child.
Natalie - I often wish I could be a painter or sculptor, too. But I just don't have the instinct for it. My perspective is completely off when I paint - and every attempt on the potter's wheel has ended badly... no wonder art figures so prominently in my novel. Wish fulfillment to the max!
Ice sculptors and wood-carvers amaze me (never mind glass blowers and topiary artists). Worse than Natalie, I can't even draw a stick-figure, much less craft something tangible out of a hunk of nothing.
Definitely, Bane. Glassblowers and topiary artists amaze me, too. Although I CAN draw a stick figure (and boil water!), I'm much better with inanimate objects, like houses... and bushes. But I'd definitely have someone else illustrate my novel - if it were THAT kind of novel.
Those are cool! I wish I had some musical talent... so does my guitar lol
You and me both, Deb. I can sing pretty well - and I can pick notes on my guitar... but chords, forget about it. :-(
I've always wished I could paint landscapes.
Oh, me, too, Christine. I'd love to be able to paint landscapes. There's a gallery in New Orleans called the Gallery of Light, where landscapes are lit in such a way that it looks like the light is actually changing before your eyes... The paintings are expensive, of course, but I love to go in there and just look. It's fascinating!
I was in that gallery in June with my family! I know exactly which one it was. I agree. Pretty darn cool! My aunt is an amazing artist with paint. I wish I lived closer to her. She also helped teach me to sew, a hobby I still enjoy.
As to abilities I'd like, hmmm... I'd would have loved to be more athletic when I was a kid. Every sport I tried out for I didn't make the cut. Maybe that's why I dont' push my kids into sports like so many others do up here. I gravitate towards those life-long individual sports, like swimming and sking that my kids and I can do without a team, and long into adulthood.
Hi, Becky. How's Biko doing? Poor doggy. :-(
Anyway, back to the blog. Yes, it's the coolest gallery - I'm glad you know which one I'm talking about. Wish I could paint and sew. Would you believe that Dan not only cooks but sews, too? Somehow, our gender roles have been reversed. :-)
Oh, I wish I'd been more athletic, too. I was on the fencing and swim teams at various points, but I wasn't big into team sports... I was always too scared of the ball - too attached to my nose and teeth, I guess - so volleyball, softball, and soccer were not exactly my forte.
He's fine Laura, Thanks for asking. Just like a young kid, young dogs apparently spring back exceedingly fast from traumas like that. Not that my kids would ever get a mouth full of quills, but young creatures have such a profound ability to heal. I was so impressed by that over and over again with my former hospital work.
See you tomorrow!
Hi, Becky! Good. I'm glad the doggy's not too worse for his porcupine encounter. :-(
Yes, young humans and animals do tend to spring back a little better than the rest of us!
Can't wait to see you at Talley's!
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