We interrupt this program to celebrate the 4th of July. How better to do so than with Irving Berlin's GOD BLESS AMERICA sung by Kate Smith.  No matter how you feel about God or the state of America today, or because of the way you feel about God and the country today, I dare you to watch and listen to this without swelling up with tears.

GOD BLESS AMERICA

God Bless America" is an American patriotic song written by Irving Berlin in 1918 and revised by him in 1938, as sung by Kate Smith (becoming her signature song). Berlin wrote the song in 1918 while serving in the U.S. Army at Camp Upton in Yaphank, New York, but decided that it did not fit in a revue called Yip Yip Yaphank, so he set it aside. In 1938, with the rise of Hitler, Berlin, who was Jewish and a first-generation European immigrant, felt it was time to revive it as a "peace song", and it was introduced on an Armistice Day broadcast in 1938 sung by Kate Smith, on her radio show. More than just the dramatic words and melody, the arrangement for Kate Smith's performance was accompanied by full band, progressing into a grand march tempo, with trumpets triple reinforcing the harmonies between stanzas: the dramatic build-up ends on the final exposed high note, which Kate Smith sang in the solo as a sustained a cappella note, with the band then joining for the finale. In 1943, Smith's rendition was featured in the patriotic musical "This is the Army" along with other Berlin songs. The manuscripts in the Library of Congress reveal the evolution of the song from victory to peace. Berlin gave the royalties of the song to the God Bless America Fund for Redistribution to the Boy Scouts of America and the Girl Scouts of the USA...Ned Nickerson

Connecticut #2

Now that we know who was there in the very beginning let's see exactly where Connecticut is.

As you can see New York is to the West, Massachusetts to the North and Rhode Island to the East with a very large shore line with the Long Island Sound.  My daughter Ellie has a house on the North Fork and so I sometimes swim in the Long Island Sound.  It is an estuary, a place where saltwater from the ocean mixes with fresh water from rivers draining the land.  Estuaries are among the most productive ecosystems on Earth.  They serve as feeding, breeding, and nursery areas for many species that spend most of their adult lives in the ocean.

The Indians must have been very happy along these shores.

CONNECTICUT

Here we are in the East for the first time investigating Connecticut, one of the states that was in the original colonies. But way back 12,000 years ago there were Paleo-Indians inhabiting the region.  They were thought to be semi nomadic, moving their habitations during the year to use resources that changed with the seasons.

These earlier people eventually evolved into several Indian tribes of the ALGONKIN INDIAN FAMILY.  This included the Pequot and the Mohicans who we know from the classic novel THE LAST OF THE MOHICANS written by James Fenimore Cooper in 1826.  The book was later made into several movies.  This is a trailer for the latest made in 1996 starring Danial Day Lewis, THE LAST OF THE MOHICANS.   HERE is a link to the 1936 version with Randolph Scott. This one I saw as a child.  It made a big impression on me.  I think I saw it on TV in the early days of television or maybe at the Keswick Theatre where there was a children's matinee every Saturday afternoon.  Because it was in black and white it seemed to come from the distant past and be a fascinating peep hole into what went on in the early days of our country.

colorado #17

One last post about Colorado before we move on East to Connecticut.  The state flower of Colorado is the Larkspur.  I have a little love affair with the Larkspur as it is a lovely shade of blue violet and as it happens it is in full bloom right now in my vegetable garden.  Over the years I have painted it many times and I am not finished with it by any means. Here are three paintings.  The second stars the Cleome but Larkspur is int he background.

                            

And some plans that may become paintings.

COLORADO #16

Today's artist Molly Berger does some fascinating work and her web site is as interesting as her ceramics.  I was first drawn to this image which I thought was a painting,

Then I discovered that Molly works in ceramics.  On her web site you will see some fascinating tools..or are they.  Her studio is an art work in itself as she has engineered it precisely to fit her body and her working style and it is beautiful.  Please check out all the links on the site to get the full picture of this thoughtful artist.

Here are a few more of her household objects.

COLORADO #15

Today Jane Guthridge and her art take center stage.  In her series The Space Between she completely saturates thin Asian papers with encaustic, making them translucent and applies them to canvas in many layers.  This creates light patterns that change through out the day and create visual depth.  I would love to see these in person.  The soft colors and shapes are very appealing.

colorado #14

Jacob Hashimoto really thinks and works big.  He uses simple shapes, circles, squares and in the example shown a sail boat, and multiplies them many, many times to create complex structures that can fill a large room.  Sometimes he uses translucent paper and sometimes colored geometric images to make these parts.

He was born in Colorado but like any artist who wants to make it big in the art world he now lives in New York City.

Here is a link to his web site where I suggest you check out the videos which show how he and his assistants actually construct these monumental works.  

ARMADA

Jacob Hashimoto

COLORADO

For something entirely different here are 15 street artists from Denver who happen to be women.  What used to be called Graffiti is now street art.  I used to be appalled whenever I saw Graffiti.  I have to admit that I am not something of a fan of this exuberant art form.  Sometimes it is awful and sometimes wonderful like most art but if there is a blank wall why not fill it with colorful forms?

http://www.westword.com/arts/theater-in-denver-capsule-reviews-of-current-shows-9425575

COLORADO #12

Here is an interesting artist, Christopher Martin, who is also a fine business man apparently, as he has several galleries in various parts of the country.  It seems in each gallery he has his paintings and other artists - all sculptors (no competition).  His web site is very easy to operate and quite good at showing the work, so I suggest you wonder around in it.  Don't miss the other galleries as they are interesting in themselves.

Martin began in Dallas but moved to Aspen 6 years ago.  His father does his books and his employees are his friends. He keeps up with all his collectors and enjoys this part of his work.  He seems to be a very unusual artist in this respect.  An artist is in charge of a small business, very small usually, and it is rare that someone who can produce so many paintings will also have the desire, the skill, and the time to also message collectors and run several galleries.

https://www.christophermartingallery.com

COLORADO #11

Colorado has a lively arts community.  There is the Colorado Shakespeare Festival in Boulder, the Aspen Music Festival, Vail International Dance Festival, Boulder's Colorado MahlerFest, the Breckenridge Music Festival and the Strings Music Festival in Steamboat Springs.

Here is a list of art Museums in Colorado.

• Denver Art Museum. 100 W. ... 
• Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center at Colorado College. 30 W. ... 
• Sangre de Cristo Arts and Conference Center. 210 N. ... 
• Chapungu Sculpture Park at Centerra. ... 
• Aspen Art Museum. ... 
• American Museum of Western Art - The Anschutz Collection. ... 
• Museum of Contemporary Art Denver. ... 
• Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art.

And many movies have been shot in Colorado most notably Butch Cassidy and Sundance Kid, True Grit, and The Searchers.  There are also a number of film festivals held there.

Since this is primarily an art blog, I think I will highlight some artists who's work appeals to me who live and work in Colorado.

This image by the artist Radeaux caught my interest because the colors and the simple shape appeal to me.

But it turns out that he is primarily interested in painting birds and does so very carefully getting the anatomy and colors as close as he can.  After his wife brought home a quilt incorporating images of birds he was fascinated by the rhythms created and is now painting "quilts" of his own after researching all the many quilt patterns that incorporate images of birds.  I especially like his use of color.

COLORADO #10

"Colorado suffered greatly through the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl of the 1930s, but a major wave of immigration following World War II boosted Colorado's fortune"...Wikipedia 

Since immigration is in the news right now here are some statistics about how Colorado benefits from immigrants today.

And here from Americans for Immigrant Justice is the Truth about Immigration.

Here is one of Donald Trump's proclamations about immigrants.  2 hours ago he said he would back both bills on immigration the House is proposing because it "looks bad" to have children separated from their parents, something he put in place.

Below is some of what's happening in the United States of America, the HOME OF THE FREE right now.

Review of show

Here is a link to a review of my show at the Cosmopolitan Club.  It til until June 25th, 1616 Latimer Street, Philadelphia.

http://www.broadstreetreview.com/art/the-cosmopolitan-club-presents-nancy-herman-small-oil-paintings

COLORADO 9#

COLORADO BECAME A STATE IN 1875. 

In 1878 a major silver lode was discovered in Leadville triggering the Colorado Silver Boom.  This was a relatively short lived phenomena leading to wild expenditures of money on housing without infrastructure to go with it and when the bubble burst for many reason it left Colorado very hard hit, with unemployment very high.  But the economy slowly improved because of the floriculture industry.  This period was known locally as the Carnation gold Rush.

Colorado was the second state to grant the vote to women in 1893 and the first by a popular vote which was of course all men voting.

Colorado #7

"In 1864, Territorial Governor John Evans appointed the Reverend John Chivington as Colonel of the Colorado Volunteers with orders to protect white settlers from the Cheyenne and Arapaho warriors who were accused of stealing cattle.  Colonel Chivington ordered his men to attack a band of Cheyenne and Arapaho encamped along Sand Creek.  Chivington reported that his troops killed more than 500 warriors.  The militia returned to Denver City in triumph, but several officers reported that the so called battle was a blatant massacre of Indians at peace, that most of the dead were women and children, and that bodies of the dead had been hideously mutilated and desecrated.  Three U. S. Army inquiries condemned the action, and incoming President Andrew Johnson asked Governor Evans for his resignation, but none of the perpetrators was ever punished.  This event is now known as the Sand Creek Massacre"... Wikipedia

"Among the chiefs killed were most of those who had advocated peace with white settlers and the U.S. government.^[44] The net effect of the murders and ensuing weakening of the peace faction exacerbated the developing social and political rift. Traditional council chiefs, mature men who sought consensus and looked to the future of their people, and their followers, were opposed by the younger and more militaristic Dog Soldiers"... Wikipedia

These historical incidents remind us that the United States has done its share of crimes against humanity and that giving men guns and authorizing them to kill is always a dangerous game with unintended consequences.

Colorado #6

In 1857 Green Russell and Sam Bates found a small placer deposit of gold near the mouth of the Little Dry Creek in Colorado that yielded about 622 grams of gold.  This was the first significant gold discovery in the Rocky Mountain region.  News of this discovery soon spread and precipitated the Pike's Peak Gold Rush.  The gold soon ran out but miners then discovered far more valuable seams of hard rock gold, silver and other minerals in the nearby mountains.

Like California Colorado increased its population because of the discovery of gold.  

The United States could be characterized as a nation in pursuit of something.  The first settlers came for religious freedom and the great migration west happened because of a lust for gold,,,, and also sunny skies.  We are seekers of a better life, not satisfied with where we are or particularly interested in following old rules of conduct.  This is our strength and our weakness.

Here is a scene from Charlie Chaplin's GOLD RUSH.

COLORADO #5

It is surprising to me who has grown up with the familiar map of the US with its neat borders that there was so many changes in states and their borders in the early years of the Union.  Colorado didn't really become Colorado until February 28, 1861 when James Buchanan signed an Act of Congress organizing the the free Territory of Colorado.  Before that Spain owned portions of the territory, it was part of Mexico and the territory was divided in several different ways.

It is sometimes asserted that it was named Colorado because it was believed the Colorado River originated there and the river was named by the Native Americans because of the red-brown silt that the river carried from the mountains.  However according to Friends of Red Rock Canyon the state was named for Colorado City as the Colorado River has only recently been called the Colorado River.  Colorado City was named because the Spanish word for red is colorado and the Rocks in Colorado are red.  So take your pick river or rocks, red is associated with the terrain of Colorado.

COLORADO #4

Colorado is now experiencing a number of wild fires.  Wild fires are caused by several factors.  

Apparently in Colorado more people are making their home in the mountains, in vulnerable areas.  On top of that, Colorado forests have a lot of standing dead and fallen trees.  These are a perfect fuel source for a wildfire and a firefighter's worst nightmare.  The majority of fires are started by either campfires gone awry or lightning. 

COLORADO #3

The first indigenous people of Colorado were Paleo-Indian culture they date back to 10,000 BC.  They lived in caves or were Nomadic Hunters.

Around 7000 BC they began to build basic shelters and made stone weapons and stone tools.

Around 2500 BC called the Gulf Formational Period ceramics and pottery came into being.

1000 AD farming and permanent houses arrived

1500 Colorado is the homeland of the Ute Indian tribe which still exists there today.  There were also Apache, Arapaho, Cheyenne, Shoshone and Pueblo tribes at one time.

Ute art from Telluride

colorado #2

Colorado has the highest elevation of any state, with more than 1,000 rocky Mountain peaks over 10,000 fit high and 54 towering above 14,000 ft.  Pikes Peak, the most famous of these mountains, was discovered by U.S. Army lieutenant Zebulon M. Pike in 1806.

Breathtaking scenery and world-class skiing make Colorado a prime tourist destination. The main tourist attractions in the state include Rocky Mountain National Park, Curecanti National Recreation Area, Mesa Verde National Park, the Great Sand Dunes and Dinosaur National Monuments, Colorado National Monument, and the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Monument.

Breathtaking scenery and world-class king make Colorado a prime tourist destination.  Here are the most popular tourist attractions.
Rocky Mountain National Park
Curecanti National Recreation AreaMesa Verde National Park ParkThe Great Sand Dunes and Dinosaur National MonumentsColorado National Monumentand the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Monument

Here is another video with some great pictures of Colorado and another Colorado song.

california painting

We have moved on to Colorado but California's painting was just finished.  I am a bit behind but plan to catch up this month.  This is 22nd Avenue in San Fransisco.  It was not easy to decide what to paint, as California is such a very large state and there is so much to see, but I decided I wanted something that would be typical of what might draw people there from the East as so much of California's history up until today has been based on the desire to make one's life in sunny California.  Here are some houses that said, "Welcome", to me with a little whimsy.  You can review all the paintings of the states so far on this link to my website.

CALIFORNIA

Nancy Herman

12" x 24"

oil on canvas

$500.00 with $250.00 to the ACLU

Buy Now

COLORADO

It's June so time to get going into our next state which is Colorado.  My first problem is always where exactly is Colorado.  So, it is slightly left of center bordered by Wyoming, Nebraska, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Kansas.  That's a lot of states to be bordered by.  It is defined solely by lines of longitude and latitude.

And here is ROCKY MOUNTAIN HIGH by John Denver with lots of great pictures to get us started on our trip to this great state.

Hollywood #3

At first I thought I would list my favorite ten films as certainly the art of the film is THE ART coming out of California.  Movies have more influence than any art form, with the possible exception of music.  Anyhow when I began to think about all the films I have seen and looked at best 100 films chosen by others I realized it was going to be impossible to choose ten.   So I am going to include links to my favorite actors and actresses and have you look over them and remember.  These are the 5 movies that I would see again any time, however.  Interesting 2 of them I saw before I was 10.  None of the first four appeared on any lists that I found.  What are your favorites?

Wizard of Oz
Snow White
Brazil What a wonderful harbinger of things to come this one is.
Little Murderers  If you did not see this movie, here is one of the best scenes.
Godfather 1 and 2

Jack Nicholson

Merle Streep

Humphrey Bogart

Lauren Bacall

Robert Dinero

Kathryn Hepburn

Marlon Brando

Ingrid Bergman

Charlie Chaplin

In case I missed your favorite here is a link to the top ten actresses of all time and the top ten actors of all time.

And finally one more link that pretty much sums it up.

Hollywood

 Probably the most well known city in California is Hollywood which has become synonymous with the film industry.

"According to the diary of H. J. Whitley, also known as the "Father of Hollywood," on his honeymoon in 1886 he stood at the top of the hill looking out over the valley. Along came a Chinese man in a wagon carrying wood. The man got out of the wagon and bowed. The Chinese man was asked what he was doing and replied, "I holly-wood," meaning 'hauling wood.' H. J. Whitley had an epiphany and decided to name his new town Hollywood. "Holly" would represent England and "wood" would represent his Scottish heritage. Whitley had already started over 100 towns across the western United States." Wikipedia 

Whitley bought lots of land, put in electricity and built the Hollywood Hotel to attract investors in the new town 

so he seems to deserve the appellation "Father of Hollywood".

Although the Lumiere Brothers are credited with the birth of modern cinema Hollywood is the oldest film industry 

in the world and the first recorded instance of photographs capturing and reproducing motion was a series of photographs of a running horse by Edward Muybridge, which he took in Palo Alto, California using a set of still cameras placed in a row. Muybridge's accomplishment led inventors everywhere to attempt to make similar devices. In the United States, Thomas Edison was among the first to produce such a device,the kinetoscope.  

The film industry actually began in Fort Lee New Jersey where some of the major studios started up.  
Edison had a studio in West Orange, New Jersey and there were also studios in Manhattan. Other major centers of film production also included Chicago, Texas, California, and Cuba.

D.W. Griffith filmed the first movie ever shot in Hollywood, In Old California, a Biograph melodrama about California in the 19th century, when it belonged to Mexico.  After hearing about Griffith's experience in Hollywood many studios followed to avoid the heavy fees Edison imposed for the movie making process. Not sure how that worked actually as they were still making movies.

In Los Angeles, the studios and Hollywood grew. Before World War I, movies were made in several US cities, but filmmakers tended to gravitate towards southern Californiaas the industry developed. They were attracted by the warm climate and reliable sunlight, which made it possible to film movies outdoors year-round and by the varied scenery that was available. There are several starting points for cinema (particularly American cinema), but it was Griffith's controversial 1915 epic Birth of a Nation that pioneered the worldwide filming vocabulary that still dominates celluloid to this day...Wikipedia

FRIST MUSIC FILM

Silicon Valley

California is associated with three major United States industries Agriculture, Film Making and Technology.

Silicon Valley in the Santa Clara Valley is the global center for high technology, venture capital, innovation and social media.

"The "Silicon Valley" has come to have two definitions: a geographic one, referring to Santa Clara County, and a metonymical one, referring to all high-tech businesses in the Bay Area. The term is now generally used as a synecdoche for the American high-technology economic sector." Wikipedia

This info is notable for the two very similar words "metonymical and synecdoche" which have slightly different meanings. Check out the links if you are interested.

The whole section in Wikipedia about the Silicon Valley is very interesting and I can't decide which parts are the most important so I suggest once again you check out the whole article. A lot of people got together informally at first just to try and make computers more available to the average person and next thing you know they had started a revolution in communication.

SILICON VALLEY