Summer Issue, Southern Maryland This is Living magazine

Southern Maryland This Is Living has an article entitled "Larger Than Life Artists" in its summer edition (hot off the press) and I’m one of the 3 artists featured!  Also featured are Stacy Allen who teaches art in school, heads up the non-profit Bay Arts Center, is a Mom and Wife and a general all around very cool person, along with Tim Scheirer who was a recognized artist when I moved here 13 years ago (and who does all the work for the local Calvert Marine Museum’s walls).  What great company to be included with!  How happy am I?! 

And all this came along just in time since I don’t really have any pictures of new work ready to put up today.  Um, maybe because I need to get into the studio and do some?  Well, I have about a half day’s work with the part-time job, then an interview with a local historian who is collecting oral history (the article makes it sound so tame – isn’t it all nice now?  let’s collect info and preserve it.  I spent the night with the leader I mention below once because of threats to her life.  We called the cops, they said, and I quote:  "use whatever means necessary to protect yourself.  We can’t help you."  I asked, guns?  they repeated "whatever means necessary."  We didn’t have a gun.  I wouldn’t use one.  So we stayed together and made it through the night.  I want that out there.  It wasn’t nice.) on the Lexington Park "Flattops" – what used to be the last place to live before moving into the woods.  I worked with folks in there to help them fight being thrown out with federal funds being given to a private individual for profit.  That was years ago, and the flattops are gone but the folks are still in subsidized housing (5 years) they got to choose for themselves.  Those that worked in the fight had the gumption to say no to yet another run down dump and wound up better off until they can get on their feet on their own.  It’s something I’m really proud about working on.  I recently learned one of the main leaders wouldn’t meet with the historian.  I was sad to hear this.  We couldn’t have done it without her.  I guess she has her own reasons. 

Anyways, here are the rest of the pages of the article.  I know you can’t read them so here’s what it says about me (yes, just the part about me, because it’s my blog):

"The town of North Beach also boasts the work of mural artist Tammy Vitale.  Vitale’s work is not a painting, but a huge piece of art known as architectural tile work.  The piece titled ‘Chesapeake’ is found on the north side o the North Beach Visitor Center Building.

"Vitale’s ‘Chesapeake’ is made out of clay and is 7 1/2 feet by 11 feet.  The creation is called "architectural tile work because the clay becomes a permanent part of the architecture." said Vitale.  The artist began her mural in her garage where she rolled out the clay, sketched the design, sculpted the clay by hand and then transported her work to the wall.  The whole process took about three months to complete.

"The artist, also commissioned by the town of North Beach, was inspired by the Chesapeake Bay.  The mural includes some well-known creatures of the bay such as crabs, oysters and osprey among others.  Vitale even used a real rockfish to cast the fish for the piece.

"Vitale also serves as executive director for the Port Tobacco River Conservancy.  her artwork can be found locally and in galleries in Washington, D.C., Maryland’s Eastern Shore, Virginia and as far away as Hatteras and Ocracoke Island in North Carolina."

I had a meeting at a Borders Bookstore yesterday for the part-time job and took the opportunity to buy the book Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr who recently purchased one of my torsos from British Ink (the tattoo parlor in D.C.).  Interestingly enough I had recently read an interview and been intrigued and had it on my list of books to buy.  So I bought it.  I am intrigued by the story line but also by the naming of Bishop O’Connell as a school the protagonist attends.  I went to High School At Bishop Denis O’Connell in Arlington.  Marr’s bio mentions a nun who gave her a starting point for her writing.  Hmmmm.  She has a MySpace so I’ll have to go ask if maybe my high school is known to her.

thought for the day:   Sometimes it takes years and years of experimentation to realize who we can be…what we can make of what has come to us.  no one would have ever predicted that Mahatma Gandhi would become the person to dramatically change the life of people in India.  He even went to England when he was young to explore whether it might be better to be an Englishman.  but look how he put it all together later on.

Maybe it’s happened to you already when you can actually integrate what you’ve learned with your own personality – when you can actually use your education to be who you want to be, to choose out of that mixed bag of explorations what you want to call yourself.  That’s when your education adds an extra measure of excitement!  Fred Rogers, Life’s Journeys According to Mister Rogers:  Things to Remember Along the Way.