Tag Archives: artists

Day 302: Steven Weitzman

I found out that the artist of one of my favorite pieces of art in our nation’s capital, literally in the Capitol, lives just a few miles outside of the District. I thought I’d let him know that his beautifully crafted bronze statue of Frederick Douglass inspires me every time I see it.

Day 302-3

Steven,

As a resident of our nation’s capital, I’m accustomed to walking by monuments and statues. I cruise down hallways of some of the most iconic buildings in America and don’t stop to appreciate the artistry on display.

I created this tree on the front of the card, then realized I wrote the card upside down so the tree seems like it's on the back of the card!

I created this tree on the front of the card, then realized I wrote the card upside down so the tree seems like it’s on the back of the card!

Often times when I do take an interest in a piece of art or the masterfully painted ceiling, I am unaware of the artist or if I do find out who it was, they’re more than likely deceased. So when I learned that you were the creator of the Frederick Douglass bronze statue that captivates visitors to the U.S. Capitol, I wanted to write you to let you know that your work moved me. Its beauty and power are striking, doing tremendous justice to one of the most charismatic and influential leaders in our history. Brilliant!

With great admiration,
Reed Sandridge

P.S. Ooops – I just realized I wrote this upside down.

Day 203: Susan and Willie

A favorite quote of mine. I wrote to William Zinsser on Day 22. His wife replied to me saying that Mr. Zinsser was blind and unable to read or write. Sadly Zinsser died about two months after I wrote to him. He was 92.

A favorite quote of mine. I wrote to William Zinsser on Day 22. His wife replied to me saying that Mr. Zinsser was blind and unable to read or write. Sadly Zinsser died about two months after I wrote to him. He was 92.

Susan and Willie are both volunteers at the Street Sense Writers Group. I sat in on one of their workshops today and was blown away! If you are in DC on a Wednesday morning, swing by and check them out between 10:30 and noon.

Another handcrafted envelope - this time I used part of a Trader Joe's bag.

Another handcrafted envelope – this time I used part of a Trader Joe’s bag.

Dear Susan & Willie,

Being with you and the members of the writing group today inspired me and filled my heart with rapture. Thank you for being so generous with your time and talent – you’re creating something beautiful that you should be extremely proud of.

I look forward to joining you again,
Reed

Sunday Notes & Letters for Week 29

Happy Flag Day!

For today’s post I thought I’d share with you a post I found recently on the blog Culture N Lifestyle. They feature 22 images from Liza Kirwin’s book, More Than Wordswhich celebrates illustrated letters from a variety of revered artists and designers. From Frida Kahlo to Andy Warhol to Eero Saarinen and many more. It’s worth clicking on that link above to check out all 22 photos, but here are a few for your enjoyment.

 

Enjoy

Freuh

Alfred Joseph Frueh

saarinen

Eero Saarinen

smith

Joseph Lindon Smith

 

Sunday Notes & Letters


Wow, this project takes a lot more time than I thought! Don’t let that discourage you from writing your letters though. If it was just writing a letter now and then that would be fine. But writing the letter, photographing it, creating the social media posts for it – all that takes time! That being said, I’m enjoying this adventure very much.

Today, as I do on Sundays, I take a break from sharing my daily letter with you and share with you a story about handwritten letters. Today’s story comes from BBC News Europe.

michelangelo

teachhub.com

It’s about a handwritten letter by Michelangelo that was stolen from the Vatican. Yep, a former Vatican employee pilfered several 500-year-old letters and is now demanding money, lots of money, for the safe return. A ransom note, made to the cardinal in charge of St. Peter’s Basilica, asked for €100,000 – or about $105,000.

The odd thing is these letters went missing nearly 20 years ago and the Vatican never reported them stolen. Either they didn’t know they were missing, which doesn’t bode well for their tidiness and security, or they kept it a secret which begs further questioning.

Michelangelo_menu_fish_bread_wine_1518

This is reportedly Michelangelo’s handwriting. Not the letter in question here – there does not seem to be a copy of that, but this seems to be a grocery list. Still very cool to see someone’s writing from 500 years ago. Credit: openculture.com

In any event, this is particularly interesting because there are very few letters in existence penned from the hand of the great renaissance artist. According to Il Messaggero newspaper in Italy he typically only signed his name and had one of his many assistants do the laborious tasks of putting words on paper.

Whoever you are, you are a thief. Just put the letters in an envelope and mail them back to the Vatican and be done with this.