Chapter 17: Gardening and Landscaping by Judy Vienneau
Like many of my fellow artists, I love nature and its infinite beauty. So, I decided to take a short break from making art to spend some time outdoors in this beautiful Spring weather. Wild flowers had sprung up in my front yard, and I had let them go wild because not only are they beautiful, but the bees love them! I am trying to contain them somewhat, however, so that they look like a garden instead of weeds. So, this past weekend I added some perennials that are attracting butterflies and add color and height variance to the mix.
Also, with the help of a friend, I created a patio area with concrete patio blocks in my back yard. We adorned the area by resurrecting some of my outdoor sculpture I had done years ago, which had been overgrown by weeds and webs. Potted plants, some in tiled pots which were also my creations, add foliage and color.
I believe that creative expression takes many forms. I have had many people say to me over the years, “I am not an artist at all – I don’t have an artistic bone in my body. I can’t even draw a straight line!” I think to myself…a straight line?! As an artist, I can’t draw a straight line either without a ruler! I have tried to convince people that if they garden, bake, do home improvements, write, and more, that they are in fact creative and expressing themselves in alternate artistic ways. Unfortunately, this often falls upon deaf ears.
I have noticed that since the covid-19 pandemic has been upon us, that the parking lots of Home Depot and Lowes have been packed with cars, with shoppers loading up on home improvement and landscaping items. One silver lining of this pandemic, as I see it, is that everyone’s creative spirit has taken hold, and is manifesting itself in various ways.
