i've written, before, about sitting beside my paternal grandmother as she churned out drawing after drawing for me of ballet dancers, princesses, and families. i wanted
people. and not just
any people -
beautiful people. my Nana-Bon (her nickname was 'Bonnie,' thus the grandmotherly mash-up) went to two years of art school in Philadelphia in the 1930's, which was a boon to her children and grandchildren. any one of us can
immediately tell you if a drawing or painting is by Nana-Bon. she had a very particular style of illustration. i count myself fortunate to have a few of the drawings she did for me (and a couple she did for herself), especially since i was her second-to-last grandchild and her art production was definitely more occasional the older she got.
the one above came from a sketch book of hers, which i now have. there are only a handful of drawings in it from a trip she took, at some point in the 1970's, to visit her sister in Arizona. this is one of just a couple that are more than simple sketches.
this highly stylized, geometric detailing with bright colors is totally Nana-Bon.
she wrote on the back of this ballerina drawing
"Next time, I will draw what you want,
which is a conventional ballerina."
i don't know why i complained,
but i think the first drawing i posted
(up top)
is what i was hoping for.
we lived in St. Andrews, Scotland from 1975 through 1978. in the summer of 1976, my grandmother, aunt, and cousins came to visit. and i came down with the measles! i very much remember my Aunt Beth going to the store and coming back with
licorice ice-cream. it was (literally) gray, & it was delicious.
my grandmother's incredibly glamorous drawing
of Measly Meg.
they stayed long enough that, i guess, i got a bit better and was able to add some key details (like blood flowing from my knee???) to this drawing ~ in the summer of 1976, i was seven-and-a-half (and, apparently, my dresses were quite short).
if you've seen
Chariots of Fire, then you have seen the beaches of St. Andrews, Scotland. the water is a mile away (well, not quite), the beach is completely FLAT (though i do recall a row of low dunes at the street), and the wind is typically quite present. remember, this was summer time. my visiting relatives were used to beaches in Cape May, New Jersey - which is only similar to the beach in St. Andrews in water temperature.
closer to Christmas, i'll try & remember to do a post of my grandmother's illustrations for a family heirloom story, as told by my Great-Great Aunt Anna (Nana-Bon's aunt), The Little Silver Hen.
