This and That by JL

Recovering from a life-changing accident, Frida Kahlo was bedridden for many months at age 18. With a makeshift easel, a mirror and some of her father’s oils, she painted portraits of herself to fill the time. Thus began one of the most revered images in art history—that of Frida Kahlo herself—which has resonated for decades. […]

    In thinking about the uncertainty of the past 20 months, I can’t help but breathe a sigh of relief that the arts in Westchester have survived. Yes, although we are somewhat battered financially, we are spiritually stronger than ever, undaunted in the knowledge that the value of the arts is not a myth, […]

Bravo to artist  Mary Lincoln Blondell, who didn’t leave the disposition of her artwork to chance. She left money in her estate to take care of her artwork after her death. She was a sculptor who was as bold in her art as she was in her determination that her work live on after her […]

As we put ArtsNews to bed, we watched our Congress struggle with the meaning of infrastructure. We too struggle with this same question: What is infrastructure? Is it simply roads and bridges, as we’ve been led to believe? Or does it include other things that make life livable, or even bearable, such as health, education […]

  Hearing the roar of Niagara Falls for the first time since I was eight years old was chilling. Perhaps it was because I heard it not at the edge of the falls but in a cavernous 19th century ruin. It was at the abandoned pool house on the historic Lyndhurst estate. It was an […]

     I cringed when I heard Russian President Vladimir Putin announce: “There is no such thing as happiness…it’s only a mirage.” Shocked as I was, it seemed to me to be the ultimate denial of three American ideals embodied in our Declaration of Independence – life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.      […]

There seems to be a new way of thinking that is surfacing in the arts community. It may be something that’s been evolving quietly over time and just now bubbling up to the surface. Here’s what seems to be emerging. As we try to Restart the Arts, we confront anew that arts and culture are more […]

Just when I thought I knew everything about Abraham Lincoln, I found out something new while watching the fabulous CNN documentary on his life. Now, we all know that history is often tinged with various interpretations of events. No surprise there. But my “a-ha“ moment was truly a revelation, and a source of great pride as […]