Along The Shore

The ride to Rendition from Gramata was somewhat uneventful until we passed the Widows' Walk at Sacrimony Bay.  Unlike those in coastal New England, this widow's walk stretches along the shoreline. Benches accommodate those whose mates have become just that.

Tradition at Sacrimony Bay restricts vessels to the wharf until captains and owners can man or woman them with the required hands. Then and only then are they allowed to pass Gate House Point and ply the open waters of The Torrington. Given the dearth of talent ashore and the myriad treasures lying below the surface of The Torrington, kidnapping has become an acceptable means of fleshing out (so to speak) a crew.  (Excerpted from Travels With My Aunt)

Reader beware....

Ceremonial Placard, Gramata Highlands 791

Dizzy with wonder, we left Annular and headed to Gramata. Formerly a hive of diurnal information gathering and storage, this region's future remains uncertain as fewer residents are able to find and maintain gainful employment in its major (only) industry. Once bursting with activity, facilities now wither. The introduction of innovative technologies has left areas traditionally set aside for collecting and storage, bereft. Some, converted to monthly rentals with climate control, hold collections of other antiquities e.g. furniture, lamps, paintings and sculptures, carpets, toy trains, and Lily Pulitzer fashions. Until the flora re-establishes itself, those facilities remaining will continue to house motes, although temperatures and humidity should remain constant. We plan to return to Gramata in a few years to assess the change. (Excerpted from Travels With My Aunt)

Visit Annular

North Quadrant, Annular S.O. Satellite imagery courtesy NSADP

Annular is a vast region. Its streets and highways, once crop circles, have been refurbished as thoroughbred race tracks, auto and motor bike speedways, and other amusements. Global climate change reduced annual rainfall to a trickle and energy tycoons purchased the distressed area at a discount. Reconfigured and updated, the circles are now career paths for Annular's residents. We attended the annual round table discussion conducted by Annular's Board of Overseers in which the history of the crop circles is revisited and deemed logical. 
(Excerpted from Travels With My Aunt)

Footpaths near Gerald

Close to the center of Gerald, footpaths leading to a monastic retreat are lined with plantings, in-ground and potted. Residents believe that presaging accidents cautions travelers to be more aware. Thus they are less likely to engage in behaviors that could end in fatal collisions. To date, the coincidence of travelers has yet to occur; nonetheless, Gerald's population relentlessly campaigns against the use of smart phones, portable televisions, barbecue grills and huggable pets while transiting the footpaths within their voting districts. Gerald's representatives in the state legislature abide their constituents wishes.
(Excerpted from Travels With My Aunt)

A Conference of.....

Untitled 2012, Ed Touchette, 9 x 12 walnut ink, acrylic/ 140lb. CP

West of Carol, we stopped for the night. A large crowd attracted our attention and we followed them to the village common where noted novelists, a journalist, a teleprompter personality,  a physicist, and sports fans had gathered to debate the beginnings of the universe prior to the invention of gods and/ or other religious bents. They'd agreed to senate rules; anyone leaving prior to the end of the discussion, and this included bathroom breaks before, during, and after filibusters and other oratorical devices, risked disqualification for reasons understood only by two of the novelists, the physicist, and one of the sports fans. Nonetheless, all of the panelists agreed to this and all other rules: the exclusion of references to foreign nationals; present and past presidents and their immediate advisors; and allusions to space time.
(excerpted from Travels With My Aunt)

Within the Temple

Bone, 2013, Ed Touchette, walnut ink, acrylic/ 140lb. CP

 

Arriving at Temple Ardor just as the sun set on the day after the solstice, we ignored signs announcing a missed opportunity and entered. Along the wooden arches, centuries of collected memories set to flight by our movements, leapt and whirled through light beams streaming down from the clerestories prompting us to question any further advances into the space. Curiosity reigned . We continued.
(excerpted from Travels With My Aunt)

Communications

Communicate, acrylic, graphite/ paper.

We studied the technological dichotomy in the smallish Hamlet of Wordsworth, where, flummoxed by a plethora of communication options, residents selected a single carrier for their internet, television, teleporting, and teleprompting services. However, bound by contract to an offshoot of Bell Telephone, they are forced to continue with operator assisted telephone interminably. (For those of you unfamiliar with this service, when a caller lifts the receiver, an operator asks for a number and connects the caller to the callee through a maze of wires and plugs on a switch board.) Wordsworth forwent dial up service in 1959 when interim Mayor, John  'Johnny No Fingers' Bend*, encouraged residents to stay with operator assisted calling.

* Circa 1956, John Bend, then a renowned burglar, tried to erase his fingerprints with an acid bath.

Relocated Bridges

Early Construction Using Timbers and Mud,

West of Blacksmith Rock we stopped to watch as a crowd gathered to rededicate a covered bridge imported by rail from Vermont. The original timbers and planking were being fastened with period nails. Several had fallen into the stream over which the bridge had been installed and we watched as gaggles of youths dove from the banks to retrieve the fasteners. A Labrador hurled himself into the water but ignored his handler’s shrill whistle commands, paddling joyfully around until the event concluded. Several residents noted the activity and began planning an annual event at which a nail hunt would be held. All required services would, of course, be covered by entry fees.

Structure

Structure, 2013

Daryl Jenks purchased land just west of the South Bay. He plans to tend thyme and rosemary gardens.

Garage

Garage, 2013

Tony's garage, at one time or another, serviced most of the vehicular population of Hornsby Village. Just last weekend, Alba Fenton grazed an oak on rte.43 and rendered a fender unsightly. Harlan, Tony's body man, repaired the damage with such skill that Alba was able to drive to Sunday mass at St. Sebastian's without suffering the multitude of queries a fender such as that would have engendered.

Caligraphic geometry

Lesson, 2012, ed touchette, wc / acrylic

• Carole investigated the meaning emblazoned on the tomb's entry. She discovered a connection to a civilization that long ago relinquished control of their coastal domain and resettled further inland.

Handwriting on walls

Schematic 2013

Adorned with calligraphy, the walls of St. Jude's represent a reasonable communication within and without.

Library Shelves

At Wendell's Barn

While visiting the library, I discovered several books. 

Later That Year

Beyond, ed touchette 2012
walnut ink, watercolor, acrylic, graphite/ 140lb. CP

The Colossus of Wrents opened onto a field of aqua and azure. The monument, intended as an intimidation to those who might wander beyond the bounds of the village, nonetheless enticed cerebral meanderings. The structure was razed to allow parking for automobiles and SUVs in support of a nearby mall. Trends being just that ensured the mall’s demise and the sheep returned to graze on the grasses that soon replaced the pavement.

Entry

Gates, Ed Touchette 2012

Walnut ink, acrylic, graphite/ 140lb. Canson CP

Certain that great wealth and culture existed beyond the pales of the front yard and realizing that her present condition had become untenable, she left. She leapt forward and engaged the unfamiliar with glee. Dreams carried her beyond the bounds of consciousness to majestic encounters.

(Excerpted from Travels With My Aunt)

Contrary Doctrine

Thread, Ed Touchette 2012

 Walnut ink, acrylic/ Canson 140lb. CP

Driving south along an established, well-known route, we encountered a group of road weary travelers. They begged direction. Endeavoring to help, we listened to their dilemma, calculated with the information given and offered our best solution. We pointed west. They turned and stepped off to the east. 

(excerpted from Travels With My Aunt)

A Layered Existence

Mentor, 2008 

Reminds me of someone I knew then and of all I've learned since, discovered as a consequence of him and those with whom he associated and studied and interacted—theirs passed on through him to me and more. It is a one way street. Do not turn back.

Temple Altar

Temple Altar, 2012

 

 

From a favorite series, Structures, Lessons and Barns, this and most of the other works are created with walnut ink and acrylic paints on paper. This painting was selected for the 16th Annual Regional Exhibition curated by Al Miner, Asst. Curator of Contemporary Art, MFA, Boston. The show will open April 26 and close May 27 at the Newburyport Art Association, 65 Water Street, Newburyport, MA.

Expression

The Khaz,  2011
Ed Touchette
watercolor / Fabriano 140lb. CP

Will you look at this abstract stuff.  What am I doing here?

Violet's Garden

Garden Fence, 2012

Beyond the fence grew the sustenance Violet needed and craved. Tomatoes, potatoes,  beets, beans, and celery. Carrots Cézanne would have adored, broccoli, and endive. Bright yellow flowers popped from green vines promising a crop of cucumbers that would lengthen her pickling season by a few days. She didn't mind; the dill from the small herb garden she'd blessed with holy water and planted as a tribute to Escoffier, and the garlic would sweeten the smell of the kitchen for weeks.

Next year, she'd not plant the pumpkin seeds. Eda's Montclair Behemoths had won first prize at the Delacroix County Fair each year for the past eight. Each year their size had increased exponentially. Now they required more food and water than Violet could provide. This year, the biggest, a gargantuan, cast a shadow that stunted the growth of the eggplants. More the size of plums, they were likely to wither and shrivel to prunish for lack of water.  Regardless, if she could borrow Hal's pickup to haul the trailer, she could get that veritable Brobdingnagian to the fair. And she would win.