01 January, 2017
Meet the “Ceylon Cinnamon Mare!”
Well….Happy New Year!! (smile) I thought that this would be a perfect day to initiate one of my declared “New Year’s Resolutions”. I’m hoping that I can indeed stick to it, even though I know that the “inspiration” to sit and knock out a “Chronicle” does come and go. I am going to try to become much more productive regarding my authoring of “The Crystal Chronicles” in 2017. Yeah, yeah….I know you won’t believe it ‘til you see it!!
To some this might sound like the proverbial resolution to lose weight, or quit smoking or whatever, but I think I’m actually starting to regard this activity as a real honest to goodness endeavor that I should approach like my Mob Museum volunteerism!! Heck, I make it to the Museum once a week, and while I won’t even begin to commit to writing a “Chronicle” a week, I can certainly make a serious attempt at being more prolific a writer!!
I enjoy the creative exercise of writing these “conversations” with you, and I just might surprise myself by exhibiting some serious discipline to this thing!! Let’s see if this works!! (ha,ha,ha,ha)
Part of the ease with which I can write this one today is because the subject of this piece has just very recently come into my possession!! (smile) In addition to that, the story of how the “Mare” got her name is one that is so-o-o-o cool that I wanted to capture it in writing right away!!
My usual procedure is to do a number of shots of the piece, then slowly get around to writing the story. As I sit here today, I’ve not photographed the “Mare” yet, but will probably accomplish that in a day or so.
Okay….so-o-o-o immediately, I must give credit to my wonderful friend Michele. It was she who named the “Mare” for me!! So I’m browsing on Ebay, and I see this beautiful horsehead. As you now can see it reminded me of my “Greydient Stallion”, and with its 8 ½ inch height it was a piece that immediately got my attention!! (smile)
I was initially attracted to this piece because of its unusual Cinnamon to Dark Brown coloring. I thought wow, that’s really nice!! BUT….I had recently decided to try to add pieces that were not 1) Eagles, 2) Elephants, 3) Horses and 4) Big Cats (i.e. Lions, Tigers, etc.) because I have about 16 of each of those, and I was seeking pieces that were more unique. That doggone coloring combined with its size and sculpting made me re-think that doctrine very quickly in this one case!! (ha,ha,ha,ha)
There are actually two more “Winged Horses” that I’m thinking of adding soon. I love the mythological creatures like the Phoenix, Griffin, Chimera, Unicorns (there are a few of them in my collection already), Dragons (did they really exist, or are they too creatures of myth and legend??) and a few others. If I run across any of those, I would be really happy to incorporate them into my collection!! (smile) I was recently asked by Michele, how my pieces make me feel when I get them. I thought that was an intriguing question, because I’m not sure that they give me a certain discernible feeling per se.
What I seem to really “get into” is the creative exercise of searching for an item (it’s cool to just peruse up and down the aisles in the Flea Markets and Antique Malls, and having my mind filled with different thoughts and memories triggered by the items I see), then determining if I can make it have meaning via my giving it a themed title of some sort when I display it.
It’s funny now….all of my friends know that I do look for pieces that would not appear too feminine in their look. I even refer to what I do as “collecting glass sculptures” rather than saying “I collect glass or crystal figurines”. The difference in image to me is important!! (ha,ha,ha,ha) A few friends will even say….”I saw this and thought of you, then said nope, that is not a Skip piece!!”
I had once again demonstrated my predilection for naming things in masculine terms when I had an interesting exchange with Michele. (smile) I had sent her a photo of the horsehead that I was anxious to add to my collection, and here is how that discussion went.
“The 1st attachment you see here is the major contender for my next piece. This item is 8 ½ inches tall, and I don’t know what I’d name him yet. I’m thinking “The Cinnamon Stallion” in deference to his color. (smile) Yes….it’s another Horse, but I’m finding that I really like the sculpting.
Okay….I find that I’m assuming most of my Horses to be male in gender. Maybe “The Cinnamon Mare” would be a cooler name….I’d like your opinion now, and that is what this piece will be called!! WOW….no pressure huh?? (ha,ha,ha,ha) You realize of course, that whatever you decide will then be immortalized in “The Crystal Chronicles” from this day forward, and Jodie will know that you named the piece!! I LOVE IT!!” (smile)
Michele’s response was as follows….
“Hi Skip,
Wow! I am honored that you would include me in the naming scheme! I think the Cinnamon Mare or Stallion needs an adjective. Like the Ceylon Cinnamon Mare….it’s a regal commanding piece that needs a definitive title.”
I was really intrigued by that idea and suggestion. I then did a little research, and learned what you see here as my response to her.
“Wow, I LOVE IT….I absolutely LOVE IT!! I’m not familiar with Ceylon Cinnamon, but as a result of your suggestion, I looked it up and saw that it is perfect to describe (at least as far as the photos we have available to use as reference) the coloration of this piece!! I now know that it was the former name of the country we call Sri Lanka, and that Tea is among its major exports!! AWESOME frame of reference. It is perfect, just perfect!! Consider it done….I will be purchasing the “Ceylon Cinnamon Mare” very soon. OMG….I think that’s awesome!! THANK YOU!!”
There you have it. I pulled the trigger on purchasing the piece, and it arrived on December 29th. I decided that it would be great to make it my first installment of 2017!!
Maybe this installment is a bit long and made for tedious reading (groan), but I think part of the uniqueness (and maybe an endearing quality) of these is that I’m doing exactly what I tell others they can do….I write just like I talk. So inasmuch as I consider these to be “conversations with you in written form”, I imagine that this exercise is now one for the record, and the 2017 installments of “The Crystal Chronicles” are now officially underway.
I plan to knock out the next one in a couple of weeks, so look for it shortly. I can assure you, there will not be a three year gap between pages from now on!!
The Crystal Chronicles 