Tag: artists

Waxahachie’s Courthouse Square Kaleidoscope

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     Waxahachie courthouse Square kaleidoscope takes looking at the world through rose colored glasses one step further. The Internet active artwork created by Eddie and Mary Elizabeth Phillips sits on the corner of Main and College Street, just across the street from the fabulous Ellis County Courthouse. You overlook it if you’re as entranced with courthouse architecture as I am, but it’s worth looking for! It takes the cardboard kaleidoscopes of our youth to a while new level.

     Built of scrap metal and stained glass, visitors can spin the glass wheel at one end and then look through the triangular opening at the other for a burst of ever changing colors. And the installation is near the corner streetlight it can even be enjoyed at night. (Good thinking!)

     Click these links to see videos of this kinetic beauty in action, and then make a note to give it a spin yourself when you’re in the area!

Waxahachie-Kaleidescope-1

Waxahachie-Kaleidescope-2

     Were you as fascinated with kaleidoscopes as a kid as I was?

Lone Star Book Art: Barbara Bush Wall at The George

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     Two of my favorite things: books and Texas!

     As you walk into the doors of The George hotel in College Station, with first thing you’ll see is an enormous Texas flag. And boy does it make a Texas-size impact. Now walk over and take a closer look – it’s made entirely of books!

     That’s 10,000 books as a matter of fact, including works of fiction, non-fiction and even textbooks. Artist Thedra Cullar-Ledford spent months collecting books with red, white or blue spines from bookstores and thrift shops to create the floor to ceiling installation. Even more challenging, she included many Texas-centric subject matter like barbeque, agriculture and Texas biographies.

     It’s fun to get up close to see what titles you’ll find. I got a special kick out of the Eyes of Texas by Ray Miller- a book that was well loved in my home when I was growing up.

     She then sorted them by color, nailed the books together, and screwed groups to the wall to create the pattern of the Lone Star flag.

     It’s the most photographed spot in the Century Square complex.

     The art piece was recently renamed in honor of former First Lady Barbara Bush as a symbol of her dedication to literacy – a touching tribute. Oh, and George W. Bush’s book “Decision Points” is among the books in the flag.

     Of course that isn’t where the hotel’s connection to the Bush family ends. The George, which was named for the great Georges in history, is just three miles from the George H. W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum. And the nearby Century Square restaurant is named Poppy, former president Bush’s boyhood nickname. If you’re a fan of the Today Show, you’ve probably heard Jenna Bush Hager refer to her famous grandfather by that name.

     The George, which is a property in the Valencia Hotel Group, has also instituted a “Round Up for Reading” program in which guests can donate any amount to the Barbara Bush Literacy Foundation.  Ya gotta love a company that gives back to its community.

     So next time you’re in College Station swing by The George (or better yet, stay there!) and see this impressive creation. Oh and…drop your spare change in the literacy foundation container at the front desk. You’ll come away with some great pics and feeling good about doing something nice for others at the same time.

 

 

 

Ewe’ve Got to See This: Painted Sheep of San Angelo

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     Ewe better believe there’s something, well…sheepish about San Angelo.

     No matter where you look, there they are: fiberglass sheep sculptures in every color and design imaginable.

     Some cities have cows, horses or pelicans. Here sheep started grazing around town in 2007 as a nod to the town’s past, when it was known as the Wool Capital of the World.

     Each is sponsored (usually by the location where they’re making an appearance) and given a punny name: Happy Trails to EWE, Lambscapes, Don’t EWE Mess with Texas, Lucky EWE, Lamb of God, and more. MANY more.

     With over 100 sheep in this colorful flock they can keep visitors happily hunting for days.

     If you’re ready to start off on a sheep-tacular scavenger hunt of your own, this list is a great place to start.

Virtual Travel: Waxahachie, Texas

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     This week we had a quick visit and virtual tour of the English Merchant’s Inn in Waxahachie . . . one of my favorite bed and breakfasts in Texas. If you missed it, you can catch the replay below, then refer to the links below for more fun to be found in this gem of a small town.

Click these links to find more information and photos:

English Merchant’s Inn

Waxahachie Courthouse Folklore

Hachie Hearts

Waxahachie’s Love Lock Bridge

Sam Houston’s Wife and a Kindred Connection

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   Texan artist Tra Slaughter painted this mural of Sam Houston on the back of a building in downtown Brenham, facing the railroad tracks. If this image of Houston seems odd to you, you may not be familiar with his connection to the Cherokees.

   In 1809 at the age of 16, Sam Houston ran away from home in Tennessee and lived among the Cherokees. He was adopted by Chief Oolooteka and given the name Colonneh or the Raven.

   Although I grew up in Texas, I first heard about this other name while attending the university named after this Texan forefather. The name cropped up often around Huntsville in business names.

   While I was learning more about Houston, I found that his Cherokee wife’s name was Talahina “Tiana” Rogers . . . a name that sounded pretty darn familiar to me. Always fascinated with my mother’s Cherokee lineage, I started researching her genealogy when I was just 12.

   Sure enough, Talahina‘s great grandparents William Emory and Mary Suzannah Grant were my seventh great grandparents. So while it is a distant connection, I was happy to learn that I had a personal link to this fascinating woman.

   Talahina’s mother Elizabeth was the sister of my 6th great-grandmother Susannah. Both were born in Houston’s home state of Tennessee to William and Mary Emory.

Gravestone of “Taina” Rogers in Muskogee, Oklahoma

   Sam Houston had three wives, but for obvious reasons, this one is a special interest of mine.

   This mural is spectacular, and also features an actual raven and a Mockingbird, the state bird of Texas. Art is such a terrific way to relate pieces of history.

   Have you done any research on your family tree? You never know what or who you’ll find.

Birdwatcher Alert: A Phoenix on Galveston

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     What’s 15 feet tall with a 35-foot wingspan and gleams in the sunlight? A metal statue of a Phoenix created by Houston based artist Bob Bacon that now guards the gate of his brother’s Galveston ranch.

     Bacon’s creation first appeared in the 2017 Houston Thanksgiving Day Parade, after he created it as a post Hurricane Harvey symbol of hope and recovery.

     Since it’s big debut, the statue has been nesting in a warehouse, waiting for its next chance to take flight.

     The onset of the coronavirus pandemic inspired the family to install the phoenix on Galveston Island to once again provide a symbol of hope. The Bacon Ranch is an appropriate home for this particular piece of artwork, since most of the land on the ranch has been set aside as grounds for the migrating birds that pass over Galveston Island each year.

     The family welcomes visitors to pull along the side of the road to get a close look and photos, but asks that no one trespass beyond the fence.

     To visit, travel west from Galveston on FM 3005 past Jamaica Beach, and look on the north side of the road.

     No binoculars required!

Face It…Ellis County Courthouse Has Quite a Story!

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     Stone emojis? Well, kind of! These faces silently tell the story of an unrequited love in Ellis County long ago.

     The courthouse itself is exquisite. This 1897 Romanesque Revival stunner was designed by architect J. Riely Gordon.  If you’re a fan of Texas courthouses, you’ve heard his name before, since he designed 18 of them! But this one is undisputedly his masterpiece.

     I promise to tell you more about this beauty another time, but for now we’re just going to talk about those faces! If you feel as if someone is watching you as your walk around the grounds of the courthouse square, you’re probably right.

MABEL’S FABLE

     The story goes that sculptor Harry Herley arrived in Waxahachie in 1895 to work on carvings for the courthouse project during it’s construction. The itinerant English artist moved into Mama Frame’s boarding house, where he met and fell in love with her beautiful 16-year-old daughter Mabel.

     As his work continued on the courthouse, Harry’s love for Mabel grew, and he carved her angelic countenance to top the exterior columns of the courthouse.

 

     But, as fate would have it, the love was unrequited and Mabel discouraged his constant attentions. As it became apparent to Harry that his love wasn’t returned, his disappointment slowly turned into bitterness, and the faces he carved to represent Mabel progressed from beautiful to grotesque and twisted. A lasting revenge for his broken heart.

     The townspeople weren’t too happy about the unattractive faces on the courthouse they had spend so much money to build, and one story relates that the cattlemen and farmers even tarred and feathered poor ol’ Harry and ran him out of town on a rail.

     It’s a sad, but terrific tale ripe for retelling through the generations.

Spoiler alert: If you’re charmed by the legend and would prefer

to leave it at that . . .you might want to stop reading this now.

THE TRUTH

     Mabel’s mother Hattie, although a widow, didn’t seem to be running a boarding house according to the federal census. Even if she had been, the chances are that Herley never met the Frame family.

     The biggest obstacle to this story were the characters were when it was supposedly taking place.

     The stone sculptures for the courthouse were sub-contracted to the Dallas firm of German stonemason Theodore Beilharz. Hervey, who worked for the company at the time, is created with carving the exquisite red sandstone capitals perched atop the polished pink granite columns, but he also supervised other carvers who worked on the project.

     The carvings would have been created in the Beilharz’s Pacific and Hawkins Stoneyard in Dallas and shipped to Waxahachie by rail as finished pieces, ready to mount in place.

     So…if Hervey wasn’t actually in Waxahachie, he certainly wasn’t occupied falling in love with one of its residents.

 

     There’s no record of Hervey coming to town until the summer of 1896, a year after his work for the courthouse was completed, to work on another stone carving assignment for a prominent businessman.

     It was on this trip that he met local girl Minnie Hodges, whom he married in August of that year.

     Many of Reilly’s courthouses feature faces and gargoyles, appropriate for the Romanesque style, and its likely that the design or at least the theme for the faces was under his direction. Unfortunately no records show what the intended meaning of the progression was meant to represent…which opens them up to storytelling.

     It’s still a good story, and I bet if we checked back in a hundred years..it will still be told.

     Most local lore has elements of truth woven into it. Does knowing the true stories “ruin it” for you, or make it more interesting?

     And what’s a Texas legend without a song to go along with it? To listen to Jeremiah Richey’s ditty about the Eliis County Courthouse faces, click here.

 

Waxahachie: Straight from the Heart

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     If you’re looking for a place with heart . . . you’ll want to add Waxahachie to your travel list.

     The “Hachie Hearts Trail” project was initiated as a part of the city’s “A Place in Your Heart, Texas” campaign in this charming town. Large hearts (locals call them “puffy hearts”) decorated with different by artists have been installed around town as public art.

     Besides just being enjoyable as to find a view, the hearts can present a fun activity for families or groups. Make it a challenge to find all of the hearts. If you’re in a group, it would be fun to take a selfie with each of the hearts, and the first group back to an agreed upon meeting spot wins.

     And if you make that meeting spot Farm Luck Soda Fountain on the courthouse square (YUM!), everyone wins!

 

     “Hearticulture,” appropriately covered with hearts, was painted by Michael Poston and Jenny Galbrath


“All-American City” by Julie Law

“Here Comes the Sun” by artist Leah Lawless-Smith

     The psychedelic sunrise was sponsored by the staff of the local Sun Newspaper. Look for hidden images on both sides, chosen by members of the staff.

     “Hollywood Texas” by artists Leah Lawless-Smith, Candace Faber, Steve Miller and Mike Duncan. This movie themed heart features scenes from films shot in Waxahachie, like Bonnie and Clyde, Tender Mercies, and Places in the Heart.

“Crape Myrtle Capital” by artists Julie Law

“High Cotton” in Hachie by Damion Brooker is a nod to one  of the traditional crops of the area…and probably my favorite heart.

“Emotions” by Leah Lawless-Smith

     “Oobie’s Town and Waxahachie All-Star Band” by Julie Law this one at the entrance to Getzendaner Park, backside of heart is a sepia-toned rendition of several of the musicians who have grace the stage of the Chatauqua Auditorium.

and

“Land of the Free” by Gerald Spriggs

     Which is your favorite?

     After you find all of the Hachie Hearts, stop in at the County Museum on the square and take a look around. They have heart shaped locks for sale that you can write the name of someone you love on, and then attach to either the love lock fence downtown, or the love lock bridge by the old train depot. Leaving a little of your heart behind in Waxahachie . . .

 

 

Click here to see a video of Waxahachie’s

Love Lock Bridge

 

Gingerbread Creation at the Hotel Galvez

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     What takes 90 pounds of dough, 22 pounds of royal icing, 402 gingerbread pieces and 125 hours to create? 

     This year the Hotel Galvez has outdone themselves with an entire gingerbread village that retells the story in the poem “The Night Before Christmas.”

     Gingerbread plates beside each of the nine houses in the village have a portion of the poem neatly painted in coffee extract.

     Trees made from icing covered ice cream cones, whimsical characters of fondant and even a little quilt covered bed made from a Rice Krispies treat bring the story to life.  The bases for each  vignette are made of gingerbread as well, and covered with “snow” created from powdered sugar and coconut.

     The display is open to the public and will only be there through January 2, 2020…so hurry in to see this tasty display in person.

     In the meantime, you can get a peek at this wonderful creation in this video. Enjoy!

Truly “Magical Winter Lights”

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   If you’re only able to see one Christmas light show in the Houston area during the holiday season, push this one to the top of your list.

     Filling 20 acres of space just outside Gulf Greyhound Park in LaMarque, where its been brightening holiday seasons since 2016, the remarkable spectacle is made up of intricate display pieces created using Chinese lantern-making techniques incorporating over six million lights. Some towering 60 feet high. It’s the largest festival of its kind in the United States.

     The festival, the largest of its kind in the United States, runs for two months and requires ten months to plan the next one. Designs are sent to lantern technicians and artisans in Zigong, China, and the completed components are assembled on-site.

     To truly appreciate the work and artistry that goes into a piece, take a look at it both from afar and up close!

     There are nine themed areas in the exhibit, not counting the carnival: the Kingdom; the Village; the East; Houston; Space; Ice; the Dinosaur; the Square and the Sea.

 

THE VILLAGE

     My friend and I headed to The Village first, because . . . Santa! We wanted to get in a quick visit with Mr. and Mrs. Claus before the crowds came. Sitting inside a large lighted ornament with room enough for your entire family to pose together, the couple encourages friends of all ages to stop by with their wish lists and cameras.

     The Village is fairly centrally located, with a variety of traditional displays like nutcrackers, reindeer and presents surrounding a towering Christmas tree.

     Before you leave the area, look for a big lighted barrel and get a warm (or cold) drink to enjoy on your walk. On brisk nights like last night, it sure makes a yummy difference.


     Travel to The East, and enter visions of the homeland of the talented artists  who created these lantern lights.

     A grove of cherry blossoms invites visitors to leave heart shaped notes among its branches, and a fascinating water garden seems to ripple thanks to clever lighting patterns.

     After you find your birth animal on a wall of the Chinese Zodiac, turn to your right for a real “wow” factor: a wall of immense blooms in brilliant colors magically open and close almost seeming to breathe. This is one of the displays that really made us stop and think about all of the talented people behind Magical Lights.

 

     There’s no mistaking The Houston section with it’s large lettered sign. A stage that lights up as participants step and dance on its surface, a cowboy riding a bronco surrounded by longhorn, and a wall of sights from countries around the world fill out this area of the park.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     The special Space area this year pays tribute to the 50th Anniversary of Apollo 11 with lighted  tunnels populated with aliens, and a giant, walk-through maze whose center is circled by an enormous revolving space shuttle.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     It’s hard not to start humming “Under the Sea” to yourself as you approach the Sea display, which definitely ranked as one of my favorites of the entire experience – mainly because of the stunning walk-in area designed to make you feel that you were below the waves with the friendly sea creatures.

     Of course, the lovely mermaid was a plus, too!




     For a couple of hours every night, the “Ice Sisters” (yes, we all really know who they mean) reside in Ice, ready to greet visitors. And if you take a photo with them, please be sure to drop a tip into Olaf’s Summer Vacation Fund!

     After a chat with the frosty friends, enjoy a stroll through the rest of  this glittering display.

     Snowy ice flows are populated with polar bears, penguins and animated flying fish, near the  Russianesque  blue domes of a large structure. You can even sit inside a Cinderella style coach pulled Pegasus!

 


Rides and games in the Carnival area require additional tickets, but are especially popular with the younger set. The smell of the food alone is enough to draw you to this side of the park.


 

     The “Dinosaur” section of the park just beyond the carnival did, indeed have dinosaurs, but much more.

     Entering into the area, visitors will walk through a lighted archway past storybook and fantasy characters including Alice in Wonderland and her friends, Humpty Dumpty, rainbow-striped zebras and a couple of friendly looking elephants.

     Paths then wind through a display of animatronic dinosaurs with loud, roaring sound-effect. (Be warned that these moving, monstrous creatures may either thrill or startle small children, depending on their personality.) To the side was a tent filled with dinosaur-themed interactive activities for children, including digging for ‘fossils’ in a sand pit, riding small mechanical dinosaurs, watching baby dinos hatch from eggs, and photo opportunities of being in a dino’s mouth, hatching from oversized eggs, or in a jeep threatened by a T-rex (think Jurassic Park).


     The Square is home to the performance stage at Magical Lights. When you enter the park, be sure to check the performance times for the Chinese Acrobats . . . you won’t want to miss them. There are two 40-minute shows each night. We went to the last show of the night, just before leaving.

     This lovely bit of Chinese culture and some jaw-dropping acrobatic feats made for an exciting topper for the experience and a great topic of conversation for the drive home. (Be prepared for your kids to want to try juggling an end table with their feet when they get home.)



     Magical Winter Lights is open through January 5, 2020, every day including all holidays! So when you have that house full of relatives that need to get out and stretch their legs . . . now you have a plan! Ask about group rates and party plans.

     I must add though, that this activity is unique in that I would enjoy it just as much as a solo outing, family activity or reason for friends to get together.

     Tickets are less expensive if you purchase them online ahead of time, or look for special deals from Groupon or Costco. At the time I am writing this, Costco is running a deal for 2 adult tickets for 27.99, and Groupon has a deal for adult tickets for $20 and seniors and children for $12.

ONLINE
Adult (Ages 13-64): $22.00
Senior (65+)/Child (4-12): $13.00
Family 4-Pack: $76.00
Children UNDER 4 years old: FREE

BOX OFFICE
Adult (Ages 13-64): $25.00
Senior (65+)/Child (4-12): $15.00
Family 4-Pack: $80.00
Children UNDER 4 years old: FREE

Sunday – Thursday : 5:00 – 10:00 PM
Friday & Saturday, through Jan. 1 : 5:00 – 11:00 PM

     The festival is at Gulf Greyhound Park, 1000 FM 2004,  in La Marque. The entrance to the park is located just before the Pizza Hut / Taco Bell on FM 1764. For more information go to: www.magicalwinterlights.com