P. Buckley Moss e-newsletter

Dear Friends:

West Virginia was glorious! The drive on Route 460 was so beautiful and soothing, with the mountains in full bloom. It’s wonderful to see the different terrain, living on the Chesapeake Bay and Florida most of the time and Italy some of the time. The mountains in Virginia and West Virginia are lush and green; everything grows so well.

My daughter Patty and I went to Princeton, West Virginia, for my show with Frameworks Plus. It was such fun! Gallery owner Juanita Swatts and I released two new prints featuring local churches, Harman Chapel at Bluefield College and Nearer, My God, to Thee, which features Bramwell Presbyterian Church. Both were so well received. People from both churches came to the show, and I learned that Bramwell Presbyterian Church was built by Italian stone masons and has some very unique features. I also learned that, if you stand in front of Harman Chapel and say something, your voice will echo. No one seems to know why. I’ve visited magnificent churches in Europe, but it’s nice to visit our creations here in the United States, too.

The fabulous team at Frameworks Plus. Back row, L. to R.: Sandi Baxter, Beverly Toney, Marlene Belcher (member of Moss in the Mountains Chapter; see below), Wanda Davidson, Kathy Walker, Angela McCall (President of Moss in the Mountains Chapter), and Patsy Douglas. Front row, L. to R.: Gallery owner Juanita Swatts (also a member of Moss in the Mountains), me, and Edith Branscome.

Frameworks Plus donated a framed Living History Farm print, which was raffled to benefit Mary’s Cradle. Mary’s Cradle is a maternal and infant resource center that has served pregnant women and young families in Southwest Virginia and southern West Virginia since 1995. The raffle raised $970 for Mary’s Cradle, and the winner of the print was Iris Crumbley of the Moss in the Mountains Chapter. L. to R.: Francis Coffey, Director of Mary’s Cradle; Marlene Belcher; me; and Angela McCall.

The Princeton/Bluefield area has a brand new chapter of the P. Buckley Moss Society, appropriately named Moss in the Mountains. The Chapter arranged a surprise birthday dinner for me at the Fincastle Country Club Friday night, and I loved every minute of it. Chef Rick Tabor and his wife Lennie took such good care of us. If you get a chance to go there, I highly recommend it.

What a wonderful way to celebrate my birthday! I had dinner with a brand new chapter of the Society, Moss in the Mountains, at the Fincastle Country Club.

L. to R.: Angela McCall, President of Moss in the Mountains Chapter; Chef Rick Tabor of the Fincastle Country Club; and me. The food was marvelous.

There was a group of Italian-Americans in another dining room, and I was tempted to go visit with them. I’m going to Italy around the middle of August to paint with my daughter Becky. She told me she wants to do watercolors this time, and I said, “Great!” The first of September I’ll go to Milan to meet up with the group of Society members taking the tour of northern Italy. Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper is in Milan, and it will be a thrill to see that in person! We’ll also be visiting Bologna, the Emilia Romagna Region, Parma, the Lake Region, and Cinque Terre, which I’ve always wanted to see.

After the show ended Saturday afternoon, Patty and I drove back to Mathews, stopping by my museum in Waynesboro, Virginia, to sign a few things they needed and take our coffee break. The Valley is beautiful this time of year, and we live in such a wonderful part of the world—thank you, Lord, for keeping the tornados away from us! We are praying for all those who have been affected by the tumultuous weather. This has been some year so far!

Patty has gone on vacation to Colorado, and I’m back to my drawing board and enjoying the new paints that were a birthday gift from my friends at Frameworks Plus. There is no better gift for an artist than art supplies. It’s like Christmas!

My next show will be with Graphics, Etc., in Roanoke, Virginia, June 3-4. Gallery owner Mary Ann Warren and I will release two new prints during the show, and I’m also looking forward to visiting the Chico’s that’s next door to the gallery—one of my favorite places! Before the show on Friday, June 3, I’ll be having lunch at Virginia Tech with Sherie Durbin and a group who have asked me to paint Virginia Tech’s memorial walkway. They sent me some pictures to work from, but I’m going to take some more while I’m there. I’m excited to have lunch there and see the memorial walkway in person.

Peaceful Morn, above, and A Sunny Day at Old Main, below, will be released during my show with Graphics, Etc., in Roanoke, VA, June 3-4. A Sunny Day at Old Main features the beloved Old Main Building at The Baptist Orphanage of Virginia/Virginia Baptist Children’s Home in Salem, Virginia, which is now known as Hope Tree Family Services. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of A Sunny Day at Old Main will benefit Hope Tree Family Services. For more information, please contact Graphics, Etc., at 540-982-8441.

Happy Memorial Day to all, especially to our service men and women who make huge sacrifices every day to keep us safe, and love to all of those in this world who look forward to a peaceful, just way of living.

Love,
Pat

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