Coincidences, serendipiti and the total eclipse of the sun

Cittadella, the perfect place to dream and contemplate

 Coincidences, serendipity and the total eclipse of the sun indeed!

Not much in common there, you might say, but read on, dear friends, read on...

This week my friend Mark who lives in Texas, gave me a running commentery on the eclipse and when I asked him 'How are the animals reacting?' He replied 'I dunno, but the purple martins have.stopped chirping'. I'll question him on this enigmatic response when he's here in Italy next month and when I've promised him a trip to Cittadella, la bella Cittadella. But, really! Just four and a half minutes of wonder for purple martins. Fear and trepidation more like

My dream whilst at school was to be a meteorologist, but I wasn't eligible for get a University place because I flunked maths (apparently my exam answers were too imaginative).

But I guess, looking back at my early life, I think I should have been an astrologist, because the moon and the stars have alway been a lifelong fascination for me, Typical question asked..... 'How come it spins in a way that it always keeps its smiling face pointing towards Earth? Such things stirred my imagination; still do.

I check out observatories in my travels. When I'm in London and in particular, Greenwich Obseratory, a visit  there is a must. In fact one such visit was during an eclipse a few years back. After the lecture, I asked the speaker 'How is it that the moon exactly covers the sun during an eclipse?'

Anwer;' It's a coincidence' A coincidence?! What nonsense1'

It's been doing that before we came out of the trees, (I mumbled under my breath)

So much for coincidence! My imagination prefers to think it is all by design.

So if a solar eclipse is not a stellar coincidence...how about this...........

....in a week which has seen these three things occur simultaneously

The eclipse; a magical but tiny fullstop in our lives.

My blog; about the magnetic Sibillini mountains, They pull in meteorites from space. and walking around you can find them scattered about if you look hard enough; very hard.

A Guardian article; About Le Marche, the hidden secret of Italy

Now, on to Serendipity (defined as the occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way). This is where we come into the picture; human beings as philosophers and creatives

I gave an on line lecture at the Siena Art Institute a couple of years back and had listed the people who had come into my life as if by chance. The list was long. And they were all serendipitous occurences.

Too many to relate, but here's a good example,

My wedding day!

We were asked by my to be wife's friend, Renata if she might recite a poem at the ceremony in Castelfranco. She asked me to find it for her in Italian, it was Ithaka by Cavafy.

I said I would.......... but I forgot, much to the fury of wife, soon to be and Renata. So on the evening before the special day, I rushed into town  to look for a book of his poems. This idea was greeted by scorn and laughter and I was assured that I didn't have dog's chance in hell of finding one. In Castelfranco? You must be kidding! But I found a little bookshop, the only one in town, and I asked the owner if he by chance had the book in store, or at least the poem Ithaka, by Cavafy. and, giving me that Italian outstretched arms shrug, he told me he'd never heard of it, or him. And there I stood, aghast with an accompanying fear laden numbness. Then, guess what? From the end of a long corridor came a voice. Ithaka? I'm reading it at this very moment!! 

A customer, perhaps an angel., shouted down the hall.

Wow! and the earth began to spin again and the next morning the poem was read beautifully by Renata, and the day was saved. Possibly marriage too.

So, I trust in, believe in and champion serendipity. And angels.

As most artists do.

Art is not, and never can be a learned rational activity, and we believe in Muses, Angels and we love this planet. We love nature, trees and want to protect all that is wonderful in this world, its trees, forest. oceans and animals.

And our Art is our gift back to life. Our way of saying thank you.

EXTRA INFO...

My next art and creativity workshop in English isThursday, May 30 (arrive) to Wednesday, June 5 (leave) at Cittadella

'The vibrations of Nature'

Contact Michael; micermice@gmail.com if you'd like to know more.

Grazie.

La storia da Cittadella

La Cittadella dei Sibillini è il nostro rifugio creativo ormai da circa otto anni. Anche se l'avevo scoperto per la prima volta 25 anni fa quando avevo deciso di scappare dalla Toscana verso una terra lontana dall'altra parte della Penisola;...... Le Marche.

    il ristorante di Cittadella

Mi ero fatto dei nuovi migliori amici e un fine settimana mi invitarono a unirmi a loro per pranzo in un luogo segreto sui monti Sibillini e ad andare a passeggiare nei boschi. Ma anche per andare in una trattoria di campagna chiamata Cittadella, e incontrare il proprietario Silvio, la cui guest house è adagiata nella valle, sotto il maestoso Monte Vettore. Oltre al ristorante stile Hobbit, c'era una cantina, fornita di una sorprendente varietà di vini e il nostro ospite ci ha invitato a unirci a lui per un pranzo (che si è trasformato in un'ora prolungata di aperitivo o più); un lungo pomeriggio di festa per nulla in particolare, tranne forse semplicemente per la vita stessa, appollaiati come eravamo sul fianco di una montagna, a circa 1.800 metri nel cielo.

    Morning Ci Kung, by the pool

E ne sono rimasto colpito....

..........Dalla bellezza del paesaggio.

Dai racconti della sua affascinante storia; delle tribù Piceni che qui abitavano; un popolo la cui origine non è mai stata rintracciata ma la cui arte e cultura erano di una bellezza mozzafiato

   Gong session with Giovanni

E a loro volta furono conquistati da quei prepotenti, i romani, che costruirono città e paesi nelle campagne fino all'antica città greca di Ancona.

Dalle storie di fate e streghe che ancora abbondano qui, e rendersi conto che le antiche religioni della natura prosperano ancora oggi qui

E poi il fascino seducente di Cittadella stessa, del suo enigmatico proprietario Silvio, che nel suo modo mite, incarna l'essenza stessa di questa parte dell'Appennino; i fiumi, le foreste, le montagne e i loro ruscelli gorgoglianti. Come se fossero incorporati nel suo DNA.

  Caffè d'arte

Scrivendo questo, mi viene in mente ciò che l'artista e insegnante americano Robert Henri scrisse ai suoi studenti circa 130 anni fa: "L'obiettivo non è solo fare arte, ma piuttosto essere in quello stato d'animo in cui l'arte diventa inevitabile

  Ritrovo mattutino

E sì, Cittadella è uno stato d'animo. Per esercitarsi la mattina presto a bordo piscina; fare Tai Chi e Chi Kung sotto il Monte Vettore nell'aria cristallina. Per aprire i nostri sensi al vento e al cielo sconfinato, ai suoni che risvegliano la natura, al coro del canto degli uccelli. E più tardi, dopo la colazione, passeggiata nel bosco; immergere le mani in un ruscello di montagna e schizzarci la faccia; per dare il buongiorno alla vita, a Madre Natura.

   Tempo per riposarsi e contemplare

E in effetti, è qui che ci trova la creatività

Scorre attraverso di noi

E sperimentiamo il bisogno di creare oltre noi stessi, di creare immagini, creare arte forestale, scrivere poesie, musica; e ridere insieme della nostra fortuna di essere qui, in questo momento, in questo posto.

Per ridare vita alla vita,

Michael

Per ulteriori informazioni o domande sui workshop di Michael, visitare il suo sito web www.michaeledridgestudio.com

Oppure puoi inviargli un'e-mail a micermice@gmail.com

ABOUT CITTADELLA (2)

 La Cittadella dei Sibillini has been our creativiy retreat for some eight years now. Although I'd first discovered it 25 years ago when I had decided to escape from Tuscany to a far off land on the other side of the Peninsula;...... Le Marche. 

    the restaurant at Cittadella

I'd made some new best friends and one weekend they invited me to join them for lunch at a secret venue in the Sibillini mountains, andto go walking there in the forests. But also to go to a country restaurant called Cittadella, and to meet the owner Silvio, whose guest house nestles in the valley, beneath the majestic Mount Vettore. As well as the Hobbit like restaurant, there was a wine cellar, stocked with an astonishing variet of wines and our host  invited us to join him for a lunch (which drifted into an extended aperitifs hour or more); a long afternoon of celebration about nothing in particular, except maybe it was simply of life itself, perched as we were on a mountainside, some 1,800 metres in the sky.

    Morning Ci Kung, by the pool

And I was smitten....

..........By the beauty of the landscape.

By tales of its fascinating history; of the Piceni tribes who lived here; a people whose origin has never been traced but whose art and culture was breathlessly beautiful

   Gong session with Giovanni

And they in turn conquered by those bullies, the Romans, who built cities and towns across the countryside as far north as the ancient Greek City of Ancona.

By the stories of fairies and witches who still abound here, and to realise that the ancient Nature Religions are still thiving here to this day

And then the seductive charm of Cittadella itself, of its enigmatic owner Silvio, who in his mild way, embodies the very essence of this part of the Apenines; the rivers, the forests, the mountains and their bubbling streams. As if they are embedded in his DNA.

  Art café

Writing this, I am reminded of what the American artist and teacher, Robert Henri, wrote to his students some 130 years ago, that 'The objective isn't just to make art, but rather to be in that state of mind where art becomes inevitable

   Morning get together

And yes, Cittadella is a state of mind. To excercise early of a morning by the side of the pool; to do Tai Chi and Chi Kung beneath Mt Vettore in the crystal clean air. To open our senses to the wind and the boundless sky, to the awakening sounds of nature, the birdsong chorus. And later, after breakfsat, walking in the forest; cupping our hands into a mountain stream and splashing our faces; to say good morning to life, to Mother Nature.

 Time to rest and contemplate

And indeed, this is where creativity finds us

It flows through us

And we experience the urge to create beyond ourselves, to make images, to make forest art, to write poetry, music; and to laugh together at our good fortune to be here, at this time, at this place.

To give life back to life,

Michael

For further information or questions about Michael's workshops, go to his website www.michaeledridgestudio.com

Or you can mail him on micermice@gmail.com

And for this week's GUARDIAN write up on Le Marche, read this

art/4;lAND ART UPDATE

I wrote this a few days back in my previous blog

'But we are no longer children and the experience is different for us. It is deeper and longer lasting, It is as if it is something which we cannot summon, but one which arrives as a gift, as if it is in a message brought to us by a bird or a totem animal. I have had many of such experiences, but now is not the time to write about them;  I will in my next blog'

And here it is. This just popped up from the ether two days ago, as if by chance...It's a reel

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C4DiFwOoNqv/?igsh=Mjljams2aTB5dHFr

I have had the good fortune of meeting and being taught by a Shaman in the States and this brings back memories, stories to tell.

Sometime.

But here's a poem in the meantime from my poet friend Colin Pink

My mountain workshops in summer are open for booking now and you can read about them on my site , which is in Italian and English.

They are based at Cittadella, in the Sibillni National Park of Le Marche in Italy; an area steeped in history and blessed by nature. It's an artist's refuge, a place to rediscover yourselves with painting, poetry, walking in the wild and making land art by the gushing mountain streams, TaiChi and Ci Kung too of a morning before breakfast

Contact Michael at micermice@gmail.com

 

Art/4; land art

 

    the Fiastra river

Art/4;Nature;

Land art

Yesterday morning found us four artists at the river of Fiastra, which flows past the Abbey of the same name. And flowing it was, at a noisy and phenomenal rate after the heavy rains of the last weekend. We groped our way through thickets and brier and had to jump down into a steep ditch and into mud to get near to the river edge

We never ever plan exactly what we are going to do on our fortnightly excursions into the wild, but we always come prepared with paints and colours and paper, inks, pens, you name it, just in case.

But as soon as we'd reached the river bed, whatever intentions we might have had, dissolved and were washed down stream, because..

We were instantly making land art, on our knees, scabbling about, collecting twigs, leaves, stones, branches, wild flowers; whatever we came across to.... well, it's hard to say really, because, .....because, we had become totally absorbed. No ideas coming from our heads, (but from who knows where ?); as if it were the river, or the trees guiding our hands.

We lost track of time and some auto instinct had me look at my watch and low and behold we were minutes away from a lunch I'd booked at a local pub and we were hungry.

Food before art I always say, so I zoomed off to secure our table and the others followed rapidly as if by magic, arriving just minutes after me. Mysterious that, because they'd been miles behind.

So there you have it.

We discovered something new in our creative lives. Land art takes you into a realm, a state of mind perhaps, or even no mind, which feels good, which feels peaceful and which washed away the monkey chatter in our brains, as swiftly as a crashing river.

We've done this in our childhood, we remember all these innocent things from when we were kids; sand castles on the beach, collecting shells and driftwood, making love promises on trees and daisy chains for our first love when we are young, gathering blackberries and mushrooms and making little boats out of twigs and leaves to float our wishes to a magic kingdom in our imaginations, blowing dandeline wishes into the sky.

But we are no longer children and the experience is different for us. It is deeper and longer lasting, It is as if it is something which we cannot summon, but one which arrives as a gift, as if it is in a message brought to us by a bird or a totem animal. I have had many of such experiences, but now is not the time to write about them;  I will in my next blog

If you don't mind waiting ;0)

And we will meet again......... by the river!

Best wishes,

Michael

You can contact Michael for more about his art/nature/workshops in Italy here

or contact him at micermice@gmail.com

It's Imbolc

 Good morning!

It's the first of February, my favourite day. It's Imbolc, the ancient celtic festival which celebrates the return of the light; an auspicious day to launch my new website, waving it fondly on its way.
I've squashed everything into it, everything I think, feel and do; my art, my workshops in Italy, my on2one sessions here too, my blogs and, a new feature, my Podcasts.
And I'm throwing in a new painting from my Forest series, just for good measure, It's about light and water, as you will no doubt imagine.
Happy Imbolc, and here's the website; michaeleldridgestudio.com
Michael

The things you do for art. ART/4 sensorial day 3

 At  Smerillo late December 

Smerillo is a little town close to Amandola where we once lived. In altitude it is nearly 900 metres and it is renowned for its chestnut festivals and  for its spectacular views across the entire spectrum of Le Marche.

So, what are we doing wedged inside this crack in the mountain side you might wonder?

Well, it was supposed to be one of our art sensorial days (we being our little art group ART/4;nature)

Every three weeks or so we venture out into forests, mountains, rivers etc and simply absorb nature, its air, its trees and bushes, ite light and its sounds. And this was one of those days.

Not quite so though

Because it was cold, not 9C as it was when I left home but barely 3C with a strenghtening easterly wind.

And the whole town was closed; not a bar open and another human being in sight except  a pixie like gentleman who assured us that indeed Wednesday wasn't the day to visit; everything closed, except a huge restaurant which was to open at 12,30. We booked lunch for later and went exploring.

Now I must explain that Smerillo has a distinctly ex Hippy feel about it; that  'Where have all the Hippies gone' sort of feeling, with those lingering and faded colours still discernable here and there on closed bars and pubs (just one) too, with elfic names. You know what I mean.

                                  This is not an Elf but me with a new best tabby cat friend

The Elf like lovely young girl at the empty restaurant told us that the equally famous ring around Smerillo walk had been closed off, because it was dangerous after recent storms, but she winked and said go for it anyway there's nobody around to stop you

We did, and got a third of the way around and began to think it was an elfik trick.

Because you know, Elves can invisibilise themeslves (and others) at whim,

Bur we continued bravely on, slipping and sliding as we approached the also equally famous gola ahead (see above)

The thing about Smerillo, is that it's unusual

All the little hilltop towns hereabouts are also similarly so, each in their own particular way.

And our lives, as artists; are equally unusual and would we have it any other way? So it follows, doesn't it that we hate so called normality and avoid it in every way and every day possible. 

We yearn for a world  where the confines of conformity and the cultural herding and indoctrination of 

mankind abates and is unravelled.

So, you see, our monthly art trips, into mountains and forests, serve as a sort of deconditioning, to put us back into that state of being where art and creativity become its natural outcome.

To quote Robert Henri 'The objective isn't just to make art, it is to arrive in that state where art becomes inevitable'

I'll  leave you with a forest painting from our previous art adventure

Buon Anno,

Michael

Should you wish to can contact me, to get information about my art workshops in Italy, or about my work, you'll find me via my new website, michaeleldridgestudio.com