Author Archives: joanngilles

More than 100 years ago Michelin, the French travel-guide company, began. In 1931 it instituted a star rating system to identify a select few restaurants that exhibit culinary excellence. These restaurants are considered special enough to note when planning a … Continue reading →

“Color drives me wild!” I had the misfortune of uttering those words during an interview with a reporter from our local, small town newspaper. She was covering the opening of my first one person exhibition sometime in the late ‘80’s.  … Continue reading →

Over forty artists submitted more than 180 paintings to the upcoming show. As we laid them out along the walls, which they would eventually inhabit, folks trickled into the office.  Amidst the smell of coffee and morning chatter we could hear the … Continue reading →

This morning over coffee Otis wanted to show me something about a gadget’s new operating system. I wanted to say shush, I’m feeling things….but I didn’t. The hyper-sensitive world I visit fairly often is best kept between me and the … Continue reading →

Have you ever dreamt a painting? Some dreams can be so real that the details of locations and how people look, what they’re wearing and the light, temperature and weather can be clearly seen and felt. Dialogue can be memorable.  … Continue reading →

  The day is perfect.  You are on a journey, or at a museum, or in a park. Nature, or stirring works of art surround you, or the gritty patina of an historical place gets under your skin.  Or you … Continue reading →

A cool, dark theater on a hot day—aahhh.  This past weekend I was fortunate enough to watch a marvelous Shakespearean actor/director conduct a master class in delivering Shakespeare’s lines, aiding the actor in determining what the hell the man was … Continue reading →

I followed a circuitous route to get to the idea I want to present this week and the whole thing will likely make you laugh.  But there are strands of truth that I know I picked up on this journey.  … Continue reading →

The day after my 63rd birthday is a bit of a melancholy one.  I just heard that a long-time friend, one who is very close to people I love a lot, has 48 hours to live.  He is 63. The … Continue reading →