Oliver Sacks Documentary

It is often not the big things in life that make such a difference but the little things we do to fill our day that enrich us and make us feel grateful to be alive. I had that feeling this week when I made the decision to sit down to watch the PBS American Masters Series documentary Oliver Sacks: His Own Life. It is a wonderful tribute to a truly great human being.

I count Oliver Sacks as one of the most interesting thinkers of our time and have enjoyed so many of his books and lectures over the years...Mostly, he is an example of a deeply caring and compassionate human being who was full of love and respect for his patients and for life--a doctor who practiced medicine in such a humanistic and qualitative way, reviving the role of case histories, combining the literary and the scientific, providing his very ill patients with a narrative that validated and gave their lives meaning. As he was bringing many of these very ill patients out of their shells, he was also inviting and bringing the rest of the world in.

An individual full of quirks, Sacks was curious about absolutely everything, a true investigator, observer and storyteller of the human condition. He had many struggles in his life and his is not a Hollywood story but what a life! and what an inspiration!

This documentary is really well done and any of his sixteen books are well worth the read.

Eagle Rescue

If this isn't a feel good story, I don't know what is...
Enjoy!
(Shared with me by my friend Robert Piper.)

Emily Brzezinski

Emilie Brzezinski (1932-2022) has been on my blog idea list for over a year so I thought it was timely to write a bit about her now since she passed away earlier this week. I always take note of famous people whose parents were artists and I remember being surprised that Mika Brzezinksi's mom (of MSNBC's Morning Joe) was a really good sculptor. It seemed such an unlikely pair--outwardly straight-laced Mika had a chain saw yielding artist as a mom but then again, organized and seemingly left brained Morgan Mathiesen is my daughter too....

Brzezinski loved trees as I do and made it the primary subject of her work. I can relate to the intuitive nature of her process and the fact that spending time in her studio just brought her sheer pleasure. Here are a few examples of her monumental wood sculptures and a short video tribute produced a few years back by Mika and Joe Scarborough. .

Medecins Sans Frontieres

Painting of the Week

Green Garden mixed media on canvas 54” x 84”

About The Author

New York City based contemporary artist, Pam Smilow, began writing the creative lifestyle blog “things we love” in an effort to foster a sense of community during times of isolation and reflection. To read more about her and her art, visit her website and check out the essay written by the Hammond Museum's Frank Matheis entitled The Sophisticated Innocence of Pam Smilow.