Monthly Archives: February 2010

Dearest Grey Gardeners

Today’s light shone so softly through the skylight as the hustle & bustle of Manhattan could be as is always the case present and man made.

The light from the skylight although framed by man is not subject to the rules man.

With all the chaos of our world passing by above the skylight the ageless light of ions is reliable . Let us look into the light of any part of our day and stay focused in its everlasting presence it will be present long after we are not.,

`Life is light `

May I dedicate this to the lives of Mrs. Beale & her daughter Edie

Mother nature had made herself known over night, opened my Venetian blinds this sight , my garden is silent , dormant , and under some feet of snow.
The Earth does not belong to us we belong to the Earth.
When all human endeavors have been exhausted , nature will have the defining say, in all things.
It will be a lesson long in the making , that our planet is and has been revolving through the cosmos and we are simply quests . We have begun to wear out our welcome and although most would agree that it is beyond the control of most , we all will be subject to nature .
Let us understand that we are all responsible for each action environmentally , socially & spiritually.

If you have a chance perhaps you might step into my Garden ~Winter Snow~

Direct stone carving is exciting and allows one to travel in hopes that the subject unknown knows freedom.
It is a step that I have discovered that is truly optimistic,a pursuit of again an unknown subject that is within any given block of stone. To begin a sculpture in stone , or to pursue a desire to cast your faith in the unknown is allowing oneself the freedom and trust that the final work is born .

To dedicate , and commit such energy based on the hope that something good will be born , is the calling of a true optimist.
To train my hands to carve a figure based on the anatomy of a human being will be realized in my lifetime. However my excitement with direct carving allows me to better understand the tools and what they are capable of, thus training my hands for future endeavors. Direct carving is free of the disciplines needed , towards reaching the goal of a figure that is once again realistic and academic.
Allowing the vulnerable optimist to carve , express , feel , live in the hope that something good will be born is all I seek at this learning stage .
In the grand scheme of life if I can live in the hope that something good will be born , in stone, friendships,actions then this soul will be one with the world .

Staying focused on one idea has become one of my goals as of late, this focus will allow me to complete this project so I may be able to move on to the many others I have planned.

 Having works that are unfinished are more distracting to me then finding ideas .

This day I went with my film crew to my childhood neighborhood in Brooklyn New York. The line between the past and the present is very defined ,and I am reminded of my youth by just a glance down the side walk of my block on East 3rd St .

It has been there and will be there just as I was once there moved on from there and return now to reflect on what once was my past.
If one had told me that an entire era would have passed through my life during my lifetime I would have no doubt thought it unlikely.
However the days have arrived where I find myself looking for souls on a street that once was filled with life on a street in Brooklyn that was a complete universe of cultures, with a city named New York . These souls were many and each had there own distinct personality , each a real individual .
I stand with my memories which are very acute , this being both a blessing and a curse. It carries with it the longing for those whom I once shared a light .

 The light was new, all we had yet at the time it was all we needed.
The never ending cycle that is ours is fleeting,it life on its own terms not the terms we choose.
With the very breath that is mine at this moment let me give homage to those who have led me to understand these lessons.

An article from Advocate.com:

  Advocate.com:

http://www.advocate.com//News/Daily_News/2010/02/18/Gay_Fundraiser_Coming_to_Grey_Gardens/

Good Morning Grey Gardeners

Greenwood cemetery was our playground.The fence surrounding the cemetery had rusted ways in sections , we kids knew where the entrances were , and they were low to the ground. Then we set out into and amongst the monuments which were varied. The Whitney Mausoleum looks like a mansion , set on at the highest point in the five boroughs , it has a winding road that leads to the entrance. The bronze doors have stained glass , and around the perimeter are vaults. The names on these vaults is Kernochan. There are  slabs of stone that conceal what must be a stairwell.

My pals & I would split into groups and then draw the attention of the guards, who patrolled the many acres , looking to protect the sites from vandals. Once the guards knew we had entered the  the chase began , of course we were fast . No one ever was caught and no one ever vandalised a single thing. How we would just bolt and gasp for air , laughing so that we would have to lay low to regain our breath and then reveal our position , then the chase resumed.—

We were 4 brothers , we lived in the center of Brooklyn New York , between Greenwood Cemetery and Prospect Park. The entertainment as kids was to make our own go carts out of abandoned baby carriages, and worn out roller skates. Only a few of my buddies from my childhood had a skate key. That was a privilege.

Greenwood cemetery was where we played hid & seek , and ringo levio. It was in this graveyard where my first impressions of stone sculpture had made there impressions . There are three lakes in this cemetery , one where I was perched on a ledge poised to jump in to catch this bull frog when my best friend Ernie Coligneario grabbed my collar and prevented me from leaping . He did save my life yet at the time I was really ticked off at him.

My uncle Gasper made his own wine , had two gators in his yard , which his boys had as pets and had grown larger then the fish tank . They had to be brought out in the back yard. , eventually the city of New York had removed them , taken them to some sort of animal farm , no not Manhattan.

Within the city limits , just on the edge of Jamaica Bay is a sanctuary for migrating birds. It is one of the stop over for birds on there journey to either the north or south depending on the seasons.

 Having been there in every season of my life I have stood in silence as melting ice has allowed a space for landing birds. In the distance is the island of Manhattan a man made haven for the race.
The moon is steady in its orbit the birds know when to fly, the light of the day guides them to safe haven in a city man made.

Still as it has been for centuries and as still as it will be when we have passed through let us know that the earth does not belong to us , rather we belong to the earth.

My travels have landed me back home in New York City. I had been a guest in North Carolina Charlotte, where the musical Grey Gardens was being preformed .
In the years I have lived it has been many years since the very private and secluded days at the mansion.
I was told when I was a youth that my time at Grey Gardens would become a defining moment in my life. It had been a defining moment when I found comfort and safety  in a  hostile world during the most uncertain years of my life.
It is now over 35 years later and I am faced with the memories of my own past that have now been part of a feature length motion picture and the musical redefined in yet another city here in the United States.
In the time that has passed since my years at Mrs.Beales Grey Gardens I have discovered that I as a person have changed just a bit from the light hearted youth that did once and still does posses my soul.
Ive discovered that the more I live the more the greater I feel the very nature of my personality is that of a sensitive one and it does bring me such great joys .

In every way life has been written for me I have only to follow ., and in the same way I feel great joys there is also the fact that it leaves me open to feel everything in return, so be it I shall let myself feel each emotion that is in store for me as it is part of who I am.
To attempt to deny the person who I was born is now out of the question .

My only wish is that my teachers those who have loved me could share in what I have learned from them. Therefor I have grown stronger for those who have loved me have not given there love to a man who would not honor there spirit everyday of his life. I’m devoted to live the lessons each day of my life for they were taught to me by those who truly have loved me.
The musical Grey Gardens that I had witnessed this past week is the greatest & saddest joys of my recent days.
with all my respect towards all my fellow human beings, let it be known that I have lived and have known great joys and have been loved .
To those who have taught me essence of life I am humbled to have been in your company.

Dear Friends,

I’m pleased to announce I’ll be attending Queen City Theatre’s production of Grey Gardens in Charlotte, North Carolina.

The Queen City Theatre Company production stars Alyson Lowe in the double role of Edith Bouvier Beale in Act One and Little Edie Beale in the Act Two.

Alyson Lowe has been seen on stage before for Queen City Theatre Company in her Metrolina Theatre Association nominated role of Daisy Hilton in the musical Side Show.

Polly Adkins, a Charlotte theatre veteran portrays the demanding role of Mrs. Edith Beale in Act Two.

The cast also includes Billy Ensley as George Gould Strong, Karen Christensen as Young Edie, Joe Ermen-Dupree in the double role of Joe Kennedy and Jerry, William Stroupe as Major Bouvier and Norman Vincent Peale,  Jes Dugger, a regular to the Queen City Stage as Jacqueline Bouvier, Amanda Leigh Berkowitz as Lee Bouvier, and James Walker as Brooks Sr. and Jr.

I am eagerly anticipating seeing this new production which has been getting GREAT reviews.  I was recently interviewed by the local paper The Charlotte Observer about my time at Grey Gardens, you may view the article here.

It is a continuing source of joy for me to see my dear friends the Beales be portrayed by so many talented performers.  Hats off to Queen City Theatre for putting this production together, if you are able to attend purchase a ticket here and I’ll see you there!

All the best,

Jerry