© 2008 Universal Press Syndicate release dates: December 27-January 2 52-1 (08) from The Mini Page © 2008 Universal Press Syndicate BETTY DEBNAM – Founding Editor and Editor at Large TM from The Mini Page © 2008 Universal Press Syndicate TM Please include all of the appropriate registered trademark symbols and copyright lines in any publication of The Mini Page ® . Georgia O’Keeffe and Ansel Adams were two artists who became famous during the early and middle 1900s. They shared friendship, a love of nature, and a love of the Southwest United States. They were also very different. Georgia was a painter who worked with deep, rich colors. Ansel was a photographer who worked in black and white. Their friendship and work are the focus of an exhibit at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. The Mini Page spoke to a curator* at the museum to learn more about these amazing artists. *A curator (KYUR-a-tuhr) is in charge of caring for something that is on exhibit, such as artwork in a museum or animals in a zoo. Georgia and Ansel Georgia and Ansel met in 1929 and were friends for 50 years. Georgia was more comfortable in nature than in a group of people. She would sell her paintings only to people she liked. Ansel loved to be around people. He wanted everybody to see his work. Georgia O’Keeffe Georgia O’Keeffe (1887- 1986) is famous for her imaginative paintings of nature in New Mexico. When she began painting, people were prejudiced against women artists. They thought women’s art might be pretty, but it wouldn’t be important. They believed women did not have valuable things to say. Georgia said she was an artist who happened to be a woman. She fought to be considered as a great artist, not as a “great woman artist.” She became one of the most respected artists in the world. Ansel Adams Ansel Adams (1902-1984) is famous for his photographs of nature. He grew up in San Francisco and showed his love for California in his work. He fought to save the environment. When Ansel began taking photographs, few people thought photography was art. For 50 years, he fought to change that opinion. Partly because of his work, photography is accepted as art today. Georgia’s husband, photographer Alfred Stieglitz, helped Ansel become known and respected. Georgia O’Keeffe, Ansel Adams Honoring Nature With Art Georgia O’Keeffe, Autumn Trees – The Maple, 1924 Oil on canvas, 36 x 30 inches, CR 474 Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, gift of The Burnett Foundation and Gerald and Kathleen Peters © Georgia O’Keeffe Museum This Georgia O’Keeffe painting is called “Autumn Trees — The Maple.” Ansel Adams. Tree and Clouds. Tucson, Arizona, c. 1944 Gelatin silver print, 10 1/16 x 12 11/16 inches Collection Center for Creative Photography, University of Arizona © The Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust This Ansel Adams photo is named “Tree and Clouds, Tucson, Arizona.” Compare these two works of art. Both show the artist’s view of a tree. The painting is in reds, blues and grays. The photo is in black and white. Can you see other differences? Can you see things that are similar? The exhibit “Georgia O’Keeffe and Ansel Adams: Natural Affinities” has been at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. After Jan. 4, the exhibit moves to West Palm Beach, Fla., and then to San Francisco. It was organized by the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum. Mini Spy . . . from The Mini Page © 2008 Universal Press Syndicate Mini Spy and her friends are visiting the High Sierras to take photos of some of the same scenes that Ansel Adams did. See if you can find: • letter y • bandage • cheese wedge • key • tea pot • snake • rabbit • letter E • skunk • number 8 • tooth • bird’s face from The Mini Page © 2008 Universal Press Syndicate TM Following their hearts Georgia O’Keeffe and Ansel Adams were both stubborn, in a good way.They believed they should follow what they felt deep in their own hearts. They did not believe they had to do what everyone else was doing. They did what they felt was the right thing to do. Experts say great art comes from the belief that you are doing your best work. Artists try to tell or show what matters to them. Painting and photography Painters might paint what they see in the real world, or they might paint what is in their minds. Photographers have to begin with what they can see in real life. Part of the art is in seeing an angle or view that others miss. Part of photography is also in how the picture is developed, or printed, either in the darkroom or digitally. Some artists focus on the ocean. Others especially love mountains, prairies or desert. Because the light is different in each place, what the artists see and create in each area will be different too. Ansel used light as a dramatic force. It made everything look majestic and grand. Georgia used light to show things stripped down to their true nature. Through the Artists’ Eyes Capturing light Georgia and Ansel both loved the light in the American Southwest. In Southwestern desert areas there is lower humidity than on the East Coast. This changes the light so it is brighter and sharper. Natural forms stand out more vividly. Experts say light sets the tone and mood of a scene. It also reveals forms. Artists spend a lot of effort looking for a place they love to work with. Words that remind us of Georgia O’Keeffe and Ansel Adams are hidden in the block below. Some words are hidden backward or diagonally. See if you can find: ART, PAINTING, PHOTOGRAPHS, BLACK, WHITE, COLOR, BRIGHT, DETAILS, ABSTRACT, SOUTHWEST, DESERT, MOUNTAINS, FRIENDS, DARKROOM, NATURE, LIGHT, VIEW, FAD, RESPECT, BELIEF. O’Keeffe and Adams TRY ’N FIND WOULD YOU LIKE TO PAINT OUTDOORS? LWB T RA T S EWH T U O S P I H R VWT C A R T S B A D A N G I I C L S L I A T E D E I A B H TG S DN E I R F MS N T L V T E H R E S P E C T E T U A I F A D T F E I L E B R I R C E NNMOO R K R A D T N E K WSH P A R G O T O H P GR O L OC S N I A T N U OM from The Mini Page © 2008 Universal Press Syndicate Basset Brown The News Hound’s TM Georgia O’Keeffe, Ranchos Church No. 1, 1929 Oil on canvas, 18 3/4 x 24 inches, CR 664 Norton Museum of Art, West Palm Beach, Florida © Georgia O’Keeffe Museum Ansel Adams, Saint Francis Church Ranchos de Taos, New Mexico, c. 1929 Gelatin silver print, 13 5/16 x 17 9/16 inches Collection Center for Creative Photography, University of Arizona © The Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust These works of art show two different ways the artists depict the same church. On the left is Georgia O’Keeffe’s “Ranchos Church No. 1.” The sky is pale blue, and the church is a pale tan color. On the right is Ansel Adams’ “Saint Francis Church Ranchos de Taos, New Mexico,” in black and white. They each show a different side of the church. What differences and similarities do you see in each artist’s view? Rookie Cookie’s Recipe Puddin’ and Fruit Dessert from The Mini Page © 2008 Universal Press Syndicate from The Mini Page © 2008 Universal Press Syndicate Meet Sofie, Teala and Danica Sofie Zamchick is the voice of Linny the Guinea Pig, Teala Dunn is the voice of Turtle Tuck, and Danica Lee is the voice of Ming- Ming Duckling in the Nickelodeon series “Wonder Pets!” Sofie, 14, grew up in Tenafly, N.J. She began playing the piano when she was 5. She plays drums and marimba in her middle school percussion group. She writes songs and has appeared in three operas. She acted as Michelle in the “American Girl Revue.” Teala, 11, from New Jersey, began modeling and acting when she was 3. She was the voice of Bunny in the movie “Enchanted.” She has appeared in the Nickelodeon show “The Naked Brothers Band.” Danica, 10, grew up in Colts Neck, N.J. She began acting in local plays when she was 4. She acts in school productions. She has performed on the piano at Carnegie Hall and will sing in an opera this year. She is also studying ballet, Chinese dance, French and the cello. You’ll need: • 1-ounce package sugar-free, fat-free instant vanilla pudding • 2 cups reduced-fat milk • 2 medium bananas • 1 cup sliced strawberries • 30 vanilla wafer cookies • 1 cup whipped dairy topping What to do: 1. Prepare vanilla pudding with 2 cups of milk according to package directions. Chill in refrigerator for 5 minutes. 2. Meanwhile, slice bananas and strawberries. 3. Break 15 cookies into pieces and place in bottom of an 8-inch-by-8-inch pan. 4. Spread fruit slices on top of broken cookies. Crumble remaining 15 cookies on top. 5. Stir 1 cup whipped topping into chilled pudding. Spread pudding mixture on top of cookies and fruit. 6. Chill for one hour. from The Mini Page © 2008 Universal Press Syndicate All the following jokes have something in common. Can you guess the common theme or category? Alison: Where do you hang up an idea? Amy: Inside a frame of mind! Art: How can you make your brush go fast? Andy: Take away the “B” and make it rush! Amos: How do you paint a rabbit purple? Angela: With purple hare spray! TM TM Go dot to dot and color this famous American painter. Sofie Zamchick, Teala Dunn and Danica Lee photo by Barbara Nitke/Nickelodeon from The Mini Page © 2008 Universal Press Syndicate Color Georgia O’Keeffe painted with rich, bright colors. She believed color showed emotion and mood. She chose reds, oranges and yellows for an exciting tone. She chose cool blues, purples and greens for calm or icy tones. Ansel Adams loved the challenge of being able to capture as many shades between black and white as possible. These layers of shading brought out crisp detail. Black and white also emphasized the power of the scene he captured. Adams printed all his own photos in his darkroom. He had more control over black and white printing than he would have had with color. Artistic Color and Style Abstract art When art is abstract, it might show an idea of something rather than a realistic image of the thing itself. One way artists make abstract art is to take a complicated form and simplify it. They subtract details to show a subject’s true nature. Georgia often painted this way. She took away details until she got to the heart of what she saw. Ansel sometimes went the opposite way. He made close-ups of the details. Another kind of abstract art begins in the artist’s brain. It does not start with something real. An example is when you are doodling, and you keep adding to your doodle to make a picture. Both Ansel and Georgia began with real things. The Mini Page Staff Betty Debnam - Founding Editor and Editor at Large Lisa Tarry - Managing Editor Lucy Lien - Associate Editor Wendy Daley - Artist Sites to see: http://americanart.si.edu www.okeeffemuseum.org www.creativephotography.org/education/ educatorsguides/anseladams The Mini Page thanks Eleanor Harvey, chief curator, Smithsonian American Art Museum, for help with this issue. Georgia O’Keeffe, Black Mesa Landscape, New Mexico/Out Back of Marie’s II, 1930 Oil on canvas, 24 1/4 x 36 1/4 inches, CR 730 Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, gift of The Burnett Foundation © Georgia O’Keeffe Museum Ansel Adams, Winter Sunrise, the Sierra Nevada from Lone Pine, California, 1944 Gelatin silver print, 15 5/8 x 19 1/4 inches Collection Center for Creative Photography, University of Arizona © The Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust Georgia O’Keeffe’s painting “Black Mesa Landscape, New Mexico/Out Back of Marie’s II,” and Ansel Adams’ “Winter Sunrise, the Sierra Nevada from Lone Pine, California,” both show pictures of mountains. Georgia O’Keeffe’s painting is in deep pinks, blues, grays and greens. Ansel Adams’ photo is in black and white. How do the artists’ mountains look different? How do they look the same? Georgia O’Keeffe, Abstraction White Rose, 1927 Oil on canvas, 36 x 30 inches, CR 599 Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, gift of The Burnett Foundation and The Georgia O’Keeffe Foundation © Georgia O’Keeffe Museum Ansel Adams, Foam, Merced River, Yosemite Valley, California, 1951 Gelatin silver print, 7 1/16 x 6 5/8 inches (smaller variant) Collection Center for Creative Photography, University of Arizona © The Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust Georgia O’Keeffe’s “Abstraction White Rose” (left) and Ansel Adams’ “Foam, Merced River, Yosemite Valley, California” are both abstract works of art. Both artists created the abstract views by coming in really close to their subjects. Look through your newspaper for artistic pictures. Next week The Mini Page presents the 2009 calendar. from The Mini Page © 2008 Universal Press Syndicate Supersport: Alex Ovechkin Height: 6-2 Birthdate: 9-17-85 Weight: 212 Hometown: Moscow, Russia Amid the swirl of skates and sticks in a National Hockey League game, Alex Ovechkin is easy to spot. And not just because he’s a big guy. The Washington Capitals’ left wing is one of the best players in the NHL. Last year the Russian-born star captured the league’s Most Valuable Player honor. He led the NHL in several categories, including most points scored (112) and most goals (65), a record for left-wingers. He also is the first player in 55 years to earn a spot on the All-NHL first team his first three years in the league. Alex was the No. 1 pick in the 2004 draft, and his performance has matched his promise. He grew up in an athletic family. His father, Mikhail, was a pro soccer player, and his mother,Tatyana, won two Olympic gold medals for the Soviet Union in basketball. Alex lists basketball as his second favorite sport behind hockey.He also likes to listen to music. Pasta and sushi are two of his favorite foods. Ovechkin supports charities and also gives away eight tickets to needy children and soldiers at each of the Capitals’ home games.While he’s popular in D.C., his opponents around the NHL hate to see the talented Russian coming. TM