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| "Ursula" by Bill Hastings |
Meet Ursula. She’s about three feet tall and nearly as wide. She has very little face, poor thing, but hips to die for.
All those petals forming her exterior were once shiny. She’s aged a bit in nearly twenty years. But age has been kind to Ursula. The obnoxious glint of youth mellowed into a lovely multi-hued coat of lavenders, blues and grays with just a smidge of glint.
It’s very tasteful.
Ursula doesn’t run. Those little legs are sturdy enough to hold her upright but couldn’t possibly stretch out into anything like a trot never mind a full-out run. She has small toy wheels standing in (excuse the pun) for feet. Poor Ursula. What happened to her feet? For that matter, what happened to her face? Is Ursula a laboratory clone that went bad? Ursula is much more seductive from the backside than from the front. I wonder if it’s the same for me? I can’t actually see my backside but I’m pretty sure it isn’t nearly as curvy as Ursula’s.
Let’s take a minute and give thanks for wheels. Ursula’s wheels are charming and sweet and transform an almost-animal into a toy. All she needs is a cool necklace with a long string attached. With that, some kid could drag poor Ursula around the block. I never actually understood the pleasure of dragging around a toy. My own children totally ignored pull toys. I give them a lot of credit for showing good sense at an early age.
But wait a minute! Wheels play a big part in war too! Tanks! The Trojan Horse! Caissons go rolling along. And Ursula has that full metal jacket. Ursula is not as innocent as she first seemed. Ursula could be an agent of war!
I have the Trojan Sheep coming to live in my living room!
Ursula sprang from the imagination and hands of Bill Hastings who teaches art at Ithaca College. I saw Ursula in an exhibit in the early 2000s. Mr. Hastings was new in town. I became somewhat obsessed with Ursula and corresponded with Mr. Hastings once or twice over the years. (Ursula lived in his barn.) Finally, a month or two ago, I decided that Ursula needed to come live with me.
In about two weeks, I’m giving a talk in Pittsford about collecting art. I don’t really have much to say on the subject. Except this: look at a lot of art. Go back sometimes, and look at the same thing more than once. Think carefully. Things in our surroundings own a piece of us. What are you willing to make space for?
Sometimes, you maybe can make those decisions instantly but at others, time is your friend. Contact artists. They want to know you still remember something they made and put out there even if the “something” is gone.
On this Valentine’s Day, it maybe isn’t too late to express a long, lost love. You might get your Ursula.
2 comments:
Totally enjoyed this read! Ursula has a wonderful new home❣️
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