The look Ottie gave my wife and I was inspiring with just a spark of intellect. Minutes earlier we had been on our daily evening walk enjoying the different shades of a Kentucky verdent scenery as the sun warmed our skin and the wind invigorated our senses. As we walked towards an incredibly beautiful vista a man stuck his head out of his wood trimmed home “Hey, I like what you are doing”. I replied with a question??? This stranger soon explained how he noticed that every night my wife and I took the time to enjoy the view and each other. Which brings us back to the inspiring look…”Ya, know Robert – since you are an artist I want to commission you to do a series of prints that capture the essence and spirituality of the Amish spirit. These prints will be sold mostly in Pennsylvania in Amish gift shops and some online”…
This journey in art (back in 1998) led to several books read by the artist, several visits to Amish homes and business’s and lots of collaboration between Ottie and myself. My family learned a lot about these independent people but most of all we learned to respect their way of life and admiration for their ability to do their own thing and not be influenced by the rest of the world. The series of prints were sold nation-wide with a total of 12 in the series. The work titled “The Visit” was printed in the 2003 book “My Amish Heritage” written by Ottie Garrett. Thank you for reading my blog and check out my website at roberthowelltx.com.
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Love this!Very inspiring……..