Posted on

To Spring from the Hand: A Celebration of Paulus Berensohn

Paulus-Portrait
Photograph and collage by True Kelly

Our neighbor, artist, dancer, and sage Paulus Berensohn recently celebrated his 80th birthday, and the Penland community celebrated with him. A Saturday afternoon birthday party on the porch at Northlight featured delicious cake and champagne, and an effusive outpouring of loving and grateful toasts to a man whose gentleness and generosity have inspired so many. The gathering was followed by the first American screening of Australian filmmaker Neil Lawrence’s new documentary To Spring From the Hand: The Life and Work of Paulus Berensohn. (Another screening took place later in the week at the Fine Arts Theatre in Asheville, bringing the film to a wider audience.)

 

Screening the film "To Spring from the Hand: The Life and Work of Paulus Berensohn" at Northlight.
Screening the film “To Spring from the Hand: The Life and Work of Paulus Berensohn” at Northlight.

 

Afterwards, the group walked together up to the head of Penland’s new hiking trail, the Paulus Path, for a dedication ceremony where Paulus buried an unfired clay bowl filled with flowers (returning his unfired clay works to the earth in this manner has long been a central part of Paulus’s artistic and spiritual practice) in the ground beneath the path. Heads were bowed, hands were held, tears were shed and hugs exchanged as he recited poetry celebrating nature, placed the bowl into a hole dug by volunteers from the assembled community, and then buried it by hand in the earth.

 

paulus02
Paulus dedicating a bowl to be offered to the earth at the opening of a new hiking trail named in his honor.

 

Happy birthday, Paulus! We love you, and hope your compassionate, contemplative spirit continues to infuse the very ground we walk here at Penland forever.

paulus03
Burying the ceremonial bowl.

 

 

 

Posted on

Kenny Pieper in the Asheville Citizen-Times

 

Kenny Pieper, Satin Blue Goblet Study
Satin Blue Goblet Study by Kenny Pieper, which won the grand prize in the North Carolina Artists Exhibition. (Photo by David Ramsey)

 

Our neighbor, long-time friend, and 2013 second session glass instructor Kenny Pieper was the grand prize winner in the North Carolina Artists Exhibition sponsored by the Raleigh Fine Art Center. This award prompted the Asheville Citizen-Times to publish a nice feature about Kenny, which includes this quote: “Glass can never be ‘mastered’ in the sense you reach a point you have complete control over it,” Pieper said. “It is material that begs to be worked with, not worked at. … Just the act of creating is a large part of what gives my life meaning and keeps me engaged with the world.”

You can read the whole article here.

 

Posted on

Up, Up the Mountain

up-the-mountain

Like the old woman said, it’s that time of year again. Time for summer: time for the frenzy, time for the rush, time for the incoming tide of energy, joy, and discovery up here on the mountain. Are you ready? Ready to go beyond what you thought you could do? To make more new friends than you thought possible? To eat too much, sleep too little, and drink in just the right amount of sunshine and fresh air? To work harder than you ever thought you would at something you love more than you ever imagined you might?

Are you ready to go up, up the mountain? Come on up. We’re here for the summer, and hope you will be too. See you soon!

♫ Penland summer! Here it comes! Oh, oh, oh! ♫