Art is the window to man’s soul. Without it, he would never be able to see beyond his immediate world; nor could the world see the man within.  ~ Claudia Lady Bird Johnson  (First Lady - wife of Lyndon B. Johnson)

Be Part of Art campaign has successfully reached its $1 million goal to meet Bend Foundation’s $500,000 matching challenge. This is an enormous accomplishment and indeed cause for celebration.
While the matching donation goal has been met, organizers hope to continue promoting dialogue and financial support for Bend’s public art collection.

“Our art collection is one of the things that makes this city special,” said Mike Hollern, CEO of Brooks Resources and a trustee of the Bend Foundation. “Our vision is to become a destination for art lovers everywhere. That means our work is not done. We hope to keep building our collection for years to come.”

And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled ‘till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store? What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more? - Dr. Suess

The cover of this A&E is graced with wonderful works of art brilliantly created by local artists. We hope you’ll take the time to visit these and other artists at their respective galleries during the holidays.
Art is magical, portraying the imaginations of the creators and bringing joy and even, perhaps, enlightenment to the viewer.

These small wonders, however, don’t always get appreciated during the holidays.

Instead much is written about the stress of the season...too much shopping, too many parties, too many expectations for gift giving and too many dynamics at the family gatherings.

If would be much more pleasant if we could gather around the spirit of the Christmas or Hanukah celebrations and approach them in a less commercial manner.

My mother began to go crazy. Not in a ‘Let’s paint the kitchen red!’ sort of way. But crazy in a ‘gas oven, toothpaste sandwich, I am God sort of way.
~Author Augusten Burroughs, Running with Scissors: A Memoir

The recent triumph and record attendance at the BendFilm festival is testimony to many variables: the founders, sponsors and volunteers of the event, the culture of our community and creativity of the writers, filmmakers and directors that radiates from the festival.

According to Ben Dittman, current board president, the festival saw a 35 percent increase in tickets sale sand 15 percent increase in attendance. The savvy director, Orit Schwartz, who calmly keeps all the parts running was especially pleased that 80 filmmakers from all parts of the globe attended this year’s festival.

Originally published in Cascade Business News October 3, 2011

by Pamela Hulse Andrews CEO/Founder

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