Showing posts with label China. Show all posts
Showing posts with label China. Show all posts

Wednesday, December 24, 2014

The Art of Ping Pong

Here is a side of this Sedona artist you might not have known. I am learning to play ping pong, also known as table tennis. This picture was taken  recently at the USA National Championship, held in Las Vegas.To enter you must belong to this organization, which I do not. I was there with a friend who loves the sport, and enters different events.
 Open only to citizens of the United States, players compete in different events throughout the week, based on their skills and desire to play with people who cherish the sport as they do. Events are focused on which type of racquet used, as well as the player's rating. I am learning on a sandpaper paddle, shown in my hand. There is also hard bat, and the more popular called sponge.
 Competing in these events earns the player a numerical standing. Events are based on these numbers,as well as the type of racquets played. There are a lot of hot shot kids, and northern California is a center for instruction. Since ping pong is taken very seriously as a sport in China, it isn't surprising there are many very proficient young Chinese Americans in this sport.
It is a different world. I am a novice, but watching the good ones hit is like a ballet. Also, as in the world of art,  everyone is trying their best to win.This doesn't always happen, but how can you know unless you try?  

Friday, March 8, 2013

The International Arts

I guess I am not quite ready to leave the world of film I was so engrossed in. Here I am with the dancers from China. Can you imagine? These woman came from half way around the world to perform in our small town for their movie. The world of film, or any art, is quite international. When I go to my dictionary to define that word,it reads " of or pertaining to the relations between nations". The old expression " art transcends all boundaries" seems to be a true one.  
People come to Sedona from all over the world. This week it was to attend the magical world of films.Others want to visit a gallery and take home with them a bit of the magic  of the southwest. It feels  so nice to me when it is something that  I have created. I like to think about a ceramic piece sitting on a shelf, or hanging on the wall,in a country far away.
 Will people pick it up and say to themselves, I wonder who this artist is and what other creations they make? How did they do it? Or perhaps they just look up and smile because it gives them  pleasure, and reminds them where they bought it.
Anyone out there want to share their feeling about this?