Ashley Cecil

“It is art that makes life, makes interest, makes importance…and I know of no substitute whatever for the force and beauty of its process.” – Henry James in a letter to H.G. Wells, 1915

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7″ x 9″ watercolor
SOLD
See all artwork available for sale.

This painting was commissioned by a wonderful lady in Dallas, Texas as a gift for a family member who grew up in this house in Ashland, Kentucky. I wanted to share it with you since she had sent me an email weeks ago that contained the following line, which I thought was a perfect fit for a quote:

“If we are going to hold this old world together in any kind of sane, peaceful, compassionate manner…it will be done with art.” – Mildred Fennig

Thank you Millie!

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“It doesn’t work to leap a twenty-foot chasm in two ten-foot jumps.” – American Proverb

That’s right; just go for it!

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“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” – Anne Frank

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Ok, it’s a little mushy, but this quote certainly describes why I derive so much happiness from work which is of service to others:

“If you were all alone in the universe with no one to talk to, no one with which to share the beauty of the stars, to laugh with, to touch, what would be your purpose in life? It is other life, it is love, which gives your life meaning. This is harmony. We must discover the joy of each other, the joy of challenge, the joy of growth.” – Mitsugi Saotome

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I was at the St Louis art museum this past weekend and shot a picture of this quote, which I thought was idea for my blog:

“I found that I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn’t say in any other way – things that I had no words for.” – Georgia O’Keeffe

I obviously don’t have a lack of words for most of what I communicate through painting, but the concept certainly resonates with me.

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“The arts are the rain forests of society. They produce the oxygen of freedom, and they are the early warning system when freedom is in danger.” – June Wayne

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“Everybody can be great, because everybody can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You don’t have to know about Plato and Aristotle to serve. You don’t have to know Einstein’s “Theory of Relativity” to serve. You don’t have to know the Second Theory of Thermal Dynamics in physics to serve. You only need a heart full of grace, a soul generated by love, and you can be that servant.” – Martin Luther King Jr.

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“No matter how much you have achieved, you will always be merely good relative to what you can become. Greatness is an inherently dynamic process, not an end point. The moment you think of yourself as great, your slide towards mediocrity will have already begun.” – Jim Collins

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“If you don’t like the way the world is, you change it. You have an obligation to change it. You just do it one step at a time.” – Marian Wright Edelman

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“The important thing is this: To be able at any moment to sacrifice what we are for what we could become.” – Charles Dubois

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“Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person.” – Mother Teresa

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“Action is the catalyst that creates accomplishments. It is the path that takes us from uncrafted hopes to realized dreams.” – Thomas Huxley

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“If you think you’re too small to have an impact, try going to sleep with a mosquito.” – Anita Roddick

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“The [nonprofit] sector is the natural home of nonmajoritarian impulses, movements and values. It comfortably harbors innovators, maverick movements, groups which feel they must fight for their place in the sun, and critics of both liberal conservative persuasion.” – John W. Gardner

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