How very surprised and charmed I was to see these amazing little pieces of art appear on my Facebook stream yesterday -- so much so that I instantly wanted to share them with you. Jeanne Roe is an Oconomowoc (WI.) High School classmate of mine. We knew each other casually back then -- everyone knew everyone there, more or less -- but didn't connect again until the Facebook era. I had no idea that she was an artist until she posted these to her FB wall. These clever and spontaneous doodle-drawings, strongly reminiscent of the work of James Thurber, were made over a nine-year timespan, often done on bar napkins, hotel or airline notepaper, or other available scraps as Jeanne traveled the world, finally landing for good in Austin, Texas. They are such a sweet document of some of the moments of her life... skiing and swimming and camping, boyfriends and best friends, grumpy bar patrons, and devoted pets, sketched with a vibrancy that shows Jeanne's delightful personality. I just love them.
Nowadays, Jeanne runs a cool little store in Austin called Navidad Farms, which has sells the best damn pecans you've ever tasted and other unique Texas-style gifties. I am so glad she decided to share these drawings with her friends, so glad she allowed me to repost them here, and I hope you can share them, too. (Click on the drawings to enlarge.)
We are always more than people can see.
"Marci & I" - Rome, Italy, 1987
Germany, 1987
"Marci...On Our Way To London" - 1987
"In Europe... Missing My Dog Bealer" - 1987
"Lake Travis Living" - 1987
"The New TV! Life In Lakeway" - 1988
"Big Powderhorn Mountain, MI." - 1988
"Roadtrip to Port Isabelle" - 1988
"Enchanted Rock" - 1988
"Sub Races" - 1988
"Switzerland"
"Door County, Wisconsin"
"Jeanne and the Farm"- 1990
"Sad Missing Ellie Cat" - 1991
"Renee & Spencer" - 1992
"A Christmas Carol: Starring Bad-Tipper Bar Patron Jim" - 1992
"Bar Napkin Poem"
"Karen & I" - 1993
"Calendar Girls"
"Glitter Gulch" - 1994
"Sydney - Cairns" - 1994
"Bar Chicks" - 1996
"Karen & Danny" - 1997
© Copyright 2008- Marianne Spellman