Art among the hoodoes

My dear Friends
I couldn't leave the Badlands (although I am back in toronto) without describing one of the most beautiful aspects of the trip-the art. I met Leila and Dan in the art gallery in Drumheller, and i was struck by their welcome as well as their art. The name Leila in Hebrew and Arabic means Night and this unusual lady has developed a great talent for abstract art. Trained in the Red Deer College, not too far from Drumheller, which is visited by international artists, she paints large canvases on what seem to me to be deeply Biblical themes, with a difference...for example the one I liked best was an angular-faced man with a long beard and body, all covered in 'eyes'...yes, definitely a visionary, like Moses or Abraham.

Leila drove me to Carbon, a 'one-horse' town, but with an art gallery and the best upright piano with smooth silvery keys that i have played on for a long time. Actually I played on another beautiful upright while I was out West, followed by a Steinway Grand when I returned, but that is another story. Carefully observing the exhibits in Carbon, my eye fell upon a beautiful pot which Dan, Leila's husband had made, and i had just enough money to buy it.

Out back of the gallery there is a beautiful garden, with many herbs and resting places. A nice gentleman showed us round. It is Leila's dream to one day visit the galleries of London and Paris, and I hope with all my heart that she will be able to do so.

Shalom for now
Sister Gila