Flights Made to Order

The time has come! We are proudly accepting orders for Flight of the Mind, the 25-year retrospective and true labor of love for Anne and Marcus Thomas.

Currently, we are tracking the progress of the book, still in the care of our publisher, as it leaves the presses, receives all the finishing touches - a little gold leaf here, an embossed image there - finally to be bundled up and released into the wide world. We expect the first printing to land on our doorstep in the first week of December. All orders will be fulfilled immediately at that time, soaring straight and true to light underneath your Christmas Tree.

We know, too well, how uncertain, time, life, and the weather can be, so the arrival date is not 100% guaranteed. But there's also a chance we are being conservative with our arrival estimate. We can promise to stay in touch as the shipment of the first printing approaches. Please visit our Ordering FAQ page for detailed information on the process.

From now until October 15th, you will receive a 15% preferred customer discount. Gold and Platinum Editions include wonderful supplements to Marcus' story, such as a classy slipcover, a DVD showcasing everyday rituals and a cast of characters from life and art, and original signed prints - hummingbirds to lift the roof of your mind to heights of inspiration.

On Saturday, October 13th at 11am, we will be offering a special reading and preview of the book and DVD at Mars Hill College Homecoming.  All weekend, Marcus will be exhibiting his work in the Montague Building on the college campus. On Saturday morning, Leslee Johnson, author, will give a reading of selections accompanied by slides of the book itself. We're excited to share this glimpse of our work and love and look forward to seeing as many of our faithful readers, in so many ways our beloved community far and wide for whom we built this book, as possible.

Happy Anniversary, How Time Flies!

The month of June, which is fleeting and nearly past us, marks the one-year anniversary of the collaboration between Marcus, Anne and myself as writer of the narrative text of Flight of the Mind. It has been a magical year of lovely conversation and exciting creative work. A passage from the chapter, "Timing" reads as a nice anthem for this occasion and the promise of things to come:

The art of timing is subtle. But we all know when we've been blessed by virtue of being at the right place at the right time, with the right person. Timing, maybe even ore than mere time, is also inter-relational and gives birth to moments that have the quality of eternity - moments that can last forever.  . . . "You start with small ideas. You sell calendars door to door and work your way up to writing a book," Anne's vision for the future is as vivid as one of Marcus' painting. "We want people to understand that against all odds, great achievements can be made.

It is also the anniversary of the book's signature image, emblem and prevailing metaphor: How Time Flies with its rowdy raven and the artist's eye gazing out from the stolen pocketwatch. One year ago this month, the first sketches took shape, emerging out of the blue depths of Marcus' imagination.

We've also been blogging about our thoughts, dreams and progress on the book for a full year now, and on the anniversary of a retrospective, it's good to look back. The blog is representative of some of our best work and conversations, and it served as a testing space for many sections of the book. From reflection on the nature of time, to the nature of art, from poetry, to philosophy, to the labor of love all good work requires, we've had the time of our lives on this adventure!

A book, a bottle and a toast!

The Biltmore Estate has announced the winner of the wine label contest. . .
Out of nine fine designs, the winner was Marcus's creation, Biltmore Winter.


Visit the Biltmore Estate site to see the ranking and official announcement.

Visit our post about Marcus's idea behind Biltmore Winter.

Here's what Marcus and Anne have to say about the matter:

THRILLED!!!
What a joy to report Biltmore Estate wine label success!
Biltmore Winter will be the 2012 Christmas wine LABEL!
This victory that would not have been achieved without the enormous networking effort generously provided by an overwhelming amount of people, family, friends and friends of friends. The networking puzzle is an intricate process that generated the energy to achieve the impossible.
HOW SWEET IT IS!!!
Sincere thanks to everyone who shared the passion.
Hugs, handshakes and a hearty toast.....
Marcus, Anne

The book Flight of the Mind will be available by the time Biltmore releases their Christmas wine in the late summer/early autumn. There's talk of "A Book and a Bottle" launch. Check back for more details on the festivities as we finish up work on the book and raise a glass to the impossible possibility!

February Longing and Crayola Daydreams

Time and the weather are two elemental forces that influence human cares more than any others. The month of February intensifies this effect: the shortest month with the most infuriating weather. February teases flowers into bloom often to freeze them overnight. It brings the loveliest sunrises and the harshest winds. The four-year boon of an extra day ends up feeling just like any other day and is consumed as quickly as the rest.

But this year, with the gift of our extra day, let's vow to make February 29th a day to dream.

An interesting fact from Marcus' forthcoming book is that his first set of paints was a Crayola(R) watercolor set, bought for cheap and brought home by Anne and his sister Amanda for fun. And it was in the spirit of fun, with perhaps a little hopeful longing too, that Marcus took up the brush and began to once again color his days with creativity, wonder and imagination. Marcus's situation was as cold and inhospitable as February, but with the tease of a little art, the windows of his mind were thrown open and the promise of spring's new life - a transformation - flooded in.

And really, a set of good paints and crayons is exactly what February needs to lengthen the shadows, stretch out the hours, and bring the blush back to the world.

There is still precious time to vote for Marcus'wine label "Biltmore Winter" in the Biltmore Estate contest. Simply click the link and cast your vote.

What's your leap-year dream? Check back here on February 29th when I'll be posting dreams of all colors, and perhaps we'll have a voting contest to see which dream we'd most like to live.

Work and Love: Year of the Dragon

What are you bringing to life these days?

People all over the world celebrated the Chinese New Year this past week. Apparently, we should expect a big baby boom  because the dragon is such a lucky sign to be born under. I think this lucky blessedness holds true for bringing creative work to life as well, and right now, we are in a fortuitous place with Flight of the Mind: A Painter's Journey through Paralysis. 


The text is undergoing revision for the final draft, which is a tender and meaningful process. And Lydia Inglett is at work on the design and layout. We are getting glimpses of how the book will look, feel and sound, which heightens our expectations! Indeed, it is as if we are "expecting" in the parental sense of the word, and even when we are dreaming, we are preparing a space for our love and hard work to be at home in the world.

This weekend, Marcus and Anne return to the Naples Invitational Art Fest in Florida, where last year, Marcus won Best of Show. If you are anywhere close to Naples, stop by to see the evidence of their work and love in person.

In the next few days and weeks, we will chronicle progress on the book and use the blog to fine-tune some of the sections, testing out names on you, our faithful audience. You are part of this too, and just as it takes a community to raise a healthy child, without your receiving eyes and ears, we'd just be whistling in the dark (which has its merits, but becomes rather lonely). So thank you, and please join us as we expect the best and continue the work of bringing our love into the light of day.

Thanksgiving: Time Is a Gift

Watch time soar.

Marcus began work on the painting How Time Flies after the first couple of sessions of interviews with Leslee for his 25-year retrospective coffee-table-book.This image was taken during the creation of the painting. The raven is gaining his third dimension and appears to be tearing out of the canvas, over and beyond Marcus' pallet and implements. The pocket watch trails in flight, haplessly careening.


How Time Flies is a direct expression of Marcus' relationship with time – the revelry and ravages, the love and loss, the joy and the heartbreak, as he is (all of us really are) simultaneously blessed and held hostage by time.  In his honesty with himself, Marcus transcends his particular experience of time and touches on something universal. We see through Marcus’ own eyes something we can all recognize in our own relationship with the time of our lives.

Time around the table with friends.

We often catch ourselves lamenting the speed of time. Days, minutes, hours go by so fast, especially when we are with people we enjoy, doing work we love, creating something we believe in. We can't help but wish for more time. It's probably high time we recognized the commodity time is - we can spend it, waste it, lose it on crazy nights perhaps worth forgetting, we want to steal it, and oh if we could just stretch it out to last a little longer. . .

But time fools and foils us completely. We trick ourselves into thinking time is exhaustible when the truth about time is that we make it. Just like we make art, memories, love. "I cherish every moment," says Marcus, when he reflects on the time of his life, nailing the true spirit of Thanksgiving in his depiction of this holy theft."The raven seems like it could surpass time, and I’m hitching a ride – the fountain of life."

"An infinite perspective is the fountain of youth," Marcus says and this is what he shows us in How Time Flies. And this is what defines human thanksgiving - simultaneously blessed and held hostage.

So, here from this corner of the world to yours, wherever you may be: let us give thanks for the folks that make life and time meaningful, for good work, the people who inspire us, the moments we spend with one another . . thanks for art, and cadmium yellow, alzarin crimson, Payne's gray and cobalt blue, trickster ravens, lovers, friends, deep sky over the mystery ahead, and for time and life itself which gives us all these possibilities in which to dwell.

What are you thankful for in this moment? Add to the infinite list (into cyberspace, for which we are also thankful) below.

Kairos, the spirit of good timing, is with us

Bob films Marcus cruising through the lovely day at Lake James.

The ancient Greeks believed in two different aspects of time. Chronos embodied the passage of clock time, responsible for days, hours, minutes, the way we age. Kairos embodied the split-second opportunity, the spirit of good timing and the eternal instant. This spirit of "the right time," Kairos, is depicted balanced atop wheels with wings on his ankles, holding a sharp edge representing the "split" second in which opportunity arrives and must be seized.

As we work on capturing the last 25 years of Marcus' time creating art, we find ourselves blessed with many good moments in which we almost seem to transcend clock-time to dwell in possibility and opportunity -  moments that last a lifetime.  The spirit of Kairos hovers around us as the right people gather at the right place in the perfect time to create the book.

Lydia Inglett, Marcus, Leslee and Anne (behind the camera) discuss timing.

In the past couple weeks - how time flies! - we've begun to work with Lydia Inglett, who will design the book. That process will soon be underway and her vision is inspiring us all.

We've also spent some time in front of the camera ourselves, thanks to Bob Peck of revpictures, a talented videographer who is working with us to film the DVD portion of the project. Saturday afternoon found us all at Lake James. Vibrant leaves served as a fitting backdrop for a fireside chat which was profound and inspiring.

We cannot know what the next days, weeks and month will hold, but with the good work before us, the right people beside us, and the blessing of good timing, we know we are in for a harvest season of grand possibilities. 

Kairos, the spirit of good timing.

Happy Are the Painters

Marcus' mom, Betsy Thomas, recently presented Marcus with a slim hard-bound book she just happened to find in a used book store entitled Painting as a Pastime by Winston Churchill.

Churchill, who discovered painting late in life, revels in his discovery of the sheer pleasure of painting, describing it as a “joy ride in a paint-box.” And for this joyful journey, expectations should be left at the door, he says: “Audacity is the only ticket.”

“Painting is a companion with whom one may hope to walk a great part of life’s journey,” Mr. Churchill writes, a truth close to Marcus’ heart.  Each step is an opportunity to see more, do more and learn more.

Winston Churchill and Marcus Thomas both learned the same secret: painting transforms the hours. No matter what weight burdens the heart, or what frustration nags at the mind, no matter if infirmity cripples the body, painting releases the soul and launches it into wonder. Churchill proclaims:

The whole world is open with all its treasures. The simplest objects have their beauty. Every garden presents innumerable fascinating problems. Every land, every parish, has its own tale to tell. And there are many lands differing from each other in countless ways, and each presenting delicious variants of color, light, form and definition. Obviously, then, armed with a paint-box, one cannot be bored, one cannot be left at a loose end, one cannot ‘have several days on one’s hands.’ Good gracious! What there is to admire and how little time to see it in!

What little time indeed for all the wonder the artist's soul can hold! A daredevil at heart, game for the joy-ride painting invites, Marcus’ work gives substance to his audacity and joy, as well as his poetic soul. As he faithfully takes up his brush, cherishing each moment, time itself, ordinary and mundane, begins to glow golden.

“Happy are the painters," declares Mr. Churchill, "for they shall not be lonely. Light and color, peace and hope, will keep them company to the end, or almost to the end, of the day." He concludes his own testament to the art of painting with a exhortation strikingly similar to Marcus’ philosophy of life: “Go out into the sunlight and be happy with what you see.”

Q&A - Ask the Artist

For the next few weeks, this space will be an exploration - the back and forth of question and answer sessions with Marcus. He will honestly and authentically address any question put forth in good faith.

You, dear reader, are invited to submit your questions for the artist below in the comments.

The first of entry to the Q&A series is:

What are the limitations of being a quadriplegic painter? Are there some things you just can't do artistically?

Marcus says:

I am always trying to defy the odds. It amplifies the excitement and fuels my passion. So, instead of thinking about limitations, I "dwell in the possibilities." The deeper I explore the possibilities of my tools - the paint/brush - the more the idea of limitation fades.

Sure, there is a practical size constraint. Large is not strategically sound and involves unfair demands outside of my control. Accordingly, I strive to create modest size paintings that hopefully contain a lasting, large, voice.

Keeping to a modest size does not eliminate the need for assistance but does reduce it.

Painting various segments of any given scene requires the raising and lowering of the easel for my brush as well as rotating the painting surface itself. The perspective provided by rotation helps with accurate drawing, plus also allows a broader reach with the brush. If a painting looks good upside down, the possibilities are endless!

Saturday Reflection - Monday Direction

A classic shot of Lake James, courtesy of the Lake James homepage

Saturday at the lake has become a reliable diversion from the work week. With plenty of snacks, a good book (painting project) and friendly weather, we settle in for the day.

Anne remains on deck for an interview. She seems to be in delay mode most of the time, perhaps if the exchange could be conducted at the lake, the information would flow freely. Add a glass of wine to the equation?

My current painting projects consist of work needing to be completed for the book, Florida subjects for winter shows and miscellaneous scenes needed for creative growth. More hours in the day would be welcomed!

I am discovering that the more creative paintings provide me with a satisfied emotion, a more rewarding feeling of accomplishment. Such soul-reflecting works should insure longevity and provide me the inspiration to continue painting long after I am dead.

What a concept!

With lots of shows on the horizon the typical productive week will be altered  slightly. The norm is to enjoy a complete week of painting with one day of play. Soon, the show routine dictates a pace that Anne maneuvers through like a super human (super hero). Organizing business demands, travel requirements and a host of family stuff only scratching the surface of her list. Me, the adjustment is pathetic in comparison.

The book project will adapt with the schedule. Our goal is to have a mock book in toe when we visit the design company, located in Charleston S.C.. November is the target.

Hopefully, Leslee will join our journey, providing her expertise with text layout. Multiple ideas channeled into one goal should deliver the desired result.

Go / Team / Go !