photo courtesy of ARC

When Marsha read the book Color, A Natural History of the Palette, by Victoria Finlay she felt she had found a kindred soul. After viewing the art exhibit Garden and Cosmos: the royal paintings of Jodhpur at the Seattle Art Museum, Hollingsworth emailed Finlay, who lives in London, to tell her about the show, which viewed in London after it’s Seattle run.  That email opened the door for an exchange between the two women resulting in the purchase of 6 of Hollingsworth’s works by The Alliance of Religions and Conservation (ARC), a secular body that helps major religions of the world develop environmental programs based on their own core teachings, beliefs and practices. Finlay is the Communications Director for ARC and is using Hollingsworth’s art in publications, presentations, and on the ARC web site. Recently ARC assisted Sikh leader Balbir Singh Seechewal, (see photo, taken by Finlay) known throughout the Punjab region of India as “Eco Baba” for his leadership in river cleanup projects, publish a Guide to the Sikh Five Year Plan with Hollingsworth’s piece entitled Libirdy on the cover.

Pen and wash sketches inspired by Northwest Native art are part of an exhibit of Marsha’s that was on display during September at the Port Townsend library. An element of the exhibit is a little native American canoe Marsha’s father, now 92 years old, found on a beach near Tacoma 80 years ago.

Indians from Vancouver Island canoed down each year to pick hops in Puyallup.  This little canoe had a string on it and may have been a toy, trailed along  on one of those yearly trips.