I'd like to thank the Academy....

Well! Color me golden, and basking in the light of high praise. Debby at Drawing the Motmot has presented me with a Creative Blogger Award! What a nice note to come home to after a week on the road.

Of course, the fabulous thing about awards in the blogosphere is that honorees get to tap the next round of award recipients.

Naturally, I'd award Debby right back, but that would make us dizzy. I stumbled upon her blog early in my own posting adventures, and was immediately inspired to attempt production of something equally insightful, informative, and beautiful. I fall short most of the time, mostly because she keeps raising the bar.

Since Debby's done a stellar job of honoring our fellow artist/naturalists, I'd like to tap a few of the creatives in other fields who challenge, inspire, and some days perplex me.

Envelope, please....

1) Alyson Stanfield is the beauty and brains behind the Art Biz Blog. She's an art career coach who won't buy in to whiny artist excuses, and she's the reason I started blogging in the first place. She has recently put her money where her mouth is and finished her new book, hooray!-- so kudos and creativity awards are definitely in order. Alyson: You were right, you were right, you were right. Dang it.

2) Bill Schmoker is one of those people who you SWEAR must have a half dozen clones running around. He's an excellent and active birder, a dynamite photographer, a doting father, AND a high school science teacher. Not to mention erudite blogger and Sunday funnies analyst. Pop on over to BrdPics and see what I mean.

3) I'm afraid you'll need skills in either French or Japanese (or a decent online translator) to read the notes accompanying Tsunéhiko Kuwabara's charming sketches, but tell the truth. Don't you always look at the pictures first, anyway? I knew Tsunéhiko first as a sculptor, and it's fun to see his take on pencil and paper.

4) Okay, okay. I confess. I recently got a Second Life. (Which really ought to be called Fourth or Fifth or Sixth Life, but who's counting?) I'm finding this virtual world darned intriguing, and meeting some interesting folks there, to boot. Hackshaven Harford is the Second Life alter ego of the project manager for NOAA's education island, and while I don't yet understand some of the subtleties of the SL vernacular, I DO understand amazing feats of creativity and discovery in a new medium. It's pretty much 180 degrees from my own work, and that's what makes it so fun. If you, too, have a Second Life: Go to Meteora. Ride the hurricane chaser. Swim in the tsunami. Watch Science on a Sphere. And watch out for cows plummeting from the sky. Just set a timer so you know when to go home.

5) And finally, Katherine Tyrrell's blog, Making a Mark, is an amazing repository of exhibition notes, art history, sketches, commentary, and more arts-related links than you can possibly get through before you have to look like you're working again.