{"product_id":"the-art-of-farming-sketches-of-a-life-in-the-country-9798990128910","title":"The Art of Farming: Sketches of a Life in the Country","description":"\u003cp\u003e Sam Bartlett's formidable antagonist has four legs. Sol, a miniature donkey, schemes daily to outwit his kindly caretaker. This delightful rural drama regales a symbiosis of plants, humans, dogs and livestock, with wild creatures observing from secluded, weedy perimeters. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e Retired from teaching, artist Sam farms thirty acres. His popular paintings of vast prairies at sunset are selling well. He plans to market organic herbs and produce, hiring local after-school teens. Begrudgingly raised on a farm, he once swore that when he grew up he'd never go back. Time and age break promises. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e Elysia boasts a pretty town square, complete with a handsome county courthouse. Sam's girlfriend, Annie, is a food writer who travels a lot. Bartlett Farm is her sanctuary. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Art of Farming\u003c\/i\u003e is a hopeful tale about stewardship of the land, the animals, and of each other. It honors the integrity of agriculture, as expressed in ancient literature and art. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e T. D. MOTLEY is a Texas painter and academic. Born in Beaumont, he's been drawing since age three. Motley is Professor Emeritus of Art and Art History at Dallas College. His drawings and paintings have been shown in many national exhibits and are included in numerous U.S. and Texas collections. Motley has lectured at the Dallas Museum of Art, the Umlauf Sculpture Garden and Museum, Austin, TX, the Meadows Museum at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, and the Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth. He has published several art museum catalogs, art periodical critiques and reviews, and National Endowment for Humanities research papers on art and literature of the Greeks and Romans. He is a contributing author for Eutopia and ArtSpiel and has written essays about mid-century modern Texas artists for DB\/Zumbeispiel and the Grace Museum, Abilene. Motley has received Fulbright Grants to Belgium, the Netherlands, and the UK. He and artist wife Rebecca, who live in Fort Worth, marketed organic, heirloom herbs and produce to North Texas chefs for years. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Stoney Creek Publishing Group","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50889827647762,"sku":"9798990128910","price":17.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_e8c6c959-c64b-4372-ad4a-8f2fa6263b12.jpg?v=1738164911","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/the-art-of-farming-sketches-of-a-life-in-the-country-9798990128910","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}