Among the iconic images I have carried with me since childhood- along with Eyvind Earle's stunning graphic backgrounds for Disney's Sleeping Beauty, N.C.Wyeth's work, Leo & Diane Dillon's work for the Time-Life science series- is that of Scrooge McDuck swimming in a pool of golden coins in an animated cartoon. Not quite as noble nor as artistically profound as the others but it has stuck with me nevertheless.
I was reminded of that image last evening when I dumped the contents of an old plastic bag out onto my worktable. A friend had told me her husband would be bringing them for me to a meeting so it was not a total surprise. That said, I had no idea of the extraordinary glee I would feel when I saw them spilled out in such profusion and scale. All of the buttons are quite large- after all, buttons as a rule tend to be small and the ones I most often use on my art are no more than 1/2- 3/8" wide. These beauties are measured in inches not fractions of inches. And they're mine- all mine I tell you, mine!!!!! (but I get ahead of myself...)
I poured over them, sorted them, let them run through my fingers into a pile, held them up and in the case of the one that looks like it was made out of braided twizzlers, was tempted to lick them. Even now, as they rest in their bowl, I look at them and cannot believe my luck. I have no idea how they will be used- but I suspect most of them will remain in their bowl for a while to be admired.
I will never have a swimming pool full of money- I will never even have a swimming pool full of buttons to backstroke in like Mr. McDuck. But today I have a bowl full of gorgeous big buttons, given to me by a thoughtful friend, to run my fingers through- I am rich beyond belief.
