46 | AUGUST 5 • 2021

ARTS&LIFE
ART

E

llen Stone defines her West
Bloomfield residence as more of an
art gallery than a home.
Her walls are covered with collected
works by famous artists and include those
with Jewish heritage, such
as Peter Max, Yaacov Agam
and Max Fleischer. Between
pieces of functional furniture,
there are three-dimensional
artworks that distract from
conventional seating and
accents.
On her approximately one acre of
land, she has arranged more artistry
through the natural beauty of plant life

and landscaping joined with man- and
woman-made creativity as expressed
through sculptured structures. Stone
describes her yard as a sculpture park,
and even her mailbox has color and an
imaginative design.
Although trained as a psychotherapist
at the University of Michigan and
maintaining a private practice in an office
in the same city as her home, Stone has

entered the world of originating her own
expressionist paintings. She displays her
projects alongside the others.
To celebrate the opening of private and
public spaces as pandemic isolation draws
down, Stone is opening her garden and
home for the first time to present an art
show and sale — Art in the Garden — to
benefit the Mint Artists Guild, a nonprofit
Detroit organization that helps emerging
teen artists develop their innovative
abilities and marketing skills.
The event, which runs 4-8 p.m.
Thursday, Aug. 12, features the for-sale
work of 10 accomplished metro artists and
includes expressionistic and “funky figure”

paintings by Stone, who impulsively began
self-expression through art eight years
ago.
With the wide range of garden space,
artists will be placed in their individual
sections distanced from one another, all
jointly chosen by Stone and co-chair Kelly
O’Neill, a sculptor who adds glass and clay
accents to metal and also serves as a Mint
board member.

“I started painting on a whim,” Stone
said. “I live on a dead-end street, and all
the little kids would ride their bikes and
watch me paint. Over time, they would
say it’s getting better. I took my first class
through the Birmingham Bloomfield Art
Center (BBAC) — an abstract art class —
last year. We always want to keep doing
better.”
Among the artists showcasing their
work will be Meaghan Blankenship
(acrylic and watercolor paintings), Donald

Artwork by
Ellen Stone

Details
Art in the Garden runs 4-8
p.m. Thursday, Aug. 12, in
West Bloomfield. Free; Mint
Guild donations are welcome.
To register, go to eventbrite.
com/e/163310454967. For
information, call (248) 661-2498.

Ellen Stone opens home and garden
for event to benefit Mint Artists Guild.

SUZANNE CHESSLER CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Ellen Stone

Garden

in the
Art

“I STARTED PAINTING ON A WHIM ... I LIVE
ON A DEAD-END STREET, AND ALL THE
LITTLE KIDS WOULD RIDE THEIR BIKES
AND WATCH ME PAINT. OVER TIME, THEY

WOULD SAY IT’S GETTING BETTER.”

— ELLEN STONE