#2923 "Tuppence a Bag"

#2923 "Tuppence a Bag" 
14x20 inches oils on a cradled smooth mahogany panel.
Started February 10th, 2025

  A "tuppence" is another word for two pence, an early form of British currency. A single pence is worth 1⁄100 of one pound. Depending on the value of the British pound, it is roughly equivalent to the Canadian penny. However, to be exact, one pound sterling equalled 1.78 Canadian dollars while I took painting artistic step number 2923 of my journey. That makes two pennies or a "tuppence" precisely 3.56 cents Canadian - essentially "hardly anything" or "worthless". Money managers make their living on fractions of every penny that moves so it is prudent to be accurate. 

We feed the birds in the winter. They know us well and wait for us to come around the corner of the garage with our white bucket. Sometimes they flutter to greet us and take a seed from that bucket. 

Aside from being our welcome friends, the birds are also our avian defences against biting insects including ticks. A mix of classic birdseed, sunflower seed, cracked corn, whole corn and rolled chop keeps everyone happy and healthy during the winter. The birds will accompany us and sometimes land on our clothing as we go about our day within the Singleton Sanctuary. It is wonderful to just have the birds around. The Merlin Bird ID by Cornell Lab has been a game-changer. It identifies rare birds by song within the Sanctuary and we continue to learn. 

The title of this painting was selected before I picked up a brush. It is from Walt Disney's "Mary Poppins". The song “Feed the Birds” describes an old lady on the steps of the cathedral selling bags of crumbs for people to feed the birds. The cost of each bag was a tuppence. Mr. Banks wanted his children to invest their pennies in the bank so that the cash would accumulate into nickels and then maybe dimes. Mary Poppins encouraged the kids to invest their tuppence into charity and watch it grow differently through the profits of human kindness. Money managers missed that lesson about the little things like tuppence, bread crumbs, birds and kites that bring joy and meaning to life. The economy is shallow and may accrue dollars but it makes no sense. One of the major flaws of the economic system is that no value is placed on the environment or nature until it is extracted or harvested. Oh my...

Apparently “Feed the Birds” was Walt Disney’s favorite song. Songwriter Richard Sherman recalled playing the song for Walt in his office:

“Usually after the hectic week, Walt would ask us how we were doing, and we’d tell him what we were working on. Then he’d ask us to play it, and I’d sit down and play, and he’d look out the window and get wistful. Then he’d turn around and say, ‘That’s what it’s all about, isn’t it?’”

Here are the lyrics from Richard Sherman's song... 

“Early each day to the steps of St. Paul’s,

The little old bird woman comes

In her own special way to the people, she calls,

“Come, buy my bags full of crumbs.”

Come feed the little birds, show them you care

And you’ll be glad if you do

Their young ones are hungry, their nests are so bare

All it takes is tuppence from you

Feed the birds, tuppence a bag,

Tuppence, tuppence, tuppence a bag

“Feed the birds,” that’s what she cries,

While overhead, her birds fill the skies

All around the cathedral the saints and apostles

look down as she sells her wares

Although you can’t see it, you know they are smiling

Each time someone shows that he cares

Though her words are simple and few,

Listen, listen, she’s calling to you:

“Feed the birds, tuppence a bag,

Tuppence, tuppence, tuppence a bag.” 

Life is not all about money. The economy is only a manmade system that describes how people produce, consume, and exchange goods and services. The economy is not about charity, kindness, joy or life.  In the final analysis, the economy has driven the Earth to where we find ourselves today, on the brink of extinction with fossil fuels propelling mankind full steam ahead. Consumption makes a few people very wealthy while destroying the wilderness,  nature and so much more. The economy is not real but is responsible for climate change with people in charge. 

Green initiatives and a circular economy could have made a huge difference if they had been implemented five decades ago. Sadly those in authority felt that more profit could be made in a consume and throw away society. Evil does not describe those acts adequately.

Some wise people have thought deeply about art and money. Art is a way of life for me and money just gets in the way. Art, whether music, dance or painting is your muse, gets sullied by cash. 

For this and much more art, click on Pixels or go straight to the Collections. Here is the new Wet Paint 2024 Collection. Best wishes for a happy and healthy 2025. 

Warmest regards and keep your paddle in the water,

Phil Chadwick