The Red Dress Series

The California Pistachio Commission is committed to raising awareness about women’s risk of heart disease (the leading cause of death of American women--1 in 3), showcasing pistachios as a heart-healthy snack. Proceeds from Jane’s art support women’s heart health initiatives nationwide.
“The Heart Soars” (Jane Seymour), above. Jane has painted famous cultural dancers wearing red dresses: “Joyous Heart” (Jemma Sandoval, Mexican dancer), top right. “Heart and Soul” (Nobuko Miyamoto, Asian dancer, right. “Heart Beat” (Lula Washington, African-American dancer), far right.
Upon arrival at the house, we went to the garden and studio first. Up a stony staircase, we found the pond created by James. It is long, meandering, and sheltered by massive and curling branches belonging to some exotic species of tree. The pond is covered with a metal mesh to prevent the koi fish from being eaten by seagulls or the occasional racoon. Flowers and lush green grass supply color and contrast to the stone outlining the water feature.

Jane’s studio opens its double sliding French doors to embrace this lovely setting, which is superb inspiration to a busy artist, helping to calm and soothe. Inside, there were signs of works in progress everywhere, and many finished canvases. It was really exciting to see where Jane most often creates her art, even though she couldn’t be present to show us herself. Susan let us drink in all the details, filling in between our ‘oohs and ahhs’ tidbits of pertinent information or to make sure we noticed certain things. The honey-colored wood desk and all the white cabinetry were well organized with all the tools and supplies this artist needs to create. There is plenty of natural light flooding the space, thanks to a huge portion of glass in the gable, skylights and windows.

Next, we went into the office--where I met Richard, James’ assistant, and finally got to meet Debra, Jane’s assistant, whom I have had contact with for years. We really did not expect anything else beyond this. Then they said that James would be in shortly to say hi, that he was on the phone. I was delighted to learn he was there, and not more than a minute later, he came in from his screening room/office. He greeted us warmly, gave me a big bear hug. I’d not seen him in a while, though we’d had several phone conversations...I was most delighted to be able to congratulate him in person for his marvelous success on Walk the Line. His movie had recently won all three of its Golden Globe nominations, and James had garnered the Golden Globe for Best Musical/Comedy, as its producer. The movie had been his ‘baby’ for nearly 7 years.

He was obviously proud and thrilled, the excitement still beaming from him. Susan had said the day after the Globes was the most joyous day for the family, as the phone kept ringing, congratulatory messages and flowers kept arriving. James invited us into his screening room,
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