Super Senior: Honey Solarz

STOWE, Vt. (WCAX) - A blanket of snow turns Stowe into a white, winter wonderland. Honey Solarz adds a little color.

“Tons and tons of color,” Solarz said. The artist recently held an exhibit of her work at Mirror Mirror, a local spa. The 88-year-old Canadian had a home in Stowe for decades. Now, she frequently comes to visit her daughter, Susan Gayle. “I painted always. I love painting.”

She produces much larger paintings in her studio in Montreal. “Actually, I couldn’t bring big ones here, so, this is one that I did,” Solarz said.

Reporter Joe Carroll: Why was it important to show this?

Honey Solarz: Why was it important? My daughter... Well, I have to give her the credit. ‘Mom, do you want to do something fun?’”

“For her paintings, everyone says that it’s their favorite painting in the house and it brings them so much joy. And they put it in a place where they see it every morning, like coffee,” Gayle said.

“All right, she’s my boss, but a very nice one,” Solarz said.

Solarz, like her artwork, is colorful. “I’m enjoying this interview because of you, really., she said. “I’ve never been interviewed before.”

Her affluent life in Montreal, she says, has had its share of ups and downs. “We don’t go through life easy,” Solarz said. “Even if you have money.”

She and her husband Joe owned a chain of women’s clothing stores in Canada. Joe died in his 60s after a long illness. “No one, no one gets away without difficulties,” Solarz said.

Solarz broke her hip during COVID. While in the hospital, she nursed herself back to health with a brush and some paint.

Reporter Joe Carroll: Did your artwork help you get through that?

Honey Solarz: One hundred percent... Painting always cures me.

Life for the mother-daughter team is about love. “What is wrong with kindness, what is wrong with being polite,” Solarz said.

“She inspires people, she inspires people,” Gayle said.

It would be fair to say that Solarz paints a life of living.

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