A Challenging Pencil Commission

A regular customer wants to republish a book. The original drawing from the cover is missing, and it doesn’t look very good when scanned from a printed book. They asked me to redraw it, and to add color so it has the look of an old hand-tinted black and white photo. All I have to look at is a blurry dark photo and someone else’s drawing. Someone Else (never met her) drew it using the provided photo and other photos of unknown origin. This means there is some vital information missing. It is very difficult to draw from other people’s drawings, particularly when you don’t know the subject very well.

I saw this and thought, “Oh Missy Scarlett, I don’t know nothin’ ’bout birthin’ babies”. I have painted and drawn a few mules, but it was under strict supervision and with good reference photos!

At least it is in a place I recognize and have drawn or painted a couple of times. A couple of dozen times!

Well, oops. Where is the mule? Where is the man leading the mule? Where is the man sitting on the boulder? Where did the previous artist get those images?

Where will I get those images? I can’t accurately and confidently draw things that I cannot see.

More will be revealed in the fullness of time. . .

5 Things in the Life of a Central California Artist

Aren’t lists helpful? Back in the olden days (the 1970s), I was working some dumb boring job. At the end of some days, I got to see my best friend who was in college in the same town. I’d trudge through the day, doing my mindless boring job, and every time I thought of something to tell her, I’d write it on a little piece of paper. When I got to her house, I’d pull the list out of my pocket and share my thoughts or questions or ideas with her. She used to laugh, but it wasn’t derisive. I think she laughed because it was a bit weird, but so be it. It worked. Still does.

Turning Leaf XIV, 6×6″, oil on wrapped canvas, $50

(Email me using the Contact the Artist tab above to buy)

But I digress. Here are a few things happening this month in the life of this Central California artist. This will give you an idea of all that is involved to earn a living as an artist in this rural place.

  1. The upcoming book, The Cabins of Wilsonia is supposed to be arriving on or around November 21. The early bird price of $70 including tax and shipping is good until November 19.
  2. There is a lovely little show in the dining room at Sierra Subs in Three Rivers called “Hidden in the Leaves”. I have 2 paintings in the show, one of which is shown above.
  3. My 2015 calendar of oil paintings called Beautiful Tulare County is now available (see Monday’s post)
  4. On Saturday, November 15 from 9 – 4 at the Three Rivers Memorial Building is fun little arts/craft fair called the Senior League Holiday Bazaar. It is a low key event, with a big variety of items for sale by those who made said items. One of the hottest things there is homemade jelly and jam. (I hope another hot item is my calendar!)
  5. I’m working on a very challenging pencil commission right now. Stay tuned for details and in-progress pictures.

Thank a Veteran Today

The veteran I am thanking today is my friend Bob, who served in Korea.

Bob, THANK YOU for your service to our country and happy birthday this month!

The 2015 Calendar is HERE!

The new calendar for 2015 has arrived!

 

These are my best oil paintings. Sort of. My best oil paintings that fit the calendar format and fit the months. Sort of. The best blend of my best oil paintings that sort of fit the calendar format and sort of fit the months.

It is called “Beautiful Tulare County”. (Stop laughing – there is lots of beauty in this rural place in Central California and it is my job to find it and paint or draw it!)

$15, includes tax and mailing to you!

Want one? There are several ways to get one.




1. Use this Paypal button and your Paypal account.

2. Mail a check for $15, made out to Cabinart at P.O. Box 311, Three Rivers, CA 93271

3. Come to the Senior League Bazaar on Saturday, November 15 at the Three Rivers Memorial Building from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and get yours there.

4. Call me with a better idea – maybe we see each other on a regular basis and I can just bring it to you.

THERE ARE ONLY 100 AND WHEN THEY ARE GONE, THEY ARE GONE.

Ahem. Excuse me for shouting. Sometimes I get excited when I see all my best work together in one place and then think you all might like it too.

Cabin Commission

The upcoming book, The Cabins of Wilsonia, will have 268 pencil drawings of cabins and cabin details.

Not everyone is pleased with the way I have represented his cabin. Most people are gracious about it and know that the book is an overview, rather than a documentary or a complete album.

One friend was not sure about how to tell me that she didn’t want to buy the original drawing of her cabin. She asked a few polite questions, and I got it. I told her that I can redraw it for her any way that she wants. She said, “But I don’t want to add to your work!” I replied, “Darlin’, that’s how I earn my living!” We laughed, and she commissioned me to draw her cabin.

I took many photos and then did a sketch for her, complete with lots of notes.

After I was sure that I knew what she wanted, I started.

commissioned pencil drawing of cabin in progress

After I got this far, I got a little worried and needed reassurance that I was on the right track.

She gave me the okay, so I finished it.

Commissioned pencil drawing of cabin

 She was thrilled, so of course so am I!

Home Improvement

A dear friend manages vacation rentals. A few years ago, she was asked to take on a home that needed a ton of loving care, and she had to provide it on not just a shoestring, but a frayed shoestring. (This means she had almost a zero budget.)

Because we love to do projects together, she asked for my help. Together we figured out how to rearrange furniture, do things with paint, color, pictures on the wall, fabric, rocks and pine cones.

It was an amazing transformation, and the house became a successful vacation rental.

Now the same owner has handed over another house to my friend. Of course she called me and of course I said yes. (HEY! Does this mean I am a Vacation Rental Consultant?) As a Central California artist, I am used to people needing help and not having much to spend. I don’t know what I’d do if someone actually had a real budget with real money in it!!

The upstairs loft resembled a dorm in an orphanage (not that I’ve ever seen such a room, but I read plenty of orphan stories as a child.)

I sketched layouts, wondered if we could dump various pieces of furniture, lose a few beds (there were seven or eight), get better bedspreads, buy a trunk for the foot of each bed, rip out the carpet, paint, something, anything.

My managing friend eked out a small budget from the owner. We found a few treasures at a yard sale, pulled the faded ’70s art off the walls, discussed furniture, found a nice rug at World Market (found many, but only bought one), messed with paint colors and ideas, and finally came up with a good plan for that loft.

It was a ton of work.

This is where I came in for some real work as opposed to just coming up with ideas.

We’d love to have ripped out the carpet, but the budget was just too eensy. If you want to see the whole house, here is the link. Click here.  It was voted Best Vacation Rental in Three Rivers this year, BEFORE my friend and I went to work on it! (It might be wise to book it before the owner figures out that he can raise the price.)

Fall Painting

Friday’s posting about scariness in Mineral King even smelled like smoke to me. Oh wait – that is because the smell from the prescribed burn was in Three Rivers. Let’s soothe our senses with something else that is a symbol of fall, a nicer symbol, both decorative and edible.

Pumpkins VIII, 8×10″, oil on wrapped canvas, $90