Sometimes when I need to get photos or see stuff, I trespass. Been doing it my whole life, I confess. Forgive me my trespasses. . .
Are these the same two sycamores as in the sepia photo from 1996?These 2 sycamores have more space between them, but is was 20 years ago when this was taken.
Recently I went trespassing up the North Fork of the Kaweah, looking for the site where the Kaweah blacksmith shop sat. I have a photo from 1996, but the flood of 1997 probably changed the scene. Besides removing the blacksmith shop, it probably changed the route of the river there.
Why does it matter if I have a photo? Because I can’t tell if there are hills behind or if the river should show a bit or what to fill in with between the sycamore trees. If I can’t see it, I can’t paint it. Very well, that is.
Empty canvas, upside down photo.No thanks, Samson, I don’t need any help. Doesn’t he look sweet? He isn’t.Building a painting probably isn’t as scary as making sausage, but it certainly is daunting. Hard to believe that things begin this rough, but yeppers, that’s the way I paint.
One of the benefits of participating in bazaars, boutiques and festivals is that I meet new people. Sometimes this results in commissions or new drawing students. The Senior League Holiday Bazaar brought me this new oil painting commission.
Photo from customer’s phone
Oh boy, there’s a challenge! When the customer explained that he had taken this photo in the Three Rivers History Museum, I knew I’d receive some good help.
I emailed Museum Man, who promptly removed the photo from the frame, scanned it at a high resolution and emailed it to me!
The customer told me about this little building. It was the blacksmith shop for the Kaweah Colony, and it was on property that he now owns. In 1997, a flood took it away.
We discussed colors, and he and his wife decided it would suit them better in full color rather than sepia tones. They chose the fall season, which seems right based on all the sycamore leaves on the ground.
Want to know what keeps a Central California artist busy?
I like lists. Have a look at what I’m working on this week. Notice there is nothing on it about actually making art. This is what I refer to as “The Business of Art” or an “Administrative” week.
Preparing to give a presentation to the Daughters of the American Revolution next week. Why did they ask me? What do they want to hear? More will be revealed in the fullness of time.
Putting away all the stuff from doing weekend bazaars, boutiques and fairs. This usually results in a big clean-out. Why do I still have this, that and the other thing?
Gathering up, scanning and identifying old photos from Mineral King for a video to go on the Mineral King page of Tulare County Treasures. Why me? Because I deal in images, and Mineral King is my strongest subject. When you are able to help someone, it is good to say yes.
Teaching the oil painting workshop
Packaging note cards. Who writes cards? Apparently lots of people still do, because I ran out of this design and the reorder came this week.
This is the Thank You Acorn card. 4 cards and envelopes, blank inside, $7 includes tax. Email me if you would like some, or order through the website – under For Sale, click on Note Cards
Maybe today I will be able to plan for the next mural, the next oil commission, the next oil paintings to restock my inventory, the next blog post, the next coloring book.
That’s right! I was going to tell you about the new coloring book.
Stay tuned. More will be revealed in the fullness of time.
This Central California artist is never bored. Boring, maybe but never bored.
Holidays, Christmas in particular, are a season for selling. This means it is a season of buying.
I do not want to be commercial, but what if people want my merchandise and can’t figure out how to find it?
Selling is serving. (I heard this somewhere recently.) I live to serve.
Would you like some Christmas cards? Holiday cards? Whatever sort of greeting cards?
Christmas in Visalia
This is Christmas in *Visalia, a scene made up of real elements, a pencil drawing interpretation by me of Candy Cane Lane in 1994.
Quantities are very limited. . . only 7 packages remain. Each package is 8 cards and envelopes, $15. Price includes tax. Cards are blank inside, size 4-1/2 x 6-1/4″. If you need me to mail them, toss in another $2.00.
First come, first served. Use the contact button above (under About The Artist) to let me know if you’d like them. Or, email me – cabinart at cabinart dot net (written that way so the spambots won’t bother me). Or call me – 559-561-7606.
*Visalia is the county seat of Tulare County. Tulare is not the county seat. These weird names are pronounced “Vy – SAL- ya” and “Too-LAIR-ee”. I am not making this up. I live here, and this is how we say things. However, there are many people around here who think the town “Orosi” is pronounced “Oros-uh”. They are also the ones who say “Missour – uh”. We like those folks, but are quite curious about their pronunciation habits.
My advanced drawing students successfully bullied me into 2 oil painting workshops. We had a great time!
A rebel set aside her Sequoia painting that she began last week. This is of the Tetons from a photo she took. I painted the scene first so it would be a little easier for her. (I had the assignment of copying an “Old Master” during the 1/2 semester of painting I took at the local junior college – copying is a good way to learn.)
We had an overachiever who worked on 2 paintings at the same time.
Good job, E! You get an A for sure. No rebelling, one painting at a time.
Turned out that two painters did choose the same scene. We put them side by side, and learned that the one on the left could benefit from stronger colors and more contrast, and the one on the right could benefit from more detail. Interesting exercise! (They look different in real life than on the screen because I had to mess with the photo because it didn’t look right because. . . . on and on and on. Never mind.)
At the end of our session, it turns out that we had two rebels and five Sequoia trees. Yes, that is a cat, but the cat painter is actually drawing a Sequoia tree in pencil these days.
None of these paintings are finished. They need more layers, more details, some color corrections, edges of canvas painted, signatures, and varnish.
This probably means there will be another painting session ahead.
I didn’t want to leave home in the morning, but we grownups have to face things.Pretty nice place to work. Don’t these folks have gophers and deer??This is the same view that I painted from real life and from photos in April 2015.April 2015
This is all I saw of the baby animals. There were lambs but it took several people running around to catch them; I was not cavorting with lambs that day.These folks are heading off to catch a lamb.Wow, eh?Look at that merchandise with the afternoon sunlight!And look at the light show in the afternoon light!
Thus we conclude the boutiques, bazaars and shows for 2016.
Isn’t “thus” a stuffy word? I don’t think it gets used much in conversation.
About twice a year, I allow several of my advanced drawing students to bully me into giving an oil painting workshop.
Sometimes everyone paints the same subject, and sometimes each person chooses her own subject. It is easier to teach when everyone paints the same subject. That way everyone benefits from the same instructions rather than having to wait until I get around to help individually.
Recently, the color bullies arm-twisted me into another oil painting workshop. I negotiated to get them to all paint Sequoia trees and the result was that I gave them several photos from which to choose.
OF COURSE every single participant chose a different photo.
Good start, E!Good start, A!Good start, L!Good start, M!Whoa, E, this looks great, but why is your photo upside down?? (Teeheehee, those of us who draw together know the answer to this.)Go, A, Go!!Wow, M, you are getting this and even listened to me a couple of times!Hey, L, are you confused? (We insiders get it. . . how snobbish of us!)Let’s all go outside and marvel at the colors in the leaves.
The color bullies and I had a great time. (You know I use the term “bullies” as an exaggeration, yes? These folks are truly wonderful, and we love painting together!) Stay tuned to see how the paintings turn out after session #2.
Tomorrow I will be participating in a different sort of event. It is part of 1st Saturday, Three Rivers. I will be with 3 other Kaweah Artisans in a barn at a farm outside of Three Rivers.
You can learn about 1st Saturday Three Rivers by clicking (or tapping if you have a “device”) on the words “1st Saturday Three Rivers. You go to Anne Lang’s Emporium to get a map, and on it is listed all the participants. Here is the link about the part where I will be, but you still have to go to Anne Lang’s to get the map – Mosley Farm
This is how the place looked in the spring of 2015. Come see it in December of 2016!
That mural I showed you yesterday served 2 purposes: 1. To dress up the exterior of my studio and 2. To keep me in practice because I felt slightly inadequate to begin the next mural at the Three Rivers History Museum.
This is often how I feel when about to begin a mural. I don’t know how long it takes to confidently approach a wall and just git ‘er dun. I’ve been painting murals for about 9 years now, so one would think I’d have a bit a confidence.
One would be wrong.
This is the first mural in the Mineral King Room at the Three Rivers Museum.
The tower/tipi thing was one of many that supported a cable which transported buckets of ore down from the mines to the stamp mill. That is an ore bucket on the floor in front of the mural.
The second mural is behind/through/under/which word? that window.
This is the completed cabin facade. The idea is that you are inside a cabin, looking out the window at Sawtooth.
The third mural is in the planning stage.
The cabin facade is on the left, the first mural is on the right (out of the view of the camera). Over this display case there will be a panoramic view of the Mineral King area as seen from Mather Point (near Timber Gap). The size will be 2 feet by 9 feet.
I’m not sure when I will begin. First, we must conquer the inexplicable case of nerves. I think it will help to buy new brushes, and to know that there is wall color paint available should I make a total dog’s breakfast of the thing.
“Just fine, thanks, but why are you asking?” says the Central California artist with a tic under her eye and a twitch in her shoulder.
There is some term to describe what happens when people buy new pillows for their couches, and end up having to remodel the entire house. You know how it goes – new pillows make the couch look shabby, so a new couch is necessary. Then the rest of the furniture looks terrible and has to be replaced. This precipitates a paint job for the living room, which leads to needing new windows for the entire house, which becomes a project of knocking down walls and adding on rooms.
I got that new floor in my studio, and suddenly the mural on the front door didn’t suit me any more. It might have been there for 10 years, and certainly I can paint better now. Instead of refreshing it, I am replacing it.
This is how it looked before I started. You’d think I’d paint the outside of the building or re-side it or something. First I need to remember the name of that syndrome for why one should never buy new pillows.First, a new sky and a blue line down the middle.Next, a new mountain and blocking in of the next main spaces. The space to the right of the blue line is still the old mural.Sorry, Samson, you don’t get to help, and chewing on paintbrushes is forbidden.The blue line was the edge of this juniper tree. Now that everything is blocked in, I can begin details, if my brushes haven’t been chewed up by Samson.Yes, I’m talking about you, little destructive feline.Some detail is now added to the mountain and the juniper.And a bit more to the background, trees, shrubs, and ground.
The daylight was fading, so I quit for the day. It might be February before I get back to it.
