Author: cabinart

A year of co-op school

If you are in your 40s or 50s, you probably keep noticing that amazing phenomenon of how quickly time flies. An entire year has passed with almost every Thursday spent at The Art Co-op. I learned a few new things, and one is that an art co-operative isn’t the right place for me. Another thing learned is that it is fun to watch the river, and I want to share that with you.

We opened on an August evening.

On October 13 it rained very hard. Here is Oct. 14 and 15.

For some reason, I didn’t take any more photos until January.

Water was noticeably up in February.

The flowering plum dominated my photos in March.

April was beautiful, of course!

So was May.

Here is my last day in June. Why no July? Even though we opened in August, we were setting up in July, so at the end of June, my year was completed. And, I feel compelled to tell you that Sierra Subs makes the best sandwiches I have ever eaten in my life. Truly! They are next door to The Art Co-op, which is still in business and has several new artists. Hmmm, did it take 3 more to fill my large shoes? 😎

Sierra Subs and Salads Three Rivers

Dancing Feet on eBay!

Sierra Swinney is 15 years old and has lived in Three Rivers her entire life. Ballet seems like an odd obsession for someone who loves to backpack with her dad in the local mountains, but Sierra has been dancing since she was four and dreams of becoming a professional ballerina. She has been accepted to the American Ballet Theatre’s summer program in Alabama, and this little painting is for auction on eBay to help pay her way. You can go to eBay and bid on it now, and let’s make lots of money for Sierra!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110554193307#ht_500wt_896

Day Ten on the Mural

What a nice day to paint! It was a detail day, so large amounts of ground weren’t covered, but smaller amounts were fully completed. (maybe. . .)

Exeter murals Mineral King

Day Nine on the Mural

Not as hot today – phew! The mules turned out well, but the final pronouncement of their worthiness is pending approval by my mule friends, the Weldons. I think they look great from the standpoint of light and dark ( “values” in Artspeak). However, I may have painted their legs too skinny or their ears too short or something else horrible if you truly know mules, as the Weldons do.

The lake got its first coat of paint. This lady told me she couldn’t draw a straight line with a ruler, so i handed her the paint brush and let her work on the water a bit! It only seemed right, since her name is Mrs. Purdey and that is a brand of paintbrush I like to use.

After my painting session, I had a knitting appointment. (Oh come on! You KNOW you wish you had such pleasant appointments yourself!) When I came back by the mural, it was in full sun and Betsy and I were quite pleased with how it looked. I’m usually gone before it is fully in the sunshine, so this was a great surprise.

Exeter murals Mineral King

Day Eight on the Mural (snow!)

Summer has truly arrived. It was hot on the lift at 9 a.m. so after working on the “snapshot” of mules, I put the machine away and stood on the ground where there was a bit of a breeze. It is definitely easier to visit with passers-by when we are both standing on the ground; Michael stopped by and had a small tub of snow in the back of his pick-up. Yup. Snow. It had been in the ice chest until he pulled it out to make room for the groceries. First, I used some on my wrists – it has been said that if you cool your pulse points, you will be cooler. Okay, I could always be cooler. After that, I set my water bottle inside the tub of (melting) snow. Then, my Frankenfoot was hurting a bit, so I took off my sandal and stood with my foot in the snowmelt. After that, I needed a bit more water for washing brushes at the end of my painting session, so the water got transferred to my brush bucket. Snow in Exeter in summer. Weird, but useful.

Peculiar sight

In Mineral King there are some critters called “marmots”. (Every letter is pronounced unlike “merlot”) To the untrained eye, they appear to be cute.

To those in the know, they are a PAIN. In late spring and early summer they have a peculiar habit of chewing on wires and hoses in cars. They like radiator fluid and are impervious to its poison that would kill your pet. By the second week of July, they have stopped doing this stupid annoying thing and then perhaps they can be called cute. There are many methods to try and thwart their destructive ways. A number of years ago, a ranger saw that Michael had the hood up on his truck and decided that must be a way to discourage the creatures. (In reality, the hood was up so he could see if they were in there chewing on things.) Now, many people leave their hoods up in the parking lots which gives the marmots easier access to their preferred snacks. Other things have been tried, but this one is the most effective:

Mineral King marmot

How to be an (professional) artist in Tulare County

That is the title of the talk (“lecture”) that I gave yesterday at the Creative Center in Visalia. The three items are: 1. Love the place; 2. Be flexible and 3. Never quit. The turnout was small, (I think “intimate” is the word used for such things) and I knew all but 3 people. After we introduced, we realized we had known of each other but just hadn’t met yet. The show looks wonderful, thanks to Glen Hill who really placed the pieces artfully. It is surprising how much this matters! Three pieces sold, and the buyers graciously consented to leaving them in place until the show ends.

There was a very bright spotlight in my eyes so I couldn’t see the audience. Now that I see them in this photo, I can see that several who were present aren’t in this scene. They seemed to be enjoying themselves and were all very complimentary. The Creative Center is a great place to show art and to have presentations – thank you Theresa, Glen and Bailey!

The life of a busy artist

Look at what I did yesterday:

painted the mural
took paintings to the Mural Gallery
looked at a mural that will need some repair – climbed onto the scaffolding and took reference photos of it
got home and unloaded the mural stuff from the car, carried things out to the studio and other things to the computer. Still others had to be moved into the workshop – stuff, stuff, stuff!
finished 2 little oils of oranges and began 2 more
put hanging hardware on the backs of 10 canvases
posted an entry to my blog
printed out a price list to mail to a customer
updated the inventory lists of paintings
worked on my “lecture” for the Creative Center Reception tonight!

There were a lot of other non-work related tasks squeezed into the day, but I just thought you might enjoy seeing what the life of a busy artist can look like! This is really really fun, by the way. 😎

Day Seven on the Mural

When I arrived this morning, there was a section of mural that said “DO ME!” (perhaps I am exaggerating or hallucinating at that early hour). So, that section got completed today. Maybe. It may need more detail, but hard to say at this point.

You can see I am adding little patches of this and that in the lower sections. This is the way I use up the paint on my palette at the end of a painting session!

Had to tape off the borders of the additional “snapshot” area. I can see from this photo that it definitely needs more rocks.

Here is the whole wall. Decided to take this photo when I realized that I hadn’t removed the key from the lift, nor had I plugged it in! I’ll blame it on getting up too early in the a.m. instead of my being distracted. And distracted I was – wow, what a slate of distinguished visitors today! Look at this: my 6th grade teacher, my 21 mile walking partner and her husband, my shorthand teacher from Redwood High, a lady who bought a painting from me a few years ago and her friend, the premier rock mason/artist from Three Rivers, and an entire group of wayward youth from a place called Courage to Change! Those are just the visitors I can remember – this is a very social project!

Exeter murals Mineral King

Dancing Feet

it is 6×4″, oil on board and comes with its own little easel. To bid, stay posted!

Ballerina shoes oil painting