It just occurred to me that perhaps you might disagree with my evaluation of what “drawing better” actually looks like.
Bummer. Having a blog often means taking a risk, so here goes.
This is the little Hume Lake cabin as I drew it from the customer’s photos in 1995. (I didn’t draw the bug spot, or whatever that is.)
Here it is after reworking it, using photos I took earlier this month.
I feel relieved to have gotten a second chance to make this drawing the best I know how.
A man cave? A Dude Den? a tool shed? guest quarters (so they won’t be inclined to overstay)?
Even after four years of visiting Wilsonia while working on The Cabins of Wilsonia, there are still many unsolved mysteries.
Get your copy here to learn about (or at least just look at) many mysterious buildings in Wilsonia: The Cabins of Wilsonia
Sometimes the backsides of cabins were more interesting to me than the fronts. There are porches, fire rings, sheds, and little paths (in the mountains we tend to refer to paths as “trails”) leading from neighbor to neighbor.
Mountain communities like Wilsonia tend to be very neighborly.
To learn more, you can order your copy of The Cabins of Wilsonia here.
A Wilsonia cabin that sits on a corner got me confused. It looks like this as seen from one lane:
And this is how it looks when you go around the corner:
Are you confused? It took me awhile to figure out this is the same cabin. My excuse is that I had to learn 212 cabins. By the time I finished the book The Cabins of Wilsonia, there were 214 cabins. But, after 4 years, my confusion lessened.
My other blog, The Cabins of Wilsonia, is broken. I’ve neglected it and now I don’t want to get trapped on the phone with weird music in the background while a recorded voice tells me the same lie over and over.
“Due to an unusually high volume of calls, we are experiencing long wait times. We appreciate your business and want to provide great customer service.”
Yea. Sure. If the volume is unusually high, why do callers get this recording EVERY SINGLE TIME we call you?
So, I will be posting things from The Cabins of Wilsonia here on my “real” blog, starting today.
The book is finished and available for sale here: The Cabins of Wilsonia
It is a beautiful book and it costs $80.
I will just be showing you cabin drawings from the book now. Let’s begin with the cover.
It was my wish to put any American flag in the book in color, but it would have made the cost of the book go up to about $200. Seemed a little steep, don’t you think?
There are still a few of the 2016 calendars, “The Cabins of Tulare County” for sale. This calendar is a collection of pencil drawings of cabins in Tulare County. (Captain Obvious speaks again.) It is heavy on Wilsonia, followed by Mineral King, and there is one token Camp Nelson. These drawings are gathered from the book The Cabins of Wilsonia, and various commissioned drawings I’ve done in the past year or two.
Have a look at the unidentified months. I didn’t attempt to find seasonal pictures, other than a snowy cabin in December. Cabins, for the most part, are summer homes.
The calendars are $15 each, including sales tax. If you send me a check in the mail or money using Paypal, AND YOU GIVE ME YOUR ADDRESS (excuse me for shouting – someone ordered via Paypal and didn’t give me her address or answer my email – how is she going to get her calendar??), then I will get your calendar to you and pay the mailing costs. (in the USA only)
My drawing students do excellent work. I encourage each one to choose something she loves. because she will be looking at it for a lonnnnng time. (or he – currently I have 2 guy students). They each have subjects that interest them, and it is so fun to help them figure out how to best portray those subjects.
Margie has been with me for perhaps a year, perhaps less. She has drawn and painted in different classes and situations for many years. Hard to believe she thinks she needs lessons, but I’m happy to help her
Sometimes people take drawing lessons because unless they have 1 hour per week set aside for the purposes of drawing, they don’t pick up their pencils. I’m guessing that’s the reason Margie takes lessons.
Do you agree with my assessment?
I believe that cabin communities are a true treasure of Tulare County, here in Central California. I love to draw cabins. Don’t believe me? My business has been called “Cabin Art” since 1987.
As a studio artist, I work from photos. There is no way to get the level of detail I like while sitting outside. Besides, I’m oldish now, and need a giant magnifying light, along with cheater magnifier glasses.
So, here are a few photos of Mineral King cabins for you to enjoy. Sometimes the light is just right, so I take the same scenes over and over and over.
My business is called “Cabinart” because when I began, I lived in a cabin and I drew people’s cabins.
I still live in a cabin part time and I still draw cabins. When someone pays me to draw a specific cabin, that is a commission.
A friend asked me to draw a cabin that he borrows as a gift for the owner. I asked for specifics, and he said, “Do the voodoo that only you do so well”, or something equally unusual. He is an unusual person – no one like him in the world, and I think he is a treasure.
Sorry. Distracted by thoughts of my funny clever friend.
I drew it.
Not enough pizazz. Let’s add some color.
Still not quite good enough.
Nice. Commissioned pencil drawing of a cabin.