A California Artist Paints (Without Benefit of a Crystal Ball) in Tulare County

The Redbud Festival is coming soon. First weekend in May this year, and at the Memorial Building in Three Rivers, which is a new location.

As usual, I have no idea what to expect in terms of visitation or sales. A crystal ball certainly would be useful.

Oh well. Guess I’ll just paint a combination of what has sold well before and what floats my boat.

The first draft is bright but rough.

Now they are drying in the window sill. The colors look funky because they are wet and reflective.

What is that stack of stuff? I looked through my fruit photos (Phruit Photos? Fruit Fotos?), picked the ones that floated my boat, attached hardware, then wrote titles and inventory numbers on the backs of each canvas.

Now they are almost finished, drying on hooks next to the window. When they are dry enough to handle, I’ll sign them. When that part is dry, I’ll scan them. These are 6×6 wrapped canvases, in oil paint, and will sell for $50 each.

Or not.

I may be a California artist, but Tulare County is the 13th poorest out of 58 counties. And in spite of putting the price next to the painting, people always ask how much. We are also the 3rd least educated county in the state.

Always gotta do things the hard way, eh? Do you think my paintings of fruit would sell in Marin County? I could add another zero, maybe borrow my neighbor’s BMW, have someone dress me so I could pass, and make a run up there.

Nah. They’d see right through me.

Tulare County is where I was born, and it is where I’ll stay and paint. Sometimes I love it here, and sometimes I want to run away. That’s probably how it is with every place in the world.

Drawing in Pencil

I’m drawing in pencil because I love to. There might be a purpose to these drawings in progress, and it might be to keep from doing repetitive and boring work on the computer for the upcoming book The Cabins of Wilsonia. The book isn’t repetitive and boring; the computer work is both of those things plus IMPOSSIBLE. No worries, I’ll figure it out or figure out who to ask for help. Meanwhile, I am drawing, a very therapeutic and productive procrastination technique.

This is a scene I’ve painted in a horizontal format, and one that I’ve lent the photo to a drawing student so she could draw it. I might have drawn it before, but I’ve slept since then. Actually, this drawing might be finished in this photo. Here, have a closer look:

This is the Generals Highway, above the Sequoia Park entrance at Ash Mountain but below Hospital Rock. You can see yucca in bloom (this is from a photo taken in June) and Moro Rock in the distance. Just a typical scene from Three Rivers, California. . . yawn.

But wait – there’s more!

This is an unfinished pencil drawing of a “Sheltie” named Wally.

Okay, I admit it. This is now finished too.

Mineral King in February?

Nope, I’m not there. (Where did the word “nope” come from??)  But, it is Friday, so have a look at some Mineral King art from my pencil archives:

Fret not. Summer will return.

Mineral King is one of the treasures of Tulare County, a place I love.

We break for this commercial message: This pencil drawing of Mineral King has sold. If you would like your own original pencil drawing of this (or of something else), I can do it for you. In fact, it would be a pleasure to draw for you!

9×12″ – $200

11×14″ –  $250

Anyone need a last minute gift?

I’m here to help if you need a last minute gift. You can call me at the studio (out of fear of the unknown  internet trolls I’ll put my phone # in words) five six one seven six zero six. (I figure if you need the area code, then you probably aren’t going to find this post very helpful because I’m too far from you to help at the last minute – however, it is 559)

Note card packages, oil paintings, pencil drawings, drawing lessons, Mineral King tee shirts, all available from me at my studio in Three Rivers. Calendars – sold out.

You know how I feel about shopping. This means I want it to be easy on you too. Let me know if I can help you.

If you live in the area, in Tulare County or here in Three Rivers, we can probably make arrangements to have it to you almost immediately. No guarantees, just hoping for the best. (I remember those childhood Christmas Eve trips to the Ivanhoe Drug Store with my Dad. . . I thought that was normal. Guess it was at our house!)

Here, take a deep breath and then rest your eyes upon this:

My favorite bridge, colored pencil drawing from 2006, sold

2014 Tulare County Calendars Here Now!

12/11/13 – 3 calendars available

12/1/13 CALENDARS SOLD OUT!

12/10/13 – 4 calendars left!

12/9/13 – 8 calendars remaining!

As of 12/6/13, there are only 23 calendars remaining. When they are gone, they are gone. If you only said, “Save me one”, and you still want it, use Paypal NOW. 

The 2014 calendar of Tulare County photographs are here now, available right here, right now.

This calendar is full of what I consider the best of Tulare County. I am a California artist, a studio artist who works from photos, a regional artist who doesn’t get too far from home, a Tulare County artist with 21,600 photos on her computer.

The 2014 Tulare County calendar is full of my favorites, taken by me and by my husband, aka Trail Guy.

2014 Tulare County calendar


Why I Make Art, #6

This is the final posting of this series, Why I Make Art. READER WARNING: I will talk about God in this so if it bores/irritates/offends you, skip this post.


I am made in the image of the Creator. He, the Ultimate Creator, created me to be like Him, which includes the desire to create. (No, no, no, I don’t think of myself as Godlike!!)

Clearly I do not have the ability to speak things into existence, nor the ability to make something entirely original. “What was will be again, what happened will happen again. There’s nothing new on this earth. Year after year it’s the same old thing.” Ecclesiastes 1:9-10, The Message

I also do not have the unlimited ability to make millions of variations of the same item, nor endless items.

My work is imitative, derivative,  just a way I have of reflecting back a little glory to God. It is my way of expressing the joy I find in light, shadow, shape, color, texture, scenes, and gratitude for ordinary daily gifts.

(Clearly I am missing the cooler temperatures, brighter colors and higher water of Springtime!)

Why I make art, #4

Reason #4: It shows off Tulare County.

My art provides a way to share beautiful places and moments of time with others. This is a natural thing – aren’t you just dying to tell someone or show someone or lend a book or see a movie with someone else? Me too. (You should have seen me running down the street to share the book “The Help” with my neighbor!)

And, living in Tulare County with its bad rep, I feel an obligation to share the good parts with those of us who are “trapped” here. Sharing our beautiful spots helps our self-esteem as a county. It helps our self-esteem as residents of this place (“You live there? WHY???”)

A California Artist Explores Tulare County

There are 4863 square miles in Tulare County. Really! I read it on the internet, so it must be correct, right? Although a great deal of it is un-roaded mountains, there are many roads to explore. And, there are roads to re-explore, because I forget stuff.

This summer I’ve made 4 trips to Kings Canyon National Park. Although it is in Fresno County, the bulk of the travel happens in Tulare County. Each time I have taken a different route, sometimes by choice and sometimes by accident. I wasn’t lost, because I still had my sense of direction and a working steering wheel.

On my most recent trip, I tried 245 out of Woodlake. There are a number of roads that resemble one another along the foothills. They have enough variety to make it worth the effort to change my routes. Besides, I like knowing how they connect. The traffic is usually light, and mostly I see pick-ups or out of state license plates. This is because the roads look reasonable on a map, rather than the remote serpentine almost-endless routes that they really are.

As I drove, I wondered why I couldn’t remember one road from another and why they get so intermingled in my head. In addition, I had lots of other thoughts:

1. There is the road where Bob used to live. I wonder where the sycamore that he drew is. . .

Roble Lomas, oil on wrapped canvas, 14×11″, $175

2. OH! There is that stone gate and barn I painted from a 20 year old snapshot! Shoot, wish the light was better so I could photograph it again. Either they built some new structures, or I did some serious editing!

3. Hey! There is the 2-1/2 acres of avocados that Dad used to farm. Now it has a crummy looking mobile home sitting in the middle of the property.

4. That must be Baldy. Michael and I skied there. It’s not the one that slides in the winter – that is Little Baldy.

5. When did the Badger Store close? I remember getting mail there for Hartland Camp, misidentified on the map as “Hartman”. Don’t these folks actually travel to the places they are mapping?

6. THERE’s the Badger school I remember!  I’ve passed Sierra School on my last several trips. How can an area this rural support 2 elementary schools??

7. AHA! Hogback Road. I knew if I just kept trying different routes, I’d be able to find it from the lower end.

I love Tulare County, and I love exploring! Do you explore areas around your home? Do you look for differing rural routes? Do you have any recommendations? Please share!

Over And Out

The show, Images of Home, is over, and I’m out of these paintings. The museum tells me that was a very good response. If you feel disappointed because your heart was set on one of these, I can paint any of them over again. Won’t be exactly the same, but it will be close. (There I go again, being pushy. Sigh. Sorry.)

My high school buddies with whom I had lunch on December 31 will undoubtedly recognize several of these, since they helped me choose the subject matter. Thanks, Redwood Rangerettes, because many of the ones you chose SOLD, as you can see!

You can also see that Sequoia trees and oranges were very popular. Hmmm, guess I’m a California Artist!

(In case you are wondering why this post looks like Captain Obvious put it together: Mr. Google Who Knows All likes to have words that match the hidden words that help him to find me. So, the silly labeling is for Mr. Google.)

Thank you for putting up with this techno-jive-stuff.

Mostly, thank you so much for taking the time to attend the show, read about it here, and buy my paintings. Without all you all, I might have to be a waitress or a secretary, so I deeply deeply appreciate you! And get this – it WASN’T all my friends and relatives because they felt sorry for me – there were some people I’ve never met who bought my work! ISN’T THAT WONDERFUL??!!! (deep breaths, calm down, breathe. . . .)

This posting is so long that I will take tomorrow off. You can read this one again, or maybe go through the archives. Or, maybe just lie down from exhaustion at all the information presented here.

Yokohl Valley

Oranges

Mineral King

Kaweah Post Office

Orange

Sequoia Trees

Sequoia Tree

Sequoia Trees