Archive for November, 2009
Here’s the postcard image for my show that opens Friday:
This is the exciting part where it all comes together. I just delivered all the framed prints and artist’s statement this morning, after a busy weekend of re-matting, polishing, and generally cleaning them up. The postcards have been delayed, but are on their way and should be here mid-week. I’ve posted a notice on Facebook, and am getting some RSVPs. My email is written, text and html, and goes out to my list today or tomorrow. Sarah-Hope gave me a haircut over the weekend, and I’ve picked out my outfit. I think I’m ready!
I carved a new print in the series especially for this show, and printed copies are hung up drying in the studio. I’ll scan one as soon as it’s dry; I’m pleased with the way it came out. Now I ask myself: should I go ahead and do even more? Or go back to what I was working on before this show came up? Probably both!
collateral
on exhibit at Michael Angelo Gallery, 111-a River St., Santa Cruz for the month of December
Opening reception Friday, December 4, 6:00pm - 8:30pm
November 30 2009 | Art shows, art galleries, etc and Printmaking | No Comments »
Call me crazy.
It’s not enough to have to retrieve some of my Camino prints from Oakland and a showcase here in Santa Cruz, clean the frames and glazing of the 19 existing prints, update my mailing list, and in general get ready for a show that opens next week.
I’ve also decided that I have to carve a new print.
Actually, I never intended to have 19 prints in the Camino series. Nineteen is a nice number, being a prime and all that, so no disrespect intended to it. I only stopped there because I ran out of time; Sarah-Hope had arranged a show of my prints even before I left Spain, and I had to print to that deadline. Nineteen is where I happened to stop. And now that I have a new show of the prints lined up at the Michael Angelo Gallery here in Santa Cruz, I’d like to add at least one more of the images that have been floating around in my head for a couple of years.
So the next one will be Storks, Azofra, based on a sketch I made in that village. These were the last storks I saw, since it was late September and time for them to migrate south.
Here is another sketch of the village, this time of the albergue or pilgrims’ hostel where I stayed. It was a sort of cozy lean-to attached to the back of the church, the tower of which is the location of the storks’ nest.
And, for more context, a photo of a street in the village. I love the textures of the brick and stone, and hope to capture some of that in my print.
I have a funny long story about staying in this village, but won’t burden my readers with the details. It basically involves me translating what our elderly, soft-spoken, rurally-accented Spanish host was telling us about the water being shut off (with my abysmal Spanish) to my French hiking companions (with my almost-as-bad French). Suffice it to say there was misunderstanding involved, and it was just the one building –ours– without water, not the whole village, and while we did without showers and had to haul our cooking water from the village fountain, the pilgrims who stayed at the deluxe modern albergue were clean and warm and well-fed.
Anyway, here is the start of my print.
I’ve taken my sketch and resized it to fit the block, and shifted some of the elements slightly to enhance the design. I’ve decided not to flip the image while carving, which means that the final print will actually be the reverse of real life. Call it artistic license. Most of the images in my Camino prints face in the same direction, much like the Camino itself, and I wanted this one to be a bit of a change of pace.
So now back to the carving block. Fingers crossed that I get it done. Come to the First Friday reception to find out if it’s in the show!
Details:
collateral
Michael Angelo Gallery
1111-a River Street, Santa Cruz [see map]
Opening reception Friday, December 4, 6pm - 8:30pm
November 20 2009 | Printmaking | 1 Comment »
The big news this week: I’ll be having a solo show this December at a gallery here in Santa Cruz! I’ll be showing my Camino prints at Michael Angelo Gallery, with the opening reception part of the December First Friday art tour. Woohoo! I’m very excited. Now to polish up the frames and glazing and whip together my statement, resume, image for publicity, and all that good stuff that goes with a show. I’ll keep you posted on specific dates and times.
There is another opening –reception, really– that takes place first. This Saturday (November 14) I’ll be hosting a reception at the Lakeview branch of the Oakland Public Library, where my prints and paintings are on view through the end of November. The reception is between 2 and 4pm at the library, at 550 El Embarcadero. Please note that this is NOT The Embarcadero down by Jack London Square. This is the little street that runs across the north end of Lake Merritt, near Gold’s Gym. I will talk about my experience blogging about art, and of course there will be snacks. Please join me there.
November 12 2009 | Art shows, art galleries, etc | No Comments »
Look: Feet! On a path! In hiking boots! This can only mean one thing: I’ve hit the trail again. Hooray!
Since it’s been close to an eternity since my last hike, I decided to go for something relatively easy; not too long, not too hilly. A beach trail seemed just right, and since it’s early November and therefore the beginning of the elephant seal cycle, I headed north to Año Nuevo State Park.
Año Nuevo is a fascinating place in many respects. Its name comes from the Spanish explorers who spotted its rocky shores on New Years Day in 1603. It was the site of many shipwrecks before a lighthouse was built on Año Nuevo Island. There are six separate active fault lines running through the park. And every winter, the elephant seals arrive to mate and bear their young.
The park lies west of Highway 1, and the trail from the parking lot first crosses chapparal-covered shelfland. A pond nurtures all sorts of wildlife, and lies on the edge of one of the fault lines.
If you look to the other side of the trail, you see the ocean and the trail down to Cove Beach.
After this point, you need a permit (free at the entrance kiosk) to proceed to the dunes, where the young male elephant seals have gathered. During the actual breeding season, December through March, you are only allowed out to the dunes in guided groups. Elephant seals are large –the males can reach 2.5 tons– and are not to be trifled with. Many signs warn those who might be foolish enough to try to approach them.
The dunes are high and sweeping, and offer grand views of Monterey Bay. There were many families out for a Saturday adventure.
It’s about a 2-1/2 mile hike out to North Cove, where the young male seals have gathered. These are adolescents, too young to join in the mating rituals, and they are just here to hang out. Some are performing mock battles, but most are napping on the beach.
This guy wasn’t sure he liked being watched, and watched back equally intently.
You can see the snout beginning to grow on this seal. When they are young, elephant seals look much like any other seal or sea lion, but as the males mature, they develop huge curling noses that resemble an elephant’s trunk; hence their name. Mature males bellow to define and defend their territory, and can be heard up to a mile away.
There are volunteer docents on hand to answer questions.
A few more pictures from my walk. The abandoned buildings on Año Nuevo Island; the light is now an automated buoy, and the island has been taken over by the seals and sea lions. There is now a solar-powered Elephand Seal Cam on the island, which is very cool, but be warned that it is sometimes out of commission; seals are large and clumpy, and it’s often knocked over or disconnected.
And the crashing surf at Cove Beach.
I am so glad to live in such a beautiful part of the world. Now where to go hiking next???
November 08 2009 | Walks and hikes | 2 Comments »
