Quotable Me

 "The artist paints from a vision within and sees himself in the world around him."

3rd in a Series; Betty's Brook, 24x24, oil

I guess I'm into a series, Betty's Brook. There's an enormous artesian spring on the Westfork Ranch.  It never freezes in the winter no matter how cold.  It is deep in the alder, aspen and cottonwoods and runs into the Sanpoil.  The trails that run through it are made by range cows, moose and deer. It is a bird paradise with many waterfowl and marsh birds nesting in the spring, returning in the fall on their way to southern climes. It is a classic wetland the sort salmon used to call home.  

The process is one of distilling the impressions of the place into a technique that is the language of expression.  The artist paints from a vision within and sees himself in the world around him.

                                                              Betty's Brook 3, 24x24, oil, SOLD

 

 Five years later... sheesh, I guess a record of my time has lapsed or filled by other platforms.  I have been ruminating on the issue of recording one's life.  It used to be we saved photos in an album for future reference by descendents and such that has been replaced by a virtual album and yet here is my online self from 5 years ago.  Had a left the planet would it still go on?  Even if it had would anyone care to look at it.  Relatives, friends and descendants could, atleast until the platform was obsolete.  One of my tasks for this winter is to digitize an analogue album of ancesters an aunt left me so the grandkids have an idea of their roots.  I'm digitizing photos and lineages while at the same time I will make prints of old photos of ancestors to document in material / analogue form something concrete for posterity.  What a conundrum the virtual realm presents.  

What does that say for the business of making paintings?  Talk about analogue! Practically retrogressive.

Do we really own our own thoughts anymore?

 

"Streets of Oaxaca"

I just got back from and amazing adventure to Oaxaca, MX.  A city of 400,000 people in a state of over 2 million people where the average wage is less than $10 a day.  Where the price of gas is $4 a gallon and the price of tortillas (corn is 50% of the Mexican diet) has gone up over 700% from 1994 and the start of NAFTA when the U.S. started dumping our subsidized surplus of corn on 3rd world countries such as Mexico. 

Many of the rural farmers have quit the land they won during the Mexican Revolution and have had to find their way to the U.S. where the money they earn from doing the jobs that we don't like to do,  home to their families. 

 When we visited the small mountain village of San Bartolo it was apparent that only the women, children and old men were left to keep things going.  Although I came home with many wonderful things to contemplate such as the wonderful fine art and native crafts, my eyes were open to the issue of illegal immigration in the U.S. and the challenges we face to resolve the situation. 

It is apparent we helped create this situation and we should fix it. There is not a simple answer.  Water is scarce in Mexico the people are poor but resourceful. 

Monsanto has engineered a corn that will do well in this situation but does not reproduce so the farmer has to buy corn every year from Mansanto with what little money he has left after supporting his or her family on little of nothing.  We created this situation, perhaps with good intentions but it has grown into and intolerable issue of xenophobia and hate on both sides of the border.  The least we can do is reach across the border and get a first had experience of the challenges of our neighbors and try to understand the situation we have put them in.

 

Please forgive Grampa Google any errors in his translation but I figure making an effort to learn Spanish, even if it is third hand, is little enough to try to establish friendly understanding of our neighbors to the south.

 

Me acabo de volver de e increíble aventura a Oaxaca, MX. Una ciudad de 400.000 personas en un estado de más de 2 millones de personas donde el salario promedio es de menos de $ 10 por día. Cuando el precio del gas es de $ 4 por galón y el precio de las tortillas (de maíz es 50% de la dieta mexicana) ha subido más de un 700% entre 1994 y el inicio del NAFTA, cuando los U.S. empezamos vertido nuestros excedentes subvencionados del maíz en 3rd mundo países como México.

Muchos de los campesinos han dejado de la tierra que ganaron durante la Revolución mexicana y han tenido que encontrar su camino a los U.S. donde el dinero que gana de hacer los trabajos que no nos gusta hacer, a sus familias.

 Cuando visitamos el pequeño pueblo de montaña de San Bartolo era evidente que sólo las mujeres, niños y ancianos fueron dejados para mantener las cosas en marcha. Aunque llegué a casa con muchas cosas maravillosas para contemplar, como la bella arte maravilloso y artesanías nativas, mis ojos estaban abiertos a la cuestión de la inmigración ilegal en los U.S. y los desafíos que enfrentamos para resolver la situación.

Es evidente que ayudamos a crear esta situación y debemos arreglarlo. No hay una respuesta simple. El agua es escasa en México la gente es pobre pero ingenioso.

Monsanto ha diseñado un maíz que va a hacer bien en esta situación, pero no reproduce lo que el agricultor tiene que comprar el maíz cada año de Mansanto con el poco dinero que le queda después de apoyar a su familia en poco de la nada. Hemos creado esta situación, tal vez con buenas intenciones pero ha crecido hasta convertirse en intolerable y emisión de la xenofobia y el odio a ambos lados de la frontera. Lo menos que podemos hacer es llegar a través de la frontera y obtener una primera tenido experiencia de los retos de nuestros vecinos y tratar de entender la situación que les hemos puesto en.

 

Enjoy my little story. / Disfrute de mi pequeña historia.



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After the inspiring colors of fall at Sanpoil Studios I will be seeking inspiration in the colors and culture of Mexico.  See you in a month or so with some interesting tales from south of the border.

                                              Fall Colors, Westfork Ranch,  30x40 oil. SOLD

think I better resurrect this blog after all it is my virtual self, that an FB, although I'm dis-inclined to practice scrutinizing my navel in public but perhaps that's the job of an artist, to share.
After the show last spring at the Moses Lake Museum I am a little un-inspired.  Maybe it was that and the distraction of farming and then the fires of summer in which we had to evacuate the ranch for weeks.  The smoke still lingers and probably will until snowfall if it ever does.  If we don't start getting snow fires will be the "new normal" if they aren't already.
We're headed to Mexico for a month or so.  I'm looking forward to the bright colors, sea and foreign sites.  Think I'll take watercolors as they are easier to pack and I enjoy the spontaneity they offer.

 

You are all cordially invited to my next show.  The reception will be May 8, 5-8 at the Moses Lake Museum and Art Center with refreshments provided by Camas Cove Cellars.

Next Show; American Art Company, Tacoma, WA

I managed to sneak a piece in a juried show in Tacoma, Wa, juried by famous painter Jermey Lipking.  I don't enter many juried shows as I don't take rejection well but I guess that's part of the gig and then there's the hastle of deadlines, bios, and receptions.
 Juried shows are a form of validation.  One works in a vacuum doing your own thing, not knowing or caring for that matter if a piece will sell but a living must be made so out there goes your heart and soul to hang on a wall for others to throw darts at although people are kind and one never hears the negative, kind of like Facebook, nobody says what's really on their minds when you post a painting on FB everyone's like "lah, lah, lah, beautifull colors".  I guess that's the real value of juried shows, at least you get a thumbs up OR down about your work.  It's a hard row to hoe but as much as I seem to complain I like the validation. 
This show had a theme, "Nature's Gift of Water", and was promoted by the Plein Air Painters of Washington, PAWA, www.pleinairwashington.com.  They wanted a plein air piece and another that was a studio piece made from the plein air study.   Mr. Lipking chose some fine paintings so there must have been an impressive selection of work from which to choose.  I look forward to meeting him and the other painters in the show.  The American Art Company http://www.americanartco.com/  has been around since the 1800's.
 Here's the invite and my two pieces that will be in the show, they are both called "Sea of the Palouse" because the Palouse looks like waves on the ocean and the landscape was shaped by the ancient floods of Lake Missoula.  I'll be at he show for both the opening and the closing events Friday December 5th 4-7 and Jan 31st 3-5, 1126 Broadway Plaza, Tacoma, Wa

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Pleinair piece; "Sea of the Palouse" 11x14, oil and "Sea of Palouse II" 24x24, oil

 

Follow Up; Olympia Art Walk showing at Arthouse Designs Gallery

Had a great time showing at Susie Engelstad's Arthouse Gallery.  Sold 6 paintings, was invited to contribute work to a benefit for the Capital Theater in Olympia and another invite to compete for the cover art at the next art walk and made some new art friends.  Susie and staff did fantastic and the band "Pearl Django" was an extra bonus that played to a packed house.  Showing on the west/wet side of the state has been a great success.  We've proven to ourselves that sales of art is all about traffic.  Now to find more galleries.
This 30x40 painting sold in the first half hour.