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Perfect Gift Boutique coming Friday and Saturday

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What are you doing, California Artist? I mean Central California Artist?

I’m pretending to be a sign painter again.

Why?

There is a show coming soon for the Kaweah Artisans.

Who?

A loosely formed group of craftswomen, men and artists who are sort of based within the Kaweah River area.

Ka-what?

“Kah-WEEE-uh” is the name of the river which has 5 branches in the Three Rivers area of central California.

Three or five? I know Tulare Co. is the 3rd least educated county in the state, but can’t you people even count to five?

‘Tis a mystery, indeed. But you are getting off track here. I want to tell you about the upcoming show for the Kaweah Artisans.

Why don’t you do it in big bold letters, maybe in red or something.

Good idea!

the annual Perfect Gift Boutique

Friday, November 27 – 28

Three Rivers Arts Center

Just over the North Fork Bridge, first building on the left

Times to be announced, sign to be painted, better get some hustle in your bustle, Central California Artist!

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Little Post for Little Event

Two miles from home in our little town of Three Rivers, a little art show in a little dining room of a little restaurant and a little space to show a little art on a nice fall day. (A long incomplete sentence!)

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This is the view behind the place where the show was. In the trees across the river is the Three Rivers Arts Center, where there will be another show soon.

Holiday Bazaar at Three Rivers Memorial Building

Another upcoming event for this Central California Artist. November is my busiest month of the year! Who would have guessed this? 

The Senior League Holiday Bazaar has been happening for many years at the local Veterans Memorial Building. It used to seem podunk to me, and now I appreciate it as a great low-key event in which there is time to really visit with the visitors.  (Department of Redundancy Dept. here)

There is a great variety of vendors, although it tends to be heavy in the jewelry department. Each year there are different folks showing and selling their wares, and others who return faithfully. 

1437 Turning Leaf XIV

Oh wait. This is supposed to be about shopping! Hope to see you there. . .

Senior League Holiday Bazaar

Saturday, November 14, 2015

9 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Three Rivers Memorial Building

Hidden in the Leaves

hidden announce

Hidden in the Leaves is the title of a show sponsored by the Arts Alliance of Three Rivers. At last count there were 17 Three Rivers artists participating. The show hangs in the dining room of Sierra Subs, along the highway in Three Rivers just before you see the Shell gas sign. (Easier to spot than an address!)

Here’s a link to a little thing about it: Fresno Bee Events Page

First Saturday Three Rivers: Its opening reception is Saturday, November 7 and I will be there, set up in the courtyard, showing, and selling from 11:00 until 2:30 . (That’s tomorrow if you are reading this on Friday, November 6.)

Three of my oil paintings are in the show, and one is two are already sold!

Stop by, say hi, order a FABULOUS lunch, sit near the river, look at the paintings, introduce yourself to me, browse through my stuff, hang loose and be cool. Or, buy something. Just have a good time!

Three Rivers is Bear Country

One afternoon I was painting in the workshop. Trail Guy stopped his work on the house to rest a bit. What am I working on?

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Another Kaweah Post Office, because it is my policy to always have one ready to go. Pomegranates because they are beautiful to paint and sell well.

Trail Guy reported a bear sighting. So, I went to investigate. They are so fascinating to watch – something about their size or furriness or proportions or way of moving or something. Here, you can see for yourself. If you want to see a bear any day of the week in Three Rivers, you can just go driving around and find one! Truly!

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Okay, bear break over – back to work. Get painting again, Central California Artist in Bear Country.

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Kaweah Post Offices

The eBay painting went to a very happy lady!

Kaweah P.O.

Chuck’s painting progressed quickly.

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This is a photograph of it while it was drying. Hang on, Chuck, it’s coming soon!

My Favorite Customer bought this painting and I split the sale with the Kaweah Post Office fund.

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Several friends gave cash toward the project. Some of them received a package of these cards. (The others didn’t receive cards because I was caught by surprise and didn’t have them with me.)

pencil KPO

Something just occurred to me as I think about this project: EVERY SINGLE PERSON WHO CONTRIBUTED IS NOT FROM THREE RIVERS!!

Isn’t that amazing? That may be part of what has blown me away – so many people from other places have a soft place in their hearts for the Three Rivers landmark of the Kaweah Post Office.

 

Kaweah Post Office – Sad and Good

It took a few weeks to gather the courage, but I finally drove past the Kaweah Post Office. You may need to avert your eyes – it is dismal and sad.

broken PO

Forgive me for such ugliness on this blog.

Let me atone for this indignity by sharing some good news about the Kaweah Post Office.

The eBay auction, the commission for Chuck, the sale of another painting of the post office, and several generous donations have produced. . .

rap a tap a rap a tap a rap a tap a rap a tap a rap a tap a rap a tap a rap a tap a rap a tap a rap a tap

(That was a drum roll, in case you were wondering.)

$2050!

This is a HUGE dent in the $3000 insurance deductible that the owner of the post office has to come up with for the repairs.

You people are CRAZY GENEROUS AND AWESOME! THANK YOU!!

(I used my favorite color of teal for that sentence to express my appreciation.)

Tomorrow I will further atone for the offensive photo above by showing you the 3 oil paintings of the Kaweah Post Office when it was whole and surrounded by greenery.

P.S. I keep repeating Kaweah Post Office so that Mr. Google can help people find it when they are seeking updates about our beloved Three Rivers landmark.

Kaweah Post Office Fundraising

The Kaweah Post Office is one of our only landmark structures in Three Rivers. I am working to help meet the insurance deductible to rebuild it because a big limb from a valley oak tree smashed the roof. (We are quite rural – perhaps a bear was in the tree eating acorns and caused the limb to break . . . I wasn’t there, but it could have happened that way!)

There is an auction on eBay to sell my painting of the Post Office; I will split the proceeds with them. (I gotta earn something here, dear readers – selling art is how I make my living!) It ends tomorrow, Friday, October 9, at noon. See it by clicking this link.

A nice man named Chuck told me he wants to participate with $200, but he just doesn’t shop on eBay. No worries, Chuck. I understand those types of boundaries, because I don’t play on Facebook.

So, I offered to repaint it for him for $100 and give $100 to the Post Office (that size normally sells for $150.)

Chuck upped his donation to $150 to the Post Office, so I got busy immediately. Here is how it looked after the first session on the canvas.

Kaweah P.O.

Normally, I don’t draw the image in pencil first. Instead, I block it out with my paint brush and correct the proportions with each successive layer of paint.

Because I will show Chuck a photo of the progress once a week on this blog, I wanted it to look better at each stage than paintings usually do. If he saw my normal sloppy way of beginning, he might get scared and withdraw his offer!

Thank you, Chuck (and don’t be scared!)

 

 

The Two Mister Blacks

Mister Black is the name I give to the ravens I paint. There are two so far, painted because of the Raven Festival in Three Rivers.

Three Rivers does something special-ish on the first Saturday of each month. A new theme is chosen each month, and for October, it is ravens.

The amazing Nadi Spencer had the idea of a raven theme and took it a little further than just a normal First Saturday. October is a busy month for me, so I haven’t been around for the festivities.

However, I have done a painting for 2 years now. This is the first Mister Black.

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Mister Black, oil on wrapped canvas, 6×6″, sold
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Look Out, Mister Black, oil on wrapped canvas, 6×6″, $55

In this is this year’s version he was looking out from atop that pole (which was actually white and fiberglass.)

At Sierra Subs and Salads in Three Rivers is a show of the raven artwork. You can learn more on the First Saturday Three Rivers page.

Gotta go paint now!

An Artist Lives Out Her Donation Convictions

Kaweah P.O.

This is an article I recently published on LinkedIn.

I am perpetually fed up with artists getting asked to donate to good causes. In May of 2014,  I posted “An Artist Bloviates about Donations” on LinkedIn. My hope was to encourage fund raisers to find other methods besides asking those who are often at the bottom rungs of the financial ladder.

Under the list of “Reasons to Donate”, #1 was “An artist loves the cause and wants to help.” I currently have a cause I love and want to help.

Tulare County, where I live, is poor, rural, and in Central California. It is far from Los Angeles, San Francisco or the Silicon Valley. We are not rich either in money nor in landmarks.

One of our favorite historic structures is the Kaweah Post Office, a tiny wooden structure just outside of  Three Rivers. It is 125 years old and still in operation!

Because we are also not currently rich in rainfall, many of our trees are very stressed. A giant oak above our little Kaweah Post Office lost a limb which smashed the roof and porch of the landmark we love.

The building is publicly appreciated, but privately owned. There is insurance, but it comes with a large deductible.

So, I am auctioning the above oil painting on eBay. In keeping with my principles about artists not giving away their work, I will donate half of the proceeds toward the restoration of the Kaweah Post Office. 

A few notes:

1. Kaweah is the name of the rivers of Three Rivers. (South, Middle and North Forks of the Kaweah make up the three. . . never mind about the Marble and East forks – our forebears had to draw the line somewhere!)

2. It is pronounced “Kuh – WEE – uh” (not to be confused with “The River Kwai”)

3. The auction listing is “Original Oil Painting of Kaweah Post Office”.

4. The painting is 10×10″ on wrapped canvas, ready to hang.

5. The auction went live at 12:02 on September 29 and remains up for 10 days.

Now, let’s see how this bloviating artist’s version of raising money turns out!