Caique Oarsmen, 1886 — *Caique Oarsmen*, 1886

SF Art Shows: Anders Zorn, David Hockney, Karen Barbour

January 14, 2014 in Field Trip, Artists & Art Shows

I have been trying to get up to San Francisco a bit more to see art shows. Every single one has been totally worth it. I'll run through these not-to-be-missed shows, but I am featuring Karen Barbour's work since I was actually able to get photos of the exhibition. I'll list the shows at the bottom of this post with their closing dates.

One of the things the three artists have in common is being prolific. I think that is a very important quality for artists, since you get less precious about the work and the more you experiment, the more you learn. These three artists reminded me to keep experimenting with materials, especially as I work toward an upcoming installation in April.

Back in November, I saw the Anders Zorn show at the Legion of Honor because that's what my mom wanted to do for her birthday. It can be hard to tear myself away from the studio, so this was the perfect opportunity to get up there. I had never heard of Anders Zorn, Sweden's master painter. His most jaw-dropping works are his watercolors. They are so masterful and really give you a sense of the world he lived in.

David Hockney, Yosemite I, October 16th 2011 — David Hockney, *Yosemite I, October 16th 2011*

In December, I saw one of my favorite artists, David Hockney. His work has always resonated with me with his incredible sense of color and boldness. The show, David Hockney: A Bigger Exhibition, has gotten a lot of publicity and rightfully so. He is a very prolific artist, creating everything from work on paper to iPad drawings. I won't say much more about this show, except that you must go. It's a great show for kids too.

On Friday, I headed up to San Francisco to see the California Printed show at Rare Device. It was the perfect excuse to get out of San Jose and get inspired by seeing some new work. I had not been to Rare Device before, but I'd heard about it for years. It's a great little shop with handmade goods and the California-based art prints were fun. Before I left the house, I decided to check and see if there were any other shows worth going to. I stumbled upon a show by Karen Barbour at Fouladi Projects. What a stumble it was!

Figures with multiple sets of eyes, eyelashes or blue eyeshadow. Figures on stages or at tables posed. Karen Barbour works in a variety of media from oil to collage, but the work that most attracted me was painted in gouache and ink. There was something equally fresh and laborious in the work, with layers mixed with gutsy lines of paint. Acidic colors and blacks sit side by side and it all evokes a different reality. Her work is playful and I loved that her back wall was an installation of paintings and collage, which reminded me of my drawing wall at my show last month. No material is left untouched, including thread and glitter.

Please visit the links below for museum and gallery times., but try not to spend too much time looking at the work online. All of these shows are completely different in person. Please leave a comment below if you know of any shows that I need to see!

The List

Anders Zorn: Sweden's Master Painter closes February 2, 2014

David Hockney: A Bigger Exhibition closes January 20, 2014

Karen Barbour: No Should Be As Friendly As Yes closes March 1, 2014

Feels Like It's Getting Busy - Alamere Falls Part Two

September 19, 2013 in Adventure & Hiking

Several weeks ago, I returned to Alamere Falls with some friends. I had been hiking in some beautiful places in the North Bay to prepare for backpacking the Skyline-to-Sea trail. This trip has been postponed for a few reasons, but that's okay. We'll do it soon.

I've been doing some thinking this last week about just how much time art takes up in my life. While I absolutely love it, it turns most weeks into 6-7 work days. I love so many other things as well and it can be difficult to make the time for other things I like to do, especially when adventuring means traveling out of the area for a day or a weekend. This time of the year I get really busy, so I think I am just in the acceptance stage that summer is over, I have a lot of work lined up and deadlines are looming.

For now, I will be sharing Alamare Falls - Part Two. I invited some friends to hike the same trail I had done a couple weeks prior. It was an even prettier not-a-cloud-in-the-sky day.

Rope swingers were having a blast. There was a small hillside of my friends and a few strangers, including some nudists on the rope swing. Gotta love California!

This scene was way prettier in person. It felt like we were on a remote island.

Lovely friends posing after we made it to the first part of the falls.

We ate figs, dark chocolate covered coconut, garden vegetable sandwiches and reward beers in this perfect place.

A classic California sunset on the walk back.

Alright, back to work!

Alamere Falls

August 14, 2013 in Adventure & Hiking

I've noticed a strange phenomena. When I leave San Jose, good things happen. Okay so maybe that's not that strange. When I'm on the road, I'll check my phone and inevitably, I sold some art. This seems to happen when I go to San Francisco and the North Bay. I am getting the feeling that I eventually need to live somewhere else. I also get plenty of new ideas and feel super relaxed when I get back. Although I haven't traveled too far this year, I've managed to get to LA, Gold Country, Mendocino and camped a bit. Luckily in California, you can just travel for the day and feel like you took a vacation.

In my book, it really doesn't get any better than the Northern California coastline. Ferns, the ocean, fields, creeks, lakes, dense hallways and more peepholes made up the Alamere Falls hike we did this weekend. Although I love Big Sur, the California coast from north of San Francisco to the Oregon border is surreal. I've driven up and down Highway 1 many times and it gets me every time. From Bolinas to Bodega Bay, Salt Point to Gold Bluffs, it's just one grand beach after another.

On Sunday, we did the Alamere Falls trail. Although last week's hike was a stunner, this one had even more variety in terrain. It was incredible, to say the least.

The hike starts in a Eucalyptus grove. Although these trees seem right at home here, they are not native to California, but Australia.

Just out of the Eucalyptus, a grand view of the sea.

The first of two lakes we found on the trail. We found a family finishing up swimming. We're going to come back and use that rope swing... or maybe return with thicker rope.

I kept referencing Labyrinth as we walked through walls of ferns, poison oak and more. A little finch was leading us through here and I definitely expected a secret door to open.

We made it to the the falls. This is the first of three tiers.

Alamere Falls leads right into the sea. You have to scramble down rock wall to get to it. There were hardly any people here, just a nudist and a few couples.

Marin in Marin

August 07, 2013 in Adventure & Hiking

As much as I work, I find it super important to drive away and be in beautiful places. Last Sunday, I spent the day at Mt. Tamalpais near Stinson Beach. About three years ago I camped here and I did a photo shoot in the area earlier this summer. I returned for some tranquility and found one of the most beautiful hikes ever. We roamed through fields with ocean views, trekked into damp woods and then above the fog. Whether it's blue skied or foggy, it's perfect.

The Matt-Davis Steep Ravine Loop is about 7 miles and as you will see in the photos below, stunning and always changing.

Good beginnings start with winding staircases. That's Bryan way up there.

Dense branches everywhere and lots of ispiring patterns.

This part of the trail wove in and out of the fog.

...And it cleared up! The trail was blue skied once we hit the top.

We wrapped up the hike around 6 or so. The thick trees made a nice peephole to the sea.