Just back from an incredible two week photography journey to Myanmar with Solano College instructor Ron Zak. So many crisp memories: Shwedagon Pagoda, Yangon fish market, the reclining Buddha at Chaukhtatgyi Paya, stupas in Bagan, the Snake Pagoda, Pindaya Cave, Jumping Cat Monastery, Inle Lake. We saw one breathtaking site after another. But what I valued the most was the chance to connect with Myanmar's people--warm, funny, resilient--the true natural resource of this country that has been repressed from outside and in. If you have a chance to visit before things change too much there, I would highly recommend it. Its magical, ironic, and inspiring. Hope you enjoy some of my photos in this slideshow. Stay tuned for a class exhibition of our favorites.
January 20, 2012
December 21, 2011
Napa Nest North
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
Ann Trinca
Norma Quintana
Nina Zaslove
November 16, 2011
Handmade Heartfelt
Last weekend I got an early dose of holiday spirit at our Napa Nest Pop-Up shop. Tons of feathered friends showed up to support our local artisans and Marie Ferrini offered her space to host a reunion of Nest artists. Thank you all for your support! If you missed the merriment, you can still purchase handmade goods online at the following links:
And COMING BACK SOON: Napa Nest on Etsy
See you online!
November 15, 2011
Art of the Mix
Time for a diversion...the season of holiday parties, family gatherings, and fancy beverages is upon us. While I enjoy all of the art activities springing up around Napa (see next post), I like to support our local mixologist at Solbar in Calistoga, Michael Pazdon. Michael just won the King's Ginger Holiday Cocktail Competition hosted by Mutineer magazine. I was lucky enough to attend with my pals from The Best Book Club Ever (who were dressed to the nines) at the Napa Valley Opera House.
The winning cocktail is worth making note of. I reccomend serving this delicious brew at your next cozy party, or just as a treat at home in front of the fire. Below are some pics from the glamorous event.
The King’s Waes Hail
by Michael Jack Pazdon, SolBar
3/4 oz. The King’s Ginger Liqueur
3/4 oz. lemon juice
1/2 oz. Carpano Antica Formula
1/2 oz. egg white
dash house-made grenadine*
dash Maraschino Orginale Luxardo
5 drops gingersnap spice tincture**
5 drops Genevieve Genever-style Gin
Combine all ingredients, aside from the genever, in a mixing glass, dry shake for 10 seconds, add ice, shake hard and double strain into a chilled coupe. Float dehydrated apple chip, fresh grated nutmeg, rosemary flowers, 5 drops gingerbread spice tincture and 5 drops Genevieve on top of foam.
August 30, 2011
Time for a farm flash back
Remember my friends Clare Carver & Brian Marcy at Big Table Farm? About 6 years ago they escaped the hoighty-toighty wine industry in Napa and leapt into full-on farming and wine making in the Willamette Valley near Portland, Oregon. Clare is a talented painter who I met through the Arts Council Napa Valley and she is always the epitome of confidence and adventure. But when they moved to Oregon I was still slightly skeptical that this outgoing creature could live on an isolated farm and haul 50 lb feed bags at sunrise. I should have known better...
Clare and Brian are thriving, even if they have to do most of the work by themselves. The response to their Big Table wines has been explosive, they are raising cows and pigs and chickens for extra income. Clare is still painting every week with a plein air group. And they are still smiling.
Here is a video shot during the Outstanding in the Field event they hosted in July. Followed by some photos I took on my last visit. If this couple doesn't inspire you, you must be daft.
Big Table Farm, Oregon from Outstanding in the Field on Vimeo.
From my visit last April:
March 05, 2011
Local hunts
Along with Indra Fortney of life-style, I drove down to the Oakland Museum Women's Board's White Elephant Sale full of hope and anticipation. I have been hearing tales of the unbelievable deals and throngs of people for years and years. The website says it "is the biggest, the best and certainly the most enjoyable rummage sale in Northern California".....Nope.
It was overcrowded, overhyped and certainly not enjoyable. The line to get it went around a full city block and kept coming. Once you got inside, there was barely breathing room to look at the items, which really weren't worth fighting for. Although I applaud the Oakland Museum of CA's Women's Board for organizing such a huge feat of philanthropy...I now know that I haven't been missing much.
When we returned to Napa I toook some time to visit our local consignment shops: Alice's Consignments, Antiques on Second, Community Projects, and the newly opened Roost on Lincoln Ave. I found a better selection, lower prices, and nicer people right here in our very own city. I suggest you support these community businesses. The more we shop in Napa, the fewer white elephants we have to chase!
January 19, 2011
Beauty in Buenos Aires
Back from Buenos Aires with a collection of great photographs! I’ve just returned from a two-week sojourn with a class of photographers led by the fearless Ron Zak. Zak is the Photography Department Chair at Solano College and he has been leading these excursions around the world for over twenty years.
On Dec 29 we arrived and settled into our home base in the San Telmo district. Having been away from city life for so long, it took me a while to work up my urban mojo. Buenos Aires is a vibrant, grungy, cosmopolitan, complex city with a mix of cultures and a passion for art, architecture, dance, and beef.
Our group of 23 photographers (all ages and experience) tried to capture this chaotic beauty in our photos—each of us with a different tilt. Part of the fun was sharing our work at the end of day and telling stories of “the great capture” or the one that got away.
Highlights for me were the immense walls of graffiti, our excursion to a local dance hall, the Recoleta cemetery, the MALBA museum, Palermo Thai food, ambitious dog walkers, Museo Evita, looking for the disappeared, Spanglish lessons, and the flea market on Avenida Defensa.
Zak told us to look for themes in our work, assuring us one would emerge. After a while I determined that my photos were “Indirect Portraits” i.e. photos of human evidence but not typical portraits. I definitely learned a lot during the trip and got to know a place I had never imagined I would visit. Coming back is like returning from another lifetime—one filled with noise, color, drama in the land of Tango.
(see more photos in Tangoland album)
December 08, 2010
Gettin Crafty Up in the Valley
If you have your ear to the ground (metaphorically of course) you've heard the rumble of the Bay Area urban craft movement coming our way. As one who religiously frequents Maker Faire, Bazaar Bizarre, and Renegade Craft Fair, I am loving the fact that the Napa Valley has had nonstop craft events all month.
It started off with the White Barn Winter Fair on November 19th to benefit the Arts Council of Napa Valley. Nimbus Arts followed with their "Hands on Fire" ceramic show and sale. Last weekend I stopped at the "Holiday Shopping Extravaganza" and saw good friends Valerie Raven, Nina Zaslove, and Nancy Shapiro. Napa Valley College has a Pottery Sale and Open Studio Thursday from 11:00am-8:00pm and "Santa's Helpers" returns to the Napa Expo the 11th & 12th.
So I couldn't help throwing my hat in the ring when potter Nikki Ballere invited us to be at the Artisan Trunk Show in St. Helena on Dec 17 & 18. I'll be showing off my latest sewn creations at a booth with my boyfriend Robb McDonough who owns Barn Simple Press. Other fantastically creative artists in the show include: Christopher Jones-Marino, William Callnan III, Mercedes Baker, Daithi, Melissa Garden Streblow, Melissa Baker, Slader Brown, Nikki Ballere, Sonia Lub, Layla Musselwhite, Jenna Wells, Lynae Marie Skookumchuck and Thief of Hearts.
We kick it off Friday with a fun party from 6:00-9:00pm and continue Saturday from 10:00-5:00. Come check out the beautiful space upstairs at the Odd Fellows Building in St. Helena at 1352 Main Street. I guarantee you will find a wonderful work of art or jewelry or letterpress or pottery that you cannot live without.
Viva la Craft!
October 21, 2010
Makers Mark
This is an incredible time for artists and art lovers in the Napa Valley. As part of the Napa Valley Arts 2010, local painters, photographers, musician, actors, poets, singers, sculptors, and makers of all sorts are showing off and looking great. (all photos by Robb McDonough)
Organized by the Arts Council of Napa Valley, the celebration is chock full of over 100 cultural events at arts organizations, venues, galleries, wineries and schools up and down the valley. If you have ever bemoaned the fact that there isn’t enough to do in Napa, I invite you to pick up a NV Arts catalog or visit their website NVarts.org to check out the smorgasbord now through November 14.
The partying started off with a huge feel-good event at Mumm Napa. The Arts Council lined up photographers Suzanne Becker Bronk, Dona Kopol Bonick, Kristine Cummins, and Chick Harrity to take portraits of over 60 inspirational "makers". The photos captured everyone from Eleanor Coppola to Jakey Lee, showing just how diverse and brilliant our artist population is.
The great thing about the event was the overwhelming feeling of camaraderie and support. Sometimes as an artist, it feels like you are working in a void. But that night, you felt a powerful sense of togetherness. Many of the people who have been active in the arts scene for years, got to meet the up and coming generation of makers. I was absolutely honored to be recognized in the company of all these talented, dedicated, luminaries.
Special thanks to the staff at the ACNV for organizing this massive “wedding” of artists. Now that we are on our honeymoon, I hope everyone can look around proudly at what you have helped us achieve. Hurray!
Check out these Makers blog posts too:
September 02, 2010
Needle in a Hay Barn
Finding cool contemporary art exhibitions in Napa used to be like looking for a needle in a haystack. But a few recent events have opened up new venues in the local scene. Artist Gordon Huether has moved his exhibition space to downtown Napa, freeing up his Hay Barn studio gallery on Monticello Road to rotating show by guests curators.
The expert vision of Chandra Cerrito (owner of Chandra Cerrito Contemporary in Oakland) has transformed the Hay Barn into a super hip space for new art. The five artists in her show Stratigraphic play with elements of pop, op, and abstract art, to create work that not only catches your eye, it traps it.
The vibrant paintings of Omar Chacón, who was born in Bogotá, refer to the rich colors and patterns of Latin American textiles. Brian Caraway (photo) pairs his rhythmic canvases with titles that throw you off balance i.e. "take my advice don't come any closer". And David Allan Peters, carves into layers and layers of acrylic paint, taking the painting in reverse, flipping your sense of 2D and 3D.
An added bonus was the sighting of the "Imperial America" a work in progress by artist Lewis deSoto that was recently written about in the NY Times. His customized 1956 Chrysler Imperial was parked out front sans the pending roof rack for a 10.5-foot scale model of a CC-56 Redstone ballistic missile.
Thanks to Gordon and Chandra and all the artists in Stratigraphic for an incredible discovery. The exhibition is up through September 24 and the Hay Barn is open to needle hunters Monday-Friday 9am to 4pm. More photos in the Hay Barn album.
