Spring may not be in the air with all this rain, but I assure all that spring has sprung in the art world in Petaluma. Late March & early April mark the true kick off of the active art calendar here in our city.

Hi to Brian who has been kind enough to read and comment on my first blog posting. I have been to the Gallery One "Caged" show and truly enjoyed the show. Brian was curious what I think of the pencil art that is part of this show. I must say that I spent quite a bit of time looking at those works. The thing that I found quite enjoyable is the verity of ways the pencils were used. The other piece of mixed media art in that show used old bulbs & vacuum tubes from old computers (I think). It's also a piece you can look at more than once! I recommend getting out there to see the show.

The Spirit of Color, underwritten by the Bank of Marin is an excellent start to the show circuit for our local artists. This show is patterned after the "Marinscapes" and is in its 3rd year. This show will be available for viewing at the Marina Bank of Marin branch beginning this Wednesday (3/29/06) through early May. The artist reception for this show is next week on Thursday, April 6th. For more information, you can go to the Spirit of Color link from the links list. There are over 200 pieces of art up for sale. Proceeds go to support the Petaluma People Services and the Petaluma Arts Association. Entry to the reception is $25 which includes a host of drinks along with a wonderful culinary delight donated by the Sheraton & other local restaurants

Another annual art show going up soon will be at the Petaluma Historical Museum & will help celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Carnegie Library Building . More on that next week.

Last week I went to the Petaluma Arts Council (PAC) meeting to find out what they are up to. Aside from having some great momentum for their entry in the Butter & Eggs Parade this year, I was really excited to see 3 new programs being sponsored by the PAC. You can get more from the PAC web site under what's new (link in my links list). Briefly, the first is the Writers Forum, a new monthly series of workshops that will explore various aspects of writing. Second is the Arts Council Education Committee, which is busy putting together a program of art classes and workshops for all ages. Third, the Art Paths project seeks to view the city of Petaluma as an ecological art form and create human and art-based connections throughout the town. PAC continues to improve our surroundings with art! Great job!

Lastly for this post, I want to encourage those of you who dabble in art to consider reading the book Art & Fear by David Bayles & Ted Orland. I found it to be a great motivator for getting myself to sit down & actually paint.

That's it for now. Get out there & see some art!

w/smile

Linda

Bank of Marin sponsors Spirit of Color, an annual art exhibit and sale celebrating the work of Sonoma County artists.

The Spirit of Color exhibit and sale will occur March through May 31, 2006. The works of more than 30 artists in the Petaluma Arts Association are on display at Bank of Marin's Petaluma-Marina branch, which is located at 799 Baywood Drive. On Thursday, April 6, 2006 from 6pm to 8pm the Bank will host an artists' reception and fundraising sale. At the reception you will have an opportunity to meet the artists, purchase art and support the community. Commemorative posters will also be for sale. Tickets for the reception are $25 per person.

Contact the Bank at 707-781-2201 for more information or to purchase tickets.

Proceeds from the sale of art benefit the Petaluma Arts Association's youth art programs and the Petaluma People Services Center.

One of the great things about Petaluma and our art scene is that we have are surrounded by great art. In continuing to learn & enjoy art, we can take advantage of the vast selection of museums & galleries in the area. The de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park was my destination this past weekend. A sun soaked Sunday made a great backdrop for a trip south. With out of town visitors in tow, we made our way down to the park. The de Young was bustling with people most, like us, going in for the first time. We happened across a friend who manages the weekend membership signups and got the inside scoop. After enjoying the spectrum of art & craft in the featured exhibit, we took in as much as we could of the American paintings & photography exhibits.

I have to admit that I got busted looking closely at one of the frames. As I inspected the corner & finish of the frame, I heard a familiar voice sing out "nice frame!" & was pleased to find our own Dane Golden of the Argus standing behind me.

Here in Petaluma this week, if you want an update on the Petaluma Arts Council (PAC), stop by the public Library's Helen Putnam room at 7pm on Wednesday (3/22) to hear about this year's activities.

Spring art shows are heating up. More next time about the Petaluma Arts Association (PAA) Spirit of Color and the joint art show (PAC & PAA) at the Petaluma Historical Museum starting next week...

w/smile, Linda

Welcome to a look at visual art in Petaluma. This is an exciting task for me since I am a fairly new artist. I started painting 4 years ago and literally changed my entire life to revolve around the art world. I'll be chatting about art events, installations, organizations and, from time to time philosophy on art.

First, let me mention the events and installations that I have enjoyed & would recommend viewing:

Petaluma Galleries

• Anticipation Gallery : Clark Mitchell, Jonnie Baldwin & Sandra Speidel
• Barry Singer Gallery: Peter Lippmann - Medicinal Plants & more through 4/29
• Gallery One: Red Herring presents "CAGED" through 4/8
• Loanna Clark Gallery: Metal Sculpture by H.E. Berwer
• Pelican Art Gallery: Mapmaking for Amateurs by Trevor Zebulon through 3/31

Other Art Installations:

• Petaluma Valley Hospital: Flowers & Fruit through 5/15
• Petaluma Coffee Café: Petaluma Arts Council Annual Member Show through 3/27

Art Organization Meetings

• Wednesday, 3/22/06 @ 7pm at the Petaluma Library (900 East Washington St): Petaluma Arts Council (PAC) member meeting
• Thursday, 3/23/06 @ 7pm at Pelican Art Gallery: Petaluma Arts Association (PAA) Art in the Park 2006 Meeting

What is Art?

Though I have always admired & appreciated art, I admittedly have been a very left-brained person most of my life. In 2002, having discovered a love for drawing & painting, I declared my goal to be in art full time by 2007. A turn of events and the alignment of the stars in 2003 resulted in the birth of the Pelican Art, LLC. That same year, having been a member of the Petaluma Arts Association (PAA) for almost 1 year, I was asked to assume the leadership role for PAA's cornerstone event, Art in the Park. Knowing that PAA is filled with many great volunteers who would help me, I accepted the challenge. Anyway, all that said, one of the first questions asked by the Art in the Park Committee members was "What is Art?". I flashed back the Lilly Tomlin's one-woman show "In Search for Intelligent Life in the Universe" where she compares a can of tomato soup to Andy Worhol's painting of a can of tomato soup & I wondered how I should answer the question. There are many ways to answer that question and I don't think that there is a right answer. In my opinion, there is an art to sailing a boat or tuning a piano. There are culinary, musical, theatrical, performing and poetic arts. Art is a vantage point into our experience that is huge, life-changing and exciting.

This blog will focus on (but not be limited to;-) visual art: 2-dimensional (2D) and 3-dimensional (3D) creative works that are painted, sculpted, collaged, sewn, photographed, digitally altered, carved, knitted, quilted, woven, welded or drawn.

I welcome your feedback, comments & recommendations on art viewing and art in Petaluma!

"Art can touch the soul & change the world" Post 2006