Meet Spring Obsession 2024 artist Popi Tyler

 Santa Rosa

Artist

Popi Tyler

O-055 Riding-the-Southern-Cliffs by Popi Tyler mm 22.5x15.5 $1400

"The fluid medium of watercolor always brings me surprises and joy.

The most wonderful experience happened to me in kindergarten when my teacher handed me jars of finger paints and paper ... I've never looked back!

Since then, I've had the good fortune to study watercolor here in the US, in California, Nevada, Hawai'i, and in Mexico and Greece.

I have been the honored recipient of two awards from Ironstone Vineyards Spring Obsession Art Exhibit in Murphys, California: The 18th Annual Ironstone Vineyards Family Choice Award in 2015, and a First Place Blue Ribbon in the Open Division in 2021.

Hoping to be a perpetual student, forever learning, my studies continue under two great friends and master watercolorists, Dale Laitinen of Placitas, NM, and Christopher Schink of Santa Rosa, CA.

For 15 years now, my group of treasured artist friends and I have been gathering together on Fridays for art mischief & laughter ... what could be better?"

Happy Trails!

O-056 Virginia-City-Southern-Cliffs by Popi Tyler mm 22.5x15.5 $1400

Popi Tyler

808.220.7452

Popi@popityler.com

Meet Spring Obsession 2024 artist Donna Wayman-Maurer

O-094 Picasso-Meets-Leroy-Neiman-by Donna Wayman-Maurer oil 36x48 $12,000

Donna Wayman-Maurer is an enthusiastic and energetic self-taught artist. Hert paintings are always on the move. They ebb and flow with elegance, freedom, confidence and sensuality. Your eyes move through her paintings wanting to see more. Donna has the ability to paint almost anything from elegant portraits, animals, still life, landscapes, cars, hood ornaments and musicians and singers. When she is inspired by someone or something she has to paint it. Donna was born in Flint, Michigan and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada, lived in Idaho, Missouri, Colorado and finally settling in Central California. She is a mother of 3, and grandmother of 14 and a great-grandmother of 2.

O-095 Eleanor Spirit of Ecstasy-by Donna Wayman-Maurer oil 30x40 $10,000

  Donna paints out of the box paintings that feel good and that take your breath away with color that vibrates with every brush stroke. Donna's p[aintings have won many awards and recognitions. Her works have been reproduced as posters, movie posters, s/n prints, giclee's, t-shirts, puzzles and murals. Donna's work is very versatile, and she never limits herself. The world is a beautiful place, and she wants to see and paint as much of it as she can. Painting has always been her therapy. " I was a very shy child, and my art was my only way to communicate, it made me feel special." That's why art is so important for children. It gives them self-confidence and a way to express themselves.  As a mother of three I know art has helped my children. Art is an essential part of our lives. Art recorded our history before there was a written language. Art is a part of every culture. It's what make us all unique and special. That is why we need to teach art in schools and at home and to encourage our children's creativity. Teach a child to love art and you will teach a child to really see and love the world.

O-096 Marilyn-in-Hollywood-by Donna Wayman-Maurer oil 30x40 $11,000

www.drawthelinedesignsart.com

Meet Spring Obsession 2024 artist Paula Gale Tooman

 Paula Gale Tooman Bio

O-061 Morning-Blooms by Paula Tooman wc 22x18.5 $350

    I feel like I am coming home when I enter the art show at Ironstone Vineyards. The Gold Country has always been special to me. My husband and I love sitting on the Ironstone patio outside the wine tasting room having a glass of wine and some sandwiches. It's a privilege to return as a painter to one of my favorite places.

O-062 Spring-Dreams-Number-1 by Paula Tooman wc 21x17 $225 SOLD

    I am Paula Gale Tooman and I've been painting since my mid-twenties. I first got interested in watercolor when I took a class from Muriel Doggett in adult education in Pleasanton, California. It only took six weeks to fall in love with the fluid surprises of painting with watercolors. I've never been able to pry myself away from this medium - it's exciting, vibrant, unpredictable, and just plain fun. A Friend and I would try to go plein-air painting every few weeks. Something we went to the Sacramento Delta but mainly we painted in the Gold Country. Dogs loved us, and people would meander by to see what we were doing. The spectators seemed to be kind and somewhat envious of the fun we were having.

O-063 Spring-Dreams-Number-2-by Paula Tooman wc 21.5x17 $225

    When I had my first two children, I felt I was too busy to paint. But I didn't know what busy really was until my husband and I adopted twelve Ethiopians between 1994 and 1996. I was too busy to do much of anything. Our last adoption was in 1999 of a handicapped Down's syndrome baby girl. But ... I still dreamed of those days of painting in the Gold Country and wanted to try again. When I was in my late fifties I had only three kids at home - it felt like a vacation.

    This last year has been very busy with trips, and friends, and commitments. But, "God willing and the creek don't rise", I'll be spending much more time in my studio this coming year. It has been hard figuring out what to paint. I hope I can spend more time and try to enjoy it rather than worry about painting "the best picture" I can do.

Meet Spring Obsession 2024 artist JC Strote

O-035 White-Poppies by JC Strote glass 12x12 $295

 JC has been practicing and developing her passion for fused glass art for over 20 years. She is also an art educator and leads private fused glass classes by appointment. Her gallery affiliations include the Lodi Community Art Center, Blue Line Arts in Rosev8ille, the Stockton Art League Goodwin Gallery, and Archival Gallery in Sacramento. JC serves as the Awards Juror for the Sculpture category in the 2019 KVIE Art Auction.

Meet Spring Obsession 2024 artist Lisa Striplin Domser

 Lisa Striplin Domser was born into a family of artists. She can remember always being surrounded by art as far back as her great grandmother. For most of her life growing up the kitchen and dining table were used for art. Her father used to say, "The kitchen has the best light".

O-089 Mom's Clothesline by Lisa Striplin Domser wc 12x12 $500

She laughingly says, "I really didn't have any choice but to eventually pick up a paint brush. It was inevitable".

Lisa was born in Long Beach, California and moved to the motherlode as a young child. She has lived in Tuolumne County her whole life apart from living in Humboldt County for 10 years in the 90's which she absolutely adored.

When Lisa finally decided to get serious about art, watercolor was an easy affordable medium to start with. With the intention of learning with watercolor and then moving on to oil, which was her father's medium, to this day, she still has not moved on to oils. "Every time I sit down to paint with watercolor it is a lesson. A person never leans watercolor. It changes every time I pick up a brush".

Lisa lives in Tuolumne. Her partner of 12 years died of COVID in 2021. She loves to travel and always has a beautiful vegetable garden that she shares with her neighbors and community. Her yard is full of lowers and green grass and is a place where the family gathers. Lisa has vibe children who are grown, and all have significant others. She also has four grandchildren. Two more grandchildren are due this year. One any minute!

Lisa is a Christian who loves the Lord. She loves her family and country. 

God is good.

Meet Spring Obsession 2024 Artist Samantha Thull

 My name is Samantha Thull, I am a Bay Area native growing up in Pittsburg, CA. In my younger years many of my art teachers inspired me. They provided me with tools to create and appreciate my individuality and how I expressed that. I created sketches, drawings, and crafts to express myself. In many ways art helped me through my own personal struggles and to overcome grief in my life. Art has always been a part of me and there for me when I needed it.

O-101 Delta-Spring Breeze by Samantha Thull 12x16 $50 SOLD

As I grew older, I started to really appreciate my Bay Area home and all the beautiful landscape that surrounds me. Because of this I started to sketch more and got into photography as well as painting. I am always trying to capture the life of the green hills of Mount Diablo or Black Diamond Mines or how the water of the Delta flows. This amazing place has brought so much inspiration to my work and to who I am.

T-025 Flora, Fairy of the garden by Samantha Thull 12x16 $165 SOLD

I am now married and have 3 boys who I have created pieces of art with. I try to give them tools to express themselves and find their own creations through self-satisfaction and their individuality. Seeing and being a part of my children's lives has also inspired me through their imagination and combination of our own storytelling and collaborating characters. This brings us so much love and happiness, and so many wonderful memories. Art will always be a part of my soul, a part of the air I breathe, the wind on my face, the colors of the sky, and the very thing that makes me, me.

Meet Spring Obsession 2024 Artist Lynn Thorne

 Artist Bio - Lynn Thorne

T-020 Optimism in Bloom by Lynn Thorne wc 12.5x12.5 $300

California new3comer Lynn Thorne moved to Camarillo in 2022 and draws inspiration from the state she now calls home. Always a "stop and smell the roses" kind of person, Lynn thinks of her work as bringing momentary beauty into more permanent existence.

O-067 A Moment in Time by Lynn Thorne wc 12.5x12.5 $300

Lynn uses multiple mediums, including watercolor, acrylic, scratchboard, and glass to express how she views the world. Her art often depicts nature - flowers and birds are favorite subjects - but she also e4njoys landscapes and has been commissioned to paint murals of everything from the Blue Ridge mountains to an Italian trattoria. Lynn's pieces have been featured and sold in galleries and stores across the U.S. and her painting, "Flying", won Studio 9's Memento Art Competition in 2021.

O-068 Bewitched by Lynn Thorne scratchboard 16x16 $450

Some of Lynn's work is displayed at www.Facebook.com/PurplePuddleArts but she is also delighted to share more of her work individually. Please contact her at Lynn@LynnThorne.com or 301-542-6443.

Meet Spring Obsession 2024 Artist Stephen Testa

 Artist Stephen M. Testa

19736 Jesus Maria Road

Mokelumne Hill,  CA 95245

Cell: (209) 402-6574

Email: stesta@goldrush.com

O-044 Among the Geyser Mist by Stephen Testa wc 12x16 $450

Stephen Testa is a geologist whose interests are in painting landscapes of geological interest, black and white images of iconic geological figures and landscapes from the great surveys of the 19th Century, and wildlife (including domestic pets). For Stephen, the media of choice is watercolor and the transformation from an historic dark black and white photo to watercolor brings out a fresh perspective on such iconic individuals and images. Stephen's other interests are in the painting of animal portraits and wildlife. His initial inspiration for watercolors began in the early 1980s when he was working in the North Cascades. It was there that he met Dr. Peter Misch, an iconic pioneering geologist of the North Cascades and professor at the University of Washington. Dr. Misch was also an accomplished mountain climber and during his many geological excursions would take his watercolor set with him as he explored the North Cascades. It was at his home where Peter first showed Stephen his watercolors and encouraged him to pick up the brush along with a rock hemmer. Some of Stephen's earliest paintings were displayed at The Prince and Pauper Gallery in Seattle. During this time, he also become a member of the Northwest Watercolor society and participated in workshops. After a hiatus from painting in the late 1980s until 2017, Stephen resumed his desire to paint in watercolor. Stephen is self-taught, and has developed his style from books on technique, observation of other artist's works, especially that of John Hunt and Robert Bateman, and workshops, albeit his geologic training is an advantage in sketching and 3-D visualization. He prefers watercolor for its spontaneity and many challenges this media presents. His works have been shown at several exhibitions throughout California. Stephen lives in Mokelumne Hill and is a member of the California Watercolor Association and Mother Lode Art Association. Stephen's works have been recently exhibited at the Aloff Gallery, Sonora, CA, the Linda Dirkx Brown Art Gallery in San Ramon, CA and several Ironstone Vineyard's Annual Spring Art Exhibitions, among others.

O-042 John Teo White Calf by Stephen Testa wc 16x12 $450

O-043 Chief Turtle by Stephen Testa wc 16x12 $450

O-045 Woman Drying Meat with Dog by Stephen Testa wc 12x16 $450