2012 Open Division entries available for viewing

Please follow this link to our Picassa Album of the 2012 Open Division Entries.
Titles and detail info is pending as well as a lovely slide show as soon as Picassa and Blogger decide to be friends again...

https://picasaweb.google.com/108272069615982870252/SpringObsession2012Open#

Spring Art Show 2012 Honorable Judges

Ironstone Vineyard’s 15^th Annual Spring Obsession

Art Show Open Division has the honor of being judged by:

Melissa Marshall

Executive Vice President, Academy of Art University, San Francisco

Melissa graduated from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco in 1976. She worked for the Academy’s Illustration Department under the tutelage of Barbara Bradley, the director. When Barbara retired, Melissa eventually headed the department and held that post until 1997. It was at that time that she accepted an offer from Walt Disney Feature Animation in Burbank, CA to manage the staff and instructors who trained new animation hires in the proper drawing skills needed to help create the quality product for which Disney is well known. In 1999, she moved back to San Francisco and was invited by the Academy of Art University to become its Executive Vice President.   

 Charles Pyle

Director, School of Illustration,, Academy of Art University, San Francisco

 Craig Marshall

Drawing Instructor, Academy of Art University, San Francisco

After graduating from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco in 1976, Craig spent several years as a freelance commercial illustrator before becoming a staff illustrator for a small medical publishing company. In 1986 he was invited to teach head drawing and illustration courses at the Academy of Art University where he stayed for 11 years while continuing his freelance work. In 1997 he moved to Burbank, CA and taught drawing classes for Walt Disney Feature Animation, Associates in Art, and Woodbury University. He returned to San Francisco in 1999 and was asked to head the Foundations Department at the Academy of Art University for a semester. He now teaches Head Drawing full time for the Academy’s School of Illustration.

Golden Flow Shines at Ironstone

Golden Flow by Artist Dan Mather are hand blown glass loaded with 23 k gold leaf in a glycerin environment allowing the gold to float lazily around the globes. 

These have to be the most relaxing globes I have seen yet!

Available at Ironstone's Heritage Museum, these beauties are a perfect mommento of the gold country.

Prices range from $35.00 to $55.00.

Photographer & sculptor Mark Bergstrom has installed several of his outdoor water sculptures in the gardens at Ironstone Vineyards.
Rustic recycled materials seem to fit right into the landscape with old pumps and rusty tanks. You can just imagine the miners pumping water from one of these during the Gold Rush... the horses hitched to an old wagon getting a refreshing drink from one of the old metal tanks...  

"The great outdoors and our country's precious natural heritage have been a passion of mine since my early childhood. I have been fortunate to have travelled throughout the world but my roots are here in Tuolumne County, California where I grew up in rural east Sonora. My growing up years were spent cavorting in the outdoors... fishing in creeks, gigging frogs, swimming in farm ponds and hunting small game.

 My Father was a large animal veterinarian and I spent countless hours with my Dad on ranch calls and today I enjoy cowboying for local ranchers branding and driving cattle.  Attending rodeos is a big favorite for me as well as fly fishing, hunting, hiking and camping.

I returned to Sonora three years ago after a 39 year hiatus that took me to Davis, Los Angeles, Saudi Arabia, Cincinnati and San Francisco pursuing my professional career in management consulting and running a variety of large nonprofit organizations.



Building water fountains and photography have been a means of capturing my love of the great outdoors. Much of my inspiration for constructing fountains comes from my artistic bend and the incredable effects of soothing water sounds. I spend many days flyfishing our country's blue ribbon wild trout fisheries, ranging from tiny gurgling brooks to roaring, boulder-strewn rivers. Many of the fountain components come off local ranches in Tuolumne County."



All of Mark's fountains are available for sale here at Ironstone. Mark will assist you with loading and offer full instructions on each piece.  Mark also has a few of his award winning photos available in our tasting room. There is a photo below of the display.

Hope you have the time to stop by Ironstone to take a look at these fun water fountains. Perhaps you will see one that fits perfectly in a corner of your yard, close enough to the patio or a window to allow you that peacefull sound of water flowing.