"7 Color Jade" by Consilio Decor

Direct from the Tuscon Gem & Mineral Show, comes stunning "7 Color Jade" by Consilio Decor.

These stunning rock vases consist of Actinolite and Serpentine. Actinolite being in the nephrite family of jade and serpentine a multi-mineral stone, colors range in shades of red, green, yellowish, bluish, brown, black and white. No two are ever the same.  

Beginning as a weathered block of stone, these are shaped, cored, polished and glazed to become the vases you see below.  This amazing rock is found along river banks in Tiawan where the vases are painstakingly made today and imported by Consilior Decor.

Ironstone is proud to be a distributor for the unusual vases.

Spring Art Down ...

Ironstone's 19th Annual Spring Art Show ended this past weekend. Always sad to see the work come down. It was such an outstanding exhibit with works hailing from throughout California. 

Many new names graced the walls this year along side so many of our local favorites.  We have completed the posting, here on this blog, of all the artists biographies for you to enjoy along with an image of the pieces that were accepted into the show.  If you would like information on any one of the represented paintings, please do not hesitate to contact Chris at cgomez@ironstonevineyards.com with the Artists name and title of the piece you are interested in and she will forward you the artist's contact information.

We are glad to announce that a great number of paintings found new homes this year.  One collector announced she was planning on donating her purchased painting to her favorite Charity for an upcoming auction.  A very generous gesture to be sure.

A special thank you goes out to both our wonderful judges this year, Kathleen Dunphy and Charles Pyle.  Both exceptional educators as well as keen observers, Kathleen and Charles are skilled  at evaluating all aspects of a piece of art and presenting their observations in a clear and concise manner. As nationally recognized artists in their own right, both are able to create an excitement towards a painting, opening eyes of non artists to all subtleties of a work of art.  Thank you Kathleen and Charles.


Next year, 2017, marks the 20th Anniversary of this exciting exhibit.  What would you like to see at next year's show?

Meet Artist Barb Young, Ironstone Spring Obsession accepted artist

ARTIST STATEMENT FOR BARBARA (BARB) YOUNG

O-023  Souza Cow Camp  watercolor  12x24  $500

Since coming to Sonora in 1990, Barb's ART has expanded to include many sales and now, participation in local galleries. In 1996 she took a watercolor class from Dianne Starnes, while recovering from heart by-pass surgery. Since that time Barbs choice of medium has been WATERCOLOR.

O-025  Fall in Reds  watercolor  11x14  $200

She has a prolific way of depicting old and historical building and capturing life like realism in her paintings of landscapes. And as well as doing watercolors, she has special touch with her Sharpie Pen Sketches of rocks and trees, and pinecones, and other things that depict the Sierras.

Now retired, Barb can spend more time on the things she loves: painting and drawing, and Therapy Dog WORK with her doggies Happy BURITTO, & Kristy both Chihuahuas.

Barb has done some commissioned paintings, with unique challenges, She also has sold a lot of her paintings and sketches, as well as cards made from her paintings and sketches. You can find Barb around the Sonora and outlying areas sketching and taking pictures, and observing the many views and buildings. She also spends a lot of time in the Sierras.

Barb has come a long way from her beginnings in ART as a teenager, copying comic book characters and doing paint by number Paintings. her early works were sad and gloomy (which expressed her early life); and now, her work has taken on a "lightness, and colorfull expression." Barb credits her abilities as a God given talent.

Barb has won many awards at the MLAA shows in Oct. Her work can be seen at the ALOFT Gallery, Sonora. At Twain Heart's All That Matters; Pinecrest Gallery in Pinecrest and Sonora Blue Print. Barb has entered the Ironstone show many times.

bar-bar-a@att.net

Meet Artist Elizabeth Willmon, Ironstone Spring Obsession accepted artist

Elizabeth Willmon

O-055  Wine and Orchids  watercolor  20x30  $1200

Artist Statement

I love to paint the designs and patterns created by light and shadow in everyday objects all around me. While I paint in a realistic style, I add my own interpretation by laying down many layers of transparent watercolor. These layers create glowing color, emphasizing the design that first caught my eye.

I paint because I never grow tired of watching the vibrant colors I put on the paper mingle and transform something ordinary into something that commands attention from the viewer.

Bio

Originally from Clovis, I have been surrounded by creativity for as long as I can remember. My mother was a fiber artist and my father was a jeweler and furniture designer. In the evenings as they were sketching ideas for their designs, I would draw portraits.

I fell in love with watercolor when I took Dan Petersen's classes at Modesto Junior College. After raising a family and then finishing my Bachelor's degree I have come back to watercolor because it feeds my soul.

I currently live in Modesto with my husband and our little Tibetan spaniel, Cookie. I paint every day in my studio which overlooks a beautiful courtyard filled with the scent of orange blossoms. 

Meet Artist Paula Tooman, Ironstone Spring Obsession accepted artist

O-133  Spring Delight watercolor  27x33  $580

My name is Paula Tooman. I really love doing watercolor painting. The colors intrigue me and the techniques always presenting interesting challenges. In my thirties I started painting – but was busy raising two children so could not paint as often as I desired. In my forties my husband and I adopted fourteen children – thirteen Ethiopians and one handicapped girl from the United States. The children were and are a joy – and sometimes a sorrow. We certainly felt emotions parallel to those experienced by parents all over the world – multiplied by fourteen! As was expected they did keep me very busy and I found time to paint only sporadically. Now I’m in my sixties and we only have four children at home. My husband prepared a home studio for me and I am enjoying the freedom to regularly paint again with my beloved water colors. It is such a luxury to have time to paint again and I’m having great fun doing it!

O-134  Rain forest Jewel  watercolor  29x25  $950

I enjoy most of all painting flowers, people, and landscapes. They lend themselves to the use of a great variety of painting materials, many color variants, and a host of presentation and brushing techniques. I am always reading books and watching DVDs by other artists to encourage myself to try new ideas and to look at each new blank paper as a new and interesting challenge.

Meet Artist Cathryn Strong, Ironstone Spring Obsession accepted artist

Cathryn Strong, Groveland, CA

O-052  Bridge near Awanhee  watercolor  32x38  $630

 I re-discovered my love of watercolor in 2009 when I participated in a local watercolor class at Mt. Sage Nursery, Groveland.  As a Plein air artist, I try to attend as many watercolor workshops as I can and paint in Yosemite whenever I get the chance, and of course, with the MLAA Plein Air Painting group which enables me to paint throughout the “Gold Country”.

O-053  Call to the Mountains  watercolor  20x26  $450

Currently, I am a member of The Mother Lode Artist’s Association, Sierra Professional Artists, and Benicia Arts and show at the MLAA Aloft cooperative gallery in Sonora. As for education, I graduated from U.C. Davis and attended San Jose State University for postgraduate courses.

For the past two years, I have been juried into Ironstone’s Art Show (Spring Obsession) and was part of the 150^th Yosemite celebration (Sierra Professional Artists) Art Show in Groveland, CA.

Meet Artist Wendy Rogers, Ironstone Spring Obsession accepted Artist & Judges Merit Award Winner

Wendy Rogers

Biography

Judges Merit Award Winner -"Prairie Fire"

O-104  Prairie Fire  watercolor  24x30  $550

Fiddletown painter Wendy Rogers is an award winning watercolorist and blogger, with work in private collections throughout the county. Working with careful drawings and a limited palette of transparent hues, she often enhances her paintings with layers of prismacolor pencil -- deep sky blues and purples, shadows of inky indigo, soft highlights of lightest grays and periwinkle -- all serving to communicate her passion for her craft, and her growing love of Nature.

Rogers was born and raised in the shadow on Mt. Diablo in the Bay Area of California -- and area known for its wonderful fresh fruit and rich farmlands. She learned at an early age to love the land, to respect the hard work and determination of the small farmers, and craved a piece of land to plant and nurture. 

In college she studied Fine Arts and Horticulture. Figure drawings often included detailed studies of plant parts, leaves and bark textures.

O-105  Redwood Sisters  watercolor  16x20  $400

"I am fascinated by complex subject matter. I love crisply defining sepia lines that play against soft washer of glowing light, enhancing depth and adding a sense of the mysteries of Nature. The dramatic lighting effects, foliage shapes and varying textures create vibrant contrasts. I enjoy painting portraits and landscapes, I love animals and birds."

In the last three years, her painting has blossomed. It has become richer and more expressive.

"I like to think it is my happiness showing through. If it is true that an artist's soul can be seen in her work, them my soul is sunshine and flowers -- and donkeys!"

Wendy Rogers

Fiddletown

www.fiddlesongstudio.com

Meet Artist Marilyn Richards, Ironstone Spring Obsession accepted artist

BIOGRAPHY

MARILYN RICHARDS

MJRArt@comcast.net

O-020  Historic Passenger Railroad Car  acrylic  16x20  $700 

I started my painting experience as a child in school. I went to the California College of Arts and Crafts and then continued painting landscapes on scene for many years with watercolors. I started working in acrylics and studying with Gereon Rios of Columbia College. Mr. Rios and my digital camera have helped me to expand my subject matter to landscapes, people, animals, and flowers. Now when I paint, I start with excitement and the challenge to incorporate color, composition, and joy into my paintings.

I am a member of the Golden Palette Art Association, and Arts of Bear Valley. I have participated in the Arts of Bear Valley Summer Shows during the Music Festival and the Art in the Park Show in the Calaveras Big Trees State Park. My work was selected to be on the posters for the Arts of Bear Valley Summer Show in 2006 and 2008. I am currently showing my work at Art on Main in Murphys. I also participate in the Fall Studio Tours sponsored by the Calaveras Arts Council.

O-021  contrasts on the Stanslaus  acrylic  24x30  $500

I have shown my work in the California Art League Exhibit at the Gallo Winery, the Mother lode Art Association Annual Exhibit, the Valley Art Assn Fall Carriage Show, the Ironstone Spring Obsession Show, the Professional Fine Arts Division of the Calaveras and Tuolumne County Fairs, with numerous awards and Best of Division in the Agricultural Division. I have also shown in Puerta Vallarta and Mazitlan in Mexico.