SOUR GRAPES

    Gently rolling hills. Acres and acres of grape vines. Winding roads leading to picturesque wine tasting rooms. What is not to love?
    Sappy vineyard themed artwork. Just as the seashore inspires throngs of would be artists, so do the vineyards. Way too many blah, mushy, sappy paintings are offered up to the tourists.

    The rolling hills and vineyards of Sonoma, Napa, and Mendocino counties are unique in that they harbor a real industry and yet are stunningly beautiful. The curves of the hills versus the multitude of rows planted with grape vines are great material for artistic composition.
    Ok, ok. Some artists do actually get it right and produce works that are much more than greeting card quality. Here are some that I admire. Cheers.

Track through the Vineyards by Britain's Julian Merrow-Smith

Autumn at Bray Vineyards by Ellie Caputo of Jackson, CA, based on a photo by Dick Carter

Vineyard Summer Afternoon by artist Joseph Peller

Vineyard Sunrise by "Johndude"

France!!! by Marin County's Timothy Horn

Wine Country by Canada's Phillip Craig.

Sonoma County Vineyard by Kelseyville's Steven Guy Bilodeau

Sunset Vineyard by Sonoma County's Nancy Ray Ricciardi

Jack London Vineyard by Mark Farina

Vineyard Afternoon Hwy 12 by California's Daniel Aldana

Carneros Region, a photograph by Petaluma's Lance Kuehne

Behind Kozlowski Farms by Sonoma County's Judith Butler

FOR GRANTED OR FOR GRATITUDE

    For the majority of Americans living today, there is so much to be thankful for. Because most of us don't have to go to really heroic lengths to achieve a decent standard of living, it is so easy to take the many advantages we have as Americans for granted. We easily forget the bigger picture and continually whine about the smaller stuff. The vicious "us versus them" mentality that has seeped into our systems is stifling and sickening. If America were a lifeboat, we the passengers would be knocking each other overboard and in the process sinking the vessel. Each and every one of us needs to take stock and see all that we can have gratitude for.
    Call him sentimental. Call him sappy. I call him a very excellent artist who reflected his times. Normal Rockwell illustrated many virtues of our society.

We can gather to say thanks for all we have: family and bounty.

We can feel free to express ourselves in our own unique style.

 We can express ourselves using our bodies as we wish.

We can pray as we wish, or not.

 We have a voice.

We can fill any role that we are capable of.

 

We have the opportunity to learn from history.

We have the opportunity to learn from our mistakes.

We have the opportunity to acquire a formal education.

We can love whomever we want.

Most of us can feel a measure of safety in our lives.

If things go well for us, we can have leisure time.

We can dream.

We have those who want to help us look after ourselves.

There are so many opportunities for gratitude - glass half full and all that stuff. It is such a simple way to make life a better experience. Happy Thanksgiving.

TAKE IT TO THE BANKSY

    If I stepped out my front door one morning and saw that someone had painted some really cool image or comment on the wall of my building overnight, how would I react?

    I think I would be really irritated. The brick façade of my building is kind of stately. Such an uninvited act of art would be a violation of my living space. And it would be costly to remove.

    What if that same artist instead did his or her covert work on the wall of an abandoned building or wall? Well, legally it is still wrong. But let's admit that sometimes it is kind of interesting.

    Street art, or graffiti art is part imagination, part skill, part nerve, part arrogance, and there is a little Robinhoodness thrown in there. I am talking about art here, not gang tagging.

    There are plenty of "stars" in the street art world, but probably the most well-known currently active street artist is known as Banksy. He began in the UK, but now cities all over the world are his canvas.

    Sometimes his works are benign images.

    Sometimes funny.

    Sometimes political.

    Sometimes philosophical.

    Sometimes conceptual.

    Once it is known that Banksy is at work in a city, the hunt begins. Only he and his crew know his true identity, and it drives the authorities and the press crazy.

    The irony is that this artistic outlaw who flaunts his disdain of societal standards, is laughing all the way to the bank. His artistic dangerousness is wildly appealing to the one percenters. Either he is a sellout, or he is following a very brilliant career plan.

    I've got to say that I like the guy's body of work. Just not on my front wall.

JUST HORSING AROUND

    A confession: I was one of those girls who loved horses. I think it began when my parents would stop at the local pony ride ring and treat me to a few laps on a fat pony who usually seemed bored out of his or her mind. As time went on, this horse obsession led me to purchase a book called, "How to Draw Horses" by Walter T. Foster (who authored a whole series of books about how to draw practically everything). With this book I did indeed figure out how to draw horses, and as a bonus I learned the essential concepts of drawing.

    Although I did plenty of horseback riding in my teen years, I never did become a horse owner. But I have never lost the artistic admiration for the equine form, such as this magnificent bronze by Leonardo da Vinci, "Gran Cavallo", cast in 1495.

    The image of the horse can be seen in the pre-historic caves of Lascaux in France, although at that time, over 17,000 years ago, horses were seen as prey.

    It is generally thought that horses were first domesticated in the Eurasian Steppes, probably 6,000 years ago. This changed the course of civilizations, enabling travel and warfare as never before, as well as aiding in farming and hauling.

    The ancients of Arabia carved this dynamic rock art, and the Assyrians of 5,000-2,000 B.C. honored the horse in this exquisite relief.

    The ancient civilizations of Egypt, Greece, Rome, and China all included artworks of the horse as an important power symbol in their societies.

    Any historical warrior looks more impressive astride a great steed, as seen in this wonderful 176 A.D. bronze statue of Roman Marcus Aurelius.

    The Italian artist Donatello revived the equestrian statue tradition of the ancients in 1453 with this bronze of Erasmo da Narni, or Gattamelata.

    One of my favorite artists, Frenchman Jacques-Louis David, in 1800 painted this famous work, "Napoleon Crossing the Alps".

    Opposing U.S. Civil War generals, Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee, were immortalized in both sculpture and photography with their horses. Lee's horse, Traveller, became popular in his own right.

    Gambling upon racing horses has always been a pastime of those with money to spare. Edgar Degas painted this group getting ready to cross country race in 1873.

 



    Our country's western expansion in the latter half of the 19th century could not have happened without the use of horses, as in this photograph of a family traveling by covered wagon. Painter Frank Tenney depicted pack horses that enabled those hopeful prospectors and trappers in the Black Hills, the Rockies, and in California. Frederick Remington portrayed this era in a style that was refreshingly not idealized, including these paintings of a cavalryman, and Indian scout, and a cow pony.

    For a while mechanization and horses shared roles in transportation, as shown in these images of horses pulling trolleys, and pulling automobiles out of the mud, as painted by Tom Fritz. Our hooved friends pulled elegant carriages, and transported people through bustling downtowns, as in this 1889 photo of 4th Street in Santa Rosa.

    During World War I, horses were sacrificed in battle in the hundreds of thousands even though war was becoming mechanized. This poster reflects those concerns during that horrific situation. The photo was taken in France. 1918's painting, "Charge of Flowerdew's Squadron", was done by Alfred Munnings.

    The days of monumental equestrian sculptures are not over. 2008 brought Mongolia an impressive 130 foot sculpture of Genghis Kahn.

    Contemporary artist Deborah Butterfield has made a name in the art world with her large and unusual sculptures of horses. This 2009 example looks as if it were made of large branches, but is in fact a bronze casting. Photorealist painter Richard McLean gives us this snapshot of the horse show world in his 1980 "Satin Doll".

    Local artist Amity De Fontaine of Sebastopol gives us this "Knight's Horse", and Marin's Paul Miller has done this lovely depiction of "Buck the Morgan Horse".

    Although the original North American horses disappeared from the continent around 12,000 years ago, they were reintroduced when they arrived with the European explorers. In a few places today in America, horses are left to live wild. Photographer Robert Dutesco gives us a look at some of them in his "Wild Horses of Sable Island". Human civilization will always owe a debt to the horses who have partnered with us through the ages.