Artist Retreat in Gold Country Continued

 

"Morning on Lake Alpine"

14" x 16" Watercolor

 

The view.

 

Our foursome ventured to Angel's Camp looking for acrylics for Jeannie, but alas, the Mercantile did not open until 11 am. Coming from busy Silicon Valley we were constantly stymied by the very limited hours of businesses. Most restaurants closed Mondays and Tuesdays. Those that didn't. closed Wednesday and Thursdays. Most shops open at 11 or noon and close by 5. Now I understand why people have multiple jobs to survive in such beautiful, remote mountains.

 

I then drove us to Lake Alpine at 7303 feet of elevation. It was quiet there with just a few people kayaking, canoeing, or fishing. We settled in to paint the scenery. Mandatory was some shade, so I found a lovely place under the trees with a view across the lake. After a few hours, we enjoyed lunch and then visited Calavaras Big Trees State Park to show the giant Sierra Redwoods to my East Coast friend Joan (not to be confused with the Coastal Redwoods near my home).  She was appropriately in awe.

 

We were too late to attend the joint critique session, so we went straight to dinner. The following morning we painted at a gorgeous property just a few miles from the center of Murphys, Ironstone Winery. There were beautiful grounds, a huge outdoor amphitheater for performances by major entertainers, and a nice tasting room/cafe. We skipped the wine and went straight to painting. I did two pieces -- one a display of flower-filled wine barrels and the other a vineyard view. I framed the florals for the art show.

 

Wednesday afternoon was a wrap-up with an art show at Hovey Winery in town. We set up on the large lawn. We could show three pieces each, one that we brought with us and two from our getaway. I had Bob cut mats, I prepared frames, I picked out one landscape to bring with me, and in the haste of leaving home left all behind. Someone loaned me frames and I bought one. I showed "Morning at Lake Alpine" and these two.



 

My "Ironstone Winery" and "Mike's Barn"

on display at the final art show at

Hovey's Winery

 

Joan brought a lovely oil painting of two lambs.

 

 

Jeannie displayed a gorgeous texture-filled watercolor of the coast.

 

Janice showed a piece from her colorful crab series and a painting of rocks and water done at Ironstone Winery.

 

 

The following morning we wandered the town and had breakfast at the old Murphys Hotel, a place with lots of history since opened in 1856. Jeannie and I were armed with cameras for capturing our final reference photos to use in our home studios. We packed out belongings and hit the road back to San Jose.