First Friday Art Walk - Cole, Valdes and Gonzalez

Its June already and first Friday so here I am parking in the same parking space downtown Eugene that I parked in for Jury Duty. Yup that's the courthouse and Channel 13the local CBS station that I cannot get on Dish Satellite due to some argument between Dish Satellite and Fisher Communications about cost. Grow up you two and serve your customers.

This outage has been going on for a long time and I missed one of the few golf tournaments I have watched The Masters every year since 1966 when was first broadcast in color. Jack Nicklaus became the first Champion to successfully defend his title. that year and Sharyn and I were married four months and 9 days later. I'm telling Dish Satellite they better now they get KVAL to my satellite before our anniversary in August or I'm jumping ship for Direct.

After a short walk I arrived at La Follette Gallery and saw Bets Cole the Artist of the evening talking to Our Town Pottery artists Jeani Holder Michael Baines. Bets was perky and wonderful as ever to talk with about her art on display.I had met Michael and Jeani last year a the studio tour.

There was a huge crowd there and I snapped away towards Bets art and had a great visit with Jeani. We talked about her wonderful pottery, the depressed market for artists and the joys of marketing in lean times. I've decided most artists love creating their art and showing their art but marketing is a pain.

Sharyn often asks "when was it men stopped wearing hats, not caps but hats?" I wish she had come along because there he was and there was another gentleman I missed. By the way these two paintings of Bets' were my favorites tonight.

Bets talks with her hands and it's easy to see her passion for her creations and the process blank canvas to the sale. There's that man with a hat again.

The photographer in this shot is Dennis Galloway a local photographer I met a couple of years ago at the Saturday market and have run into a few times since. His work is great click on his name to see some of his photographs

Why there is a feather in the hatband and a Boutonniere in his lapel too cool. Bets looks like she is really enjoying the conversation. I bet you didn't know it was Napoleon Bonaparte who said "A picture is worth a thousand words." I'm guessing it was after losing his map of Waterloo.

Off I trudged toward Willamette and another gallery snapping as I walked...


... and got a couple of buildings along Broadway...


... then when I got to Broadway Plaza (I call it Keasey Square) there was a concert going on. It was the Camas Ridge Marimba Band. The band is made up of 4th and 5th graders at Eugene's Camas Ridge Community School and they were very good musicians.

I stopped in Fenario Gallery and said hi to Hank the Photoprinter who had printed two of my pictures for the Maude Kerns show. While there I got a quick shot of this really unique painting titled "Love Light" by David H.

I finally made it to the Karin Clarke Gallery and loved the color inside. These five paintings and other inside we created by ...

Yolanda Valdes a very charming artist who told me the stories of the paintings and the tiny villages shown. The painting behind her was my favorite and made me think of a Van Gogh with an outdoor cafe.

Her works were full of life and color so true of the culture in Mexico. I think often of trips to Puerto Vallarta and day trips when we lived in San Diego to Ensenada, Puerto Nuevo and Rosarita Beach. Thanks Yolanda for reminding me of those times.

Humberto Gonzalez was also showing at Karin's gallery. Humberto Gonzales is an engaging artist not just with his work but as a person. It's no surprising Humberto and Yolanda both managed to make me feel like I'd known them since childhood. So it didn't surprise me that Humberto had lived part of his life in Texas. What did surprise me is the Lebanon connection. While my mother and grandparents were from Lebanon, Humberto lived a long while in Lebanon. Well his Lebanon was Lebanon, Oregon.

Humberto is well known in Eugene as an artists artist teaching and giving art presentations often. Above all his work is emotionally exciting taking the mind and soul to places we have never been.

His style is unique and diverse at the same time and his ability to do more with less can make a simple image seem complex and textured with color or lack thereof.

Just outside the Clarke gallery a street painter had set up shop with a backpack, markers and cardboard...

... and two masterpieces of sarcastic parody.

Walking over to Zenon Cafe (newly re-opened) I passed an event being held to Art Show and Auction to for "Skaters for Eugene Skate Parks." ...

... and I couldn't help but think about Peter's art and all our boys love of skateboarding in California.

Renee had finished work and walked with me over to Zenon Cafe and noticed the reflection of the buildings and flowers in the City park where the Saturday market is held so I got this shot.

Most nostalgic was this piece of art just outside Zenon cafe. It reminded me of my old Volvo that died of electrical system meltdown. It also reminded me of the art job Isaac did on it. Painting and chopping the top off making it a convertible useful only for planter for flowers.

We finally arrived at Zenon Cafe and there was the crowd. Bets Cole and her family along with Yolanda and Humberto. I actually felt a bit like being part of an artists colony. Well I felt a little like that. Great people and fine art made for a wonderful evening.

No Scrabble

Quote of the Day

An artist is a dreamer consenting to dream of the actual world. ~ George Santayana