June at Sutter Creek Gallery: Jeweler Sandy Morgan

We’re all familiar with recycling, putting empty water bottles or junk mail into a special bin to be turned into another product.  While useful, the new products are often of lesser quality than the original.  Upcycling, on the other hand, transforms old or castoff materials into higher quality items, such as what jeweler Sandy Morgan achieves with her one-of-a-kind designs.  Her necklaces, bracelets and earrings are made from sterling silver, silver plate and copper that have been repurposed.  Come see these outstanding items in June when Morgan will be the featured artist at Sutter Creek Gallery.

Upon retiring from teaching elementary students, Morgan started making wire wrapped jewelry as a hobby and eventually progressed to metalsmithing and lapidary work.  While she was a teacher she learned to function with a limited or nonexistent budget.  As a result, she had turned “making do” as a jeweler into an art form.  Her creativity led her to use such objects as silver plated trays, serving utensils and silverware from flea markets and thrift stores. Morgan’s inspiration comes not from what these objects are but what they can become to adorn the wearer.  This vision extends to rocks, shells, beads and other found objects.  Many of her pieces have won awards at the Amador County Fair.

To further her expertise, the artist joined the local Gem and Mineral Society and enrolled in metalsmithing courses at Folsom Lake College.  She has also participated in workshops by known silversmiths Al Bolshazy and Aleris Hart.  In addition to working with silver and silver plate, Morgan enjoys creating with copper as its rich, warm color lends itself to nature-inspire pieces.  One not-to-be-missed item is a copper purse etched with a sunflower motif.  The remarkable 5.5 x 6-inch purse is lined and is carried by a chain.

Sutter Creek Gallery invites you to meet Sandy Morgan at her reception on Saturday, June 1, from 2 to 5 p.m., and to view her upcycled jewelry and other pieces.  She is one of the many local artists exhibiting at the cooperative located in the heart of Sutter Creek at 35 Main Street.  Beyond artwork, the gallery offers a diverse array of frame styles and a large variety of mat colors for all your framing needs. Layaway is also available. 

The gallery is open Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Thursday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.  For additional information, call 209-267-0228, email suttercreekgallery@gmail.com or visit www.suttercreekgallery.com.

Cuff

Copper sunflower purse

Silver tray hearts

Upcycled broken pottery and tray necklace 

Forged necklace

    

June at Gallery 10: Oil Painter and Instructor Judie Cain

Gallery 10 is delighted to have Judie Cain as our featured artist for June. Judie Cain has been a consignor at Gallery 10 in the past, and her oil paintings were a wonderful addition to our collection, so we are thrilled Judie will have a show with us. 

Her new paintings will hang the whole month of June at Gallery 10, 15 Eureka Street, Sutter Creek.  Gallery hours are Thursday-Monday, 11-5.

A native of Burlingame, CA, Judie studied at California College of Arts, after high school. Family responsibilities behind her, and taking early retirement from the business world, Cain returned to painting by attending college, numerous workshops and taking private lessons.

Painting from life as much as possible, or from her own reference photos, Ms. Cain strives to capture the light and mood of the moment using brush and/or palette knife.

“My wish is for my paintings to capture the light and life of the moment in an uplifting or inspiring way. The fleeting moments of light on a magnificent natural vista or on the petal of a rose; a simple smile, the still reflections on a pond. The joy of life”.

She has taught her workshops, “Basic Nuts & Bolts of Oil Painting” and “Color Demystified” in the western states as well as other local venues, She currently teaches adult summer classes and private lessons covering painting fundamentals and color.

Primarily an oil painter, Judie has begun also to use gouache, an opaque watercolor. An award winning artist, Ms. Cain has been represented in galleries in Washington, Oregon, New Mexico and California, including Murphys, Sonora, Copperopolis and Carmel. She has several works in print, Giclee and on home products and is collected world wide.

Judie lives in Murphys, CA where she has a working studio, “The Art Studio”, which is open by appointment, classes and special events.

For information about her paintings, gallery representation, classes, please go to www.cainart.com or call 209 559-3345 cell. Email: cainart@goldrush.com

May at Sutter Creek Gallery: Oil Painter Vickie Chew

Oil painter Vickie Chew loves the challenge of depicting the light, character and personality of what she sees.  “Whether it be a barn, trees, lakes or ocean, there is something special that attracts me to the scene and feeds my desire to correctly capture it.”  She explains that artists fall in love with a scene for a variety of reasons.  “The scene usually has some type of emotional connection that originally attracts the artist, maybe time spent there as a child, a first kiss, family outings or just the beauty of the area.”  Chew paints with brush and palette knife and rarely uses or mixes her oils with other mediums.  

Chew will be Sutter Creek Gallery’s featured artist for the month of May.  As such, she has chosen to present some new works in flowers.  “Being stuck inside painting with all of the rain this year, I have been painting flowers and wishing spring would hurry up and get here!”  The artist finds painting to be a joy, challenge and mental escape all in one, finding the zone where nothing else exists except the challenge before her.  She began painting over 20 years ago as a break from work and it has evolved into her passion.  “I continually strive to gain miles on my brush and learn from other artists whose work and abilities I admire.” 

Sutter Creek Gallery invites you to meet Vickie Chew at her reception on Saturday, May 4, from 2 to 5 p.m., and to view her May flowers and other works.  She is one of the many local artists exhibiting at the cooperative located in the heart of Sutter Creek at 35 Main Street.  Besides original paintings and photography, the gallery offers numerous affordable items including prints, cards, jewelry, pottery, and gourd, glass and fiber arts.

The gallery is open Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Thursday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.  For additional information, call 209-267-0228, email suttercreekgallery@gmail.com or visit www.suttercreekgallery.com.

Blooms Avenue

Flowers With No Name

Popping into Spring

Sunny Day

May at Gallery 10: "A Song of Amador” - New Watercolors by Julie Trail

Julie Trail has been captivated by the beauty of the foothills ever since she first visited Sutter Creek in the early 1990’s. This year she has looked closely into some of the reasons this area is so enticing:  An old tree on New Chicago Road, the rock wall that edges old Eureka Street, ducks taking a rest in an eddy on Sutter Creek at Minnie Provo Park. 

Julie continues to choose watercolor as her first love. “The way the colors merge and mix in a wash is magical, unlike any other medium.  The paint has its own mind, and the artist is always challenged to encourage lovely results,” Julie says. “I am always chasing the perfect interaction between water and color, a never ending pursuit!” 

Always learning, always looking for new ways to express the visual beauty surrounding her, Julie studies other artists, pays attention to why some paintings are classic, why they capture our imagination, what is it that makes a painting beautiful.  She continues to take workshops and travels with her paints to outdoor locations so she can really see what the colors and values are in real life.  She continues to teach watercolor in her studio to adults, and in the classroom to fourth graders through the Arts Council program, Art in the Schools.

Come see Julie’s new collection of paintings at Gallery 10, 15 Eureka Street, Sutter Creek, during the month of May.  A reception will be held at the gallery on Saturday, May 4, 2-5 P.M., and you all are welcome to enjoy a beverage of choice and a bite to eat while meeting Julie and browsing the artwork.  Gallery 10 is open Thursday-Monday, 11-5 P.M.

April at Gallery 10: Pastel Artist Patricia Prendergast

Patricia Prendergast is a new artist at Gallery 10.  She will be Featured Artist during April, showing a beautiful collection of pastels.

Patricial is retired from a career as a computer programmer in 2004 and is now able to indulge in her love of art and nature.  She chose pastels as the best medium to portray the serenity of the landscape of her native California.  She draws inspiration primarily from various locales along the American River, the hills of Marin, and North Lake Tahoe.

She has studied with many master pastel artists:  Richard McKinley, Glenna Hartmann, Gil Dellinger, Clark Mitchell, Richard McDaniel, Kim Lordier, and Bill Cone.

Most of her work is done in the studio, but she does enjoy painting out in nature to hone her ability to see the light and colors. “In fact, I feel the greatest benefit I derive from painting is how it changes how I see the world when I’m not painting!  Everything is more vivid- the beauty of light and shadow in the trees, the subtlety of the color of clouds, the sparkle and reflections in water.”

Patricia works on sanded paper or board.  For some paintings she preps the surface with a texturing agent or she may create a watercolor underpainting that peeks through the pastel.  She lets the painting process determine how the scene will unfold. 

“My goal is to create a sense of depth that allows the viewer to enter into a little moment with nature,” Patricia says.  “My paintings are more an evocation of an emotional response  to the transcendence found through nature thatn a rendering of a specific place.”

Patricia’s pastels will hang all of April at Gallery 10.

Morning Meditation

Still Waters

Cloudy Day at the Point Mai

April at Sutter Creek Gallery: "Things with Wings"

Birds and bees and skydivers, too.  These are just a few of the images in the “Things with Wings” show in April at Sutter Creek Gallery.  You might also spot an angel perched on a crescent moon and a number of our feathered friends.  Gallery members were invited to stretch their wings for this show which runs throughout the month of April.

Since this is a group show, a variety of media will be represented:  encaustics, gourds, watercolors, alcohol ink, pastels, collages, photography and more.  Among these are Michael Maloney’s “Flight” depicting a skydiver being pursued by a bird, a “Gossamer Wings” angel on aluminum by Ree McLaughlan-Brown, Sandy Morgan’s butterfly and bird jewelry, an ocean-wading egret by Melissa Doyel, and a watercolor rendering of rare snow geese by JoAnn Ogburn. 

Besides original paintings and photography, the gallery offers many affordable items including prints, cards, jewelry, pottery, and gourd, glass and fiber arts.  And this is the place to get all your matting and framing needs handled. 

The gallery is open daily, except Tuesday, from 10 a.m. to 5 pm. For additional information, call 209-267-0228, email suttercreekgallery@gmail.com or visit www.suttercreekgallery.com.   

"Flight" by Michael Mahoney

"Rare Blue-morph Snow Geese" by JoAnn Ogburn

"Sprite" by Wendy Ward

Peacock necklace by Sandy Morgan

Plein Air artist Marilyn Egers featured at April's ACAA meeting - Wed Apr 10

Plein air painter Marilyn Egers will be the featured artists at ACAA’s Wednesday, April 10 meeting. Marilyn earned a Bachelor of Arts in 1987 from California State University, Stanislaus in Art. Later in 1990, she received her teaching credentials from Chapman College enabling her to instruct future artists at Bear Creek High School, where she teaches teach many levels of art. She also has an have an M.F.A. from the Academy of Art in San Francisco.

You can view her art on her web site at: http://www.marilyneger.net/

The meeting begins at 7PM.

For more information about the ACAA, visit: www.AmadorArtists.org

“I am primarily a plein air painter. When this is not possible I work from my own photos as a point of departure. I am inspired by the area I live in and things around me, such as Acampo landscape, old tractors and cars, curious cattle, and the flowers from the garden. I am also drawn to reflected color in all kinds of items especially, bottles. I have a deep passion for vibrant color. My media of choice is oil, pastel and acrylics in that order. I feel like a sculptor when painting because I can chisel out the images as though they were stone. Throughout my life I have continued to value a strong art education and will never stop learning." - Marilyn Egers

"Church on Church Street"

Devries Chicken Barns