Blogs from Sebastopol, California, United States, North America - page 2

First two paragraphs excerpted from the web (because it tells the story better than I could) Patrick Amiot The "Junk Sculptor of Sebastopol" What does a garbage can lid, an old clock and a stovepipe all have in common? They all were destined to be landfill and are now part of a whimsical Patrick Amiot sculpture. Amiot say’s “I’m a junk specialist”. “People throw stuff away that I consider valuable. I can do so many things with it.” I guess it’s another way of saying “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.” Amiot and his wife and artistic partner Brigitte originally hail from Montreal. After crisscrossing Canada they immigrated to the U.S. and settled in Sebastopol in 1997 where they soon began to transform the local landscape. Amiot, who created tabletop ceramic sculptures, found he wanted ... read more

By Melisse. Remember those Venn Diagrams from math class? Those overlapping circles representing sets and what they have and don't have in common. That’s what fall/winter/spring is like in northern California, two circles with a small strip of winter where the two intersect. In October, at the very same time that leaves turn color and drift to the ground, the grass sprouts to form an eye-popping emerald carpet over the hillsides. Come February, while many other parts of the country shiver in freezing temperatures amid grays, browns and white snow, northern California is blessed with blossoms blooming everywhere. ... read more

By melisse. Models, in their likeness, are being sculpted by Ali’s company, Alumni Exhibits. Ali, Bill, Bridgette and I have been creating a model of an elephant seal for Point Reyes Visitor Center and a model of a hawk preying upon a squirrel for Happy Isles Visitor Center in Yosemite. I’ve been overjoyed to be involved in this work again, back with the friends I used to work with when Dave and I lived here. We are just a few of the Academy Studio alumni. I love making natural history models. It calls into action keen observation, command of a huge range of materials, active problem solving and inventiveness, keeping a vision of the big picture while attending to fine detail, and being systematic but also responsive and flexible. In the process of making models, one ... read more

Unlike the midwest, in California, Dia de los muertos is a significant day. California, after all, was part of Mexico from 1821,when Mexico gained independence from Spain to 1846 when it became part of the United States. Celebrating dia de los muertos is a major Mexican tradition that continues to this day in "Alta California". In the Catholic religion the two days following the pagan Halloween are celebrations of those who have gone on before us. November 1st is All Saints Day, a holy day of obligation and All Souls Day, a day given to recognize our dead ancestors. Now when I was growing up, in a Catholic family, All Saints Day meant we got the day after Halloween off from school. What a boon. We went to church in the morning and gorged on our ... read more

A group of us were sitting around last Saturday evening and began discussing an upcoming birthday gathering for this weekend. Chris, not in attendance, would be celebrated for his October 1st birthday. Shannon spoke up saying hers is October 4th, Brigitte exclaimed hers is the 13th while husband Steve is the next day on the 14th. I concluded by remarking that my birthday is October 9th (same as John Lennon and Jackson Browne I'm proud to say). Amazing, in a group of eight, four of us have birthdays this month. What is the likelihood? If you track it back, January plays a significant role. I suggest that during midwinter's chill, there just might be a favored way to create heat. Could this be why? It's conceivable. ... read more