Heads You Lose

New York Times best selling author Lisa Lutz teamed with Healdsburg editor Dave Hayward to write a murder mystery Heads You Lose. Their book is unique in that Lisa wrote the odd numbered chapters and Dave wrote the even ones, with neither knowing what the other was going to write and unable to change what the other had written. Heads You Lose is a fun read and a recommended purchase at your favorite book store.

Both writers were present at a book reading this past Saturday at Copperfield’s Books in Healdsburg. The authors bantered with each other, imitating the author tensions that are included in their book between chapters. I sat in the front row to get the best view to draw. After the book reading and signing, a group of us friends of Dave and Lisa sat out on the grass on the Healdsburg plaza and drank coffee. This is where I had the opportunity to add watercolor washes to my fresh drawing.

 

Marilyn at the Bean Affair

Marilyn and I went out to have a picnic today and to do some sketchbook drawing. We first stopped at Big Johns market to get a sandwich and a really cool new sparkling water beverage with cucumber essence. Then we wandered downtown to the Plaza and parked ourselves on a bench near Foss Creek to have lunch but it was way too cold and windy to stay long enough to draw. We finished our sandwich as fast as we could and then headed indoors to a local Coffee shop, The Bean Affair. I ordered a cup of tea which warmed me inside and loosened my cold hands enough to draw Marilyn while reading a good book.

 

The Healdsburg Historical Society Museum

Early last Sunday morning, I pulled out my sketchbook and sat on a curb across the street from the Healdsburg Museum and started drawing. The air was cool and crisp, but the sun shinning on my hat and jacket kept me warm.

The building was built over 100 years ago in 1910 and originally housed the Healdsburg Library. The Healdsburg Historical Society moved into the building in 1976 and has occupied it ever since.

The bells of the nearby Catholic Church broke the morning silence, calling its followers to Mass. People anxious to get to church parallel parked all around me and eventually blocked my view of the lower portion of the museum. Thankfully, I drew the base first, so I was still able to finish my drawing.

The Pool at Parkpoint Health Club

Finally the weather warmed up enough to hang out by the pool at the gym. I met my wife and Heather, a friend of ours, last Sunday at Parkpoint Health Club in Healdsburg. Since we met there are noon, I thought I’d surprise everyone with Cypress Point goat cheese (Purple Haze), Italian salami, crackers and several beverages from which to choose. Besides eating and taking it easy under the umbrella, I found some time to draw in my Moleskine.

 

The Golden Gate Bridge in the Rain

On Sunday I took a drive to the Legion of Honor in San Francisco to see an excellent show, Arthur Szyk: Miniature Paintings and Modern Illuminations. Arthur Szyk was an Early 20th Century illustrator from Poland and is best known for his highly detailed, miniature paintings that were created for books and medieval manuscripts, using transparent/opaque watercolors.

Also exhibiting at the Legion was Pulp Fashion: The Art of Isabelle de Borchgrave. De Borchgrave is known for using paper as a medium for recreating historic dresses worn by Elizabeth I, the Medici family, Marie-Antoinette, and many others. To construct these costumes, paper was delicately painted by hand and meticulously sewn together as if it were real fabric. The finished gowns were then posed on manikins in the same manner as the old master paintings that inspired them, recreating the painting and bringing it to life in three dimensions.

After viewing the exhibition, I felt my trip to San Francisco wouldn’t be complete unless I did some sketching, so I exited the museum and looked around for a good place to draw. After walking the grounds, I decided on the museum itself as my subject, with a lion statue in the foreground. But soon after I was settled, a soft rain from the greying sky above rendered my marking pen useless, and with my sketchbook getting wet, I decided to head back home.

Walking back to my car, I paused for a moment to admire an impressive view of the Golden Gate Bridge almost obscured by the rapidly changing weather. It would have been a shame to pass up an opportunity like this so I looked around for a place I could sketch without getting wet. Not far behind me, I saw a stump under a tree on which I could sit, paint, and be sheltered all at the same time. Pulling out my art supplies once again, I painted watercolors wet-into-wet in order to capture the mood of the hazy bridge. Although I stayed relatively dry under the canopy of trees, a breeze carried the little droplets of rain that dotted my drying painting and made it look like snow.

 

Downtown Healdsburg, Barrel Tasting Weekend

Spring has arrived in Healdsburg—at least for today. Showers are forecasted for every day next week so I made a special effort to head out early and draw before winter reasserts itself. I drove downtown to Healdsburg’s square and easily found an interesting place to draw, standing on the grass next to Foss Creek and looking east between the Bear Republic and Hotel Healdsburg. Every plant, bush, and tree was in bloom.

The town of Healdsburg is known for its wine, and this weekend happens to be the 33rd Annual Barrel Tasting event. I could easily tell because the downtown area was bustling with people holding wine glasses and laughing while walking to the next winery. This event provides a unique opportunity to taste wine out of the barrel (and purchase futures) before it has been bottled.

After I finished my drawing, I drove a couple of blocks away to one of my favorite local wineries, Malm Cellars, for a taste of wine right from their barrels. Brendan and Amanda Malm own the winery where Brendan is winemaker. I tasted 2009 Russian River Chardonnay (Baccigalupi Vineyard); 2009 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir (Missy’s Vineyard); “name it” Red Zin a blend of four vintages (I put in my two cents with “Fourscore Zin”); and a tasty 2010 Dry Creek Valley Botrytis Sauvignon Blanc. All the wines I tasted were excellent and I couldn’t resist purchasing a few bottles. Looks like tonight its going to be a glass of Malm Sonoma County Pinot while I’m roasting chicken for dinner.

 

Grant Street Railroad Crossing

Grant Street in Healdsburg has seen quite a bit of construction over the last several years with a new apartment complex (to the left of this drawing) and some new town homes (to the right of this drawing). In between these two new constructions sites sits this old building next to the railroad tracks. I stood on the Foss Creek Bridge looking northwest across Grant Street to draw the old building. One of these years, the SMART train will ride these rails taking passengers to as far north as Cloverdale and as far south as Larkspur,  where passengers can take the ferry to San Francisco.