46 Studios & 180 Artists.

November 30, 2014: Hidden in the Hills Studio Tour& Sale.

It’s the final day of the Hidden in the Hills Studio Tour, so we hit the highway and dodge through the Phoenix traffic driving north to our destination – Carefree, along with Cave Creek and northern Scottsdale.  There are 46 private art studios and over 180 artists represented in this tour which is held the weekends before and after Thanksgiving.  It would take both weekends and all 6 days to get around to 46 studios.  We make the most of the one day we have and select a small geographic area where there’s a high concentration of artists so we can see as much as possible.

Our first stop is Wild Holly Gallery in Carefree where Jack’s sister, Jan Taylor, is presenting her new work during the tour. 

We check out her new paintings.  A new contemporary style has emerged, but is still distinctively “Jan Taylor”.  One painting, Monument Valley in northeast Arizona, is represented in vibrant colors and an exaggerated moon and stars overhead.  Very fitting for a large space in a contemporary southwest home.

Anxious to get started on the tour, I didn’t think to take pictures while we were at the gallery.  Hopefully, Jan will get them uploaded to her website before long for all to see.

After a short visit, we let her get back to selling art and we undertake our studio-hopping mission.  

We meet many wonderful artists – each with a personality as unique and fun as their different art mediums and styles.  Here’s a flavor of some of the talented people we encounter today.  I encourage you to check out their websites – see who they are, where they came from, and view a sampling of their work.  I’ve included a short quote from each artist’s website when available.  Their comments on their own work are more descriptive of their work than I could describe.  Just click the artist’s name to link to their website. (Note: Each artist has given me permission to post my photos and include a link to their website.) 

Elizabeth Cox – Gourd and watercolor. 

Each gourd is hand-selected at a gourd farm in the Temecula Valley in California.  Oh yeah, Kudos to Beth's husband, Rodney, for the keeping the food and drink flowing in the kitchen while Beth welcomed visitors to their beautiful home - and her studio.  Love the quail gourds! 

“She has created her own “species” of art lately at Quail Run Studio. Beth takes gourds and creates stylized Gambel’s quail using pyrography and ink dyes. Each quail is adorned with unique and wonderful botanical and natural scenes. Looking at the hand-drawn images on one of her three-dimensional works is like “taking a walk in the desert,” she says.”

Eileen Schnog – Fine jewelry. 
Patty Russell - Jewelry artist.

Eileen and Patty create beautiful pieces of jewelry.  Absolutely gorgeous work.

Kenneth Ferguson – Varnish on watercolor.

Amazing works of art!  I don't think I've ever seen anything like this before.  The varnish over watercolor gives a dramatic finished product. 

“Ken has been described as a "painter of storytelling portraits." His paintings combine historical figurative imagery with the rich material culture of North America's tribal societies of the 18th and 19th centuries.”

Steve Stento – Watercolor.

Stunningly beautiful paintings.  His trips to Italy and France are the subjects of many of his paintings.  What a talented young man.  Love his work.  You must take a look at his website as my photo doesn't do his work justice.  The bright sunshine really washed out the colors when I took this photo.  

“Color and light are the most important elements of my work.  They are the foundation that allows me to capture the essence of a scene and convey its mood.”

Kyle Hobratschk – Copper plate etchings, furniture, painting.

Kyle explains (in a nutshell) the process of copper plate etching and how he creates a print from the etching.  Again, a very talented young man.  As we're flipping through his sleeved prints, I come across the one he's holding in the photo above.  I comment, "This looks like a house in San Antonio, Texas south of downtown." 

Kyle smiles,  "It is!  It's in the King William Historic District in San Antonio, Texas."  

Great work, Kyle!  

   

Carolyn Sato – Bronze sculpture.

A beautiful woman that matches her gorgeous sculptures.  Carolyn gives us the condensed version of how she creates her sculptures and how the final product finally emerges from the foundry after 4 or 5 months after she releases her work to them.

“My sculptures emerge from within and beyond—from my soul, my Muse, and the spirit of the piece itself. My job when I sculpt is to open to the pulsing flow-of-life message that unfolds during the co-creative process.”

With our need for a little culture satisfied, it's time to satisfy our compelling desire for food.

We meet up with Jan again and enjoy an excellent dinner at El Encanto Restaurant.  After dinner, we drop Jan at home and head 50 miles back down through the bowels of Phoenix to our little spot on the other side of the city – Sunrise RV Resort in Apache Junction.  Home again.  Until next time – be safe.