Underground No More

After the Tahoe: Lost & Found art auction (well, actually just before), it was decided that our art group, the Underground Artists, had reached some sort of inevitable conclusion. I'm not sure how or why, but it just felt right to all of us to continue on with our art in our separate ways.

As Kristen put it, it' s as if we've come "above ground".

I'm going to leave this blog in place for now... you can still connect with us through the links at the right.

Art Auction Success

The firemen came in their truck to help the auctioneer carry the art up for bidding...

How cool was that?!

I'm pretty much done and moving on from this, so I'll just say that it was a success and we were able to raise the money for the library. Here's a link to the Tahoe Arts and Mountain Culture website, and a few pictures.....

Watch for some changes here to come...

Art Auction This Friday Night

Tahoe: Lost & Found
Inspired by Fire: Reflections of a Community One Year After Angora


The live Art Auction and Angora Benefit is this Friday, September 19th, 6:00 pm at Valhalla's Grand Hall at the Tallac Historic Site in South Lake Tahoe, CA.

Preview and Reception: 6:00 pm
Auction starts at 7:00 pm

This live art auction with Nicholas Varzos is a community-based event to benefit the local library, which lost many books in homes that burned in the Angora Fire. The artwork features 21 artists from around the lake, who created work that reflects our theme: What did we lose in the fire, and what did we find?

From a hand-painted snowboard to photography; paintings to works in jewelry, mixed media "homes" and firefighter arthelmets... each artist responded with their own interpretation of the experience. Preview all of the art and the artists and learn more about the event at www.tahoelostandfound.com.

And it's free! ( With a suggested donation for the printed auction guide.) (Which looks great, by the way, thanks to Kristen Schwartz and Becky Bell!)

If you live in Tahoe, plan to attend...

Art Auction Shaping Up

The Tahoe: Lost & Found live art auction is happening...
Mark your calendar for Friday, September 19, 2008 and stay tuned for details!

Or read about it now at the Tahoe: Lost & Found site.

Ultrahazardous Art

About the most frightening job I can imagine would be that of a firefighter. For the Tahoe: Lost & Found show, I created two fire helmets to honor the firefighters who came from all over to help us out last summer during the Angora Fire.

"Warning: Firefighting is an Ultrahazardous Activity" features wording from part of the warning label that appears on the inside of the actual helmet; I for one, would never put it on after reading that!

"Reflected by Fire" features mirrored goggles and bits of news clippings from articles regarding the fire. You can read more here.

The Tahoe: Lost & Found live art auction is coming up soon. To see all the art to be auctioned off, click here.

More details as we get closer!

We're a Trend!

Local writer and editor Kim Wyatt wrote a uniquely upbeat story in the latest Tahoe Quarterly magazine called "Top Tahoe Trends". The piece covers trends in a few different areas, and includes a great bit about Becky Bell's authentic and quintessential Tahoe website, Tahoe Arts and Mountain Culture (www.tahoeculture.com).

Kim writes about creative community collaboration (I love that; maybe it's the alliteration?) and explains my idea for the Tahoe: Lost & Found project, giving our upcoming Tahoe: Lost & Found art auction a great plug. (Thanks, Kim!) We appreciate the fact that Tahoe Quarterly is a sponsor for the event as well.

Anyhoo; if you come across a copy, give it a look. Great photos of our local heroes too!

Barbara Wesson at Tallac

You know something is up if Barbara has her picture in the local paper!

Barbara Wesson is showing her functional and beautiful pottery at the Tallac Historic Site this week. Visit her at the Viking Gallery from 11 to 4 from August 17th to the 23rd. She'll be hosting a reception from noon to 4 on the last day.

Lately she's been focusing on some amazing succulent pots with cool textures so you won't want to miss it!