ARTISTS
Art among the vines
Three days on the art circuit in Sonoma and Napa valleys THERE`S MORE TO Northern California`s wine country than fume blanc and foie gras. More than
Bonnie Gangelhoff / Southwest Art
01 Sep, 2003
Three days on the art circuit in Sonoma and Napa valleys
THERE`S MORE TO Northern California`s wine country than fume blanc and foie gras. More than lush green vineyards, rich red merlots, winding country lanes, and lacy tableclothed bistros.
Yes, the Sonoma and Napa valleys have world-class wines, gourmet food, and charm by the buckets. But to raise the cultural cachet even higher, consider the area`s impressive art collections: Paintings, sculptures, and photographs can be found throughout the wine country at hotels, wineries, restaurants, and nature preserves-as well as at the usual places, like galleries and museums.
The fall harvest season currently underway is the peak time to visit, although the art-ranging from Northern California landscape paintings at Healdsburg`s Erickson Fine Art Gallery to funky outsider art at Pope Valley`s Hubcap Ranch, where "the show" consists of a multimedia homage to the car-is always in season hereabouts.
The two valleys are separated by the Mayacamas Mountains, with Napa on the eastern side and Sonoma on the west. In general, Napa is known as the faster-growing, wealthier, more ostentatious region, while Sonoma sports a reputation as Napa`s more bohemian, artsy, younger sister.
A THREE-DAY IDEAL EXCURSION into the two valleys might go like this. Begin in the largest town in Sonoma Valley, Sonoma-population about 9,000. This wine country burg has a friendly feel and an old-time town square. For decades, chickens roamed the plaza-but that came to an end a few years ago when the wayward roosters nibbled at some too-curious tots, which led to the free-range squawkers being banned from the plaza even though they were a poignant reminder of the town`s agrarian roots. (You can find out more about the chicken wars and the whole region in Alan Deutschman`s fine chronicle, A Tale of Two Valleys.)
But back to the art. On September 20, the second annual Sonoma Plein Air show unfolds here in the plaza. For a week prior to the show, the artists, including Randall Sexton, Debra Huse, and Clark Mitchell, fan out across the scenic terrain to paint everything from the crashing Pacific Ocean waves to the historic Sebastiani Theatre. (Not to be outdone, Napa inaugurates its own plein-air painting exhibition this year: The Napa Valley Museum in Yountville presents Plein Air Biennial 2003 through October 12, with more than 50 participating area artists including Charles Waldman, Doug Morgan, and Zee Zee Mott.)
From the Sonoma town plaza, walk four blocks to MacArthur Place, an upscale inn where gorgeous gardens host an ever-changing presentation of 30 provocative sculptures.
Then drive northwest to Santa Rosa`s Sonoma County Museum, where there is a permanent collection of landscape works by Maynard Dixon, William Keith, and Jack Stuppin, one of the county`s beloved plein-air artists. On view through January 4, 2004, is Light and Land, an exhibit of prints, models, and photographs by internationally known artist James Turrell.
Also in Santa Rosa, stop at the Paradise Ridge Winery`s Paradise Wood Sculpture Grove amid four acres of ancient oaks and a myriad of mossy rocks.
Continue northward to picturesque Healdsburg for the night, paying a visit on the way to Erickson Fine Art Gallery to take in whimsical animal portraits by Robert Rissell and evocative landscapes by Jean Moody-all as sophisticated as you`d find in the big city by the bay to the south.
ON DAY TWO, cross over from Sonoma into Napa Valley. Head cast from Healdsburg, then south to Calistoga, a Napa town that looks like a western movie set. Calistoga is long famous for its mud baths and spring waters, but it also is home to Lee Youngman Galleries, which offers traditional fine art and sculptures, including paintings by established artists such as Paul Youngman and Neil Boyle as well as talented newcomers like Ariana Richards.
Two miles and five minutes from the gallery stands another intriguing art destination-Clos Pegase Winery, designed by the award-winning Michael Graves. The winery`s lawn boasts a bevy of contemporary sculptures, including a much-talked-about 70-foot-tall bronze thumb by Cesar Baldachini and a sleek bronze by Henry Moore. Inside the winery there arc paintings by well-known contemporary American artists Jasper Johns and Kenneth Nolan.
Next: St. Helena, a quaint village that`s often considered to be the snootiest wine country town. I Wolk Gallery on Main Street represents many excellent California artists, such as moody landscape painter Thomas Monaghan and watercolor master Woodward Payne. Sculptor Miles Metzger also keeps an open-door policy on Main Street, displaying a sleek bronze menagerie of animals suitable for outdoor gardens.
For lunch, you might venture into Rutherford`s Auberge du Soleil. The pricey resort and restaurant sports a fabulous collection of sculpture by California artists, including Robert Holmes and Sharon Loper.
Follow Route 29 south to Yountville, widely known as the home to Mustards and French Laundry, the two most famous and exclusive restaurants in the wine country. It is also home to several galleries as well as the Napa Valley Museum, which boasts a current show of contemporary Northern California plein-air landscapes.
Two comfortable bed and breakfasts are in the area for your second night: Yountville`s Castle in the Clouds is perched on a hill across the street from Mustards and sports spectacular views and a homey country atmosphere, while La Belle Epoque is located in nearby Napa in an old Victorian house dotted with antiques.
ON DAY THREE, head into Napa, a city of 53,000 that`s a few miles south of Yountville and about an hour north of San Francisco. Two years ago, Copia: The American Center for Wine, Food, & the Arts opened downtown, a multi-million-dollar venue that brings together exhibits on food, wine, and the arts. The recent renovation of the waterfront area has also ushered in upscale restaurants like Celadon and Angele as well as art venues such as M.J. Schaer Gallery, Glass Gallery, and Main Element.
Back into the car, it`s worth a spin out to the Hess Collection, which has ultra-contemporary art housed in an historic stone building constructed in 1903.
Which brings us to the real piece de resistance on our wine country art circuit: di Rosa Preserve, a sprawling 53-acre estate about 15 minutes from Napa. Octogenarian Rene di Rosa`s 2,000-piece collection hangs on the walls and the ceiling, and it stands amid lakes, flora, and fauna. The collector`s taste runs the gamut from BONFIRE, a life-size horse in defeat made of mud, straw, and steel by Deborah Butterfield [SWA, AUGUST 2003] to the joyful RHINOCAR by David Best. RHINOCAR is a 1976 Oldsmobile encrusted with golf balls, old toys, baby shoes, and an eye-popping rhinoceros on the hood. The collection focuses on contemporary Bay Area artists and is heavy on human and animal figures with works by Imogen Cunningham, Manuel Neri, and Joan Brown. You`ll need a reservation for the two-and-a-half-hour tour, but it`s worth the trouble for art enthusiasts with a broad range of tastes.
Northern California`s wine country is one of the most rarified places in the world to eat, drink, and escape daily ruts. But let`s leave you art gourmands with another axiom currently making the rounds, words spoken by Pablo Picasso: "Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life."
SIDEBAR
Art PLACES AND SPACES ERICKSON FINE ART GALLERY, Healdsburg, 707.431.7073 LEE YOUNGMAN GALLERlES, Calistoga, 800.551.0585 BLUE HERON GALLERY, Yountville, 707.944.2044 I WOLK GALLERY, St. Helena, 707.963.8800 MILES METZGER STUDIOS, St. Helena, 707.967.0623 G GALLERY, Napa, 707.253.7763 JESSEL GALLERY, Napa, 707.257.2350 MJ SCHAER GALLERY & STUDIO, Napa, 707.251.3726 OFF THE PRESERVE!, Napa, 707.253.8300 COPIA: THE AMERICAN CENTER FOR WINE, FOOD, & THE ARTS, Napa, 707.259.1600 SONOMA VALLEY MUSEUM OF ART, Sonoma, 707.939.7862 SONOMA COUNTY MUSEUM, Santa Rosa, 707.579.1500 NAPA VALLEY MUSEUM, Yountville, 707.944.0500 DI ROSA PRESERVE, Napa, 707.226.5991 PARADISE RIDGE WINERY, Santa Rosa, 707.528.9463 CLOS PEGASE WINERY, Calistoga, 707.942.4981 HESS COLLECTION WINERY, Napa, 707.255.1144 -B.G.
ILLUSTRATIONS
SUTTER CREEK BY CHARLES WALDMAN IS CURRENTLY ON VIEW AT THE NAPA VALLEY MUSEUM.
THIS MONTH, Copia: The American Center for Wine, Food, & the Arts presents historic wine labels in Grapes in the Golden West: The Early Wine Trade in California, on display through September 29. Meanwhile, the Napa Valley Museum hosts Art of the Wine Label which includes the images shown here, through October 12.
AUTHOR AFFILIATION
Bonnie Gangelhoff is a senior editor who never minds leaving Houston for a trip to wine country.
COPYRIGHT: Copyright Sabot Publishing, Inc. Sep 2003. Provided by Proquest- CSA, LLC. All Rights Reserved. Only fair use as provided by the United States copyright law is permitted.
PROQUEST-CSA, LLC- MAKES NO WARRANTY REGARDING THE ACCURACY, COMPLETENESS, OR TIMELINESS OF THE LICENSED MATERIALS OR ANY WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED.
THERE`S MORE TO Northern California`s wine country than fume blanc and foie gras. More than lush green vineyards, rich red merlots, winding country lanes, and lacy tableclothed bistros.
Yes, the Sonoma and Napa valleys have world-class wines, gourmet food, and charm by the buckets. But to raise the cultural cachet even higher, consider the area`s impressive art collections: Paintings, sculptures, and photographs can be found throughout the wine country at hotels, wineries, restaurants, and nature preserves-as well as at the usual places, like galleries and museums.
The fall harvest season currently underway is the peak time to visit, although the art-ranging from Northern California landscape paintings at Healdsburg`s Erickson Fine Art Gallery to funky outsider art at Pope Valley`s Hubcap Ranch, where "the show" consists of a multimedia homage to the car-is always in season hereabouts.
The two valleys are separated by the Mayacamas Mountains, with Napa on the eastern side and Sonoma on the west. In general, Napa is known as the faster-growing, wealthier, more ostentatious region, while Sonoma sports a reputation as Napa`s more bohemian, artsy, younger sister.
A THREE-DAY IDEAL EXCURSION into the two valleys might go like this. Begin in the largest town in Sonoma Valley, Sonoma-population about 9,000. This wine country burg has a friendly feel and an old-time town square. For decades, chickens roamed the plaza-but that came to an end a few years ago when the wayward roosters nibbled at some too-curious tots, which led to the free-range squawkers being banned from the plaza even though they were a poignant reminder of the town`s agrarian roots. (You can find out more about the chicken wars and the whole region in Alan Deutschman`s fine chronicle, A Tale of Two Valleys.)
But back to the art. On September 20, the second annual Sonoma Plein Air show unfolds here in the plaza. For a week prior to the show, the artists, including Randall Sexton, Debra Huse, and Clark Mitchell, fan out across the scenic terrain to paint everything from the crashing Pacific Ocean waves to the historic Sebastiani Theatre. (Not to be outdone, Napa inaugurates its own plein-air painting exhibition this year: The Napa Valley Museum in Yountville presents Plein Air Biennial 2003 through October 12, with more than 50 participating area artists including Charles Waldman, Doug Morgan, and Zee Zee Mott.)
From the Sonoma town plaza, walk four blocks to MacArthur Place, an upscale inn where gorgeous gardens host an ever-changing presentation of 30 provocative sculptures.
Then drive northwest to Santa Rosa`s Sonoma County Museum, where there is a permanent collection of landscape works by Maynard Dixon, William Keith, and Jack Stuppin, one of the county`s beloved plein-air artists. On view through January 4, 2004, is Light and Land, an exhibit of prints, models, and photographs by internationally known artist James Turrell.
Also in Santa Rosa, stop at the Paradise Ridge Winery`s Paradise Wood Sculpture Grove amid four acres of ancient oaks and a myriad of mossy rocks.
Continue northward to picturesque Healdsburg for the night, paying a visit on the way to Erickson Fine Art Gallery to take in whimsical animal portraits by Robert Rissell and evocative landscapes by Jean Moody-all as sophisticated as you`d find in the big city by the bay to the south.
ON DAY TWO, cross over from Sonoma into Napa Valley. Head cast from Healdsburg, then south to Calistoga, a Napa town that looks like a western movie set. Calistoga is long famous for its mud baths and spring waters, but it also is home to Lee Youngman Galleries, which offers traditional fine art and sculptures, including paintings by established artists such as Paul Youngman and Neil Boyle as well as talented newcomers like Ariana Richards.
Two miles and five minutes from the gallery stands another intriguing art destination-Clos Pegase Winery, designed by the award-winning Michael Graves. The winery`s lawn boasts a bevy of contemporary sculptures, including a much-talked-about 70-foot-tall bronze thumb by Cesar Baldachini and a sleek bronze by Henry Moore. Inside the winery there arc paintings by well-known contemporary American artists Jasper Johns and Kenneth Nolan.
Next: St. Helena, a quaint village that`s often considered to be the snootiest wine country town. I Wolk Gallery on Main Street represents many excellent California artists, such as moody landscape painter Thomas Monaghan and watercolor master Woodward Payne. Sculptor Miles Metzger also keeps an open-door policy on Main Street, displaying a sleek bronze menagerie of animals suitable for outdoor gardens.
For lunch, you might venture into Rutherford`s Auberge du Soleil. The pricey resort and restaurant sports a fabulous collection of sculpture by California artists, including Robert Holmes and Sharon Loper.
Follow Route 29 south to Yountville, widely known as the home to Mustards and French Laundry, the two most famous and exclusive restaurants in the wine country. It is also home to several galleries as well as the Napa Valley Museum, which boasts a current show of contemporary Northern California plein-air landscapes.
Two comfortable bed and breakfasts are in the area for your second night: Yountville`s Castle in the Clouds is perched on a hill across the street from Mustards and sports spectacular views and a homey country atmosphere, while La Belle Epoque is located in nearby Napa in an old Victorian house dotted with antiques.
ON DAY THREE, head into Napa, a city of 53,000 that`s a few miles south of Yountville and about an hour north of San Francisco. Two years ago, Copia: The American Center for Wine, Food, & the Arts opened downtown, a multi-million-dollar venue that brings together exhibits on food, wine, and the arts. The recent renovation of the waterfront area has also ushered in upscale restaurants like Celadon and Angele as well as art venues such as M.J. Schaer Gallery, Glass Gallery, and Main Element.
Back into the car, it`s worth a spin out to the Hess Collection, which has ultra-contemporary art housed in an historic stone building constructed in 1903.
Which brings us to the real piece de resistance on our wine country art circuit: di Rosa Preserve, a sprawling 53-acre estate about 15 minutes from Napa. Octogenarian Rene di Rosa`s 2,000-piece collection hangs on the walls and the ceiling, and it stands amid lakes, flora, and fauna. The collector`s taste runs the gamut from BONFIRE, a life-size horse in defeat made of mud, straw, and steel by Deborah Butterfield [SWA, AUGUST 2003] to the joyful RHINOCAR by David Best. RHINOCAR is a 1976 Oldsmobile encrusted with golf balls, old toys, baby shoes, and an eye-popping rhinoceros on the hood. The collection focuses on contemporary Bay Area artists and is heavy on human and animal figures with works by Imogen Cunningham, Manuel Neri, and Joan Brown. You`ll need a reservation for the two-and-a-half-hour tour, but it`s worth the trouble for art enthusiasts with a broad range of tastes.
Northern California`s wine country is one of the most rarified places in the world to eat, drink, and escape daily ruts. But let`s leave you art gourmands with another axiom currently making the rounds, words spoken by Pablo Picasso: "Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life."
SIDEBAR
Art PLACES AND SPACES ERICKSON FINE ART GALLERY, Healdsburg, 707.431.7073 LEE YOUNGMAN GALLERlES, Calistoga, 800.551.0585 BLUE HERON GALLERY, Yountville, 707.944.2044 I WOLK GALLERY, St. Helena, 707.963.8800 MILES METZGER STUDIOS, St. Helena, 707.967.0623 G GALLERY, Napa, 707.253.7763 JESSEL GALLERY, Napa, 707.257.2350 MJ SCHAER GALLERY & STUDIO, Napa, 707.251.3726 OFF THE PRESERVE!, Napa, 707.253.8300 COPIA: THE AMERICAN CENTER FOR WINE, FOOD, & THE ARTS, Napa, 707.259.1600 SONOMA VALLEY MUSEUM OF ART, Sonoma, 707.939.7862 SONOMA COUNTY MUSEUM, Santa Rosa, 707.579.1500 NAPA VALLEY MUSEUM, Yountville, 707.944.0500 DI ROSA PRESERVE, Napa, 707.226.5991 PARADISE RIDGE WINERY, Santa Rosa, 707.528.9463 CLOS PEGASE WINERY, Calistoga, 707.942.4981 HESS COLLECTION WINERY, Napa, 707.255.1144 -B.G.
ILLUSTRATIONS
SUTTER CREEK BY CHARLES WALDMAN IS CURRENTLY ON VIEW AT THE NAPA VALLEY MUSEUM.
THIS MONTH, Copia: The American Center for Wine, Food, & the Arts presents historic wine labels in Grapes in the Golden West: The Early Wine Trade in California, on display through September 29. Meanwhile, the Napa Valley Museum hosts Art of the Wine Label which includes the images shown here, through October 12.
AUTHOR AFFILIATION
Bonnie Gangelhoff is a senior editor who never minds leaving Houston for a trip to wine country.
COPYRIGHT: Copyright Sabot Publishing, Inc. Sep 2003. Provided by Proquest- CSA, LLC. All Rights Reserved. Only fair use as provided by the United States copyright law is permitted.
PROQUEST-CSA, LLC- MAKES NO WARRANTY REGARDING THE ACCURACY, COMPLETENESS, OR TIMELINESS OF THE LICENSED MATERIALS OR ANY WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED.
