Thursday, September 24, 2009

Surfer Dog

Happy Autumn Equinox!  
It's true, Fall has arrived, although it honestly feels like Summer here
in Oakland.  I am not complaining about that, and neither is my Surfer Dog, Wiki!  
She's been riding some big waves (for a dog) with that tennis ball in her mouth the whole time!
Wiki is taking after her Daddy, the kiteboarding maniac.





So, as you can see, Summer never ends for the three of us, as long as we can play in the water!


Friday, September 18, 2009

The Solano Stroll



I was looking forward to the Solano Stroll all week because I knew I would see lots of friends, old and new!  I was not mistaken!  This street festival is such a huge community gathering for Berkeley, Albany, El Cerrito, even Oakland and the street was absolutely flooded with people.  I got to see my old Mills College friend - Anna Ishida, my Early Music friends - David and Hanneke, my piano student - Aidan and his mom Kimberly, my Operadance CO dancer - Juliet and her family, my musical director friend - Shanti and her husband Lachu, and the list goes on.  On top of running into old dear friends, I met so many new people and shared lots of stories and great conversations!

As you can see by how Tyler enthusiastically grabbed a front row seat for the parade, that part of the festival was awesome.  The parade was filled with performers that truly represented the rich culture of the East Bay.  



My original Swirly Water Dragon that I painted special for the Millbrae Art & Wine Festival now has a new home with another Kimberly, who is the mom of one of my past piano students.  Yay!!!

I am so excited about how my art shows are going that I am adding several more to my 2009 schedule.  The next show, newly added, is:

WALNUT CREEK : 63rd Semi-Annual Arts and Crafts Fall Sidewalk Fair 
North Main, Cypress, and Locust Streets    (map)
10am-6pm Fri/Sat · 10am-5pm Sun
September 25·26·27




Sunday, September 13, 2009

Millbrae Art & Wine Festival Labor Day Weekend 2009


The Millbrae Art & Wine Festival folks do an amazing job of promoting this show!  They were so awesome in advertising and it surely paid off because there must've been atleast 50,000 people there.  I felt like I talked to every single one of them!  I was so wiped out by Sunday night!  It was a blast.  They not only mentioned me in their program's article about fine art, but ALSO featured me on their LIVE cable television show that broadcasted throughout the show.  That show is now being played on their website (mctv.tv).  But just to warn you, at this point it is a continuous stream of footage from that show.  As soon as I get the DVD, I want to share it with all of you!

The above painting is my original "Swirly Water Dragon" that I painted especially for the Millbrae Fest.  Another super fun water dragon playing in the waves and lovin' life!!!

My wonderful family friends, Cyril and Ymen, came to pick up their "Swirly Water Dragon"  (below) that I personalized for them.  That's a great way to make my dragon series come alive and become one of a kind - enhanced giclees.

6th Graders Chinese Brush Painting!!! Impressive!!!



I had the extreme honor to teach a workshop at the Julia Morgan School for Girls on Friday, Sep 4th.  These girls were so much fun!!!  Chinese Brush Painting for the very first time is not really that easy, and I was super impressed with them for just going for it.  All 11 girls, along with their very cool teacher, ended the day with a completed painting.  These paintings will be offered for a special fund raiser auction at the school later this Fall.  Very Awesome!!!  

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Kings Beach Art Festival and Kimbirdlee's Birthday



The ultimate location for an art festival~ Kings Beach, North Lake Tahoe ~Aug 28-30th
I will definitely be returning to Kings Beach next year.  After hearing from all the other veteran artists who told me this weekend was the slowest ever, I am certainly looking forward to a busy weekend.  Considering the mellowness of the weekend, there were still a good number of dragons, frogs and flowers going home with wonderful people from all over the country.  

I love the diversity from all the Tahoe visitors!  The joy of doing outdoor festivals is meeting so many amazing people of all ages and hearing their stories.  The people that actually live in Lake Tahoe really got me thinking - should I relocate?  I am such a lake person!!!

It's true, it was my birthday on Sunday!  
Some of the highlights were:
Visiting with my friends, Bridget, Dave & their 2 boys







My awesome gift (a french press) from Tyler - 
gotta have fresh brewed coffee when 
living the life of luxury out of our plush home on wheels!









Hiking through the breathtaking beauty of Lake Tahoe.













And simply being there!