In 1996, while living at the base of the Rocky Mountains in the Chama Valley of New Mexico and at a high 8,000 ft. elevation, I received kitchen table painting lessons from a railroad engineer, watercolorist and best friend. At that time I had discovered the works of Georgia O’Keefe in an old General Store, she had also lived in that same region during her lifetime. Georgia's paintings influenced and kindled my desire to paint. Watercolors were the natural choice of medium for me. It has been my good fortune to have lived in rural country areas with pristine natural settings in many of the Western states. I have a deep admiration and love of nature, it has quieted my soul and spirit so many times. I feel similarly while painting with watercolors, the paints are soft, soothing and the colors mimic those found in nature.

Vineries™ Art Studio is in Napa Valley, California. In addition to great wine, Napa Valley offers one of the most unique places to create paintings. I’ve found the Napa Valley has an abundance of natural settings full of photographic content that I use for reference material when composing my watercolor paintings. The grapevines are amazing, full of character, dimension and are rich in color. The architectural designs in Napa Valley are as vast as they are varied. The wineries are a grand symposium of superstructures that characterize the lives that are lived in the Valley.

Currently, I like working with heavy 300 lb. paper, it stands up to a lot, absorbs and receives many layers of paint and has a beautiful texture that adds dimension and integrity to the art piece. I use high quality artist's paints and brushes and take my time painting the many layers it takes to achieve the desired effect I’m looking for. When a grape “looks good enough to pick and eat ” then I’ve captured its’ essence, it looks alive.

Come back and visit often. As I finish paintings of the wineries, vines and landscapes, they will be shown to you in the Original Paintings page. Giclee prints will be available on the Giclee Prints Page in small Limited Editions of 100, all signed, numbered and will include a Certificate of Authenticity. The print method used is Giclee and is the highest quality and most advanced technology I have found available using all archival materials.

 

Kathy Lund

kathy@vineriesart.com
Napa Valley, CA
707 227-4904