My Art History

I have recently returned to creating artwork, and it got me thinking back to my beginnings as an artist.

Here are some memories of my early work…

WELL, TO GO ALL THE WAY BACK, I think I already mentioned that in my 2nd year at the convent I was put in charge of the art department. My sister nuns built me an outdoor art platform on the side of the mountain, so I could paint these little holy water fonts for our Mother Superior to give as gifts to supporters. I was in heaven – no pun intended – working out in the fresh air and overlooking the magnificent Los Angeles hills! It was so beautiful and I was left alone to paint as I wished. I kept painting till I heard the bells calling us to prayers.

Then, much later, when I was first married to Burt, I started making felt art collages and was written up in the San Francisco Newspaper. Why felt? I don’t know. The wide range of colors attracted me, as well as the ease of the medium. I had seen some primitive children’s art and realized it could be adaptive to more intricate art work.

It was easily attainable in 12” x 12 “ sample squares as well as in larger yardage perfect for backgrounds. Very affordable. Nobody else was doing it, it felt original. In the article it tells how I created my collages with only scissors and glue!

I was always attracted to the Victorian houses in San Francisco and their gingerbread architecture, so that became one of my favorite subjects.

As mentioned in the article, they were on display at Rico’s Restaurant in Sausalito and when the newspaper article was published, I started getting quite a number of private commissions!  That kept me busy and I enjoyed tailoring them to the buyers’ homes and families.

THE THREE COLLAGES pictured are quite varied.

The large San Francisco scene was bought by my doctor and on prominent display in his office for years. He was an avid art collector and said he was fascinated by my use of negative space. That was news to me. I was so untrained – never even having had an art lesson – that I didn’t know the correct terminology for the technique I was using.

This scene includes the Palace of Fine Arts, The Golden Gate Bridge, City Hall, Coit Tower, and the Ferry Building. They are bordered by an array of Victorian homes, along with a cable car and old-fashioned street lights. (The Transamerica Building had not been built yet)

The Egyptian themed one was a product of my long-time fascination with Egyptian History and particularly their unique artwork. Almost always using a horizontal form, they could depict a whole lifestyle so simply. It was a fascinating era of beauty and craftsmanship.

The Victorian Houses were my biggest sellers.

Unfortunately this one did not photograph very well…

Can you believe I didn’t even think to take my own pictures of any of them? So most are lost to time. But one photo of a piece commissioned by old friends of mine was sent to me recently, for which I am very grateful. It was sent by one of the sons of their large family, Michael Wertz, who is now a well-known commercial artist in San Francisco. You can check out his impressive work at wertzateria.com  He was very kind in his appreciation of the piece. I like to think that perhaps growing up with my artwork hanging over the sofa in their family room influenced him towards becoming an artist. I would love that!  Here it is.

AN INTERESTING LITTLE SIDE STORY is that I got a call from a Buyer representing SEARS ROEBUCK & Company (the now extinct, but at the time ubiquitous, Sears Department Store) asking for an interview. When he came to my home and saw my artwork, he suggested that we clear away my living room furniture, set up tables for about a dozen workers, and have them make copies of the collages. He wanted 50 to 100 pieces in their stores right away! I was so shocked and said no thank you. The whole idea of having these people working in my home seemed crazy to me! And, frankly, the thought of making money was so far from my mind. It was all about the freedom of doing what I wanted, the way I wanted, and people enjoying my work. I probably made a huge mistake.

I guess I wasn’t cut out to be an entrepreneur.

But knowing the world today and the internet, my goodness, how different it might be.

Coming full circle, years later, when I was helping my children with their art projects, I ended up using similar techniques. This is a construction-paper creation I made with my son Christian, which was featured in a coffee table book called “A Children’s History of Hawaii”.

However, my passion for architecture ended up leading to another career…

As you probably know, for over 30 years, I found an artistic outlet in my work as an Interior and Exterior Designer – creating architectural and project renderings to show clients what the finished results would look like. This was particularly useful with a large part of my design business where I upscaled the exteriors of homes – presenting ways to refresh a home’s look with new paint and architectural detail.

These are a few examples…

I even designed unique furniture pieces that often were specially created display cabinets and shelving units for showcasing some fabulous collections. The beauty of that was having Mike Trocheck, a Master Cabinetmaker, able to transform all my ideas into beautiful woodworking works of art! I think when Mike passed away it took my love of creativity away as well.

At least, until recently…

In my next post, I will bring you up to date and discuss my current artwork at age 89!

Kari