June 18, 2020
By Ryah Cooley
When the wildflower boom hits on the Central Coast each spring, most looky-loos take scores of photos. But Paso Robles artist Roberta Fisher took inspiration to create something more.
After recent visits to spots like the Carrizo Plain and Shell Creek Road, Fisher created the oil painting Wildflowers as an homage to the tenacious plants.
"The wildflowers are going wild this year," Fisher said. "They're everywhere. I just painted what I felt about wildflowers that I've seen all my life in different places."
Fisher's pieces, along with art of other local artists, is currently on display at Studios on the Park as part of the On The Wild Side exhibit. The show features work across a variety of media that speaks to the idea of letting your spirt soar, setting loose your inner animal, and taking a risk.
"I like things that just happen on their own, not cultivated," Fisher said. "They're just there. It inspires me to think there are still wild things in nature."
San Miguel artist Jeff Jones decided to take his inspiration from the wild things that once were in his digital photo, Jurassic Wild. For this piece, Jones combined a photo he took of (fake) dinosaurs at the Mid-State Fair, a landscape photo of the backside of Bishop Peak in SLO, and a little bit of Photoshop magic to create the look of a painting.
"They're roaming around where they might have been at one point," Jones said about Jurassic Wild. "I had to combine all of these elements to make it work. It was a fun project."
And Templeton artist Heidi Kruger's Turkish marbling painting, Sly Fox, is an abstract take on a fox (See the eyes? Yup, there they are!). Through the process of Turkish marbling, Kruger literally uses paint floating on a layer of water. Kruger then rakes across the top of the paint for texture.
"It's very zen," Kruger said of the technique. "It's very relaxing. People will look at it and say, 'Oh I see this.' And others will see something different." Δ
A wild night for Arts Writer Ryah Cooley ends by midnight. Contact her at rcooley@newtimesslo.com.
On display
Paso Robles Art Association's exhibit On The Wild Side will be on display at Studios on the Park through May 1. Visit studiosonthepark.org for more information.
