These past couple of months I’ve been completely tied up getting ready for Open Studios, so my latest strategy is incorporating my walks into my chores. Today’s walk was a pleasure, hardly a chore, so I’ll include it as blogworthy.
This is the second weekend of Santa Cruz County’s Open Studios, and covers all the artists whose studios are south of the Santa Cruz yacht harbor. I live just north of the harbor, so took the opportunity to walk to the studios closest to my house: those at the 17th Avenue studio complex.
I walked down to the harbor, and skirted the end of the berths. I first noticed the boat in the foreground because it’s an old Chris Craft, and reminds me of the one we had when I was growing up. The name is the best part: “Crisis Every Hour II” — which implies an ultimate crisis for boat #1.
It seems to be my task to explore the train tracks around Santa Cruz; they do provide the most direct route to a lot of places!
Some interesting graffitti along the tracks.
Here is the 17th Avenue studio complex, a mix of old warehouses, quonset huts, shacks, and still-working garages. It’s a popular destination, since 17 artists there were participating. Another incentive to walk; parking can be problematic.
Among the artists whose work I particularly enjoyed at 17th Ave. are Donna Bourne‘s landscapes, Michael Mote‘s paintings of waves, Marvin Plummer‘s fabulous animal drawings, Jean Sheckler Beebe‘s mixed-media images, and Michele Indiana Anderson‘s abstract paintings. Most are doing the encore weekend on October 17 & 18, as am I, so do come out to look at some good art!
Even apart from the art, it’s an interesting place. An old rusty truck:
An arty auto juxtaposition:
