Sketching at the Haggin

I was at the Haggin Museum in Stockton again last week to see their Plein Air show on Water and a lecture by artist Kathleen Dunphy. I'm no youngster myself but I was one of the younger folks in attendance. Maybe all the young people are working but it is a shame that more people are not taking advantage of this gem of a museum. Maybe only retirees have the time to appreciate the Arts?

I arrived early. Not as early as I hoped, taking Highway 4 out to Stockton (normally an hour and 30 minute drive). Trust me on this one: when you get to that fork in the road on 4 for either Discovery Bay or Livermore, take Disco Bay!! Or else you'll add an extra hour or more to your drive. I hate wasting time like that. But driving through all the rolling hills capped off with giant wind-powered propellors was a little cool.

Anyway, I arrived early to do some sketching in the museum. I immediately went to my favorites: the room full of Leyendeckers! I had not been to the museum in over a year and I'm glad they've given them a permanent room. For awhile there, I became a sort of unofficial lobbyist for the museum and the works of J.C. Leyendecker there by getting the word out and passing out brochures for the Haggin to professional artists at Comic-Con. I knew they had a gold mine there and a select group of creators (illustrators and comic book artists) would appreciate them if only the word got out.

So I did some drawing from the Leyendeckers which just show you how often I draw animals (almost never!). My horse looks terrible. Below are sketches of people in the crowd during the lecture.

The lecture was good although maybe a little on the short side and lacked more images of the artist's paintings. I'm guessing the artist, Dunphy, is in her 50s but I was inspired by her tale of shifting gears in her mid-30s to going back to art school and following her dream to be a painter. It gives me hope that a late bloomer like myself can still make a career out of my art without having to be one of these prodigies that are creating brilliance at a young age. Every artist, even the most talented, still have to put the work in. For me, it seems, that work is coming over the long haul.