September 18, 2015 by Theresa Mae Funk

Farm to Fork and the Plate on My Easel: Grandma Moses meets Mother Funk

Sacramento’s Farm-to-Fork Festival is scheduled for September 26th, and I just realized that I will be unable to make it. I had hoped to spend the day tasting my way through the annual festival and establishing connections with the farmers from my region whose lifestyle is the focal point of my artwork. I’m like a modern day Grandma Moses but instead of painting on fire boards, some of my work is done on paper plates.

September 2, 2015 by Theresa Mae Funk

Passing Shot: Driving in the Sierras

Photo credit: Amanda Crownover.

I never would have guessed that Disc Golf would become one of my favorite outdoor recreational activities, but it has. My partner has been playing the sport for over 20 years and is, in part, responsible for getting me hooked. That’s me in the photo throwing a backhand drive down the fairway of hole 12 on the Sierra College course in Truckee. There are an estimated 233 courses in the state of California, and over 4000 registered courses in the United States according to the Disc Golf Association. It is doubtful that I will play all of them, but I am certain that I will have fun trying.

August 18, 2015 by Theresa Mae Funk

Smell the Jelly

We’ve been enjoying the Seedless Thompsons (also called Sultanas) since the middle part of June but the past few weeks of triple digit heat began to take its toll on the raisin cultivars. I decided to dedicate most of my weekend to the delectable chore of harvesting what remained on the twenty-something-year-old vine that grows in our yard.

A reflective moment under the arbor was an opportune time for a self-portrait.

If our freezer would afford us the space to save twenty-four pounds of grapes, I may not have attempted the arduous process of making jelly. It is trickier than I imagined and despite my good intentions and recipe, did not quite get the formula right. Instead of jelly, we have a concoction that looks like syrup and tastes like honey. Pancakes anyone?

August 11, 2015 by Theresa Mae Funk

Passing Shot: Up The Creek Without a Palette

“Up the Creek Without a Palette” 16″ x 14″ pencil and watercolor work-in-progress on paper.

I invited my partner to have a look at one of my sketches, and he admitted that he wasn’t quite sure what he was looking at. His reply initially hurt my fragile self-taught artist ego, but I appreciated his honesty, and forgave his lack of shared vision. My former, less confident self might have accepted his comment as absolute truth and hastily abandoned the newborn work but instead, I allowed my intuition to confront and dispel the fear of dreaded rejection that keeps many artists from sharing their work in the first place. The truth of the matter is this: My artistic style is not going to appeal to everyone, and not everyone is going to support my creative endeavors, but that is not going to stop me from bringing my work into the world. There is no other option because at my very core, I am an artist.

August 4, 2015 by Theresa Mae Funk

Friday Night Goofball: Big Adventures of a Little Dog

Stella takes a break mid-play and strikes a pose.

Stella is very good at initiating work breaks, and employs a few different strategies to get me out of my work space. Last Friday, she lured me out of my studio with her “come and play with me” bright eyed, wagging tail cuteness and invitation to play a round of a game I call, Goofball.

Standing at the bottom of the stairwell, I toss the ball to the top of the landing where Stella waits to make the catch. She then spends a few minutes toying with the ball until she is ready to send it down the stairs to me, then comes racing down to intercept it. She remains undefeated.

July 22, 2015 by Theresa Mae Funk

Moving On and Pushing Through: Life in the New Studio

After weeks of heavy lifting, sifting, and shifting, I am feeling more settled in my new office and studio. And so does Stella.

July 8, 2015 by Theresa Mae Funk

Next Year’s Peck of Peppers

I’m not entirely certain where some of these Bell Pepper seeds are going to land in next year’s garden, but I insist that we make room for some of them. Peppers of all varieties are an excellent source of vitamins A and C, potassium, folic acid and fiber. The seeds from one pepper, if germinated successfully, could yield us a peck if only we had enough acreage to accommodate them.

June 16, 2015 by Theresa Mae Funk

Bee Feeders

Bee keepers have varied opinions about which type of bee feeders work best to nourish their hives. Rusty Burlew’s Honey Bee Suite provides comprehensive information on the subject, along with beautiful photos of bees and other pollinators. I don’t keep hives, but I do like to feed bees, and find the Black Eyed Susan model is affordable, beautiful to look at, and easy to maintain.