June 25th, 2007

Weekend in Napa

I visited Napa last weekend to see some old friends and to unveil 46 Diamonds, a new wine by Fleming’s and Flora Springs that I collaborated with to design the wine label. We are all very excited about this exceptional Cabernet blend and I really enjoyed spending time with the Fleming’s Magnum Club members who joined us in celebrating this new venture.

I use every minute that I can to paint . . . especially when I have a few hours to kill on the plane. My new friend Bob from Sarasota and I had some great conversations – we both got a kick out of all the people who stopped by to see the new watercolor I was working on.

As soon as we got into town, we stopped by to see my good friend John at Blu Fine Art on Santana Row in San Jose. The gallery looks great! After taking the tour of his newly renovated gallery, we stopped in to have lunch down the street at Tanglewood. I highly recommend the kobe pot roast sandwich – now that’s lunch!

Later that evening, we joined the Magnum Club for a special dinner hosted by Paul & Kelly Fleming. The setting was stunning and we could not have asked for a more gracious host and hostess – the dinner was wonderful and the company was even better.

Here I am taking some time to finish another watercolor before heading out for the evening. Whether I’m traveling or at home, the kitchen is always one of my favorite places to hang out – if only I could cook and paint at the same time . . .

Marian Jansen Op de Haar, the Director or Wine at Fleming’s, and I share a few words with the guests about how we created the wine and the art for 46 Diamonds. The inspiration for the name comes from the forty-six diamonds found in the architecture of every Fleming’s restaurant.

Ah . . . what a pleasure to sit down and enjoy a glass of wine with my friend and owner of Flora Springs, John Komes. I’m honored to be participate in this project with such talented winemakers – we had a great time sharing our inspirations with so many others who are just as passionate about wine. Cheers!

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June 15th, 2007

Summer at the Cabin

This week, I took some time out of my studio schedule to meet with my staff and brainstorm about new ideas for the coming months. Sitting out on the deck and relaxing in the shade is a great place to exchange ideas – when everyone is comfortable and casual, the creative energy is amazing! Getting together to enjoy a fresh and simple meal with good company restores balance in our busy lives and gives us an opportunity to focus on our goals. We have a great team and I think you’ll be interested to see what we come up with next . . .

At 90 degrees and rising, the best way to cool down is with my famous frozen Mojitos. So easy to make – all you need is some frozen limeade, fresh mint, ice, lemon-lime soda and your favorite rum. Throw it all in the blender and voila – the perfect afternoon treat!

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