the 25-Down, founder of the kingdom of Hawaii

prospecting Artistic touches make works shine at Gold Country Artists Gallery

D. Lee Reyes Gold Country Artists Gallery

Gold Country Artists Gallery, an awardwinning artists’ cooperative located in Placerville, features the work of Craig Koski, Barbie Smith and Nataly Tikhomirov in October. Meet the artists on Main Street’s Third Saturday Artwalk, 5-8 pm. Oct. 16.

Elevated skill

Koski is a true child of El Dorado County, having attended Placerville schools and working for many years at a local Raley’s. He also owned several successful small businesses. Koski always saw himself as an artist, finding his passion in photography and spending a lifetime mastering his favored medium. He explains that capturing his love for his hometown and the history that surrounds it drives his photographic creativity. His challenge, though, was to find a way to distinguish his work from other artists and to share an emotional reaction with the viewer.

With the advent of Photoshop and digital photography, a whole new world of possibilities developed for Koski and he took full advantage of the new technology to elevate his work. Learning to use his camera, lenses and manual settings to their fullest gave him the advantage of recreating images as he snapped the shutter. Koski explains his “preconceived vision of the end result” facilitates his creation of a work of art to evoke an emotion.

In one of his favorite images, “Main Street Sunrise,” he successfully combined his two passions for the first time. He electronically stitched several photographs together in a seamless panorama, creating an image that incorporates many historical buildings of Placerville, including the famous Bell Tower. He added his own artistic touches to convey a feeling of stillness on a new day breathlessly waiting to begin. But mostly one wonders at the patience required to catch this scene just moments before sunrise, before the artificial lights of night give way to dazzling sunlight, before traffic roars down the street and people going about their business change the serenity of the scene. It speaks to Koski’s commitment to impart the gift of his emotional vision.

Koski describes his process of creating photo art as extremely technical, employing digital manipulation to create layers of images with various software and post-processing programs. This can take hours and he is done only when the image “feels good” to him. “Lion Eyes” is an excellent example of Koski’s process. He uses black and white for the large cat itself, tightly focusing on the cat’s face so that each tuft of fur and whisker is clear. It is his enhancement of the startling orange of the cat’s eyes, though, that holds one’s attention, the lion looking — watchfully and intently — directly at the viewer.

Koski captures the essence of gold country in his photographic depiction of a “49’r.” He tells a story in this black and white image, harkening back to the days of the ’49ers and the Gold Rush, of living hardscrabble while hoping to find the bit of gold to make it all worth the struggle. Koski carefully guides our view around the image, following light and shadow, from the knobby hands grasping the rifle barrel to the folds and textures of the old timer’s clothing and up to the scrubby hat set above bright, wizened eyes. The viewer can sense Koski’s reverence for, and delight in, this symbolic representation of the area’s history.

While the folks of the early Motherlode era brought treasure from the ground, Koski seeks to share the treasure of El Dorado and his beloved Placerville with his stunning photo art.

“49’r” by Craig Koski

Painting with passion

Smith’s artistic journey began when she was a little girl, inspired by stories her mother read to her as a child, especially from books with vivid illustrations. Her journey has always been along an artistic path, from her childhood pencil sketches of animals and people she imagined, to enrolling as an art student at San Jose State. While there, she honed her skills and explored painting with acrylics on small canvases as well as large mural work. A deep sense of purpose and satisfaction resulted that she found in no other activity.

Smith’s journey led to lessons given by a friend who taught a class in beginning oil painting. It was a life changing encounter when her mentor told her, “You were born to do this!” Smith credits the many fine artists whose workshops and mentoring helped her to embrace the brush and the blade of a palette knife to become more fluent in the language of expressive painting.

Her favored techniques

n See Gallery, page B10

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october-16-2021 or email info@rombauer.com. Third Saturday Art Walk will begin its fall/ winter hours, 4-8 p.m. Enjoy live music at the Bell Tower and the band Altoksyndrum at the Wine Smith starting at 7 p.m. Published Poet Rina Wakefield will be featured at TooGood Winery, 6-7:30 p.m. There will be an artist demonstration at Art Studio 360 and a drawing for a free commissioned pet portrait. Five galleries and 20 retailers will stay open late in downtown Placerville.

Oct. 17

Eldo Rebekah Lodge will hold its monthly drive-thru breakfast at 7672 S. Shingle Road, Latrobe, serving burritos from 8 to 11 a.m. The Auburn Big Time Pow Wow takes place 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the Gold Country Fairgrounds, 1273 High St. in Auburn. Enjoy Native American art, food, dancing and more. For more information visit sierranativealliance.org/events. The Folsom Concert Association presents a free ABBA Fab Tribute Concert at 2 p.m. at Harris Center for the Arts, 10 College Parkway in Folsom. To learn more visit folsomconcertassociation.org/abba-fab-2021.

Oct. 18

El Dorado West Republican Women Federated hosts its annual Meet Your Elected Officials luncheon at the Light of the Hills Lutheran Church, 3100 Rodeo Road in Cameron Park. Guest speakers are Congressman Tom McClintock, Assemblyman Kevin Kiley and Nick Nelson, regional field rep for Turning Point USA. Doors open at 11:30 a.m. For more information visit cfrw.org/region-2/el-dorado-westrepublican-women-federated. Assemblyman Kevin Kiley will speak at a town hall meeting, 5:30-7 p.m. at the Cameron Park Community Center, 2502 Country Club Drive. This informative speaking engagement is open to the public and will shed new light on legislative efforts to help local businesses. For more information call (530) 677-8000.

Oct. 19

The Widowed Persons Club, created to give support and friendship to help through the grieving processing, meets for breakfast at 9 a.m. Tuesdays at Waffle Shop Cafe in Placerville; 9 a.m. Wednesdays at Beef & Brew in Diamond Springs and 9 a.m. Wednesdays at Denny’s in Cameron Park. For more information contact Don at (530) 363-7476 or Nancy at (530) 6228276. for some good food and good tunes. For more information call (530) 626-1091.

Oct. 20

The El Dorado Hills Chamber of Commerce

and True North Consulting host a grand opening celebration, 5-6 p.m. at the California Welcome Center, 2085 Vine St., Suite 105, El Dorado Hills. RSVP at eldoradohillschamber.org.

Now

Have you always wanted to create your very own scarecrow? Here’s a chance to let your imagination run wild. Gather up your supplies and enter the EDHCSD annual Scarecrow Contest. There is no entry fee and you can use supplies scavenged from the barn or storage shed. Scarecrows must be setup by 5 p.m. Friday, Oct. 22. Winners are announced at Trunk or Treat. For more information visit eldoradohillscsd.org. Hummingbird Theatre Company presents “Into the Woods” through Oct. 24 at the Village Green Park Amphitheatre, 3141 Bridgeway Drive, Rancho Cordova. For tickets and more information visit hummingbirdtheatreco.com. Haunted Hangtown Ghost Tours take place most weekends through Halloween. For more information or to book a tour call (925) 6426471 or email hangtownghosttours@gmail.com. Heartstoppers Haunted House brings the scares to Rancho Cordova through Halloween. For tickets and more information visit heartstoppershaunt.com.

The El Dorado County Senior Nutrition

Program is looking for dedicated, caring volunteers for the home delivered meal program. A volunteer generally works one day each week on an assigned route, delivering meals 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Volunteers are needed for all locations: Pollock Pines, Cameron Park, Garden Valley and Georgetown, Placerville, Diamond Springs, Shingle Springs and El Dorado Hills. To learn more about volunteering for the Senior Nutrition Program call (530) 621-6160 or visit edcgov.us/humanservices. Farmers markets are in full swing. The El Dorado County Certified Farmers Markets Association markets are as follows: 8 a.m. to noon Saturdays in the Regal Cinema parking lot in Placerville; 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sundays at El Dorado Hills Town Center; 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesdays at the American Legion Hall parking lot in South Lake Tahoe; and 8 a.m. to noon Wednesdays at Burke Junction in Cameron Park. The Hangtown Farmers Market is held 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sundays at 345 Placerville Drive. The El Dorado County Farm Trails Farmers Markets are held 4-7:30 p.m. Wednesdays near the Bell Tower in downtown Placerville and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Fridays at Marshall Hospital.